Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on the CHURCH, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 13 February – ‘ … Is there not anything in you which another has to bear?’

One Minute Reflection – 13 February – “The Month of the Blessed Trinity” – Ferial Day – Colossians 3:12-17 – Matthew 13:24-30 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

Suffer both to grow until the harvest” – Matthew 13:30– Matthew 13:30

REFLECTION – “When that which is corruptible in us, clothes itself with incorruptibility and that which is mortal, clothes itself in immortality” (1 Cor 15:54), then there will be perfect sweetness, perfect rejoicing, endless praise and love without fear. … And here below? Do we not enjoy any kind of joy? … Certainly we find joy here below; here we taste in hope, of the life to come, a joy which will satisfy us completely in Heaven.

However, the wheat has much to bear in the midst of the darnel. The seed is mixed up with the straw and the lily grows among the thorns. … And indeed, what is it that was spoken to the Church? “As a lily among thorns, so is my beloved among my maidens” (Sg 2:2). It said, “Among my maidens” and not among foreigners. O Lord, what are the consolations Thou gives us? What the comfort? Or rather, what the alarm? Art Thou calling Thy own maidens “thorns”? By their behaviour, they are thorns, He answers but maidens through My Sacraments. …

But where is the Christian to take refuge then, if he is not to groan in the midst of false brethren? Where is he to go? What is he to do? Is he to fly away to the desert? Occasions for falling will follow him. Will he, who is doing so well, separate himself, to the extent, of not putting up with a single one of his confreres? What about him, then? Supposing nobody was able to put up with him, before his conversion? … So if, under the pretext of making progress, he cannot bear with anyone else, by this very fact, it is clear, he has not progressed as yet. Pay careful attention to these words – “Bear with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace” (Eph 4:2-3). Is there not anything in you which another has to bear?” – St Augustine (354=430) Father & Doctor of Grace (Discourses on the Psalm Ps 99:8-9).

PRAYER – King of Heaven and earth, Lord God, rule over our hearts and bodies this day. Sanctify us and guide our every thought, word and deed according to the commandments of Thy law, so that now and forever, Thy grace may free and save us. Teach us Lord to walk in the ways of the Cross of Thy Son, our Saviour, longing for and rejoicing always in our heavenly home. Through the same Christ our Lord, with the Holy Ghost, God, forever, amen. (Collect)

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on TEMPTATION, QUOTES on the DEVIL/EVIL, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, QUOTES on WATCHING, SACRAMENTS, The SECOND COMING, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 10 November – “Suffer both to grow until the harvest” – Matthew 13:30

One Minute Reflection – 10 November – “The Month of the Holy Souls in Purgatory” – St Andrew Avellino CR (1521–1608) Confessor – Col ossians 3:12-17: Matthew 13:24-30 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

Suffer both to grow until the harvest” – Matthew 13:30

REFLECTION – “In today’s Gospel, my friends, we see that when the owner of the field had sowed his seed in good soil, the enemy came while he was sleeping and sowed weeds in it. What this means, is that God created man good and perfect but the enemy came and sowed sin. This was Adam’s downfall and a terrible fall which opened the door to sin in the human heart.

Are you saying that we must exterminate the weeds? “But no,” the Lord replies, “for fear that in pulling up the weeds ,you harm the good seed at the same time. Wait until the harvest.” This is how the human heart must remain until the end – a mixture of good and bad, vice and virtue, light and darkness, good seed and weeds. God did not wish to destroy this mix and refashion a nature in us where there would be nothing but good seed. He wants us to fight, to strive to prevent the weeds from overwhelming us. The devil comes to sow temptation across our path but we are able to overcome it by grace, we can smother the weeds.

Three things are absolutely necessary against temptation – prayer to enlighten us, the Sacraments to strengthen us and vigilance to preserve us. Happy are the souls who are tempted! It is when the devil judges a soul is tending towards union with God that he redoubles his rage.” – St Jean-Marie Baptiste Vianney (1786-1859) Priest and the Patron of Priests, The Curé d’Ars (The Spirit of the Curé d’Ars, Sermons Conversations).

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

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on HELL, QUOTES on the CHURCH, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The LAST THINGS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 27 July – ‘No-one who has land is free from care.’

One Minute Reflection – 27 July – Saturday of the Sixteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: 13:24-30

“Let both grow together until the harvest and at harvest time, I will tell the reapers, gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned but gather the wheat into my barn.’”… Matthew 13:30

REFLECTION – “It is not only sheep who abide in the Church, nor do only clean birds fly there to and fro.   But amongst the grain other seed is sown, for “amidst the neat grain-fields, burrs and weeds and barren oats lord it in the land” (Virgil’s Georgics).   What is the farmhand to do?   Root up the darnel?   In that case the whole harvest is destroyed along with it!
Every day the farmer diligently drives away the birds by making a noise or by frightening them with scarecrows (…)   Nevertheless he suffers from the raids of nimble roes or the wantonness of wild asses, on the one hand, voles convey the grain to their underground barns, on the other, ants in a moving column ravage the crop.   This is how things are!   No-one who has land is free from care.
While the householder slept, the enemy sowed tares, when the servants hastened to go and root them up, the Master prevented them, reserving for Himself the separation of wheat and chaff. (…)   No-one, before the Day of Judgement, can take Christ’s winnowing fan in hand, no-one can pass judgement on another, whoever they might be.”… St Jerome (347-420) Priest, translator of the Bible, Father and Doctor of the Church – The dialogue against the Luciferians (SC 473, p 179-180)at harvest time i will tell the reapers - matthew 13 30 - not only sheep abide in the church st jerome 27 july 2019.jpg

PRAYER – All-powerful and ever-living God, splendour of true light and never-ending day, chase away the night of sin and fill our minds with the glory of Your coming.   Take away our heart of stone and give us a heart of flesh, help us in our battle with sin and the devil.   By our prayers, Your holy sacraments and the strength of the Holy Spirit, may we be ever vigilant of the evil one.   Grant we pray, that the Blessed Virgin’s prayers, may protect us from all dangers.   We make our prayer through Christ, our Lord with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.bl virgin mary mother of god pray for us 27 july 2019.jpg