Posted in "Follow Me", MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on MERCY, Quotes on SALVATION, QUOTES on SPIRITUAL WORKS of MERCY, QUOTES on TEMPTATION, QUOTES on the POOR, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 6 December – What dost thou have that thou hast not received? – 1 Corinthians 4:7

Quote/s of the Day – 6 December – Hebrews 13:7-17; Matthew 25:14-23 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

To one He gave five talents;
to another, two; to a third, one—
to each according to his ability. …

Matthew 25:15

What dost thou have that thou hast not received?

1 Corinthians 4:7

Are we going to neglect our own salvation?
Let us show great compassion
towards the poor
so as to be made worthy of possessing
good things to come for all eternity!

St John Chrysostom (347-407)
Father and Doctor of the Church

For the devil may tempt the good
but he cannot find rest in them;
for he is shaken violently
and upset and driven out –
now by their prayers,
now by their tears of repentance
and now. by their almsgiving
and similar good works.

St Bruno (c1030-1101)

What great profit you gain from God
when you are generous!
You give a coin
and receive a Kingdom;
you give bread from wheat
and receive the Bread of Life;
you give a transitory good
and receive an everlasting one.
You will receive it back,
a hundred times more
than you offered.

St Thomas of Villanova (1488-1555)

As well as the corporal works,
there are the spiritual works of mercy.
Everyone is not obliged to undertake the former,
that would be impossible, for instance,
for the desitute, the sick, the aged.
But, everyone is OBLIGED to undertake the latter.
Sometimes a kind word
is more valuable than money!”
… Remember, however, that the practice
of the spiritual works of mercy,
does not excuse us from the exercise
of material works of charity,
wherever that is possible for us
(Cf Js 2:16).

Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on HEAVEN, Quotes on SALVATION, QUOTES on the POOR, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The SEVEN LAST WORDS of CHRIST, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 6 December – ‘ … We do not even belong to ourselves! …’

One Minute Reflection – 6 December – St Nicholas (270-343) Confessor, Bishop – Hebrews 13:7-17; Matthew 25:14-23 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

To one He gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one—to each according to his ability. Then, he went away, immediately …” – Matthew 25:15

REFLECTION – “What do thou have that thou hast not received?” St Paul says to us (1 Cor 4:7). So, let us not be greedy of our goods, as though they belonged to us …They have been entrusted to our care; we have the use of a wealth in common, not the eternal possession of a personal good. If you acknowledge that this good is yours only for a time here below, you will be able to gain a possession in Heaven which will never end. Remember the servants in the Gospel who had received some talents from their master and what the master, on his return, rendered to each of them. You will then understand that to place your money on the Lord’s table, to make it bear fruit, is far more profitable, than to preserve it in fruitless faithfulness without its returning anything back to its creditor, to the great loss of the useless servant whose punishment will be all the more heavy …

Let us then lend to the Lord, the goods we have received from Him. Indeed, we possess nothing which is not a gift from the Lord and we exist only because He wills it! What is there we could think of as our own, since, by reason of an enormous and exceptional debt, we do not even belong to ourselves! For God created us but He has also redeemed us. Let us be thankful, then; redeemed at great price, the price of the Lord’s Blood, we are no longer worthless things … Let us return to the Lord what He has given us. Let us give to Him, Who receives in the person of every poor man. Let us give with joy that we may receive from Him in gladness, as He has promised!” – St Paulinus of Nola (354-431) Bishop, Father of the Church (Letter 34: 2-4).

PRAYER – O God, Thou Who made the holy Bishop Nicholas renowned for countless miracles, grant, we beseech Thee that by his merits and prayers, we may be saved from the fires of hell. 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, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FEAR, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, QUOTES on SLOTH, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 4 February – ‘ … But to those who are industrious, an even more lavish gift will be presented.’

One Minute Reflection – 4 February – St Andrew Corsini O.Carm (1302-1373) Bishop, Confessor – Sirach 44:16-27; 45:3-20, Matthew 25:14-23 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one—to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately …” – Matthew 25:15

REFLECTION – “The man who is the landowner is actually the Creator and Lord of all. The Word compares the time the landowner spends away from home, in the parable, to either the Ascension of Christ into Heaven, or, at any rate, to the unseen and invisible character of the Divine Nature. Now, one must conceive of the property of God, as those in each country and city who believe in Him. He calls His servants, those who, according to the times, Christ crowns with the glory of the Priesthood. For the holy Paul writes, “No-one takes this honour upon himself; he must be called by God.

He hands over [His property] to those who are under Him, to each giving a spiritual gift, so that he might have character and aptitude. We think that this distribution of the talents, is not supplied to the household servants in equal measure because, each is quite different from the other, in their understanding. Immediately they head out for their labours, He says, directly, indicating to us here, that apart from the procrastination of one, they are fit to carry out the work of God.

Surely those who are bound by fear and laziness will evolve into the worst evils. For he buried, Jesus says, the talent given to him, in the earth. He kept the gift hidden, making it unprofitable for others and useless for himself. For that very reason, the talent is taken away from him and will be given to the one who is already rich. The Spirit has departed from such as these and the gift of the Divine gifts. But to those who are industrious, an even more lavish gift will be presented.” – St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Archbishop of Alexandria, Father and Doctor of the Church (Fragment 283)

PRAYER – O God, Who establishes ever new examples of virtue in Thy Church, grant that Thy people may follow the footsteps of blessed Andrew, Thy Confessor and Bishop, so that they may also obtain his reward. 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, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FEAR, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 6 December – To one He gave five talents … Matthew 25:15

One Minute Reflection – 6 December – St Nicholas (270-343) Confessor, Bishop – Hebrews 13:7-17, Matthew 25:14-23 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

To one He gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one—to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately …” – Matthew 25:15

REFLECTION – “The man who is the landowner is actually the Creator and Lord of all. The Word compares the time the landowner spends away from home, in the parable, to either the Ascension of Christ into Heaven, or, at any rate, to the unseen and invisible character of the Divine Nature. Now, one must conceive of the property of God, as those in each Country and City, who believe in Him. He calls His servants, those who, according to the times, Christ crowns with the glory of the Priesthood. For the holy Paul writes, “No-one takes this honour upon himself; he must be called by God.

He hands over [His property] to those who are under Him, to each giving a spiritual gift, so that he might have character and aptitude. We think that this distribution of the talents, is not supplied to the household servants in equal measure because, each is quite different from the other, in their understanding. Immediately they head out for their labours, He says, directly, indicating to us here, that apart from the procrastination of one, they are fit to carry out the work of God.

Surely those who are bound by fear and laziness will evolve into the worst evils. For he buried, Jesus says, the talent given to him in the earth. He kept the gift hidden, making it unprofitable for others and useless for himself. For that very reason, the talent is taken away from him and will be given to the one who is already rich. The Spirit has departed from such as these and the gift of the divine gifts. But to those who are industrious, an even more lavish gift will be presented.” – St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Archbishop of Alexandria, Father and Doctor of the Church (Fragment 283)

PRAYER – O God, Thou Who made the holy Bishop Nicholas renowned for countless miracles, grant, we beseech Thee that by his merits and prayers, we may be saved from the fires of hell. 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 WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, QUOTES on the PRIESTHOOD, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 22 September – ‘ … But to those who are industrious, an even more lavish gift will be presented.’

One Minute Reflection – 22 September – The Memorial of St Thomas of Villanueva OSA (1488-1555) Archbishop, Confessor – Sirach 44:16-27; 45:3-20, Matthew 25:14-23

To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one—to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately …” – Matthew 25:15

REFLECTION – “The man who is the landowner is actually the Creator and Lord of all. The Word compares the time the landowner spends away from home, in the parable, to either the Ascension of Christ into Heaven, or, at any rate, to the unseen and invisible character of the Divine Nature. Now, one must conceive of the property of God, as those in each country and city who believe in Him. He calls His servants, those who according to the times, Christ crowns with the glory of the Priesthood. For the holy Paul writes, “No-one takes this honoUr upon himself; he must be called by God.

He hands over [His property] to those who are under Him, to each giving a spiritual gift, so that he might have character and aptitude. We think that this distribution of the talents, is not supplied to the household servants in equal measure because, each is quite different from the other, in their understanding. Immediately they head out for their labours, He says, directly, indicating to us here, that apart from the procrastination of one, they are fit to carry out the work of God.

Surely those who are bound by fear and laziness will evolve into the worst evils. For he buried, Jesus says, the talent given to him in the earth. He kept the gift hidden, making it unprofitable for others and useless for himself. For that very reason, the talent is taken away from him and will be given to the one who is already rich. The Spirit has departed from such as these and the gift of the divine gifts. But to those who are industrious, an even more lavish gift will be presented.” – St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Archbishop of Alexandria, Father and Doctor of the Church (Fragment 283)

PRAYER – O God, Who endowed blessed Bishop Thomas with the virtue of special pity for the poor, we beseech Thee, through his intercession, generously to pour forth the riches of Thy mercy upon all those who pray 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 CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 10 May – Talents – Matthew 25:14-23.

One Minute Reflection – 10 May – The Memorial of St Antoninus OP (1389-1459) – Sirach 44:16-27; 45:3-20, Matthew 25:14-23.

To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one—to each according to his ability. Then he went away. Immediately …” – Matthew 25:15

REFLECTION – “The man who is the landowner is actually the Creator and Lord of all. The Word compares, in the parable, the time the landowner spends away from home, to either the Ascension of Christ into Heaven, or, at any rate, to the unseen and invisible character of the Divine Nature.   Now, one must conceive of the property of God, as those in each country and city, who believe in Him. He calls His servants, those who, according to the times, Christ crowns with the glory of the Priesthood. For the holy Paul writes, “No-one takes this honour upon himself; he must be called by God.

He hands over [His property] to those who are under Him, to each giving a spiritual gift, so that he might have character and aptitude. We think that this distribution of the talents, is not supplied to the household servants in equal measure because, each is quite different from the other, in their understanding. Immediately they head out for their labours, He says, directly, indicating to us here, that apart from the procrastination of one, they are fit to carry out the work of God.

Surely those who are bound by fear and laziness will evolve into the worst evils. For he buried in the earth, Jesus says, the talent given to him. He kept the gift hidden, making it unprofitable for others and useless for himself. For that very reason, the talent is taken away from him and will be given to the one who is already rich. The Spirit has departed from such as these and the gift of the Divine Gifts. But to those who are industrious, an even more lavish gift will be presented!” –– St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Archbishop of Alexandria, Father and Doctor of the Church (Fragment 283)

PRAYER – O Lord, may the merits of Antoninus, Your Confessor and Bishop, help us and just as we praise You for the wonders You have wrought in him, so may we glory in Your mercy toward us. T hrough 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).