Category: QUOTES on PURITY

Posted in CHRIST the HIGH PRIEST, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on PURITY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The INCARNATION

One Minute Reflection – 14 December – ‘… Mary is the new tree of life …’

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One Minute Reflection – 14 December – “The Month of the Divine Infancy and the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – Within the Octave – Proverbs 8:22-35; Luke 1:26-28 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women” – Luke 1:28

REFLECTION – “Son of God, grant me your own admirable Gift that I may celebrate the wondrous beauty of Thy beloved Mother! The Virgin gave birth to a Son while preserving her virginity; she suckled Him Who gives nourishment to the peoples; in her immaculate breast, she bore Him Who carries the whole world in His Hands. She is Virgin and Mother, what will she not be hereafter? Holy in body, all beautiful in soul, pure of mind, upright in intelligence, perfect in feeling, chaste and faithful, pure of heart and filled with virtue.

May the hearts of virgins rejoice in Mary, since of her was born the One Who set humankind free from dreadful slavery. May the old Adam, wounded by the serpent, rejoice in Mary; it is Mary who gives Adam a posterity which allows Him to crush the accursed serpent and Who cures him of his mortal wound (Gen 3:15). Let Priests rejoice in the blessed Virgin; she has brought the High Priest into the world, Who gave Himself as a Victim, putting an end to the sacrifices of the Old Covenant. … Let the Prophets rejoice in Mary, since in her were fulfilled their visions, in her were realised their prophecies, in her were confirmed their oracles. Let all the Patriarchs rejoice in Mary, since she received the blessing promised to them, she, who, in her Son, has brought them to completion. …

Mary is the new tree of life who, instead of the bitter fruit picked by Eve, gives to mankind that sweet fruit on which the whole world is fed!” – St Ephrem (306-373) Deacon in Syria, Father and Doctor of the Church (Marian Hymn).

PRAYER – Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to prepare the ways of Thy only-begotten Son, so that through His coming we may be able to serve Thee with purified minds. Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CARMELITES, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOMINICAN OP, GATE of HEAVEN, IMMACULATE CONCEPTION Prayers and Novena, MARIAN HYMNS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, Our MORNING Offering, QUOTES on PURITY, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Our Morning Offering – 10 December – INVIOLATA!

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Our Morning Offering – 10 December – “The Month of the Divine Infancy and the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – Within the Octave

INVIOLATA!
INVIOLATE!
Unknown Author
(11th Century)

Thou art inviolate, undefiled
and chaste, O Mary.
Thou has become the resplendent
Gate of Heaven,
O loving and dearest Mother of Christ,
Accept our devout acclamations
in praise of thee.
That our minds and bodies
may be pure,
Devoted hearts and lips
now implore thee.
Through thy sweet sounding prayers,
Gain us pardon forever.
O kind one, who alone
didst remain inviolate.
Amen

The Hymn Inviolata has been claimed by the Carmelite Order, as a Traditional Hymn originating within their ranks. The Hymn is also used by Dominican Friars in the chanting of Compline. Its origins trace to the 11th Century. It appears in Hymnals from 1860 to 1920.

Posted in ADVENT, ADVENT REFLECTIONS, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, HOLY COMMUNION, Meditations for ADVENT, QUOTES on PURITY, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Thought for the Day – 9 December – The Fulfilment of the Decree

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Thought for the Day – 9 December – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Meditations for Advent
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

The Fulfilment of the Decree

+1. The promised Coming of the Redeemer had indeed been long delayed. Patriarch had succeeded Patriarch, and died without having the privilege of seeing that long-expected day . The long line of the Prophets had passed away but, their desire, for the Messias, had not been satisfied. God always keeps His servants waiting, for His best gifts and, therefore, it was but fitting, they should wait for thousands of years before receiving this Gift of gifts, this Gift in which He gave them Himself.

+2. The Second Person of the Blessed Trinity had also been waiting for one, whose immaculate purity should make her fit, as far as any child of Adam could be fit, to be His Mother. There had been many holy women among the daughters of Abraham but none, without sin and, therefore, none in whose womb the Son of God could find repose.
If Christ thus could not come to dwell with one who was stained with sin, what must be the purity He requires now, of those whose Guest He becomes in Holy Communion
O Jesus, forgive me all my careless receptions of Thee, my want of careful preparation, my faults innumerable!

+3. Christ Himself had prepared a resting-place for Himself in Mary’s sacred breast. As we read in Holy Scripture “The Most High has sanctified a tabernacle for Himself.”
So now, if I am to be fit to receive Him, He must prepare my
heart. Do I think of this during my preparation for Communion and pray Him to cleanse me from every stain in His Most Precious Blood, to beautify with many graces the tabernacle where He is to abide?

Posted in CARMELITES, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on PURITY, The HEART

One Minute Reflection – 25 November – ‘ … I would not have left Him alone so often! …’

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One Minute Reflection – 25 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – St Catherine of Alexandria (Died c305) Virgin Martyr – Sirach 51:1-8; 5:12, Matthew 25:1-13 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“But at last came also the other virgins, saying: Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answering said: Amen I say to you, I know you not.” – Matthew 25:11-12

REFLECTION – “Well, let us imagine that within u, is an extremely rich palace, built entirely of gold and precious stones; in sum, built for a Lord such as this. Imagine, too, as is indeed so, you have a part to play, in order for the palace to be so beautiful; for there is no edifice as beautiful, as is a soul pure and full of virtues. The greater the virtues the more resplendent the jewels. Imagine, also, that in this palace dwells this mighty King, Who has been gracious enough to become your Father and that, He is seated upon an extremely valuable throne which is your heart. …

You will laugh at me, perhaps and say, that which I am explaining, is very clear and you will be correct; for me, although, it was obscure for some time. I understood well that I had a soul. But what this soul deserved and Who dwelt within it, I did not understand because, I had covered my eyes with the vanities of the world. For, in my opinion, if I had understood, as I do now that, in this little palace of my soul, dwelt so great a King, I would not have left Him alone so often! I would have remained with Him at times and striven more, so as not to be so unclean. But what a marvellous thing, that He, Who would fill a thousand worlds and many more with His Grandeur, would enclose Himself in something so small!” – St Teresa of Jesus OCD (1515-1582) Virgin, Carmelite Founder, Mystic, Writer (The Way of Perfection Chapter 28: 9-11).

PRAYER – O God, Who gave the law to Moses on Sinai’s height and through Thy holy Angels, miraculously placed there, the body of blessed Catherine, Thy Virgin and Martyr, grant, we beseech Thee that by her merits and intercession, we may reach that towering eminence which is Christ our Lord.Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, DOMINICAN OP, GOD ALONE!, QUOTES on PERSEVERANCE, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on REASON/INTELLECT, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, QUOTES on WILL (Reasonable or Superior), The BEATITUDES, The HEART

Quote/s of the Day – 15 November – St Albert the Great

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Quote/s of the Day – 15 November – St Albert the Great OP (1200-1280) Bishop, Confessor, Doctor of the Church

“The greater and more persistent
your confidence in God,
the more abundantly
you will receive,
all you ask for.”

“The surest and quickest way
to attain perfection, is to strive
for purity of heart.
Once the obstacles have been removed,
God finds a clear path and does wonders,
both in and through, the soul.”

“Govern my heart O Lord,
lest it drift into useless and disordered thoughts.
Do not permit me to become excessively preoccupied
with anything at all, even matters and concerns
which are useful and good in themselves.
Temper the affections of my soul,
so that I may neither love, nor hate
anything in a way which exceeds due proportions.
Let me neither rejoice, nor be saddened,
beyond the measure which is fitting and rational.”

Guide Me Lord
By St Albert the Great (1200-1280)
Doctor of the Church

O Lord Jesus Christ,
Who seeks those who stray
and receives them when returning,
make me approach Thee
through the frequent hearing of Thy Word,
lest I sin against my neighbour,
by the blindness of human judgement,
through the austerity of false justice,
through comparing his inferior status,
through too much trust in my merits
or through ignorance of the Divine Judgement.
Guide me to search diligently,
each corner of my conscience,
lest the flesh dominate the spirit!
Amen

MORE:
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St Albert the Great (1200-1280)
Universal Doctor of the Church

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 13 November – The Pure Heart

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One Minute Reflection – 13 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – St Didacus de Alcalá de Henares) OFM (c 1400-1463) Confessor – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be too.” – Luke 12:34

REFLECTION – “…If, therefore, you wash, by a good life, the filth which has been glued on your heart like plaster, the Divine Beauty will again shine forth in you. It is the same as happens in the case of iron. If freed from rust by a whetstone that which but a moment ago, was black will shine and glisten brightly in the sun. So it is too with the inner man which the Lord calls “the heart.” When he has scraped off the rustlike dirt which dank decay has caused to appear on his form, he will once more recover the likeness of the Archetype (Gn 1:27) and, be good. For what is like to the Good is certainly itself good.

Hence, if a man who is pure of heart sees himself, he sees in himself what he desires and thus, he becomes blessed because, when he looks at his own purity, he sees the Archetype in the image. To give an example. Although men, who see the sun in a mirror, do not gaze at the sky itself, yet they see the sun in the reflection of the mirror, no less than those who look at its very orb. So, He says, it is also with you. Even though you are too weak to perceive the Light itself, yet if you but return to the grace of the image with which you were informed from the beginning, you will have all you seek in yourselves.

…For the Godhead is purity, freedom from passion and separation from all evil. If, therefore, these things be in you, God is indeed in you. Hence, if your thought is without any alloy of evil, free from passion, arid alien from all stain, you are blessed because you are clear of sight.” – St Gregory of Nyssa (c335-395) Bishop, Father of the Church (Brother of St Basil the Great) (Sermons 6 sur les Béatitudes – on the Beatitudes 6).

PRAYER – Almighty, eternal God, Who in Thy wondrous providence, choose the weak things of the world to overcome the strong, mercifully grant unto us Thy humble servants that, by the loving prayers of blessed Didacus, Thy Confessor, we may be found worthy to be raised unto the everlasting glory of Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the JUDGE, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, MARIAN QUOTES, OUR Cross, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on TRUTH, QUOTES on WATCHING, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The FOUR CARDINAL VIRTUES: JUSTICE, PRUDENCE, TEMPERANCE, FORTITUDE, The GOOD SHEPHERD, The HEART, The HOLY CROSS, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION, The WILL of GOD

Quote/s of the Day – 12 November – St Theodore the Studite

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Quote/s of the Day – 12 November – St Theodore the Studite (759-826) Abbot, Confessor, Father of the Church

“Day by day follow God’s path,
keeping Him closely attached to you by His promise.
In fact, He Himself said, through the mediation of His Apostles,
to all those who seek His will and His testimonies
that He would be with them
until the end of the world (Mt 28:20)
where paths and footsteps
will be unknown (cf Ps 76:20),
as the divine David said in his songs.
Yet, in an invisible way,
He is present to the eyes of the mind,
making Himself seen by those
who have a pure heart
and conversing with them.
So pursue your path …. ”

“He who is immortal, voluntarily shed His Blood.
He who created the Host of Angels,
was bound at the hands of soldiers
and He who is to judge the living and the dead,
was dragged to justice (cf. Acts 10:42; 2 Tm 4:1).
Truth was exposed to false witnesses,
was slandered, struck, covered with spittle,
hung on the Wood of the Cross –
the Lord of Glory (cf. 1 Cor 2:8)
endured every outrage and suffering
without Himself needing these trials. …

So there is nothing surprising about it,
if we submit to even one of these trials,
since such is our condition …
Therefore, we too have to be offended and tempted,
afflicted by the cutting off of our wills.”
(Catecheses 1)

“By the Cross, death was slain
and Adam was restored to life.
The Cross is the glory of all the Apostles,
the Crown of the Martyrs,
the Sanctification of the Saints.
By the Cross, we put on Christ
and cast aside our former self.
By the Cross we, the sheep of Christ,
have been gathered into one flock,
destined for the Sheepfold of Heaven.”

“Who will gather the fruits of life
without having planted virtues in his soul?
Cultivate them, prepare the earth
with the greatest care,
take trouble over it, sweat over it, children,
God’s workers, imitators of the Angels,
competitors with incorporeal beings,
lights for those who are in the world!”

“Let us hike up our tunics, be on the alert,
have eagle eyes – this is the speediest flight
for the trip which leads us from earth to Heaven!
It is true, travellers can have something to endure.
And this happens to you too –
indeed, as you see, you struggle under hard labours …
Briefly, each is at their post.
All go forward on the highway to God,
they approach the great City and, in death,
they will have entry to the unutterable joy
of the good things God reserves,
for all those who have loved Him! ”

“Rejoice, O Mary, House of the Lord,
earth trodden by the Footsteps of God…
Rejoice, O Paradise
more happy than the Garden of Eden,
where every virtue has been seeded
and where the Tree of Life has grown.”

St Theodore the Studite (759-826)
Abbot, Confessor, Father of the Church

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on PURITY of INTENTION, QUOTES on SIMPLICITY, The IMITATION of CHRIST, The WILL of GOD, The WORD, Thomas a Kempis

One Minute Reflection – 11 November – No man lights a candle and puts it in a hidden place, nor under a bushel … Luke 11:33

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One Minute Reflection – 11 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – St Martin of Tours (c316-397) “Martin the Merciful,” Bishop, Confessor, Miracle-Worker. – Sirach 44:16-27; 45:3-20, Luke 11:33-36 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“No man lights a candle and puts it in a hidden place, nor under a bushel but upon a candlestick that they, who come in, may see the light.” – Luke 11:33

REFLECTION – “There must be simplicity in one’s intention and purity in one’s affection. Simplicity seeks God; purity finds Him and savours Him. No good work will be difficult, if you are interiorly free of all disordered affection. If you want only what God wants and that which is useful for your neighbour, you will enjoy interior freedom. If your heart were upright, then every creature would be, for you, a mirror of life and a book full of holy instruction.

There is no creature so small and so base that it does not show, some image of God’s goodness. If you had enough innocence and purity within you, you would see everything without hindrance. A pure heart penetrates Heaven and hell. Each person judges that which is outside, according to that which is within himself. If there is any joy in the world, the pure heart possesses it.” – Thomas à Kempis CRSA (1380-1471) (Attrib) The Imitation of Christ (Book II:4)

PRAYER – O God, Who sees that we cannot survive by any power of our own, mercifully grant that, by the intercession of blessed Martin, Thy Confessor and Bishop, we may be made safe from all harm. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DEVOTIO, DOCTORS of the Church, DOMINICAN OP, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, GOD ALONE!, HOLY COMMUNION, Holy Name PRAYERS, INDULGENCES, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, PAPAL PRAYERS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on CONSOLATION, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, ROSARY QUOTES, ROSARY REFLECTIONS and QUOTES, The HOLY NAME, The WILL of GOD

Quote/s of the Day – 7 November – The Feast of All Saints of the Order of Preacher

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Quote/s of the Day – 7 November – The Feast of All Saints of the Order of Preacher

“Speak only with God
or about God.”

“None who persevered in devotion
to the Holy Rosary, will be condemned.”

St Dominic (1170-1221)

“Your purity of life, your devotion,
deserve and call for a reward
because you are acceptable
and pleasing to God.
Your purity of life must be made purer still,
by frequent buffetings,
until you attain perfect sincerity of heart.
If, from time to time, you feel the sword
falling upon you with double or treble force,
this also should be seen as sheer joy
and the mark of love!”

St Raymond of Peñafort (1175-1275)

“Faith in Jesus and in the power of His Holy Name
is the greatest spiritual force in the world today.
It is a source of joy and inspiration in our youth;
of strength in our manhood,
when only His Holy Name and His grace,
can enable us to overcome temptation;
of hope, consolation
and confidence at the hour of our death,
when more than ever before,
we realise, that the meaning of Jesus is
‘Lord, the Saviour.’
We should bow in reverence to His Name
and submission to His Holy Will.”

Bl Henry Suso OP (1290-1365)

“Love takes up,
where knowledge leaves off.”

“If then, you are looking for the way
by which you should go,
take Christ, for He, Himself, is the Way.”

St Thomas Aquinas OP (1225-1274)
Doctor Angelicus / Doctor Communis

“When troubled by temptations,
raise up your heart and soul to God,
humbly beseeching Him
to turn them to His greater glory
and to your salvation,
supporting the temptations
as long as it shall please Him
and imploring Him, to grant you grace,
never to offend Him.”

St Vincent Ferrer OP (1350-1419)

O Divine Jesus!
Lonely in So Many Tabernacles
By St Pope Pius X (1835-1914)
“Pope of the Blessed Sacrament”
(St Pius X was elected to the Chair of St Peter
on the Feast of St Dominic
and became a ‘Protector’ of the Order).

O Divine Jesus!
Lonely today in so many Tabernacles,
without visitor or worshipper,
I offer Thee my lonely heart.
May it’s every beat be a prayer of love to Thee.
Thou are ever watching under the Sacramental Veils,
in Thou love, Thou never sleeps
and Thou are never weary of Thy vigils for sinners.
O Loving Jesus!
O Lonely Jesus!
may my heart be a lamp,
the light of which shall burn and beam
for Thee alone.
Watch, Sacramental Sentinel!
Watch for the weary world,
for the erring soul
and for Thy poor lonely child.

O Jesus, my God, I adore Thee,
here present in the Sacrament of Thy love.
Amen

Indulgences:
100 days each time before the Tabernacle
300 days each time before the Blessed Sacrament Exposed
(St Pope Pius X – 3 July 1908)
Prayers to the Sacred Heart
15th Ed 1936

MORE DOMINICAN QUOTES:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/11/07/quote-s-of-the-day-7-november-st-dominic-and-his-ops/

Posted in GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on PURITY, SACRAMENTS, The BEATITUDES, The COMMUNION of SAINTS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 6 November – ‘There is nothing as beautiful as a soul which is pure. …’

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One Minute Reflection – 6 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – Within the All Saints Octave – Apocalypse 7:2-12; Matthew 5:1-12 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.” … Matthew 5:8

REFLECTION – “There is nothing as beautiful as a soul which is pure. If we understood this, we would be incapable of losing our purity. A pure soul is like a beautiful pearl. As long as it is concealed in a shell, at the bottom of the sea, no-one thinks of admiring it. But if you display it in the sun, then this pearl shines and draws people’s eyes.

Purity comes from Heaven, we have to ask God for it. If we ask for it, we shall receive it. We must take great care not to lose it. It closes our hearts to pride, sensuality and every other passion.

Children, we cannot understand the power which a pure soul has over the Good God – it receives all it wishes for. … Before God, a pure soul is like a child before its mother, it caresses her and hugs her and its mother returns its caresses and embraces.

To preserve our purity, there are three things – the Presence of God, prayer and the Sacraments.” … St John-Marie Baptiste Vianney (1786-1859) Curé d’Ars (Selected Thoughts of the Curé d’Ars).

PRAYER – Almighty, eternal God, Who granted us to honour the merits of all Thy Saints in a single solemn festival, bestow on us, we beseech Thee, through their manifold intercession that abundance of Thy mercy for which we yearn. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CATECHESIS, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, ON the SAINTS, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on THE WORLD, St Francis de Sales, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Quote/s of the Day – 5 November – The Blessedness of the Pure of Heart

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Quote/s of the Day – 5 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – Within the Octave of All Saints and the Feast of the Holy Relics – Apocalypse 7:2-12; 4:1-3; Matthew 5:1-12 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

The Blessedness of the Pure of Heart

“As mountain hares become white in winter
because they neither see. nor eat
anything but snow,
so, by adoring and feeding on
beauty, purity and goodness itself
in the Eucharist,
you will become altogether
beautiful, pure and good.”

“I often speak with my Teacher, Jesus,
in the Blessed Sacrament
because I learn from Him.
Jesus is the Teacher of the science of holiness.
I go to Him because I would like to learn,
from Him, how to become a Saint.
Of what use to me is all knowledge
and education, if I do not become holy?”

“Whatever riches and all other transitory things
you may possess, you must keep your heart
free from the slightest affection for them.
Your heart may be surrounded by riches;
however, riches must never master your heart!
… Do not let that mind which is the likeness of God,
cleave to mere earthly goods;
let it always be raised above them,
not sunk in them.”

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritatis

“The pure of heart will see God.
… All the wonders of creation
are rays of the Eternal Beauty of God.
Creatures, therefore, should form, for us,
a material ladder which leads us to God.
We should never become entangled
with transient worldly goods
but, should see and love God in them all.
The Saints were pure of heart
and could see God more clearly
than the most learned scholar.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Posted in "Follow Me", AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the LIGHT, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, I BELIEVE!, ON the SAINTS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on PURITY, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 5 November – “They shall see God.” – Matthew 5:8

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One Minute Reflection – 5 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – Within the Octave of All Saints and the Feast of the Holy Relics – Apocalypse 7:2-12; 4:1-3; Matthew 5:1-12 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“They shall see God.” – Matthew 5:8

REFLECTION – “We want to see God, we seek to see Him, we ardently desire to see Him. Who does not desire this? But note what the Gospel says: “Blest are the pure of heart, they shall see God.” Do what is necessary in order to see Him! To compare it with something from material reality, how can you want to contemplate the rising sun if your eyes are sick? If your eyes are healthy that light will be a pleasure for you; if they are sick, it will be torture for you. You will surely not be allowed to see, with an impure heart, that which one can only see with a pure heart. You will be moved away, put at a distance, you will not see!

How often did the Lord proclaim people to be ‘blest‘? What reasons for eternal happiness did He cite, what good works, what gifts, what merits and what rewards? No other! the beatitude says, “They shall see God.” This is what the others say: “How blest are the poor in spirit, the reign of God is theirs. Blest are the lowly; they shall inherit the land. Blest are the sorrowing; they shall be consoled. Blest are they who hunger and thirst for holiness; they shall have their fill. Blest are they who show mercy; mercy shall be theirs.” So none other asserts, “They shall see God.”

The vision of God is promised ONLY to those with a pure heart. This is not without a reason, since the eyes which allow us to see God are in the heart. Those are the eyes the Apostle Paul was speaking of when he said: “May He enlighten your innermost vision” (Eph 1:18). So, at the present time because of their weakness, those eyes are enlightened by faith; later, because of their strength, they will be enlightened by vision… “Now we see indistinctly, as in a mirror; then we shall see face-to-face.” (1 Cor 13:12).” – St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 53).

PRAYER – Almighty, eternal God, Who granted us to honour the merits of all Thy Saints in a single solemn festival, bestow on us, we beseech Thee, through their manifold intercession, that abundance of Thy mercy for which we yearn.Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CARMELITES, CATECHESIS, DOCTORS of the Church, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, FATHERS of the Church, HOLY COMMUNION, QUOTES on PURITY, St Francis de Sales, The COMMUNION of SAINTS, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The WILL of GOD

Quote/s of the Day – 1 November – All Saints Day

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Quote/s of the Day – 1 November – All Saints Day

“Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.”

Matthew 5:8

“Let listening to worldly news
be BITTER FOOD for you
and let the words of
Saintly men
be as combs
filled with honey.”

St Basil the Great (329-379)
Father and Doctor of the Church

“To Saints,
their very slumber,
is a prayer!”

St John of the Cross (1542-1591)
Doctor of the Church

“Our greatest fault is, that
we wish to serve God in our way,
not in His way — according to our will,
not according to His will….
To be truly a Saint, it is necessary
to be one according to the will of God.”

“The Holy Eucharist
is the perfect Communion of Saints,
for it is the food common to Angels
and sainted souls in Paradise
and ourselves – it is the true Bread
of which all Christians participate.
The forgiveness of sins,
the Author of forgiveness being there, is confirmed;
the seed of our resurrection sown,
life everlasting bestowed. …
This very belief in the Most Holy Sacrament,
which, in truth, reality and substance,
contains the true and natural
Body of Our Lord,
is actually the abridgment of our Faith,
according to that of the Psalmist:
“He had made a memory of His wonderful works.”

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritatis

Posted in HYMNS, ON the SAINTS, Our MORNING Offering, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on PURITY

Our Morning Offering – 1 November – O Paradise! O Paradise!

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Our Morning Offering – 1 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – All Saints Day

O Paradise! O Paradise!
By Fr Frederick William Faber CO (1814-1863)
Written in 1854

O Paradise! O Paradise!
Who doth not crave for rest?
Who would not seek the happy land,
Where they that loved are blest.

Where loyal hearts and true,
Stand ever in the Light,
All rapture through and through,
In God’s most holy sight?

O Paradise! O Paradise!
The world is growing old;
Who would not be at rest and free
Where love is never cold?
Where loyal hearts, &c.

O Paradise! O Paradise!
Wherefore doth death delay;
Bright death which is the welcome dawn
Of our eternal day;
Where loyal hearts, &c

O Paradise! O Paradise;
‘Tis weary waiting here;
I long to be, where Jesus is,
To feel, to see Him near.
Where loyal hearts, &c.

O Paradise! O Paradise!
I want to sin no more!
I want to be as pure on earth
As on thy spotless shore.
Where loyal hearts, &c.

O Paradise! O Paradise!
I greatly long to see
The special place my dearest Lord
Is furnishing for me.
Where loyal hearts, &c.

O Paradise! O Paradise!
I feel ’twill not be long;
Patience! I almost think I hear
Faint fragments of thy song.
Where loyal hearts, &c.

Tune: “Paradise” Joseph Barnby, 1856.

Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the JUDGE, NOVEMBER - Month of the SOULS in PURGATORY, Of the Holy Souls in PURGATORY, QUOTES on PURITY, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Quote/s of the Day – 10 September – Saint Nicholas of Tolentino

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Quote/s of the Day – 10 September – Saint Nicholas of Tolentino OSA (1245-1305) Confessor, “The Patron of Holy Souls” Priest, Augustinian Friar Monk, Mystic, Preacher, Miralce-worker and Apostle of the poor, the sick, the needy.

“How can I be said to fast,
while every morning, at the Altar,
I receive my God?”

(Often after his Mass, it was revealed to him
that the souls for whom he had offered
the Holy Sacrifice, had been admitted
to the Presence of God.)

“The heavens are not pure
in the sight of Him Whom I serve;
how then shall I, a sinful man,
stand before Him? ”

St Nicholas of Tolentino (1245-1305)

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, IMMACULATE CONCEPTION Prayers and Novena, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART Quotes, MARIAN HYMNS, MARIAN POETRY, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MOTHER of GOD, QUOTES on PURITY, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS, St Louis-Marie Grignion de MONTFORT, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Quote/s of the Day – 26 August – Our Lady

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Quote/s of the Day – 26 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” and the Feast of Our Lady of Czestochowa, Queen of Poland

O Pure and Immaculate Blessed Virgin
By St Ephrem (306-373)
Father and Doctor of the Church

O Pure and Immaculate
and likewise Blessed Virgin,
who art the sinless Mother of thy Son,
the mighty Lord of the universe,
thou who art inviolate and altogether holy,
the hope of the hopeless and sinful,
we sing thy praises.
We bless thee, as full of every grace,
thou who didst bear the God-Man:
we bow low before thee;
we invoke thee and implore thine aid.
Rescue us, O holy and inviolate Virgin,
from every necessity that presses upon us
and from all the temptations of the devil.
Be our intercessor and advocate
at the hour of death and judgement,
deliver us from the fire
that is not extinguished
and from the outer darkness;
make us worthy of the glory of thy Son,
O dearest and most clement Virgin Mother.
Thou indeed art our only hope most sure
and sacred in God’s sight,
to Whom be honour and glory
and majesty and dominion
forever and ever,
world without end.
Amen

St Ephrem (306-373)
Father and Doctor of the Church

“You have guarded the integrity
of the temple [of your body];
you have kept your tabernacle free from all sin,
so that the Father becomes your guest,
the Holy Ghost overshadows you
and the Only-begotten Son Incarnate
is born of you.”

St Hesychius of Jerusalem (Died c450)
Priest, Exegete, Father

“O Mother blest!
And chosen Shrine
wherein the Architect Divine,
Whose Hand contains the earth and sky
vouchsafed in hidden guise to lie;
Blest in the message Gabriel brought;
blest in the work, the Spirit wrought;
Most blest, to bring to human birth,
the long desired of all the earth!”

St Venantius Fortunatus (c530 – c609)
Bishop, Poet, Theologian, Father

“It is through the most
Blessed Virgin Mary
that Jesus Christ came into the world
and, it is also through her
that He will reign in the world.”

St Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716)

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “The heart.”

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One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – St Philip Benizi OSM (1233-1285) Confessor – 1 Corinthians. 4:9-14; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“For where your treasure is, there will your heart be too.” – Luke 12:34

REFLECTION – “…If, therefore, you wash, by a good life, the filth which has been glued on your heart like plaster, the Divine Beauty will again shine forth in you. It is the same as happens in the case of iron. If freed from rust by a whetstone that which but a moment ago, was black will shine and glisten brightly in the sun. So it is too with the inner man which the Lord calls “the heart.” When he has scraped off the rustlike dirt which dank decay has caused to appear on his form, he will once more recover the likeness of the Archetype (Gn 1:27) and, be good. For what is like to the Good is certainly itself good.

Hence, if a man who is pure of heart sees himself, he sees in himself what he desires and thus, he becomes blessed because, when he looks at his own purity, he sees the Archetype in the image. To give an example. Although men, who see the sun in a mirror, do not gaze at the sky itself, yet they see the sun in the reflection of the mirror, no less than those who look at its very orb. So, He says, it is also with you. Even though you are too weak to perceive the Light itself, yet if you but return to the grace of the image with which you were informed from the beginning, you will have all you seek in yourselves.

…For the Godhead is purity, freedom from passion and separation from all evil. If, therefore, these things be in you, God is indeed in you. Hence, if your thought is without any alloy of evil, free from passion, arid alien from all stain, you are blessed because you are clear of sight.” – St Gregory of Nyssa (c335-395) Bishop, Father of the Church (Brother of St Basil the Great) (Sermons 6 sur les Béatitudes – on the Beatitudes 6).

PRAYER – O God, Who through St. Philip, Thy Confessor, gave us an outstanding example of humility, grant that Thy household may follow his example by scorning worldly prosperity and, ever seek the things of Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, GOD ALONE!, JESUIT SJ, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PATIENCE, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, QUOTES on WORRY/ANXIETY, SELF-DISTRUST, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 13 August – ‘ … Do not worry … but entrust to Divine Providence … 

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One Minute Reflection – 13 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – Saints Hippolytus and Cassian (Died c235) Martyrs – Our Lady Refuge of Sinners – Hebrews 10:32-38; Luke 12:1-8 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings? And yet not one of them is forgotten before God. Yes, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore, do not be afraid, you are of more value than many sparrows.” – Luke 12:6-7

REFLECTION – “It seems to me you ought to resolve to carry out peacefully what you can. Do not worry about all the rest but entrust to Divine Providence that which you are unable to accomplish on your own. What is pleasing to God, is the reasonable care and attention we give, to accomplishing well, whatever business we must undertake through duty. What is not pleasing to God, is anxiety and disquiet of mind. The Lord wants our limitations and weaknesses, to find their support in His Strength; He wants us to hope that His Goodness will complete and perfect the imperfectness of our means.

Those who take on numerous responsibilities, even with an upright and pure intention, must resolve to do simply what lies within their power … If it is necessary to set certain things aside, arm yourselves with patience and do not think that God expects of us what we are unable to do. He does not want a man to distress himself on account of his limitations … there is no need to tire ourselves out excessively. More, if we have laboured to do our best, we can abandon all the rest to Him ,Who has the power to accomplish whatever He will.

May the Divine Goodness always be pleased to communicate His Light of Wisdom to us, so that we may clearly see and firmly accomplish, His good pleasure, for ourselves and for others … so that we may accept from His Hand, whatever He sends us, taking due note of what is the most important – patience, humility, obedience and charity!” – St Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556) Priest, Founder of the Society of Jesus (Letter of 17 November 1555)

PRAYER – Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord God, unto all Thy servants that they may remain continually in the enjoyment of soundness, both of mind and body and, by the glorious intercession of the Blessed Mary, always a Virgin, may be delivered from present sadness and enter into the joy of Thine eternal gladness. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in IMMACULATE CONCEPTION Prayers and Novena, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, MARIAN PRAYERS, PRAYERS of PETITION, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUEENSHIP of MARY, QUOTES on PURITY

Our Morning Offering – 12 August – Deign, O Immaculate Virgin

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Our Morning Offering – 12 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary”

Deign, O Immaculate Virgin
By St Paschasius Radbertus (785–865)

Deign, O Immaculate Virgin,
Mother most pure,
to accept the loving cry of praise
which we send up to you
from the depths of our hearts.
Though they can but add little to your glory,
O Queen of Angels,
you do not despise, in your love,
the praises of the humble and the poor.
Cast down upon us a glance of mercy,
O most glorious Queen,
graciously receive our petitions.
Through your immaculate purity of body and mind,
which rendered you so pleasing to God,
inspire us with a love of innocence and purity.
Teach us to guard carefully the gifts of grace,
striving ever after sanctity, so that,
being made like the image of your beauty,
we may be worthy to become,
the sharers of your eternal happiness.
Amen

St Paschasius Radbertus was a Theologian
and the Abbot of Corbie.
Read about him here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2019/04/26/saint-of-the-day-26-april-saint-paschasius-radbertus-785-865/

Posted in "Follow Me", AUGUSTINIANS OSA, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, I BELIEVE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on PURITY of INTENTION, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The KINGDOM of GOD / HEAVEN, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 30 July – ‘ … The vision of God is promised ONLY to people with a pure heart. …’

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One Minute Reflection – 30 July– “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – St Abdon and St Senen (Died c250) Martyrs – 2 Corinthians 6:4-10; Matthew 5:1-12 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“They shall see God.” – Matthew 5:8

REFLECTION – “We want to see God, we seek to see Him, we ardently desire to see Him. Who does not desire this? But note what the Gospel says: “Blest are the pure of heart, they shall see God.” Do what is necessary in order to see Him! To compare it with something from material reality, how can you want to contemplate the rising sun if your eyes are sick? If your eyes are healthy that light will be a pleasure for you; if they are sick, it will be torture for you. You will surely not be allowed to see, with an impure heart, that which one can only see with a pure heart. You will be moved away, put at a distance, you will not see!

How often did the Lord proclaim people to be ‘blest‘? What reasons for eternal happiness did He cite, what good works, what gifts, what merits and what rewards? No other! the beatitude says, “They shall see God.” This is what the others say: “How blest are the poor in spirit, the reign of God is theirs. Blest are the lowly; they shall inherit the land. Blest are the sorrowing; they shall be consoled. Blest are they who hunger and thirst for holiness; they shall have their fill. Blest are they who show mercy; mercy shall be theirs.” So none other asserts, “They shall see God.”

The vision of God is promised ONLY to those with a pure heart. This is not without a reason, since the eyes which allow us to see God are in the heart. Those are the eyes the Apostle Paul was speaking of when he said: “May He enlighten your innermost vision” (Eph 1:18). So, at the present time because of their weakness, those eyes are enlightened by faith; later, because of their strength, they will be enlightened by vision… “Now we see indistinctly, as in a mirror; then we shall see face-to-face.” (1 Cor 13:12).” (1 Cor 13:12).” – St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 53).

PRAYER – O God, Who bestowed upon Thy Saints, Abdon and Sennen, an abundance of grace to bring them to this glory, grant to Thy servants forgiveness of their sins, so they may be found worthy to be freed from all harm, through the interceding merits of Thy Saints. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the KING, CHRIST the SUN of JUSTICE, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on MERCY, QUOTES on MERIT, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PURITY of INTENTION, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 22 June – “Fear not, little flock, for it hath pleased thy Father to give thee a Kingdom. ” – Luke 12:32

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One Minute Reflection – 22 June – “The Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus” – St Paulinus of Nola (c 354-431) Bishop, Confessor, Father of the Church –2 Corinthians 8:9-15; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Fear not, little flock, for it hath pleased thy Father to give thee a Kingdom. ” – Luke 12:32

REFLECTION – “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven”. The beginning of the New Testament is altogether joyful and full of fresh grace. It even nudges the unbeliever and sluggish to pay heed and, more to the point, to act, by promising happiness to the unfortunate and the Kingdom of Heaven to those in exile, those in any kind of distress. The beginning of the new Law is pleasant to hear and starts off under happy auspices, since the Legislator follows on from this beginning ,by giving so many assurances of beatitude. In this way those who have been attracted by them will go from one virtue to the next, climbing the eight steps that this Gospel has set up and placed within our hearts… For, it is clear that what it is all about, is the ascent of the heart and of the progress of merit, through eight steps of virtue, leading men gradually from the lowest to the highest levels of evangelical perfection. In this way they will at last enter and see the God of gods in Zion (Ps 83: 8), in His Temple, of which the Prophet has said: “It had a stairway of eight steps,” (Ez 40:37).

The first virtue for the beginner, is to renounce the world, through which we become poor in spirit; the second is gentleness, by which we submit ourselves and become accustomed to obedience; then, the grief with which we lament our sins or with weeping beg for the virtues. These we certainly enjoy, wherever we have the greatest hunger and thirst for justice, as much for ourselves as for others and begin to be stirred by zeal against sinners. Yet, lest immoderate fervour turn into fault, the mercy by which it is tempered follows after. Through putting this into practice and training ourselves, when we have learnt how to be just and how to be merciful, then we may, perhaps, be capable of entering into contemplation and giving oursees to the purification of our hearts, so as to see God!” – Blessed Guerric of Igny (c1080-1157) Cistercian Abbot (Sermon for All Saints).

PRAYER – O God, Who promised to those who forsake all things in this world for Thee, a hundred-fold reward in the world to come and life everlasting, mercifully grant that, following closely in the footsteps of the holy Bishop, Paulinus, we may look upon earthly things as nought and long only for those of Heaven. Who lives and reigns with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

OUR Lady of the Sacred Heart, pray for us.
100 Days. St Pius X, 9 July 1904. Raccolta 174

Posted in 7 GIFTS of the HOLY GHOST: Wisdom, Understanding, Prudence, Strength, Knowledge, Piety, Fear, CARMELITES, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, JESUIT SJ, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on JUSTICE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on PURITY, St JOSEPH, The WILL of GOD

Quote/s of the Day – 24 April – St Joseph

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Quote/s of the Day – 24 April – The Octave Day of the Patronage of St Joseph

“Saint Joseph was the just man:
by his constant fidelity -an effect of justice;
by his perfect discretion – a sister to prudence;
by his upright conduct – a mark of strength
and by his inviolable chastity – a flower of temperance.”

St Albert the Great (1200-1280)
Doctor of the Church

“I cannot call to mind
that I have ever asked him,
at any time for anything,
which he has not granted
and I am filled with amazement
when I consider the great favours
which God has given me,
through this blessed Saint;
the dangers from which he has delivered me,
both of body and of soul!”

St Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
Doctor of the Church

“It is impossible, that he could be denied
the favours for which he asks
and which we should request him
to obtain for us.
Let us go to him trustingly
but, let us remember,
that the surest way of being heard by him,
is to imitate his wonderful virtues,
especially his humility,
his spirit of prayer,
his purity and his calm desire always,
to do God’s will.”

“This holy Patriarch was as resigned
to the poverty of the manger
and the discomforts of exile,
as he was grateful to God for the wonderful gifts
and joys which he had been granted.
He knew that God could have solved,
by a single act of His Divine Will,
all the problems which he encountered throughout life.
But he never asked for such a favour.
His only desire was to do God’s Will perfectly.
Let this be our desire too and let us never cease
to ask God for this grace.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Posted in GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRAYERS for PRIESTS, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PATIENCE, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, QUOTES on PURITY, The GOOD SHEPHERD, The HOLY GHOST, THEOLOGICAL

One Minute Reflection – 16 April – The Prayer of a shepherd

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One Minute Reflection – 16 April – “The Month of the Resurrection and the Blessed Sacrament”– Ferial Day – 1 Peter 2:21-25; John 10:11-16 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“I am the Good Shepherd, I know My Own and My Own know Me.”- John 10:14

REFLECTION – “O Jesus, Good Shepherd, a Shepherd who is truly good, Shepherd full of loving kindness and gentleness, the cry of a poor and wretched shepherd rises up to Thee: a weak and clumsy shepherd, an unprofitable shepherd (cf. Lk 17:10) and yet, in spite of all, a shepherd of Thyine flock. Yes, Good Shepherd, the cry of this shepherd who is far from being good rises up to Thee. He cries to Thee, uneasy for himself, uneasy for Thine flock … Thou knows my heart, Lord, Thou knows my wish is to spend entirely, for those Thou has entrusted to me ,all Thou has given to Thy servant …, and more than anything, to spend myself for them without counting the cost (2 Cor 12:15)…

Even Thou Thyself, did not disdain to spend Thyself for them. Therefore, teach me, Lord, even me Thy servant, teach me through Thine Holy Ghost, how to expend myself for them … By Thine inexpressible grace, grant me, Lord, to bear their weaknesses with patience, to sympathise with kindness, to help them with discretion. May Thine Spirit’s instruction teach me to console the afflicted, strengthen the fearful, raise up those who fall, to be weak with the weak, to share the shame of those who stumble, to make myself all things to all, to gain them all (2 Cor 11:29; 1 Cor 9:19.22). Put true words on my lips, words which are upright and just, so that they may grow in faith, hope and love, in chastity and humility, in patience and obedience, fervour of spirit and purity of heart. Since it is Thou Who has given them this blind guide (Mt 15:14), this ignorant teacher, this incapable leader, teach him, whom Thou has installed as their professor, guide the one, Thou has commanded to guide others.” – St Aelred of Rievaulx (1110-1167) Cistercian Monk (The Prayer of a shepherd 1,7)

PRAYER – Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord God, unto all Thy servants that they may remain continually in the enjoyment of soundness, both of mind and body and by the glorious intercession of the Blessed Mary, always a Virgin, may be delivered from present sadness and enter into the joy of Thine eternal gladness. Through the Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in Our MORNING Offering, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on STRENGTH, QUOTES on WATCHING, SACRED HEART PRAYERS, The HEART

Our Morning Offering – 10 April – O Heart of Jesus!

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Our Morning Offering – 10 April – “The Month of the Resurrection and the Blessed Sacrament” – Ferial Day – Wednesday in the Second Week of Easter

O Heart of Jesus!
By St Gertrude the Great (1256-1302)

Sanctity of the Heart of Jesus,
consecrate my heart;
Providence of the Heart of Jesus,
watch over my heart;
Unchangeableness of the Heart of Jesus,
strengthen my heart;
Purity of the Heart of Jesus,
purify my heart;
Obedience of the Heart of Jesus,
subjugate my heart;
Amiability of the Heart of Jesus,
make Thyself known to my heart;
Divine attractions of the Heart of Jesus,
captivate my heart;
Riches of the Heart of Jesus,
do ye suffice for my heart;
Floods of grace and blessing
which flow from the Heart of Jesus,
inundate my heart.
O Heart of Jesus! be Thou my joy,
my peace, my repose in this world
and in the next.
O Heart of Jesus! adored in Heaven,
Invoked on earth, feared in hell,
Reign over all hearts,
Reign throughout all ages,
Reign forever in celestial glory.
Amen

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, QUOTES on PURITY, Quotes on SALVATION, The ANNUNCIATION, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, The INCARNATION, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 8 April – The Annunciation – ‘ … Chosen from among all other beings …’

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One Minute Reflection – 8 April – Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Isaias 7:10-15, Luke 1:26-38 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Hail, full of grace!” – Luke 1:28

REFLECTION – “The degeneration caused by sin had obscured the beauty of our original nobility. But when the mother of supreme Beauty is born, our nature finds its purity once more and sees itself moulded according to the perfect model, worthy of God (Gn 1:26) … We had all preferred the world below to that above. There no longer remained any hope of salvation. The state of our nature cried aloud to Heaven to come to the rescue … Then at last, in His good pleasure, the world’s Divine Artificer determined to make a new world appear, a different world full of harmony and youth.

Now was it not fitting, that a most pure virgin without stain, should place herself at the service of this mysterious plan first of all?… And where was this virgin to be found, if not in this woman, alone of her kind, chosen by the world’s Creator before all generations? Yes, she indeed is Mother of God, divinely named Mary, whose womb gave birth to God Incarnate and whom, He Himself had supernaturally prepared, as His Temple…

In this way, then, the design of the Redeemer of our race was to bring about a birth and, as it were, a new creation to replace the one that went before. Therefore, just as in Paradise, He had taken a little clay out of the pure and spotless earth, to fashion the first Adam (Gn 2:7), so, at the moment of bringing about His Own Incarnation, He made use of another earth, so to speak, namely, this Pure and Immaculate Virgin, chosen from among all other beings He had created. It is in her that He, Adam’s Creator, has remade us in our very substance and become a new Adam (1 Cor 15:45), so that the old might be saved by the New and Eternal!” – St Andrew of Crete (660-740) Bishop (Sermon 1 for the Nativity of the Mother of God ; PG 97, 812).

PRAYER – O God, Who, by the message of an Angel, willed Thy Word to take flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, grant that we, Thy suppliants, who believe her to be truly the Mother of God, may be assisted by her intercession with Thee. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, FATHERS of the Church, FEBRUARY - THE BLESSED TRINITY (Traditional), GOD ALONE!, MARIAN QUOTES, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, The INCARNATION, The MOST HOLY & BLESSED TRINITY

Quote/s of the Day – 28 March – St Hesychius of Jerusalem

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Quote/s of the Day – 28 March – St Hesychius of Jerusalem (Died c450) Priest, Exegete, Father.

“Truly blessed is he who cleaves,
with his thought, to the Prayer of Jesus,
constantly calling to Him in his heart,
just as air cleaves to our bodies,
or the flame to the candle.”

“Scripture is perfect wisdom,
starting point and point of arrival,
to which our whole existence
should be adapted.”

“You have guarded the integrity
of the temple [of your body];
you have kept your tabernacle free from all sin,
so that the Father becomes your guest,
the Holy Ghost overshadows you
and the Only-begotten Son Incarnate
is born of you.”

St Hesychius of Jerusalem (Died c450)
Priest, Exegete, Father

Posted in ArchAngels and Angels, AUGUSTINIANS OSA, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, INDULGENCES, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, PARTIAL Indulgence, PRAYERS TO St Joseph, PRAYERS to the SAINTS, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on JUSTICE, QUOTES on PURITY, St Francis de Sales, St JOSEPH, The HOLY FAMILY

Quote/s of the Day – 19 March – St Joseph

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Quote/s of the Day – 19 March – The Month and Feast of St Joseph

“So, taking Christ’s genealogy from Joseph –
a husband in chastity,
he was father in the same way. …
Are you saying that he did not conceive Jesus
through the operation of nature?
Well then, what the Holy Spirit operated,
He did for them both.
For Joseph was “a just man,” Matthew tells us (1:19).
Both husband and wife were just.
The Holy Spirit dwelt within their mutual justice
and gave each of them, a Son!”

St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

“How faithful in humility was the great Saint
we are celebrating!
That cannot be said in all its perfection,
for, in spite of what he was,
in what poverty and lowliness he lived,
all the days of his life – a poverty and lowliness
beneath which. he kept hidden and concealed,
his great virtues and dignity! …
Truly, I am free of doubt that the Angels came,
beside themselves with admiration, rank upon rank,
to behold and wonder at his humility,
while he sheltered that dearest Child
in the poor workshop where he worked at his employment,
so as to feed the little Boy and the Mother entrusted to him.”

“Behold, the Angel of the Lord
appeared to him in his sleep …”
Matthew 1:20

“And what wisdom did he not have? 
For God gave him his most glorious Son to care for …
the universal Prince of Heaven and earth …
Nevertheless, you can see how low
and humbled he was brought,
more than can be said or imagined …
he went to his own Country and Town of Bethlehem
and none but he was turned away from all those inns …
Notice how the Angel turns him about with both hands.
He tells him he has to go to Egypt and he goes;
he orders him to return and he returns.
God wants him to be always poor …
and he submits to it with love and, not only for a while,
for he was poor his whole life long!”

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church

Indulgenced Prayer
to St Joseph
O St Joseph! Pray for Us Daily

O Joseph!
virgin father of Jesus,
pure Spouse of the Virgin Mother,
pray for us daily
to the Son of God,
that, armed with the weapons
of His grace,
we may fight as we ought in life
and be crowned by Him in death.
Amen

(Indulgence of 100 days, twice a day
St Pius X 26 November 1906)

Posted in BAPTISM, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, LENT 2024, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, The RESURRECTION, The WORD

Our Lenten Journey with the Angels and the Saints – 15 March – Do Not Fall Back Again Into Death!

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Our Lenten Journey with the Angels and the Saints – 15 March – Friday of the Fourth Week in Lent – 3 Kings 17:17-24; John 11:1-45 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Now, by this I know t
hat thou art a man of God
and the Word of the Lord
in thy mouth is true.”
3 Kings 17:24

“ Lazarus, come forth!”
John 11:43

Do Not Fall Back Again Into Death!

St Gregory Nazianzen (330-390)
Father & Doctor of the Church

“Laid to rest in the tomb, you heard the resounding call.
Is there any Voice greater than that of the Word?
Then you came out, you who were dead not merely for four days but for a very long time indeed.
You were raised with Christ … your burial bands fell to the ground.
Do not fall back again now into death; do not rejoin those who dwell in the tombs; do not allow yourself to be stifled by the burial bands of your sins.
For would you be able to come back to life once again?
Would you be able to bring out, from the death of here below, the resurrection of all men at the end of time? …

So let the Lord’s call resound in your ears!
Do not close them today to the teaching and admonitions of the Lord.
If you used to be blind, without light in your tomb, open your eyes lest you sink into the sleep of death.
In the Light of the Lord, behold light! in the Spirit of God, fix your eyes on the Son.
If you take to yourself the Word, in its entirety, then you focus onto your soul, all the power of Christ Who heals and restores to life ….
Do not be afraid to put some work into preserving your Baptismal purity and set the ways that lead to the Lord, within your heart.
Take care to preserve the act of acquittal which you received through pure grace ….

Let us be Light, as the disciples learned, from He Who is the Great Light: “You are the light of the world” (Mt 5:14).
Let us be lamps in this world by holding up on high the Word of Life, by being a life force for others.
Let us set out in search of God, in search of the One Who is the First and Purest of Lights.” – (Sermon on Holy Baptism).

Posted in ACT of CONTRITION, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, GOD ALONE!, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on PURITY of INTENTION, QUOTES on VANITY, THE SPIRITUAL COMBAT - Fr Lorenzo Scupoli

Thought for the Day – 14 March – The Last Artifice of the Devil –Making even Virtue, an Occasion of Sin! (Part Three)

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Thought for the Day – 14 March – The Spiritual Combat (1589) – Dom Lorenzo Scupoli OSM (c1530-1610)

“None shall be crowned who has not fought well.” 2 Tim 2: 5

XXXII: … The Last Artifice of the Devil –
Making even Virtue, an Occasion of Sin!
(Part Three)

“Consider next, that not only do all the works which you have done. fall short of the Light which has been given you to know them and the grace to execute them but too, that in themselves, they are very imperfect and are deficient of that pure intention and due diligence and fervour, with which they should be performed and which should always accompany them.

If, then, you will well consider this, you will see reason, rather for shame, than for vain complacency because, it is but too true that the graces which we receive pure and perfect from God, are sullied in their use, by our imperfections.

Again, compare your works with those of the Saints and other servants of God — for by such comparison, you will find that your best and greatest, are of base alloy and of little worth.
Next, measure them by those which Christ wrought for you in the Mystery of His life and of His continual Cross and setting aside the consideration of His Divinity, view His works in themselves alone — considering both the fervour and the purity of the love with which they were wrought and, you will see that all your works are indeed, as nothing.

And lastly, if you will raise your thoughts to the Divinity and the boundless Majesty of your God and the service which He deserves at your hands, you will plainly see that your works should excite in you not vanity but fear!

Therefore, in all your ways, in all your works, however holy they maybe, you must cry unto your Lord with all your heart, saying:
“God be merciful to me a sinner!”

Dom Lorenzo Scupoli

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2024/03/12/thought-for-the-day-12-march-the-last-artifice-of-the-devil-making-even-virtue-an-occasion-of-sin-part-one/
PART TWO:
https://anastpaul.com/2024/03/13/thought-for-the-day-13-march-the-last-artifice-of-the-devil-making-even-virtue-an-occasion-of-sin-part-two/

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, GOD is LOVE, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on SLOTH, QUOTES on WATCHING, The HEART, THE SPIRITUAL COMBAT - Fr Lorenzo Scupoli, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 6 March – Where the heart is

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Quote/s of the Day – 6 March – Wednesday of the Third Week in Lent – Ecclesiasticus Sirach 51:13-17; Matthew 13:44-52 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Kingdom of Heaven
is like a treasure
hidden in a field.”

Matthew 13:44

“Do not lay up for yourselves
treasures on earth,
where rust and moth consume
and where thieves break in and steal
but lay up for yourselves,
treasures in Heaven …”

Matthew 6:19-20

“For the man who loves God,
it is sufficient to please the One he loves
and, there is no greater recompense to be sought,
than the loving itself.
For love is from God, by the very fact
that God Himself is love.
The good and chaste soul
is so happy to be filled with Him
that it desires to take delight in nothing else.
For what the Lord says is very true:
‘Where your treasure is,
there also will your heart be.’”

St Pope Leo the Great (400-461)
ather and Doctor of the Church

“Watch, therefore and pray and labour diligently
and do not delay to weave the web of your wedding-garment
that you may be found ready and adorned to meet the Bridegroom!
And remember daily that He, Who gives you the morning,
does not promise you the evening
and although He gives the evening,
yet promises not the morrow.
Spend, therefore, every moment of every hour
according to God’s will, as if it were your last
and so much the more carefully, as, for every moment,
you will have to give the strictest account!

Finally, I warn you to account that day lost,
in which you will neither have gained some victory
over your evil inclinations and your self-will,
although it may have been full of busy action,
nor returned thanksgiving to your Lord for His mercies
and especially for His bitter Passion endured for you
and for His sweet and fatherly correction,
when He has made you worthy to receive,
at His Hand, the inestimable treasure of suffering.”

Fr Lorenzo Scupoli OSM (c1530-1610)

“Where is the heart which loves?
On the thing it loves.
Therefore, where our love is,
there our heart is held captive.
It cannot leave it; it cannot be lifted higher,
it cannot go either to the right or the left;
see, it is fixed. Where the miser’s treasure is,
there is his heart and where our heart is,
there is our treasure.
And what is so deplorable is
that the things which hold us in servitude,
are, for the most part, such unworthy things!”

St Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)