ONE Minute REFLECTION – Page 49

One Minute Reflection – 13 June – ‘Do not swear …’

Posted on June 13, 2020June 13, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 13 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Saturday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 1 Kings 19:19-21, Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-10, Matthew 5:33-37 and the Memorial of St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) Doctor of the Church

“Do not swear by your head, for you cannot make a single hair white or black.” … Matthew 5:36

REFLECTION – “These words of the Lord whereby He forbids us to swear by these different elements, invites a double explanation. Firstly, He wanted to draw us away from the use of oaths and the customs of human error, lest each of us through swearing by these elements, accord a creature the honour of divine veneration or, believe one has impunity in swearing falsely, if one swears by the elements of the world.

It can also be explained in this way – When one swears by heaven and earth, one swears by Him who made heaven and earth, as the Lord Himself declared elsewhere: “He who swears by the altar, swears by it and by all things that are on it and, he who swears by the temple, swears by it and by him who dwells in it.” Jesus goes on to say, “nor by Jerusalem,” for it is the city of the great King, that is, the symbol of Christ’s body, which is the spiritual and heavenly church. “Neither shall you swear,” he says, “by your head,” for according to the apostle, “the head of every man is Christ.” Therefore, the one who swears by these things makes reference to Him who is the author of all these things.” … St Chromatius of Aquileia (Died 407) Bishop, Theologian, Defender of the Faith against Arianism, Friend and supporter of St Jerome, St John Chrysostom, St Ambrose – Tractate on Matthew 24)

PRAYER – Almighty, everliving God, You gave St Anthony of Padua to Your people as a preacher and teacher and a patron in their needs. Grant that we may learn from his words inspired by Your Holy Spirit and by his prayers, grow in faith, hope and humility. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all-glorious God, now and forever, amen. st-anthony-pray-for-us-13-june-2017 AND 13 JUNE 2020

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on HELL, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on SIN, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 12 June – ‘… The impulse of the heart…’

Posted on June 12, 2020June 12, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 12 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Friday of the Tenth Week of Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 1 Kings 19:9, 11-16, Psalm 27:7-9, 13-14, Matthew 5:27-32

“If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one of your members than to have your whole body thrown into Gehenna.” … Matthew 5:29

REFLECTION – “As the degree of innocence increases, faith becomes more advanced. For we are advised to be free, not only from our own particular faults but also from those things, which affect us outwardly. For is it not because of sin, that the bodily members were condemned in the first place? The right eye is no less sinister than the left. It is pointless to chastise a foot that is unaware of lust and thus involves no grounds for punishment. But our members indeed do differ from each other while we are all one body. We are here being advised to pluck out inordinate loves or friendships, if they are the occasion that leads us further into wrongdoing. We would do well, to not even have the benefit of a member, like an eye or a foot, if it furnishes the avenue, by which one is drawn by excessive affections into a partnership with hell. Even the cutting away of a member might be beneficial, if the heart (figuratively speaking), were also able to be cut away. But, if the impulse of the heart is left unchanged, the cutting away of a member would be pointless.” … St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368) Father and Doctor of the Divinity of Christ – On Matthew, Ch 4 matthew 5 29 if your right eye - we are here being advised to pluck out - st hilary 12 june 2020

PRAYER – Yours is the day and Yours, the night, Lord God and we are Your children. Grant we pray, that the weakness of our humanity, the drive of our emotions and flesh may not overpower us. Lead us Lord, through the dangers of our day, give us strength and true love, wishing only, our final home, for those who share our lives, especially our spouse. Mary, pray for us, that we may imitate your faithfulness in all things. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen. blessed-virgin-mother-mary-pray-for-us-25-june-2018

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on MISSION, QUOTES on VOCATIONS, SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 11 June – ‘How could we not preach the gospel…?’

Posted on June 11, 2020June 10, 2021 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 11 June -“Month of the Sacred Heart” – Thursday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: Acts: 11:21b-26; 12:1-3, Psalm 98(97),1.2-3ab.3cd-4.5-6, Matthew 10:7-13 and the Memorial of St Barnabas, Apostle of Christ

Jesus said to his Apostles: “As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’
Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out demons. Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.” ... Matthew 10:7-8

REFLECTION – “It is not we who look for an apostolate – it looks for us; God, in loving us first, makes apostles of us. How could we share bread, a roof, our heart with the neighbour who is our own flesh and not be overflowing with the love of our God for him, if that neighbour does not know him? Everything is miserable without God; we cannot tolerate wretchedness for someone we love, least of all the greatest. Not be apostolic? Not be missionaries? But then what would it mean to belong to this God who has sent His Son so that the world might be saved by Him… and how?

However, we don’t “think” about being apostles; we think of being – in God’s hands, in the body of Christ, under the moving of His Spirit – the Christ we wish to become, the Christ who is never love without being light and there is no light except at the price of light. We imitate Him, badly but without stopping, we enter into Him, dissimilarly but tenaciously, how could we not be, at least in will, apostles? in all our being, disposed as, missionaries?…

How could we not preach the gospel if the Gospel is under our skin, in our hands, our hearts, our heads? We are obliged to say why we try to be what we want to be, why we try not to be what we don’t want to be, we are obliged to preach, since preaching is to say something publicly about Jesus Christ, our Lord and God and one can’t love Him and be silent.” … Venerable Madeleine Delbrêl (1904-1964) – Missionary to the outcasts – A vocation for God among men (The Joy of Believing)

PRAYER – O God, who decreed that Saint Barnabas, a man filled with faith and the Holy Spirit, should be set apart to convert the nations, grant that the Gospel of Christ, which he strenuously preached, may be faithfully proclaimed by word and by deed. We pray you Lord, that by the intercession of St Barnabas, we too may grow in faith and love and live to glorify Your kingdom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. Amen. st-barnabas-pray-for-us.11 june 2017

FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 10 June – ‘I am your Light, your Salvation and your King.’

Posted on June 10, 2020June 10, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 10 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Wednesday of the Tenth week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 1 Kings 18:20-39, Psalm 16:1-2, 4-5, 8, 11, Matthew 5:17-19

“I have come, not to abolish but to fulfil.” … Matthew 5:17

REFLECTION – “The sacrifice of the lamb, the Passover rite and the letter of the Law, have reached their term in Jesus Christ, in view of Whom, everything in the ancient Law took place – and, even more so, in the new dispensation. For the Law became the Word; from being old it became new … the commandments have been transformed into Grace and the foreshadowing into truth; the lamb has become the Son, the sheep has become man and man has become God. … matthew 5 17 i have come not toa bolish but to fulfil - the sacrifice of the lamb, the passover rit and the letter of the law - st melitos of sardis 10 june 2020

God though He was, the Lord put on our humanity; He suffered for him who was suffering, was bound for him who was captive, was judged for the guilty, was buried for him who was buried. He was raised from the dead and cried out in a loud voice: “If anyone wishes to oppose me, let us appear together” (Is 50,8). It is I who delivered the condemned man; I who restored life to the dead; I who raised up those in the grave. “Who disputes my right?” It is I, He says, I, who am the Christ, I, who destroyed death, who triumphed over the enemy, who bound the mighty enemy and carried off man to the heights of heaven; it is I, He says, who am the Christ.

Come along then, every human family, full of sin as you are and receive the forgiveness of your sins. For I Myself, am your forgiveness, I am the Passover of salvation, the Lamb slain for your sakes, your redemption, life and resurrection; I am your Light, your Salvation and your King. It is I, who lead you to the heights of heaven, I, who will raise you up; it is I, who will bring you to see the Father who is from all eternity; it is I, who will raise you up by My all-powerful Hand.” … St Melito of Sardis (Died c 180) Bishop, Apologist – Paschal Homily matthew 5 17 i have come not to abolish but to fulfil - come along then every human family - st melitos of sardis 10 june 2020

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. May your Angels and Saints, pray for us. May the Mother of Our God and our Mother, be at our side and guide our way. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever, amen. blessed mother mary ora pro nobis pray for us 10 june 2020

ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on MEDIOCRITY, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 9 June – ‘…Could it be that our light is not bright enough?’

Posted on June 9, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 9 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Tuesday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 1 Kings 17:7-16, Psalm 4:2-5, 7-8, Matthew 5:13-16 and the Feast of Our Lady of Grace and the Memorial of St Columba of Iona (521-597) Apostle of the Picts, Apostle to Scotland

“You are the salt of the earth but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? … You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.“…Matthew 5:13, 14

REFLECTION – “That is what we are as authentic disciples of Jesus.
Salt bring savour; light dispels darkness.
In order to bring savour, salt must identify with the food without losing it’s own identity. If it loses it’s own identity, it is fit only to be trampled underfoot.
Light dispels darkness. In fact, light and darkness are mutually exclusive because, where there is light there cannot be darkness and where there is darkness, light is absent.
But the light that we, as disciples of Jesus shed, must be mounted high, not for our own glory but that those who are enlightened may glorify and praise the Father.
If there is still so much darkness in our world, could it be that our light is not bright enough?” ,,, Msgr Alex Rebello, Diocese of Wrexham, Wales. matthew 5 13 and 14 salt and light msgr alex rebellow bible diary 9 june 2020

PRAYER – Holy Almighty Father, we pray that we may be the light of Your divine Son and the salt of the earth. Help us, we pray, to ever strive to be both the light and salt of the earth and may the protection of Our Lady of Grace, first disciple of Jesus and model, be of help to believers who live every day their vocation and mission in history. May our Mother help us, to let ourselves always be purified and illumined by the Lord, to become in turn “salt of the earth” and “light of the world. As St Columba of Iona brought both salt and light to the darkness of the pagan Scotland, grant we pray that his prayers may help us in our mission. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, one God for all eternity, amen… our lady of grace pray for us 9 june 2020

st columba of iona pray for us 9 june 2020

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on PURITY, SACRAMENTS, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 8 June – There is nothing as beautiful as a soul which is pure.

Posted on June 8, 2020November 6, 2023 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 8 June – Month of the Sacred Heart” – Monday of the Tenth week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 1 Kings 17:1-6, Psalm 121:1-8, Matthew 5:1-12 and the Memorial of Saint Medard (c 456-545) Bishop

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

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

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

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

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

PRAYER – Lord God and Father, grant us we pray, a heart like Your divine Son’s – His Sacred Heart is our standard and our goal – grant us a heart made of flesh, pure and beautiful in Your sight. May we ever seek Your Face and follow the love with which the Sacred Heart of Jesus guides our way. May the prayers of St Medan today, help us to be Your children, pure in heart. Through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever, amen.

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD is LOVE, GOD the FATHER, HYMNS, I BELIEVE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, POETRY, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PRAYER, The MOST HOLY & BLESSED TRINITY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 7 June – Firmly I Believe and Truly

Posted on June 7, 2020June 7, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 7 June – The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, Readings: Exodus 34:4-6, 8-9, Psalm Daniel 3:52.53.54.55.56, 2 Corinthians 13:11-13, John 3:16-18

“Whoever believes in him … might have eternal life” … John 3:16

REFLECTION – “Fools! … how is it that you can’t stop your prying investigations into the Trinity or be content to believe it exists, since you have for your guide the apostle who wrote: “Anyone who approaches God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Heb 11:6). (…) So let no-one put unnecessary questions to himself but, be content with learning what is contained in Scripture.

… Scripture tells us that the Father is both Source and Light: “They have forsaken me, the source of living waters” (Jer 2:13); “You have forsaken the fountain of wisdom” (Ba 3:12) and, according to John, “God is light” (1Jn 1:5). Now the Son, is called a river, in relation to the source for, according to the psalm, “the river of God is full of water” (Ps 65[64]:10). And in relation to the Light, He is called splendour, when Paul says that he is “the refulgence of his glory and the very imprint of his being” (Heb 1:3). Thus the Father is Light, the Son it’s refulgence… and, in the Son, it is by the Spirit that we are illuminated. “May God give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation,” says Paul, “resulting in knowledge of him. May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened” (Eph 1:17-18). But, when we are enlightened, it is Christ who enlightens us in Him, for Scripture says: “He was the true light who enlightens everyone coming into the world” (Jn 1:9). Moreover, since the Father is Source and the Son is called River, we are said to drink of the Spirit: “We were all given to drink of one Spirit” (1Cor 12:13). But, refreshed by the Spirit, we drink Christ since: “They drank from a spiritual rock that followed them and the rock was the Christ” (1Cor 10:4). (…)

God alone is wise and the Son His wisdom, for “Christ is the power and the wisdom of God” (Rm 16:27; 1 Cor 1:24). So, it is in receiving the Spirit of wisdom, that we possess the Son and gain wisdom in Him. … The Son is Life. He said: “I am the Life” (Jn 14:6). But, it is said, that we are brought to life by the Spirit, as Paul wrote: “The one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to our mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in us” (Rm 8:11). But when we have been brought to life by the Spirit, then Christ will be our life … “I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me” (Gal 2:20).

When such a correspondence and unity exists in the Holy Trinity, who can separate either the Son from the Father, or the Spirit from the Son or the Father? … God’s mystery is not communicated to our minds by demonstrative arguments but, by faith and reverent prayer.” … St Athanasius (295-373) Bishop of Alexandria, Father and Doctor of the Church – Letters to Serapion, no.1, 19 john 3 16 whoever believes in him - god alone is wise and the so His wisdom - st athanasius 7 june 2020 trinity sun

PRAYER – Firmly I Believe and Truly – St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Firmly I believe and truly
God is three and God is On
And I next acknowledge duly
Manhood taken by the Son.
And I trust and hope most fully
In that Manhood crucified
And each thought and deed unruly
Do to death, as He has died.
Simply to His grace and wholly
Light and life and strength belong
And I love, supremely, solely,
Him the holy, Him the strong.

And I hold in veneration,
For the love of Him alone,
Holy Church, as His creation,
And her teachings, as His own.
And I take with joy whatever
Now besets me, pain or fear
And with a strong will I sever
All the ties which bind me here.
Adoration aye be given,
With and through the angelic host,
To the God of earth and heaven,
Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

DOCTORS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, SAINT of the DAY, The KINGDOM of GOD / HEAVEN, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 6 June – The price …

Posted on June 6, 2020June 5, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 6 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Saturday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 2 Timothy 4:1-8, Psalm 71:8-9, 14-17, 22, Mark 12:38-44 and the Memorial of St Norbert O.Praem (c 1080-1134) and St Marcellin Champagnat FMS (1789-1840)

“For they all contributed out of their abundance but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, her whole living.”…Mark 12:44

REFLECTION – “Now, if someone is wondering what the cost is, here is their answer – He who offers a Kingdom in heaven has no need of earthly coin. No-one can offer God anything, except what already belongs to Him, since all that exists is His. And yet, God does not give away so great a thing, without a price being placed on it, He does not give it to someone who doesn’t value it. For indeed, nobody gives away something they hold dear without placing some kind of value on it.
From now on, then, if God has no need of your goods, neither does He have to give you this great thing, if you refuse to love Him, all He requires is love, without which nothing constrains His giving. Love, then, and you will receive the Kingdom, love and you will possess it… Love God more than yourself and already, you begin to have what it is you desire to possess fully, in heaven.”… St Anselm (1033-1109) Doctor of the Church mark 12 44 - for they all contributed out of their abundance - from now on then, if god has no need-st anselm 6 june 2020

PRAYER – Lord God, Your Son has shown us the way. As we follow in His steps, may we never wander from the path that leads to life. Renew the wonders of Your grace in our hearts so that neither death nor life may separate us from Your love. Holy Father, as You were glorified by the life and death of St Norbert and St Marcellin, grant that by their prayers, we may receive strength to always give You our hearts, minds and complete selves. Through our Lord, Jesus Christ, with You in union with the Holy Spirit, one God for all eternity, amen. st norbert pray for us

st marcellin pray for us - 6 june 2018

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY NAME, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 5 June – ‘Be mindful of the mystery of Christ!’

Posted on June 5, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 5 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Friday of the Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: 2 Timothy 3:10-17, Psalm 119:157, 160-161, 165-166, 168, Mark 12:35-37 and the Memorial of St Boniface (672-754) “The Apostle of Germany” – Martyr and Bl Malgorzata Szewczyk (1828-1905)

David himself calls him ‘lord.’ … Mark 12:37

REFLECTION – “Be mindful of the mystery of Christ! Born from the Virgin’s womb, both Servant and Lord – Servant to set to work, Lord to command so that He might plant a Kingdom for God in people’s hearts. Twofold in origin but one in nature, He is not one thing when He comes from the Father, another when He comes from the Virgin. He is the very same, the one born of the Father before all ages and who has taken flesh of the Virgin in the course of time. And that is why He is named both Servant and Lord – Servant with respect to us but, due to the unity of the divine substance, God from God, Principle from Principle, Son equal in all things to the Father who is His equal. For the Father has not begotten a Son different to Himself – the Son of whom He asserted: “In him I am well pleased” (Mt 3:17) (…)

In every respect the Servant preserves His titles of dignity. God is great and the Servant is also great – when He came in the flesh He did not lose this “greatness that has no limit” (Ps 145[144]:3) … “Though he was in the form of God he did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave” (Phil 2:6-7) … Therefore, as Son of God He is equal to God, He took the form of a slave by becoming incarnate, He whose greatness has no limit “tasted death” (Heb 2:9) (…)

How good is the condition of the Servant who has set us all free! Yes, how good it is! It won for Him “the name which is above all other names!” How good that humility is! It was through it that, “at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father” (Phil 2:10-11).” … St Ambrose (c 340-397) Father and Doctor of the Church – Sermon on Psalm 36[35]:4-5 mark 12 37 david himself calls him lord - be mindful of the mystery of christ - st ambrose 5 june 2020

PRAYER – Lord, Your martyr Boniface, spread the faith by his teaching and witnessed to it with his blood. Grant we pray, that the name of our Lord and God, Your divine Son, may be ever on our lips and in our hearts. May we bow in worship to our Lord Jesus now and forever, amen! By the help of the prayers of St Boniface and Bl Malgorzata Szewczyk, grant that we may be ever loyal to our faith and grant us the courage to profess it in our lives. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever, amen.

st-boniface-pray-for-us-25 June 2018. and 5 june 2020

BL MALGORZATA SZEWCZYK PRAY FOR US 5 JUNE 2020

ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on PRAYER, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 4 June – ‘It is not our own love we are to give …’

Posted on June 4, 2020June 4, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 4 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Thursday of the Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 2 Timothy 2:8-15, Psalm 25:4-5, 8-10, 14, Mark 12:28-34

Jesus replied: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.
The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” … Mark 12:29-31 mark 12 29-31 you shall love the lord your god with all your heart -4 june 2020

REFLECTION – “It is God we love; love of God is the first commandment but the second is like it, namely, that it is only through others that we can return love for love to God.
The danger is when the second commandment becomes the first. However, we have a means of control which is to love each person, to love Christ, to love God in each person, without preference or distinction or exception.
The second danger is, that we cannot do it and will not do it, if we separate charity from faith and hope.
It is prayer that gives us faith and hope. Without prayer we won’t be able to love. …
Faith and hope infused by prayer, are what will clear the path of our love from its most cluttering obstacle – self-love.
The third danger is to love, not “as Jesus has loved us” but in a human fashion. And perhaps this is the greatest danger of all. …
It is not our own love we are to give, it is God’s love. The love of God, a divine person, the gift of God to us but which remains a gift, which has to pass through us, so to speak, to pierce us, in order go elsewhere, to enter others.” … Venerable Madeleine Delbrêl (1904-1964) Missionary to the Outcasts, Author, Poet, Mystic – Fulfilling even on this earth the love for which God has created us (The joy of believing)

PRAYER – God power and mercy, by whose grace, Your people give You praise and worthy service, help us to see Your face in our neighbour. To love them all as we love You. Save us from faltering on our way and grant us the joys You have promised. St Francis Caracciolo, you who loved even unto death, kindly assist our journey by your prayers. Through Jesus our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen. +st francis caracciolo pray for us 4 june 2020

FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on FAITH, SAINT of the DAY, The LAST THINGS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 3 June – God of the living

Posted on June 3, 2020June 3, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 3 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Wednesday of the Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: 2 Timothy 1:1-3, 6-12, Psalm 123:1-2, Mark 12:18-27 and the Memorial of St Juan Grande OH (1546-1600)

“He is not God of the dead but of the living.” …Mark 12:27

REFLECTION – “How blind are the eyes of the intellect on its own! For they have not noticed that “the blind see, the lame walk” (Mt 11:5) on earth at the Saviour’s word… so that we might believe that the flesh in its entirety will rise again at the resurrection. If He cured diseases of the flesh on this earth and restored wholeness to the body, how much more, will He do so at the moment of resurrection, so that the flesh might rise again wholly and without blemish… It seems to me that such people fail to look, at the divine action in its totality, at the beginning of creation, in the forming of man. They don’t attend to the reason why earthly things were made.
The Word said: “Let us make man in our image and likeness” (Gn 1:26)… Obviously man, formed in the image of God, was flesh. Therefore, how absurd it is to claim, that flesh formed by God in His own image is despicable and worthless! Clearly flesh must be precious in God’s eyes since it is His creation. And since the culmination of His plan for all the rest of creation is to be found in it, this is what has the greatest worth in the eyes of the Creator.”… St Justin (c 100-160), Martyr, Apologist, Philosopher, Father of the Church (Treatise on the resurrection, 2.4.7-9) mark 12 27 - he is not the god of the dead but of the living - if he cured diseases of the flesh - st justin - 6 june 2018

PRAYER – Holy Father, You made us, we belong to You. Grant that by the prayers of all your holy saints, we may attain eternal life with You to praise and worship You for all eternity. May the prayers of St Juan Grande (1546-1600) assist us our earthly pilgrimage. We make our prayer through our Lord, Jesus, with You and in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen. st juan grande pray for us 3 june 2020

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CREATION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 2 June – ‘He sets His image within you …’

Posted on June 2, 2020June 2, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 2 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” – Tuesday of the Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 2 Peter 3:12-15, 17-18, Psalm 90:2-4, 10, 14, 16, Mark 12:13-17

“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God, the things that are God’s.” … John 12:17

REFLECTION – “Oh man! why do you despise yourself so, seeing that you are so precious to God? And why do you demean yourself in this way when God honours you by Christ’s birth in our flesh? Why search out how you were made and not enquire what you were made for? Was not this whole dwelling, this world that you see, made for you? For your sake, light spreads abroad and causes darkness to fade; for your sake, night is ruled and day measured; for you, heaven shines with the varied splendours of sun and moon and stars; for you, the earth is spangled with flowers, trees and fruits; for you, was created this amazing mass of animal life, in the air, the fields, the loveliness of water, so that no dismal solitude should spoil the new world’s joy….

Besides this, the Creator seeks out what else He can add to your dignity – He sets His image within you (Gen 1:27) so that your visible image, might make present upon earth, the invisible Creator and, to you, He entrusts the care of earthly goods, so that so vast a domain as this is, should not be lacking a representative from the Lord. … And what God accomplished in you by His power, He graciously assumed into Himself – He wanted to be truly manifested in the man in whom, hitherto, He had only appeared in image. He enabled us to become in reality what had only been a mere likeness before. … And so Christ is born, to restore all its integrity to fallen nature.” … St Peter Chrysologus (c 400-450) Father and Doctor of the Church – Sermon 148, On the mystery of the Incarnation

PRAYER – Lord God, true light and creator of light, grant us the grace to see clearly by the light who is Light, Your only Son. Lead us in His path and send us Your Spirit. Grant us the strength to grow in holiness so that our struggle against the powers of darkness may we a victory over temptation. May the prayers of the Mother of Your Son, the Blessed Virgin Mary, our Mother too, be a balm of enduring succour, as we fulfil Your commandments in this world and strive to reach our eternal home. We make our prayer through Christ Your divine Son, Whom You sent to make us like unto Himself, in the Holy Spirit, one God for all eternity, amen. blessed virgin mother pray for us 2 june 2020 (1)

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARY, MATER ECCLESIAE, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on WILL (Reasonable or Superior), SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 1 June – “He had one other to send, a beloved son”

Posted on June 1, 2020June 1, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 1 June – The Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus – Monday of the Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: Peter1:2-7, 20 or Acts 1:12-14, Psalm 91(90):1-2.14-15, Mark 12:1-12 and the Memorial of Mater Ecclesiae and St Annibale Maria di Francia (1851-1927)

“He had one other to send, a beloved son” … Mark 12:6

REFLECTION – “Christ has entrusted to us the ministry of reconciliation” (2 Cor 5:18). Paul brings out the apostles’ greatness by showing us what kind of ministry has been given them, while showing us at the same time the love with which God has loved us. When people had refused to listen to the one He had sent, God did not give vent to His rage, He did not spurn them but went on calling them both on His own account and through the apostles (…)

God has put into our mouths “the message of reconciliation” (v.19). And so we come, not for some difficult work but to make everyone friends of God. When they did not listen, the Lord told us to continue to urge them until they come to faith. Hence Paul adds: “We are ambassadors of Christ, it is God himself who is appealing through us. We implore you in Christ’s name, be reconciled to God” (v.20) (…)

What could be compared to so great a love as this? When we had repaid his blessings with insults, far from punishing us He gave us His Son to reconcile us with Himself. Yet, far from wanting to be reconciled, we put Him to death. God sent other ambassadors to urge us and, after that, Himself became our suppliant. Always it was He who appealed – “Be reconciled to God.” He did not say: “Reconcile God to yourselves.” It was not He who turned us away, it was we who refused to become His friends. Can God experience feelings of hatred?” … St John Chrysostom (c 345-407) Father and Doctor of the Church – 11th homily on the 2nd letter to the Corinthians mrk 12 6 - he had one other to send -when we had repaid his blessings with insults - the ungrateful tenants - st john chrysostom 1 june 2020

PRAYER – Lord God, You bestowed the Holy Spirit on Your Apostles while they were at prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Fill us too with the gift of Your grace in the Holy Spirit, that we may live our lives both in prayer and action and grant, that by Mary’s prayer and the prayer of Your servant, St Annibale Maria di Francia, we may give You faithful service and spread abroad the glory of Your name, by word and example. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, Your divine Son, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever, amen. mary mater ecclesiae pray for 10 july 2019

st annibale di francia 1 june 2020 pray for us

FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, The HOLY GHOST

One Minute Reflection – 31 May – “When you send forth your spirit … you renew the face of the earth.”

Posted on May 31, 2020May 30, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 31 May – The Solemnity of Pentecost, Readings: Acts 2:1-11, Psalm 104:1, 24, 29-31, 34, 1 Corinthians 12:3-7, 12-13, John 20:19-23

“When you send forth your spirit … you renew the face of the earth.” … Psalm 104:30

REFLECTION – “In the beginning, according to God’s plan, God’s Spirit filled the world, “reaching mightily from one end of the earth to the other and governing all things sweetly.” (Wis 8:1) But where the Spirit’s work of sanctification is concerned, it was on the day of Pentecost that “the Spirit of the Lord filled the world.” (Wis 1:7) For it is today, that this Spirit of sweetness is sent by the Father and the Son, to sanctify every creature according to a new plan, in a new way, a new manifestation of the Spirit’s power and strength.

Before this, “the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.” (Jn 7:39) … Today, the Spirit, coming from His heavenly abode, is given with all His richness, all His fruitfulness to the souls of mortals. Thus this divine dew, with its diversity and its spiritual gifts, is spread out over all the earth. And it is true, that the fullness of the Spirit’s richness flowed down for us from the highest heaven, since a few days previously, through our earth’s generosity, heaven had received a marvellously sweet fruit… Christ’s humanity is all of earth’s grace; Christ’s Spirit is all of heaven’s sweetness. Thus, a very salvific exchange was brought about – Christ’s humanity went up from earth to heaven and today, the Spirit of Christ descended from heaven to us…

The Holy Spirit is active everywhere;,the Spirit speaks everywhere. Of course, before the Ascension, the Lord’s Spirit was given to the disciples when the Lord said to them: “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them, if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (Jn 20:23) But before Pentecost, the voice of the Holy Spirit was not heard, His shining power was not seen. And knowledge of Him had not been given to Christ’s disciples, who had not been confirmed in courage, since fear still made them hide in a locked room. But starting on that day, “the voice of the Lord is over the waters …it lashes forth flames of fire … and all say, ‘Glory!’ (Ps 29:3-9)” … St Aelred of Rielvaux (1110-1167) Cistercian Monk psalm 104 30 when you sent forth your spirit you renew-today the spirit, coming from his heavenly abode - st aelred 31 may 2020

PRAYER – Lord God, pour out the gifts of the Holy Spirit on all mankind and fulfil now, in the hearts of Your faithful, what You accomplished at the beginning of the world, every second of everyday and when the Gospel was first preached on earth. Come, O Holy Spirit, come! We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.

come-o-holy-spirit-20-may-2018-pentecost-sunday AND 31 MAY 2020

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, SAINT of the DAY

One Minute Reflection – 29 May – ‘ All should Him speak with the one voice…’

Posted on May 29, 2020May 29, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 29 May – “Mary’s Month” – Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 25:13-21, Psalm 103:1-2, 11-12, 19-20, John 21:15-19 and the Memorial of St Pope Paul VI (1897-1978) and Bl Rolando Maria Rivi (1931-1945) “I belong to Jesus,” Seminarian, Martyr

“Do you love me?” … John 21:17

REFLECTION – “Here I find all good shepherds in the one shepherd (Jn 10:14). Good shepherds are not lacking but they are in the one. To speak of many. implies division … If the Lord entrusted them at the time we speak of, it was because He found Peter – indeed, in Peter himself, He recommended unity. There were many apostles but to one is said: “Feed my sheep” … When He entrusted His sheep to Peter, as one to another, He wished to make him one with Himself and, so to entrust the sheep to him, as to be Himself the Head, while Peter assumed the figure of the body (Col 1:18) … What, then, does He first say to Peter, in order to entrust the sheep to him yet avoid entrusting them as if to another? “Peter, do you love me?” And he answered: “I do love you.” And again: “Do you love me?” And he answered: “I do love you.” And a third time: “Do you love me?” And he answered a third time: “I do love you” He makes sure of love so as firmly to establish unity.

Jesus, the one shepherd, feeds His sheep in these shepherds and they in the Him … It was not because of a scarcity of shepherds (as though the prophet were foretelling bad times to come) that He said: “I will feed my sheep myself” as though He had no-one to whom to entrust them. Even when Peter himself was alive and the apostles were still alive in the flesh, He, the one in whom all the shepherds are one reality, said: “I have other sheep, that are not of this fold; them also must I bring, that there may be one flock and one shepherd” (Jn 10:16). So let them all be in the one Shepherd and speak with the one Shepherd’s voice… All should Him speak with the one voice and not with different voices. “I beseech you, brethren, that you all say the same thing and there be no divisions among you” (1Cor 1:10). Let the sheep hear this voice, cleared of all division and cleansed of all heresy and let them follow their shepherd as He says: “Those who are my sheep hear my voice and follow me” (Jn 10:27).” … St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace – Sermon 46, On the Shepherds, #30 john 21 17 do you love me - when he entrusted his sheep to peter - st augustine 29 may 2020

PRAYER – Heavenly Father, help us to accept the tasks you have given us to do in life. Let us be faithful all our days and be able to attain Your eternal reward in heaven. May our Blessed Mother, St Paul VI and the Blessed little Rolando Rivi, who so diligently showed their love for Your Son, pray for us that we may always praise Your glory and be faithful at all times and in all circumstances, amen. st pope paul vi pray for us 30 april 2019

BL ROLANDO RIVI PRAY FOR US 29 MAY 2020

BAPTISM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, HOLY COMMUNION, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on THE MYSTICAL BODY, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 28 May – ‘… Your treasure hidden within us…’

Posted on May 28, 2020May 29, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 28 May – “Mary’s Month” – Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 22:30; 23:6-11, Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-11, John 17:20-26 and The Memorial of Blessed Lanfranc of Canterbury (c 1005-1089)

“And I have given them the glory you gave me …” … John 17:22

REFLECTION – “… Through our unremitting zeal for you, Lord, set upon us the sign of Your day that is not measured by the sun. … In Your sacrament we daily embrace You and receive You into our bodies; make us worthy to experience the resurrection for which we hope. We have had Your treasure hidden within us, ever since we received baptismal grace, it grows ever richer at Your sacramental table. Teach us to find our joy in Your favour! Lord, we have within us Your memorial, received at Your spiritual table; let us possess it in its full reality when all things shall be made new.

We glimpse the beauty that is laid up for us, when we gaze upon the spiritual beauty Your immortal will, now creates within our mortal selves. Saviour, Your Crucifixion marked the end of Your mortal life; teach us to crucify ourselves and make way for our life in the Spirit. May Your Resurrection, Jesus, bring true greatness to our spiritual self and may Your sacraments be the mirror, wherein we may know that self. Saviour, Your divine plan for the world is a mirror for the spiritual world – teach us to walk in that world as spiritual men.

Lord, do not deprive our souls, of the spiritual vision of You, nor our bodies of Your warmth and sweetness. The mortality lurking in our bodies spreads corruption through us; may the spiritual waters of Your love cleanse the effects of mortality from our hearts. Grant, Lord, that we may hasten to our true city and, like Moses on the mountaintop, possess it now in vision.” … St Ephrem (306-373) Father and Doctor of the Church – (Sermo 3, De fine et admonitione 2. 4-5) john 17 22 - and i have given them the glory you gave me - we have had our treasure - st ephrem 28 may 2020

PRAYER – God of mercy, You have filled us with the hope of resurrection by restoring man to his original dignity. May we who relive this mystery each year come to share it in perpetual love. May the Mother of Our Lord stand with us as we gaze upward to her Son and may the prayer of Bl Lanfranc, be a support in our troubles. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. blessed virgin queen and mother pray for us 5 may 2019

bl lanfranc of canterbury pray for us 28 may 2020

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection -– 27 May – ‘He will be with me always …’

Posted on May 27, 2020May 27, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection -– 27 May – “Mary’s Month” Wednesday of the Seventh Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 20:28-38, Psalm 68:29-30, 33-36, John17:11-19 and the Memorial of St Augustine of Canterbury (Died c 605)

“I do not ask that you take them out of the world but that you keep them from the evil one. … As you sent me into the world, so I sent them into the world.” … John 17:15,18

REFLECTION – “Well, that God who saved me then, will be with me again in this journey and if I do not abandon Him, He will be with me always and while He is with me, everything that can happen to me will always be a grace, a blessing for which I should thank Him. If in danger, He wants to withdraw, or pretends to be asleep on the bow of the ship, like the Apostle, I will go to wake Him and let Him see my danger. And then if He does not want to listen, I will say – Lord, command me to come to You and my soul will walk on the waters, it will go to His feet and be content forever.

I do not know what He is preparing for me in the journey I begin tomorrow. I know one thing only, He is good and loves me immensely, everything else – calm or storm, danger or safety, life or death, are merely changeable and passing expressions of the beloved immutable, eternal Love. Yes, my beloved brethren, we have another country, another home, a kingdom where we must all meet, where there will no longer be separations or departures, where past sorrows and danger will merely serve to increase our consolation and glory.” … Blessed Giovanni Mazzucconi P.I.M.E. (1826-1855) Martyr – Giovanni Battista Mazzucconi was an Italian priest from the Pontifical Institute for Foreign Missions. He was killed in hatred of the faith in Papua New Guinea during his work there amongst the people. He was 29 years old. He was beatified in 1984. His life is here https://anastpaul.com/2019/09/07/saint-of-the-day-7-september-blessed-giovanni-battista-mazzucconi-1826-1855-martyr/ and includes this, his letter before his last journey to Papua New Guinea.

PRAYER – Give us the grace Holy God to ever serve You and be faithful to You alone. Nothing of this world is worthy of our love and alone in You do we have life and light. May Your divine Son be our Guide and our Hope and may He always be with us as we make our way to our home country, together with His Mother and ours, the Blessed Virgin. Listen too, we pray, to the prayers of St Augustine of Canterbury, who we ask to intercede for our needs. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever, amen. mary mother - pray for us - 15 MAY 2018

st augustine of canterbury pray for us 27 may 2020

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on JUSTICE, SAINT of the DAY, The LAST THINGS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 26 May- “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.”

Posted on May 26, 2020May 26, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 26 May- “Mary’s Month!” – Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 20:17-27, Psalm 68:10-11, 20-21, John 17:1-11 and The Memorial of St Mariana de Jesus de Paredes OFS (1618-1645) “The Lily of Quito”

“Give glory to your son, so that your son may glorify you,
just as you gave him authority over all people,
so that he may give eternal life to all you gave him.” … John 17:1-2

REFLECTION – “At the conclusion of the central section of the Church’s great Credo—the part that recounts the mystery of Christ, from His eternal birth of the Father and His temporal birth of the Virgin Mary, through His Cross and Resurrection to the second coming—we find the phrase: “he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.” From the earliest times, the prospect of the Judgement has influenced Christians in their daily living, as a criterion by which to order their present life, as a summons to their conscience and at the same time as hope in God’s justice. Faith in Christ, has never looked merely backwards or merely upwards but always also forwards to the hour of justice that the Lord repeatedly proclaimed…

In Christ who was crucified, the denial of false images of God is taken to an extreme. God now reveals His true Face in the figure of the Sufferer who shares man’s God-forsaken condition, by taking it upon Himself. This innocent Sufferer has attained the certitude of hope – there is a God and God can create justice, in a way that we cannot conceive, yet, we can begin to grasp it through faith. Yes, there is a resurrection of the flesh. There is justice. There is an “undoing” of past suffering, a reparation that sets things aright.

For this reason, faith in the Last Judgement is first and foremost hope—the need for which, was made abundantly clear in the upheavals of recent centuries. I am convinced that the question of justice constitutes the essential argument, or in any case the strongest argument, in favour of faith in eternal life. The purely individual need for a fulfilment, that is denied to us in this life, for an everlasting love that we await, is certainly an important motive for believing, that man was made for eternity but, only in connection with the impossibility, that the injustice of history should be the final word, does the necessity for Christ’s return and for new life become fully convincing.” … Pope Benedict XVI – Pope from 2005 to 2013 – Encyclical “ Spe Salvi ” § 41, 43 john 17 1-2 give glory to your son so that he may give eternal life - faith in christ - pope benedict 26 may 2020

PRAYER – Lord God, You opened for us, the way to eternal life, when Christ Your Son was take up to glory and Your Holy Spirit, came to enlighten Your Church. Grant that, as we share in so great a gift, our longing and hope, for our eternal home may grow every stronger and so our service ever more loyal to Your commandments. Listen to the prayers of Holy Mother Mary, the Blessed Virgin Mother of Your Son and of St Maria de Jesus de Paredes, whom we beg to pray for our intercession. Through Christ, Our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, one God for all time and for all eternity, amen. blessed virgin mother pray for us 26 may 2020

ST MARIANA DE JESUS DE PAREDES PRAY FOR US 26 MAY 2020

"Follow Me", MYSTICS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on MISSION, QUOTES on PERSEVERANCE, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on VIRTUE, SAINT of the DAY, SOLDIERS/ARMOUR of CHRIST, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 25 May – ‘Who will be crowned without having fought?’

Posted on May 25, 2020May 25, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 25 May – “Mary’s Month” – Monday of the Seventh week of Easter, Readings: Acts 19:1-8, Psalm 68:2-7, John 16:29-33 and the Memorial of St Maria Magdalena de’ Pazzi O.Carm (1566-1607)

“In the world you will have tribulation.
But take heart, I have conquered the world.” ... John 16:33

REFLECTION – “Let nothing intervene to hinder the progress of any who travel alongside each other, in this evangelical life but let us walk with agile step though the road be rough and hard, let us show a brave and manly spirit, overcome obstacles, pass along from pathway to pathway, from hill to hill, until we climb onto the mountain of the Lord and make a home for ourselves in the holy place of His impassibility.

Now, companions assist each other on the way; so then, my brothers, as the apostle says: “Bear one another’s burdens” (Gal 6:2) and make up for whatever is lacking to others (cf. 2 Cor 8:14 ; Phil 2:30). To the negligence that perhaps holds sway today, noble courage will succeed tomorrow, now one is in gloom and then suddenly one rises to the surface and discovers joy again, at one moment our passions rise up but soon God comes to help us, they are broken and calm returns. For you will only be seen like this yesterday and the day before but, dear friend, you will not always remain the same but the grace of God will draw near you, the Lord will fight for you and perhaps, like the great Antony, you will say: “Where were you just now?” and he will answer: “I wanted to see your combat.”

For now, let us persevere, children, dear children, let us be patient for a little, brothers, dear brothers.… Who will be crowned without having fought? Who will go to rest if he is not tired (cf. 2 Tim 2:5-6)? Who will gather the fruits of life without having planted virtues in his soul? Cultivate them, prepare the earth with the greatest care, take trouble over it, sweat over it, children, God’s workers, imitators of the angels, competitors with incorporeal beings, lights for those who are in the world (cf. Phil 2:15)!” … St Theodore the Studite (759-826) Monk – Catechesis 28 john 16 33 in the world you will have tribulation- who will be crowned without having fought - st theodore the studite 25 may 2020

PRAYER – Lord God, as You brought joy to the world, through the resurrection of Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, grant that through His Virgin Mother, we may constantly seek and recognise our Lord and Saviour and turn to Him in complete trust and love. May we ever live in confidence and share our joy with our neighbour. St Maria Magdalena de’ Pazzi, pray that we may know the courage of our Saviour. Through Jesus Christ our Lord, with You and the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.

BLESSED VIRGIN MARY PRAY FOR US 25 MAY 2020

st maria magdalena de pazzi pray for us 25 may 2020

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, MARIAN TITLES, MAY - The Blessed Virgin MARY'S MONTH, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on SANCTITY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 24 May – With Jesus, to the Father

Posted on May 24, 2020May 24, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 24 May – “Mary’s Month” – The Seventh Sunday of Easter, Readings: Acts 1:12-14, 1 Peter 4:13-16, Psalm 27(26):1.4.7-8a, John 17:1-11 and the Feast of Our Lady, Help of Christians

“Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.” … John 17:11

REFLECTION – “In this seeking after God, the principle of our holiness, we cannot find a better model than Christ Jesus Himself. But, you will at once say, how is this? Can Christ be our model? How could He “seek God” since He was God Himself? It is true that Jesus is God, true God come forth from God, Light arising from the uncreated Light, Son of the living God, equal to the Father (cf. Creed of the Mass). But, He is likewise man, He is authentically one of us through His human nature. … And we see Christ Jesus, like a giant, rejoice to run the way in the pursuit of the glory of His Father. This is His primal disposition.

Let us hear how, in the Gospel, He clearly tells us so: “I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me” (Jn 5:30). To the Jews, He proves that He comes from God, that His doctrine is divine, because He seeks the glory of Him that sent Him (cf. Jn 7:18). He seeks it to such a degree, that He has no solicitude for His own (cf. Jn 8:50). He has ever these words upon His lips: “My Father,” His whole life is but the magnificent echo of this cry: “Abba, Father!” All for Him is summed up in seeking the will and the glory of His Father. And what constancy in this search! He Himself declares to us that He never deviated from it: “I do always the things that please [my Father]” (cf. Jn 8:29). At the supreme hour of His last farewell, at the moment when about to deliver Himself up to death, He tells us, that all the mission He had received from His Father was accomplished (cf. Jn 17:4). …

If, as God, Jesus is the term of our seeking, as Man, He is the unique Exemplar, wherefrom we ought never to turn our gaze.” … Bl Columba Marmion (1858-1923) Abbot – To seek God (Christ, the Ideal of the Monk)

PRAYER – Since it is from You, God our Father, that redemption comes to us, Your adopted children, look with favour on the family You love, grant us to seek You and to to find You in Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ.,, May our whole being become a copy of Your Son’s obedience and thus follow Him to You in our eternal heritage. We entreat Our Lady, Queen of Heaven and Help of Christians to offer her prayers to You to strengthen us in our trials. Through Christ, Our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God for all eternity, amen.

our lady help of christians pray for us 24 may 2020

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One Minute Reflection – 23 May – “Mary’s Month” – ‘…A beautiful task’

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

One Minute Reflection – 23 May – “Mary’s Month” – Saturday of the Sixth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 18: 23-28, Psalms 47: 2-3, 8-9, 10, John 16: 23-28

“Until now you have not asked anything in my name,
ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.
… For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me.” … John 16:24,27

REFLECTION – “You see, my children, the Christian’s treasure is not on earth, it is in heaven (Mt 6:20). So our thinking must go to where our treasure is. The human person has a beautiful task, to pray and to love. You pray, you love – that is the human being’s happiness on earth.

Prayer is nothing other than union with God. When our heart is pure and united with God, we feel within ourselves a balm, an intoxicating sweetness, a dazzling light. In this intimate union, God and the human person are like two pieces of wax that have melted together, you can no longer separate them. This union of God with his little creature is something beautiful. It is a happiness that we cannot understand. We had deserved not to pray but God in His goodness allows us to speak to Him. Our prayer is incense, which He receives with tremendous pleasure.

My children, your heart is small but prayer expands it and makes it able to love God. Prayer is a foretaste of heaven, an outflowing of paradise. It never leaves us without sweetness. It is honey, which descends into the soul and sweetens everything. Sorrows melt in a prayer, that is well prayed, like snow in the sun.” … St John-Mary Vianney (1786-1859) – Catechism on Prayer

PRAYER – – Since it is from You, God our Father, that redemption comes to us, Your adopted children, look with favour on the family You love, hear our prayer as we unite our voices in the name of Your Son, our Lord and Redeemer. May our faith, love and joy in Christ bring us all alike to our eternal heritage and may the prayer of His blessed Mother and ours lead us safely home. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God with You, loving Father, forever, amen. bl-mother-of-our-lord-pray-for-us-27-oct-2018

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, QUOTES on WORRY/ANXIETY, SAINT of the DAY, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 22 May – ‘… The Lord is near, do not be anxious about anything.’ – St Augustine

Posted on May 22, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 22 May – “Mary’s Month” – Friday of the Sixth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 18: 9-18, Psalms 47: 2-3, 4-5, 6-7, John 16: 20-23

“Your hearts will rejoice and no-one will take your joy from you.” … John 16:22

REFLECTION – “You may object – I am in the world, if I rejoice I certainly rejoice where I am. What is this? Do you mean that because you are in the world you are not in the Lord? Listen again to the Apostle, speaking now to the Athenians in the Acts of the Apostles, he says this is of God and the Lord our creator, In him we live and move and have our being. If He is everywhere, where is he not? Surely this was what He was exhorting us to realise. The Lord is near, do not be anxious about anything.
This is a great truth, that He ascended above all the heavens, yet is near to those on earth. Who is this stranger and neighbour if not the one who became our neighbour out of compassion?
The man lying on the road, left half-dead by robbers, the man treated with contempt by the priest and the levite who passed by, the man approached by the passing Samaritan to take care of him and help him, that man is the whole human race. When the immortal one, the holy one, was far removed from us because we were mortal and sinners, He came down to us, so that He, the stranger, might become our neighbour.
He did not treat us as our sins deserved. For we are now sons of God. How do we show this? The only Son of God died for us, so that He might not remain alone. He who died as the only Son, did not want to remain as the only Son. For the only Son of God made many sons of God. He bought brothers for Himself by His blood, He made them welcome by being rejected, He ransomed them by being sold, He honoured them by being dishonoured, He gave them life by being put to death.
So, brethren, rejoice in the Lord, not in the world. That is, rejoice in the truth, not in wickedness, rejoice in the hope of eternity, not in the fading flower of vanity. That is the way to rejoice. Wherever you are on earth, however long you remain on earth, the Lord is near, do not be anxious about anything.” … St Augustine (354-430) Bishop, Great Western Father and Doctor of Grace – An excerpt from his Sermon 171 john 16 22 your hearts will rejoice - he bought brothers for himself - st augustine 22 may 2020

PRAYER – Holy God and Father, help us to discern through prayer and meditation what You truly want of us. Then enable us to offer it to You and indeed, to offer ourselves and all we have and all we are, to You. When You bring us sufferings to mould us closer and make us more like You, help us to accept them and offer them back to You and to do all we do for You in joy at Your nearness. Following Your divine Son, let us pick up those crosses in peace and love. Mary, Mother of God, pray for us. St Rita of Cascia, you prayed so earnestly to give yourself totally to the Lord and suffer for Him, please pray for us, amen. mother of god and our mother - mary pray for us - 14 may 2018

st rita pray for us

DOCTORS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The ASCENSION of the LORD, The CREED, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 21 May – “A little while and you will see me no longer” John 16:16

Posted on May 21, 2020May 21, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 21 May – “Mary’s Month” – Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 18: 1-8, Psalms 98: 1, 2-3, 3-4, John 16: 16-20 and the Memorial of Blessed Franz Jägerstätter OFS (1907-1943) Layman Martyr “The Man Who Would Not Bow His Head to Hitler.”

“A little while and you will see me no longer” … John 16:16

REFLECTION – “The Ascension of Christ into heaven is in accord with reason – firstly, because heaven was due to Christ by His very nature. It is natural for someone to return to the place from whence they take their origin. The beginning of Christ is from God, who is above all things. Jesus says to the Apostles (Jn 16:28): “I came from the Father and have come into the world and now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father” … The just ascend into heaven but not in the manner that Christ ascended, namely by His own power, for they are taken up by Christ – “Draw me, we will run after thee.” (Sg 1:3) Or indeed, we can say that no-one but Christ has ascended into heaven, because the just do not ascend, except, insofar as they are members of Christ who is the head of the Church. … Secondly, heaven is due to Christ because of His victory. For He was sent into the world to combat the devil and he did overcome Him. Therefore, Christ deserved to be exalted above all things – “I myself first won the victory and sit with my Father on his throne” (Rv 3:21)

Finally, the Ascension was owing to Christ because of His humility. There never was humility so great as that of Christ who, although He was God yet wished to become man and although He was the Lord, yet He wished to take the form of a servant and, as Saint Paul says: “He was obedient even unto death” (Phil 2:7) and descended even into hell. Therefore, He deserved to be exalted even to heaven, to God’s throne, for humility leads to exaltation. “For whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Lk 14:11) and, “the one who descended is also the one who ascended far above all the heavens” (Eph 4:10).” … St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor Angelicus/Doctor Communis – Commentary on the Apostle’s Creed

PRAYER – Lord God, You bestowed the Holy Spirit on Your Apostles while they were at prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Fill us too with the gift of Your grace in the Holy Spirit, that we may live our lives both in prayer and action and grant, that by Mary’s prayer, and the prayer of Your loving Martyr, Blessed Franz Jagerstatter, we may give You faithful service and spread abroad the glory of Your name, by word and example and thus ascend to You, to live forever in Your Light. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, Your divine Son, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever, amen. holy-mother-mary-at-prayer-pray-for-us-21-may-2018 and 21 may 2020

bl franz jagerstatter pray for us 21 may 2020

ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on TRUTH, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY GHOST, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 20 May – ‘In the midst of this life’s darkness…’

Posted on May 20, 2020May 20, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 20 May – “Mary’s Month!” – Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 17: 15, 22 – 18: 1, Psalms 148: 1-2, 11-12, 13, 14, John 16: 12-15 and the Memorial of Blessed Maria Crescencia Perez FMH (1897-1932) “Sister Sweetness”

“The Spirit of truth will guide you to all truth” … John 16:13

REFLECTION – “Who knows what pertains to a person except the spirit of the person that is within? Similarly, no one knows what pertains to God except the Spirit of God” (1 Cor 2:11). Run, then, to enter into communion with the Holy Spirit. No sooner do we call on Him than He is there and if we call on Him, it is because He is already present to us. When called, He comes, He comes in the abundance of divine blessings. He it is who is that rushing river giving joy to God’s city (Ps 46[45]:5). If, when He has come, He finds you to be humble and without anxiety, fearing God’s word, then He will come to rest on you and reveal to you those things that God hides from the wise and learned of this world (Mt 11:25). Then, all those truths will begin to shine out before you, that Wisdom spoke to the disciples while on earth but which they could not bear, before the coming of the Spirit of truth that was to teach them all truth…

Just as those who worship God must necessarily worship Him “in spirit and truth” (Jn 4:24), so those who would know Him, have only to seek an understanding of the faith in the Holy Spirit. … In the midst of this life’s darkness and ignorance, He Himself is the light that shines out for the poor in spirit (Mt 5:3), the charity that attracts and sweetness that ravishes the soul, the love of those who love and the devotion of those who yield themselves without reserve. He it is, who reveals God’s justice from conviction to conviction; who gives grace in return for grace (Jn 1:16) and the faith of enlightenment, to the faith of those who listen to the Word.” … St William of Saint-Thierry (c 1085-1148) – The Mirror of Faith, 6 john 16 13 the spirit of truth will guide you - run then to enter into communion-st william of thierry 20 may 2020

PRAYER – Send forth Your Spirit and we shall be created and Thou shall renew the face of the earth! O God who did give life to the world by the resurrection of Thou Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, grant that through the same Spirit, we may be ever truly wise and rejoice in His consolation and truth. Let the one holy Blessed Virgin, she who is full of the Spirit, pray for us and may the prayers of Blessed Maria Crescencia, she who was close to the Sacred Heart of Your Son, be a help in our need. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, one with You forever and ever, amen.

virgin full of grace pray for us 20 may 2020

BL MARIA CRESCENCIA PEREZ PRAY FOR US 20 MAY 2020

CARMELITES, DOMINICAN OP, ONE Minute REFLECTION, POETRY, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY GHOST, The MOST HOLY & BLESSED TRINITY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 19 May – ‘Are You the sweet song of love …’

Posted on May 19, 2020May 19, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 19 May – “Mary’s Month” – Tuesday of the Sixth Week of Easter,Readings: Acts 16: 22-34, Psalms 138: 1-2, 2-3, 7-8, John 16: 5-11 and the Memorial of St Francisco Coll y Guitart OP (1812-1875) “The Apostle of Modern Times”

“It is better for you that I go. For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.” … John 16:7

REFLECTION – St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross [Edith Stein] OCD (1891-1942) Martyr, Co-Patron of Europe
“Who are You, sweet light, that fills me
and illumines the darkness of my heart? (…)
Are You the master who builds the eternal cathedral,
Which towers from the earth through the heavens?
Animated by You, the columns are raised high
And stand immovably firm.
Marked with the eternal name of God,
They stretch up to the light,
Bearing the dome
That crowns the holy cathedral,
Your work that encircles the world:
Holy Spirit, God’s moulding hand! (…)

Are You the sweet song of love
And of holy awe
That eternally resounds around the triune throne,
That weds in itself, the clear chimes of each and every being?
The harmony
That joins together, the members to the Head,
In which each one
Finds the mysterious meaning of being blessed
And joyously surges forth,
Freely dissolved in Your surging,
Holy Spirit, eternal jubilation!” john 16 7 but if i go i will send him - st teresa benedicta are you the sweet song of love 19 may 2020

PRAYER – Almighty God and Father, Your ways are not our ways, teach us to willingly agree to them, for You know which way we should go. Help us to say “yes” always to Your plan and to render ourselves, as a sacrament of Your divine love to all we meet. Fill us with the Your grace and Your Spirit, to make us Your tools, to bring glory to Your kingdom. Our Father, who art in heaven, may Your Will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Mary Mother of God, pray for us! St Francisco Coll, you who constantly sought to be a light of the beauty of God, pray for us! Through our Our Lord Jesus Christ with You, in the union of the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen. ianua caeli heaven's gate pray for us mary - 25 aug 2019

st francisco coll y guitart pray for us 19 may 2020

FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on SANCTITY, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY GHOST, The MOST HOLY & BLESSED TRINITY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 18 May – ‘…Our life in God.’

Posted on May 18, 2020May 17, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 18 May – “Mary’s Month” – Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 16:11-15, Psalms 149:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 9, John 15:26–16:4

“When the Advocate comes whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth that proceeds from the Father, he will testify to me” ... John 15:26

REFLECTION – “The Spirit promised by the prophets descended upon the Son of God made Son of man (Mt 3:16), accustoming Himself in this way, to dwell alongside Him within the human race, to rest over humankind and reside in God’s workmanship, working the Father’s will in them and renewing them, by causing them to pass from their old way of life to the newness of Christ.

This is the Spirit David requested for the human race, saying: “And with your guiding Spirit, sustain me” (Ps 51[50]:14 LXX). This is also the Spirit who, as Luke says, descended upon the disciples after the Ascension on the day of Pentecost, having power to give all nations entrance to life and to open up the New Covenant to them. Stirred by one feeling, the disciples uttered the praises of God in every language while the Spirit gathered together into unity a dispersed peoples and offered the Father the first-fruits of all nations (Acts 2).

Therefore, the Lord promised to send the Comforter who would bind us to God. For as a lump of dough and a single loaf cannot be formed of dry wheat without water, neither could we, being many, be made one in Christ Jesus (1 Cor 10:17) without the water come down from heaven. And as dry earth does not bring forth fruit unless it receive moisture, so we also, who were, to begin with but dry wood, could never have brought forth fruit unto life without generous rain from above. For our bodies have received the union that leads to incorruptibility by the washing of Baptism but our souls, by means of the Spirit. That is why both are necessary, since both contribute towards our life in God.” … St Irenaeus (130-202) Bishop, Martyr, Theologian and Father of the Church – Against the heresies III, 17, 1-2 john 15 26 when the advocate comes - therefore the lord promised to send the comforter - st ireneaus no 2 18 may 2020

PRAYER – Lord God, You sanctify Your Church in every race and nation by the joy of Your risen Son. By His life, Death and Resurrection You grant us life and through Your Holy Spirit, You grant us the fruits of faithful love. May we ever be graced by Your gift of faith and be led to our heavenly Home. Through the prayers of the Blessed Virgin Mary may we be strengthened for the journey. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. mother mary trusted guide pray for us 1 nov 2018

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on VIRTUE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 17 May – “I am in my Father and you in me and I in you.” John 14:20

Posted on May 17, 2020May 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 17 May – Sixth Sunday of Easter, Readings: Acts 8:5-8, 14-17, Psalm 66:1-7, 16, 20, 1 Peter 3:15-18, John 14:15-21 and the Memorial of Blessed Antonia Messina (1919-1935) Virgin and Martyr

“I am in my Father and you in me and I in you.” ... John 14:20 i am i my father and you in me and i in you john 14 20 17 may 2020

REFLECTION – “Cloth of scarlet or purple is a very precious and royal fabric, not because of the wool but because of the colour. The actions of good Christians are of such great value, that heaven is given to us for them. However, … it is not because they come from us and are the wool of our hearts. Rather, it is because they are dyed with the blood of the Son of God. I mean, that the Saviour sanctifies our actions by the merits of His blood. A branch of the vine, united and joined to the stock, produces fruit, not by it’s own power but empowered by the stock. Now we are untied by charity to our Redeemer, as members to the head (Eph 4:15-16). That is why our fruits and good works, drawing their value from Him, merit life everlasting.

… We, ourselves, are branches that are dry, unprofitable and unfruitful. We are not competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, our competence is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers (2 Cor 3:5-6) and able to do His will. Therefore, as soon as sacred love engraves on our hearts the name of our Saviour, our great Shepherd (1 Pet 2:25), we begin to bear delicious fruits for life everlasting.” …. St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of Charity as soon a sacred love engraves on our hearts the name ofour saviour - st francis de sales 17 may 2020

PRAYER – Almighty, ever-living God, bring us to the joy of Your heavenly city, so that we, Your little flock, may follow where Christ, our Good Shepherd, has gone before us, by the power of His Resurrection. May our hearts overflow with the joy of His eternal presence, that in Him and through Him and with Him, we may attain the happiness of life eternal. May the prayers of the Blessed Virgin, guide us and may Blessed Antonia Messina too grant us her intercession, that we may always follow our Shepherd in faithful love. We make our prayer through Christ, our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God now and for all eternity, amen. faithful mother mary pray for us now and at the hour of our death amen 26 oct 2019

blessed antonia messina pray for us 17 may 2020

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, franciscan OFM, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on MISSION, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, SAINT of the DAY, SOLDIERS/ARMOUR of CHRIST, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 16 May – God watches us

Posted on May 16, 2020May 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 16 May – “Mary’s Month” – Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 16:1-10, Psalm 100:1-3, 5, John 15:18-21 and the Memorial of St Margaret of Cortona TOSF (1247-1297)

“If the world hates you, know that it has hated me first. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own but because you are not of the world but I chose you out of the world, therefore, the world hates you.” … John 15:18-19

REFLECTION – “Our Lord’s will is that we should rejoice and leap for joy when we are persecuted (Mt 5:12) because, when persecutions come, it is then, that crowns are given for faith (cf. Jas 1:12), it is then, that Christ’s soldiers prove themselves, then that the heavens open to their witness.
We aren’t employed in God’s force only to think of quiet, running away from service when the Teacher of humility, patience and suffering has Himself provided the same service before us. What He taught, He first of all, carried out and, if He exhorts us to stand firm, it is because He Himself suffered before us and on our behalf.

If we are to take part in competitions in the stadium, we exercise and train ourselves and think ourselves highly honoured if, before the eyes of the crowd, we have the happiness of receiving the prize.
But here is a trial that is both noble and outstanding in another way, in which God watches us – we, His children – take part in the combat and Himself gives us a heavenly crown ( 1Cor 9:25). The angels watch us too and Christ comes to our aid.
So let us arm ourselves with all our might, let us fight the good fight, with brave hearts and solid faith.” … St Cyprian of Carthage (c 200- c 258) Bishop and Martyr, Father of the Church

john 15 12 if the world hates you - but here is a trial that is both noble - st cyprian of carthage 16 may 2020

PRAYER – Almighty God, grant that Your faithful, who rejoice in the protection of the Blessed Virgin Mary, may be delivered from every evil here on earth, put on the armour of Your Son and fight the good faith bearing His standard. Through her prayer and the prayers of Your Saints and St Margaret of Cortona, may we come to the enduring joys of heaven. We make our prayer through her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, one God with You, in the union of the Holy Spirit, forever amen. blessed-virgin-mary-mother-of-god-pray-for-us-26-nov-2018 and 26 nov 2019

ST MARGARET OF CORTONA 16 MAY 202 PRAY FOR US

ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on LOVE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 15 May – ‘ The stairway to Heaven…’

Posted on May 15, 2020May 15, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 15 May – “Mary’s Month” – Friday of the Fifth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 15:22-31, Psalm 57:8-12, John 15:12-17 and the Memorial of St Dymphna (7th Century) “The Lily of Éire”

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.”” ... John 15:12-13

this is my commandment that you love - 15 may 2020

REFLECTION – “Love, indeed, is the source of all good things, it is an impregnable defence and the way that leads to heaven. He who walks in love can neither go astray, nor be afraid, love guides him, protects him and brings him to his journey’s end.

My brothers, Christ made love the stairway that would enable all Christians to climb to heaven. Hold fast to it, therefore, in all sincerity, give one another practical proof of it and by your progress in it, make your ascent together.” … St Fulgentius of Ruspe (460-533) Bishop – An excerpt from his Sermon 3

john 15 12 love one another - my brothers christ made love the stairway - st fulgentius of ruspe 15 may 2020

PRAYER – Almighty God and Father, You gave us a new birth in holy baptism and a new life in Your Son, who first loved us and gave His life for us. Grant us, we pray, the grace to love all as He did and bear much fruit, always striving after what He has taught who goes ahead of us, to lead us to You. May the prayers of His beloved Mother and ours and St Dymphna, grant us help and inspiration as we travel the road to eternal life. Through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God now and for all eternity, amen.

immaculate-mary-pray-for-us-26 aug 2017

ST DYMPHNA PRAY FOR US 15 MAY 2020

FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, ONE Minute REFLECTION, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 14 May – “…All that I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you.” John 15:15

Posted on May 14, 2020May 13, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 14 May – “Mary’s Month” Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 1:15-17, 20-26, Psalm 113:1-8, John 15:9-17 and the Feast of St Matthias, Apostle of Christ

“…All that I have heard from my Father, I have made known to you.” … John 15:15

REFLECTION – “Among His disciples Christ chose twelve chief ones whom He destined to be the teachers of the nations. Accordingly, after one of these had been struck off, He commanded the eleven others, on His departure to the Father, to “go and teach all nations” who were to be “baptised into the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Mt 28,19).

So the Apostles – whom this designation indicates as ‘the sent’ – on the authority of a prophecy which occurs in a psalm of David, immediately chose Matthias by lot in place of Judas. They obtained the promised power of the Holy Spirit for the gift of miracles and tongues and, after first bearing witness to faith in Jesus Christ, throughout Judaea and founding Churches there, they next went out into the world and preached the same teaching of faith to the nations. (…)

Now what it was they preached – in other words, what it was that Christ revealed to them – can properly be proved, in no other way, than by those very Churches that the Apostles founded in person, by directly declaring the Gospel to them, first by word of mouth and subsequently by their epistles. If, then, these things are so, it is manifest that all doctrine that agrees with the Apostolic Churches, which are the matrix and source of the faith, must be reckoned as true and as undoubtedly containing that, which those Churches received, from the Apostles, the Apostles from Christ and Christ from God.” … Tertullian, full name Quintus Septimius Florens Tertullianus (c 155- c 240) Father of the Church

john 15 15 - all that i have heard from my father-tertullian now what it was they preached - 14 may 2020

PRAYER – Lord God, You chose St Matthias to complete the number of the twelve. By his prayer, include us among Your chosen ones, since we rejoice to see that the lot marked out for us, is in Your Love. May the Mother of Jesus, the Apostles and our Mother, ever intercede for us all. Through Jesus the Christ, our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God now and forever, amen. BLESSED VIRGIN MARY QUEEN OF THE APOSTLES PRAY FOR US 14 MAY 2020

st-matthias-pray-for-us-14-may-2019

	Santo Richarius… on Saint of the Day – 26 Ap…
	Santo Markus Penulis… on Saint of the Day – 25 Ap…
	Santa Maria Euphrasi… on Saint of the Day – 24 Ap…
	Santo Adelbertus dar… on Saint of the Day – 23 Ap…
	Santo Georgius, Oran… on Saint of the Day – 23 Ap…

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