Tag: luke 12:32-34

Posted in DOCTRINE, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, St PETER!

One Minute Reflection – 10 September– ‘Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old, a treasure unfailing in Heaven …’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 10 September – “The Month of The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary and The Holy Cross” – St Nicholas of Tolentino OSA (1245-1305) Confessor – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14 – Luke 12:32-34 – – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Sell what you possess and give alms. Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old, a treasure unfailing in Heaven, where neither thief draws near, nor moth destroys.” – Luke 12:33

REFLECTION – “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 5:3) … Of this generous poverty, the Apostles first, after the Lord, have given us example. Unhesitatingly leaving all they had, at the Voice of the Heavenly Master, they were joyfully converted and abandoned the catching of fish, to become fishers of men (Mt 4:18). Among the latter, many became like themselves, by imitating their faith; for with those first children of the Church, “the community of believers was of one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32). Stripped of all their possessions, they were enriched with eternal goods, thanks to holy poverty. Welcoming the Apostles’ preaching, they rejoiced to have nothing in this world and yet, possess all things in Christ. (2 Cor 6:10).

Hence, the blessed Apostle Peter, when he was going up to the temple and was asked for alms by a lame man, said, “I have neither silver nor gold but what I do have I give you; in the Name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk” (Acts 3:6)… Peter healed him with a word and he, who did not have a coin with Cæsar’s image upon it, restored upon the man, the Image of Christ. And by the riches of this treasure, not only was that one person aided, whose power of walking was restored but too, the five thousand men who then believed the Apostle’s preaching because of this miracle (Acts 4:4). And Peter, that poor man, who did not have anything to give him, who asked for alms, bestowed so great a gift of Divine Grace that, not content with setting one man upright on his feet, he healed, those many thousands of believers in their hearts, by giving them faith.” – St Leo the Great (400-461) Pope, Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 95 2-3).

PRAYER – Be mindful, O Lord, of our humble prayers in this commemoration of Thy Saint Nicholas, so that we, who have no confidence in our own righteousness, may be assisted by the merits of those, who have been pleasing to Thee. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, franciscan OFM, Lady POVERTY, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on GREED, WEALTH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on POVERTY, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The KINGDOM of GOD / HEAVEN, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “Sell what you possess and give alms.” – Luke 12:33

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “The Month of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary” – St Philip Benizi OSM (1233-1285) Confessor – 1 Corinthians. 4:9-14 – Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Sell what you possess and give alms.” – Luke 12:33

REFLECTION – “O blessed Lady poverty, who bestows eternal riches on those who love and embrace her! O holy poverty, to those who possess and desire you, God promises the Kingdom of Heaven and offers, indeed, eternal glory and blessed life! O God-embracing poverty, whom the Lord Jesus Christ, Who ruled and now rules Heaven and earth, “Who spoke and things were made,” (Ps 32:9) condescended to embrace before all else! “The foxes have dens,” He says “and the birds of the air have nests but the Son of Man,” Christ, “has nowhere to lay His Head” (Mt 8:20) “but bowing His Head, gave up His Spirit” (Jn 19:30).

If so great and good a Lord then, on coming into the Virgin’s womb, chose to appear despised, needy and poor in this world, so that those who were in utter poverty and want and in absolute need of heavenly nourishment, might become rich in Him by possessing the Kingdom of Heaven, then rejoice and be glad! Be filled with a remarkable happiness and a spiritual joy! Contempt of the world has pleased you more than [its] honours, poverty more than earthly riches and you have sought to store greater treasure in Heaven rather than on earth, “where rust does not consume nor moth destroy nor thieves break in and steal” (Mt 6:20). “Your reward,” then, “is very great in heaven” (Mt 5:12)!” – St Clare (1193-1252) Virgin, Founder (1st letter to St Agnes of Prague).

PRAYER – O God, Who through St. Philip, Thy Confessor, gave us an outstanding example of humility, grant that Thy household may follow his example by scorning worldly prosperity and, ever seek the things of Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the POOR, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, St Francis de Sales, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 28 January – We are fools for Christ’s sake

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Quote/s of the Day – 28 January – St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor, Founder – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“For where your treasure is,
there will your heart be too.”

Luke 12:34

“We are made a spectacle to the world
and to Angels and to men.
We are fools for Christ’s sake
but you are wise in Christ;
we are weak but you are strong;
you are honourable but we without honour.
Even unto this hour, we both hunger and thirst
and are naked and are buffeted
and have no fixed abode.
And we labour, working with our own hands.
We are reviled and we bless.
We are persecuted and we suffer it.
We are blasphemed and we entreat.
We are made as the refuse of this world,
the offscouring of all, even until now.”

St Paul – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14

“The great wealth of Christians
is found in the needs of the poor,
provided we grasp how to put our
possessions to good use.
The poor are always before us;
if we entrust our wealth to them,
we shall not lose it.”

St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

“Great indeed is the confidence
which God requires us to have
in His paternal care and in His Divine Providence
but why should we not have it,
seeing that no-one has ever been deceived in it?
No-one ever trusts in God
without reaping the fruits of his confidence.”

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church

(Spiritual Conferences 6)

Posted in "Follow Me", DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, St PETER!, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – ‘Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old, a treasure unfailing in Heaven …’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – “The Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and the Holy Family” – St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c1256) Confessor, Founder – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Sell what you possess and give alms. Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old, a treasure unfailing in Heaven, where neither thief draws near, nor moth destroys.” – Luke 12:33

REFLECTION – “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 5:3) … Of this generous poverty, the Apostles first, after the Lord, have given us example. Unhesitatingly leaving all they had, at the Voice of the Heavenly Master, they were joyfully converted and abandoned the catching of fish, to become fishers of men (Mt 4:18). Among the latter, many became like themselves, by imitating their faith; for with those first children of the Church, “the community of believers was of one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32). Stripped of all their possessions, they were enriched with eternal goods, thanks to holy poverty. Welcoming the Apostles’ preaching, they rejoiced to have nothing in this world and yet, possess all things in Christ. (2 Cor 6:10).

Hence, the blessed Apostle Peter, when he was going up to the temple and was asked for alms by a lame man, said, “I have neither silver nor gold but what I do have I give you; in the Name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk” (Acts 3:6)… Peter healed him with a word and he, who did not have a coin with Cæsar’s image upon it, restored upon the man, the Image of Christ. And by the riches of this treasure, not only was that one person aided, whose power of walking was restored but too, the five thousand men who then believed the Apostle’s preaching because of this miracle (Acts 4:4). And Peter, that poor man, who did not have anything to give him, who asked for alms, bestowed so great a gift of Divine Grace that, not content with setting one man upright on his feet, he healed, those many thousands of believers in their hearts, by giving them faith.” – St Leo the Great (400-461) Pope, Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 95 2-3).

PRAYER – O God, Thou Who, as an example of Thy love, divinely taught St Peter to enrich Thy Church with new offspring, a family of Religious devoted to the ransom of the faithful, grant by his intercession that we may be released from the slavery of sin and rejoice in lasting freedom in Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 13 November – The Pure Heart

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One Minute Reflection – 13 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – St Didacus de Alcalá de Henares) OFM (c 1400-1463) Confessor – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

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

REFLECTION – “…If, therefore, you wash, by a good life, the filth which has been glued on your heart like plaster, the Divine Beauty will again shine forth in you. It is the same as happens in the case of iron. If freed from rust by a whetstone that which but a moment ago, was black will shine and glisten brightly in the sun. So it is too with the inner man which the Lord calls “the heart.” When he has scraped off the rustlike dirt which dank decay has caused to appear on his form, he will once more recover the likeness of the Archetype (Gn 1:27) and, be good. For what is like to the Good is certainly itself good.

Hence, if a man who is pure of heart sees himself, he sees in himself what he desires and thus, he becomes blessed because, when he looks at his own purity, he sees the Archetype in the image. To give an example. Although men, who see the sun in a mirror, do not gaze at the sky itself, yet they see the sun in the reflection of the mirror, no less than those who look at its very orb. So, He says, it is also with you. Even though you are too weak to perceive the Light itself, yet if you but return to the grace of the image with which you were informed from the beginning, you will have all you seek in yourselves.

…For the Godhead is purity, freedom from passion and separation from all evil. If, therefore, these things be in you, God is indeed in you. Hence, if your thought is without any alloy of evil, free from passion, arid alien from all stain, you are blessed because you are clear of sight.” – St Gregory of Nyssa (c335-395) Bishop, Father of the Church (Brother of St Basil the Great) (Sermons 6 sur les Béatitudes – on the Beatitudes 6).

PRAYER – Almighty, eternal God, Who in Thy wondrous providence, choose the weak things of the world to overcome the strong, mercifully grant unto us Thy humble servants that, by the loving prayers of blessed Didacus, Thy Confessor, we may be found worthy to be raised unto the everlasting glory of Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on the POOR, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 10 September – ‘ … Repay God, with the image of God …’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 10 September – “The Month of The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary and The Holy Cross” – St Nicholas of Tolentino OSA (1245-1305) Confessor – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

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

REFLECTION – “God accepts our offerings of money and is pleased with the gifts we make to the poor but, on one condition – that every sinner, when offering God his money, should offer Him his soul at the same time … When our Lord says: “Repay to Caesar that which belongs to Caesar and to God that which belongs to God” (Mk 12:17), what does He seem to say but – “Just as you repay Caesar with his own image on a coin, so repay God, with the image of God within ourselves” (cf Gn 1:26) …

This is why, as we have already said on numerous occasions, when we hand out money to the poor, let us offer our souls to God, so that, where our treasure is, there our heart may also be. Indeed, why does God ask us to give money? Unquestionably because, He knows the special love we have for it, we are always thinking about it and, where our money is, there too is our heart. This is why God urges us to make up our treasure in Heaven by making gifts of it to the poor; it is so that our hearts may follow where we have already sent our treasure and, when the Priest says: “Lift up your hearts” we may answer with peaceful conscience: “We lift them up to the Lord.” – St Caesarius of Arles (470-543) Bishop, Father (Sermon 32, 1-3).

PRAYER – Be mindful, O Lord, of our humble prayers in this commemoration of Thy Saint Nicholas, so that we, who have no confidence in our own righteousness, may be assisted by the merits of those, who have been pleasing to Thee. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “The heart.”

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – St Philip Benizi OSM (1233-1285) Confessor – 1 Corinthians. 4:9-14; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

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

REFLECTION – “…If, therefore, you wash, by a good life, the filth which has been glued on your heart like plaster, the Divine Beauty will again shine forth in you. It is the same as happens in the case of iron. If freed from rust by a whetstone that which but a moment ago, was black will shine and glisten brightly in the sun. So it is too with the inner man which the Lord calls “the heart.” When he has scraped off the rustlike dirt which dank decay has caused to appear on his form, he will once more recover the likeness of the Archetype (Gn 1:27) and, be good. For what is like to the Good is certainly itself good.

Hence, if a man who is pure of heart sees himself, he sees in himself what he desires and thus, he becomes blessed because, when he looks at his own purity, he sees the Archetype in the image. To give an example. Although men, who see the sun in a mirror, do not gaze at the sky itself, yet they see the sun in the reflection of the mirror, no less than those who look at its very orb. So, He says, it is also with you. Even though you are too weak to perceive the Light itself, yet if you but return to the grace of the image with which you were informed from the beginning, you will have all you seek in yourselves.

…For the Godhead is purity, freedom from passion and separation from all evil. If, therefore, these things be in you, God is indeed in you. Hence, if your thought is without any alloy of evil, free from passion, arid alien from all stain, you are blessed because you are clear of sight.” – St Gregory of Nyssa (c335-395) Bishop, Father of the Church (Brother of St Basil the Great) (Sermons 6 sur les Béatitudes – on the Beatitudes 6).

PRAYER – O God, Who through St. Philip, Thy Confessor, gave us an outstanding example of humility, grant that Thy household may follow his example by scorning worldly prosperity and, ever seek the things of Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the KING, CHRIST the SUN of JUSTICE, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on MERCY, QUOTES on MERIT, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PURITY of INTENTION, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 22 June – “Fear not, little flock, for it hath pleased thy Father to give thee a Kingdom. ” – Luke 12:32

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One Minute Reflection – 22 June – “The Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus” – St Paulinus of Nola (c 354-431) Bishop, Confessor, Father of the Church –2 Corinthians 8:9-15; Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Fear not, little flock, for it hath pleased thy Father to give thee a Kingdom. ” – Luke 12:32

REFLECTION – “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven”. The beginning of the New Testament is altogether joyful and full of fresh grace. It even nudges the unbeliever and sluggish to pay heed and, more to the point, to act, by promising happiness to the unfortunate and the Kingdom of Heaven to those in exile, those in any kind of distress. The beginning of the new Law is pleasant to hear and starts off under happy auspices, since the Legislator follows on from this beginning ,by giving so many assurances of beatitude. In this way those who have been attracted by them will go from one virtue to the next, climbing the eight steps that this Gospel has set up and placed within our hearts… For, it is clear that what it is all about, is the ascent of the heart and of the progress of merit, through eight steps of virtue, leading men gradually from the lowest to the highest levels of evangelical perfection. In this way they will at last enter and see the God of gods in Zion (Ps 83: 8), in His Temple, of which the Prophet has said: “It had a stairway of eight steps,” (Ez 40:37).

The first virtue for the beginner, is to renounce the world, through which we become poor in spirit; the second is gentleness, by which we submit ourselves and become accustomed to obedience; then, the grief with which we lament our sins or with weeping beg for the virtues. These we certainly enjoy, wherever we have the greatest hunger and thirst for justice, as much for ourselves as for others and begin to be stirred by zeal against sinners. Yet, lest immoderate fervour turn into fault, the mercy by which it is tempered follows after. Through putting this into practice and training ourselves, when we have learnt how to be just and how to be merciful, then we may, perhaps, be capable of entering into contemplation and giving oursees to the purification of our hearts, so as to see God!” – Blessed Guerric of Igny (c1080-1157) Cistercian Abbot (Sermon for All Saints).

PRAYER – O God, Who promised to those who forsake all things in this world for Thee, a hundred-fold reward in the world to come and life everlasting, mercifully grant that, following closely in the footsteps of the holy Bishop, Paulinus, we may look upon earthly things as nought and long only for those of Heaven. Who lives and reigns with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

OUR Lady of the Sacred Heart, pray for us.
100 Days. St Pius X, 9 July 1904. Raccolta 174

Posted in CHRIST the SUN of JUSTICE, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on Lukewarmness, QUOTES on MERCY, QUOTES on MERIT, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PURITY of INTENTION, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on THE WORLD, QUOTES on VIRTUE, The BEATITUDES, The HEART, The KINGDOM of GOD / HEAVEN

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “Fear not, little flock, for it hath pleased thy Father to give thee a Kingdom. ” – Luke 12:32

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – St Philip Benizi OSM (1233-1285) Confessor – 1 Corinthians. 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Fear not, little flock, for it hath pleased thy Father to give thee a Kingdom. ” – Luke 12:32

REFLECTION – “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven”. The beginning of the New Testament is altogether joyful and full of fresh grace. It even nudges the unbeliever and sluggish to pay heed and, more to the point, to act, by promising happiness to the unfortunate and the Kingdom of Heaven to those in exile, those in any kind of distress. The beginning of the new Law is pleasant to hear and starts off under happy auspices, since the Legislator follows on from this beginning ,by giving so many assurances of beatitude. In this way those who have been attracted by them will go from one virtue to the next, climbing the eight steps that this Gospel has set up and placed within our hearts… For, it is clear that what it is all about, is the ascent of the heart and of the progress of merit, through eight steps of virtue, leading men gradually from the lowest to the highest levels of evangelical perfection. In this way they will at last enter and see the God of gods in Zion (Ps 83: 8), in His Temple, of which the Prophet has said: “It had a stairway of eight steps,” (Ez 40:37).

The first virtue for the beginner, is to renounce the world, through which we become poor in spirit; the second is gentleness, by which we submit ourselves and become accustomed to obedience; then, the grief with which we lament our sins or with weeping beg for the virtues. These we certainly enjoy, wherever we have the greatest hunger and thirst for justice, as much for ourselves as for others and begin to be stirred by zeal against sinners. Yet, lest immoderate fervour turn into fault, the mercy by which it is tempered follows after. Through putting this into practice and training ourselves, when we have learnt how to be just and how to be merciful, then we may, perhaps, be capable of entering into contemplation and giving oursees to the purification of our hearts, so as to see God!” – Blessed Guerric of Igny (c1080-1157) Cistercian Abbot (Sermon for All Saints).

PRAYER – O God, Who through St. Philip, Thy Confessor, gave us an outstanding example of humility, grant that Thy household may follow his example by scorning worldly prosperity and, ever seek the things of Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in ASPIRATIONS and EJACULATIONS, EUCHARISTIC, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, JUNE-THE SACRED HEART, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FREEDOM, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, SACRED HEART ASPIRATIONS, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 22 June – ‘ … Please set us in the freedom of the children of God.’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 22 June – “The Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus” – St Paulinus of Nola (c 354-431) Bishop, Confessor – 2 Corinthians 8:9-15, Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

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

REFLECTION – “Where is the heart which loves? On the thing it loves. Therefore, where our love is, there our heart is held captive. It cannot leave it; it cannot be lifted higher, it cannot go either to the right or the left; see, it is fixed. Where the miser’s treasure is, there is his heart and where our heart is, there is our treasure. And what is so deplorable is that the things which hold us in servitude, are, for the most part, such unworthy things!

And what is this? Some nothing, some imagination, a bitter word spoken to us, a lack of gracious welcome, a little refusal, the mere thought that someone does not think much of us – all these things wound and put us out of countenance, to such an extent that we are unable to let them go! Self-love attaches us to these imaginary wounds – we do not know how to escape them, we are always inside ourselves. And why? Because we are prisoners of this emotion and vice … Are we in “the freedom of the children of God?” (Rm 8,21). Or are we chained to goods, comforts, honours? …

O Saviour, Thou hast opened up the door of liberty to us, teach us to find it! Make us understand the importance of our liberty, make us turn to Thee, to come to understand it. Enlighten us, O my Saviour, that we may see what we are attached to and please set us in the freedom of the children of God.” – St Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) Priest, Founder of Religious Communities (Conference of 16 May 1659, On indifference).

PRAYER – O God, Who promised to those who forsake all things in this world for Thee, a hundred-fold reward in the world to come and life everlasting, mercifully grant that, following closely in the footsteps of the holy Bishop, Paulinus, we may look upon earthly things as nought and long only for those of Heaven. Who lives and reigns with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

MAY the Heart of JESUS in the most Blessed Sacrament be praised, adored and loved with grateful affection, at every moment, in all the Tabernacles of the world, even to the end of time. Amen. Indulgence 100 Days, Once a day. Raccolta 161 Pope Pius IX, 29 February 1868.

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 28 January – Our Treasure

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 28 January – St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor, Founder – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Sell what you possess and give alms.
Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old,
a treasure unfailing in Heaven,
where neither thief draws near,
nor moth destroys.”

Luke 12:33

“The Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure
buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again
and out of joy, goes and sells all that he has
and buys that field.”

Matthew 13:44

“It was Christ Who was present to all those to whom,
from the beginning, God communicated
His Speech and Word.
If anyone, therefore, reads the Scriptures with attention,
he will find in them, an expression of Christ
and a foreshadowing of this new calling.
For Christ is the Treasure which was hidden in the field,
that is, in this world (Mt 13:38) –
a Treasure hidden in the Scriptures, …”
Thus it was, that the Lord explained the Scriptures
to His disciples, after His Resurrection from the dead,
proving to them, by their means,
that “it was necessary the Christ
should suffer these things and enter into his glory” (Lk 24:26).
So, if anyone should likewise read the Scriptures
that person will become a perfect disciple,
“like the head of a household
who brings from his storeroom things
both new and old.” (Mt 13:52).

St Irenaeus of Lyons ((130-202)
Bishop, Martyr, Father of the Church

“If you wish to be perfect,
sell what you have and give to the poor
and you will have treasure in Heaven.”

Matthew 19:21

“In saying this I am speaking the truth
because I am relying on the words of Him ,Who is Truth:
“If you wish to be perfect, sell what you have
and give to the poor and you will have treasure in Heaven”
Mt 19:21).
Do not be cast down by these words,
lest the same thing be said to you,
as to the rich young man:
“It will be difficult for one who is rich
to enter the Kingdom of Heaven”
(Mt 19:23).
Still more, when you read this sentence,
consider that death can snatch
these possessions away from you
that the aggression of someone powerful,
can carry them away.
At the end of the day, you will have seen
no further than insignificant goods,
in place of great wealth – these are no more
than a treasure of coins,
rather than treasures of grace.
By their very nature, they perish,
rather than remaining forever!”

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

Posted in QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on GREED, WEALTH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, The HEART, Uncategorized

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – ‘You are a jailor of your wealth, not its owner … you are its slave and not its master.’

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One Minute Reflection – 28 January – St Peter Nolasco OdeM (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor, Founder – 1 Corinthians 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Sell what you possess and give alms. Make for yourselves purses which do not grow old, a treasure unfailing in Heaven, where neither thief draws near, nor moth destroys.” – Luke 12:33

REFLECTION – “You are a jailor of your wealth, not its owner, you who bury your gold in the ground (cf Mt 25:25); you are its slave and not its master. Christ said: “Where your treasure is there also your heart will be” so it is your heart you have buried. Rather, sell your gold and buy salvation; sell what is metal and acquire God’s Kingdom; sell the field and purchase for yourself eternal life!

In saying this I am speaking the truth because I am relying on the words of Him Who is Truth: “If you wish to be perfect, sell what you have and give to the poor and you will have treasure in Heaven” (Mt 19:21). Do not be cast down by these words, lest the same thing be said to you, as to the rich young man: “It will be difficult for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 19:23). Still more, when you read this sentence, consider that death can snatch these possessions away from you that the aggression of someone powerful, can carry them away. At the end of the day, you will have seen no further than insignificant goods, in place of great wealth – these are no more than a treasure of coins, rather than treasures of grace. By their very nature, they perish, rather than remaining forever!” – St Ambrose (340-397) Bishop of Milan, Father and Doctor of the Church (Naboth the poor, 58).

PRAYER – O God, Thou Who, as an example of Thy love, divinely taught St Peter to enrich Thy Church with new offspring, a family of Religious devoted to the ransom of the faithful, grant by his intercession that we may be released from the slavery of sin and rejoice in lasting freedom in Heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on THE WORLD, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, SAINT of the DAY, SOLDIERS/ARMOUR of CHRIST, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 23 August – ‘ … O man, send your treasure on, send it ahead into Heaven …’

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One Minute Reflection – 23 August – St Philip Benizi OSM (1233-1285) Confessor – 1 Corinthians. 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34

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

REFLECTION – “All this is what that treasure brings about. Either through almsgiving, it raises the heart of a man into Heaven, or through greed it buries it in the earth. That is why He said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
O man, send your treasure on, send it ahead into Heaven, or else your God-given soul will be buried in the earth! Gold comes from the depth of the earth — the soul, from the highest Heaven. Clearly it is better ,to carry the gold to where the soul resides, than to bury the soul, in the mine of the gold. That is why God orders those who will serve in His Army here below, to fight as men stripped of concern for riches and unencumbered by anything. To these He has granted the privilege of reigning in Heaven.” – St Peter Chrysologus (c 400-450) Bishop of Ravenna, “Doctor of Homilies” Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 22)

PRAYER – O God, Who through St. Philip, Thy Confessor, gave us an outstanding example of humility, grant that Thy household may follow his example by scorning worldly prosperity and, ever seek the things of Heaven Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, The HEART, The WORD, Thomas a Kempis

Quotes of the Day – 28 January – Treasure

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Quotes of the Day – 28 January – Memorial of St Peter Nolasco (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor – 1 Cor. 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34

“For where your treasure is,
there also will your heart be.”

Luke 12:34

“ For where thy treasure is,
there is thy heart also.”

Matthew 6:21

“We have had Your treasure
hidden within us,
ever since we received baptismal grace,
it grows ever richer
at Your sacramental table.”

St Ephrem (306-373)
Father and Doctor of the Church

“You have made us for Yourself
and our hearts are restless
until they rest in You.”

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

“ He who finds Jesus, finds a rare treasure,
indeed, a good above every good,
whereas he who loses Him,
loses more than the whole world.
The man who lives without Jesus,
is the poorest of the poor,
whereas no-one is so rich,
as the man who lives in His grace.
… Let all things be loved, for the sake of Jesus
but Jesus, for His own sake.”

“Love Him, then, keep Him as a friend.
He will not leave you as others do,
or let you suffer lasting death.
Sometime, whether you will or not,
you will have to part with everything.
Cling, therefore, to Jesus in life and death,
trust yourself to the glory of Him,
Who alone can help you
when all others fail.“

Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

Who lives in Love
By St Robert Southwell SJ (1561-1595)
Martyr

Who lives in Love, loves least to live
and long delays doth rue,
if Him he love by Whom he lives,
to Whom all praise is due,
Who for our love did choose to live
and was content to die,
Who loved our love more than His life
and love with Life did buy.
Let us in life, yea with our life
requite His Living Love,
for best we live when least we live,
if Love our life remove.
Mourn, therefore, no true lover’s death,
life only him annoy
and when he taketh leave of life
then Love begins his joys.

“You leave the land just as it is
when you depart,
you do not carry anything away.
Our first aim
is to go to God,
we are not on earth
for anything but this!”

St John Marie Baptiste Vianney (1786-1859)

“If Jesus is not there,
death comes into our souls.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HEAVEN, SAINT of the DAY, SOLDIERS/ARMOUR of CHRIST, The HEART, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – ‘ … O man, send your treasure on, send it ahead into Heaven …’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – Memorial of St Peter Nolasco (c 1182–c 1256) Confessor – 1 Cor. 4:9-14, Luke 12:32-34

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

REFLECTION – “All this is what that treasure brings about. Either through almsgiving, it raises the heart of a man into Heaven, or through greed it buries it in the earth. That is why He said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
O man, send your treasure on, send it ahead into Heaven, or else your God-given soul will be buried in the earth! Gold comes from the depth of the earth — the soul, from the highest Heaven. Clearly it is better ,to carry the gold to where the soul resides, than to bury the soul, in the mine of the gold. That is why God orders those who will serve in His Army here below, to fight as men stripped of concern for riches and unencumbered by anything. To these He has granted the privilege of reigning in Heaven.” – St Peter Chrysologus (c 400-450) Bishop of Ravenna, “Doctor of Homilies” Father and Doctor of the Church (Sermon 22)

PRAYER – O God, You Who, as an example of Your love, divinely taught St Peter to enrich Your Church with new offspring, a family of Religious devoted to the ransom of the faithful, grant by his intercession, that we may be released from the slavery of sin and rejoice in lasting freedom in heaven. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.