CATHOLIC Quotes – Page 240

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Quote/s of the Day -– 13 March – St Leander

Posted on March 13, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day -– 13 March – Wednesday of the First week of Lent, Year C and The Memorial of St Leander (c 534-c 600)

“This man of suave eloquence and eminent talent shone as brightly by his virtues as by his doctrine. By his faith and zeal the Gothic people have been converted from Arianism to the Catholic faith”

St Isidore of Seville (560-636) Doctor of the Church,

speaking of his brother St Leander, whom we celebrate today.

“The humble man receives praise,
the way a clean window
takes the light of the sun.
The truer and more intense the light is,
the less you see of the glass.”

Thomas Merton OCSO (1915-1968)

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One Minute Reflection – 13 March – Something greater than Jonah is here

Posted on March 13, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 13 March – Wednesday of the First week of Lent, Year C – The Memorial of St Leander (c 534-c 600)

“The men of Nineveh will arise at the judgement with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.”...Luke 11:32

REFLECTION – “The conversion of a great city like Nineveh stuns us! The message in any case is clear – collective choices are possible. Today, however, unfortunately, a collective choice is clearly manifested only when a country declares war on another. Emmanuel Kant recognised the strength of a community that was eager to share the same values, Margaret Mead that of a small group determined to change the world. The initiators of Congregations, of ecclesial movements, pious associations and social reforms shook the world with their community decisions. Jesus’s pain at resistance to His teaching has a lesson for those who put on the helmet of ‘indifference’ or the blinkers of ‘apathy’ – the LUKEWARM! Atheists and agnostics will rise from their graves to point to opportunities such people wasted. AWAKE! Lukewarmness is SIN!”…Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil SDB

PRAYER – Help me, my God and my Father, to discern through prayer and meditation what You truly want of me. Then enable me to offer it to You – and indeed to offer myself and all I have to You. St Leander, you were and are an example to all around you, please pray for us, amen! st-leander-pray-for-us-2.13 march 2018.jpg

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Lenten Thoughts – 12 March – “On the Lord’s Prayer” – St Cyprian

Posted on March 12, 2019March 12, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Thoughts – 12 March – Tuesday of the First Week of Lent

Saint Cyprian of Carthage
Bishop, Father of the Church and Martyr

An excerpt from his “On the Lord’s Prayer”

Dear brothers, the commands of the Gospel are nothing else than God’s lessons, the foundations on which to build up hope, the supports for strengthening faith, the food that nourishes the heart. They are the rudder for keeping us on the right course, the protection that keeps our salvation secure. As they instruct the receptive minds of believers on earth, they lead safely to the kingdom of heaven.

God willed that many things should be said by the prophets, His servants and listened to by His people. How much greater are the things spoken by the Son. These are now witnessed to by the very word of God who spoke through the prophets. The Word of God does not now command us to prepare the way for His coming – He comes in person and opens up the way for us and directs us toward it. Before, we wandered in the darkness of death, aimlessly and blindly. Now we are enlightened by the light of grace and are to keep to the highway of life, with the Lord to precede and direct us.

The Lord has given us many counsels and commandments to help us toward salvation. He has even given us a pattern of prayer, instructing us on how we are to pray. He has given us life and with His accustomed generosity, He has also taught us how to pray. He has made it easy for us to be heard as we pray to the Father in the words taught us by the Son.

He has already foretold that the hour was coming when true worshippers would worship the Father in spirit and in truth. He fulfilled what He had promised before, so that we who have received the spirit and the truth through the holiness He has given us, may worship in truth and in the spirit through the prayer He has taught.

What prayer could be more a prayer in the spirit than the one given us by Christ, by whom the Holy Spirit was sent upon us? What prayer could be more a prayer in the truth than the one spoken by the lips of the Son, who is Truth Himself? It follows that to pray in any other way than the Son has taught us is not only the result of ignorance but of sin. He himself has commanded it and has said – You reject the command of God, to set up your own tradition.

So, my brothers, let us pray as God our master has taught us. To ask the Father in words His Son has given us, to let Him hear the prayer of Christ ringing in His ears, is to make our prayer one of friendship, a family prayer. Let the Father recognise the words of His Son. Let the Son who lives in our hearts, be also on our lips. We have Him as an Advocate for sinners, before the Father, when we ask for forgiveness for ours sins, let us use the words given by our Advocate. He tells us – Whatever you ask the Father in my name, He will give you. What more effective prayer could we then make, in the name of Christ, than in the words of His own prayer?

QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY

Thought for the Day – 12 March – “God alone! disconsolate soul, God alone!”

Posted on March 12, 2019March 12, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 12 March – Tuesday of the First Week of Lent, C – Gospel Matthew 6:7–15 and the Memorial of St Luigi Orione FDP (1872-1940)

“Men who have risked their lives for the sake of Our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 15: 26). These words taken from the Acts of the Apostles can be well-applied to St Luigi Orione, a man who gave himself entirely for the cause of Christ and His Kingdom. Physical and moral sufferings, fatigue, difficulty, misunderstandings and all kinds of obstacles characterised his apostolic ministry. “Christ, the Church, souls”, he would say, “are loved and served on the cross and through crucifixion or they are not loved and served at all” (Writings, 68, 81).

The heart of this strategy of charity was “without limits because it was opened wide by the charity of Christ” (ibid., 102, 32). Passion for Christ was the soul of his bold life, the interior thrust of an altruism without reservations, the always fresh source of an indestructible hope.

This humble son of a man who repaired roads proclaimed that “only charity will save the world” and to everyone he would often say, that “perfect joy can only be found in perfect dedication of oneself to God and man and to all mankind.”

St Pope John Paul on the Canonisation of St Luigi
Sixth Sunday of Easter, 16 May 2004

Work, Seeking God Alone
From writings by Saint Don Orione (1872-1940)

“Yesterday, when I was in the room of a good priest my eyes fell on these words:

God alone!

My look at that moment was full of weariness and pain and my mind was thinking about so many other days like yesterday, full of anxiety and above the whirl of so much anguish and above the confused sound of so many sighs, I seemed to hear the amiable and good voice of my Angel –
God alone! disconsolate soul, God alone!”

The ideal of Don Orione’s life was to live and to die for the spiritual welfare of people, serving Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Mother Church and its head, the Pope.

His motto was, “Do good always, to all, evil to none”.

St Luigi Orione, Pray for us!

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on PRAYER, SAINT of the DAY, SPEAKING of .....

Quote/s of the Day – 12 March – “Speaking of Prayer”

Posted on March 12, 2019March 12, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 12 March – Tuesday of the First Week of Lent, C – Gospel Matthew 6:7–15 and the Memorial of St Luigi Orione FDP (1872-1940)

“Speaking of Prayer”

“Without Prayer nothing good is done.
God’s works are done with our hands joined
and on our knees.
Even when we run,
we must remain spiritually
kneeling before Him.”

Saint Luigi Orione (1872-1940)

“But if He who was without sin prayed,
how much more ought sinners to pray
and if He prayed continually,
watching through the whole night with uninterrupted petitions,
how much more ought we
to lie awake at night in continuing prayer!”

St Cyprian of Carthage (c 200- c 258)

Father of the Church

(The Lord’s Prayer #29)

“Your prayer is a conversation with God.
When you read, it is God who is speaking,
when you pray, it is with God that you are speaking.”

St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church

“All that one says to the Saviour is prayer
and when the mind cannot apply itself,
to the effort of true prayer,
a few simple words to Him become one.
It is needful always to think of Him,
even if it is only by the thought
that one is thinking less of Him –
one must be always thinking of Him
and then bit by bit,
He draws one back entirely to Him,
He is so good!”

Eugene de Ferronays (1827 – 1894)

“When we pray,
let it be our whole being
that turns towards God –
our thoughts,
our heart…
The Lord will be moved
to incline towards us
and come to our help…”

St Pio of Pietralcina “Padre Pio” (1887-1968)

“Prayer is necessary to receive the help of God,
as grain is needed to harvest … a humble and trustful prayer,
for what is necessary for salvation,
is never lost.
It is heard at least by the fact,
that it begs for the grace,
to abide in prayer.”

Blessed Michal Sopoćko (1888-1975)

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on FORGIVENESS, The WORD

Lenten Reflection – 12 March – “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors” – St Leo the Great

Posted on March 12, 2019March 12, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 12 March – Tuesday of the First Week of Lent, C – Gospel Matthew 6:7–15 tuesday-of-the-first-week-of-lent-12 March 2019.jpg

“Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors”

St Pope Leo the Great (400-461)

Father & Doctor of the Church

“Those who wish to receive the Paschal feast of the Lord in holiness of mind and body should strive, above all, to win that grace which contains the summit of virtues and “covers a multitude of sins” (1 Pt 4:8). So at the point of celebrating the greatest of all mysteries, that with which the blood of Jesus Christ wiped out our iniquities, let us first of all prepare the sacrifice of mercy.

Thus we shall return to those who have offended us what the goodness of God has granted us. May insults be cast into oblivion, wrongs ignore torture from now on and all offences be set free from fear of reprisal!… If someone should detain such prisoners… may he fully understand that he himself is a sinner and, so as to receive forgiveness, let him rejoice that he has found someone to forgive. In this way, when we say, according to the Lord’s teaching: “Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors” (Mt 6:12), we shall have no doubt that we receive God’s pardon as we formulate our prayer.” matthew 6 9 forgive us our debts - st pope leo - thus we shall return to those 12 march 2019.jpg

Daily Meditation:
Help us grow in our desire for you.

We are learning the intimate connection
between the “discipline” we choose these days,
and the growth of our desire.
If our desire for our Lord is weak,
if it has to compete with so many other desires that choke it out,
then we need to re-form our desiring.
We want to be disciples –
those who love Jesus, are with Jesus in our desires,
and choose to follow Jesus.

In today’s lesson we learn the Lord’s Prayer again.
As children, we turn to our Loving Father in prayer.

“I shall know You,
You who know me.
Virtue of my soul,
go deep into it
and make it fit for You,
so that You may have it
and possess it,
without stain or wrinkle.”

St Augustine (354-430)

Father & Doctor of the Church

Closing Prayer:
Father of my soul,
Mother of my heart,
I know Your love for me is limitless beyond imagining.
You care for me as a loving parent.
Through my smallest Lenten sacrifices,
help me to become less selfish
and more aware of Your ways.
Fan the flame of my desire
to draw ever closer to You.
Guide me to seek Your love.

May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen

“Your faith will grow,
only in the measure,
that you give it away.”

Bishop Robert Barron

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2019, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on CHARITY, The WORD

Lenten Thoughts – 11 March – Let us show each other God’s generosity – Saint Gregory Nazianzen (330-390)

Posted on March 11, 2019March 11, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Thoughts – 11 March – Monday of the First Week of Lent, Gospel: Matthew 25:31–46

Let us show each other God’s generosity

Saint Gregory Nazianzen (330-390)
Bishop. Father, Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from his Oration 14: On Love of the Poor

Recognise to whom you owe the fact that you exist, that you breathe, that you understand, that you are wise and, above all, that you know God and hope for the kingdom of heaven and the vision of glory, now darkly as in a mirror but then with greater fullness and purity. You have been made a son of God, co-heir with Christ. Where did you get all this and from whom?

Let me turn to what is of less importance – the visible world around us. What benefactor has enabled you to look out upon the beauty of the sky, the sun in its course, the circle of the moon, the countless number of stars, with the harmony and order that are theirs, like the music of a harp? Who has blessed you with rain, with the art of husbandry, with different kinds of food, with the arts, with houses, with laws, with states, with a life of humanity and culture, with friendship and the easy familiarity of kinship?

Who has given you dominion over animals, those that are tame and those that provide you with food? Who has made you lord and master of everything on earth? In short, who has endowed you with all that makes man superior to all other living creatures?

Is it not God who asks you now in your turn to show yourself generous above all other creatures and for the sake of all other creatures? Because we have received from Him so many wonderful gifts, will we not be ashamed to refuse Him this one thing only, our generosity? Though He is God and Lord, He is not afraid to be known as our Father. Shall we for our part repudiate those who are our kith and kin?

Brethren and friends, let us never allow ourselves to misuse what has been given us by God’s gift. If we do, we shall hear Saint Peter say – Be ashamed of yourselves for holding onto what belongs to someone else. Resolve to imitate God’s justice and no-one will be poor. Let us not labour to heap up and hoard riches while others remain in need. If we do, the prophet Amos will speak out against us with sharp and threatening words -Come now, you that say: When will the new moon be over, so that we may start selling? When will the sabbath be over, so that we may start opening our treasures?

Let us put into practice the supreme and primary law of God. He sends down rain on just and sinful alike and causes the sun to rise on all without distinction. To all earth’s creatures He has given the broad earth, the springs, the rivers and the forests. He has given the air to the birds and the waters to those who live in the water. He has given abundantly to all the basic needs of life, not as a private possession, not restricted by law, not divided by boundaries but as common to all, amply and in rich measure. His gifts are not deficient in any way, because He wanted to give equality of blessing to equality of worth and to show the abundance of His generosity. resolve to imitate god's justice and noone will be poor - st gregory of nazianzen 11 march 2019 1st mond of lent.jpg

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Quote of the Day – 11 March “Charity”

Posted on March 11, 2019March 11, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote of the Day – 11 March – Monday of the First Week of Lent,

Gospel: Matthew 25:31–46

“Charity is the form,
mover, mother
and root
of all the virtues.”

St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church

FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on CHARITY, The WORD

Lenten Reflection – 11 March – “Come, you who are blessed by my Father”

Posted on March 11, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 11 March – Monday of the First Week of Lent, Gospel: Matthew 25:31–46

“Come, you who are blessed by my Father”
Homily attributed to Saint Hippolytus of Rome (c 170-c 235)
Priest and Martyr

“Come, my Father’s blessed ones, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Come, you lovers of poor people and strangers. Come, you who fostered My love, for I am love… Look, My kingdom is ready, paradise stands open, My immortality is displayed in all its beauty. Come now, all of you, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.

Then, astounded at so great a wonder – at being addressed as friends by Him whom the angelic hosts are unable clearly to behold – the righteous will reply, exclaiming: “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you? Master, when did we see You thirsty and give You a drink? When did we see You, whom we hold in awe, naked and clothe You? When did we see You, the immortal One, a stranger and welcome You? When did we see You, lover of our race, sick or in prison and come to visit You? You are the Eternal, without beginning like the Father, and co-eternal with the Spirit. You are the One who created all things from nothing, You are the King of angels, You make the depths tremble, You are clothed in light as in a robe (Ps 104[103]:2), You are our maker who fashioned us from the earth (Gn 2:7), You are the creator of the world invisible. The whole earth flies from Your presence (Rv 20:11). How could we possibly have received Your lordship, Your royal majesty, as our guest?”

Then will the King of Kings say to them in reply: “Inasmuch as you did this to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you did it to me. Inasmuch as you received, clothed, fed and gave a drink to those members of mine (1Cor 12:12) about whom I have just spoken to you, that is, to the poor, you did it to me. So come, enter the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, enjoy forever the gifts of my heavenly Father and of the most holy and life-giving Spirit.” What tongue can describe those blessings? “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor human heart conceived what God has prepared for those who love him” (1Cor 2:9).

Daily Meditation:
Bring us back to you.
We repeat our desire that God bring us home from our wandering.
We know that in the confusion that surrounds us and can fill us,
we need the gift of Wisdom.

It is fitting that our very first “lesson” in our faith,
is the last judgement scene that Jesus paints for us.
We will be judged on whether we:
fed the hungry
welcomed the stranger
clothed the naked
comforted the sick
visited the imprisoned.
It is powerful to re-learn this wisdom –
Jesus identifies with each of these “least” cared for.

Who might we feed, welcome, clothe, comfort or visit this week?
As my heart might “resist” this mission,
I might beg to be brought back, with all my heart.

Praise to Jesus, our Saviour, by his death He has opened for us the way of salvation.
Let us ask Him:
Lord, guide Your people to walk in Your ways.

God of mercy, You gave us new life through baptism,
– make us grow day by day in Your likeness.
May our generosity today bring joy to those in need,
– in helping them may we find You.
Help us to do what is good, right and true in Your sight,
– and to seek You always with undivided hearts.
Forgive our sins against the unity of Your family,
– make us one in heart and spirit.

Closing Prayer:
Loving God,
You call us back to You with all of our hearts.
I feel Your call for me deep in my heart
and I know You want me back
as much as I want to return.
Please, Lord,
give me the wisdom to know how to return.
Make my journey back to You this Lent
one of grace, forgiveness and gentle love.

May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen. monday of the 1st week of lent 11 march 2019.jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, St JOSEPH

Novena to St Joseph starts tomorrow!

Posted on March 10, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Novena to St Joseph

St Teresa of Avila’s Plea

“Would that I could persuade all men to be devoted to this glorious Saint [St. Joseph], for I know by long experience what blessings he can obtain for us from God. I have never known anyone who was truly devoted to him and honoured him by particular services who did not advance greatly in virtue, for he helps in a special way those souls who commend themselves to him. It is now very many years since I began asking him for something on his feast and I have always received it. I f the petition was in any way amiss, he rectified it for my greater good . . .

” I ask for the love of God that he who does not believe me will make the trial for himself—then he will find out by experience the great good that results from commending oneself to this glorious Patriarch and in being devoted to him.”

St Alphonsus Liguori on St Joseph,
Patron of a Happy Death

“Since we all must die, we should cherish a special devotion to St. Joseph, that he may obtain for us a happy death. All Christians regard him as the advocate of the dying who had honoured him during their life and they do so for three reasons:

“First, because Jesus Christ loved him not only as a friend but as a father and on this account his mediation is far more efficacious than that of any other Saint.

“Second, because St Joseph has obtained special power against the evil spirits, who tempt us with redoubled vigour at the hour of death.

“Third, the assistance given St Joseph at his death by Jesus and Mary obtained for him the right to secure a holy and peaceful death for his servants. Hence, if they invoke him at the hour of death he will not only help them but he will also obtain for them the assistance of Jesus and Mary.”

St Joseph we ask for your assistance in all our needs starting tomorrow, pray for us!

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2019, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on TEMPTATION, QUOTES on the DEVIL/EVIL

Lenten Thoughts – 10 March – We progress by means of trial.

Posted on March 10, 2019March 10, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Thoughts – 10 March – The First Sunday of Lent

In Christ we suffered temptation and in Him we overcame the devil

Saint Augustine (354-430)
Bishop and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from his Commentary on the Psalms, Psalm 60.

Hear, O God, my petition, listen to my prayer. Who is speaking? An individual, it seems. See if it is an individual – I cried to you from the ends of the earth while my heart was in anguish. Now it is no longer one person, rather, it is one in the sense, that Christ is one and we are all His members. What single individual can cry from the ends of the earth? The one who cries from the ends of the earth is none other than the Son’s inheritance. It was said to him: Ask of me, and I shall give you the nations as your inheritance and the ends of the earth as your possession. This possession of Christ, this inheritance of Christ, this body of Christ, this one Church of Christ, this unity that we are, cries from the ends of the earth. What does it cry? What I said before – Hear, O God, my petition, listen to my prayer, I cried out to you from the ends of the earth. That is, I made this cry to you from the ends of the earth, that is, on all sides.

Why did I make this cry? While my heart was in anguish. The speaker shows that he is present among all the nations of the earth in a condition, not of exalted glory but of severe trial.

Our pilgrimage on earth cannot be exempt from trial. We progress by means of trial. No one knows himself except through trial, or receives a crown except after victory, or strives except against an enemy or temptations.

The one who cries from the ends of the earth is in anguish but is not left on his own. Christ chose to foreshadow us, who are His body, by means of His body, in which He has died, risen and ascended into heaven, so that the members of His body may hope to follow where their head has gone before.

He made us one with Him when He chose to be tempted by Satan. We have heard in the gospel how the Lord Jesus Christ was tempted by the devil in the wilderness. Certainly Christ was tempted by the devil. In Christ you were tempted, for Christ received His flesh from your nature but by His own power gained life for you, He suffered insults in your nature but by His own power gained glory for you, therefore, He suffered temptation in your nature but by His own power gained victory for you.

If in Christ we have been tempted, in Him we overcame the devil. Do you think only of Christ’s temptations and fail to think of His victory? See yourself as tempted in Him and see yourself as victorious in Him. He could have kept the devil from Himself but if He were not tempted, He could not teach you how to triumph over temptation.

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Thought for the Day – 10 March – “I am looking at my Lord. It is in looking at Him, that we learn how to love.”

Posted on March 10, 2019March 10, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 10 March – The Memorial of St Marie Eugénie de Jésus (1817-1898)

Marie Eugenie led the Assumption for fifty-five years. Her life was full. Her first priority was for her sisters: their happiness, their formation, their work. She was concerned for their health – more than two hundred sisters were to die before she did, often young and of tuberculosis.

She was constantly travelling from community to community, encouraging, consoling and challenging. As the Congregation became known, she was invited to start more and more communities. She saw her work as being always in and for the Church and her loyalty to it was absolute.

The last few years of her life were spent in increasing retirement. Gradually her health failed. Her legs refused to carry her and her speech also slowed, so that at the end she could only occasionally say a few words. Those around her were struck by her gentleness and patience. One day she managed to say –

“I am looking at my Lord.

It is in looking at Him, that we learn how to love.”

She died, surrounded by her sisters, on the 10th March 1898. i am looking at my lord - st marie eugenie de jesus 10 march 2019

Credo of St Marie Eugenie of Jesus

I believe that our earth is a place of glory for God.
I believe that the destiny of the world is the Reign of Jesus Christ.
I believe that each of us has a mission on earth.
I believe that the aim of our religion, is not just our own eternal happiness
but to let God use us, to make the Gospel known and loved.
I believe that each one enters into God’s plan by prayer, by action and by the cross
And that to refuse His call, is to refuse our own happiness.
I believe the aim of Christian education, is to make Jesus Christ known
As the liberator and ruler of the world..

St Marie Eugénie de Jésus, Pray for Us!

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FRIENDSHIP, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on PRAYER, SAINT of the DAY

Quote/s of the Day – 10 March – St Marie Eugénie de Jésus

Posted on March 10, 2019March 10, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 10 March – The Memorial of St Marie Eugénie de Jésus (1817-1898)

“Be the cotton
between sheets of glass,
to keep others, from shattering.”

“Transform
everything into
Praise and Thanksgiving!”

“Love never says
‘I have done enough.'”

St Marie Eugénie de Jésus (1817-1898)

EUCHARISTIC Adoration, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SUNDAY REFLECTIONS, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, Thomas a Kempis, Uncategorized

Sunday Reflection – 10 March – “What does Jesus Christ do in the Eucharist? – St John Vianney

Posted on March 10, 2019March 9, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Sunday Reflection – 10 March – The First Sunday of Lent

“What does Jesus Christ do in the Eucharist?

It is God, who, as our Saviour, offers Himself each day for us to His Father’s justice.

If you are in difficulties and sorrows, He will comfort and relieve you.
If you are sick, He will either cure you or give you strength to suffer, so as to merit Heaven.
If the devil, the world and the flesh are making war upon you, He will give you the weapons with which to fight, to resist and to win the victory.
If you are poor, he will enrich you with all sorts of riches for time and for eternity.
Let us open the door of His Sacred and Adorable Heart and be wrapped about for an instant, by the flames of His love and we shall see, what a God who loves us, can do.
O my God, who shall be able to comprehend?”

St John Vianney (1786-1859)

what does jesus christ do in the eucharist - st john vianney - sun reflection 10 march 2019

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on TEMPTATION, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 10 March – “When I am weak, then am I strong.”

Posted on March 10, 2019March 10, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 10 March – The First Sunday of Lent

And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit for forty days in the wilderness, tempted by the devil….Luke 4:1-2

REFLECTION – “The devil does not have only one weapon. He uses many different means to defeat human beings – now with bribery, now with boredom, now with greed he attacks, inflicting mental and physical wounds equally.
The kind of temptation varies with the different kinds of victim. Avarice is the test of the rich, loss of children that of parents and everyone is exposed to pain of mind or body. What a wealth of weapons is at the devil’s disposal!

It was for this reason that the Lord chose to have nothing to lose. He came to us in poverty so that the devil could find nothing to take away from Him. You see the truth of this when you hear the Lord himself saying:

“The prince of this world is come and has found nothing in me” [John 14:30]. The devil could only test Him with bodily pain but this too was useless because Christ despised bodily suffering.

Job was tested by his own goods, whereas Christ was tempted, during the experience of the wilderness, by the goods of all. In fact, the devil robbed Job of his riches and offered Christ the kingdom of the whole world. Job was tested by vexations, Christ by prizes. Job the faithful servant replied: “The Lord has given and the Lord has taken away” [Job 1:21] Christ, being conscious of His own divine nature, scorned the devil’s offering of what already belonged to Him.
So let us not be afraid of temptations. Rather, let us glory in them saying: “When I am weak, then am I strong.” [2 Cor. 12:10]….St Ambrose (339-397 AD) – Doctor of the Church Luke 4 1-2 jesus in the wilderness tempted - so let us not be afrai - st ambrose - 10 march 2019.jpg

PRAYER – Through our annual Lenten observance, Lord, deepen our understanding of the mystery of Christ and make it a reality in the conduct of our lives. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Lord’s Mother and ours, be ever our prayerful help. We make our prayer through our Lord, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. blessed-virgin-holy-mother-mary-pray-for-us-14-oct-2018.jpg

NOTES to Followers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, The WORD

Appeal Update – 9 March

Posted on March 9, 2019March 9, 2019 by AnaStpaul

My gratitude, love and prayers to YOU!

Appeal Update:

“But thanks be to God,who always leads us in triumph in Christ..”

2 Corinthians 2:14

Holy Mass will be offered on Thursday 14 March for:

Marna Fisher
Sherry Potenziano
Patrick Orlando
Anne Marie Hennigan

“Get used to lifting your heart to God,
in acts of thanksgiving, many times a day.
Because He gives you this and that.
Because you have been despised.
Because you haven’t what you need
or because you have.
Because He made His Mother so beautiful,
His Mother who is also your Mother.
Because He created the sun and the moon
and this animal and that plant.
Because He made that man eloquent
and you He left tongue-tied …
Thank Him for everything,
because everything is good.”

St Josemaria Escrivá (1902-1975)

LENT 2019, LENTEN THOUGHTS, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST

Lenten Thoughts – 9 March – Do not leave Him alone

Posted on March 9, 2019March 9, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Thoughts – 9 March – Saturday after Ash Wednesday

“The enormity of the fact that Christ has, on our behalf, already taken the most extreme punishment upon Himself, should move us, not to leave Him isolated.
It should also inspire us to rejoice that another has taken our place in representing sin before God – for not to rejoice at that, would be a further enormity.
Instead of leaving Him alone, we should be moved to enter into His suffering for us, doing together with Him, what little we can do, to atone for the world’s sin!”

Hans Urs von Balthasar

“Light of the World”

instead-of-leaving-him-alone-hans-urs-sat after ash-wed 9 march 2019.jpg

LENT 2019, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY

Quote of the Day – 9 March – St Catherine of Bologna

Posted on March 9, 2019March 9, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote of the Day – 9 March – Saturday after Ash Wednesday and the Memorial of St Catherine of Bologna OSC (1413-1463)

“Whoever wishes to carry
the cross for His sake,
must take up the proper weapons
for the contest,
especially those mentioned here.
First, diligence;
second, distrust of self;
third, confidence in God;
fourth, remembrance of His Passion;
fifth, mindfulness of one’s own death;
sixth, remembrance of God’s glory;
seventh, the injunctions of Sacred Scripture
following the example
of Jesus Christ in the desert.”

Saint Catherine of Bologna

from On the Seven Spiritual Weapons

FATHERS of the Church, GOD the FATHER, LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on FREEDOM, The WORD

Lenten Reflection – 9 March – Where, then, is true freedom?

Posted on March 9, 2019March 9, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 9 March – Saturday after Ash Wednesday “Come back to Me, with All your Heart” – Today’s Gospel : Luke 5:27-32 – The Calling of Matthew luke 5 28 leaving everything behind - calling of matthew - sat after ash wed lent 2019 9 march.jpg

“Leaving everything behind, the man got up and followed him” …Luke 5:28

Above the monastery some planes are cutting through the sky at tremendous speed. The noise of the engines frightens the birds, who take shelter in the cypresses of our cemetery. In front of the convent and crossing the land, is a tarred road along which lorries and carloads of tourists, for whom the sight of the monastery has no interest, run at all hours. One of the principal Spanish railways also runs through the fields of the monastery… People tell you that all this is freedom… But the man who reflects a little will see how deluded the world is in the midst of what he calls freedom…

Where, then, is true freedom? It is in the heart of one who loves nothing more than God. It is in the heart of one who is attached neither to spirit nor to matter but only to God. It is in that soul which is not subject to the “I” of egoism, which soars above its own thoughts, feelings, suffering and enjoyment. Freedom resides in the soul whose one reason for existence is God, whose life is God and nothing else but God.

The human spirit is small, impoverished, subject to a thousand changes of mood, ups and downs, depressions, disillusionments, etc and the body, to so much weakness. Freedom, then, is in God and the soul which truly, in soaring above everything, makes her abode in Him, can say that she enjoys freedom, to the extent that is possible for one still in the world to do so.”

Saint Raphael Arnaiz Baron (1911-1938)
Spanish Trappist monk

(Spiritual writings, 15/12/1936 (trans. ‘To know how to wait’, Mairin Mitchell)

Daily Meditation:
A Saturday of Lent
and more on “True Fasting.”
Each of the Saturdays of Lent are more upbeat and “lighter” in tone.
We are preparing for Sunday.

Our reading from Isaiah 58 continues,
as does our self-examination
regarding what true fasting is for us this Lent.

What patterns will I change?

Closing Prayer:

God, heavenly Father,
look upon me and hear my prayer
during this holy Season of Lent.
Help me to discipline my body
and be renewed in spirit.

Without You, I can do nothing.
By Your Holy Spirit, help me to know what is right
and to be eager to do Your will.
Teach me to find new life through penance.
Keep me from sin and help me to live by Your commandments.
God of love, bring me back to You.

Father, our source of life,
I reach out with joy to grasp Your hand,
guide and lead me in Your gentle mercy.

Let me be aware of
the many ways you reach out to help me today
and let me stand in awe of the power
that You use in such loving ways.

May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen

“Christ is the artist, tenderly wiping away
all the grime of sin that disfigures the human face
and restoring God’s image to its full beauty.”

St Gregory of Nyssa (c 335–C 395) Father of the Church

LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on CONVERSION, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 9 March – “Leaving everything behind, the man got up and followed him”

Posted on March 9, 2019March 9, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 9 March – Saturday after Ash Wednesday
Today’s Gospel : Luke 5:27-32 – The Calling of Matthew

“Leaving everything behind, the man got up and followed him”...Luke 5:28

REFLECTION – “Th exploiter Levi, changes his ways and becomes Matthew, the Apostle and Evangelist, the bearer of the Good News. His entire life-story proclaims that God is for the wrongdoer, inviting him to change. Paul changed his ways, so did Augustine, so did Jerome. So can you! Ignatius the soldier, becomes Ignatius the saint, the founder of the Jesuits. What will you be? What will you do? For YOU are called too!”…Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil SDB

“Because the healing power of God, knows no infirmity that cannot be healed and this, must give us confidence and open our heart to the Lord, that He may come and heal us.”…Pope Francis – General Audience, 13 April 2016

PRAYER – Come my all-powerful, ever-living God, look with compassion on our frailty and for our protection, stretch out to us Your strong right hand. Grant that by the prayers of Mary, our Mother and all your angels and saints we may change our ways, leave everything behind, proclaim the glory of Your kingdom and come safely home to You. St Catherine of Bologna and St Frances of Rome, pray for us. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. st-frances-of-rome-pray-for-us - 9 march 2017.jpg

st catherine of bologna pray for us 9 march 2019

LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FASTING, The WORD

Friday after Ash Wednesday – 8 March “Then they will Fast”

Posted on March 8, 2019March 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Friday after Ash Wednesday – 8 March

“Come back to Me with all your Heart.”

Daily Meditation:
A Friday of Lent
and an introduction to “True Fasting.”
We are still in the first four days of Lent.
Today and tomorrow we read the 58th Chapter
of the book of the prophet Isaiah.
These powerful words have such a contemporary message.
True fasting will lead us to act justly and caring
for those who are most in need.

On every Friday of Lent we abstain from meat
as a sign of our common penance.
It represents our efforts to abstain from
– do without – so many other patterns
that get in the way of our happiness and wholeness.

“Then they will fast”

“Among the penitential practices that the Church suggests to us above all during this Lenten time is fasting. It consists in a special sobriety in the food we eat, while ensuring care for the needs of our body. This is a traditional form of penance, which has lost none of its significance and which we perhaps need to rediscover, above all in that part of the world and in the milieus where food not only abounds, but where we at times encounter illnesses due to overeating.

Obviously, penitential fasting is very different from therapeutic diets. But as it is, we can see in it a therapy for the soul. For when it is practised as a sign of conversion, it facilitates the interior effort to make oneself available to listening to God. To fast is to reaffirm for oneself what Jesus replied to Satan, when the latter tempted him at the end of forty days of fasting in the desert: “Not on bread alone is man to live but on every utterance that comes from the mouth of God.” (Mt 4:4) Today, especially in our well-to-do societies, it is difficult for us to understand the meaning of this word of the gospel. Instead of pacifying our needs, the consumer society creates ever new ones, even engendering disproportionate activism… Among other meanings, penitential fasting has precisely the aim of helping us to recover interiority.

The effort towards moderation in food also extends to other things that are not necessary and it greatly aids the life of the spirit. Sobriety, recollection and prayer go together. This principle can be appropriately applied to our use of the mass media. They are unquestionably useful but they must not become the “masters” over our life. In so many families, the television seems to replace rather than facilitate dialogue among the persons! A certain “fasting” in this area can be salutary, either so as to give more time to reflection and prayer or to cultivate human relations.”

St John Paul (1920-2005)

Closing Prayer:
Lord,
I know how much You love me.
It’s hard for me to feel it sometimes,
but I know Your love is always with me.

Help me to use Your love as a way
to persevere in my Lenten intentions.
I am weak but I know with Your help,
I can use these small sacrifices in my life to draw closer to You.

May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen

PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on the CHURCH, SAINT of the DAY

Quote/s of the Day – 8 March – St John of God

Posted on March 8, 2019March 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 8 March – The Memorial of St John of God (1495-1550)

“The first (virtue) is faith,
believing all that
holy mother church
believes and holds,
keeping and putting
into practice
what she commands”

“Labour without stopping,
do all the good works you can,
while you still have the time.”

“If we look forward to receiving God’s mercy,
we can never fail to do good,
so long as we have the strength.
For if we share with the poor,
out of love for God,
whatever He has given to us,
we shall receive according to His promise,
a hundredfold in eternal happiness.
What a fine profit, what a blessed reward!
With outstretched arms He begs us
to turn toward Him, to weep for our sins
and to become the servants of love,
first for ourselves, then for our neighbours.
Just as water extinguishes a fire,
so love wipes away sin.”

“Whether you like it or not,
you will grow apart from human beings.
However, Christ is faithful
and always with you.
Fot Christ provides all things.”

“The Heart Commands” – St John of God

LENT, LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on FASTING, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 8 March – Genuine Faith

Posted on March 8, 2019March 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 8 March – Friday after Ash Wednesday, Gospel: Matthew 9:14-15 and the Memorial of St John of God (1495-1550)

“Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast.”…Matthew 9:15 matthew 9 15 - can the wedding guests mourn.jpg

REFLECTION – “Genuine faith does not make a believer pretentious. Dialogue with God is not a business bargain. External observance of religion wins little favour with God, if it is combined with unfairness to the weak and indifference to the poor. Openness to the indigent is the door to true religion. The world itself changes for the better with the widening of human concern for the poor. Good works multiply on the face of the earth and everyone sees the glory of God in action.
The Gospel presents Jesus as refusing to absolutise ritual fasting. What He expects from His disciples, is that they remain faithful to the mission He is about to give them, even at great sacrifice. It will make evidently greater demands of them than mere ritual fasting. They should be prepared. Jesus is introducing a new set of values of immense worth, for which the old order of things must make way.”…Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil SDB

PRAYER – Lord God, bestow a full measure of Your grace upon us, who seek to make our lenten journey fruitful. Confirm us in Your service and help us to bear witness to You in the society in which we live by our lives, our fasting and prayer, our gift of self. Listen kindly we pray, to the prayers of St John of God who so avidly followed in the footsteps of our Saviour, Lord Jesus Christ, in whose name, with the Holy Spirit, we pray, one God forever, amen. st-john-of-god-pray-for-us-8 march 2019.jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2019, LENTEN THOUGHTS, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on LOVE

Lenten Thoughts – St Leo the Great – Purification of spirit through fasting and almsgiving

Posted on March 7, 2019March 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Thoughts – 7 March – Thursday after Ash Wednesday

Purification of spirit through fasting and almsgiving

Saint Pope Leo the Great (400-461)
Father & Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from his Sermo 6 de Quadragesima

Dear friends, at every moment the earth is full of the mercy of God and nature itself is a lesson for all the faithful, in the worship of God. The heavens, the sea and all that is in them, bear witness to the goodness and omnipotence of their Creator and the marvellous beauty of the elements, as they obey Him, demands from the intelligent creation, a fitting expression of its gratitude.

But with the return of that season marked out in a special way, by the mystery of our redemption and of the days that lead up to the paschal feast, we are summoned more urgentlyM to prepare ourselves by a purification of spirit.

The special note of the paschal feast is this – the whole Church rejoices in the forgiveness of sins. It rejoices in the forgiveness, not only of those who are then reborn in holy baptism but also of those, who are already numbered among God’s adopted children.

Initially, men are made new by the rebirth of baptism. Yet, there still is required a daily renewal to repair the shortcomings of our mortal nature and whatever degree of progress has been made, there is no-one, who should not be more advanced. All, must, therefore, strive to ensure that on the day of redemption, no-one may be found in the sins of his former life.

Dear friends, what the Christian should be doing at all times, should be done now with greater care and devotion, so that the Lenten fast enjoined by the apostles, may be fulfilled, not simply by abstinence from food but above all, by the renunciation of sin.

There is no more profitable practice as a companion to holy and spiritual fasting than that of almsgiving. This embraces under the single name of mercy, many excellent works of devotion, so that the good intentions of all the faithful, may be of equal value, even where their means are not. The love that we owe both God and man, is always free from any obstacle, that would prevent us from having a good intention. The angels sang – Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth. The person who shows love and compassion to those in any kind of affliction, is blessed, not only with the virtue of good will but also, with the gift of peace.

The works of mercy are innumerable. Their very variety, brings this advantage to those who are true Christians, that in the matter of almsgiving, not only the rich and affluent but also those of average means and the poor, are able to play their part. Those who are unequal in their capacity to give, can be equal, in the love within their hearts.

EUCHARISTIC Adoration, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on PERSECUTION, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CHURCH, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, SAINT of the DAY

Quote/s of the Day – 7 March by Blessed Leonid Feodorov (1879-1935) Martyr

Posted on March 7, 2019March 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 7 March – The Memorial of Blessed Leonid Feodorov (1879-1935) Martyr

“When I feel overwhelmed by misfortune,
the greatest joy that the Lord can give me,
is to go to the altar, to put my forehead against it
(as on the day of my ordination to the priesthood)
and to feel the presence of the only reality.
Not only does calm return
but my body seems to be annihilated,
the only true life begins,
the life of that which is intangible.”

(Fr Paul Mailleux, SJ “Exarch Leonid Feodorov, Bridgebuilder Between Rome and Moscow,” page 166)

“If the Soviet Government orders me
to act against my conscience, I do not obey.
As for teaching the Catechism,
the Catholic Church holds that children
must be taught their religion,
no matter what the law says.
Conscience is above the law.
No law which is against the conscience can bind.”

(Adressing the court during his political ‘show trial’ in 1923)

“My whole life has been based on two principles –
the love of the Church to which I am united
and the love of my country, which I adore.
If I do not care, whether I am sentenced
to ten years imprisonment or to be shot,
it is not because I am a fanatic…
Since I joined the Catholic Church,
my sole object has been,
to reconcile my country to that Church
which I believe to be the One True Church.”

“Our hearts are full, not of hatred but of sadness.
You cannot understand us,
we are not allowed liberty of conscience.
That is the only conclusion,
we can draw from what we have heard here.”

(Addressing the court shortly before being sentenced to ten years in the GULAG)

“The true messianism of the Russian (Catholic) Church
is not what the Slavophiles have imagined
but it is the example of suffering.
It is in this way that She shows,
that She is the continuation of Christ in this world.”

(Addressing a friend and confidant who was imprisoned with him at Solovki prison camp)

Prayer for Unity by Blessed Leonid

O Merciful Lord Jesus, Our Saviour,
hear the prayers and petitions
of Your unworthy, sinful servants,
who humbly call upon You
and make us all to be one
in Your One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.
Flood our souls with Your unquenchable light.
Put an end to religious disagreements
and grant that we Your disciples
and Your beloved children,
may all worship You,
with a single heart and voice.
Fulfill quickly, O grace-giving Lord,
Your promise,
that there shall be one flock
and one Divine Shepherd of Your Church
and may we be made worthy
to glorify Your Holy Name
now and ever and unto the ages of ages.
Amen

Blessed Leonid Feodorov (1879-1935) Martyr

JESUIT SJ, LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The HOLY CROSS, The WORD

Thursday after Ash Wednesday – 7 March -“Let him take up his cross daily and follow Me”

Posted on March 7, 2019March 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thursday after Ash Wednesday – 7 March

“Let him take up his cross daily and follow Me”

Lord, help us to see in Your Crucifixion and Resurrection an example of how to endure and seemingly to die in the agony and conflict of daily life, so that we may live more fully and creatively. You accepted patiently and humbly the rebuffs of human life, as well as the tortures of your Crucifixion and Passion. Help us to accept the pains and conflicts that come to us each day, as opportunities to grow as people and become more like You. Enable us to go through them patiently and bravely, trusting that You will support us. Make us realise that it is only by frequent deaths of ourselves and our self-centred desires, that we can come to live more fully,
for it is only, by dying with You, that we can rise with You.

Saint Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

(A Gift for God – prayers and meditations)

Daily Meditation:
The Journey Begins

God has revealed Himself in Christ. Let us praise His goodness and ask Him from our hearts:
Remember us, Lord, for we are Your children.

Teach us to enter more deeply into the mystery of the Church,
– that it may be more effective for ourselves and for the world as the sacrament of salvation.
Lover of mankind, inspire us to work for human progress,
– seeking to spread Your kingdom in all we do.
May our hearts thirst for Christ,
– the fountain of living water.
Forgive us our sins,
– and direct our steps into the ways of justice and sincerity.

Closing Prayer:
Lord,
Let everything I do this day and in this season of Lent
come from You, be inspired by You.

I long to be closer to You.
Help me to remember, that nothing is important in my life
unless it glorifies You in some way.

It’s so easy to get caught up in the day to day of my life and keep saying,
“Tomorrow, I will spend more time in prayer”
but now my longing meet Your love and I want to do it now.
Help me to rely on You for help.

Please, Lord, remind me that “perfection”
isn’t the crazy, “successful” way I try to live my life
but a perfection of my most authentic, real self.
My “perfection” might be holding my many flaws in my open hands,
asking You to help me accept them.

Make me whole Lord and help me to find You in the darkness of my life.
Let me reach out in this darkness and feel Your hand and love, there to guide me.

May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen. luke 9 23 thurs after ash wed - if any man will come after me - 7 march 2019.jpg

LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES on LOVE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 7 March – “For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?”…Luke 9:25

Posted on March 7, 2019March 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 7 March – Thursday after Ash Wednesday – Gospel: Luke 9:22-25 and the Memorial of Blessed Leonid Feodorov (1879-1935) Martyr

“For what does it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?”…Luke 9:25

REFLECTION – “For what does it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?”. (v. 25). This paradox contains the golden rule that God inscribed in the human nature created in Christ – the rule, that only love gives meaning and happiness to life. To spend one’s own talents, one’s energy and one’s time only to save, protect and fulfil oneself, in reality leads to losing oneself, i.e. to a sad and barren existence. Instead let us live for the Lord and base our life on love, as Jesus did – we will be able to savour authentic joy and our life will not be barren, it will be fruitful.”… Pope Francis – Angelus, 3 September 2017

PRAYER – Heavenly Father, Your great mercy, gave us Your Son! Surely nothing can be a greater proof to us of Your unending love and mercy to Your lowly creatures, we who are dust. Through Him, who died and rose for us, You have shown us the way of true mercy. Grant us this day that by the intercession of Blessed Leonid Feodorov, who gave himself without reserve, we may take up our crosses with Him, never leaving the love of His Sacred Heart, so that we may join Your holy saints in eternal life. Through Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen. bl leonid feodorov pray for us 7 march 2019

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2019, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY, The SIGN of the CROSS, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 6 March

Posted on March 6, 2019March 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 6 March – Ash Wednesday and the Memorial of St Colette (1381-1447)

“Yet even now,” says the Lord,
“return to me with all your heart,
with fasting, with weeping and with mourning
and rend your hearts and not your garments.”
Return to the Lord, your God,
for he is gracious and merciful….

Joel 2:12-13

He need not fear anything,
nor be ashamed of anything,
who bears the Sign of the Cross
on his brow.

St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church

We must faithfully keep
what we have promised.
If through human weakness we fail,
we must always without delay arise again
by means of holy penance
and give our attention to leading a good life
and to dying a holy death.
May the Father of all mercy,
the Son by His holy Passion
and the Holy Spirit,
source of peace, sweetness and love,
fill us with Their consolation.
Amen

Saint Colette

(in her spiritual testament to her sisters)

LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, PAPAL MESSAGES, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on FASTING, QUOTES on PRAYER, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 6 March – Ash Wednesday

Posted on March 6, 2019March 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 6 March – Ash Wednesday

“Beware of practising your piety before men in order to be seen by them; for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.”…Mark 6:1

REFLECTION – “Fasting, that is, learning to change our attitude towards others and all of creation, turning away from the temptation to “devour” everything to satisfy our voracity and being ready to suffer for love, which can fill the emptiness of our hearts.
Prayer, which teaches us to abandon idolatry and the self-sufficiency of our ego and to acknowledge our need of the Lord and His mercy. Almsgiving, whereby we escape from the insanity of hoarding everything for ourselves in the illusory belief that we can secure a future that does not belong to us.

And thus to rediscover the joy of God’s plan for creation and for each of us, which is to love Him, our brothers and sisters and the entire world and to find in this love our true happiness.

Let us not allow this season of grace to pass in vain! Let us ask God to help us set out on a path of true conversion. Let us leave behind our selfishness and self-absorption and turn to Jesus’ Pasch. Let us stand beside our brothers and sisters in need, sharing our spiritual and material goods with them. In this way, by concretely welcoming Christ’s victory over sin and death into our lives, we will also radiate its transforming power to all of creation.”- Pope Francis’ 2019 Lenten Message

PRAYER – Remember Lord, Your solemn covenant, renewed and consecrated by the Blood of the Lamb, so that Your people may obtain forgiveness for their sins and a continued growth in grace. Support us Lord, as with this Lenten fast we begin our Christian warfare, so that in doing battle against the spirit of evil, we may be armed with the weapon of self-denial. Heavenly Father, help us to fast for the right reasons. Teach us to fast to curb illicit desires and to obtain closer union with You. Help us Lord, during this Lenten season to cleave to You alone and grow in sanctity and charity. Create in me a clean heart O Lord! Through our Lord Jesus Christ in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen. o-that-today-ash-wednesday-6 march 2019 ash wed.jpg

JESUIT SJ, LENT 2019, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on FASTING, QUOTES on PRAYER, The WORD

Remember you are Dust and Unto Dust you shall return

Posted on March 6, 2019March 5, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Remember you are Dust and Unto Dust you shall return

Ash Wednesday 6 March 2019

Saint Peter Chrysologus (400-450)

Bishop of Ravenna, Father & Doctor of the Church

Sermon 8 ; CCL 24, 59 ; PL 52, 208

Exercises for Lent: Almsgiving, Prayer, Fasting

My dear brethren, today we set out on the great Lenten journey. So let us take our food and drink along in our boat, putting onto the chest the abundant mercy we shall need. For our fasting is a hungry one, our fasting is a thirsty one if it isn’t sustained by goodness and refreshed by mercy. Our fasting will be cold, our fasting will flag, if the fleece of almsgiving doesn’t clothe it, if the garment of compassion does not wrap it around.

Brethren, what spring is for the land, mercy is for fasting – the soft, spring winds cause all the buds on the plains to flower; the mercy of our fast causes all our seeds to grow until they blossom and bear fruit for the heavenly harvest. What oil is to the lamp, goodness is to our fast. As the oily fat sets the lamp alight and, in spite of so little to feed it, keeps it burning to our comfort all night long, so goodness makes our fasting shine – it casts its beams until it reaches the full brightness of self-restraint. What the sun is to the day, almsgiving is to our fast: the sun’s splendour increases the light of day, breaking through the dullness of the clouds; almsgiving together with fasting sanctifies its holiness and, thanks to the light of goodness, dispels from our desires anything that could petrify. In short, what the body is for the soul, generosity acts similarly for the fast: when the soul leaves the body it brings about death; if generosity abandons the fast, it is, its death. ash wed and good friday - days of fasting and abstinence

A very special day.

The ashes we use are the burnt palms from last year’s celebration of Passion Sunday.
We begin our Lenten journey aware of where we are going.
We want to enter into the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Jesus for us more fully.
That is the purpose of our journey. It is why we mark our heads with His cross.
It is why we fast today and abstain from meat. from pam fronds to ashes

Our Lenten program is not an effort to save ourselves.
We have been saved by His sacrifice.
Our self-denial helps us, in the darkness that surrounds us,
to prepare ourselves to receive His light.
For this is a journey to the Easter font,
where we will renew the promises of our Baptism,
remembering that in dying with Him in the waters of Baptism,
we are re-born with Him to everlasting life.

This year’s journey begins today.

Yet even now, says the LORD,
return to me with your whole heart,
with fasting and weeping and mourning;

Rend your hearts, not your garments,
and return to the LORD, your God.
For gracious and merciful is he,
slow to anger, rich in kindness,
and relenting in punishment.
Joel 2:12-13 joel 2 12-13 ash wed yet even now - 6 march 2019.jpg

Closing Prayer:
Lord,
it feels like we are embarking
on a Lenten journey together, You and I.
Today, we are invited to let the Holy Spirit
purify our hearts and strengthen us in love.
That feels like what I am looking for –
or what You are looking for in me.
I want to remember how much I need You in my life
and how much my life needs redemption.
I want to remember it clearly and
in the background of my day, today and all through Lent.

On this special day, Ash Wednesday,
may my small sacrifices in fasting be a way to clear away
the clutter in my life to see You more clearly.
May my longing for meat and other food,
help me to focus my life today more outside myself.
Let me be aware of those,
who are in so much more suffering, than I am
and may I be aware of them,
as the brothers and sisters, You have placed in my life.

Lord, I know there is darkness within me and around me.
Bless these days with Your Word.
Let Your Light shine in the darkness.
Help me long for that shining Light
until we celebrate it at the Vigil, six weeks from now.

And most of all Lord,
help me to honour this day with the ashes on my forehead.
They help me remember where I have come from
and where I am going.
May I acknowledge to You my sins
and my deep need for Your loving forgiveness and grace.
I pray that this Lenten season will make me so much more aware
of how much I need Your love and care in my life.

May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen

“The Lord, who always goes before us, said this and did this (Jn 12:24). Whenever we experience the cross, He has already experienced it before us. We do not mount the cross to find Jesus. Instead it was He who, in His self-abasement, descended even to the cross, in order to find us, to dispel the darkness of evil within us and to bring us back to the light.”

Pope Francis

(at the Canonisation of Saints Francisco and Jacinta on 14 May 2017)

the-lord-who-always-goes-before-us-pope-francis-20-feb-2017-sts-francisco-and-jacinta.jpg

	Saint of the Day – 2… on Saint of the Day – 26 Septembe…
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Thomas Merton OCSO (1915-1968)

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St Luigi Orione, Pray for us!

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“Speaking of Prayer”

Saint Luigi Orione (1872-1940)

St Cyprian of Carthage (c 200- c 258)

Father of the Church

St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church

Eugene de Ferronays (1827 – 1894)

St Pio of Pietralcina “Padre Pio” (1887-1968)

Blessed Michal Sopoćko (1888-1975)

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St Pope Leo the Great (400-461)

Father & Doctor of the Church

St Augustine (354-430)

Father & Doctor of the Church

Bishop Robert Barron

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St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor of the Church

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St Teresa of Avila’s Plea

St Alphonsus Liguori on St Joseph, Patron of a Happy Death

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St Marie Eugénie de Jésus, Pray for Us!

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St Marie Eugénie de Jésus (1817-1898)

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St John Vianney (1786-1859)

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Holy Mass will be offered on Thursday 14 March for:

Marna Fisher Sherry Potenziano Patrick Orlando Anne Marie Hennigan

St Josemaria Escrivá (1902-1975)

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Hans Urs von Balthasar

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Saint Catherine of Bologna

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St Gregory of Nyssa (c 335–C 395) Father of the Church

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“Come back to Me with all your Heart.”

St John Paul (1920-2005)

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“The Heart Commands” – St John of God

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Purification of spirit through fasting and almsgiving

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Blessed Leonid Feodorov (1879-1935) Martyr

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Saint Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

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Joel 2:12-13

St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church

Saint Colette

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Saint Peter Chrysologus (400-450)

Pope Francis

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St Alphonsus Liguori on St Joseph,
Patron of a Happy Death

Marna Fisher
Sherry Potenziano
Patrick Orlando
Anne Marie Hennigan