Our Morning Offering – 14 January – Monday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A
Before Jesus Crucified (Sweet Jesus, please, abide with me!) By Blessed Titus Brandsma OCD (1881-1942) Martyr
Dear Lord, when looking up at Thee,
I see Thy loving eyes on me,
Love overflows my humble heart,
Knowing what a faithful friend Thou are.
A cup of sorrow I foresee,
Which I accept for love of Thee,
Thy painful way I wish to go,
The only way to God I know.
My soul is full of peace and light,
Although in pain, this light shines bright.
For here, Thou keepest to Thy breast.
My longing heart to find there rest.
Leave me here freely all alone,
In cell where never sunlight shone.
Should no-one ever speak to me,
This golden silence makes me free!
For though alone, I have no fear,
Never were Thou, O Lord, so near.
Sweet Jesus, please, abide with me!
My deepest peace I find in Thee.
Amen
One Minute Reflection – 13 January – Monday of the First week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 1 Samuel 1:1-8, Psalm 116:12-14, 17-19, Mark 1:14-20
And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men.” And immediately they left their nets and followed him…Mark 1:17-18
REFLECTION – “Follow me!” Jesus says these words (…) to every Christian. Follow me, naked as I am naked, free from every hindrance as I myself am. Jeremiah said: “You will call me ‘My Father’ and never turn away from me” (Jer 3:19). So follow Me and put down the burdens you are bearing. For, laden as you are, you cannot follow Me who am running ahead. “I ran in thirst” says the psalmist about me (Ps 61:5 LXX), the thirst to save humanity. And where is He running? To the Cross. You too, run after Him. As He bore His cross for you, take up your own for your good. From whence these words of Saint Luke’s gospel: “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself” by renouncing his own will, “take up his cross” by mortifying his passions, “daily”, that is all the time, “and follow me.” (Lk 9:23) (…)
Jesus speaks to us like a mother who, wanting to teach her child to walk, shows him apiece of bread or an apple and says to him: “Come with me and I’ll give it to you.” And when the child is so close that he can almost catch hold of it, she draws away a little, showing the thing to him and repeating: “Follow me if you want it.” Some kinds of birds lead their little ones out of their nest and, by flying, teach them to fly and to follow them. Jesus does the same. He shows Himself as an example and promises us His reward in the kingdom so that we might follow Him.
So “follow me” for I know the right way and will guide you. We read in the book of Proverbs: “I will show you the way of wisdom; I will lead you by the ways of equity. When you have entered, your steps will not be constrained and when you run you shall not meet a stumbling block” (cf. Prv 4:11-12 LXX). (…) Therefore, “follow me”.” … St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) Franciscan, Doctor of the Church – Sermon for the feast of Saint John the Evangelist
PRAYER – Holy Lord God, grant that we may live constantly in Your presence. Grant that we may possess a spirit of joy and gladness because of the firm knowledge that You are always with us and in You and through You and with You, the extraordinary is commonplace! And turn around Lord and call us, for we are behind You. Be with us Lord, always, we pray! Hear the prayers on our behalf, of St Mungo of Glasgow, whom we ask for intercession. Through the Lord Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit, God forever for all eternity, amen
One Minute Reflection – 8 January – Third day after Epiphany and the Memorial of Blessed Titus Zeman SDB (1915-1969) Priest and Martyr, Readings: 1 John 4:11-18, Psalm 72:1-2, 10-13, Mark 6:45-52
“Take courage, it is I, be not afraid!” … Mark 6:50
REFLECTION – “All ships have a compass which, when touched by the magnet, always turns towards the polar star. And even when the boat is making its way in a southward direction, yet the compass does not cease turning towards its north at all times.
In the same way, let the fine point of your spirit always turn towards God, its north. ( … ) You are about to take to the high seas of the world, do not on this account, alter dial or mast, sail or anchor or wind. Keep Jesus Christ as your dial, at all times, His Cross for mast on which to hoist your resolutions, as a sail. Let your anchor be, profound trust in Him and set out early. May the propitious wind of heavenly inspirations ever fill the sails of your vessel more and more and cause you, to speed forward, to the harbour of a holy eternity. ( … )
Should everything turn upside down, I do not say around us but within us, that is to say, should our soul be sad, happy, in sweetness, in bitterness, peaceful, troubled, in light, in darkness, in temptation, in rest, in enjoyment, in disgust, in dryness, in gentleness, should the sun burn it or the dew refresh it, ah!, this point of our heart, our spirit, our higher will, which is our compass, should, nevertheless, always and at all times turn unceasingly, tend perpetually towards the love of God.” … St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) – Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – God and Father, light of all mankind, make our hearts radiant with the splendour of that light which long ago You shed on our fathers in the faith and give Your people the joy of lasting peace.,, May the prayers of Your blessed saints and martyrs be a comfort on our journey. ,,Blessed Titus Zeman please pray for us all. Through Christ, our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Thought for the Day – 7 January – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971) – Second Day after Epiphany
The Problem of Suffering
“Christianity, alone, offers an adequate explanation of the mystery of suffering. Why is there such a thing as suffering? The problem is a profound one and the explanations suggested by various schools of philosophy, fail to satisfy the human heart and leave the mind in doubt. Christian doctrine tells us, that God is infinitely good but also infinitely just. Being infinitely good, He created man without suffering. He also gave man the wonderful gift of liberty, which man abused by committing sin. Once the sin had been committed, God, in His infinite justice, demanded expiation. Hence, suffering and death … “and through sin, death and thus death has passed unto all men because all have sinned” (Rom 5:12). Together with death, came the never-ending series of misfortunes, of physical and moral sufferings, which beset humanity.
Suffering then, does not come directly from God. It is a consequence of and, a punishment for, sin. But, there is also the aspect of expiation and redemption. God, in His infinite justice, demands from man a penalty for his sin … but, He does not cease to be infinitely good. Hence, to the mystery of suffering, there is added, the mystery of Redemption. The Son of God Himself, is made man and takes upon Himself, all our sins. For the full expiation of our sins, He, the “Man of Sorrows,” offers to the Eternal Father, His own sufferings of infinite value.
It would not be right, however, if we were to remain inactive in this work of redemption. Like Jesus, we must bow our heads before our Cross and embrace it, with resignation and love. We must unite our sufferings with those of our Redeemer, for the expiation of our sins.”
Quote/s of the Day – 7 January – St Raymond of Peñafort (1175-1275) “Father of Canon Law”
“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.”
“May the God of love and peace, set your hearts at rest and speed you on your journey, may He meanwhile, shelter you from disturbance by others, in the hidden recesses of His love, until He brings you, at last, into that place of complete plenitude, where you will repose forever, in the vision of peace, in the security of trust and in the restful enjoyment of His riches.”
Thought for the Day – 6 January – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971) – First Day after Epiphany
Giving Ourselves, Our Prayer, Our Mortification
The Magi gave Jesus material gifts also, as symbols of their complete dedication to Him.
They gave Him gold, because He was a king,
incense, because He was God
and myrrh, because He was man.
We often say that we love God and wish to serve and obey Him in all things.
But when we see that this entails sacrifice, we forget our promises!
We must ask ourselves if we are prepared to offer Jesus gold, that is, to offer Him everything we possess for the promotion of His glory, for the spread of His Kingdom and for the relief of His poor, in whom we ought, always, to see and love Christ Himself.
We must examine ourselves thoroughly on this.
It is easy to find excuses for not giving to God and to His poor in accordance with our means.
We should offer also, the incense of our adoration and unceasing prayer.
There can be no sanctity without prayer.
There can be no real Christians without sanctity.
Finally, we must offer the myrrh of our mortification.
Mortification, as St Vincent de Paul has said, is the ABC of Christian perfection.
St Paul exhorts us, to carry always in ourselves the mortification of Jesus.
If we are not mortified, we can never be holy and can never share the joy which the Magi experienced as they lay prostrate before the cradle of our Divine Redeemer.
Definition of Mortification: Mortification is the feeling of being completely humiliated. The word mortification has its roots in the Latin word for “death,” mors.
The original meaning of mortification is religious, in Christianity the meaning is “putting your sin to death”. In Christian practice, this has varied from denying oneself pleasurable things, like certain foods, to inflicting physical pain on oneself. The religious reason for this kind of mortification is to cause the “death” of sins — or desires — of the body.
Quote/s of the Day – 4 January – Saturday of Christmas – the Memorial of Saint Angela of Foligno (1248-1309)
“Dear brothers and sisters, Blessed Angela’s life began with a worldly existence, rather remote from God. Yet her meeting with the figure of St Francis and, finally, her meeting with Christ Crucified, reawakened her soul to the presence of God, for the reason that with God alone life becomes true life, because, in sorrow for sin, it becomes love and joy. And this is how Blessed Angela speaks to us.
Today we all risk living as though God did not exist, God seems so distant from daily life. However, God has thousands of ways of His own for each one, to make Himself present in the soul, to show that He exists and knows and loves me. And Blessed Angela wishes to make us attentive to these signs with which the Lord touches our soul, attentive to God’s presence, so as to learn the way with God and towards God, in communion with Christ Crucified.
Let us pray the Lord that He make us attentive to the signs of His presence and that He teach us truly to live.”
Pope Benedict XVI A talk on Angela of Foligno – October, 2010
“O children of God, transform yourselves totally in the human-God who so loved you that He chose to die for you, a most ignominious and altogether unutterably painful death and in the most painful and bitterest way. And this was solely for love of you, O human being.”
Quote/s of the Day – 28 December – The Feast of the Holy Innocents – The Fourth Day of the Christmas Octave
“These then, whom Herod’s cruelty tore as sucklings from their mothers’ bosom, are justly hailed as “infant martyr flowers”; they were the Church’s first blossoms, matured by the frost of persecution during the cold winter of unbelief.”
St Augustine (354-430)
Father & Doctor of the Church
“The star of Bethlehem shines forth in the dark night of sin. Upon the radiance that goes forth from the manger, there falls the shadow of the cross. In the dark of Good Friday, the light is extinguished but it rises more brightly, as the sun of grace. on the morning of the resurrection. The road of the incarnate Son of God, is through the cross and suffering. to the splendour of the resurrection. To arrive with the Son of Man, through suffering and death, at this splendour of the resurrection, is the road for each one of us, for all mankind.”
St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
[Edith Stein] (1891-1942)
Thought for the Day – 14 December – The Memorial of St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church
The Knowledge of the Mystery Hidden in Christ Jesus
Saint John of the Cross
An excerpt from his Spiritual Canticle
Though holy doctors have uncovered many mysteries and wonders and devout souls have understood them, in this earthly condition of ours, yet the greater part, still remains, to be unfolded by them and even to be understood by them.
We must then dig deeply in Christ. He is like a rich mine with many pockets containing treasure – however deep we dig we will never find their end or their limit. Indeed, in every pocket new seams of fresh riches are discovered on all sides.
For this reason the apostle Paul said of Christ – in him are hidden all the treasures of the wisdom and knowledge of God. The soul cannot enter into these treasures, nor attain them, unless it first crosses into and enters the thicket of suffering, enduring interior and exterior labours and unless it first receives from God very many blessings in the intellect and in the senses and has undergone long spiritual training.
All these are lesser things, disposing the soul for the lofty sanctuary of the knowledge of the mysteries of Christ – this is the highest wisdom attainable in this life.
Would that men might come at last to see that it is quite impossible to reach the thicket of the riches and wisdom of God except by first entering the thicket of much suffering, in such a way that the soul finds there its consolation and desire. The soul that longs for divine wisdom chooses first and in truth, to enter the thicket of the Cross.
Saint Paul therefore urges the Ephesians not to grow weary in the midst of tribulations but to be steadfast and rooted and grounded in love, so that they may know with all the saints the breadth, the length, the height and the depth—to know what is beyond knowledge, the love of Christ, so as to be filled with all the fullness of God.
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.
Quote/s of the Day – 14 December – The Memorial of St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church
“Silence is God’s first language.”
“Most holy Mary, Virgin of virgins, shrine of the most Holy Trinity, joy of the angels, sure refuge of sinners, take pity on our sorrows, mercifully accept our sighs and appease the wrath of your most holy Son. Amen”
“O blessed Jesus, give me stillness of soul in You. Let Your mighty calmness reign in me. Rule me, O King of Gentleness, King of Peace.”
“The road is narrow. He who wishes to travel it more easily must cast off all things and use the cross as his cane. In other words, he must be truly resolved to suffer willingly for the love of God in all things.”
“Whenever anything disagreeable or displeasing happens to you, remember Christ crucified and be silent!”
‘Song of the soul that is glad to know God by faith’
How well I know that fountain’s rushing flow Although by night
Its deathless spring is hidden. Even so Full well I guess from whence its source flow Though it be night.
Its origin (since it has none) none knows: But that all origin from it arose Although by night.
I know there is no other thing so fair And earth and heaven drink refreshment there Although by night.
Full well I know the depth no man can sound And that no ford to cross it can be found Though it be night
Its clarity unclouded still shall be: Out of it comes the light by which we see Though it be night.
Flush with its banks the stream so proudly swells; I know it waters nations, heavens, and hells Though it be night.
The current that is nourished by this source I know to be omnipotent in force Although by night.
(Translated by Roy Campbell)
St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church
Quote of the Day – 30 November – The Feast of St Andrew, Apostle of Christ, Martyr on the Cross for Christ
This is what the Apostle is claimed to have said on that occasion, according to an ancient story (which dates back to the beginning of the sixth century), entitled The Passion of Andrew:
“Hail, O Cross, inaugurated by the Body of Christ and adorned with His limbs as though they were precious pearls. Before the Lord mounted you, you inspired an earthly fear. Now, instead, endowed with heavenly love, you are accepted as a gift.
Believers know of the great joy that you possess and of the multitude of gifts you have prepared. I come to you, therefore, confident and joyful, so that you too may receive me, exultant as a disciple of the One who was hung upon you…. O blessed Cross, clothed in the majesty and beauty of the Lord’s limbs!…
Take me, carry me far from men and restore me to my Teacher, so that, through you, the One who redeemed me by you, may receive me.
Quote/s of the Day – 24 November – The Solemnity of Christ the King
“Christ, has dominion over all creatures, a dominion not seized by violence nor usurped but His, by essence and by nature.”
St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444)
Father & Doctor of the Church
“Christ’s kingdom is not just a figure of speech. Christ is alive, He lives as a man, with the same body He took when He became man, when He rose after His death, the glorified body which subsists in the person of the Word together with His human heart. Christ, true God and true man, lives and reigns. He is the Lord of the universe. Everything that lives is kept in existence only through Him.”
St Josemaria Escrivá (1902-1975)
“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)
“You say that I am a king. For this I was born and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.”
John 18:37
“But what is the “truth” that Christ came into the world to witness to? The whole of His life reveals that God is love – so this is the truth to which He witnessed to the full, with the sacrifice of His own life on Calvary.”
Pope Benedict XVI
“When did Jesus reveal Himself as king? In the event of the Cross!”
Sunday Reflection – 24 November – The Solemnity of Christ the King, the last Sunday of the Liturgical Year C
He is in the hands of sinners once more
St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)
He took bread and blessed and made it His Body. He took wine and gave thanks and made it His Blood and He gave His priests the power to do what He had done. Henceforth, He is in the hands of sinners once more. Frail, ignorant, sinful man, by the sacerdotal power given to him, compels the presence of the Highest; he lays Him up in a small Tabernacle; he dispenses Him to a sinful people. Those who are only just now, cleansed from mortal sin, open their lips for Him; those who are soon to return to mortal sin, receive Him into their breasts; those who are polluted with vanity and selfishness and ambition and pride, presume to make Him their Guest; the frivolous, the tepid, the worldly-minded, fear not to welcome Him.
Alas! Alas! even those who wish to be more in earnest, entertain Him with cold and wandering thoughts and quench that Love which would inflame them with It’s own fire, did they but open to It! Such are the best of us and then for the worst? What shall we of sacrilege? of His reception to hearts polluted with mortal, unforsaken sin? of those further nameless profanations, which from time to time occur, when unbelief dares to present itself at the holy Altar and blasphemously gains possession of Him? …. I place myself in the presence of Him, in whose Incarnate Presence I am, before I place myself there!
I adore Thee, O my Saviour, present here as God and man, in soul and body, in true flesh and blood.
I acknowledge and confess, that I kneel before that Sacred Humanity, which was conceived in Mary’s womb and lay in Mary’s bosom; which grew up to man’s estate and by the Sea of Galilee, called the Twelve, wrought miracles and spoke words of wisdom and peace; which in due season hung on the Cross, lay in the tomb, rose from the dead and now reigns in heaven.
I praise and bless and give myself wholly to Him, who is the true Bread of my soul and my everlasting joy. Amen.
One Minute Reflection – 24 November – The Solemnity of Christ the King, Year C – Gospel: Luke 23:35–43
“Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” … Luke 23:42
REFLECTION – “Today paradise, closed for thousands of years, is opened to us. On this day, at this very hour, God brings the brigand into it. Thus He fulfils two wonders – He opens up paradise to us and causes a thief to enter in. Today God has given us back our former homeland, today He has brought us into the city of our ancestors, today He has opened up a home to be shared by all humanity. “This day,” He says, “you will be with me in paradise.” What are You saying, Lord? You are crucified, nailed down and do You promise paradise? Yes, He says, so that through the Cross You may learn my power…
Because it isn’t by raising a dead man, commanding the sea and wind, or casting out demons that He is able to change the thief’s sinful soul but by being crucified, pinned down by nails, covered with insults, spitting, mockery and torture, so that you might see the two sides of His sovereign power. He shook all creation, split the rocks (Mt 27:51) and drew to Himself the brigand’s soul, hard as stone, to cover it with honour…
Obviously, no king would ever allow a brigand or other of his subjects to be seated at his side when making his entry into his city. Yet Christ did so, when entering His holy homeland. He brings a brigand into it along with Him. In so doing… He does no dishonour to it by a brigand’s presence, for it is a glory for paradise, that it has a master, able to make a brigand worthy of the joys to be tasted there.
In the same way, when He brings publicans and prostitutes into the Kingdom of heaven (Mt 21:31)…, it is for the sake of the glory of that holy place. Because He shows it, that the Lord of the heavenly Kingdom is so great, that He can restore all their dignity, to prostitutes and publicans, even to their being worthy of this honour and this gift. We admire a doctor all the more when we see him heal people suffering from illnesses said to be incurable. So it is only right to admire Christ… when He restores publicans and prostitutes to such a state of spiritual health, that they become worthy of heaven.” … St John Chrysostom (345 407) Bishop of Constantinople, Father & Doctor of the Church – Homily 1 on the cross and the brigand, for Good Friday, 2
PRAYER – Lord God, You gave the peoples of the world as the inheritance of Your only Son, You crowned Him as King of Zion, Your holy city and gave Him Your Church to be His Bride. As He proclaims the law of Your eternal kingdom, may we serve Him faithfully and so share His royal power forever. We make our prayer, through Him and with Him and in Him, our King and our Redeemer, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Quote/s of the Day – 23 November – The Memorial of Blessed Miguel Pro – Priest and Martyr of the Cristero War (1891-1927)
“We ought to speak, shout out against injustices, with confidence and without fear. We proclaim the principles of the Church, the reign of love, without forgetting that it is also a reign of JUSTICE!”
“Does our life become from day-to-day more painful, more oppressive, more replete with sufferings? Blessed be He a thousand times, who desires it so. If life be harder, love makes it also stronger and only this love, grounded in suffering, can carry the Cross of my Lord, Jesus Christ.”
After he had taken his vows in the Society, he recorded the following meditations in his spiritual notebook. The booklet was entitled My Treasure. The words speak for themselves:
“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.”
Quote/s of the Day – 18 November – The Memorial of Saint Odo of Cluny (c 880–942) Monk and Abbot
“My Lady, Mother of Mercy, who on this night gave birth to the Saviour, pray for me. May your glorious and unique experience of childbirth, O Most Devout Mother, be my refuge.”
“Jesus took upon Himself the scourging, that would have been our due, in order to save the creature, He formed and loves.”
“]This is the] sacrosanct mystery of the Lord’s Body, in whom the whole salvation of the world consists.”
Thought for the Day – 16 November – The Memorial of St Edmund Rich of Abingdon (1175-1240) Archbishop of Canterbury
St Edmund’s best-known work in the Middle Ages was his Speculum Ecclesie. It’s a work on the contemplative life, offering (among other things) meditations on different moments in the life of Christ, aiming to help the reader to enter imaginatively into the scenes of His Passion and feel intense compassion for His sufferings. I don’t know whether people read the Speculum Ecclesie today, but most students of Middle English will have read a poem which survives as part of it. This is one of the earliest, shortest and most popular devotional poems in Middle English:
Nou goth sonne under wod,
Me reweth, Marie, thi faire rode.
Nou goth sonne under tre,
Me reweth, Marie, thi sone and thee.
Now goes the sun under the wood, I grieve, Mary, for your fair face. Now goes the sun under the tree, I grieve, Mary, for thy son and thee.
This short poem is designed to be a spur to meditation on the Crucifixion, perhaps at the appropriate hour of the day when the sun begins to set. Apparently very simple, the poem is dense with meaningful wordplay – as the sun sets behind the wood, so Christ the Son is shrouded in darkness on the wood of the cross, the tree; that is, the ‘rode’, which means both ‘face’ and ‘rood’ (cross). And here we have another pair of a mother and her son, and their strong emotional bond (like St Edmund himself and his mother). The poem encourages the reader to meditate and dwell on Christ’s Crucifixion by approaching the Son through the Mother, to feel compassion for His suffering as it is reflected in her grief (underlined by that wordplay on ‘rode’ – (His cross and her face). How wonderful it is that this poem should be associated with a saint whose mother was such an important presence in his life.
Back in Abingdon, the Catholic church is dedicated to him and to the Virgin Mary, the mother and bride who was so constant a presence in his spiritual life.
Quote/s of the Day – 7 November – The Memorial of All Dominican Saints
Just a few quotes from Dominican Saints
“Heretics are to be converted by an example of humility and other virtues far more readily, than by any external display or verbal battles. So let us arm ourselves with devout prayers and set off, showing signs of genuine humility and go barefooted to combat Goliath.”
St Dominic (1170-1221)
“Anyone who receives this Sacrament, with the devotion of sincere faith, will never taste death.”
St Albert the Great (1200-1280) OP Doctor of the Church
“Do not be attached, therefore, to clothing and riches because they divided My garments among themselves. Nor to honours, for I experienced harsh words and scourgings. Nor to greatness of rank, for weaving a crown of thorns, they placed it on My head. Nor to anything delightful, for in My thirst, they gave Me vinegar to drink.”
St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)
Doctor of the Church
“Remember that you will derive strength by reflecting that the saints, yearn for you to join their ranks, desire to see you fight bravely, and behave like a true knight in your encounters with the same adversities which they had to conquer and that breathtaking joy is the eternal reward, for having endured a few years, of temporal pain. Every drop of earthly bitterness, will be changed into an ocean of heavenly sweetness.”
Blessed Henry Suso OP (1290-1365)
“He will provide the way and the means, such as you could never have imagined. Leave it all to Him, let go of yourself, lose yourself on the Cross and you will find yourself entirely.”
“Speak the truth in a million voices. It is silence that kills!”
“What is it you want to change? Your hair, your face, your body? Why? For God is in love with all those things and He might weep when they are gone!”
St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) Doctor of the Church
“Once humility is acquired, charity will come to life, like a burning flame, devouring the corruption of vice and filling the heart so full, that there is no place for vanity.”…
St Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419)
“Apart from the Cross there is no other ‘ladder’ by which we might get to heaven.”
One Minute Reflection – 6 November – Wednesday of the Thirty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 14:25-33
“If any one comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple…” … Luke 14:26
REFLECTION – “O my God, though I am not fit to see or touch You yet, still I will ever come within Your reach and desire that which is not yet given me in its fullness. O my Saviour, You shall be my sole God! – I will have no Lord but You. I will break to pieces all idols in my heart which rival You. I will have nothing but Jesus and Him Crucified. It shall be my life to pray to You, to offer myself to You, to keep You before me, to worship You in Your holy Sacrifice and to surrender myself to You in Holy Communion. Amen.” —– St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)
PRAYER – Holy God and Father, You sent Your Son to show us the way to our eternal home. Teach us always to understand that by relinquishing the things of this world and focusing our efforts only on following the Light He shines on our path, we may attain the eternal victory. May the prayers of Your our Blessed Mother, the Virgin Mary, assist us in carrying our cross after Hi m. Through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Thought for the Day – 5 November – The Memorial of St Guido Maria Conforti (1865-1931)
The Crucifix Encounter – St Francis Xavier SJ (1506-1552)
and St Guido Maria Conforti, Founder of the Xaverian Missionaries
The Source of My Vocation alongside St Francis Xavier
Conforti had similar experience of the crucifix as Saint Francis Xavier had. It is divided into two part, firstly, is the similar experience of the cross since their childhood and secondly, is the experience during their ministry. Both Conforti and Xavier, contemplated the crucifix since they were children.
“I looked at Him and He looked at me and it seemed as though He was telling me many things.”
This is the actual Crucifix which spoke to St Guido
God revealed the fullness of His love in His Crucified Son. One day this love touched the heart of young Guido Conforti in an almost natural way. He was but a child . Every morning, He stopped at the “Church of Peace” to gaze at the the large Crucifix there.
“The huge crucifix which embellished the altar fascinated him. He looked at the figure of Jesus and he really believed that Jesus looked at him. Whatever the nature of the experience, it moved him deeply. Indeed, so entranced did he become with this crucifix that he became increasingly reluctant to leave the church. ‘It looked at me and told me so many things’, he was to remark one day, speaking of ‘his crucifix’, ‘for me it is a miraculous crucifix. I owe my vocation to it’ he was heard to tell one of his friends.”
This was the beginning of an uninterrupted dialogue with Christ crucified. Later when he was sixty years old and bishop, his sister often found him rapt in ecstasy before that crucifix, which had been brought to his residence, at his request. Was it that dialogue with the Crucified Lord that sparked the idea to found a missionary congregation?
In the same way, Saint Francis Xavier had an experience with the crucifix in the chapel of the castle in Navarra. The story says, that while he was cared by his mother in academic and religious education, he passed some time alone contemplating the crucifix which has a special smile.
“During these early years, Francis was often quite late coming home from classes. When that happened, his mother would begin to worry. Soon she would be searching for him in the squares and alleys of the castle town. Usually, she would find her son alone in Church, kneeling before the main altar, apparently absorbed in prayer.”
This experience of both, Xavier and Conforti, is important because it influenced their entire lives. Both have shown the influence of the crucifix in their writings and especially in their ministry.
Conforti expressed the contemplation of the cross in his writings as bishop and as a founder. As bishop he promoted his motto “Christ is all things”because his spirituality was centred on the person of Christ: “ Christ was always present in his thoughts and in the heart. Christ was his constant companion in all the actions of his life.” He always encouraged the Christians of his dioceses to contemplate the crucifix and to be formed by Him.
As founder of the Xaverian Missionaries, Conforti gave to them the contemplation of the crucifix as the centre of their spirituality. “In the mind of Blessed Guido Conforti, consecration is born of the contemplation of the crucified Christ and of the love made manifest therein .”Consecration is not only to make vows but it is more, an experience of the love of Christ on the cross, which invites the consecrated to imitate this love.”
St Francis Xavier, St Guido Maria Conforti, Pray for Us!
Our Morning Offering – 5 November – Saint Guido Maria Conforti (1865-1931)
Prayer of the Church The Church honours Saint Guido Maria Conforti
These prayers are composed based on certain characteristics of Saint Guido Maria Conforti and his life as Bishop and Founder. From his writings and the witness of people who have come to know this great Bishop of the 20th century, we appreciate his gifts as follower of the Word, Good Shepherd, contemplative of the Cross, faithful disciple, founder of a missionary family, at the service of humanity, model of unity, discerner of the signs of the times, a person driven by the Gospel and a disciple of Jesus the missionary of the Father.
Saint Guido Maria Conforti: Driven by the Gospel
O God, who through
the contemplation of the Cross,
imprinted on the heart
of Saint Guido Maria Conforti
a burning love for the proclamation
of the Gospel to all nations.
Grant that, through his intercession,
we too may be filled by the same love of Christ,
to constantly work for the salvation
of all our brothers and sisters.
Through Our Lord, Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
One God, for ever and ever.
Amen
Quote/s of the Day – 31 October – The Memorial of St Alphonsus Rodriguez SJ (1532-1617)
“You must strive, with all possible care, to please God, in such a manner, as neither to do, nor behold anything, without first consulting Him and in everything, to seek Him alone and His glory.”
“I put myself in spirit before our crucified Lord, looking at Him full of sorrow, shedding His blood and bearing great bodily hardships for me. As love is paid for in love, I must imitate Him, sharing in spirit all His sufferings. I must consider how much I owe Him and what He has done for me. Putting these sufferings between God and my soul, I must say, ‘What does it matter, my God, that I should endure for Your love, these small hardships? For you, Lord, endured so many great hardships for me.’
Amid the hardship and trial itself, I stimulate my heart with this exercise. Thus, I encourage myself, to endure for love of the Lord, who is before me, until I make what is bitter, sweet. In this way learning from Christ our Lord, I take and convert the sweet into bitter, renouncing myself and all earthly and carnal pleasures, delights and honours of this life, so that my whole heart is centred solely on God.”
One Minute Reflection – 31 October – Thursday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time, Ywear C, Gospel: Luke 13:31–35 and The Memorial of St Wolfgang of Regensburg (c 934 –994)
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem” ... Luke 13:34
REFLECTION – “Believers are valued according to the merits of their faith and not the place they live in. And God’s true worshippers have no need of Jerusalem or Mount Gerizim to worship the Father because “God is spirit” and his worshippers should “worship him in spirit and truth” (Jn 4:21-23). Now, “the Spirit breathes where he will” (Jn 3:8) and “the Lord’s is the earth and its fullness” (Ps 24[23]:1)…
The holy places of the Cross and Resurrection are only of use to those who carry their cross, rise with Christ daily and prove themselves worthy of living in such localities. As for those who say: “The Temple of the Lord, the Temple of the Lord, the Temple of the Lord” (Jer 3:8), let them listen to the apostle’s words: “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells within you?” (1 Cor 3:16)…” … St Jerome (347-420) Father & Doctor
PRAYER – Shed Your clear light on our hearts, Lord, so that walking continually in the way of Your commandments, we may never be deceived or misled. Grant that the prayers of St Wolfgang of Regensburg, who always held Your Light up for others to see by, give us strength. Through Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Quote of the Day – 23 October – The Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer
“Yes, my gentle Redeemer, let me say it, You are crazy with love! Is it not foolish for You to have wanted to die for me? But if You, my God, have become crazy with love for me, how can I not become crazy with love for You?”
St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor
Quote/s of the Day – 22 October – The Memorial of St Pope John Paul II (1920-2005)
“Never, as in the Rosary, do the life of Jesus and that of Mary, appear so deeply joined. Mary lives only in Christ and for Christ!”
“Not only the devil is involved in spiritual warfare but the Holy Spirit is equally involved, or more involved in it, bringing men and women of goodwill, the ability to overcome evil in their lives, so that they too can say: “Where evil abounded, grace super-abounded!” (Rom 5:20).”
St John Paul II (The Holy Spirit (Dominum Et Vivificantem – 1986)
“Let the eyes of our faith
never wander from the Cross of Calvary.”
“Do not abandon yourselves to despair. We are the Easter people and hallelujah is our song.”
Quote/s of the Day – 19 October – The Memorial of Bl Jerzy Popiełuszko (1947-1984) Priest and Martyr
”To live in Truth is the basic minimum of human dignity, even if the price to defend the Truth could be costly. You need to always remain faithful to the Truth. Truth can never be betrayed.”
“Truth never changes. It cannot be destroyed by any decision or legal act. Telling the truth with courage, is a way, leading directly to freedom. A man who tells the Truth, is a free man, despite external slavery, imprisonment or custody.”
“It is not enough for a Christian to condemn evil, cowardice, lies and use of force, hatred and oppression. He must at all times be a witness to and defender of justice, goodness, truth, freedom and love. He must never tire of claiming these values as a right both for himself and others.”
“Truth, like Justice, is connected to Love and Love has a Price.”
“An idea which needs rifles to survive, dies of its own accord.”
One Minute Reflection – 19 October – Saturday of the Twenty-eighth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 12:8-12 and The Memorial of Blessed Jerzy Popieluszko (1947-1984) Priest and Martyr
“And I tell you, every one who acknowledges me before men, the Son of man also, will acknowledge before the angels of God…” … Luke 12:8
REFLECTION – “It seems to me that in the history of the Church, in the history of Christianity, there are many examples showing to what extent you have to defend the Truth. You have to defend it to the end. Jesus Christ sacrificed His life in order to announce His Divine Truth. Likewise, the apostles sacrificed their lives. Therefore, the role of the priest is to proclaim the Truth and suffer for the Truth…… If necessary, even to die for the truth. Such examples are plenty in Christianity and from these examples, we should draw conclusions, for ourselves.” … Blessed Jerzy Popieluszko (1947-1984) Priest and Martyr
PRAYER – God of power and mercy, You gave Blessed Jerzy Popieluszko, the grace to overcome the sufferings of his nation through the good of the Gospel and to face his own martyrdom with unfailing courage through Your love for him, grant us, who celebrate his victory, that the power of Your protecting hand may keep us unshaken in the face of our ancient enemy and all his hidden snares. Blessed Jerzy Popieluszko, pray for us! Through our Lord Jesus Christ, in union with our Father and the Holy Spirit, one God for all eternity, amen.
Quote/s of the Day – 11 October – The Memorial of St Maria Soledad Torres Acosta (1826-1887) and St Pope John XXIII (1881-1963)
“May the Lord grant us His holy peace and patience, so that with these two shields, we may carry the holy cross that Our Lord in His mercy has destined for us.”
“The sick are the image of the suffering Christ and it is Him that we serve.”
One Minute Reflection – 28 September – Saturday of the Twenty-fifth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 9:43–45 and the Memorial of St Lorenzo Ruiz (1600-1637) Martyr
“Let these words sink into your ears, for the Son of man is to be delivered into the hands of men.” But they did not understand this saying and it was concealed from them ... Luke 9:44-45
REFLECTION – “Of all Christ’s miracles and mighty acts, it is this one that far exceeds the limits of human wonder. It goes far beyond the weak power of the human mind to perceive or comprehend, how it is supposed to believe, that the divine majesty, that very Word of the Father (Jn 1:1) and Wisdom of God in which “all things were created, visible and invisible” (cf. Col 1:15), was held within the confines of the man who appeared in Judaea and, even more, that the Wisdom of God entered into the womb of a woman and was born a baby, who cried and wailed just like all little babies. And it is further reported that He suffered the anguish of death, as He Himself admitted by saying: “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death” (Mt 26:38 par) and in the end, He was led to that death which is reputed to be the most shameful among men, even though he did rise again on the third day…
To present this to human ears and explain it in words far surpasses our poor merits… Indeed the explanation of this mystery is probably beyond the grasp even of the whole creation of heavenly powers.” … Origen (c 185-253) Priest, Theologian, Father – Treatise on First Principles
PRAYER – Holy God, help me to amend my life constantly and be sincerely converted to You. Let me seek Your interests rather than my own and be ever more closely united with You. Send Your Spirit of understanding to enkindle our minds but most of all, fill us with Your grace of faith, that whether we understand or not, our love and obedience, is our only guide. St Lorenzo Ruiz, you obeyed to death for Christ, your beloved, please pray for us. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for all eternity, amen.
AnaStpaul 
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