QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST – Page 21

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HUMAN DIGNITY, QUOTES on JUSTICE, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on MERCY, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY, The INCARNATION

Quote/s of the Day – 25 April – St Pedro de San Jose de Betancur

Posted on April 25, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 25 April – the Memorial St Pedro de San Jose de Betancur OFB (1626-1667) “St Francis of Assisi of the Americas” – “The Man Who was Made Charity”

Father Manuel Lobo, a Jesuit who was Brother Pedro de Betancur’s spiritual director for fifteen years, wrote:

“It was because of the great devotion he professed to the mystery of the birth of the Son of God, that, inspired from Heaven, he gave his establishment the name of Our Lady of Bethlehem. Bethlehem means ‘house of bread’—here it was that the humble shepherds found the Son of God incarnate.
Likewise, in this new Bethlehem, the poor must find not only bread but the Lord God and, with bodily food, spiritual food for the nourishment of their souls.”

Father Manuel Lobo

“Already in the land of his birth, as in every phase of his life, Brother Pedro was a deeply prayerful man, especially here where, at the hermitage of Calvary, he diligently sought God’s will at every moment.

Thus, he is an outstanding example for Christians today, whom he reminds, that training in holiness “calls for a Christian life distinguished above all in the art of prayer” (Novo millennio ineunte, 32). I, therefore, renew my exhortation to all the Christian communities of Guatemala and other countries, to be authentic schools of prayer where all activity is centred on prayer. An intensely devout life always bears abundant fruit.

Brother Pedro modelled his spirituality in this way, particularly in contemplation of the mysteries of Bethlehem and of the Cross. If, in the birth and childhood of Jesus, he immersed himself deeply in the fundamental event of the Incarnation of the Word — which led him to discover spontaneously, as it were, the face of God in man — then, in meditating on the Cross, he found the strength to practise mercy heroically with the lowliest and the most deprived.

… Pedro de Betancurt was distinguished precisely by the humble spirit and austere life with which he practised mercy. The Apostle Paul’s recommendation went straight to his servant’s heart: “Whatever your task, work heartily, as serving the Lord and not men” (Col 3:23). Thus he was truly a brother to all, who lived in misfortune and gave himself with tenderness and immense love, to their salvation. In this way, throughout his life, his deeds showed his dedication to the sick at the little hospital of Our Lady of Bethlehem, the cradle of the Bethlehemite Order.

Brother Pedro is a legacy that cannot be lost. He must be the subject of continuous gratitude; he must be imitated with renewed purpose. This legacy must inspire among Christians and among all citizens, the desire to transform the human community into a large family, where social, political and economic relations are worthy of man and within which, the dignity of the person is promoted through effective recognition of his inalienable rights.

I would like to conclude by recalling that devotion to the Most Blessed Virgin was always present in Brother Pedro’s life of piety and mercy. May she also guide us so that, illuminated by the examples of ‘the man who was made charity,’ as Pedro de Betancur is known, we might come to her Son Jesus!”

St John Paul II (1920-2005)

Canonisation Homily
Guatemala City, Tuesday 30 July 2002

brother pedro - st john paul 25 april 2020

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Thought for the Day – 16 April – The Road to Calvary

Posted on April 16, 2020April 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 16 April – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Road to Calvary

After having been condemned to death, Jesus is delivered into the hands of the Jews to be crucified as a malefactor.
Two rough beams of wood are fixed together, in the form of a cross and placed upon His shoulders.
He is already worn out with suffering and has lost large quantities of blood as a result of the scourging and of the crowing with thorns.
Jesus does not reject the Cross, but embraces it.
He has come into this world to show forth His infinite love and to redeem us from our sins by His suffering and death.
In the garden of Gethsemane, He has said with sublime resignation to the Heavenly Father: “Not my will but thine be done” (Lk 22:42).
The Cross is too heavy for His human strength but what does that matter?
He embraces it, takes it upon His weary shoulders and sets out for Calvary.

Perhaps we have often kissed the Crucifix with reverence and affection.
Let us keep it hanging upon the walls of our home where we can gaze on it, with love and hope.
Let us pray before it in our moments of need.
But what about our own cross?
Do we love our cross as Jesus loved His?
Do we embrace it as Jesus did?
Do we bow willingly beneath the load as He did and, do we carry it, with resignation and without useless complaints?
It is not enough to love the Crucifix.
We must love our own cross as well, in silence and in prayer, knowing, that only in this way, can we imitate Jesus, Who has said to us: “If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Lk 9:23).

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

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Thought for the Day – 14 April – The Death of our Saviour

Posted on April 14, 2020March 30, 2024 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 14 April – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Death of our Saviour

In the midst of His sufferings, Jesus forgets Himself and pray for His executioners.
“Father,” He pleaded, “forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Lk 23:34).
Who were these people who crucified Him?
We know well that they were not only the Jews but all of us.
The prophet Isaiah, had foretold this. “He was wounded for our iniquities, he was bruised for our sins … He was offered because it was his own will…” (Is 53:5-7).
We are all the crucifiers of Jesus. Therefore, He willed to suffer and to die for all of us and when He was hanging on the Cross, He begged for forgiveness for us all.
This should incite us to trust in God and to do repentance for our sins.
We should be sorry for our sins because, they were the real cause of the voluntary death of Jesus.
We should have confidence in Him, because, He forgave us when He was dying on the Cross and is ready to pardon us again, as long as we are sincerely repentant.

Let us consider how Jesus, even though He was derided and nailed to the Cross, prayed for and forgave His executioners.
How do we normally behave?
Perhaps we fly into anger at the first word of offence or act of misunderstanding, or perhaps we nourish secret feelings of hatred in our hearts for our brothers in Jesus Christ?
Let us kneel before the Cross and tell Our Lord, that we wish to be meek and humble of heart, like Him.
We wish to be quick to forgive and to live in peace and, even, if it is necessary, to do good to those who offend us, or at any rate, to pray fervently for them.

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

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Quote/s of the Day – 3 April – Love calls your name

Posted on April 14, 2020April 14, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 3 April – Tuesday in the Easter Octave

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you,
I have called you by name, you are mine.”

Isaiah 43:1

“Since love grows within you,
so beauty grows.
For love is the beauty of the soul.”

“A Christian is:
a mind through which Christ thinks,
a heart through which Christ loves,
a voice through which Christ speaks
and a hand through which Christ helps.”

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

“He will be with you also,
all the way, that faithful God.
Every morning when you awaken
to the old and tolerable pain,
at every mile of the hot uphill dusty road of tiring duty,
on, to the judgement seat,
the same Christ there as ever,
still loving you,
still sufficient for you, even then.
And then, on through all eternity.”

Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

“Think of the Cross when you rise and when you lie down,
when you go out and when you come in,
when you eat and when you walk and when you converse,
when you buy and when you sell,
when you labour and when you rest,
consecrating and sealing all your doings with this one mental action –
the thought of the Crucified.
Do not talk of it to others – be silent, like the penitent woman,
who showed her love in deep subdued acts.
She “stood at His feet behind Him weeping
and began to wash His feet with tears
and did wipe them with the hairs of her head
and kissed His feet and anointed them with the Ointment.”
And Christ said of her,
“Her sins, which are many, are forgiven her, for she loved much
but to whom little is forgiven, the same loveth little.” [Luke vii. 38, 47.]”

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Parochial Sermons V 23

“Mary –
the revolution of her life,
the revolution destined
to transform the existence
of every man and woman,
begins with a name
that echoes in the garden
of the empty tomb…”

Pope Francis

Feast of St Mary of Magdala

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Thought for the Day – 12 April – The Meaning of Easter

Posted on April 12, 2020April 12, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 12 April – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Meaning of Easter

“Today the Church adorns herself in festival array.
Gone are the lengthy lamentations of Holy Saturday and the sorrowful recitations of the Passion and in their place, is the glad cry of Alleluia, the hymn of vitory over death and sin.
The true joy of Easter, lies, not merely in external celebration, however but in the spiritual gladness of the soul.
As Jesus has conquered death and sin, so we must purify ourselves of every trace of guilt by a good confession and must be sure, that it will result in a practical renovation of our lives.
We should approach Jesus in the Blessed Eucharist with greater fervour and humility and with greater trust in His goodness and mercy.
When we have received Him into our hearts, we should ask Him to renew and transform us in Himself.
He is everything and we are nothing without Him.
He is strong, we are weak.
We are capable only of feeble desires to do good but He can make them effective by His grace.
We should not be satisfied with forming general resolutions when we go to confession and receive Holy Communion at Easter.
We should examine the depths of our soul and discover the sin which we are most accustomed to commit and the virtue which we are principally lacking.
As a result of our investigation, we should form a particular resolution to combat this sin and to practise this virtue.
It is only in this way, that our celebration of Easter can inaugurate the beginning of a genuine self-renewal which will gain momentum daily, until it becomes a true spiritual resurrection.
It will be a hard battle, which will necessitate a constant vigilance and a readiness to begin again, everytime we realise, that we have fallen.
It will require an unfailing spirit of prayer but, the final victory, will bring us such happiness, that worldly pleasures will seem empty and illusory, by comparison.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Most of us are barred from the Sacraments at present. Some, have been able to make their Easter Confession before all this ‘lockdown’ occurred. For those of us who were not able to do so, now is perhaps the most perfect time to prepare ourselves for the great day, when this time is over and we can, again, joyfully receive the Sacraments! In the meantime, let us be strong in the Risen Christ and rejoice in His Glory – Alleluia!

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Quote/s of the Day – 10 April – The Sign of the Cross

Posted on April 10, 2020April 10, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 10 April – Friday of the Passion of the Lord

“Great thing is the knowledge of the crucified Christ.
How many things are enclosed inside this treasure!
Christ crucified!
Such is the hidden treasure of wisdom and science.
Do not be deceived, then, under the pretext of wisdom.
Gather before the covering and pray, that it may be uncovered.
Foolish philosopher of this world, what you are looking for is worthless…
What is the advantage of being thirsty, if you despise the source? …
And what is His precept but that we believe in Him and love each other?
In whom? In Christ crucified.
This is His commandment – that we believe in Christ crucified …
But where humility is, there is also majesty,
where weakness is, there shall one find power,
where death is, there shall be life as well.
If you wish to arrive at the second part, do not despise the first!“

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

Sermon 160, 3-4

“Come, kneel before the Lord:
He shed for us His Blood.
He died the victim of pure love,
To make us one with God.”

Edward Caswall (1814-1878)

(15 July 1814 – 2 January 1878) was an Anglican clergyman and hymn writer
who converted to Roman Catholicism and became a Oratorian under St John Henry Newman.

The Sign of the Cross

WHENE’ER across this sinful flesh of mine
I draw the Holy Sign,
All good thoughts stir within me and renew
Their slumbering strength divine,
Till there springs up a courage high and true
To suffer and to do.

And who shall say but hateful spirits around,
For their brief hour unbound,
Shudder to see and wail their overthrow?
While on far heathen ground
Some lonely Saint hails the fresh odour, though
Its source he cannot know.

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Oxford – 25 November 1832

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Lenten Reflection – 3 April – ‘He alone is Priest, Sacrifice and Temple…’

Posted on April 3, 2020April 3, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 3 April – Friday of the Fifth Week of Lent, Readings: Jeremiah 20:10-13, Psalm 18:2-7, John 10:31-42

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

“If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me
but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works,
that you may know and understand
that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” … John 10:37-38

Daily Meditation:
Set us free.

“The Apostle teaches that Christ offered Himself for us to God as a fragrant offering and sacrifice. He is the true God and the true high priest who for our sake entered once for all into the holy of holies, taking with Him not the blood of bulls and goats but His own blood. This was foreshadowed by the high priest of old when each year he took blood and entered the holy of holies.

Christ is, therefore, the one who in Himself alone, embodied all that He knew to be necessary to achieve our redemption. He is at once Priest and Sacrifice, God and Temple. He is the Priest through whom we have been reconciled, the Sacrifice by which we have been reconciled, the Temple in which we have been reconciled, the God with whom we have been reconciled. He alone is Priest, Sacrifice and Temple because He is all these things as God, in the form of a Servant but He is not alone as God, for He is this with the Father and the Holy Spirit in the form of God.

Hold fast to this and never doubt it – the only-begotten Son, God the Word, becoming man offered Himself for us, to God, as a fragrant offering and sacrifice. In the time of the Old Testament, patriarchs, prophets and priests sacrificed animals in His honour and in honour of the Father and the Holy Spirit, as well. Now in the time of the New Testament the Holy Catholic Church, throughout the world, never ceases to offer the Sacrifice of bread and wine, in faith and love, to Him and to the Father and the Holy Spirit, with whom He shares one Godhead.” … St Fulgentius of Ruspe (c 462 – 533) – An excerpt from his Treatise on Faith addressed to Peter

The Lord is my rock, and my fortress and my deliverer,
my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,
my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised
and I am saved from my enemies.
Psalm 18:2-3

Intercessions:
Thanks be to Christ the Lord,
who brought us life by is death on the cross.
With our whole heart let us askHhim:
By Your death raise us to life.

Teacher and Saviour,
You have shown us Your fidelity and made us a new creation by Your passion,
– keep us from falling again into sin.
Help us to deny ourselves today,
– and not deny those in need.
May we receive this day of penance as Your gift,
– and give it back to You through works of mercy.
Master our rebellious hearts,
– and teach us generosity.
Closing Prayer:
Most forgiving Lord,
again and again You welcome me back into Your loving arms.
Grant me freedom from the heavy burdens of sin
that weigh me down
and keep me so far from You.
May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.

“O Fountain of everlasting love,
what shall I say of You?
How can I forget You,
Who have vouchsafed to remember me
even after I was corrupted and lost?”

Thomas á Kempis (1380-1471)

Imitation of Christ, Book 3, Chapter 10

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Our Morning Offering – 2 April – O Saviour of the World

Posted on April 2, 2020April 1, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 2 April – Thursday of the Fifth week of Lent

O Saviour of the World
By St Ignatius of Antioch (c 35-c 108)
Father of the Church

Lord Jesus Christ,
on the human side
You are sprung from David’s line,
Son of God according to God’s will and power,
born of the Virgin Mary,
baptised by John
and actually Crucified for us in the flesh,
under Pontius Pilate and Herod the Tetrarch.
On the third day, You raised a standard
to rally Your saints and faithful forever
in the one body of Your Church.
By the grace and power of these mysteries,
fit us out with unshakeable faith,
nail us body and soul to Your Cross
and root us in love by Your Blood, shed for us,
O Saviour of the world,
living and reigning, now and forever,
amen. o saviour of the world - st ignatius of antioch prayer 2 april 2020

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Quote/s of the Day – 31 March – O Blessed Cross

Posted on March 31, 2020March 31, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 31 March – Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent

“This is that enviable
and blessed Cross of Christ . . .
the Cross in which alone,
we must make our boast,
as Paul,
God’s chosen instrument,
has told us.”

St Raymond of Peñafort (1175-1275)

“The soul that longs for divine wisdom
chooses first and in truth,
to enter the thicket of the Cross.
…The gate that gives entry, into these riches
of His wisdom, is the Cross,
because it is a narrow gate,
while many seek the joys that can be gained through it,
it is given to few to desire to pass through it.”

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

“Deceitful are the ephemeral pleasures
and joys of this world.
Our supreme comfort in this life, is to die to the world
that we may live with Jesus crucified.
Let others seek gold and other earthly treasures.
I already possess the immortal treasure
of holy poverty on the Cross of Jesus crucified.
The angelic virtue, growing like a pure, fragrant lily
in the hidden beauteous garden of the cloister,
adorns the forehead with heavenly tints,
for it has roots in the Cross of Jesus crucified.
A third crown completes my oblation,
it is the seal of glory,
whereby the obedient, spotless Lamb gained victory.
Obedience is the secure science
of living with Jesus crucified.
With this triple treasure,
I can hope to pass beyond
the fleeting confines of mortal man,
by living poor on this earth and rich in heaven,
united with Jesus crucified.”

Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro (1891-1927)
Priest and Martyr

“He died for us.
Why not live for Him?”

C S Lewis (1898-1963)

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Lenten Reflection – 31 March – The Word of the Cross

Posted on March 31, 2020March 31, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 31 March – Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent, Readings: Numbers 21:4-9, Psalm 102:2-3, 16-21, John 8:21-30

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

“When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that I Am He…”…John 8:28

john-8-28-when-yu-have-lifted-up-the-son-of-man-tuesdayfifthweeklent-9-april-2019 and 31 March 2020

Daily Meditation:
May we be lifted up with you.

“Jesus lifted up draws all to Himself.
Jesus lifted up on the Cross, reveals fully Whoe He really is.
Jesus is most Jesus, when He is on the Cross.
Even though at Calvary, Jesus was taunted and mocked
by the rabid rabble, to come down from the Cross,
He remained transfixed on it, till the very end.
We need to mount the Cross with Jesus!
We need to see the world from that vantage viewpoint.
Then, everything falls into proper perspective,
then we begin to see the world, as it is.
It is only when we are with Jesus on the Cross,
that we are stretched to our fullest dimensions!” … Msgr Alex Rebello

For my days pass away like smoke
and my bones burn like a furnace.
Psalm 102:3

Intercessions:
Praise to Christ, who has given us Himself as the bread from heaven.
Let us pray to Him, saying:
Jesus, You feed and heal our souls, come to strengthen us.

Lord, feed us at the banquet of the Eucharist,
– with all the gifts of Your Paschal Sacrifice.
Give us a perfect heart to receive Your word,
– that we may bring forth fruit in patience.
Make us eager to work with You in building a better world,
– so that it may listen to Your Church and its gospel of peace.
We confess, Lord, that we have sinned,
– wash us clean by Your gift of salvation.

Closing Prayer:

The Word of the Cross
by Saint Paulinus of Nola (c 354-431)

Look on thy God, Christ hidden in our flesh.
A bitter word, the cross and bitter sight:
Hard rind without, to hold the heart of heaven.
Yet sweet it is, for God upon that tree
Did offer up His life upon that rood
My Life hung, that my life might stand in God.
Christ, what am I to give Thee for my life?
Unless take from Thy hands the cup they hold,
To cleanse me with the precious draught of death.
What shall I do? My body to be burned?
Make myself vile? The debt’s not paid out yet.
Whate’er I do, it is but I and Thou,
And still do I come short, still must Thou pay
My debts, O Christ, for debts Thyself hadst none.
What love may balance Thine? My Lord was found
In fashion like a slave, that so His slave
Might find himself in fashion like his Lord.
Think you the bargain’s hard, to have exchanged
The transient for the eternal, to have sold
Earth to buy Heaven? More dearly God bought me.

the word of the cross by st paulinus of nola - 31 march 2020

“Christ’s shoulders are the arms of the cross,
there it is, that I have laid down my sins,
on that gallows I have found my rest. “

St Ambrose (340-397)
Father & Doctor of the Church

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One Minute Reflection – 31 March – The ‘Book’ of the Cross

Posted on March 31, 2020March 31, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 31 March – Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent, Readings: Numbers 21:4-9, Psalm 102:2-3, 16-21, John 8:21-30

“When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that I Am He…”...John 8:28

REFLECTION – “Wonder is the source from which philosophers draw their great learning. They encounter and reflect on the marvels of nature, such as earthquakes or thunder (…) or eclipses of the sun and moon, for example. Moved by these wonders, they seek out their cause. Thus, by patient research and extensive investigation, they attain remarkable knowledge and subtlety, which men call “natural philosophy”.

But there is another, even higher form of philosophy, above that of nature, to which one likewise attains, through wonder – this is the philosophy of Christians. And there is no question that, of all that characterises Christian doctrine, it is particularly wonderful and marvellous, that the Son of God, for love of man, consented to be crucified and to die on the cross (…). Is it not astonishing that He, for whom we should have the most respectful awe, felt such fear that He sweated water and blood? (…) Is it not astonishing that He, who gives life to every creature, should have endured so humiliating, cruel and painful a death?

And so, those who strive to meditate on and wonder, at so extraordinary a “book”, as is the Cross, with sensitive heart and sincere faith, will attain a far more fruitful knowledge than many another, who daily studies and meditates on ordinary books. For the true Christian, this book, is sufficient as an object of study for all the days of his life.” … Saint John Fisher (c.1469-1535) Bishop, Martyr – A Sermon preached on Good Friday john 8 28 - when you have lifted up - those who strive to meditate - st john fisher 31 march 2020

PRAYER – Holy Father, we have sinned against You and beg for Your forgiveness and mercy. Through the merits of the saving Cross of Your Son, help Your people O Lord, to persevere in obedience to Your will, so that through this obedience, we may reach our eternal home. We hope for the intercession of your angels and saints and our most loving Mother of Mercy. Through Christ, our Lord with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.

mary-mothr-of-mercy-pray-for-us-5-oct-2018 and 31 march 2020

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Lenten Reflection – 30 March – ‘The Holy and sublime ladder …’

Posted on March 30, 2020March 30, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 30 March – Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent, Readings: Daniel 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62, Psalm 23, John 8:1-11

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

“Neither do I condemn you; go and do not sin again.” … John 8:11

Daily Meditation:
Help us to pass from our old life of sin
to our new life of grace.

“The Lord Jesus, the Saviour of all, “made himself all things to all men” (1 Cor 9:22) in such a way that He revealed Himself as being smaller than the small, He who was greater than the great. To save a soul who was surprised in adultery and accused by the demons, He lowered Himself to the point of writing on the ground with His finger…. He, Himself, is the holy and sublime ladder that the traveller Jacob saw in his sleep (Gen 28:12),… the ladder that was set up from the earth to God and that God held out to the earth. When He wants, He goes up to God. Sometimes He is accompanied by a few people … and sometimes no-one can follow Him. And when He wants, He joins the crowd… He heals lepers, eats with publicans and sinners… touches the sick to heal them. he himself is the holy and sublime ladder - isaac of stella 30 march 2020

Blessed is the soul that can follow the Lord Jesus wherever He goes, going up to the rest of contemplation… and on the other hand, coming down by the practice of charity, following Him to the point of lowering itself in service, of loving poverty, of bearing with (…) fatigue, work, tears, prayer and finally compassion and the passion. For He came in order to obey even to death, to serve and not to be served, not to give gold or silver but His teaching and His help to the many, His life for the many (Mk 10:45)…

So, brethren, may this be the model for your life: (…) to follow Christ by going up to the Father… to follow Christ by going down to your neighbour, refusing no practice of charity, making yourselves all things to all persons.” … Isaac of Stella (c 1100-c 1171) Cistercian Monk, theologian, philosopher – Sermon 12

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want;
he makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters,
he restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
Psalm 23:1-3 monday of the fifth week 30 march 2020

Intercessions:
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:

I Unite My Sacrifice
Prayer for Submission to Divine Providence
By St Joseph Maria Pignatelli SJ (1737 – 1811)

My God, I do not know
what must come to me today.
But I am certain
that nothing can happen to me
that You have not foreseen, decreed
and ordained from all eternity.
That is sufficient for me.
I adore Your impenetrable
and eternal designs,
to which I submit with all my heart.
I desire, I accept them all
and I unite my sacrifice to that of
Jesus Christ, my Divine Saviour.
I ask in His name
and through His infinite merits,
patience in my trials
and perfect and entire submission,
to all that comes to me
by Your good pleasure.
Amen i unite my sacrifice by st joseph pignatelli sj 30 march 2020

ACT of CONTRITION, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, LENT 2020, LENTEN THOUGHTS, PAPAL ENCYLICALS, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The HOLY CROSS, The PASSION, The RESURRECTION

Lenten Reflection – 27 March – ‘Here is the Son of God …’

Posted on March 27, 2020May 6, 2023 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 27 March – Friday of the Fourth Week of Lent, Readings: Wisdom 2:1, 12-22, Psalm 34:17-21, 23, John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

“You know me and you know where I come from?
But I have not come of my own accord;
he who sent me is true and him you do not know.”…John 7:28

Daily Meditation:
May we reach out with joy to grasp Your hand.

“In His Resurrection Christ has revealed the God of merciful love, precisely because He accepted the Cross as the way to the Resurrection. And, it is for this reason, that, when we recall the Cross of Christ, His passion and death, our faith and hope are centred on the Risen One – on that Christ who “on the evening of that day, the first day of the week, . . .stood among them” in the upper Room, “where the disciples were, …breathed on them and said to them: ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained’ ” (Jn 20:19).
Here is the Son of God, who in His Resurrection, experienced in a radical way, mercy shown to Himself, that is to say the love of the Father which is more powerful than death. And it is also the same Christ, the Son of God, who… reveals Himself as the inexhaustible source of mercy, of the same love… more powerful than sin.” … St Pope John Paul (1920-2005) – Encyclical « Dives in Misericordia » # 8

and-it-is-also-the-same-christ-st-john-paul-encyclical-frifourtheweeklent-5-april-2019 AND 27 MARCH 2020

When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears,
and delivers them out of all their troubles.
The Lord is near to the brokenhearted
and saves the crushed in spirit.
Psalm 34:17-18

friday of the fourth week 27 march 2020

Intercessions:
Let us pray to Christ our Saviour,
who redeemed us by His Death and Resurrection:
Lord, have mercy on us.

You went up to Jerusalem to suffer and so enter into Your glory,
– bring Your Church to the Passover feast of heaven.
You were lifted high on the cross and pierced by the soldier’s lance,
– heal our wounds.
You made the Cross the Tree of Life,
– give its fruit to those reborn in baptism.
On the Cross You forgave the repentant thief,
– forgive us our sins.

Closing Prayer:

Act of Contrition
By St Alphonsus Mary Liguori (1696-1787)
Doctor of the Church

My Lord Jesus Christ,
You have made this journey
to die for me, with love unutterable
and I have so many times unworthily abandoned You
but now I love You with my whole heart
and because I love You,
I repent sincerely for having ever offended You.
Pardon me, my God
and permit me to accompany You on this journey.
You go to die for love of me,
I wish also, my beloved Redeemer,
to die for love of Thee.
My Jesus, I will live
and die always united to You.
Amen act-of-contrition-st-alphonsus-13-april-2019 and 27 march 2020

DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, GOD the FATHER, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on HUMAN DIGNITY, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD

Thought for the Day – 26 March – Why God Created Us

Posted on March 26, 2020March 26, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 26 March – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Why God Created Us

“God is infinitely happy in Himself from all eternity.
He contemplates His own Essence, which contains evey beauty and perfection.
In the inconceivable joy of this contemplation, He generates the substantial image of Himself, which is the Eternal Word, “the brightness of his glory and the image of his substance.” (Heb 1:3)
When He contemplates Himself, in the the Eternal Word, He naturally loves Himself.
This substantial and infinite Love, proceeds from God, as an eternal principle, insofar, as He knows Himself and thence, proceeds from the Father, Who contemplates and the Word, Who is contemplated.
In this mysterious circle of the divine life, God enjoys an eternal, infinite and perfect happiness.
Consequently, He is not in need of anything.
Nevertheless, He wishes to radiate even outside of Himself, the splendour of His power, beauty and goodness.
He created the world and placed man in it, as the sovereign being.
Unfortunately, sin came to disturb our being and to deprive us of the splendour of divine grace and, in this way, it weakened the sovereignty, which God had given us over all other creatures.
But Jesus, the Eternal Word made man, has raised us once more to the supreme dignity of sons of God and heirs of Heaven.
These reflections should arouse immense gratitude to God on our part, because, He gave us life and made us masters of the universe.
They should also make us deeply grateful to Jesus, because, in His infinite mercy, He raised us up after we had fallen and redeemed us, with His own Precious Blood.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on REPARATION/EXPIATION, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY

Quote/s of the Day – 24 March – Bl Didacus Joseph and St Óscar Romero

Posted on March 24, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 24 March – The Memorial of Blessed Didacus Joseph of Cadiz OFM Cap (1743–1801) and Saint Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (1917–1980) Martyr

“By means of our penances
we should atone for the sins of our fellowmen
and thus preserve ourselves
and them from eternal death.
It would hardly be too much
if we shed the last drop of our blood
for their conversion.”

Blessed Didacus Joseph of Cadiz (1743–1801)

“If we are worth anything,
it is not because we have
more money or more talent,
or more human qualities.
Insofar, as we are worth anything,
it is, because we are grafted onto Christ’s life,
His cross and resurrection.
That is a person’s measure.”

“There are many things
that can only be seen,
through eyes that have cried.”

St Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (1917–1980)

Martyr

ACT of CONTRITION, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2020, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The PASSION, The WORD

Lenten Reflection – 24 March – By your blood, forgive my sins.

Posted on March 24, 2020May 6, 2023 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 24 March – Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent, Readings: Ezekiel 47:1-9, 12, Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9, John 5:1-16 and the Memorial of Blessed Didacus Joseph of Cadiz OFM Cap (1743–1801)

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Hebrew called Bethzatha, which has five porticoes. In these lay a multitude of invalids, blind, lame, paralyzed. One man was there, who had been ill for thirty-eight years. … John 5:2-5
“It was because Jesus did things such as this on the Sabbath
that they began to persecute him.” …John 5:16
For me!

Daily Meditation:
We begin to feel the power of the Fourth Gospel.
The “forces” that are opposed in the gospel
have everything to do with the forces at work in my heart.

“Go down, my brothers and put on the Holy Spirit in the waters of baptism;
be united with those spiritual beings who serve our God.
Blessed be He who instituted baptism for the forgiveness of Adam’s sons!
This water is the secret fire that marks His flock with a sign,
with the three spiritual names that confound the Evil one (cf. Rev 3:12). (…)
John bore witness concerning our Saviour:
“He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Mt 3:11).
Here, my brethren, in the true baptism, is that fire and that Spirit.
For baptism is more powerful than Jordan, that little stream,
its waves of water and oil wash away all human sin.
Elisha, by initiating it seven times, purified Naaman of his leprosy (2 Kgs 5:10);
whereas baptism purifies us of sins hidden in our souls.
Moses baptised the people in the sea (1 Cor 10:2)
yet could not cleanse their hearts from within,
Stained, as they were, by sin.
And now here is a Priest, like Moses, who cleanses the soul from its stains
and with oil He marks with a sign, lambs newborn for the Kingdom. (…)
With the water that flowed from the rock, the people’s thirst was quelled (Ex 17:1f.),
See how, through Christ and His spring, is quenched the thirst of nations. (…)
See how, from Christ’s side, there flows a life-giving stream (Jn 19:34),
peoples who thirst have drunk from it and there forgot their affliction.
Pour your dew on my weakness, Lord.
By your blood, forgive my sins.” … St Ephrem (306-373) Father & Doctor of the Church

pur your dew on my weakness lord by your blood forgive my sins - st ephrem 24 march 2020

Intercessions:
God the Father has given us His only Son, the Word made human,
to be our food and our life. Let us thank Him and pray:
May the word of Christ dwell among us in all its richness.

Help us this Lenten season to listen more frequently to Your word,
– that we may celebrate the solemnity of Easter
with greater love for Christ, our Paschal Sacrifice.
May Your Holy Spirit be our teacher,
– that we may encourage those in doubt and error to follow what is true and good.
Enable us to enter more deeply into the mystery of Your Anointed One,
– that our lives may reveal Him more effectively.
Purify and renew Your Church in this time of salvation,
– that it may give an ever greater witness to You.

Closing Prayer:

ACT OF CONTRITION

Forgive my sins, O my God, forgive my sins:
the sins of youth,
the sins of age,
the sins of my soul
and the sins of my body,
the sins which, through frailty, I have committed,
my deliberate and grievous sins,
the sins I know and the sins I do not know,
the sins I have laboured so long to hide from others,
that now they are hidden from my own memory,
let me be absolved from all these iniquities
and delivered from the bond of all these evils,
by the Life, Passion and Death
of my Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.
Amen act-of-contrition-7-march-thurs-after-ash-wed-2019 and 24 march 2020

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on FEAR, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY, The PASSION

Quote/s of the Day – 23 March – St Rafqa

Posted on March 23, 2020March 23, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 23 March – The Memorial of St Rafqa Pietra Choboq Ar-Rayès OLM (1832 – 1914)

“O Christ,
I unite my sufferings to Yours,
my pains with Your pains,
as I look at Your head,
crowned with thorns.”

“I am not afraid of death which I have waited for a long time.
God will let me live through my death.”

St Rafqa Pietra Choboq Ar-Rayès (1832 – 1914)

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2020, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The WORD

Lenten Reflection – 22 March – So he went and washed and came back seeing.

Posted on March 22, 2020March 21, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 22 March – Fourth “Laetare” Sunday of Lent, Readings: 1 Samuel 16:1, 6-7, 10-13, Psalm 23:1-6, Ephesians 5:8-14, John 9:1-41

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

So he went and washed and came back seeing. … John 9:7

lent - laetare sunday 4th sun of lent 22 march 2020

Daily Meditation:
Laetare Sunday: Be joyful!

“The man born blind and healed, represents us when we do not realise that Jesus is the light, He is “the Light of the World,” when we are looking elsewhere, when we prefer to entrust ourselves to little lights, when we are groping in the dark.
Acting as children of the light requires a radical change of mindset, a capacity to judge men and things according to another scale of values, which comes from God. What does it mean to have the true light, to walk in the light? First of all it means abandoning false lights – the cold, vain light of prejudice against others, because prejudice distorts reality and ladens us with aversion to those whom we judge without mercy and condemn without appeal.
May the Blessed Virgin, who was the first to welcome Jesus, the Light of the World, obtain for us this grace of welcoming anew the light of faith this Lent, rediscovering the inestimable gift of Baptism, which all of us have received. And may this new illumination transform us in attitude and action, so that we too, beginning with our poverty, our narrow-mindedness, may be bearers of a ray of the light of Christ.” … Pope Francis (Angelus, 26 March 2017) the man born blind and healed represents us - pope francis 22 march 2020

Intercessions:
Let us give glory to God, whose kindness knows no limit.
Through Jesus Christ, who lives forever to intercede for
us, let us pray:
Kindle in our hearts the fire of Your love.

God of mercy, let today be a day rich in good works,
-a day of generosity to all we meet.
From the waters of the flood you saved Noah through the ark,
-from the waters of baptism raise up to new life those
under instruction.
May we live not by bread only,
-but by every word falling from Your lips.
Help us to do away with all dissension,
-so that we may rejoice in Your gifts of peace and love.

Closing Prayer:

“All-powerful God, Benefactor and Creator of the universe,
hearken to my groaning in my peril.
Deliver me from fear and anguish,
free me by the strength of Your might, You who can do all…
O Lord Christ, cut the threads of my net
with the sword of Your triumphant Cross, with the weapon of life.
This net encompasses me on every side,
holding me captive so as to bring me to my death.
Guide to their rest, my tottering and unsteady steps,
heal the stifling fever of my heart.
I stand guilty before You,
take away from me my distress, the devil’s ploy;
remove the darkness of my anguished soul…

Renew in my soul the light-filled image of the glory of Your name,
so great and so powerful.
Intensify the brilliance of Your grace upon the image of my face
and on the eyes of my spirit, I who am born of the earth (Gn 2:7).
Let my darkness vanish in a radiant purity, sinner that I am.
Drown my soul in Your living, eternal, heavenly divine light
so that the likeness of God the Trinity may increase within me.
You alone, O Christ, are blessed, together with the Father
for the praise of your Holy Spirit
for endless ages.
Amen

Saint Gregory of Narek (c 951-c 1010)
Doctor of the Church
Book of prayers, no 40

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2020, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on TRUTH, The HOLY CROSS, The WORD, Thomas a Kempis

Lenten Reflection – 18 March – Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ

Posted on March 18, 2020March 18, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 18 March – Wednesday of the Third week of Lent, Readings: Deuteronomy 4:1, 5-9, Psalm 147:12-13, 15-16, 19-20, Matthew 5:17-19

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

“Think not that I have come to abolish the law
and the prophets, I have come,
not to abolish them but to fulfil them.”…Matthew 5:17

wed-of-the-third-week-lent-matthew-5-17-27-march-2019 and 18 march 2020

Daily Meditation:
The law was given through Moses, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

“In Him the promise made through the shadows of prophecy stands revealed, along with the full meaning of the precepts of the law. He is the one who teaches the truth of prophecy through His presence and makes obedience to the commandments possible through grace.
In the preaching of the holy Gospel all should receive a strengthening of their faith. No-one should be ashamed of the Cross of Christ, through which the world has been redeemed.
No-one should fear to suffer for the sake of justice, no-one should lose confidence in the reward that has been promised. The way to rest is through toil, the way to life is through death. Christ has taken on Himself the whole weakness of our lowly human nature. If then we are steadfast in our faith in Him and in our love for Him, we win the victory that He has won, we receive what He has promised.
When it comes to obeying the commandments or enduring adversity, the words uttered by the Father should always echo in our ears – “This is my Son, the beloved, in whom I am well pleased, listen to Him.” … St Pope Leo the Great (400-461) – An excerpt from Sermo 51 the way to rest is through toil the way to life is through death - st pope leo the great 18 march 2020

He has not dealt thus with any other nation;
they do not know his ordinances.
Praise the Lord!
Psalm 147:20

Intercessions:
Blessed be God, the giver of salvation, who decreed that mankind should become a new creation in Himself, when all would be made new. With great confidence let us ask Him:
Lord, renew us in Your Spirit.

Lord, You promised a new heaven and a new earth; renew us daily through Your Spirit,
– that we may enjoy Your presence forever in the heavenly Jerusalem.
Help us to work with You to make this world alive with Your Spirit,
– and to build on earth a city of justice, love and peace.
Free us from all negligence and sloth,
– and give us joy in Your gifts of grace.
Deliver us from evil,
– and from slavery to the senses, which blinds us to goodness.
Closing Prayer:

O Sweet Name of Jesus
By Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

O sweet Name of Jesus,
holy above all names
in heaven and on earth
and to which every knee,
both of men and of angels in heaven,
on earth and in hell bends.
You are the Way of the just,
the Glory of the saints,
the Hope of those in need,
the Balm of the sick,
the Love of the devout
and the Consolation
of those that suffer.
O, Jesus be to me a help and a protector
so that Your Name may be blessed for all times.
Amen o sweet name of jesus - thomas a kempis - 6 jan 2018

“Where can we fix our gaze, then, throughout this Lenten journey?
Upon the Crucified One.
Jesus on the cross is life’s compass, which directs us to heaven.
The poverty of the wood, the silence of the Lord, His loving self-emptying,
show us the necessity of a simpler life, free from anxiety about things.
From the cross, Jesus teaches us the great courage involved in renunciation.”

Pope Francis

Basilica of Santa Sabina
Ash Wednesday, 6 March 2019

CHRIST the KING, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST

Quote/s of the Day – 16 March – He is the key to our destiny

Posted on March 16, 2020March 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 16 March – Monday of the Third week of Lent

“Jesus Christ
You have heard Him spoken of,
indeed the greater part of you are already His – you are Christians.
So, to you Christians I repeat His name,
to everyone I proclaim Him –
Jesus Christ is the beginning and the end,
the Alpha and the Omega.
He is the king of the new world.
He is the secret of history.
He is the key to our destiny.”

St Pope Paul VI (1897-1978)

“When did Jesus reveal Himself as king?
In the event of the Cross!”

Pope Francis

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2020, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The PASSION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 16 March – “No prophet is accepted in his own country”

Posted on March 16, 2020March 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 16 March – Monday of the Third week of Lent, Readings: 2 Kings 5:1-15, Psalm 42:2-3; 43:3-4, Luke 4:24-30

“Amen, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country.” … Luke 4:24 luke 4 24 i say to you no prophet is accepted in his own country 16 march 2020

REFLECTION – “A doctor came amongst us to restore us to health – our Lord Jesus Christ. He discovered blindness in our hearts and promised the light that “eye has not seen and ear has not heard and has not entered the heart of man” (1Cor 2:9).
The humility of Jesus Christ is the cure for your pride. Don’t scorn what will bring you healing, be humble, you for whom God humbled Himself. Indeed, He knew that the medicine of humility would cure you, He who well understood your sickness and knew how to cure it. While you were unable to run to the doctor’s house, the doctor in person came to your house… He is coming, He wants to help you, He knows what you need.
God has come with humility precisely in order that man might imitate Him. If He had remained above you, how would you have been able to imitate Him? And, without imitating Him, how could you be healed? He came with humility because He knew the nature of the remedy He had to administer – a little bitter, it is true but healing. And do you continue to scorn Him? He who holds out the cup to you and you say: “But what sort of God is this God of mine? He was born, suffered, was covered with spittle, crowned with thorns, nailed on the cross!” O miserable soul! You see the doctor’s humility and not the cancer of your pride. That is why humility displeases you…
It often happens that mentally ill people end up by beating their doctor. When that happens, the unfortunate doctor is not only not distressed by the one who beat him but attempts to treat him… As for our doctor, He did not fear being killed by sick people afflicted with madness, He turned His own death into their remedy. Indeed, He died and rose again.”…St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of the Church a doctor came amongst us - st augustine 16 march 2020

PRAYER – Lord our God, make us love You above all things and all our fellow-men, with a love that is worthy of You. May we look to Your Divine Son in love and imitation. Grant we pray, that by the prayers of the Mother of our Lord and our Mother, we too may be granted the grace to follow Your only Son, no matter our sufferings. We make our prayer, through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever amen. ianua caeli heaven's gate pray for us mary - 25 aug 2019

LENT 2020, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on VIRTUE, QUOTES on WILL (Reasonable or Superior), The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 13 March – ‘We ourselves are this house …’

Posted on March 13, 2020March 12, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 13 March – Friday of the Second Week of Lent, Readings: Genesis 37:3-4, 12 -13, 17-28, Psalm 105:16-21, Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46

“Therefore, I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation producing the fruits of it.”...Matthew 21:43 matthew 21 43 therefore i tell you the kingdom of god will be taken away from you 13 march 2020

REFLECTION – “The vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel” says the prophet (Is 5:7). We ourselves are this house… and, since we are His Israel, we are the vineyard. So let us take good care that grapes of wrath (Rv 14:19) rather than sweetness do not grow from our branches, so that no-one may say to us: “I expected grapes but it yielded wild grapes” (Is 5:4). What fruitless soil! The soil that should have presented its master with fruits of sweetness, pierced Him with its sharp thorns.
In the same way His enemies, who ought to have welcomed our Saviour with all the devotion of their faith, crowned Him with the thorns of His Passion. In their eyes this crown expressed insult and abuse but in the Lord’s eyes it was the crown of virtue…

My brethren, take good care that no one says with regard to you: “He expected it to yield grapes but it yielded wild grapes” (Is 5:2)… Let us be careful that our evil deeds do not rub against our Lord’s head like thorns. ” … Saint Maximus of Turin (c 380-c 420) – Sermon for the feast of Saint Cyprian – CC Sermon 11

PRAYER – Almighty God, help us dear Father to produce fruits acceptable to You. Help us to reach out of our enclosed spaces in love to all. Even when the road is rocky, grant that we may not falter but always turn back to Your merciful gaze.ay the prayers of our Blessed Mother, the Virgin Mary, who fearlessly withstood the fury of evil, be a help in our times of need and fear. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, one God for all eternity, amen. blessed virgin mary pray for us 17 jan 2019

LENT 2020, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The WORD

Lenten Reflection – 11 March – What did you say, woman?

Posted on March 11, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 11 March – Wednesday of the Second week of Lent, Readings: Jeremiah 18:18- 20; Psalms 31:5-6, 14, 15-16; Matthew 20:17-28

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

Daily Meditation:
“Command that these two sons of mine sit, one at your right and the other at your left, in your kingdom”…Matthew 20:21

The importance of Humility”
(Extract from a Sermon on St Philip Neri)

By St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

“But I would beg for you this privilege, that the public world might never know you for praise or for blame, that you should do a good deal of hard work in your generation and prosecute many useful labours and effect a number of religious purposes and send many souls to heaven and take men by surprise, how much you were really doing, when they happened to come near enough to see it but that by the world you should be overlooked, that you should not be known out of your place, that you should work for God alone, with a pure heart and single eye, without the distractions of human applause and should make Him your sole hope and His eternal heaven your sole aim and have your reward, not partly here but fully and entirely, hereafter.”

“The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve
and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:28 wed-of-the-second-week-matthew-20-28-the-sone-of-man-came-not-to-serve-20-march-2019 and 11 march 2020

Intercessions:
Let us give thanks to God, our Father:
through the power of the Spirit He purifies our heart and strengthens us in love.
Let us humbly ask Him:
Lord, give us Your Holy Spirit.

Help us to receive good things from Your bounty with a deep sense of gratitude;
-and to accept with patience the evil that comes to us.
Teach us to be loving not only in great and exceptional moments,
-but above all in the ordinary events of daily life.
May we abstain from what we do not really need
-and help our brothers and sisters in distress.
May we bear the wounds of Your Son,
-for through His body He gave us life.

Closing Prayer:
God of Love,
through this Lenten journey,
purify my desires to serve You.
Free me from any temptations
to place myself above others.
Please let me surrender even my impatience with others,
that with Your love and Your grace,
I might be less and less absorbed with myself
and more and more full of the desire
to follow You, in laying down my life
according to Your example.
May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen.

“What did you say, woman?
You hear Him talking about the cross
and you ask for a throne?”

Basil of Seleucia (Died c 468) Bishop
Sermon 24

QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SUNDAY REFLECTIONS, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The INCARNATION, The PASSION

Sunday Reflection – 23 February – “Take and divide it among yourselves.”

Posted on February 23, 2020February 22, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Sunday Reflection – 23 February – Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

“Take and divide it among yourselves.”

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

“Christ then took on our nature, when He would redeem it;
He redeemed it by making it suffer in His own Person;
He purified it, by making it pure in His own Person.
He first sanctified it in Himself, made it righteous, made it acceptable to God, submitted it to an expiatory passion and then He imparted it to us. He took it, consecrated it, broke it and said, “Take and divide it among yourselves.”

Newman was convinced that no one “realises the mystery of the Incarnation but must feel disposed towards that of the Holy Communion.” Both are mysteries of the coming of Christ, longed for as the hope of mankind for salvation. If we accept that God unites Himself, His divinity and His spirit, to humanity, nature and matter in His birth as man, then we can also accept that He binds His presence to the species of bread and wine. When Jesus says, “This is my body, this is my blood,” this remains a mystery but our faith in it, is not against our reason.

Years later this Catholic priest wrote:

“O wisest love! That flesh and blood
Which did in Adam fail,
Should strive afresh against the foe,
Should strive and should prevail.”
“And that a higher gift than grace
Should flesh and blood refine,
God’s presence and His very Self,
And Essence all-divine.”

ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on MARTYRDOM, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PERSECUTION, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 21 February – ‘carrying His cross’

Posted on February 21, 2020February 21, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 21 February – Friday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: James 2:14-24, 26, Psalm 112:1-6, Mark 8:34–9:1 and the Memorial of Blessed Noel Pinot (1747-1794) Priest and Martyr

“He summoned the crowd with his disciples and said to them, “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me.” … Mark 8:34 mark 8 34 - whoever wishes to follow me must take up his cross - 21 feb 2020

REFLECTION – “What does this mean, “take up a cross”? It means he will bear with whatever is troublesome and in this very act he will be following me.
When he has begun to follow me, according to My teaching and precepts, he will find many people contradicting him and standing in his way, many who not only deride but even persecute him.
Moreover, this is true, not only of pagans who are outside the church but also of those, who seem to be in it visibly but are outside of it because of the perversity of their deeds.
Although these glory, in merely the title of Christian, they continually persecute faithful Christians.
Such belong to the members of the church in the same way, that bad blood is in the body.
Therefore, if you wish to follow Christ, do not delay in carrying His cross, tolerate sinners but do not yield to them.
Do not let the false happiness of the wicked corrupt you.
You do well to despise all things for the sake of Christ, in order that you may be fit for his companionship.” … St Caesarius of Arles (470-543) – (Sermons, 159) when he has begun to follow me - st caesarius of arles - 21 feb 2020

PRAYER – Holy Father, send Your Divine Enlightener into the hearts of all Your faithful, filling us with the strength to fulfil our mission as the followers of Your only Son, our Saviour and to take up our cross in His footsteps. Teach us and guide us, to deny ourselves for His sake. As the zealous, faithful and courageous shepherd Blessed Noel Pinot, died for love of Christ and His Church, may we and all our Priests, profit by his intercession and be strengthened in the face of all persecution. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen BL NOEL PINOT PRAY FOR US 21 FEB 2020

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY CROSS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 20 February – ‘Do not be a friend to Jesus in times of peace alone…’

Posted on February 20, 2020February 20, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 20 February – Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: James 2:1-9, Psalm 34:2-7,Mark 8:27-33 and the Memorial of Saint Eucherius of Orléans (c 687-743)

“Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him” … Mark 8:32

REFLECTION – “We should not be ashamed of the cross of the Saviour but rather make it our glory.
“The message of the cross is a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles” but for us it is salvation. For those who are perishing it is foolishness but for us who are being saved it is the power of God” (cf. 1 Cor 1:18-24).
For it is no mere man who died but the Son of God, God made man.
In Moses’ days the lamb caused the destroying angel to pass over (cf. Ex 12:23) and has not “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29) set us even more free from our sins?

Not by force did He lose His life, not by might was He sacrificed but by His own will.
Hear what he said: “I have power to lay down my life and I have power to take it up again” (Jn 10:18). (…)
He came to His Passion of set will, happy in His exploit, laughing at His victory, satisfied to be saving us.
He was not ashamed of the cross because He was saving the whole earth. It was not some poor man who was suffering but God made man who entered the combat to win the prize of patience. (…)

Do not rejoice in the cross only in times of peace, preserve the same faith in times of persecution.
Do not be a friend to Jesus in times of peace alone, only to become His enemy in times of war.
You are now receiving forgiveness for your sins and the spiritual gifts lavishly bestowed by your king so, when war breaks out, fight valiantly for your king.
Jesus has been crucified for you, He who was without sin. (…)
It is not you who bestowed this grace on Him, for you first of all received it.
But you offer thanks to Him who paid the price by being crucified for you on Golgotha.” … St Cyril of Jerusalem (315-387)) – Father and Doctor of the Church – Baptismal catecheses nos. 13, 3.6.23 mark 8 32 then peter took him aside - do not rejoice in the cross only in times of peace - st cyril jerusalem 20 feb 2020

PRAYER – Lord of heaven and earth, by Your grace You have brought our hearts and mind to seek and hope in Your saving love, in Your only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. May we, who like Peter, our father in faith, declare, ‘You are the Christ!’, remain ever in His steps, carrying the cross behind Him. We thank You for the blessing of St Eucherius of Orléans, grant that, through his intercession, we may, like him, constantly follow the Light of Christ and so rise to eternal life. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen st eucherius of orleans pray for us 20 feb 2020

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on MISSION, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on VOCATIONS, QUOTES on WORK/LABOUR, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS, SAINT of the DAY

Quote/s of the Day – 7 February – Being a Missionary

Posted on February 7, 2020February 7, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 7 February – The Memorial of Bl Alfredo Cremonesi PIME (1902-1953) Priest and Martyr

“If I were born a thousand times,
I would go back on mission,
a thousand times.”

“[Being a Missionary is]
the most wonderful work
that a man is given.”

Bl Alfredo Cremonesi (1902-1953)

“The Crucified One made us missionaries
and it is the Crucified One again,
who must nourish in us, love for souls.”

“The well-being of souls is only in Christ.
Therefore, let the love of Jesus
be our perfection and our profession,
let us light our hearts
from the eternal flames of love
that radiate from the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”

Blessed Paolo Manna PIME (1872-1952)
“A Burning Soul”

Priest, Missionary in Burma (Myanmar),
Superior General of PIME,
Founder of the Pontifical Missionary Union

Bl Paolo Manna’s life here: https://anastpaul.com/2019/09/15/saint-of-the-day-15-september-blessed-paolo-manna-pime-1872-1952-a-burning-soul/

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on SILENCE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on VIRTUE, SAINT of the DAY, The LAST THINGS

Quote/s of the Day – 30 January – Blessed Sebastian Valfrè CO (1629-1710)

Posted on January 30, 2020January 30, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 30 January – The Memorial of Blessed Sebastian Valfrè CO (1629-1710)

Some of his advice, given to the novices, suffice for us all:

“Live at peace with everyone and to live thus, at peace, it is necessary to make war against yourself, for annoyance with your neighbour invariably proceeds from attachment to yourself.”

“Give yourself to prayer and try by it, to procure, first the amendment of your fault then the practice of Christian virtues and finally a great love of God.”

“Keep careful guard over your tongue, for remember, that much talking is a sign of little spirituality…”

“He who is wise, holds his tongue in his heart and he, who is foolish, carries his heart on his tongue. He who can keep silence is near to God.”

He was much in demand as a spiritual father and would advise the Fathers of his Congregation:

“A confessor should above all, give a good example to his penitents, especially by practising the virtues he wishes to impress upon them. If he exhorts them to humility, let him first be humble; if to devotion, let him be devout himself; if he is to do this he will more readily be believed and obeyed. Woe to confessors and preachers who teach virtue without practising it. Woe to him who counsels, instructs and directs others, if he be not virtuous himself! Let such a man dread the Judgement!”

Blessed Sebastian speaking of the Shroud of Turin to which he had a great devotion:

“The Cross received the living Jesus and gave Him back to us dead,
the Shroud received the dead Jesus and restored Him to us alive.”

“When it is all over,
you will not regret having suffered,
rather, you will regret, having suffered so little
and suffered that little so badly.”

Bl Sebastian Valfre (1629-1710)

MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on TEMPTATION, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST

Thought for the Day – 23 January – Carrying our Cross

Posted on January 23, 2020January 21, 2022 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 23 January – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971) – Thursday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A

Carrying our Cross

“When we have renounced ourselves in order to do the will of God in every detail, we must embrace our cross everyday.
We must carry it with resignation and love, in the footsteps of Jesus.
Each of us has his cross.
It might be, ill health or financial distress.
It might be, some person whom we feel to be intolerable and with whom we hve to live.
It might be, humiliation or calumny.
It might be, some temptation, which we find hard to fight and which is continually causing us to fall.
It might be, all of these things together.
Whatever it is, it is our cross.

To rebel, would be to make things far worse.
Our cross would only become heavier and more unbearable.
Jesus tells us to embrace it, as He did.
He tells us to bow beneath it’s weight and follow Him.
If we accept His invitation, at once our cross will seem lighter.
A man who is in love, does not feel fatigue.
We must carry our cross out of love of God and in the hope of a heavenly reward.
Then we can say with St Francis de Sales – “Suffering passes but the experience of having suffered for the love God remains.”
We shall understand how true were Our Lord’s words – “Come to me, all you who labour and are burdened and I will give you rest” (Mt 11:28).

The cross, which we accept, from the hands of Jesus and out of love for Him, is a sweet burden.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on MARTYRDOM, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY CROSS, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 21 January – Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?”

Posted on January 21, 2020January 21, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 21 January – Tuesday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A and the Memorial of St Agnes (c 291- c 304) – Virgin Martyr

Jesus said in reply, “You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.”

Matthew 20:28

“You may stain your sword with
my blood but you will never profane
my body that I have consecrated to Christ.”

St Agnes (c 291- c 304) Virgin and Martyr

“The tyrant dies and his rule is over,
the martyr dies and his rule begins.”

Søren Kierkegaard (1813-1855)

The Journals of Kierkegaard

Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro (1891-1927)

Priest and Martyr

“One doesn’t suffer
when one suffers
for Christ.”

	Santa Rosa Venerini… on Saint of the Day – 7 May…
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Father Manuel Lobo

St John Paul II (1920-2005)

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The Road to Calvary

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

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The Death of our Saviour

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

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Isaiah 43:1

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

Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Pope Francis

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The Meaning of Easter

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

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

Edward Caswall (1814-1878)

The Sign of the Cross

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

Thomas á Kempis (1380-1471)

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St Raymond of Peñafort (1175-1275)

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

Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro (1891-1927) Priest and Martyr

C S Lewis (1898-1963)

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

St Ambrose (340-397) Father & Doctor of the Church

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

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Why God Created Us

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

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Blessed Didacus Joseph of Cadiz (1743–1801)

St Óscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez (1917–1980)

Martyr

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

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St Rafqa Pietra Choboq Ar-Rayès (1832 – 1914)

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

Saint Gregory of Narek (c 951-c 1010) Doctor of the Church Book of prayers, no 40

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

Pope Francis

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St Pope Paul VI (1897-1978)

Pope Francis

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“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

Basil of Seleucia (Died c 468) Bishop Sermon 24

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“Take and divide it among yourselves.”

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

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Bl Alfredo Cremonesi (1902-1953)

Blessed Paolo Manna PIME (1872-1952) “A Burning Soul”

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Bl Sebastian Valfre (1629-1710)

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Carrying our Cross

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

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Matthew 20:28

St Agnes (c 291- c 304) Virgin and Martyr

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

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

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

Blessed Miguel Agustin Pro (1891-1927)
Priest and Martyr

St Ambrose (340-397)
Father & Doctor of the Church

Saint Gregory of Narek (c 951-c 1010)
Doctor of the Church
Book of prayers, no 40

Basil of Seleucia (Died c 468) Bishop
Sermon 24

Blessed Paolo Manna PIME (1872-1952)
“A Burning Soul”