Tag: fr richard clarke

Posted in JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH, The HOLY FAMILY, THE HOLY FAMILY - FAMILIAE SANCTAE

Thought for the Day – 19 March – St Joseph’s Sixth Joy

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 19 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

19th Day – St Joseph’s Sixth Joy
The Life with Jesus and Mary at Nazareth

+1. When St Joseph found, dangers still threatening the safety of Jesus in the south of Palestine, he at once continued the journey towards Galilee. He was fertile in resource and when one plan failed. another, with God’s assistance, was soon destined to take its place.
Here too he teaches me a lesson. If I meet with reverses I am discouraged and inclined to relinquish the task, instead of cheerfully looking out for some fresh means of serving God and accomplishing the work He has entrusted to me.

+2. St Joseph, under God’s direction, journeyed on, to the Town of Nazareth, where he had formerly lived and there, he re-enters the poor little cottage humble and lowly, where he and his holy spouse had formerly dwelt. This, a secret voice told him, is to be his home.
How joyfully he took possession of it! Now his wanderings were over and he was to spend the rest of his days in peace in the tranquil home God had prepared for him.

+3. Yet how poor it was! The Town of Nazareth was so despised, men did not think it possible that anything great or good, could come from thence. Was this to be the home of the Son of God? Yes! and St Joseph rejoiced in the low esteem of Nazareth because, it seemed to him, an arrangement quite according to God’s designs that Jesus, should dwell there and the name of Nazarene, should cling to Him, as a name of contempt.
Why have I not more of his spirit? I am too fond of show and display and all that the world thirks much of.

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, St JOSEPH, The FLIGHT into EQYPT

Thought for the Day – 18 March – St Joseph’s Sixth Sorrow

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 18 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

18th Day – St Joseph’s Sixth Sorrow
Finding that Archelaus reigned in Judæa

+1. When the appointed time was come , St Joseph received the joyful news – the Holy Family could at length return from their place of exile. An Angel appeared to him by night and informed him that Herod was dead and he might safely return into the land of Israel. But when he arrived there, he found the tyrant had been succeeded by his son,
Archelaus and that Judæa, over which he held sway, was, therefore, no safe abode for Jesus and Mary. What a bitter disappointment it must have been!

+2. It seems as if St Joseph had been deceived by Almighty God. He was encouraged to return and now, he found the place of the dead king was occupied by a son, who was not much better than his father Yet, no thought of discontent was harboured in St Joseph’s heart, not the faintest murmur of complaint escaped his lips. His was the true obedience – blind, confiding, unreasoning, uncomplaining obedience
to the Will of God.
Can I say the same of myself?

+3. Observe St Joseph’s prudence. He might have said that the command to return was a guarantee of safety, from Almighty God.
In spite of this, he took the most extreme natural precautions, going far away from the place of danger. He knew that God requires us to use all natural means to gain our ends and, if we neglect them, we cannot reasonably trust to the supernatural intervention of God on our behalf.

Posted in QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PERSEVERANCE, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on STRENGTH, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 18 March – The Sequel to the Sacred Agony

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Meditations – 18 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Tuesday after the Second Sunday in Lert
The Sequel to the Sacred Agony

Read St Mark xiv:41-42

[41] And He cometh the third time and saith to them: Sleep ye now and take your rest. It is enough – the hour is come, behold, the Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of sinners. [42] Rise, let us go. Behold, he who wilt betray Me is at hand. [Mark 14:41-42]

+1. At length, Our Lord’s mental agony in the Garden was over. He had accepted the Chalice which His heavenly Father had given Him to drink. Now ,He is no longer sad and downcast but, He returns to His Apostles full of vigour and courage. He encounters His Passion almost with eagerness. This is always the result of a perfect submission to the Will of God and absolute confidence in Him!
God will always give us the courage to meet every trial and when the time comes, He will impart the strength and energy and light-heartedness which make it easy to face the suffering.

+2. Yet this change had another cause.
It was won by prayer, or, rather, Our Lord, as our Divine
Example, imparted for our sakes to His human nature, grace, such as earnest prayer alone can obtain from God. This is the secret of all spiritual victories; all are won by persevering prayer! Prayer changes the poor, timid, frightened, shrinking soul, into one brave and strong and ready to do great things for God.
Without prayer,we are sure to fail. Am I earnest in prayer?

+3. We observe too, it was not merely prayer but repeated prayer – the same words over and over again, the same entreaty to be spared, joined to the same act of resignation. We sometimes say we cannot pray but at least, we can repeat over and over again, some prayer for mercy and for aid. Our repetitions will be not vain repetitions but will bring certain relief from Him Who encourages us to importunity in prayer.

Posted in LENT- 2025, QUOTES on SUFFERING, The PASSION, The REDEMPTION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 17 March – The Consolations of the Sacred Agony

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Meditations – 17 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Monday after the Second Sunday in Lent
The Consolations of the Sacred Agony

Read St Luke xxii:40-46

[40] And when He was come to the place, He said to them: Pray, lest ye enter into temptation.
[41] And He was withdrawn away from them, a stone’s cast and kneeling down, He prayed, [42] Saying – Father, if Thou wilt, remove this chalice from Me but yet, not My Will but Thine be done. [43] And there appeared to Him an Angel from Heaven, strengthening Him. And being in an agony, He prayed the longer. [44] And His sweat became as drops of blood, trickling down upon the ground. [45] And when He rose up from prayer and was come to his disciples, he found them sleeping for sorrow.
[46] And he said to them: Why sleep you? arise, pray, lest you enter into temptation. [Luke 22:40-46]

+I. No words can tell, no human heart can conceive, the intensity of the Sacred Agony of Jesus.
It would have crushed His very Life, had He not, by means of His Divinity, supported His Sacred Humanity and so enabled it, to suffer more. See Him pale, haggard, scarcely to be recognised in His abasement and His terror! See the sweat of Blood pouring from His Sacred Limbs!
Can this be the well-beloved Son of God?
My God, make me more contrite at the thought that I have taken part in bringing Thee to this great horror!

+2. But He was not without consolation in His Agony. An Angel was sent to comfort Him, to present before His vision, the innumerable company of the Saints won by His Precious Blood.
He saw their joy and happiness to be won by His Sacred Passion, by the labour of His Soul and seeing it, He was satisfied to bear it all.
O pure unselfish joy! O joy surpassing all other joys!
The joy of seeing others happy was the promised reward which supported Jesus in His Agony.

+3. But He had a still greater and stronger support than this.
He beheld the honour and glory which would accrue to His Eternal Father.
He saw that all the glory God would reap from His Works, would be as nothing in comparison to this greatest Work, to be wrought by His Eternal Son and seeing this, He was satisfied and more than satisfied.
In the beginning of the Book, it is written of Him:
“Behold, I come to do Thy Will, O my God. I am content to do it.“”
Have I the glory of God at heart as the first and foremost motive of my actions?

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH, The FLIGHT into EQYPT

Thought for the Day – 16 March – St Joseph’s Fifth Sorrow

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Thought for the Day – 16 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

16th Day – St Joseph’s Fifth Sorrow
The Flight into Egypt

+I. One night, as Joseph slept, a vision came before his eyes. He saw an Angel who bade him rise and take the Child Jesus and HisMother and fly into Egypt. Without a moment’s delay, he rose quickly, called Our Lady, put together what was necessary for the journey and started ere dawn appeared, in the sky. His heart was torn with sorrow but, like a true son of obedience, he hesitated not for a single moment but accepted all, as coming from God.

+2. Long and perilous was the journey, many were the sufferings of the Holy Family. Perils in the desert perils from the robbers who beset the road, perils from the wild beasts, perils from exposure to the sun by day and to the cold by night. Sorrowful indeed was St Joseph’s heart, as he trudged on day-by-day, leading the ass upon which Our Lady rode. S orrowful not for his own sake but because of the anxiety he felt for the safety of the precious treasure committed to him. Sorrowful at the thought of all they were suffering and would suffer, during their exile.

+3. At last, they arrived at the destination God had fixed for them and here, St Joseph earned a scanty livelihood day-by-day, by his trade as a carpenter. How uncongenial was all around them! They were among those who knew not the true God, among their old oppressors in Egypt, among idolaters and pagans. No murmur ever escaped St Joseph’s lips; he was willing to wait in Egypt, as long as God pleased.
Do I submit with blind obedience to all God commands through my superiors or the arrangement of His Providence, without murmuring or complaining?

Posted in DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, LENT- 2025, ON the SAINTS, QUOTES on SUFFERING, REDEMPTIVE Suffering, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 16 March – The Assitance Given the Saints, in the Sacred Agony

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Lenten Meditations – 16 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

The Second Sunday in Lent
The Assitance Given the Saints, in the Sacred Agony

Read St.Matthew xxvi:40–44

40] And He cometh to His disciples and findeth them asleep and He saith to Peter: What? Could you not watch one hour with Me?
[41] Watch ye and pray that ye enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing but the flesh weak. [42] Again the second time, He went and prayed, saying: My Father, if this chalice may not pass away but I must drink it, Thy Will be done. [43] And he cometh again and findeth them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy. [44] And leaving them, He went again and He prayed the third time, saying the selfsame word. [Matthew 26:40-44]

+1. Our Blessed Lord was not satisfied with taking upon Himself the sins of the world; in His Divine Mercy and compassion, He added to this, a further Sacrifice of Himself. He took upon Himself too, all the sufferings of the just and especially, all His Saints and Martyrs would have to suffer for His Sake. He endured beforehand, the thousand forms of agony to which they would be subjected for His Sake. Not only would He, in His Love and Mercy, redeem them but He bore their infirmities and carried their sorrows.
What sufficient thanksgiving can we give Him for His unbounded Goodness?

+2. This it is which enabled the Martyrs to despise their torments and made the Apostles rejoice to suffer shame for His Sake. This it is which makes tolerable, anguish which otherwise would be intolerable; for, if it be borne patiently for love of Christ, He has already, in Himself, if not exhausted its bitterness, at least taken the bulk of it, onto Himself. Every pang, every struggle, every throb of agony which should fall to the lot of His servants until the end of the world, He made His Own, for their relief.

+3. For this reason, we are taught to unite our sufferings with those of Our Lord; for, what else does this mean, except that He desires to share them with us? In point of fact, the more we do this, the more we bear our troubles with a supernatural motive, the lighter they will become, or rather, the greater will be our power and willingness, to bear them.
I will be more resigned, more patient, for Christ’s sake. To Him, I will offer all my sufferings and unite them to His.

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, St JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 15 March – St Joseph’s Fourth Joy

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Thought for the Day – 15 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

15th Day – St Joseph’s Fourth Joy

+1. As our blessed Lord was consoled during His Sacred Agony by a vision of the fruits of His Passion, in the happiness of the countless multitude of the redeemed, so too, St Joseph was comforted in his sorrow for the coming sufferings of Jesus and Mary, by the knowledge of the reconciliation to God, of souls without number. This would be their recompense The knowledge of the Work which Jesus was to accomplish in enabling millions to arise from their sins, filled Joseph’s heart with sweetness and delight.
It is one of the marks of love for God, when we rejoice in the spiritual good of others, beyond all else.
Can I say that it is my greatest joy to hear of the advancing
spiritual welfare of those with whom I am concerned?

+2. St Joseph was himself, to have no direct part in the Divine Work of expiation, Jesus was to accomplish it and Mary was to have her share, as far as mortals could. Did Joseph rejoice the less because others were to do the work? Not a whit; he desired simply that God’s glory and man’s good should be advanced.
How different am I, who am often jealous of others where I fail and take little interest in any good work save that with which I am personally concerned!

+3. St Joseph’s joy at the fruit of the sufferings of Jesus and Mary, quite overpowered his sorrow at the fact, of their having to suffer. He estimated things at their true value and, although he grieved at the thought that God and His Mother were to suffer, yet he counted it a privilege for Christ as Man, to suffer that, as Man, He might receive he plentiful and overflowing reward which God gives to those who suffer for Him.

Posted in LENT- 2025, QUOTES on SIN, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 15 March – The Aggravations of the Sacred Agony

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Meditations – 15 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Saturday of the First Week in Lent
The Aggravations of the Sacred Agony

Read St Mark xiv:32-42
(Posted at the end)

+1. If it is difficult to suffer, it is far more difficult to suffer willingly for those who show no gratitude in return for what we endure for them!.
But most difficult, nay, impossible, save to One Who is Himself Divine, or else shares the Divine Charity of the Son of God, to suffer for those who requite our love, with hatred, our sufferings with bitter mockery the favours we win for them by outrages and insults! It was this which crushed to the earth, the Son of God.
Alas! how ungrateful I am to Him!

+2. During His Sacred Agony, He took upon Himself, the sins of the whole world. Not in a general way but individually, so that each and every sin, from the first sin of Adam to the last that shall be committed on the eve of the Judgement, was present before Him and, not only present but each added its own pain. The great black cloud which passed before His soul contained each sin of each individual man, woman and child and Christ suffered for each!
What a frightful thing it must be to deliberately commit even the least sin, if thereby, we add fresh pain to the agony of Jesus!

+3. It was in this way that “He was made sin for us,” i.e. He identified Himself with sin as far as it was possible for the Immaculate Lamb of God. He took upon Himself, all the effects of sin except those which necessarily belong to him who is guilty of the act of sin. All the darkness, all the gloom , the despondency, the loss of God, the feeling of hopelessness, the terrors which arise from sin, inundated His Sacred Soul.

32] And they came to a farm called Gethsemani. And He saith to His disciples: Sit you here, while I pray. [33] And He taketh Peter and James and John with Him and He began to fear and to be heavy. [34] And He saith to them: My soul is sorrowful even unto death; stay you here and watch. [35] And when He was gone forward a little, He fell flat on the ground and He prayed, that if it might be, the hour might pass from Him.

[36] And He saith: Abba, Father, all things are possible to Thee, remove this chalice from Me but not what I will but what Thou wilt. [37] And He cometh and findeth them sleeping. And He saith to Peter: Simon, sleepest thou? couldst thou not watch one hour? [38] Watch ye and pray that you enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak. [39] And going away again, He prayed, saying the same words. [40] And when He returned, He found them again asleep, (for their eyes were heavy) and they knew not what to answer Him.

[41] And He cometh the third time and saith to them: Sleep ye now and take your rest. It is enough, the hour is come – behold the Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of sinners. [42] Rise up, let us go. Behold, he that will betray Me is at hand. [Mark 14:32-42]

Posted in "Follow Me", The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT, The WILL of GOD

Lenten Meditations – 14 March – The Sacred Agony in the Garden

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Lenten Meditations – 14 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Friday of the First Week in Lent
The Sacred Agony in the Garden

Read St Matthew xxvi: 30-40
(Posted at the end)

+I. During the Agony in the Garden, Our Lord anticipated all the coming agony of His Passion. He allowed His human soul to feel, in all its intensity, each detail of the unspeakable suffering which was now close at hand. Hitherto, it had indeed been distinctly present to Him but now, it seemed to take possession of His whole soul Now, it was a mortal horror, resulting from a clear, vivid realisation of all He had
to endure – for those who would not believe and love Him!
When darkness invades our souls, we should remember that none is like the deep, black darkness which spread over Jesus’ Sacred Soul.

+2. What relief did Jesus seek, in this agonising terror? The relief of prayer. He knew that, in all desolation and distress, the best plan, indeed the only plan! is to throw ourselves upon the mercy of God. There is no imperfection in asking to be delivered from something which we can scarcely endure,
whether present agony or the anticipation of it. For Christ would not have prayed: “My Father, if it be possible let this chalice pass from Me!”
In our darkest hours, we can at least repeat these Sacred Words spoken as a pattern for us!

+3. Yet. we must remember the conclusion of the prayer, the act of resignation which leaves all in the hands of God. “Not as I will but as Thou wilt!”
These words spoken from our hearts, will always give us strength to bear that which seems unbearable and will take the bitterness out of our pains.

[30] And a hymn being said, they went out unto mount Olivet. [31] Then Jesus said to them: All you shall be scandalised in Me this night. For it is written: I will strike the shepherd and the sheep of the flock shall be dispersed. [32] But after I shall be risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. [33] And Peter answering, said to Him: Although all shall be scandalized in thee, I will never be scandalised. [34] Jesus said to him: Amen I say to thee, that in this night before the cock crow, thou wilt deny me thrice. [35] Peter saith to Him: Yea, though I should die with Thee, I will not deny Thee. And in like manner said all the disciples.

[36] Then Jesus came with them into a country place which is called Gethsemani and He said to His disciples: Sit you here, until I go yonder and pray. [37] And taking with Him, Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, He began to grow sorrowful and to be sad. [38] Then He saith to them: My soul is sorrowful even unto death, stay you here and watch with Me. [39] And going a little further, He fell upon His Face, praying and saying: My Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from Me. Nevertheless, not as I will but as Thou wilt. [40] And He cometh to His disciples and findeth them asleep and He saith to Peter: What? Could you not watch one hour with Me? [Matthew 26:30-40]

Posted in JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH, The HOLY NAME

Thought for the Day – 13 March – St Joseph’s Third Joy

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Thought for the Day – 13 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

13th Day – St Joseph’s Third Joy
Hearing the Name of Jesus

+1. Before Our Lord was born, an Angel had given St Joseph instructions to Name Him JESUS.
It was St. Joseph not Our Lady, who was first to pronounce the Name of the Son of God.
The jurisdiction he thus exercised was a declaration of his authority. When God brought the Animals to Adam to be
named, He thus declared him their master. So too, when He gave to Joseph the office of naming the Infant in his arms, He declared him the constituted ruler of his God . O wondrous privilege! What must have been the sanctity of one, to whom such an office was assigned!

+2. The Name St Joseph gave to his Infant Son was Jesus , the Saviour – not Emmanuel, or Christ.
Christ is the official Name of the Son of God, in virtue of His human nature; He was anointed as Man with the Holy Ghost. Emmanuel, or God with us, proclaims His Divinity but Jesus, or Saviour, declares His human nature and Divine personality, at the same time. As Our Saviour, He must be both God and Man – man to pay the price of our Redemption, God –,that the price maybe one that will satisfy the Eternal Father.

+3. What must have been the sweetness which filled St Joseph’s heart as he first breathed that Sacred Name! If to others it was as honey in their mouth, to St Joseph, it was as nectar and ambrosia, containing in itself, all possible sweetness.
None save the holy Mother felt such joy as St Joseph did, in pronouncing the Holy Name.
Yet how little I love it and relish it!
How seldom I repeat it and with what coldness and indifference! My Jesus, mercy! May I love Thee ever more and more!

Posted in LENT- 2025, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 13 March – On the Road to Gethsemane

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Meditations – 13 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Thursday of the First Week in Lent
On the Road to Gethsemane

Read St Mark xiv:26-34

[26] And when they had said a hymn, they went forth to the Mount of Olives. [27] And Jesus saith to them: You will all be scandalised in my regard this night; for it is written, I will strike the shepherd and the sheep shall be dispersed. [28] But after, I shall be risen again, I will go before you into Galilee. [29] But Peter saith to him: Although all shall be scandalised in Thee, yet not I. [30] And Jesus saith to him: Amen I say to thee, today, even in this night, before the cock crow twice, thou shall deny Me thrice.

[31] But he spoke the more vehemently: Although I should die together with Thee, I will not deny Thee. And in like manner too, said they all. [32] And they came to a farm called Gethsemani. And He saith to his disciples: Sit you here, while I pray. [33] And He taketh Peter and James and John with Him and He began to fear and to be heavy. [34] And He saith to them: My Soul is sorrowful even unto death; stay you here and watch. [Mark 14:26-34]

+1. After singing one of the paschal hymns, Our Lord and His Apostles went forth to the Garden of Gethsemane. On the way a strange sorrow spread over the countenance of Jesus. His unfailing cheerfulness forsook Him. His disciples wondered at the sudden change. It was the shadow of His Sacred Passion which fell upon Him, the beginning of the black darkness which was to envelop His Sacred Heart.
When the shadow of desolation falls on me, may I remember Thee, O Lord, thus downcast on the road to Gethsemane!

+2. In mournful words Our Lord addresses the Apostles : “You will all be scandalised in My regard this night. You will all fly like cowards when the danger comes. One of you will betray Me, another will deny Me thrice, all will forsake Me.”
How this thought pierced the sensitive Heart of Jesus, with anguish! of all who, for three years, had been His chosen friends and companions, who had seen His miracles and listened to His Divine Words not one would be found faithful.
My God, how often have I been found unfaithful to Thee!

+3. At length, Our Lord’s bitter sorrow breaks out in words still more mournful:
“My soul is sorrowful even unto death.”
The darkness which was gathering around Him, was even then like the darkness of death. He began to fear and to be very heavy. He could hardly endure the misery which began to fall on Him.
Pray for sympathy with Jesus and the power of appreciating the Divine Love, even just a little, which undertook all this for your sake!

Posted in JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD

Thought for the Day – 12 March – St Joseph’s Third Sorrow

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Thought for the Day – 12 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

12th Day – St Joseph’s Third Sorrow
The Shedding of Jesus ‘ Blood at His Circumcision

+I. On the eighth day after the birth of a Jewish boy-child, the ceremony of circumcision took place, according to God’s Covenant with Abraham.
Was this cleansing rite to be performed in the case of the Son of God? Yes, He had come to suffer and to shed His Precious Blood for us and, on the very octave of His Birth, Mary and Joseph had to recognise that God, laid on Him, the iniquity of us all.

+2. It was St Joseph who had to be the minister of the Sacred rite. He had to be the reluctant and sorrowful cause of those tears of the Infant Jesus. What was St Joseph thinking of?
We may at least conjecture that he was lamenting over the evil of sin that he was recognising,in the pain which he was inflicting, one of the most terrible consequences of sin that, he was praying to his foster-Son and his God, to forgive those sinners for whom He was shedding His Precious Blood.

+3. Nearby, Mary was bathed in tears of anguish.
Now, for the first time, Jesus was enduring the cruel smart which was to be His Life-long lot at the hands of His own creatures.
If only she could bear the pain for Him!
How the sight of His tears pierced her heart!
All this St Joseph witnessed and his sorrow at the bitter sufferings of Jesus was intensified by his sorrow, at Mary’s bitter grief.
If Joseph thus sorrowed, how much more should I, who have so constantly, added to the pangs suffered by the Son of God, by my sins!

Posted in Quote on SELF-ABANDONMENT, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT, The WILL of GOD

Lenten Meditations – 12 March – Jesus’ Farewell Discourse

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Meditations – 12 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Wednesday of the First Week in Lent
Jesus’ Farewell Discourse

Read St John xiv:1-3, 27-31
(Posted at the end)

+1. Our Lord’s farewell to His Apostles begins and ends with words of encouragement. He knew the importance of courage and confidence and, without these, they would never do great things for God. He knew too, how liable all men are to be discouraged and cast down when troubles and trials arise; how difficult it is to struggle on, when all seems dark around one.
To us too, as to the Twelve, He says – “Let not your heart be troubled, you believe in God, believe also in Me.”
Why do not we believe more in Christ, trust Him more, appeal more to Him in times of darkness?
He will always have a word of comfort for us.
“Let not your heart be troubled. I go to prepare a place for you.”

+2. Amid all the troubles Our Lord foretells to His Apostles, He promises them one gift which will enable them to rise above all their difficulties and all their sorrows. He promises to leave His Peace with them. What gift is there which is like this in the world? If we are at peace, we can bid defiance to all our foes; if we are not at peace, we might be lords of the universe, yet, we should be miserable. No wonder we pray in Holy Mass, “Dona nobis pacem – Give us peace.”

+3. The peace Our Lord promises, is His Peace :
“My Peace I give unto you.”
What sort of peace is this?
It is the peace He enjoyed all through His Life – the peace of perfect union of His Will with God’s. If we are thus united to God by perfect resignation, we too shall have unalterable and eternal peace

1] Let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in Me. [2] In My Father’s House there are many mansions. If not, I would have told you because, I go to prepare a place for you. [3] And if I shall go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to Myself that where I Am, you also may be. [John 14:1-3]

[27] Peace I leave with you, My Peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth, do I give unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, nor let it be afraid. [28] You have heard that I said to you: I go away and I come unto you. If you loved Me, you would indeed be glad because I go to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. [29] And now I have told you before it comes to pass, that when it shall come to pass, you may believe. [30] I will not now speak many things with you. For the prince of this world cometh and in Me he hath not any thing.
[31] But that the world may know that I love the Father and as the Father hath given me commandment, so do I: Arise, let us go hence. [John 14:27-31]

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, QUOTES on PURITY, St JOSEPH, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Thought for the Day – 11 March – St Joseph’s Second Joy: The Birth of Jesus

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Thought for the Day – 11 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

11th Day – St Joseph’s Second Joy: The Birth of Jesus

+1. Although St Joseph knew, the time of Our Lady’s delivery was drawing near, yet the birth of Jesus came upon him as a joyful surprise.
He anticipated the lot of his Foster-Son.
“He came to His own and His own received Him not.”
The reward of Joseph’s purity, chastity, patience, submission, gentleness and sorrow, was the visible Presence of the Son of God, the privilege of being the first of all the sons of men, to behold Him.
“Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God,” was literally fulfilled for the first time in the person of St Joseph.

+2. It was but fitting that the coming of Christ Jesus into the world should be surrounded by celestial wonders. A choir of Angels sang angelic melodies and a brightness, dazzling beyond the brightness of the sun, illumined the cave and settled around the new -born Infant and His Virgin Mother. St Joseph saw the Holy Child and the sight was Heaven begun on earth!
What was all the preceding sorrow compared with the unspeakable joy of that happy moment?

+3. Joseph was recalled to earthly things by hearing voices outside the cave and seeing a group of shepherds coming to adore the newborn King. It was not a dream then but a happy reality. God was really come to dwell among men and was born in that humble cave. What mattered it if it was bare and poor and rough? How much happier to be there, sitting on the hard cold ground, poor and despised of men, than to be lounging on perfumed couches, in the Palace of Herod! Where Jesus is, there is happiness!
What are outward things if we enjoy His Peace!

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, MOTHER of GOD, St JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 10 March – St Joseph’s Second Sorrow

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Thought for the Day – 10 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

10th Day – St Joseph’s Second Sorrow

+1. When St Joseph started from his home at Nazareth to repair to Bethlehem, according to the Emperor’s command, he had every reason to expect he would be well received. His early youth had been spent there and he must have been known to many of the inhabitants. But, when he arrived there, a sad shock awaited him. No room in the caravansary or guesthouse. No room in any of the houses where he applied for admission. Everywhere, a refusal. No room for him; no room for his spotless spouse.
It is always painful to meet with a cold reception among those, who we expect will welcome us.

+2. It was not for his own sake, Joseph grieved.
He was accustomed to being ill-treated. He had learned to welcome it for God’s Sake. But to witness the distress caused to his holy spouse, ah, this was difficult!
It is far more painful to witness suffering in those we love than to feel it ourselves. Could Joseph do nothing to find shelter for Mary in her delicate and critical condition? Every resource had failed him; he could only pray and wait.

+3. At last, a thought occurred to him. He remembered a cave where some animals were kept; small, low, dirty, unfit. for human habitation but here, at least, she would be safe from the perishing cold, here they could remain in peace.
How could he propose it to her?
Was this the sort of treatment to be accorded to the Mother of God?
Yes, it must be so and Joseph submitted to the holy Will of God.

Posted in GOD ALONE!, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PATIENCE, St JOSEPH, The WILL of GOD

Thought for the Day – 9 March –St Joseph’s First Joy

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

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

9th Day – St Joseph’s First Joy

+1. Joseph in his sad perplexity, had for some time prayed and thought and thought and prayed again. Externally, his conduct gave no sign of the anguish of his soul. But all the same, Mary must have been conscious of the thoughts which were passing in her dear spouse’s mind and, although God had given her no leave to speak, she prayed continually that He would make known to Joseph, what had taken place in her. God could not refuse to listen to His handmaid’s
prayer.

+2. One night, as Joseph slept, an Angel appeared.
“Fear not,” he said “to take to thee Mary, thy wife, for that which is conceived in Mary’s womb, is of the Holy Ghost.”
That Child is Divine, nay, is Himself God. Thou art appointed to be His Guardian and protector. Thou shalt call His Name Jesus; thou shalt be the foster-father of thy God, as thou art the true husband of His Mother.
Thus it is, God intervenes to dispel the fears of His servants who watch and pray, who patiently abide God’s time and seek only His Will.

+3. What intense joy and lightness of heart fill the soul of Joseph at the Angel’s words! His bewildered perplexity was changed into peace and gladness. He was to be the consort of the Mother of God; nay more, he was to have the rights of a father over the Son of God; he was to have the unspeakable privilege of dwelling with God Incarnate!
O happy Joseph! Thy obedience and patience indeed received, a rich reward.

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 8 March – St Joseph’s First Sorrow

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Thought for the Day – 8 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

8th Day – St Joseph’s First Sorrow

+1. St Joseph’s life had, from the beginning, been one of many trials and much suffering but all were mere trifles compared with the dark cloud of sorrow which fell upon him, after Mary returned from the house of Elizabeth.
He could not help seeing that she was about to become a mother. What could this mean? How could it be explained consistently with her spotless purity?
St Joseph ventured not, to pass any judgement.
Here he is our model slow in believing that which had the appearance of evil, anxious to find a favourable explanation.

+2. What explanation could he find?
That she had grievously sinned, was a thought, not only abhorrent to him but utterly impossible, in view of Mary’s transparent purity and exalted virtue.
Away with so horrible a thought!
Could the human paternity have been without any fault on her part? Equally impossible – God would have protected His hand -maid.
Was her condition a miracle wrought by God? Such a miracle was without example since the world began. Joseph was utterly perplexed. All was dark and black – he could only wait and pray. O wise resolve!

+3. But it was necessary to take action. In any case, he could not keep her with him. She must be sent back to her kin. How could he live without her? How could he expose her to disgrace? To put her to open shame was out of the question, he must send her away privately. This
was his duty and he would do it. It would break his heart to lose her but he must do his duty without thought of self.
Here , too , S. Joseph is a model for our imitation.

Posted in JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The LAMB of GOD, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 8 March – The Eating of the Paschal Lamb

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Lenten Meditations – 8 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

The First Saturday in Lent
The Eating of the Paschal Lamb

Read St Luke xxii:14-18

[14] And when the hour was come, He sat down and the twelve Apostles with him. [15] And He said to them: With desire I have desired to eat this pasch with you, before I suffer.
[16] For I say to you, that from this time, I will not eat it, until it be fulfilled in the Kingdom of God. [17] And having taken the chalice, He gave thanks and said: Take and divide it among youselves. [18] For I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the Kingdom of God come. [Luke 22:14-18]

Our Blessed Lord , before He suffered , celebrated the Jewish rite which, above all the rest, foreshadowed His own sacred sufferings. The paschal lamb was an exact type of Himself, the Lamb of God, Who taketh away the sins of the world.

+1. The paschal lamb was the means employed by Almighty God to deliver His people from Egypt. It was the sprinkling of its blood on the door-posts which caused the avenging Angel to pass by and leave the inmates unharmed.
So the Blood of Jesus Christ sprinkled on our souls, in the Sacraments and when we make an Act of Contrition, saves us from the vengeance which would otherwise fall upon us.
O Jesus! sprinkle me with One Drop of Thy Precious Blood and I shall be free from sin.

+2. The paschal lamb had to be drained of the last drop of its blood.
So the Lamb of God, shed the last drop of His Precious Blood for us. He was not satisfied with merely giving His Life for us but, He must needs endure all the intense agony, the burning thirst which came of this draining of His whole body for love of us.
How can I ever thank Him as I ought?

+3. The lamb suffers uncomplainingly.
It never murmurs against its lot, or struggles against those who lead it here and there; unlike the filthy swine which grunt and grumbles at every attempt to control them. None was ever so submissive as the Lamb of God.
“Lo, I come to do Thy Will, O my God.
I am content to do it.”
Can I echo these words?

Posted in Hail MARY!, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 7 March – The Visitation

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Thought for the Day – 7 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

7th Day – The Visitation

+1. The visit of Mary to her cousin St Elizabeth took place a short time after the Annunciation . It had been suggested to her by the Angel’s message, telling her that Elizabeth was to bear a son.
St Joseph knew nothing of this, yet, he raised no objection to the journey. He had already conceived such a reverence for his spotless spouse that it was enough for him that she entertained a wish. He knew that she never acted on impulse, or without a due cause and so, when Mary asked his leave to visit her cousin, he at once consented.
So we too, should consult, as far as possible, the wishes of others, especially our spouses, seeking to conform our will to others in the spirit of charity.

+2. St Joseph would not allow his young wife to journey alone. He went with her as her escort. What a happiness to him to wait upon her! How tenderly he watches over her
How thoughtfully he sees to all her wants!
Men often idealise those they love but there was no need to idealise Mary. She was an ideal in herself. And when he approached her, Joseph somehow felt that he was drawing near to God and that God dwelt in her ,in some other way than by His graces and gifts.

+3. Arriving at their journey’s end, St Joseph, in his humility, saw to their material needs and did not hear the words of Elizabeth saluting Mary as the Mother of God and announcing the joy of her unborn babe at His Presence.
St Joseph was ignorant and remained in ignorance of the Mystery of the Incarnation. He had to wait – this was to be the law of his life as it is, of the lives of all who are very dear to God.

Posted in LENT- 2025, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT, The WORD

Lenten Meditations – 7 March – The Supper in Simon’s House

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Lenten Meditations – 7 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

The First Friday in Lent
The Supper in Simon’s House

Read St Mark xiv:3-11

[3] And when He was in Bethania, in the house of Simon the leper and was at meat, there came a woman having an alabaster box of ointment of precious spikenard and breaking the alabaster box, she poured it out upon His Head. [4] Now, there were some that had indignation within themselves and said: Why was this waste of the ointment made? [5] For this ointment might have been sold for more than three hundred pence and given to the poor. And they murmured against her.
[6] But Jesus said: Let her alone, why do you molest her? She hath wrought a good work upon Me. [7] For the poor you have always with you and whensoever you will, you may do them good but Me, you have not always. [8] She hath done what she could, she is come beforehand to anoint My Body for burial. [9] Amen, I say to you, wheresoever this gospel shall be preached, in the whole world that also, which she hath done, shall be told for a memorial of her. [10] And Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve, went to the chief priests, to betray him to them.
[11] Who hearing it were glad and they promised him, they would give him money. And he sought how he might conveniently betray Him. [Mark 14:3-11]

+1. The supper in Simon’s house was remarkable for St Mary Magdalene’s act of devotion to our Divine Lord.
She brought an alabaster box of ointment of precious spikenard and poured it on His head as He sat at table.
Her gift was very pleasing to Our Lord for three reasons:
(a ) she gave of her bes ;
(b) she gave out of pure love;
(c) she gave in the presence of the assembled guests, fearlessly and knowing men would ridicule and blame her. Are the gifts I give to God marked by generosity, supernatural love, with an absence of seeking all human respect?

+2. Some of those present, instigated by Judas, began to criticise what they regarded as wasteful. They had indignation within themselves and showed it in words. They veiled their grumbling under show of charity to the poor. This was very displeasing to Jesus. He hates the spirit which finds fault and criticises and condemns and, all the more, when it hides itself under the cloak of virtue.
Yet is not this spirit strong in me?

+3. Notice the gratitude of Jesus. A little box of ointment poured on His head earns for the donor a commemoration of her gift wherever the Gospel shall be preached in the whole world .
And not only this – it obtains for her too, many graces on earth and great glory in Heaven.
There is no-one who is as grateful as Jesus Christ! no-one who will reward with such Divine generosity, everything done for love of Him! Nothing will be forgotten nothing is too small to be noticed and richly recompensed by Him!

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH, The ANNUNCIATION

Thought for the Day – 6 March – The Annunciation

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Thought for the Day – 6 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

6th Day – The Annunciation

+1. Our Lady’s peaceful life at Nazareth with her chaste and holy spouse had continued for some weeks or months, when that wondrous message came to her – she was to be the Mother of God. The Son of God became Incarnate in her holy womb!
How it must have transformed her whole life to know that her God dwelt within her!
She was no longer Joseph’s spouse before all else; he had to give place to One holier than he, to One Who was not mere man but God!
Now she was before all and above all, the sacred house in which the Eternal Wisdom of God dwelt under a veil of flesh!

+2. Did Joseph perceive any change in her?
Yes – he was conscious of a dignity, of a grace, of a Divinity encircling Mary which ,with all her holiness, had not been there before.
Mary’s sanctity was transformed. She, herself, who before had been like a beautiful crystal, was now like a crystal through which some brilliant Light continually darted its rays of splendour.
So ought we to be when we receive Holy Communion .
What a change it should make in us!
How in our conversation the recent Presence of our God
within us, should show its Divine effects in our lives!

+3. Why did Mary not tell Joseph?
She could not. She, who always acted under Divine inspiration was inspired to conceal the Divine secret.
How could she, with her humility, reveal this unexampled privilege? She knew all that her silence would bring on her but, until God urged her to speak, she would be silent.
Are we similarly guided by God in all things and, are we anxious to conceal, what exalts us in the eyes of others?

Posted in LENT- 2025, QUOTES on Love of Self, QUOTES on PRIDE, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 6 March – The Preliminaries of the Passion

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Lenten Meditations – 6 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)”

Ash Thursday
The Preliminaries of the Passion

Read St. Luke xxii:1-6

[1] Now the feast of unleavened bread, which is called the pasch, was at hand. [2] And the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might put Jesus to death but they feared the people. [3] And Satan entered into Judas, who was surnamed Iscariot, one of the twelve. [4] And he went, and discoursed with the chief priests and the magistrates, how he might betray Him to them. [5] And they were glad and covenanted to give him money. [6] And he promised. And he sought opportunity to betray Him in the absence of the multitude. [Luke 22:1-6]

+1. During the first days of the week in which He suffered, our Blessed Lord had been teaching all day in the Temple. The assembled crowd had cried ,“ Hosanna to the Son of David, Blessed is He Who cometh in the name of the Lord.”
It seemed as if He were going to be acknowledged by the voice of the people as the King of Israel. How deceptive are appearances! How often, when all seems to be going well and the cause of Christ about to triumph, some grievous disappointment is at hand!

+2. Side by side with the enthusiasm of the people grew the rage and fury of the chief priests and scribes.
Why did they thus hate Him, Who went about doing good? In their selfishness and cupidity, they feared, lest He should interfere with their influence and they thus lose their position, their reputation, their gains. Pride and self -love blinded their eyes and made them hate, the Son of God, with a bitter hatred.
Am I not sometimes blinded by like feelings? filled with unjust dislike of others because they seem to interfere with my influence or my personal interests?

+3. The chief priests had a great advantage in the fact that, in the little company, which surrounded Jesus, there was a traitor. Judas impelled by avarice, had been first a thief and then, had made overtures to betray his Master. O fatal love of money, to harden the heart of man!
How careful must I be not to set my heart on any earthly possessions, since nothing has a more deadly power than this, to separate me from the love of Jesus!

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 5 March – St Joseph’s Espousal

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Thought for the Day – 5 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

5th Day – St Joseph’s Espousal

+I. Never were husband and wife so eminently suited to each other, as Joseph and Mary. Never was there a union which so exactly symbolised the union between Christ and the Church.
Happy indeed are those who meet with a congenial spouse! Happier still, are those who are content to live in a state of virginity and in the religious life to choose Jesus Christ Himself for their Divine Spouse. They it is, who most nearly approach to the life of Joseph with Mary.

+2. St Joseph and Our Lady lived in perpetual chastity and their union was a closer one than that of any other husband and wife in the whole world.
Their ideas, opinions, hopes,wishes, likes and dislikes, were all the same; Joseph was Mary’s strong support, Mary loved to depend on Joseph. None was ever so obedient, gentle loving and sympathising a wife as Mary. None was ever such a thoughtful, kind, prudent, faithful husband as Joseph.

+3. Of what age was St Joseph at the time of his marriage? Not an old man, for this would have been unseemly; nor very young, for he would not have been a suitable protector for Mary but, about the prime of life. It is true that from the 5th Century onwards, he is represented as a bearded old man but this is partly to represent the dignity of his character, partly, as a portrait of his later years. Joseph was always far advanced in wisdom, counsel, prudence and the love of God.
Would that I were more like him!

Posted in LENT- 2025, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 5 March – Ash Wednesday, The Anticipation of the Passion

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Lenten Meditations – 5 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)”

Ash Wednesday
The Anticipation of the Passion

Read St Matthew xvi:21; xvii:21, 22
“From that time, Jesus began to show to His disciples,that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the ancients and scribes and chief priests and be put to death and the third day rise again.” [Matthew 16:21]

“And when they abode together in Galilee, Jesus said to them: ‘The Son of man shall be betrayed into the hands of men; [22] And they shall kill Him and the third day He shall rise again. And they were exceedingly troubled.” [Matthew 17:21-22]

+1. From the first moment of His Incarnation, our Blessed Lord had ever before His Eyes, the prospect of His approaching Agony and Death. It was present to Him, not vaguely and uncertainly, like pain and suffering to which men look forward but vividly and distinctly, as at the actual time when He suffered. Never, for a single moment, was it absent from His thoughts.
O wondrous Love of our Incarnate God, Who thus employed His Divine Power to protract His sufferings by this continual prospect!

+2. Yet, in spite of this, He was always cheerful and full of brightness and joy of heart.
His coming Agony did not weigh Him down or depress Him. In spite of the bitterness of the chalice, of the unspeakable agony ever present to Him, no cloud overcast His brow, no weakness or dread was manifest to His Apostles, no thought of Self, interfered with His perfect sympathy for others. He was a pattern of Divine unselfishness; the unselfish always forget their own troubles and so can comfort and help
others.

+3. But our Blessed Lord, not only was not cast down by the approaching Passion, He actually longed for it. I have a baptism wherewith I am to be baptised and how am I straitened until it be accomplished?
His Love for men was such that He rejoiced in the thought of suffering for us .
How can I ever thank Him as I ought?
How can I show my love for Him Who loved me with so great a Love?

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, franciscan OFM, LENT, LENT- 2025, QUOTES on MEDIOCRITY, QUOTES on PERSEVERANCE, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The HOLY CROSS, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Lenten Meditations – 5 March – Preface and Introduction by St Bonaventure

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Lenten Meditations – 5 March – With Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“The Sacred Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ”
“Short Meditations for Lent”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)”

PREFACE

THERE is no subject of meditation more pleasing to God and more profitable to the soul, than the Passion of Jesus Christ. It containswithin itself, all sweetness It is the remedy for every evil; the food which nourishes the soul. It is continued still in the Blessed Eucharist and every Mass, is a representation and renewal of the Sacred Passion. It is a subject always in season but especially during the holy time of Lent.
These Meditations deal with some of the main incidents of Our Lord’s Sacred Passion. They are intended to be begun on Ash Wednesday and to end on Holy Saturday.
A few verses of Scripture are suggested to be read before each meditation, as furnishing the subject – matter of
which it treats.

Introduction – How to Meditate on the Passion

St Bonaventure tells us, if we desire to meditate with fruit on the Passion of Jesus Christ, three conditions are necessary. Our meditation must be
+1. HUMBLE – for the Passion is unlike anything else in the world, it is unfathomable to human reason; it is a bottomless ocean of mystery. Reason must bow its head and confess its inability to grasp the Mysteries which even Faith sees only darkly and through a glass. The story of Christ’s humiliation, is to the proud, a sealed book; they see nothing attractive in it. Christ suffering, has no beauty that they should admire Him. I must, therefore, begin by praying for
humility.

+2. FULL of CONFIDENCE – since the Passion is the source of all our confidence. It is the proof of the exceeding Love wherewith Christ loved us.
How can I fear, with the sight before me, of Christ suffering for love of me? It is, too , a medicine for every possible evil, for every temptation for every sin, whatever the malady of my soul –the Passion of Christ can cure it.
At the Foot of the Cross, each mortal wound will be made whole!

+3. PERSEVERANCE – the beauty of the Passion does not appear all at once.
The world considers it a degradation, the careless and the indifferent. pass it by unmoved; even the faithful Christian scarcely penetrates beneath the surface of that Divine Mystery, unless he prays earnestly and continually, to appreciate it. Only gradually and by degrees, are we drawn by the Sacred attractiveness of the Cross
Before I begin my meditations, I must ask God for this spirit of humility, confidence, persistence!

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, QUOTES on CHASTITY, St JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 4 March – St Joseph’s Betrothal

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Thought for the Day – 4 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

4th Day – St Joseph’s Betrothal

+1. When our blessed Lady arrived at a marriageable age, the Chief Priest summoned all the unmarried men of the House of David that, from them, a husband might be chosen for her.
There is a tradition that, to each of them, a rod was delivered and the High Priest, speaking under Divine inspiration, declared that God would choose a spouse for Mary in the same way in which Aaron was chosen to be the High Priest in the Old Law.
“Whomsoever of these I shall choose, his rod shall blossom (Num xvii:5).
On the morrow the rod of Joseph had budded and blossomed. He was thus declared by God, to be the worthy spouse of His holy Mother.

+2. But Joseph had promised God, to remain ever a virgin.* How could he then consent to marriage? He knew by Divine revelation that Mary had made a similar vow and Mary knew the same of him O happy , O ideal union! where the sublime gift of virginity was united to the
mutual love and dependence of husband on wife and wife on husband.

+3. But thus it is that God provides for His elect.
He plans for them in a way which utterly sets at naught, the prudence of the world. He never disappoints those who leave themselves in His Hands but exercisesH a Divine ingenuity in fulfilling all the desires of their hearts, in most unexpected ways, in return for their submission and obedience to His holy Will.
Thus it is, those who do God’s Will, always do their own will , for their will is His and His Will is theirs.
(* St Thomas in Quæst Sent ii I).

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 3 March – St Joseph’s Childhood and Youth

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 3 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

3rd Day – St Joseph’s Childhood and Youth

+1. The names of the servants of God often indicate some leading feature in their work or. in their character.
When God Himself gives the name, this is always the case. Joseph signifies – adding or increasing – and was a forecast of his continuous increase , not only in grace and in favour with God but also, in glory and repute with men as long as the world shall last.
Rejoice in the growing devotion to St Joseph and ask yourself whether your devotion to him grows more and more?

+2. St Joseph is said to have had a boyhood and youth of suffering and, to have been persecuted and ill-treated by his brethren.
We should expect it to be so, since this was the lot of the Patriarch of Genesis and, moreover, one who has such an eminent position in the Church on earth and, such exceeding glory in Heaven, must have been conformed to our Blessed Lord in having a career of suffering.
St Joseph’s character as known to us in Sacred Scripture, is eminently, one purified by having had much to undergo.
Such patience, gentleness, thoughtful charity, cannot be learned except at a heavy price!

+3. Joseph’s trade was that of a carpenter.
The thought of the great Patron of the Universal Church, the husband of Mary, having been a handicraftsman, ought to give us a great respect for manual labour.
The idea that there is in it anything unsuitable to our dignity is a vulgar, unchristian, heathen notion. All the Saints had a love for manual labour.
How much better such a life than that of self-satisfied ease and luxury!
Thank God if you have to labour with your hands.

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 2 March – St Joseph’s Parentage and Birth

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 2 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

2nd Day – St Joseph’s Parentage and Birth

+1. Although St Joseph lived in poverty and contempt, he came of a noble ancestry. The blood of Kings and Saints ran in his veins and, what is more, he inherited, from them, the virtues of each but in a far higher degree, than that which their original possessor had enjoyed.
How much the good in me is an inheritance from my parents and forefathers!? Yet how ill I have employed the virtues I received from them! Instead of being better than they, like St Joseph, I am the degenerate child of parents far better than myself.

+2. St Joseph, as the greatest of all the Saints next to Our Lady, had all the privileges of other Saints.
Hence, we may piously believe that, like St John, he was cleansed from sin in his mother’s womb.
He was to be Mary’s spouse, he was to occupy the first and foremost place in the family of Jesus, he was, hereafter, to be the Patron of the whole Church! It was, therefore, fitting that he should be endowed with this initial privilege of being, from his birth, a child of God, an heir of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Thank God for this privilege bestowed on him!

+3. St Joseph was the connecting link between the Old and the New Dispensation, the first dawn which announces the coming day.
In his youth, he belonged to the Old Law, in his later life, to the New. As the dawn brightens into the glorious day, so St Joseph’s life, beautiful from the first, advanced in splendour continually.
Is this the history of my life? Have I made steady progress
in the love of God?

Posted in CATECHESIS, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Meditations on ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH

Thought for the Day – 1 March – The Foreshadowing of St Joseph

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 1 March – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

“Short Meditations for March, St Joseph”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Ist Day – The Foreshadowing of St Joseph

+I. As the Church of Christ is prefigured in the rites and ceremonies of the Old Law, so too, the chief personages who centre around Our Lord in the Redemption of the world, are foreshadowed in the Old Testament .
We trace the outlines of Our Lady’s graces in Esther, Jahel, Bethsabee, Judith.
So too, St Joseph’s place in the new dispensation is anticipated in the place of the Patriarch Joseph at the Court of Pharaoh. Thus it is that, God in His Love for His chosen ones, paves the way for them centuries before. From the beginning, He has prepared their work and the throne they are to earn in Heaven by their labours and sufferings for Him.

+2. In the life of the Patriarch Joseph, there was throughout, a correspondence to the life of the foster -father of Jesus Christ.
The troubles and persecutions of his early life, his long time of servitude and obscurity, his wondrous purity, his time of patient expectation, his glorious exaltation, his omnipotence with the King, his power to save all who came to him – all these were repeated, or rather, were fulfilled, in St Joseph. Reflect on each of these and consider how St Joseph is a model to us.

+3. We read of the Patriarch that the King of Egypt made him the lord of his house.
So God made St Joseph the lord of that earthly Tabernacle of Flesh in which He dwelt on earth. Joseph ruled Our Lord in His Sacred Humanity. He made him the lord too , of another house in which He sojourned, of the Sacred House which Wisdom built for Himself, in the form of His holy Mother. If St Joseph was thus, the lord of Jesus and Mary, what may we not expect from Him!?

Posted in GOD ALONE!, In the PRESENCE of GOD, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, The GREAT TRUTHS, The KINGDOM of GOD / HEAVEN, The WILL of GOD

Thought for the Day – 28 February – How to Begin Heaven on Earth

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 28 February – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

Meditations on “The Great Truths”
From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

28th Day – How to Begin Heaven on Earth

Thy Will be done on earth, as it is in Heaven .
(St Matt vi:10)

+I. In this vale of tears, even the happiest life is misery compared to the life in Heaven.
Even the perfect tranquillity and peace, enjoyed by the Saints of God on earth, is confusion and trouble compared to the peace of Heaven. Yet, we can begin even here, a life which contains the germ of Paradise.
The essential element of Heaven, is union with God,and those, who are united to God by supernatural charity, have in them, the seed of Heaven’s happiness.

+2. This supernatural charity does not consist in feeling, or in the absence of suffering, or in brilliant success or in freedom from temptation.
Our life maybe one continual cross, one long series of failures, as men count failure; we may live in poverty and want and die unheeded and uncared for; yet, such a life, maybe the beginning of Heaven upon earth.

+3. In what then, does supernatural charity consist?
Simply in doing what we know to be God’s Will in the details of our daily life; in having the thought of Him before us as the guiding principle of our actions, of doing all for Him and not for self.
One who consistently leads such a life as this, cannot fail to be happy, in spite of all external miseries, for he carries in himself, the principle which constitutes heavenly happiness.
“Thy Will be done on earth, as it is in Heaven.”
Pray for this unfailing compliance with the will of God in all that you do and think and are.