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One Minute Reflection – 9 July – ‘ … At the Lord’s Voice …’

One Minute Reflection – 9 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – Ferial Day – Our Lady Queen of Peace –St John Fisher (1469-1535) Bishop, Martyr, Cardinal – St Thomas More (1478-1535) Martyr, Confessor – Romans 8:18-23 – Luke 5:1-11 A – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

Now when He had ceased to speak, He said to Simon: Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a draught. …” … Luke 5:4

REFLECTION – “Launch out into deep” that is to say, into the high seas of debate. Is there any depth which is comparable to the abyss of “the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge” of the Son of God, (Rom 11:33), to the proclamation of His Divine Sonship? … The Church is led by Peter to the high seas of the testimony, so as to contemplate the risen Son of God and the Holy Ghost Who is poured forth.

What are those nets of the Apostles which Christ orders them to lower? Are they not the linking of words, the twists in discourse, the depth of arguments which do not allow those whom they have caught to escape? This fishing tackle of the Apostles does not render the fish they have caught to perish – rather, it preserves them, drawing them out of the abyss towards the light, leading them from the lowest depths to the heights …

Master, Peter said, “we have laboured all the night and have taken nothing:but at Thy Word, I will let down the net.” I too, Lord, know it is night for me, when Thou do not command me. I have not yet converted anyone through my words; it is still night. I spoke on the day of Epiphany – I lowered the net but I have not caught anything yet. I lowered the net during the day. I am waiting for Thee to give me the order. Upon Thy Word, I will lower it again. Self-confidence is empty but humility is fertile. Those who had not caught anything until then, have now, at the Lord’s Voice, caught an enormous catch of fish.” – St Ambrose (340-397)
Father & Doctor of the Church
(Treatise on the Gospel of Luke IV, 71-76).

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

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, St PAUL!, St PETER!, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 6 July – ‘ Thou shalt catch men … After the proof of thy humility … ‘

One Minute Reflection – 6 July – “The Solemnity Month of the Most Precious Blood” – Pentecost IV – The Octave Day of Sts Peter and Paul – Romans 8:18-23 – Luke 5:1-11 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

And Jesus saith to Simon – Fear not, from henceforth. thou shalt catch men. ”– Luke 5:10

REFLECTION – “Peter threw himself humbly at Jesus’ feet. Recognising his Lord in Him, he said: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man and am not worthy to stay with Thee. Depart from me, for I am only a man and Thou art the God-man; I am sinful and Thou art holy; I am a servant, Thou the Master. Let distance separate Thee from me, who am distanced from Thee by the weakness of my nature, the ugliness of my sins and the weakness of my strength..”

But the Lord comforted Peter by showing him the catch of fish which showed how he would become a fisher of men. “Do not be afraid,” He said to him, “Do not be frightened but believe and rejoice. For thou art destined for an even greater catch another kind of boat and another kind of net, will be given thee. Hitherto thou hast caught fish with thy nets but from now on, thou wilt catch men with thy words. The Word of God is like a fisherman’s bait. Just as the hook does not catch the fish until it has been taken by it, so the Word of God does not capture a man for eternal life unless this Word, has first of all, entered his thoughts. From now on, it is men thou wilt catch. ‘From now on’ – that is to say, after all that has taken place, after the proof of thy humility, thou wilt be responsible for catching men. For humility has the force of attraction and it is good to know how not to boast in one’s own power if one is to have authority over others.” – Ludolph of Saxony (1300-1377) Carthusian Monk, Theologian, Writer (The life of Jesus Christ 1 Ch 29:9-11)

PRAYER – O God, Who made this day holy by the Martyrdom of Your Apostles Peter and Paul, grant Thy Church to follow in all things, the teaching of those, from whom she first received the faith. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

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One Minute Reflection – 16 June – Fear not, from henceforth thou shalt catch men. – Luke 5:10

One Minute Reflection – 16 June – “The Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus” – St John Francis Régis SJ (1597-1640) Priest, Confessor, Missionary –The Fourth Sunday after Pentecost
– Romans 8:18-23; Luke 5:1-11 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

And Jesus saith to Simon: Fear not, from henceforth thou shalt catch men. – Luke 5:10

REFLECTION – “On that night of light [ Christmas, at fourteen years of age] began the third period of my life, the most beautiful and the most filled with graces from Heaven … I could say to Him like His Apostles: “Master, I fished all night and caught nothing.” More merciful to me than He was to His disciples, Jesus took the net Himself, cast it, and drew it in filled with fish. He made me a fisher of souls. I experienced a great desire to work for the conversion of sinners. The cry of Jesus on the Cross sounded continually in my heart: “I thirst!” These words ignited within me an unknown and very living fire. I wanted to give my Beloved to drink and I felt myself consumed with a thirst for souls …

To awaken my zeal, God showed me my desires were pleasing to Him. I heard talk of a great criminal just condemned to death for some horrible crimes; everything pointed to the fact that he would die impenitent. I wanted, at all cost,s to prevent him from falling into hell… I felt, in the depths of my heart, certain that our desires would be granted but to obtain courage to pray for sinners I told God I was sure He would pardon the poor, unfortunate Pranzini; that I’d believe this, even if he went to his death without any signs of repentance or without having gone to Confession. I was absolutely confident in the mercy of Jesus. But, I was begging Him for a “sign” of repentance, only for my own simple consolation. My prayer was answered to the letter! …

After this unique grace, my desire to save souls grows each day and I seemed to hear Jesus say that which He said to the Samaritan woman: “Give me to drink!” It was a true interchange of love – to souls, I was giving the Blood of Jesus – to Jesus, I was giving these same souls, refreshed by the Divine Dew. I slaked His Thirst and the more I gave Him to drink, the more the thirst of my poor, little soul increased and it was this ardent thirst, He was giving me as the most delightful drink of His Love.” – St Thérèse of the Child Jesus (1873-1897) Carmelite (Autobiographical Manuscript).

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

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. – Indulgence 100 Days, Once a Day. Raccolta 161 Blessed Pius IX, 29 February 1868.

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One Minute Reflection – 25 June – “At Thy Word I will lower the nets.”

One Minute Reflection – 25 June – “The Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus” – Pentecost IV and the Feast of St William (1085-1142) Abbot – Romans 8:18-23, Luke 5:1-11 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

Fear not, henceforth you shall catch men.” – Luke 5:10

REFLECTION At Thy Word I will lower the nets.” It is at the command of divine grace and supernatural inspiration that the nets of preaching are to be spread out. Otherwise, the preacher wastes his time in lowering the lines of his words. People’s faith is won, not by carefully composed speeches but the grace of a divine vocation… O fruitful humility! When those who so far have not caught a thing, put their trust in Christ’s Word, they catch a great number of fish…

At Thy Word I will lower the nets.Whenever I lowered them on my own, I wanted to keep what belongs to Thee for myself. It was myself I was preaching and not Thee; my words, not Thine. That is why I caught nothing. Or, if I did catch something, it was not fish but frogs, only good for croaking my own praise…

At Thy Word I will lower the nets.” Running out the net at the Word of Jesus Christ, means not attributing anything to oneself but all to Him; it means practising what one preaches. Then a great number of fish will be caught!” – St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) Franciscan, Doctor of the Church (Sermons for Sundays and Saints’ days).

PRAYER – O God, Who made Thy Saints an example and a help for our weakness, grant us, as we walk the path of salvation, so to venerate the virtues of the blessed Abbot William that we may obtain his intercession and follow in his footsteps. 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).

EUCHARISTIC Heart of JESUS, model of the priestly heart, have mercy on us.
COR JESU Eucharisticum, cordis sacerdotalis exemplar, miserere nobis. – Indulgence 300 Days, Everytime – Raccolta 177 St Pius X, 11 September 1907.

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 on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, The WORD, Thomas a Kempis

Quote/s of the Day – 2 September – “Leaving all things, they followed him.”

Quote/s of the Day – 2 September – “Month of the Seven Sorrows of Mary” – Readings: Colossians 1: 9-14; Psalms 98: 2-3ab, 3cd-4-6; Luke 5: 1-11

“Leaving all things,
they followed him.”

Luke 5:11

“I am the light of the world;
he who follows me will not walk in darkness
but will have the light of life.”

John 8:12

“If we follow Christ closely we shall be allowed,
even on this earth,
to stand, as it were,
on the threshold of the heavenly Jerusalem
and enjoy the contemplation,
of that everlasting feast,
like the blessed Apostles,
who, in following the Saviour as their leader,
showed and still show,
the way to obtain the same gift from God.
They said – See, we have left all things and followed You.
We too follow the Lord
and we keep His feast
by deeds rather than by words.”

St Athanasius (297-373)
Father & Doctor of the Church

“We will follow You, Lord Jesus.
But in order for us to follow You,
call us because without You,
no-one will ascend towards You.
For You are the way, the truth, the life.
You are also our help,
our trust, our reward.
Welcome those who belong to You,
You who are the way;
strengthen them, You who are the truth;
give them life, You who are the life.”

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

“My sheep follow me,” says Christ.
By a certain God-given grace,
believers follow in the footsteps of Christ.
No longer subject to the shadows of the Law ,
they obey the commands of Christ,
and guided by His words,
rise through grace,
to His own dignity,
for they are called children of God.
When Christ ascends into heaven,
they also follow Him.”

St Cyril of Alexandria (380-444)
Father & Doctor of the Church

“There are two ways of keeping God’s word,
namely, one, whereby we store in our memory
what we hear and the other,
whereby we put into practice,
what we have heard
(and none will deny that the latter
is more commendable, inasmuch,
as it is better to sow grain,
than to store it in the barn).”

Blessed Jordan of Saxony OP (1190-1237)

“Place all your trust in God,
let Him be your fear and your love.
He will answer for you,
He will do what is best for you.
You have here no lasting home.
You are a stranger and a pilgrim
wherever you may be
and you shall have no rest,
until you are wholly united with Christ.
Why do you look about here
when this is not the place of your repose?”

Thomas à Kempis CRSA (1380-1471)

Posted in ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 2 September – “thou shalt catch men.” – Luke 5:10

One Minute Reflection – 2 September – “Month of the Seven Sorrows of Mary” – Readings: Colossians 1: 9-14; Psalms 98: 2-3ab, 3cd-4-6; Luke 5: 1-11

“Fear not, from henceforth thou shalt catch men.” – Luke 5:10

REFLECTION – “I am greatly indebted to God who has granted me so great a grace that “many peoples” have been born anew to God through me …. “I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” … This is how I want to “wait for the promise” of Him Who never fails us, as He assures us in the Gospel: “They will come from East and West and will sit at table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.” So we are confident that believers will come from the whole world.

That is why we should apply ourselves diligently to the catch, as we ought to do, following the exhortation and teaching of the Lord Who said: “Come after me and I will make you fishers of men.” And again, He said through the prophets: “Look! I will send many fishermen and hunters.” That is why it was so important to cast our nets, so that “a great number [of fish],” “a crowd” of people might be caught for God and, that everywhere, there might be Priests according to the word of the Lord: “Go, therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And, behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” – St Patrick (c 386-461) Bishop Confession, 38-40 (SC 249)

PRAYER – Lord, my God, You chose us from the foundations of the world to be Your children. We pray that our courage may not fail us as we strive to live in obedience to Your commandments and by our lives spread Your holy Word. We ask too for courage, as we are attacked from all sides, in our struggle home to You. Grant that through the prayers of our Sorrowful Mother, we may fight unto death for Your love and the glory of Your Kingdom. Through our Lord, Jesus, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever, amen.

Posted in CATHOLIC Quotes, CONFESSION/PENANCE, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONVERSION, SAINT of the DAY, The WILL of GOD

One Minute Reflection – 5 September – “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”

One Minute Reflection – 5 September – Thursday of the Twenty-second week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 5:1–11 and the Memorial of St Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997)

But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” ... Luke 5:8

REFLECTION – “This is the first decisive step of Peter along the path of discipleship, of the disciple of Jesus, accusing himself:  ‘I am a sinner.’   This is Peter’s first step and also the first step for each one of us, if you want to go forward in the spiritual life, in the life of Jesus, serving Jesus, following Jesus, must be this, accusing oneself, without accusing oneself you cannot walk in the Christian life.
There are people who go through life talking about others, accusing others and never thinking of their own sins.   And when I go to make my confession, how do I confess? Like a parrot?   ‘I did this, this…’   But are you touched at heart by what you have done? Many times, no.   You go there to put on make-up, to make-yourself up a little bit in order to look beautiful.   But it hasn’t entered completely into your heart, because you haven’t left room, because you are not capable of accusing yourself.   Do I do this?   It’s a good question to get to the heart.
Today, let us ask the Lord for the grace, the grace to find ourselves face-to-face with Him, with this wonder that His presence gives and the grace, to feel that we are sinners but concretely and to say with Peter – ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinner.”Pope Francis – Santa Marta, 6 September 2018depart from me for i am a sinful man luke 5 8 - this is the first step of peter - pope francis - 5 sept 2019

PRAYER – Heavenly Father, help us to be holy in the way that You have laid out for all of us.   Grant us good Lord, the courage, faith and understanding, to see our own failings and to present ourselves to You for forgiveness, knowing always, that a repentant heart You do not spurn.   May the prayers of St Mother Teresa assist us in using the gifts You have given us, for the Glory of God.   We make our prayer through our Lord, Jesus Christ with the Holy Spirit, one God, forever, amen.st-mother-teresa-pray-for-us-5-sept-2017.jpg