Category: ONE Minute REFLECTION

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the SUN of JUSTICE, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on TRUTH, The WORD

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

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One Minute Reflection – 11 November – St Martin of Tours (c 316-397) “Martin the Merciful,” Bishop, Confessor, Miracle-Worker. – Sirach 44:16-27; 45:3-20, Luke 11:33-36 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

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

REFLECTION – “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do men light a lamp only to put it under a bushel basket; they put it on a stand where it gives light to all in the house. The Lord called His disciples, the salt of the earth because they seasoned ,with heavenly wisdom, the hearts of men, rendered insipid by the devil. Now he calls them, the light of the world as well because they have been enlightened by Him, the True and Everlasting Light and have themselves become a light in the darkness.

Since He is the Sun of Justice, he fittingly calls His disciples, the light of the world. The reason for this, is that through them, as through shining rays, He has poured out the light of the knowledge of Himself, upon the entire world. For by manifesting the Light of Truth, they have dispelled the darkness of error from the hearts of men.

Moreover, we too have been enlightened by them. We have been made light out of darkness, as the Apostle says: For once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light. He says another time: For you are not sons of the night and of darkness but you are all sons of light and of the day.

Saint John also rightly asserts, in his letter: God is Light and whoever abides in God, is in the Light, just as God Himself is in the Light. Therefore, because we rejoice in having been freed from the darkness of error, we should always walk in the Light as children of Light. This is why the Apostle says: Among them you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the Word of Life.

If we fail to live in the Light, we shall, to our condemnation and that of others, be veiling over and obscuring, by our infidelity, the Light men so desperately need. As we know from Scripture, the man who received the talent should have made it produce a heavenly profit but instead, he preferred to hide it away rather than put it to work and was punished as he deserved.

Consequently, that brilliant Lamp which was lit for the sake of our salvation should always shine in us. For we have the lamp of the heavenly commandments and spiritual grace, to which David referred: Your law is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Solomon also says this about it: For the command of the law is a lamp.

Therefore, we must not hide this Lamp of law and faith. Rather, we must set it up in the Church, as on a lampstand, for the salvation of many, so that we may enjoy the Light of Truth itself and all believers, may be enlightened.” – St Chromatius of Aquileia (Died c 407) Bishop of Aquileia, Theologian, Exegete, Writer and friend of Saints Ambrose and Jerome, Father of the Church (Excerpt from A treatise on the Gospel of Saint Matthew).

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

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PEACE, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 10 November – ‘May your door be open to Him Who comes …’ – St Ambrose

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One Minute Reflection – 10 November – St Andrew Avellino CR (1521– 1608) Confessor – Sirach 31:8-11, Luke 12:35-40 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Let your loins be girt about and your lamps burning and you yourselves ,like men waiting for their master’s return from the wedding; so that when he comes and knocks, they may straightaway open to him. Blessed are those servants whom the master, on his return, shall find watching.” – Luke 12:35-37

REFLECTION – “God, the Word, stirs up the lazy and arouses the sleeper. For indeed, someone who comes knocking at the door is always wanting to come in. But, it depends on us, if He does not always enter or always remain. May your door be open to Him Who comes; open your soul, enlarge your spiritual capacities, that you may discover the riches of simplicity, the treasures of peace and sweetness of grace. Expand your heart, run to meet the Sun of that Eternal Light that “enlightens everyone” (Jn 1,9). It is certain, that this true Light shines for all but, if anyone shuts their windows, then they themselves shut themselves off from this Eternal Light.

So even Christ remains outside, if you shut the door of your soul. It is true that He could enter but He does not want to use force, He does not put those who refuse under pressure. Descended from the Virgin, born from her womb, He shines throughout the universe to give light to all. Those who long to receive the Light, that shines with an everlasting brightness, open up to Him. No night comes to intervene. Indeed, the sun we see each day gives way to night’s darkness but the Sun of justice (Mal 3,20) knows no setting, for Wisdom is not overcome by evil.” – St Ambrose (340-397) Bishop of Milan and Father and Doctor of the Church – (12th Sermon on Psalm 118).

PRAYER – O God, by his difficult vow to make daily progress in holiness, Thou placed in the heart of blessed Andrew, Thy Confessor, a wondrous longing to ascend unto Thee, grant us, by his merits and intercession, so to become sharers of that same grace that, ever pursuing the more perfect things, we may be happily brought unto the height of Thy glory.Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the PHYSICIAN, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONVERSION, Quotes on SALVATION

One Minute Reflection – 9 November – ‘This day is salvation come to this house …’ Luke 19:1-10

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One Minute Reflection – 9 November – Dedication of The Archbasilica of the Most Holy Saviour – Apocalypse 21:2-5, Luke 19:1-10 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“But Zacheus standing, said to the Lord: Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor and if I have wronged any man of anything, I restore him fourfold. Jesus said to him: This day is salvation come to this house because he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.” – Luke:8-10

REFLECTION – “… This was an act of divine foreknowledge, for He well knew what would happen. He saw the man’s soul prepared most readily to choose a holy life and converted him, therefore, unto piety. The man, therefore, received Jesus joyfully and this was the commencement of his turning himself unto good, of his departure from his former faults and of his manfully, be-taking himself unto a better course.

But perchance, someone possibly may say, to our common Saviour Christ, ‘What do You, O Lord go to lodge with Zacheus and desire to abide with the chief of the publicans? He has not yet washed away the stain of his greedy love of money. He is still sick with covetousness, the mother of all crimes, still full of the blame of plunder and extortion.‘ But yes, He says, I indeed know this, in that I am God by nature and see the ways of every individual upon earth. And more than this, I know also, things to come. I have called him to repentance, because he is ready thereto and although men murmur and blame My gentleness, facts themselves, shall prove that they are wrong. For Zacheus, it says, stood up, and said unto the Lord, “Behold, the half of whatever I possess I give unto the poor and if I have defrauded any man, I make fourfold restoration.”

You behold his repentance; his rapid change unto a better course, his haste unto piety, the bountifulness of his love for the poor. He, who lately was a publican, or rather the chief of the publicans, given up to covetousness and set upon gain, at once becomes merciful and devoted to charity. He promises that he will distribute his wealth to those who are in need,that he will make restoration to those who have been defrauded and he, who was the slave of avarice, makes himself poor and ceases to care for gains.

Let not the multitudes, therefore, murmur when Christ saves sinners but let them answer us this. Would they have physicians succeed in effecting cures, when they visit the sick? Do they praise them when they are able to deliver men from cruel ulcers, or do they blame them and praise those who are unskillful in their art? But, as I suppose, they will give the sentence of superiority in favour of those, who are skillful in benefiting such as suffer from diseases. Why, therefore, do they blame Christ, if when Zacheus was, so to say, fallen and buried in spiritual maladies, He raised him from the pitfalls of destruction?

And to teach them this, He says, “Today there is salvation for this house, in that he also is a son of Abraham” for where Christ enters, there, necessarily, is also salvation. May He, therefore, also be in us and He is in us, when we believe, for He dwells in our hearts by faith and we are His abode. It would have been better then for the Jews to have rejoiced because Zacheus was wonderfully saved, for he too was counted among the sons of Abraham, to whom God promised salvation in Christ, by the holy prophets, saying, “There shall come a Saviour from Zion and He shall take away iniquities from Jacob and this is My covenant with them, when I will bear their sins.”

Christ, therefore arose, to deliver the inhabitants of the earth from their sins and to seek them that were lost and to save them that had perished. For this is His office and, so to say, the fruit of His Godlike gentleness. Of this will He also count all those worthy, who have believed in Him: by Whom and with Whom to God the Father be praise and dominion, with the Holy Ghost forever and ever, Amen.” – St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Known as “The Pillar of Faith” Father and Doctor of the Church (An excerpt from Homily 127).

PRAYER – O God, Who for us bring each year the recurrence of the Consecration day of this Thy holy temple and always bring us back safely to the Sacred Rites, hear the prayers of Thy people and grant that, whoever enters this temple to pray for blessings., may rejoice in having obtained whatever he sought.Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 6 November – Render to Caesar

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One Minute Reflection – 6 November – The Twenty Second Sunday after Pentecost – Within the All Saints Octave – Philippians 1:6-11, Matthew 22:15-21 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Why do you tempt Me, ye hypocrites ? Show Me the coin of the tribute. And they offered Him a penny. And Jesus said to them: Whose image and. inscription is this? They said to Him, Caesar’s. Then He saith to them: Render, therefore, to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God, the things that are God’s.” – Matthew 22:18-21

REFLECTION – “How wonderful this answer and how perfect the fulfilment of the prescribed Divine Law! So beautifully does He here indicate, the middle way, between not caring for the things of the world, on the one hand and the offence of injuring Caesar, on the other, that He proves the perfect freedom of minds, however devoted to God, to discharge all human duties, by commanding them to render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s.

If we possess nothing that is Caesar’s, we are not bound to render anything to him but, since we are concerned with the things which are his, since we make justly, use of his power and are subject to him as paid servants, to take care of property not our own, we cannot question our duty to render to Caesar, the things that are Caesar’s. But all of us, are always bound to render to God the things that are God’s that is, our body, our soul and our will. These things we hold from Him, for He is our Creator. It is, therefore, just and right that those who acknowledge that they owe to Him their being, life and preservation, should render to Him, all that they are and have.” – St Hilary (315-368) Bishop of Poitiers, Father and Doctor of the Divinity of Christ.(Excerpt from his Homily on Matthew 22:15-21).

PRAYER – From all perils of soul and body defend us, O Lord, we beseech Thee and by the intercession of blessed and gloriosus ever Virgin Mary, Mother of God, of blessed Joseph, of Thy blessed Apostles Peter and Paul and all the Saints, graciously grant us safety and peace that all adversities and errors being overcome, Thy Church may serve Thee, in security and freedom. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on JOY, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 5 November – “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in Heaven.” – Matthew 5:12

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

“Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in Heaven.” – Matthew 5:12

REFLECTION – “Rejoice in the Lord without ceasing (cf. Phil 4:4), my dear children. I beg you rejoice, citizens of heaven but exiles on earth, inhabitants of the Jerusalem on high (cf. Gal 4:26) but banished from affairs here below, inheritors of the Kingdom of Heaven but disinherited from taking any part at all, in earthly pleasures! Rejoice, ardent travellers, at undergoing exile and maltreatment in a foreign land in the name of the commandment of God! Rejoice, you who are last in this world but lords of blessings that exceed our understanding (cf. Phil 4:7).
Rejoice, noble company, brought together by God, assembly united in heart and soul, who give life to filial and fraternal love, a replica on earth of the host of angels! (…) Rejoice, God’s workers, apostolic men. (…) Rejoice, you who set your joy in each other, each making his own the reputation of his brother, you in whom is found neither jealousy, rivalry nor envy but, in their place, peace and charity and life in common. In truth, I do not say that we are not attacked – indeed, who is crowned if not the one who struggles and fights, who exchanges thrusts and wounds with his assailants? – but I say that we should not let ourselves be brought down by the machinations of Satan.
Yes, my children, assembly of God, nourish yourselves with the food of the Spirit and drink the water given by the Lord: whoever comes to possess this water will never thirst again but it will become, in Him, a spring of living water welling up to eternal life (cf. Jn 4:14). (…) Yet a little while and we shall have vanquished. And blessed shall we be; blessed also, it shall be said, are the places, family and countries that have borne you (cf. Lk 11:27-28).” – St Theodore the Studite (759-826) – Catechesis 47 (The Great Catecheses)

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

Posted in GOD ALONE!, JESUIT SJ, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONSOLATION, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The LAST THINGS, The SECOND COMING, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 4 November – Well done, good and faithful servant … Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” – Matthew 25:21

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One Minute Reflection – 4 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory – Saint Charles Borromeo (1538-1584) – Sirach 44:16-27; 45:3-20, Matthew 25:14-23 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“His Lord said to him: Well done, good and faithful servant because thou has been faithful over a few things, I will place thee over many thing. Enter thou into the joy of thy Lord.” – Matthew 25:21

REFLECTION – “I have no idea what to write you from these parts [India and Sri Lanka] except this – the consolations bestowed by our Lord God, to those who go among the pagans, to convert them to the faith of Christ, are so great that, if there is any joy to be had in this life, it is surely this! I have often heard it said, to someone going about amongst these Christians: “Lord, do not give me so many consolations in this life! Yet since, in Thy infinite goodness and pity, Thou are giving them me, take me into Thine holy glory! For indeed, there is such great suffering in living without seeing Thee, after Thou has shown Thyself to Thy creature, in this way!” Ah! If only those who look for knowledge in study, took as much trouble in looking for the consolations of the apostolate, as they give day and night to the pursuit of knowledge! If only those joys, which the scholar seeks in what he is learning, he were to seek in making his neighbour feel, what he is in need of – to know and serve God, how much more consoled he would find himself to be and better prepared, to give an account of himself, when Christ returns and asks him: “Give me an account of your stewardship” …

I will end, asking our Lord God … to bring us together in His holy glory. And to obtain this blessing, let us take as our intercessors and advocates, all the holy souls of the region, where I now am. … I beg all these holy souls to obtain for us from our Lord God, for as long as we remain separated, the grace of feeling His holy will in the depth of our souls and of fulfilling it perfectly.” – St Francis Xavier (1506-1552) Jesuit missionary (Letter of 15/01/1544).

PRAYER – Safeguard Thy Church, O Lord, under the continual protection of St Charles, Thy Confessor and Bishop, so that just as his concern for his flock made him glorious, so his intercession may make us ever fervent in loving Thee. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

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One Minute Reflection – 3 November – And opening His mouth, He taught them … – Matthew 5:1-2

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

“And seeing the multitudes, He went up into a mountain… And opening His mouth, He taught them … Blessed are …” – Matthew 5:1-2

REFLECTION – “Lord Jesus Christ, to teach us the summit of virtue, Thou ascended the mountain with Thy disciples and taught them the Beatitudes and highest virtues, promising them the rewards applicable to each. Grant that my weakness may hear Thy Voice, that I may apply myself, through their practice, to acquire the merit of the virtues, so that, by Thy Mercy, I may receive the promised reward. As I consider the payment, do not let me refuse the effort of the labour. Make my hope of eternal salvation, sweeten the bitterness of the cure, inflaming my soul with the splendour of Thy work. Out of the wretched person I am, create one of the blessed; from the blessedness here below, lead me through Thy Grace, to the blessedness of the homeland.

Come, Lord Jesus Christ, in search of Thy servant, seeking Thy erring and exhausted sheep. Come, Spouse of the Church, in search of Thy lost coin. Come, Father of mercies, welcome the prodigal son returning to Thee. Come, then, Lord, for Thou art the only One, able to call back the sheep who has strayed, to find the lost drachma, to reconcile the runaway son. Cone, that there may be salvation on earth and joy in Heaven! Turn me towards Thyself and grant that I may carry out a true and perfect repentance, that I may become an occasion for joy, among the angels. Sweetest Jesus, I pray Thee, by the immensity of Thy Love for me, a sinner, grant that I may love Thee alone, above all things, that I maybe consoled by none but Thou, my sweetest God!” – Ludolph of Saxony (c1300-1378) Monk, Theologian, Writer, Dominican then a Carthusian (Prayers to Jesus Christ).

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

Posted in "Follow Me", DOCTORS of the Church, EXTREME UNCTION, FATHERS of the Church, I BELIEVE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONSOLATION, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD

One Minute Reflection – 2 November – ‘ … Our dead have been sent on, not far from us but before us … ‘

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One Minute Reflection – 2 November – All Souls Day – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – 1 Corinthian 15:51-57, John 5:25-29 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Do not wonder at this, for the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs shall hear the Voice of the Son of God. And they who have done good, shall come forth unto the resurrection of life but they who have done evil, until the resurrection of judgement.” – John 5:28-29

REFLECTION – “Let them weep who lack all hope of resurrection; it is not the will of God that takes it away from them but the inflexibility of what they believe. There has to be a difference between the servants of Christ and the pagans. This is what it is – they mourn for those close to them, whom they think to be dead forever; they see no end to their weeping, reach no rest for their grief …, whereas, for us, death is not the end of our existence but the end of our life. Since our existence is restored by a condition that is better, therefore, the coming of death sweeps away all our tears. …

How much greater is our comfort, who believe that our good deeds are the promise, of better rewards after death. As for the pagans, they have their consolation, in thinking that death is a rest from all our trials. Since they think their dead are denied the enjoyment of life, they also think them, to be deprived of every faculty of sense and freed from the pain of the hard and continual sorrows, we bear in this life. We, on the other hand, just as we should have a more elevated spirit because of the reward we expect, so, we should also better bear our pains because of this consolation. … Our dead have been sent on, not far from us but before us – they, whom death will not take but whom, eternity will receive!” – St Ambrose (340-397) Father and Doctor of the Church (On the death of his brother, I, 70-71).

PRAYER – O God, Creator and Redeemer of all the faithful, grant to the souls of Thy servants and handmaids, the remission of all their sins, that they may obtain, by our loving prayer,s the forgiveness which they have always desired. Who lives and reigns with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, ON the SAINTS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on MERIT, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 1 November – ‘ … The Communion of Saints will make up for my insufficiency and imperfection. … ‘

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

“Be glad and rejoice for your reward is very great in Heaven.” – Matthew 5:12

REFLECTION – “Dearly beloved, let us anxiously attend to all that concerns the profession of our common life, “keeping the unity of the spirit in the bond of peace,” by “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the imparting of the Holy Spirit ”(Eph 4,3; 2 Cor 13:13). From the love of God comes the unity of the spirit; from the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ comes the bond of peace; from the imparting of the Holy Spirit, comes that communion which is necessary to those who live in common. …

“I believe, 0 Lord, in the Holy Ghost, the holy Catholic Church, the Communion of Saints” (Credo). This is my hope, this is my trust, this is my confidence, this is the whole of my security in the professing of my faith. … If I am allowed, O Lord, to “love Thee and love my neighbour,” (Mt 22:37-39) although my merits are small and few, yet will my hopes reach beyond them. I am confident that the merits of the Saints will help me by the communion of charity, so that the Communion of Saints will make up for my insufficiency and imperfection. … Let charity expand our hope, as far as the Communion of Saints, in the sharing of merits and rewards but the sharing of the latter belongs to the future, for it is the sharing in the glory which shall be revealed in us.

Since, then, there are three communions – the first of nature, which includes the sharing of guilt …; the second of grace and the third, of glory. By the communion of grace, that of nature begins to be remade and the sharing of guilt to be excluded but by the communion of glory, that of nature will be perfectly restored and the communion of anger, will be entirely excluded, when “God will wipe away every tear from the eyes” of the Saints (Is 25:8; Rv 21:4). Then, among all the Saints, there will be “one heart and one soul” and “all things will be in common”when God will be “all in all” (Acts 4:2; 1 Cor 15:28). That we may all arrive at this communion and that we all may be one, “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God, and the imparting of the Holy Spirit be with us all forever. Amen.” – Baldwin of Forde O.Cist ( c 1125–1190) Cistercian Abbot, Bishop, then Archbishop of Canterbury (Treatise on the common life).

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

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on the POOR, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The BEATITUDES, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 31 October – “Blessed are you who are poor … Luke 6:20

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One Minute Reflection – 31 October – “The Month of the Most Holy Rosary and of the Angels” – Vigil of All Saints – Apocalypse 5:6-12, Luke 6:17-23 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God.” – Luke 6:20

REFLECTION – “Blessed,” He says, “are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 5:3). It would perhaps be doubtful what poor He was speaking of, if in saying “blessed are the poor ” He had added nothing which would explain the sort of poor and then, that poverty by itself, would appear sufficient to win the Kingdom of Heaven, which many suffer from, hard and heavy necessity. But when he says “blessed are the poor in spirit,” He shows that the Kingdom of Heaven must be assigned to those who are recommended by the humility of their spirit, rather than, by the smallness of their means.

Yet it cannot be doubted, that this possession of humility is more easily acquired by the poor than the rich: for submissiveness is the companion of those, who want, while loftiness of mind dwells with riches. Notwithstanding, even in many of the rich, is found that spirit which uses its abundance, not for the increasing of its pride but on works of kindness and counts that for the greatest gain, which it expends in the relief of others’ hardships. It is given to every kind and rank of men, to share in this virtue, because men may be equal in will, though unequal in fortune and it does not matter, how different they are in earthly means, who are found equal in spiritual possessions. Blessed, therefore, is poverty which is not possessed with a love of temporal things and does not seek to be increased with the riches of the world but is eager to amass heavenly possessions.” – St Leo the Great (400-461) Pope, Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 95, PL 54, 461).

PRAYER – Multiply Thy grace upon us, O Lord our God and grant that by following in holiness of life, those whose glorious festival we anticipate, we may attain to their bliss. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

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One Minute Reflection – 28 October – “If the world hates you, know that it has hated me first.”- John 15:18

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One Minute Reflection – 28 October – Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles – Ephesians 4:7-13, John 15:17-25 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me first.”- John 15:18

REFLECTION –“I rejoice with you greatly in our Lord Jesus Christ, that you welcomed the copies of true love [Ignatius of Antioch and his companions]…who were encumbered with saintly chains, which are the diadems of those, truly chosen by God and our Lord. And I rejoice because the deep root of your faith, which has been renowned from early times, still lasts and bears fruit to our Lord Jesus Christ, Who for our sins, endured even facing death and Whom “God raised, releasing Him from the throes of death” (Acts 2,24). “Though you have not seen Him, you believe with unutterable, triumphant joy” (1Pt 1,8)… “He who raised Him from the dead will raise us also” (2Cor 4,14), if we do His Will and live by His Commands and love what He loved… Let us be imitators of His endurance and, if we suffer for His sake, let us glorify Him. For He set us this example Himself and this is what we have believed.

So I beg you all, to obey the message of uprightness and to exhibit all endurance, such as you saw with your own eyes, not only in the blessed Ignatius and Zosimus and Rufus but also, in others of your number and in Paul himself and the rest of the Apostles, being assured, that all these “have not run in vain” (Gal 2,2) but in faith and uprightness and, that they are in the place that they have deserved with the Lord, with and for Whom they suffered. For they did not “love the present world” (2Tm 4,10) but Christ, Who died for us and was raised up by God for our sakes.”- St Polycarp (69-155) Apostolic Father, Bishop and Martyr – Letter to the Philippians, 1-2, 8-9

PRAYER – O God, Who has given us a way of coming to know Thy Name through Thy blessed Apostles Simon and Jude, grant us to honour their everlasting glory, by becoming more holy and to become more holy by honouring it. ThroughJesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, OUR Cross, QUOTES on MARTYRDOM, QUOTES on PERSECUTION, QUOTES on PERSEVERANCE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CHURCH, St PAUL!, St PETER!, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 26 October – “Although the earth and all who dwell in it quake, I have set firm its pillars”

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One Minute Reflection – 26 October – “The Month of the Most Holy Rosary and of the Angels” – 1 Peter 5:1-4; 5:10-11, Matthew 16:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Upon this rock I will build my church” – Matthew 16:18

REFLECTION – “Although the earth and all who dwell in it quake, I have set firm its pillars” (Ps 74[75],40). All the Apostles are pillars of the earth but, at their head, the two whose Feast we are celebrating. They are the two pillars who support the Church with their teaching, their prayer and the example of their steadfastness. The Lord Himself strengthened these pillars. For at first they were weak, completely incapable of supporting either themselves or others. And in this the Lord’s great design appears: it they had always been strong, people could have thought their strength came from themselves. That is why the Lord wanted to show what they were capable of, before strengthening them, so that all might know, that their strength came from God… Peter was thrown to the ground by the voice of a mere servant… and the other pillar was very weak too: “I was once a blasphemer and persecutor and an arrogant man” (1Tm 1,13)…

Hence we ought to praise these Saints with all our heart: our Fathers who bore such trials for the Lord’s sake and who persevered, with such determination. It is nothing to persevere in joy, happiness and peace. But this is what is great – to be stoned, scourged, struck for Christ (2 Cor 11,25) and in all this, to persevere with Christ. With Paul it is a great thing to be cursed and to bless, to be persecuted and to endure, to be slandered and to console, to be like the world’s rubbish and to draw glory from it (1 Cor 4,12-13)… And what shall we say of Peter? Even if he had undergone nothing for Christ, it would be sufficient to celebrate him today in that he was crucified for Him… He well knew where He Whom he loved, He Whom he longed for was… his cross has been his road to Heaven.” – St Aelred of Rielvaux (1110-1167) Cistercian Monk (Sermon 18, for the feast of S (ints Peter and Paul ; PL 195, 298).

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

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 24 October – ‘ …  To follow God wherever he might lead, is to behold God …’

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One Minute Reflection – 24 October – “The Month of the Most Holy Rosary and of the Angels” – Feast of St Raphael the Archangel – Tobias 12:7-15, Mark 10: 46-52 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“And immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way” .…Mark 10:52

REFLECTION – “[Moses said to the Lord on Mount Sinai]: “Let me see your glory!” He answered: “I will make all my beauty pass before you … but my face you cannot see” (Ex 33:18 f).] Such an experience seems to me to belong to the soul which loves what is beautiful. Hope always draws the soul from the beauty which is seen, to what is beyond … And the bold request which goes up the mountains of desire, asks this – to enjoy the Beauty, not in mirrors and reflections but face-to-face. The divine Voice granted what was requested in what was denied … – the munificence of God assented to the fulfilment of the desire but did not promise any cessation or satiety of the desire … The true sight of God consists in this, that the one who looks up to God never ceases in that desire. For He says: “You cannot see my face and live” …

But when the Lord who spoke to Moses came to fulfil His own law, He likewise gave a clear explanation to His disciples, laying bare the meaning of what had previously been said in a figure, when He said: “If anyone wants to be a follower of mine “ (Lk 9:23) and not “If any man will go before me.” And to the one asking about eternal life, He proposes the same thing, for He says: “Come, follow me” (Lk 18:22). Now, he who follows, sees the back. So Moses, who eagerly seeks to behold God, is now taught how he can behold Him – to follow God wherever he might lead, is to behold God (…).

Someone who does not know the way, cannot complete his journey safely in any other way, than by following behind his guide. He who leads, then, by His guidance shows the way to the one following. He who follows, will not turn aside from the right way, if he always keeps the back of his leader in view. For he who moves to one side or brings himself to face his guide, assumes another direction for himself, than the one his guide shows him. Therefore, God says to the one who is led: “My face is not to be seen”, that is, “Do not face your guide”. If he does so, his course will certainly be in the opposite direction …. to follow God wherever He might lead, is to behold God! No longer does any offence which comes about through evil, withstand the one who thus follows Him.” – St Gregory of Nyssa (c.335-395) Bishop, Father (Brother of St Basil the Great) (The Life of Moses, II.).

PRAYER – O God, Who gave blessed Raphael the Archangel as a traveling companion to Your servant Tobias, grant us, Your servants, ever to be protected by his guardianship and by his help.Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, I BELIEVE!, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FAITH, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 22 October – “Rather, blessed are they who hear the word of God and keep it.”

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One Minute Reflection – 22 October – “The Month of the Most Holy Rosary and of the Angels” – Ecclesiasticus 24:14-16, Luke 11:27-28 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Rather, blessed are they who hear the word of God and keep it.” – Luke 11:28

REFLECTION – “Mary was more blessed in accepting the faith of Christ than in conceiving the flesh of Christ. To someone who said, “Blessed is the womb that bore you,” he replied, “Rather, blessed are they who hear the word of God and keep it.”

Finally, for His brothers, His relatives according to the flesh, who did not believe in Him, of what advantage was that relationship? Even her maternal relationship, would have done Mary no good, unless she had borne Christ more happily in her heart, than in her flesh.” – St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of Grace (Holy Virginity 3).

PRAYER – Grant us, Thou servants, O Lord God, we beseech Thee, to enjoy lasting health of mind and body and, by the intercession of glorious and blessed Mary, ever Virgin, may we be delivered from present sorrow and partake to the full of eternal happiness. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The GOOD SHEPHERD, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 21 October – Let us not be ‘foolish travellers‘

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One Minute Reflection – 21 October – Saint Ursula and Companions: (Died c 238) Virgin Martyrs – Ecclesiasticus 45:1-6, Matthew 19:27-29 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“And everyone who has left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for My Name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold and shall possess life everlasting.” – Matthew 19:29

REFLECTION – “Again He says: My sheep hear My Voice and I know them; they follow Me and I give them eternal life. Shortly before this He had declared – If anyone enters the sheepfold through Me he shall be saved; he shall go freely in and out and shall find good pasture. He will enter into a life of faith; from faith he will go out to vision, from belief to contemplation and will graze in the good pastures of everlasting life.

So Our Lord’s sheep, will finally reach their grazing ground where all who follow Him, in simplicity of heart, will feed on the green pastures of eternity. These pastures are the spiritual joys of Heaven. There, the elect look upon the face of God with unclouded vision and feast at the Banquet of Life for evermore.

Beloved …, let us set out for these pastures where we shall keep joyful festival with so many of our fellow citizens. May the thought of their happiness urge us on! Let us stir up our hearts, rekindle our faith and long eagerly for what Heaven has in store for us. To love thus ,is to be already on our way. No matter what obstacles we encounter, we must not allow them to turn us aside from the joy of that Heavenly Feast. Anyone who is determined to reach his destination, is not deterred by the roughness of the road, that leads to it. Nor must we allow the charm of success to seduce us, or we shall be like a foolish traveller who is so distracted by the pleasant meadows through which he is passing, that he forgets where he is going!” – St Gregory the Great (540-604) – Pope and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church (An excerpt from his Homily 14).

PRAYER – Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord our God that we may never cease devoutly, to venerate the triumphs of Thy holy Virgins and Martyrs, Ursula and her companions that, as we cannot worthily shew forth their praises, yet we may continually honour them, with lowly service Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on WATCHING, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 20 October – ‘Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning …’ Luke 12:35

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One Minute Reflection – 20 October – St John Cantius (1390-1473) Confessor – James 2:12-17, Luke 12:35-40 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.” – Luke 12:35-36

REFLECTION – “God, the Word, stirs up the lazy and arouses the sleeper. For indeed, someone who comes knocking at the door is always wanting to come in. But it depends on us, if He does not always enter or always remain.,, May your door be open to Him who comes; open your soul, enlarge your spiritual capacities, that you may discover the riches of simplicity, the treasures of peace and sweetness of grace. Expand your heart; run to meet the Sun of that Eternal Light that “enlightens everyone” (Jn 1,9). It is certain, that this true Light shines for all but, if anyone shuts their windows, then they themselves, shut themselves off from this Eternal Light.

So even Christ remains outside, if you shut the door of your soul. It is true, that He could enter but He does not want to use force, He does not put those who refuse under pressure. Descended from the Virgin, born from her womb, He shines throughout the universe to give light to all. Those who long to receive the light, that shines with an everlasting brightness, open up to Him. No night comes to intervene. Indeed, the sun we see each day, gives way to night’s darkness but the Sun of Justice (Mal 3,20) knows no setting, for Wisdom is not overcome by evil.” – St Ambrose (340-397) Bishop of Milan and Father and Doctor of the Church (12th Sermon on Psalm 118).

PRAYER – Grant, we beseech Thee, Almighty God, that by following the example of blessed John, Thy Confessor, we may advance in a knowledge of holiness and, by showing pity for others, obtain Thou forgiveness through his merits. Through the Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, franciscan OFM, I BELIEVE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on MERIT, QUOTES on THE WORLD, QUOTES on WORK/LABOUR, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The HEART

One Minute Reflection – 19 October – ‘ … An incorruptible store …’

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One Minute Reflection – 19 October – St Peter of Alcantara OFM (1499-1562) Confessor – Philippians 3:7-12, Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

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

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

What is a man’s treasure but the heaping up of profits and the fruit of his toil? For whatever a man sows, this too will he reap and each man’s gain, matches his toil and where delight and enjoyment are found, there the heart’s desire is attached. Now there are many kinds of wealth and a variety of grounds for rejoicing – every man’s treasure is that, which he desires. If it is based on earthly ambitions, its acquisition makes men not blessed but wretched.

But those who enjoy the things that are above and eternal, rather than earthly and perishable, possess an incorruptible, hidden store, of which the prophet speaks: ‘Our treasure and salvation have come, wisdom and instruction and piety, from the Lord: these are the treasures of justice.’ Through these, with the help of God’s grace, even earthly possessions are transformed into heavenly blessings. It is a fact that many people use the wealth, which is either rightfully left to them or otherwise, acquired, as a tool of devotion. By distributing what might be superfluous to support the poor, they are amassing imperishable riches, so that what they have discreetly given, cannot be subject to loss. They have properly placed those riches, where their heart is, – it is a most blessed thing, to work to increase such riches, rather than to fear that they may pass away.” – St Pope Leo the Great (400-461) Bishop of Rome and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church (An excerpt from Sermon 92).

PRAYER – O God, Who graciously made blessed Peter, Thy Confessor, glorious by the gift of remarkable penance and sublime contemplation, grant, we beseech Thee, that, by the merit of his prayers, we may the more easily understand the things of Heaven by curbing our passions. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The ANNUNCIATION, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, The NATIVITY of JESUS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 18 October – Luke, the beloved physician, sends greetings …

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One Minute Reflection – 18 October – The Feast of St Luke, the Evangelist – 2 Corinthians 8:16-24, Luke 10:1-9 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful but the labourers are few, pray therefore, the Lord of the harvest, to send out labourers into his harvest.” – Luke 10:2

REFLECTION – “When, after abandoning the darkness of error to bind himself to God’s love, Paul was joined to the number of the disciples, Luke went with him everywhere and became his travelling companion (Acts 16:10 f.). … He got on with him so well, was so close to him and shared all his graces, so nearly, that Paul, in writing to the faithful, called Luke his “beloved” (Col 4:14). From Jerusalem and the country round about, as far as Dalmatia, (Rom 15:19) he preached the Gospel with him. From Judea to Rome he shared the same chains with him, the same work, the same difficulties, the same shipwrecks. He desired to receive the same prize with him since he had shared the same labours.

Having acquired the gift of preaching along with Paul and won over and led so many peoples to the love of God, Luke truly seemed like the Saviour’s loving and beloved disciple, in addition to being the Evangelist who wrote His Sacred history. For formerly he had followed the Lord (cf. Lk 10:1), gathered together the testimonies of His first servants (Lk 1:1) and received inspiration from on high.
It was this Evangelist who related the mystery of Gabriel, the messenger sent to the Virgin to announce joy to the whole world.
It was he who told in full, the birth of Christ, showing us the newborn child lying in a manger and describing shepherds and Angels shouting for joy.
… He reports the parabolic teachings in greater number than the other Evangelists.
And just as he makes known to us the descent of the Word of God to earth, so too, he describes his Ascension to Heaven and return to the Father’s throne (24:51). …

But in Luke, grace does not stop there. His speech is not limited to serving the Gospel alone.
At the end of Christ’s miracles he also relates the Acts of the Apostles. …
Luke was not just a spectator of all those things but really participated in them.
And that is why he put so much care into teaching us about them.” – Anonymous Byzantine life of Saint Luke – 11th century (Saint Luke, Evangelist and companion of Paul – 6-7; PG 115, 1134-1135).

PRAYER – O Lord, we beseech Thee, that Luke, Thy holy Evangelist, who for the honour of Thy Name bore continuously in his body the suffering of the Cross, may intercede on our behalf. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the BRIDEGROOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LOVE of NEIGHBOUR, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on the CHURCH, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 16 October – ‘What is that “wedding garment” then? …’ St Augustine

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One Minute Reflection – 16 October – Feast of the Purity of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Ephesians 4:23-28, Matthew 22:1-14 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Now the king went in to see the guests and he saw there a man who had not on a wedding garment. And he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?‘” – Matthew 22:11-12

REFLECTION – “What is that “wedding garment” then? … The wedding garment” is such charity as this. “Although I speak with the tongues of men and of Angels and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal.” Tongues have come in alone and it is said to them, “Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment? “I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge and although I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains and have not charity, I am nothing.”

See, these are the miracles of men who very often have not “the wedding garment.” “Although,” he says,” I have all these and have not Christ, I am nothing.” … If then I have not charity, although I bestow alms freely upon the poor, although I have come to the confession of Christ’s Name even unto blood and fire, these things may be done even through the love of glory and so are vain.
… For “the wedding garment” is taken in honour of the union, the union, that is, of the Bridegroom to the Bride. You know the Bridegroom – it is Christ. You know the Bride – it is the Church. Pay honour to the Bride, pay honour to the Bridegroom. If you pay due honour to them both, you will be their children. Therefore, in this make progress. Love the Lord and so learn to love yourselves, that when, by loving the Lord, you shall have loved yourselves, you may securely love your neighbour as yourselves. …So then, have faith with love. This is the “wedding garment!” … St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace.

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

Posted in CHRIST, the BRIDEGROOM, DOCTORS of the Church, franciscan OFM, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The HOLY GHOST, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 15 October – ‘ …Then is celebrated the wedding of the Bridegroom with His bride, in the peace of a pure conscience.’

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One Minute Reflection – 15 October – St Teresa of Jesus of Avila OCD (1515-1582) Virgin and Doctor of the Church – 2 Corinthians 10:17-18; 11:1-2, Matthew 25:1-13 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“But at midnight there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.” – Matthew 25:6

REFLECTION – “The souls’ husband is the Holy Spirit, by His grace. When His interior inspiration calls the soul to repentance, then every enticement of vice is in vain. The pride that wants command, the greed and lust that consumes everything: this was the master that used to control and ravage the soul. Their very names have been removed from the repentant sinner’s mouth… When grace is poured into the soul and gives it light, God makes a covenant with sinners. He is reconciled with them… Then is celebrated the wedding of the Bridegroom with His bride, in the peace of a pure conscience.” – St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) Doctor of the Church

PRAYER – Graciously hear us, O God, our Saviour that as we rejoice on the feast-day of blessed Teresa, Thy Virgin, we may be so nourished by the food of her heavenly teaching, as to learn how to serve Thee.T hrough the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the KING, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on DEATH, St PETER!, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 14 October – Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” – Matthew 16:16

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One Minute Reflection – 14 October – St Callistus I (c 218 – c 223) Confessor, Pope, Martyr – 1 Peter 5:1-4; 5:10-11, Matthew 16:13-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” – Matthew 16:16

REFLECTION – “Peter did not say “Thou are a Christ” or “a son of God” but “the Christ, the Son of God.” For there are many christs by grace, who have attained the rank of adoption [as sons] but [there is] only One Who is by nature the Son of God. Thus, using the definite article, he said, THE Christ, THE Son of God. And in calling Him, Son of the LIVING God, Peter indicates that Christ Himself is Life and that death has no authority over Him. And even if the flesh, for a short while, was weak and died, nevertheless, it rose again, since the Word, Who dwelled in it, could not be held under the bonds of death.” – St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Known as “The Pillar of Faith” Archbishop of Alexandria, Father and Doctor Incarnationis (Doctor of the Incarnation) (Fragment 190).

PRAYER – O God, Who behold how we fail in our weakness, mercifully restore us to Thy love, through the examples of Thy Saints.Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in FATHERS of the Church, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, QUOTES on the CHURCH, QUOTES on WATCHING, The GOOD SHEPHERD, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The REDEMPTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 13 October – ‘ …This Sacred Household is the Holy, Catholic Church …’

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One Minute Reflection – 13 October – “The Month of the Most Holy Rosary and of the Angels” and the Memorial of Our Lady of Fatima: The Sixth & Final Apparition – Sirach 31:8-11, Luke 12:35-40 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Blessed are those servants whom the Master, on His return, shall find watching.” – Luke 12:37

REFLECTION – “Wishing to emphasise the special office of the servants, whom He has placed in charge of His people, the Lord says, ‘Who, do you think, is the faithful and wise steward, whom the Lord sets over His household, to give to them their measure of wheat at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his Master will find so doing when he comes.” Who is that Master, brethren? Without a doubt, it is Christ, Who says to His disciples: “You call me Teacher and Lord and you are right, for so I am” (Jn 13,13). What, too, is the Master’s Household? Doubtless it is the one which the Lord Himself ransomed… This Sacred Household is the Holy, Catholic Church, which is spread through the whole earth with abundant fertility and glories in the fact, that she has been redeemed by the Precious Blood of her Master. As He Himself says: “The Son of Man came, not to be served but to serve and to give His Life as a ransom for many” (Mk 10,45).

He is, too, the Good Shepherd ”Who laid down His Life for His sheep” (Jn 10,11)…As to who the steward is, who ought to be faithful, as well as wise, the Apostle Paul shows us, when, speaking of himself and his companions, he says: “This is how one should regard us, as the servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they should be found trustworthy” (1Cor 4,1-2).

Now, lest anyone of us should think that it is only the Apostles who have been made stewards…, the blessed Apostle Paul shows us that the Bishops also are stewards, when he says: “For a bishop, as God’s steward, must be blameless” (Tt 1,7)…We, therefore, who are the servants of the Master of the Household, we are the stewards of the Lord, we have received the measure of wheat to disburse to you.” – St Fulgentius of Ruspe (467-532) Bishop in North Africa (Homily 1, on the Lord’s servants) (trans. Breviary Common of Pastors).

PRAYER – From all perils of soul and body defend us, O Lord, we beseech Thee and by the intercession of blessed and gloriosus ever Virgin Mary, Mother of God,and all the Saints, graciously grant us, safety and peace that all adversities and errors being overcome, thy Church may serve Thee in security and freedom. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MOTHER of GOD, ONE Minute REFLECTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 11 October – Feast of the Divine Maternity – ‘ … This most prudent woman … ‘ St Bede

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One Minute Reflection – 11 October – Feast of the Divine Maternity – Ecclesiasticus 24:23-31, Luke 2:43-51 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them and His mother kept all these things in her heart.” – Luke 2:51

REFLECTION – “Consider the most prudent woman Mary, Mother of true Wisdom, as the pupil of her Son. For she learned from Him, not as from a child or man but, as from God. Yes, she dwelt in meditation on His words and actions. Nothing of what was said or done by Him, fell idly on her mind. As before, when she conceived the Word itself, in her womb, so now, does she hold within her, His ways and words, cherishing them, as it were, in her heart. That which she now beholds in the present, she waits to have revealed with greater clarity, in the future. This practice she followed as a rule and law through all her life.” – St Bede the Venerable (673-735) Father and Doctor of the Church (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke).

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

Posted in CHRIST the PHYSICIAN, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MIRACLES, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on FORGIVENESS, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 9 October – “When Jesus saw their faith” Matthew 9:1-8

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One Minute Reflection – 9 October – St John Leonardi (1541-1609) Confessor, Priest, Founder – 1 Corinthians 1:4-8, Matthew9:1-8 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Which is easier to say: Thy sins are forgiven thee, or to say: Arise, and walk?” – Matthew 9:5

REFLECTION – “And people there brought to him a paralytic.” Saint Matthew merely says that this paralytic was carried to Jesus. Other Evangelists describe, how he was let down through an opening in the roof and placed before the Lord, without expressing any particular request, leaving it to Him to assess the needs …

“When Jesus saw their faith,” the Gospel says, that is to say, the faith of those who had brought the man to Him. Consider how sometimes Christ pays no attention to the faith of the sick person – perhaps because, the latter is incapable of it, being unconscious or possessed with an evil spirit. However, in this case, this paralytic had great trust in Jesus, otherwise, would he have allowed them to let him down in front of Him? Christ responds to this trust with an extraordinary miracle. With the power of God, He forgives this man’s sins. Thus He showed, that He is equal to the Father, a truth He had already shown, when He said to the leper: “I will do it – be made clean” (Mt 8:3) … and when, with a word, He stilled the tempestuous sea (Mt 8:26), or when, as God, He had cast out the demons who recognised in Him their ruler and their judge (Mt 8:32). So here, He shows His adversaries, to their great astonishment, that He is equal to the Father

And once more, the Saviour shows here, how He turns away from anything spectacular or a source of vainglory. On all sides the crowd is pressing Him, yet, He is in no hurry to work a visible miracle by healing the external paralysis of this man …. He begins with an invisible miracle – by healing the man’s soul. This kind of healing, is far more beneficial for him and, outwardly speaking, less glorious for Christ.” – St John Chrysostom (345-407) Priest at Antioch then Bishop of Constantinople, Father and Doctor of the Church – homilies on Saint Matthew’s Gospel, no. 29, 1.

PRAYER – O God, Who in a wondrous way graciously urged blessed John, Thy Confessor, to propagate Thy faith among the pagans and through him brought together a new religious family in Thy Church for the education of the faithful, grant Thy servants, so to profit by his teaching that we may reach everlasting rewards. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on the CHURCH, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, The LAST THINGS, The SECOND COMING, The SIN of PRESUMPTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 8 October – ‘ … the bad will always be mingled amongst the good in the Church …’

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One Minute Reflection – 8 October – St Bridget of Sweden (c 1303-1373) Widow – Timothy 5:3-10, Matthew 13:44-52 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“So shall it be at the end of the world. The angels shall go out and shall separate the wicked from among the just. And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” – Matthew 13:49-50

REFLECTION – “Our Lord was an example of incomparable patience. He bore with a “devil” among His disciples even to His Passion (Jn 6,70). He said: “Let them grow together until the harvest lest you uproot the wheat when you pull out the weeds” (cf. Mt 13,29f.). As a symbol of the Church, He preached that the net would bring back to shore, namely the end of the world, every kind of fish, both good and bad. And He made it known, in various other ways, whether openly or in parables, that there would always be a mixture of good and bad. But, nevertheless, He stresses, that we have to protect the Church’s discipline when He says: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother” (Mt 18,15)…

Yet today, we see people who think of nothing but stern commandments, who order that troublemakers be reproved, ‘not giving what is holy to the dogs,’ treating, like the publicans, ‘anyone who despises the Church, cutting off the scandalous member from the body‘ (Mt 7,6 ; 18,17 ; 5,30). Their stormy zeal so troubles the Church, that they pull out the weeds before their time and their blindness makes of them enemies, of the unity of Jesus Christ…

Take care not to let these presumptuous thoughts enter our hearts, trying to separate ourselves from sinners, so as not to be soiled by contact with them, wanting to form a band of pure and holy disciples. We will achieve nothing but breaking up our unity, under the pretext of not associating with the wicked. To the contrary, let us remember the parables of Scripture, their inspired words, their striking examples, where we are shown that, until the end of the world and the day of judgement, the bad will always be mingled amongst the good in the Church, without their participation in the Sacraments being harmful to the good, so long as these latter, have not played a part in their sins.” – St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace (On Faith and Works – Excerpt ch 3-5)

PRAYER – O Lord, our God, Who through Thy Only-begotten Son revealed secrets to blessed Bridget, grant that through her kind intercession, we, Thy servants, may rejoice and be glad in the revelation of Thy eternal glory.Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, FATHERS of the Church, Hail MARY!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on the DEVIL/EVIL, The ANNUNCIATION, The INCARNATION

One Minute Reflection – 7 October – ‘…As the human race was subjected to death through the act of a Virgin, so was it saved by a Virgin…’

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One Minute Reflection – 7 October – The Month and Feast of the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Proverbs 8:22-24, 32-35, Luke 1:26-38 Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Hail, full of grace!” – Luke 1:28

REFLECTION – “So the Lord now manifestly came to His own. Born by His own created order that He Himself bears, He by His obedience on the tree, renewed and reversed what was done by disobedience, in connection with a tree.

The power of that seduction, by which the virgin Eve, already betrothed to a man, had been wickedly seduced, was broken when the Angel in truth brought good tidings to the Virgin Mary, who already, by her betrothal belonged to a man. For as Eve was seduced by the word of an Angel to flee from God, having rebelled against His Word, so Mary by the word of an Angel, received the glad tidings that she would bear God, by obeying His Word.

The former was seduced to disobey God and so fell but the latter, was persuaded to obey God, so that the Virgin Mary might become the advocate of Eve.

As the human race was subjected to death through the act of a Virgin, so was it saved by a Virgin, was precisely balanced by the obedience of Another. Then indeed, the sin of the first formed man was amended by the chastisement of the First Begotten, the wisdom of the serpent was conquered by the simplicity of the Dove and the chains were broken, by which we were in bondage to death.” – St Irenaeus (130-202) Bishop of Lyons, Martyr, Father of the Church (Against Heresies, 5)

PRAYER – O God, Whose Only-begotten Son, by His life, death and resurrection, has merited for us the grace of eternal salvation, grant, we beseech Thee, that, meditating on these Mysteries in the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may both imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on INNOCENCE, QUOTES on PURITY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 3 October – ‘ … Innocence and purity of mind … ‘

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One Minute Reflection – 3 October – St Thérèse of the Child Jesus (1873 – 1897) – Isaias 66:12-14, Matthew 18:1-4 Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like little children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”… Matthew 18:3

REFLECTION – “Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven. Just as this child, whose example I show you, does not persist in anger, does not long remember injury suffered, is not enamoured inordinately by the sight of a beautiful woman, does not think one thing and say another, so you too, unless you have similar innocence and purity of mind, will not be able to enter the Kingdom of Heaven! Or, it might be taken in another way: “Whosoever, therefore, humiliates himself like this child, is greater in the kingdom of heaven,” so as to imply that anyone, who imitates Me and humiliates himself following My example, so that he abases himself as much as I abased Myself in accepting the form of a servant, will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.” – St Jerome (343-420) Translator of Sacred Scripture into Latin (The Vulgate) One of the original four Doctors of the Latin Church, Father (Commentary on Matthew 3).

PRAYER – O Lord, Who said: Unless you become as little children, you shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, grant us, we beseech Thee, so to follow the footsteps of blessed Thérèse the Virgin, in humility and simplicity of heart that we may obtain everlasting rewards.Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, JESUIT SJ, LOVE of NEIGHBOUR, ON the SAINTS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 2 October – “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart.” – Matthew 22:34-46

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One Minute Reflection – 2 October – “The Month of the Most Holy Rosary and of the Angels” and Feast of the Holy Guardian Angels – Ephesians 4:1-6, Matthew 22:34-46

“Master, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” … Matthew 22:36

REFLECTION – “O Lord, what is it that you require of Your servants? “Take my yoke upon you,” you say. And what sort of yoke is this? “My yoke is easy and my burden light.” Now who would not willingly bear a yoke that does not press down but gives strength; a burden that does not weigh heavily but refreshes? As You rightly added: “And you will find rest” (Mt 11:29). And what is this yoke of Yours that does not tire but gives rest? It is the first and greatest of the commandments: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart.” What could be easier, better or more agreeable than to love the goodness, beauty and love that is most perfectly Yours, O Lord my God?

Do You not offer a reward to those who keep the com­mandments, which are “more desirable than a heap of gold and sweeter than honey from the comb?” (Ps 19[18]:11) So in every way You offer a very ample reward, as James the apostle says: “The Lord has prepared the crown of life for those who love him” (Jas 1:12) (…) And Paul quotes these words from Isaiah: “No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor has the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9).

That first and great commandment is not only profitable for the man who keeps it or for God who commands it – the other commandments of God also make perfect, him who obeys them, improves him, instructs him and makes him illustrious; in a word, they make him good and holy. If you understand this, realise that you have been created for the glory of God and for your own eternal salvation; this is your end, this is the object of your soul and the treasure of your heart. You will be blessed if you reach this goal but miserable if you are cut off from it.” – St Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621) Doctor of the Church (The Ascent of the Mind to God, 1).

PRAYER – O God, Who in Thy wondrous providence graciously send Thy Angels to watch over us, grant that we, who pray to Thee maybe ever under their protection and may rejoice in their unending companionship. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 1 October – “Blessed is the womb that bore Thee ” – Luke 11:27

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One Minute Reflection – 1 October – “The Month of the Most Holy Rosary” and Mary’s Day – Ecclesiasticus 24:14-16, Luke 11:27-28 Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Blessed is the womb that bore Thee ” – Luke 11:27

REFLECTION – “Once indeed, God ejected the mortals and first parents of the human race from the paradise of Eden, when they had drunk deeply from the wine of disobedience and had become so affected by the hangover of sin, through the intoxication of that transgression, which led to the sleepiness of the mind’s eye. …

Then Adam and Eve, the founders of our race, exclaimed with a loud voice in great rejoicing: “Blessed are you, O daughter, who bore for us the penalties of the commands that had been broken. When you had gained a mortal body from us, you gave birth to a covering of immortality for us. You repaid us ,so that it might be well with us, since you received birth from our loins. From beyond the grave, you have called us back to our ancient seat: we closed paradise for ourselves but you made open the way of the Tree of Life. Through our actions, sadness came forth from happiness; through you, even more joyful things have returned, from sorrow. In what possible way could you be acceptable to death, O Immaculate one? You are the bridge of life and the ladder to Heaven: you are a boat over the sea of death, reaching to immortality.”

But the woman herself, as she did not shrink from the truth, said: “Into Your hands, my Son, I commend my spirit. Receive this soul which is dear to You, which You have preserved free from any sin. I hand over my body, not to the earth but to You. Take me to Yourself, that where You are, You, the Child of my womb, so there I also may be Your companion. I am hastening to You, Who have often come to me on this side of that long distance.”

When she had said this, she heard in reply: “Come to My rest, My blessed Mother: arise, come, My Beloved, most blessed among all women. Behold, the winter is ended. You are all fair, My Beloved and there is no spot of stain found in you: the odour of your ointments are more precious than all other aromas.” – St John Damascene (675-749) Father and Doctor of the Church (An excerpt from his Homily 9: On the Dormition of the Blessed Virgin Mary).

PRAYER – Grant us, Thy servants, O Lord God, we beseech Thee, to enjoy lasting health of mind and body and ,by the intercession of glorious and blessed Mary, ever Virgin, may we be delivered from present sorrow and partake in the full of eternal happiness. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 30 September – You are the light of the world – Matthew 5:14

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One Minute Reflection – 30 September – The Memorial of St Jerome (347-419) Confessor, Father and Doctor of the Church– – 2 Timothy 4:1-8, Matthew 5:13-19. – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/cgi-bin/s?q=ephesians+6%3A5-9&b=drl

“You are the light of the world. A city seated on a mountain cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel but upon a candlestick, that it may shine to all that are in the house.” – Matthew 5:14-15.

REFLECTION – “The Lord called His disciples, the salt of the earth because they seasoned with heavenly wisdom, the hearts of men, rendered insipid by the devil. Now He calls them the light of the world too because they have been enlightened by Him, the true and everlasting Light and have themselves become, a light in the darkness.

Since He is the Sun of Justice, He fittingly calls His disciples, the light of the world. The reason for this, is that through them, as through shining rays, He has poured out the Light of the knowledge of Himself, upon the entire world. For by manifesting the Light of Truth, they have dispelled the darkness of error from the hearts of men.

Moreover, we too have been enlightened by them. We have been made light out of darkness as the Apostle says: “For once you were darkness but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light.” He says another time: “For you are not sons of the night and of darkness but you are all sons of light and of the day.”

Saint John also rightly asserts in his letter: “God is Light and whoever abides in God is in the light just as God Himself is in the light.” Therefore because we rejoice in having been freed from the darkness of error, we should always walk in the light as children of light. This is why the Apostle says: “Among them you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life.”

If we fail to live in the light, we shall, to our condemnation and that of others, be veiling over and obscuring, by our infidelity, the light men so desperately need. As we know from Scripture, the man who received the talent should have made it produce a heavenly profit but instead, he preferred to hide it away rather than put it to work and was punished as he deserved.

Consequently, that brilliant Lamp which was lit for the sake of our salvation should always shine in us. For we have the lamp of the heavenly commandment and spiritual grace, to which David referred: “Your law is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Solomon also says this about it: “For the command of the law is a lamp.”

Therefore, we must not hide this lamp of law and faith. Rather, we must set it up in the Church, as on a lampstand, for the salvation of many, so that we may enjoy the Light of Truth itself and all believers may be enlightened.” – St Chromatius of Aquileia (Died c 407) Bishop of Aquileia, Theologian, Exegete, Writer and friend of Saints Ambrose and Jerome, Defender of St John Chrysostom. (An excerpt from Treatise on the Gospel of Saint Matthew). St Chromatius’ life here: https://anastpaul.com/2020/12/02/saint-of-the-day-2-december-saint-chromatius-of-aquileia-died-c-407/

PRAYER – O God, Who graciously gave Thy Church, the blessed Jerome, Thy Confessor and peerless teacher, to explain the Holy Scriptures, grant, we beseech Thee, that, with the help of his merits and by Thy assistance, we may be able to put into practice, what he has taught us by his life and works.Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).