staugustine – Page 17

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on LOVE, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 21 November – ‘May your peace be in your love.’

Posted on November 21, 2019November 21, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 21 November – Thursday of the Thirty Third week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 19:41-44 and Memorial of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

And when he drew near and saw the city he wept over it, saying, “Would that even today you knew the things that make for peace!”…Luke 19:41-42 and-when-he-drew-near-he-wept-luke-19-41-42-22-nov-2018 and 21 nov 2019.jpg

REFLECTION – “I rejoiced because they said to me, ‘We will go up to the house of the Lord.’ And now we have set foot within your gates, O Jerusalem” (Ps 122[121]:1-2). What Jerusalem is this? On earth there is a city of this name but it is a mere shadow of that other Jerusalem. What kind of happiness is there in standing in a Jerusalem here below that is unable to stand of itself but which fell to the ground in ruins?… It is not of the Jerusalem here below that someone speaks who has such great love, such great longing, such great desire to come to the Jerusalem, “our mother”, of which Saint Paul says that it is “eternal in the heavens” (Gal 4:26; 2 Cor 5:1)…

“O Jerusalem, may your peace be in your strength” (Ps 122[121]:7). That is to say, may your peace be in your love, for your love is your strength. Hear the Song of Songs: “Love is strong as death” (8:6)… And indeed, love destroys what we have been, so that we might become, through a sort of death, what we were not… This was the sort of death that was working in him who said: “The world is crucified to me and I to the world” (Gal 6:14). It was of this death that the same apostle was speaking when he said: “You have die, and your life is hidden with Christ in God” (Col 3:3). Yes, “love is strong as death”. If love is strong, then it is powerful, it has great strength, it is strength itself… So may your peace be in your strength, O Jerusalem. May your peace be in your love.” … St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor – Discourses on the Psalms, Ps 121[122]:1, §3,12 if love is strong then it is powerful - st augustine 21 nov 2019 luke 19 41-44.jpg

PRAYER – Lord, as we honour the memory of the Blessed Virgin Mary and seek her help, grant that we, like her, may shine in the fullness of Your grace. Through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. presentation of mary - our hope pray for us 21 nov 2019.jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD is LOVE, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on LOVE, SAINT of the DAY

Thought for the Day – 20 November -The Heart of the Just Man will Rejoice in the Lord

Posted on November 20, 2019November 20, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 20 November – Wednesday of the Thirty Third week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 19:11–28 and the Memorial of Blessed Maria Fortunata Viti OSB (1827-1922)

The Heart of the Just Man will Rejoice in the Lord

Saint Augustine (354-430)
Bishop and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from Sermon 21

“The just man will rejoice in the Lord and put his hope in Him, the hearts of all good men will be filled with joy. We must surely have sung these words with our hearts as well as with our voices. Indeed, the tongue of the Christian expresses his deepest feelings when it addresses such words to God. The just man will rejoice, not in the world but in the Lord. Light has dawned for the just, Scripture says in another place and joy for the upright of heart. Were you wondering what reason he has for joy? Here you are told – the just man will rejoice in the Lord. Another text runs – Delight in the Lord and he will give you your heart’s desires.

What are we instructed to do then and what are we enabled to do? To rejoice in the Lord. But who can rejoice in something he does not see? Am I suggesting that we see the Lord then? No, but we have been promised that we shall see Him. Now, as long as we are in the body, we walk by faith, for we are absent from the Lord. We walk by faith and not by sight. When will it be by sight? Beloved, says John, we are now the sons of God, what we shall be has not yet been revealed but we know that when it is revealed we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is. When this prophecy is fulfilled, then it will be by sight.

That will be the great joy, the supreme joy, joy in all its fullness. Then we shall no longer drink the milk of hope but we shall feed on the reality itself. Nevertheless, even now, before that vision comes to us, or before we come to that vision, let us rejoice in the Lord, for it is no small reason for rejoicing to have a hope that will some day be fulfilled.

Therefore, since the hope we now have inspires love, the just man rejoices, Scripture says, in the Lord but because he does not yet see, it immediately goes on to say and hopes in Him.

Yet already we have the first-fruits of the Spirit and have we not also other reasons for rejoicing? For we are drawing near to the one we love and not only are we drawing near—we even have some slight feeling and taste of the banquet we shall one day eagerly eat and drink.

But how can we rejoice in the Lord if He is far from us? Pray God He may not be far. If He is, that is your doing. Love and He will draw near, love and He will dwell within you. The Lord is at hand, have no anxiety. Are you puzzled to know how it is that He will be with you if you love? God is love.

“What do you mean by love?” you will ask me. It is that which enables us to be loving. What do we love? A good that words cannot describe, a good that is forever giving, a good that is the Creator of all good. Delight in Him from whom you have received everything that delights you. But in that I do not include sin, for sin is the one thing that you do not receive from Him. With that one exception, everything you have comes from Him.”

“The Love and the Power of God!”

Blessed Maria Fortunata Viti, Pray for Us!

DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on HUMILITY, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 27 October – Not as a son but as a hired servant

Posted on October 27, 2019October 27, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 27 October – Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 18:9–14

“For everyone who exalts himself
will be humbled
and he who humbles himself
will be exalted.”

Luke 14:11

‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’

Luke 18:13

“If you wish to reach high, then begin at the lowest level.
If you are trying to construct some mighty edifice in height,
you will begin with the lowest foundation.
This is humility.
However great the mass of the building you may wish to design or erect,
the taller the building is to be, the deeper you will dig the foundation.
The building in the course of its erection, rises up high
but he who digs its foundation, must first go down very low.
So then, you see even a building is low before it is high
and the tower is raised, only after humiliation.”

St Augustine (354-430)
Father & Doctor (Sermon 69)

“The three most important virtues are:
humility,
humility
and humility.”

St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)
Doctor of the Church

“For it is well known, that,
on the spiritual road, not to go on,
overcoming self,
is to go backwards
and not to increase our gain,
is to lose.”

St John of the Cross (1542-1591)
Doctor of the Church

“We are ever but beginning,
the most perfect Christian,
is to himself but a beginner,
a penitent prodigal
who has squandered God’s gifts
and comes to Him,
to be tried over again,
not as a son
but as a hired servant.”

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, franciscan OFM, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 26 October – The fruitless tree

Posted on October 26, 2019October 26, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 26 October – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 13:1-9 and the Memorial of Blessed Bonaventura of Potenza OFM Conv (1651-1711)

And he said to the vinedresser, ‘Lo, these three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and I find none. Cut it down, why should it use up the ground?’…Luke 13:7

REFLECTION – “The Lord also has something very fitting to say about a fruitless tree, “Look, it is now three years that I have been coming to it. Finding no fruit on it, I will cut it down, to stop it blocking up my field.” The gardener intercedes. This tree is the human race. The Lord visited this tree in the time of the patriarchs, as if for the first year. He visited it in the time of the law and the prophets, as if for the second year. Here we are now, with the gospel the third year has dawned. Now it is as though it should have been cut down but the Merciful One intercedes with the Merciful One. He wanted to show how merciful He was and so He stood up to Himself with a plea for mercy. “Let us leave it,” he says, “this year too. Let us dig a ditch around it.” Manure is a sign of humility. “Let us apply a load of manure, perhaps it may bear fruit.” Since it does bear fruit in one part and in another part does not bear fruit, its Lord will come and divide it. What does that mean, “divide it”? There are good people and bad people now in one company, as though constituting one body.” … St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor (Sermon 254) luke-13-7-and-he-said-to-the-vinedresser-ST AUGUASTINE - 26 OCT 2019 THE LORD ALSO .jpg

PRAYER – Come to help us in our weakness, God of mercy, forgive the sins of Your people and as nothing we can do is worthy in Your sight, save us through the intercession of the Mother of our Lord, Jesus Christ. May the prayers of all your saints and we entreat Your servant, Blessed Bonaventura of Potenza to add his prayers on our behalf. We make our prayer through Jesus with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. bl bonaventura of potenza pray for us 26 oct 2019

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, JESUIT SJ, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on FREEDOM, QUOTES on MISSION, QUOTES on TRUTH, SPEAKING of .....

Quote/s of the Day – 25 October – Speaking of: “In the world but not of the world”

Posted on October 25, 2019October 25, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 25 October – Friday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 12:54-59

Speaking of: “In the world but not of the world”

“The Christian should be
an alleluia from head to foot.”

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

“Go forth and set the world on fire.”

St Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556)

“Tell others about the Truth that sets you free.”

Pope Benedict XVI

“If you follow Jesus,
you’re going to get into some trouble.”

“You are a billboard for Christ.”

Father Mike Schmitz

CONTEMPLATIVE Prayer, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on MISSION, QUOTES on SANCTITY, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 8 October – ‘But let us continue on our way …’

Posted on October 8, 2019October 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 8 October – Tuesday of the Twenty Seventh week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Goaspel: Luke 10:38–42

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious
and worried about many things.
There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part
and it will not be taken from her.”

Luke 10:42

“Our Lord’s words teach us that though we labour
among the many distractions of this world,
we should have but one goal.
For we are but travellers
on a journey without as yet a fixed abode,
we are on our way, not yet in our native land,
we are in a state of longing, not yet of enjoyment.
But let us continue on our way
and continue without sloth or respite,
so that we may ultimately arrive at our destination.”

St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor
(Sermo 103, 1-2, 6: PL 38, 613, 615)

“Action and contemplation
are very close companions;
they live together in one house on equal terms.
Martha and Mary are sisters.”

St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Doctor of the Church

“In bustling about and busying herself,
Martha risks forgetting —
and this is the problem —
the most important thing,
which is the presence of the Guest…
Most importantly He ought to be listened to. “

Pope Francis

ArchAngels and Angels, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FORGIVENESS, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on PRIDE, SAINT of the DAY, The SEVEN LAST WORDS of CHRIST, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 29 September – “God looks at what is within, it is there He assesses, there He examines.”

Posted on September 29, 2019September 28, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 29 September – Twenty Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 16:19–31 and The Feast of Sts Michael, Gabriel and Raphael

The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus in his bosom. … Luke 16:22-23 luke 16 22-23 the poor man died - 29 sept 2019.jpg

REFLECTION – “Was that poor man welcomed by the angels solely on account of his poverty? And the rich man, was he delivered up to torment by fault of his wealth alone? No. Let us clearly understand that it was humility that was honoured in the poor man and pride condemned in the rich.

This is the proof, briefly, that it was not his wealth but his pride for which the rich man deserved his punishment. So then, the poor man was carried into the bosom of Abraham, yet Scripture says of Abraham that he had much gold and silver and was rich on earth (Gn 13:2). If every rich man is sent into torment, how is it that Abraham could precede the poor man so as to welcome him into his bosom? It was because, in the midst of his wealth, Abraham was poor, humble, respectful and obedient to all God’s commands. He held his riches in so little esteem that, when God asked it of him, he consented to offer in sacrifice the son for whom these riches were destined (Gn 22:4).

Learn to be poor and needy, then, whether you possess something in this world or whether you don’t possess anything. Because we find beggars full of pride and rich people who confess their sins. “God resists the proud” whether they are covered with silk or with rags but “he gives grace to the humble” (Jas 4:6) whether or not, they have possessions in this world. God looks at what is within, it is there He assesses, there He examines.” … Saint Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church – Discourses on the psalms, Ps 85 [86]; CCL 39, 1178 god resists the proud - god looks at what is within - st augustine - 29 sept 2019.jpg

PRAYER – Dear and Holy God, let us offer You all our daily struggles against sin and evil. Grant us the strength to resist all forms of idolatry, to seek only You and never to allow the material goods of this world to seduce us . Sustain us ever more with Your word and help us to find in it, the source of life. Grant that the angels who always minister to You in heaven may defend us during our life on earth and protect us from evil. Grant this, through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen

CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, SOLDIERS/ARMOUR of CHRIST, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The HOLY CROSS, The WORD

Thought for the Day – 8 September – ‘The heavenly trumpet of Christ urges the soldier to battle..’ St Augustine

Posted on September 8, 2019September 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 8 September – Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, Luke 14:25–33

“If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”… Luke 14:26

Saint Augustine comments on this verse from the Gospel proclaimed during today’s Mass:

“The Lord gives the signal for us to stand guard in camp and to build the tower from which we may recognise and ward off the enemy of our eternal life. The heavenly trumpet of Christ urges the soldier to battle and his mother holds him back.

What does she say or what argument does she give? Perhaps is it those ten months when you lay in her womb and the pangs of birth and the burden of rearing you? You must kill this with the sword of salvation. You must destroy this in your mother that you may find her in life eternal. Remember, you must hate this in her if you love her, if you are a recruit of Christ and have laid the foundations of the tower. Passers-by may not say, “This man began to build and was not able to finish.” That is earthly affection. It still has the ring of the “old man.” Christian warfare invites us to destroy this earthly affection both in ourselves and in our relatives. Of course, no one should be ungrateful to his parents or mock the list of their services to him, since by them he was brought into this life, cherished and fed. A man should always pay his family duty but let these things keep their place where higher duties do not call.

Mother church is also the mother of your mother. She conceived you both, in Christ. Know that, her Spouse took human flesh, that you might not be attached to fleshly things. Know that, all the things for which your mother scolds you were undertaken by the eternal Word, that you might not be subject to the weakness of flesh. Ponder his humiliations, scourging and death, even the death of the cross.” (Letter 243)

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have mercy on me a sinner!

Amen

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on LOVE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 30 August – “That way above the rest”

Posted on August 30, 2019August 30, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 30 August – Friday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 25:1–13 and the Memorial of Blessed Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster OSB (1880-1954)

“The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps.” … Matthew 25:3-4

REFLECTION – “It is some great thing, some exceedingly great thing, that this oil signifies. Do you think it might be charity? If we try out this hypothesis, we hazard no precipitate judgement. I will tell you why charity seems to be signified by the oil. The apostle says, “I will show you a still more excellent way.” “If I speak with the tongue of mortals and of angels but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” This is charity. It is “that way above the rest,” which is with good reason signified by the oil. For oil swims above all liquids. Pour in water and pour in oil upon it, the oil will swim above. If you keep the usual order, it will be uppermost, if you change the order, it will be uppermost. “Charity never fails.” … St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor – Sermon 93 matthew 25 3-4 the foolish ones took no oil - it is some great thing that this oil signifies - st augustine - 30 aug 2019.jpg

PRAYER – God our Saviour, through the grace of Baptism you made us children of light. Hear our prayer, that we may always walk in that light and work for truth, love and charity, as Your witnesses before men. Dispel from our hearts the darkness of sin and keep us ever watchful for the true light, Christ Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God forever. Blessed Alfredo Schuster, you lived a life of total charity ever watchful to the needs of your neighbour, please pray for us, amen. bl alfredo schuster pray for us 30 aug 2019

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, St JOHN the BAPTIST, The WILL of GOD

Quote/s of the Day – 29 August – Whatever He wants I want

Posted on August 29, 2019August 29, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 29 August – The Beheading of St John the Baptist and the Memorial of Blessed Sancja Szymkowiak CMBB (1910-1942)

“O great and admirable mystery!
He must increase but I must decrease, said John,
said the voice which personified all the voices
that had gone before announcing
the Father’s Word Incarnate in His Christ….
But He is said to grow in us, when we grow in Him.
To him, then, who draws near to Christ,
to him who makes progress in the contemplation of wisdom,
words are of little use, of necessity they tend to fail altogether.
Thus, the ministry of the voice falls short,
in proportion as the soul progresses towards the Word,
it is thus, that Christ must increase and John decrease.
The same is indicated by the beheading of John
and the exaltation of Christ upon the Cross,
as it had already been shown by their birthdays –
for, from the birth of John the days begin to shorten
and from the birth of Our Lord they begin to grow longer.”

St Augustine (354-420)
Father & Doctor

“God’s will is my will.
Whatever He wants I want.”

Blessed Sancja Szymkowiak (1910-1942)

Blessed Sancja’s personal motto

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD is LOVE, GOD the FATHER, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY

Thought for the day – 28 August – O Eternal Truth, True Love and Beloved Eternity

Posted on August 28, 2019August 28, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the day – 28 August – The Memorial of St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

O Eternal Truth, True Love and Beloved Eternity

Saint Augustine of Hippo
Bishop and Great Western Father of the Church

An excerpt from his treatise, The Confessions

Urged to reflect upon myself, I entered under Your guidance into the inmost depth of my soul. I was able to do so, because You were my helper. On entering into myself I saw, as it were with the eye of the soul, what was beyond the eye of the soul, beyond my spirit: Your immutable light. It was not the ordinary light perceptible to all flesh, nor was it merely something of greater magnitude but still essentially akin, shining more clearly and diffusing itself everywhere by its intensity. No it was something entirely distinct, something altogether different from all these things and it did not rest above my mind as oil on the surface of water, nor was it above me as Heaven is above the Earth. This light was above me because it has made me, I was below it because I was created by it. He who has come to know the truth knows this light.

O Eternal truth, true love and beloved eternity. You are my God. To You do I sigh day and night. When I first came to know You, You drew me to Yourself, so that I might see that there were things for me to see but that I myself was not yet ready to see them. Meanwhile, You overcame the weakness of my vision, sending forth most strongly, the beams of Your light, and I trembled at once with love and dread. I learned that I was in a region unlike Yours and far distant from You and I thought I heard Your voice from on high: “I am the food of grown men, grow then and you will feed on Me. Nor will you change me into yourself like bodily food but you will be changed into Me.”

I sought a way to gain the strength which I needed to enjoy You. But I did not find it until I embraced the mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who is above all, God blessed for ever. He was calling me and saying – I am the way of truth, I am the life. He was offering the food which I lacked the strength to take, the food He had mingled with our flesh. For the Word became flesh, that Your wisdom, by which You created all things, might provide milk for us children.

Late have I loved You, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved You! You were within me but I was outside and it was there that I searched for You. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which You created. You were with me but I was not with You. Created things kept me from You, yet if they had not been in You they would not have been at all. You called, You shouted and You broke through my deafness. You flashed, You shone and You dispelled my blindness. You breathed Your fragrance on me, I drew in breath and now I pant for You. I have tasted You, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me and I burned for Your peace.

St Augustine, Pray for Us!

DOCTORS of the Church, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ALMS, QUOTES on ANGELS, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on the DEVIL/EVIL, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The HOLY SOULS, The SIGN of the CROSS

Quote/s of the Day – 28 August – Wonderful Augustine

Posted on August 28, 2019August 28, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 28 August – The Memorial of St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

“God in his omnipotence
could not give more,
in His wisdom –
He knew not how to give more,
in His riches: –
He had not more to give,
than the EUCHARIST!”

“I will suggest a means whereby
you can praise God all day long, if you wish.
Whatever you do,
do it well
and you have praised God.”

“One of the holiest works,
one of the best exercises of piety
which we can practice in this world,
is to offer sacrifices,
alms
and prayer
for the dead.”

“It was pride,
that changed angels
into devils;
it is humility
that makes men
as angels.”

“

“He need not fear anything
nor be ashamed of anything,
who bears the
Sign of the Cross
on his brow.”

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

More here:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/08/28/quote-s-of-the-day-28-august-the-memorial-of-st-augustine-354-430-father-and-doctor-of-grace/

CONFESSION/PENANCE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on HYPOCRISY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 28 August – Flee to Him by Confessing

Posted on August 28, 2019August 27, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 28 August – Wednesday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 23:27–32 and The Memorial of St Augustine of Hippo (354-430) – Doctor of Grace

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful but within they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.” … Matthew 23:27 woe to you scribes and pharisees - whitewashed tombs - matthew 23 27 - 28 aug 2019.jpg

REFLECTION – “You are before God. Question your heart, see what you have done and what you have been yearning for there—your salvation or the windy praise of men. Look within, for a person cannot judge one whom he cannot see. If we are assuring our heart, let us assure it in His presence.
“Because if our heart thinks badly”—that is, if it accuses us within, because we aren’t acting with the spirit with which we should be acting —“God is greater than our heart, and he knows all things” (v.20).
You hide your heart from man – hide it from God if you can. How will you hide it from Him to whom it was said by a certain sinner in fear and confession: “Where shall 1 go from your spirit, and where shed! I flee from your face?”… For where does God not exist? “If,” he said, “I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to hell, you are present” (Ps 139[138]:7-8). Where will you go? Where will you flee? Do you want to hear some advice? If you want to flee from Him, flee to Him. Flee to Him by Confessing, not from Him by hiding, for you cannot hide but you can Confess. Tell Him. “You are my refuge” (Ps 32[31]:7) and let there be nursed in you the love that alone leads to life.”…St Augustine (354-430) – Doctor of Grace

PRAYER – Renew in Your Church, we pray , O Lord, the spirit with which You endowed Your Bishop Saint Augustine, that, filled with the same spirit, we may thirst for You, the sole fount of true wisdom and seek You, the author of heavenly love. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. St Augustine, pray for us! Amen st augustine pray for us 28 aug 2019.jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN Saturdays, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY

Our Morning Offering – 28 August – Go on, O Lord and Act

Posted on August 28, 2019August 27, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 28 August – Wednesday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C and The Memorial of St Augustine of Hippo (354-430) – Doctor of Grace and one of the original Four Fathers & Doctors of the Latin Church

Go on, O Lord and Act
By St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace

Go on, O Lord and act,
stir us up and call us back,
inflame us and draw us to Thee,
stir us up and grow sweet to us,
let us now love Thee,
let us run to Thee.
Are there not many men …
who, out of a deeper pit of darkness..
return to Thee–who draw near to Thee
and are illuminated by that light
which gives those
who receive it power from Thee
to become Thy sons?
Amen go on Lord and act - stir us up and call us back - st augustine - mem of simpliacinus 18 jan 2019.jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, JESUIT SJ, SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints – 28 August

Posted on August 28, 2019August 27, 2019 by AnaStpaul

St Augustine of Hippo (354-430) – Doctor of Grace and one of the original Four Fathers & Doctors of the Latin Church(Memorial)
Wonderful St Augustine here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/08/28/saint-of-the-day-28-august-st-augustine-354-430-doctor-of-grace-and-one-of-the-original-four-fathers-doctors-of-the-latin-church/

StAdelindis of Buchau
St Agnes of Cologne
St Alexander of Constantinople
St Ambrose of Saintes
Bl Angelo da Pesche d’Isernia
St Anthes of Salerno
Bl Charles-Arnold Hanus
St Edmund Arrowsmith SJ (1585 – 1628) Martyr
About St Edmund:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/08/28/saint-of-the-day-28-august-st-edmund-arrowsmith-s-j-1585-1628-martyr/

St Facundinus of Taino
St Felix of Venosa
St Fortunatus of Salerno
St Gaius of Salerno
St Gorman of Schleswig
Bl Henry Webley
St Hermes of Rome
Bl Hugh More
Bl James Claxton
St Januarius of Venosa
St Joaquina Vedruna de Mas
St Julian of Auvergne
St Moses the Black
St Pelagius of Istria
St Restitutus of Carthage
St Rumwold the Prince
St Septiminus of Venosa
St Vicinius/of Sarsina (Died 330)
St Vivian of Saintes
Bl William Dean
—
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
Martyrs of Griñon – 10 beati
Martyrs of Tarragona – 6 beati
• Blessed Agustín Bermejo Miranda
• Blessed Alejandro Iñiguez De Heredia Alzola
• Blessed Andrés Merino Báscones
• Blessed Antonio Solá Garriga
• Blessed Arturo Ros Montalt
• Blessed Aurelio da Vinalesa
• Blessed Celestino Ruiz Alegre
• Blessed Cesáreo España Ortiz
• Blessed Eladi Peres Bori
• Blessed Evencio Castellanos López
• Blessed Francisco López Navarette
• Blessed Germán Arribas y Arribas
• Blessed Graciliano Ortega Narganes
• Blessed Isidre Fábregas Gils
• Blessed Jaume Tarragó Iglesias
• Blessed Javier Pradas Vidal
• Blessed Joan Tomás Gibert
• Blessed Joaquim Oliveras Puljarás
• Blessed José Gorastazu Labayen
• Blessed Josep Camprubí Corrubí
• Blessed Juan Bautista Faubel Cano
• Blessed Lázaro Ruiz Peral
• Blessed Manoel José Sousa de Sousa
• Blessed Modest Godo Buscato
• Blessed Modest Pamplona Falguera
• Blessed Nicolás Rueda Barriocanal
• Blessed Serviliano Solá Jiménez
• Blessed Teodoro Pérez Gómez

ON the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on MOTHERHOOD, QUOTES on PERSEVERANCE, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on the FAMILY, SAINT of the DAY

Thought for the Day – 27 August -St Monica’s ‘Nunc Dimittis”

Posted on August 27, 2019August 27, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 27 August – Tuesday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C and The Memorial of St Monica (322-387)

Blessed John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Sermons preached on various occations

“Many a mother, who is anxious for her son’s bodily welfare, neglects his soul.
So, did NOT the Saint of today – her son might be accomplished, eloquent, able and distinguished – all this was nothing to her, while he was dead in God’s sight, while he was the slave of sin, while he was the prey of heresy.
She desired his true life.
She wearied heaven with prayer
and wore out herself,
with praying –
she did not at once prevail.
He left his home,
he was carried forward by his four bearers –
ignorance,
pride,
appetite
and ambition –
he was carried out into a foreign land,
he crossed over from Africa to Italy.
She followed him,
she followed the corpse,
the chief,
the only mourner-
she went where he went, from city to city.
It was nothing to her to leave her dear home and her native soil, she had no country below; her sole rest, her sole repose, her Nunc dimittis, was his new birth.
So while she still walked forth in her deep anguish and isolation
and her silent prayer,
she was at length rewarded by the long-coveted miracle.
Grace melted the proud heart
and purified the corrupt breast of Augustine
and restored
and comforted
his mother!”

“How many difficulties there are also today in family relationships
and how many mothers are anguished because their children choose mistaken ways!
Monica, a wise and solid woman in the faith, invites us not to be discouraged
but to persevere in our mission of wives and mothers,
maintaining firm our confidence in God and clinging with perseverance to prayer.”

Pope Benedict XVI (27 August 2006)

St Monica, Pray with us for our sons, Pray for Us!

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY

Our Morning Offering – 27 August – Late Have I Loved You

Posted on August 27, 2019August 26, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 27 August – Tuesday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C and The Memorial of St Monica (322-387)

Late Have I Loved You
By St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor

Late have I loved You,
Beauty so ancient and so new,
late have I loved You!
Lo, you were within,
but I outside, seeking there for You
and upon the shapely things You have made
I rushed headlong – I, misshapen.
You were with me but I was not with You.
They held me back far from You,
those things which would have no being,
were they not in You.
You called, shouted, broke through my deafness.
You flared, blazed, banished my blindness.
You lavished Your fragrance, I gasped
and now I pant for You.
I tasted You and now I hunger and thirst;
You touched me and I burned for Your peace. late have i loved you 27 august 2019 st monica's feast day.jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, HYMNS, ON the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, St PETER!

Thought for the Day – 1 August – ‘Upon this rock I will build my Church!’

Posted on August 1, 2019August 1, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 1 August – Thursday of the Seventeenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C and the Feast of St Peter in Chains

Homily of St Augustine

Peter alone among the Apostles was accounted worthy to hear – A – men I say to thee, that thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church. Worthy indeed was he, to be the foundation-stone, the supporting pillar, the key to the kingdom, in building up the peoples into the house of God. Concerning this, the divine word says – And they laid, it says, their sick, that when Peter passed by, his shadow at the least might fall on them. If at that time the shadow of his body could give aid, how much more now can the fullness of his power? If a mere breath of air from him, as he passed by, was of such benefit to suppliants, how much more his favour now that he remains steadfast? With good reason is the iron of those Penal chains held throughout all the churches of Christ to be more precious than gold.

If the shadow of him who visited was so potent to cure, how much more the chains of him who binds? If even the mere appearance of an empty image could have the force of healing in it, how much more healthfulness should the chains, with which he suffered, whose iron weight had pressed upon his sacred members, deserve to draw forth from his body? If he was so mighty to help his suppliants before his martyrdom, how much more must he avail after his triumph?

Happy those bonds, which by touching the Apostle rendered him a Martyr and so from manacles and fetters themselves were changed into a crown! Happy chains, which brought their prisoner even unto the cross of Christ, not so much for condemnation as for consecration!

Jesus said to His disciples – Who do men say that the Son of Man is? Peter answered and said – Thou art Christ, the son of the living God. And I say to thee – that thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church! the chains of st peter hymn 1 aug 2019.jpg

Hymn
The Chains of Saint Peter

How blessed is the force of prayer!
Eager for Peter’s fate,
Thy soldiers, Herod, bound him fast,
And watch’d before the gate.

But Jesus has His soldiers, too,
They also vigils keep,
They watch to prayer, while Peter rests
In faith composed in sleep.

And Jesus other soldiers has,
Responsive to the call
Of prayer His holy angels come,
Sent by the Lord of all.

Prayer brought an angel down from heaven,
Sentries and bars are vain,
With heavenly light the prison shines,
Unlocked is Peter’s chain.

St Peter, Pray for Us!

ArchAngels and Angels, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on PERSEVERANCE, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on TEMPTATION, QUOTES on the DEVIL/EVIL, SACRAMENTS, SPEAKING of ....., The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 27 July – “Speaking of: Temptation”

Posted on July 27, 2019July 27, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 27 July – Saturday of the Sixteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: 13:24-30

“Speaking of: Temptation”

‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field?
How then has it weeds?’

Matthew 13:27

“As we do battle and fight, in the contest of faith,
God, His angels and Christ Himself, watch us.
How exalted is the glory,
how great the joy of engaging in a contest with God presiding,
of receiving a crown,
with Christ as judge.”

St Cyprian of Carthage (200-258)
Bishop, Martyr, Father of the Church

“The dragon sits by the side of the road,
watching those who pass.
Beware lest he devour you.
We go to the Father of Souls
but it is necessary to pass by the dragon.”

Saint Cyril of Jerusalem (315-387)
Father & Doctor of the Church

“So let us not be afraid of temptations.
Rather, let us glory in them saying:
“When I am weak, then am I strong.”
[2 Cor. 12:10]”

St Ambrose (339-397 AD)
Doctor of the Church

“He could have kept the devil from Himself
but if He were not tempted,
He could not teach you
how to triumph over temptation.”

Saint Augustine (354-430)
Bishop and Great Western Father
and Doctor of the Church

“Three things are absolutely
necessary against temptation –
prayer to enlighten us,
the sacraments to strengthen us
and vigilance to preserve us.
Happy are souls that are tempted!
It is when the devil discerns
that a soul is tending towards
union with God
that he redoubles his rage!”

St John Marie Vianney (1786-1859)

“God will never permit anything,
to happen to us, that is not for our greater good.”

“The storms that are raging around you,
will turn out to be for God’s glory,
your own merit
and the good of many souls.”

“We have close to us, an angelic spirit,
who never leaves us for an instant,
from the cradle to the grave,
who guides and protects us,
like a friend or a brother.”

St Padre Pio of Pietrelcina (1887-1968)

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on MARTYRDOM, QUOTES on PERSECUTION, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY, The APOSTLES & EVANGELISTS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 25 July – “Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?”

Posted on July 25, 2019July 25, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 25 July – Feast of St James, Apostle, Gospel: Matthew 20:20–28

Jesus said in reply, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” They said to him, “We can.”……Matthew 20:28 matthew-20-28 - you do not know what you are asking, can you drink - st james 25 july 2017 and 2019.jpg

REFLECTION – “Christ laid down His life for us, so we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers” (1Jn 3,16)… Jesus said to Peter: “When you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted but when you grow old … someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go…” (Jn 21,18). It was the Cross, the Passion, He promised him. “Go even so far as to pasture my sheep, suffer for my sheep.” This is what a good bishop is to be like. If he is not, he is no bishop…

Now listen to this other testimony. Two of His disciples, the brothers John and James who were sons of Zebedee, were ambitious for the first place without consideration for the others… Our Lord answered them: “You do not know what you are asking”, for he added: “Can you drink the cup that I am going to drink?” What cup is this if not that… of the Passion?… And they, forgetting their weakness, immediately said: “We can”. Then He said to them: “My cup you will indeed drink. But to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father”… In this way He gave proof of His humility for, in fact, everything the Father prepares is prepared, too, for the Son… He came in humility – He, the Creator, was created amongst us, He made us but He was made for us. God before time began, man in time, He delivered man from time. This great physician has come to heal our cancer… by His example, He has come to heal pride itself.

This is what we must give our attention to, in the Lord – let us consider His humility, drink the cup of His humility, clasp Him, contemplate Him. How easy it is to have elevated thoughts, easy to take pleasure in honours, easy to give one’s ear to flatterers and people who praise us. But to bear with insult, patiently undergo humiliation, pray for those who persecute us (Mt 5,39.44) – that is the Lord’s cup, that is the Lord’s feast.“… Saint Augustine (354-430) FathEr & Doctor of the Church – Sermon for the ordination of a bishop, Guelferbytanus no.32

PRAYER – Almighty ever-living God, who consecrated the first fruits of Your Apostles by the blood of Saint James, grant, we pray, that Your Church may be strengthened by his confession of faith and constantly sustained by his protection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever. St James the Greater, Apostle of Christ, Pray for us! Amen st-james-pray-for-us-25-july 2017 and 2019.jpg

CARMELITES, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PATIENCE, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, SAINT of the DAY, The WILL of GOD, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 24 July – ‘…whoever does the will of my Father in heaven…’

Posted on July 23, 2019July 23, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 24 July – Tuesday of the Sixteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 12:46-50 and the Memorial of St Bridget of Sweden (c 1303 – 1373)

“For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven,
is my brother and sister and mother.”

Matthew 12:50

“His mother is the whole Church,
since it is she, who, by God’s grace,
gives birth to Christ’s members,
that is to say, those who are faithful to Him.
Again, His mother is every holy soul,
who does the Father’s will
and whose fruitful charity
is made known in those,
to whom she gives birth for Him,
“until he has been formed in them”
(cf Gal 4:19).

St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor

“O Lord, make haste and illumine the night.
Say to my soul, that nothing happens,
without You permitting it
and that nothing of what You permit,
is without comfort.”

St Bridget of Sweden (c 1303 – 1373)

“It is a matter of real sorrow when God has given us strength to break stronger fetters, those of vanity and sin, that we neglect our own progress and the attainment of such great blessings, because we will not detach ourselves from trifles.
Not only do we not advance, we fall back.
For it is well known, that on the spiritual road, not to go on, overcoming self, is to go backwards and not to increase our gain, is to lose.
As wood can never be transformed into fire, if one necessary degree of heat is missing, so the soul, that has even one imperfection, can never be perfectly transformed in God.”

St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on HUMILITY, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 19 July – “take my yoke upon you and learn from me”

Posted on July 18, 2019July 18, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 19 July – Thursday of the Fifteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C – Today’s Gospel: Matthew 11:28-30.

“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart and you will find rest for yourselves…” … Matthew 11:29 matthew 11 29 take my yoke upon you 18 july 2019

REFLECTION – “You are to “take my yoke upon you and learn from me.” You are not learning from me how to refashion the fabric of the world, nor to create all things visible and invisible, nor to work miracles and raise the dead. Rather, you are simply learning of me: “that I am meek and lowly in heart.” If you wish to reach high, then begin at the lowest level. If you are trying to construct some mighty edifice in height, you will begin with the lowest foundation. This is humility. However great the mass of the building you may wish to design or erect, the taller the building is to be, the deeper you will dig the foundation. The building in the course of its erection, rises up high but he who digs its foundation, must first go down very low. So then, you see even a building is low before it is high and the tower is raised, only after humiliation.”… St Augustine (354-430) Fater & Doctor (Sermon 69) if you wish to reach high then begin at the lowest level st augustine 18 july 2019

PRAYER – “Holy God, our Father, we turn to You in confidence as children and pray, give us meekness of heart, make us “poor in spirit” that we may recognise that we are not self-sufficient, that we are unable to build our lives on our own but need You, we need to encounter You, to listen to You, to speak to You. Help us to understand that we need Your gift, Your wisdom, which is Jesus Himself, in order to do the Your will in our lives and thus to find rest in the hardships of our journey.” Hear the prayers we request of St Simon of Lipnica dear Lord and holy God, which we pray through Christ, our Light, in the Holy Spirit, one God for all eternity, amen. … Pope Benedict XVI, General Audience, 7 December 2011

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on MARRIAGE, MARRIED LOVE, QUOTES on the FAMILY, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 15 July -‘… but not more than you love your God!’

Posted on July 15, 2019July 14, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 15 July – Monday of the Fifteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 10:34-11:1 and The Memorial of St Bonaventure (1221-1274) Doctor of the Church and Bl Anne-Marie Javouhey (1779-1851)

“Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me…” … Matthew 10:37

REFLECTION – “It is to those who are on fire with love or, rather, those He wants to set on fire with this love, that our Saviour addresses these words. For our Saviour has not done away with but regulated, the love we owe to parents, spouse, children. He did not say: “Those who love them” but “Those who love them more than me”… Love your father but love the Lord even more, love him who brought you into the world but love yet more he who gave you being. It was your father who brought you into the world but it was not he who created you, since he did not know, when he bred you, who you would be or what you would become. It was your father who fed you but he is not the origin of the food that staunched your hunger. Finally, your father must die if you are to inherit his goods but you will share the inheritance God intends for you, while living with him eternally.

So love your father but not more than you love your God, love your mother but love still more the Church who has begotten you into eternal life… Indeed, if you owe such gratitude to those who begot you for mortality, what kind of love do you owe to those who begot you for eternity? Love your spouse, love your children as God does, to lead them to serve God together with you and then, when you are reunited, you will not be afraid of being separated. Your love for your family would indeed fall short if you did not lead them to God…

Take up your cross and follow the Lord. Your Saviour Himself, wholly God as He was in the flesh, clothed with your flesh, He, too, showed human feelings when He said – “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me,” (Mt 26:39)… The servant’s nature with which He clothed Himself for your sake caused His human voice, the voice of His flesh, to be heard. He took your voice so as to express your weakness and give you His strength… and to show you, whose will to prefer.”… St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church – Sermon 344, #2-3 matthew 10 37 whoever lovs father or mother - so love your father but not more - st augustine 15 july 2019.jpg

PRAYER – God our Father, we are Your children and You have set us aside to come home to You by the light of the way of Your divine Son. Grant we pray, that we may grow in faith and love daily, by the intercession of Saint Bonaventure and Blessed Anne-Marie Javouhey (1779-1851) and may be a light of love, to all around us, as they were. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus with You in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. st bonaventure pray for us 15 july 2019

bl anne-marie javouhey pray for us 15 july 2019

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MORNING Prayers, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on JOY, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 4 July – “Rise and walk”

Posted on July 4, 2019July 4, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 4 July – Thursday of the Thirteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 9:1–8

“Rise and walk”…Matthew 9:5

REFLECTION – “If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, then He who raised Christ from the dead will bring your mortal bodies to life also.” (Rom 8:11) Now it is a natural human body, then it will be a spiritual body. “Adam the first man, became a living soul, the last Adam has become a life-giving spirit.” (1 Cor 15:45) That is why He “will bring your mortal bodies to life… through His Spirit dwelling in you.”

Oh, what a happy Hallelujah we will sing then! What security! No more adversary, no more enemy, we won’t lose a single friend. Here below, we sing God’s praises in the midst of our worries, in heaven, we will sing them in perfect tranquillity. Here below, we sing them as people who have to die, in heaven, it will be in a life that never ends. Here below, in hope, in heaven, in the reality. Here below, we are travellers, then we shall be in our homeland. So let us begin singing already now, brothers, not in order to savour the rest but in order to alleviate our work. Let us sing like travellers. Sing but without ceasing to walk, sing to console yourself in the midst of fatigue… Sing and walk!

What does that mean, walk? Go forward, make progress in doing good… Go forward by walking towards the good, advance in faith and in the purity of your habits. Sing and walk! Don’t lose your way; don’t turn back, don’t stand still. Let us turn towards the Lord.”... St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor – Sermon 256 rise and walk matthew 9 5 - what does that mean walk - st augustine - 4 july 2019.jpg

PRAYER – Loving God and Father, we turn to You in praise and thanksgiving in good times, in trials and moments of sadness and happiness. May the prayers of Your angels and saints support our weak efforts, today especially we ask St Elizabeth of Portugal and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, to hear our pleas. By the great gift of Your love and mercy You dispel the darkness of sin and bring us to the true Light, Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.

st elizabeth of portugal - pray for us - 4 july 2018

FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MORNING Prayers, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, St JOHN the BAPTIST

Thought for the Day- 24 June – The tongue is loosened because a voice is born.

Posted on June 24, 2019June 24, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day- 24 June – The Solemnity of the Birth of Saint John the Baptist Year C, Gospel: Luke 1:57–66

The Voice of One Crying in the Wilderness

Saint Augustine (354-430)
Bishop and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church

An excerpt from his Sermon 293

The Church observes the birth of John as a hallowed event. We have no such commemoration for any other fathers but it is significant, that we celebrate the birthdays of John and of Jesus. This day cannot be passed by. And even if my explanation does not match the dignity of the feast, you may still meditate on it with great depth and profit.

John is born of a woman too old for childbirth, Christ was born of a youthful virgin. The news of John’s birth was met with incredulity and his father was struck dumb. Christ’s birth was believed and He was conceived through faith.

Such is the topic, as I have presented it, for our inquiry and discussion. But as I said before, if I lack either the time or the ability to study the implications of so profound a mystery, He who speaks within you, even when I am not here, will teach you better, it is He whom you contemplate with devotion, whom you have welcomed into your hearts, whose temples you have become.

John, then, appears as the boundary between the two testaments, the old and the new. That he is a sort of boundary the Lord himself bears witness, when He speaks of the law and the prophets up until John the Baptist. Thus He represents times past and is the herald of the new era to come. As a representative of the past, he is born of aged parents, as herald of the new, he is declared to be a prophet while still in his mother’s womb. For when yet unborn, he leapt in his mother’s womb at the arrival of blessed Mary. In that womb, he had already been designated a prophet, even before he was born, it was revealed that he was to be Christ’s precursor, before they ever saw one another. These are divine happenings, going beyond the limits of our human frailty. Eventually he is born, he receives his name, his father’s tongue is loosened. See how these events reflect reality.

Zechariah is silent and loses his voice until John, the precursor of the Lord, is born and restores his voice. The silence of Zechariah is nothing but the age of prophecy lying hidden, obscured, as it were and concealed before the preaching of Christ. At John’s arrival, it becomes clear, when the one who was being prophesied is about to come. The release of Zechariah’s voice at the birth of John is a parallel to the rending of the veil at Christ’s crucifixion. If John were announcing his own coming, Zechariah’s lips would not have been opened. The tongue is loosened because a voice is born. For when John was preaching the Lord’s coming he was asked – Who are you? And he replied – I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness. The voice is John but the Lord in the beginning was the Word. John was a voice that lasted only for a time, Christ, the Word in the beginning, is eternal.

St John the Baptist, Pray for Us!

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FASTING, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on HYPOCRISY, QUOTES on PRIDE, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 19 June

Posted on June 19, 2019June 19, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 19 June – Wednesday of the Eleventh Week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 6:1–6 and the Memorial of St Romuald (c 951-1027) and St Juliana Falconieri OSM (1270 – 1341)

“Beware of practising your piety before men, in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven..”... Matthew 6:1

REFLECTION – ”Vainglory can find a place, not only, in the splendour and pomp of worldly wealth but even in the sordid garment of sackcloth as well. It is then all the more dangerous, because it is a deception, under the pretence of service to God.
When one dazzles by immoderate adornment of the body and its raiment, or by the splendour of whatever else one may possess, by that very fact, one is easily shown to desire ostentatious display. This person deceives nobody by a crafty semblance of holiness. But if, through extraordinary squalor and shabbiness, one is attracting others’ attention to one’s manner of professing Christianity and if, one is doing this of choice and not merely enduring it through necessity, then one may determine by one’s other works whether one is doing it through an indifference toward needless adornment, or through ambition of some kind. Indeed, the Lord has forewarned us to beware of wolves in sheep’s clothing: “By their fruits you shall know them.”
Trials of one kind or another, that cause these people to lose the very advantages they have gained, through their dress or claimed to deny, what they sought to gain by it, will inevitably reveal, whether it is a case of a wolf under a sheep’s skin or a sheep under its own. But just as sheep ought not to change their skin even though wolves sometimes hide themselves beneath it, so a Christian ought not try to delight the eyes of others by needless adornment, just because pretenders very often assume that scanty garb, which necessity demands and assume it, for the purpose of deceiving those, who are less aware.” … St Augustine (354-430) (Sermon on the Mount, 2) matthew 6 1 - beware of practising yuor piety - vainglory can find a place - st augustine 19 june 2019.jpg

PRAYER – Lord God, in Your wisdom You created us. By Your providence You rule us. Penetrate our inmost being with Your holy light, so that we may shine only by our service and imitation of Your Son and never seek to shine by our own efforts. May we be mirrors of His meek and humble Heart. Grant that the prayers of St Romuald and St Juliana Falconieri may be help on our way. Through Christ our Lord, in union with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.

st juliana falconieri pray for us - 19 june 2019.jpg

CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MARY, MATER ECCLESIAE, PAPAL ENCYLICALS, PAPAL PRAYERS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

The Second Official Memorial of this new feast day, the first Monday after Pentecost – Mary Mater Ecclesiae – Mary , Mother of the Church – 10 June 2019

Posted on June 10, 2019June 10, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Mary Mater Ecclesiae – Mary , Mother of the Church – 10 June 2019

Vatican Decree here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/03/04/pope-francis-institutes-new-celebration-of-mary-mother-of-the-church/

“As a caring guide to the emerging Church,
Mary had already begun her mission
in the Upper Room, praying with the Apostles,
while awaiting the coming of the Holy Spirit.”

Cardinal Robert Sarah

Congregation of Divine Worship
and the Discipline of the Sacraments,
11 February 2018, the memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lourdes.
DECREE ON THE CELEBRATION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY,
MOTHER OF THE CHURCH IN THE GENERAL ROMAN CALENDAR

as-a-caring-guide-to-the-emerging-church-cardinal-sarah-21-may-2018.jpg

“…She is clearly the Mother
of his members;
that is, of ourselves,
because she cooperated
by her charity,
so that faithful Christians,
members of the Head,
might be born in the Church.
As for the body,
she is the Mother of its Head…
Mary gave birth to our Head;
the Church gave birth to you.
Indeed, the Church also,
is both virgin and mother,
mother, because of her
womb of charity,
virgin, because of the integrity
of her faith and piety.”

St Augustine (354-430) Doctor of Grace

“Who, more than Mary, could be, a star of hope for us?
With her “yes”, she opened the door of our world,
to God Himself; she became the living Ark of the Covenant,
in whom God took flesh, became one of us
and pitched His tent among us.”

Spe Salvi 49 – Pope Benedict XVI

Prayer to Mary, Mother of the Church and Mother of our Faith
By our Holy Father, Pope Francis

Mother, help our faith!
Open our ears to hear God’s word
and to recognise His voice and call.
Awaken in us a desire, to follow in His footsteps,
to go forth from our own land
and to receive His promise.
Help us to be touched by His love,
that we may touch Him in faith.
Help us to entrust ourselves fully to Him
and to believe in His love,
especially at times of trial,
beneath the shadow of the cross,
when our faith is called to mature.
Sow in our faith the joy of the Risen One.
Remind us that those who believe are never alone.
Teach us to see all things with the eyes of Jesus,
that He may be light for our path.
And may this light of faith,
always increase in us,
until the dawn of that undying day,
which is Christ Himself, your Son, our Lord!
Amen

Prayer to Mary at the conclusion of the Encyclical Lumen Fidei (29 June 2013)
Image of Mary – Our Lady of the Column in St Peter’s Basilica

St Augustine(354-430)
The Image of the Holy Church

Gracious Lady,
you are a mother and virgin,
you are the mother
of the body and soul
of our Head and Redeemer,
you are also truly mother
of all the members of Christ’s Mystical Body.
For through your love,
you have co-operated
in the begetting of the faithful in the Church.
Unique among women,
you are mother and virgin,
mother of Christ and virgin of Christ.
You are the beauty and charm of earth, O Virgin.
You are, forever, the image of the holy Church.
Through a woman came death,
through a woman came life,
yes, through you, O Mother of God. the image of the holy church - st augustine - 10 june 2019 - mary mater ecclesiae mother of the church.jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, NOVENAS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The HOLY GHOST

Pentecost Novena to the Holy Spirit – Day Four – 3 June

Posted on June 3, 2019June 3, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Novena to the Holy Spirit – Day Four – 3 June

“O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart.

Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling

and scatter there Your cheerful beams.”

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

o holy spirit descend plentifully - st augustine - 3 june 2019.jpg

For the Traditional Novena, here with the Act of Consecration: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/05/11/pentecost-novena-to-the-holy-spirit-for-the-seven-gifts-day-one-11-may-2018/

DAY FOUR
Begin by reciting the following prayer…

O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.

Let us Pray:

O God,
Who today, by the light of the Holy Spirit
did instruct the hearts of the faithful,
give us, by the light of the same Holy Spirit,
a love for what is right and just
and a constant enjoyment of His comforts.
Pray Holy Spirit,
that I may strive to learn more of my faith;
that I may ever be conscious
that reason, in all its human magnificence,
is capable of grasping but a glimpse of the reality that is God.
Pray that I may accept as the motto of my life:

“All for the greater glory of God”

and grant me the favour I so earnestly seek in this novena…

Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them
the fire of Your love.
Amen

BREVIARY Prayers, FATHERS of the Church, GOD is LOVE, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on LOVE, SPEAKING of ....., The WORD, Thomas a Kempis

Quote/s of the Day – 24 May – Speaking of Love…

Posted on May 24, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 24 May – Friday of the Fifth Week of Eastertide: Today’s Gospel John 15:12-17

Speaking of Love…

“This is my commandment,
that you love one another,
as I have loved you…

John 15:12

“What is the mark of love for your neighbour?
Not to seek what is for your own benefit
but what is for the benefit of the one loved,
both in body and in soul.”

St Basil the Great (329-379)

Father & Doctor of the Church

“Since love grows within you,
so beauty grows.
For love is the beauty of the soul.”

“God is always trying to give good things to us
but our hands are too full to receive them!”

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

“Nothing is sweeter than love,
nothing stronger or higher or wider;
nothing is more pleasant, nothing fuller
and nothing better in heaven or on earth,
for love is born of God
and cannot rest except in God,
Who is above all created things.”

Thomas a Kempis (1380-1471) – Imitation of Christ

“Love knows no limit
to its endurance,
no end to its trust,
no fading of its hope,
it can outlast anything.
Love still stands,
when all else has fallen.”

Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 23 May – ‘… Believing is not enough’

Posted on May 23, 2019May 23, 2019 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 23 May – Thursday of the Fifth Week of Easter, C, First Reading: Acts 15:7-21 and the Memorial of St John Baptist de Rossi (1698-1764)

“He made no distinction between us and them, for by faith he purified their hearts.” …Acts 15:9

REFLECTION – “Faith in God purifies the heart, the pure heart sees God. But faith is sometimes defined, as followed by people, who wish to deceive themselves, — as if it were enough merely to believe — some people, you see, promise themselves the vision of God and the kingdom of heaven for believing, while living bad lives. Against these the apostle James indignantly took umbrage out of spiritual charity, so he says in his letter, “You believe that God is one.” You pat yourself on your back for your faith, you observe that many godless people assume there are many gods and you congratulate yourself for believing that there is only one God. “You do well. The demons also believe — and shudder.” Shall they too see God? Those who are pure of heart shall see Him. Whoever would say, that the unclean spirits are pure of heart? And yet, “they believe—and shudder.”

So our faith must be distinguished from the faith of demons. Our faith, you see, purifies the heart, their faith makes them guilty. So let us distinguish our faith and see that believing is not enough. That is not the sort of faith that purifies the heart. “Purifying their hearts,” it says, “by faith.” But which faith, what sort of faith? The one, surely, which the apostle Paul defines when he says “faith that works through love.” This faith is different from the faith of demons, different from the morals of dissolute and desperate people. “Faith,” he says. “Which faith?” The one “that works through love,” hopes for what God promises. You could not have a more perfect, a more carefully thought-out definition than that.”…St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor (Sermon 53)

PRAYER – Lord God, we were sinners and Your grace made us holy, we were without hope and You filled us with faith and joy. Stand by us, in Your saving work and stay with us, in Your gifts of grace. May we never fail to persevere in the holiness that comes from faith. Listen to the prayers of the Mother of our Lord and our Mother and those of St John Baptist de Rossi, whom we ask for supplication. Through Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever, amen. blessed virgin mary holy mother pray for us 23 may 2019

st john baptist de rossi pray for us 23 may 2019

	Santas e Santos do d… on Notre-Dame de L’épine Fl…
	Santas e Santos do d… on Notre-Dame de l’ Epine / Our L…
	Santo Yosef Allamano… on Saint of the Day – 16 Fe…
	SUNDAY 15 FEBRUARY 2… on Saint of the Day – 3 Apr…
	Santo Paus Gregorius… on Saint of the Day – 11 Fe…

Share this:

The Heart of the Just Man will Rejoice in the Lord

Blessed Maria Fortunata Viti, Pray for Us!

Share this:

Luke 14:11

Luke 18:13

St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor (Sermon 69)

St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) Doctor of the Church

St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church

St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Share this:

Share this:

Speaking of: “In the world but not of the world”

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

St Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556)

Pope Benedict XVI

Father Mike Schmitz

Share this:

Luke 10:42

St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor (Sermo 103, 1-2, 6: PL 38, 613, 615)

St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)

Doctor of the Church

Pope Francis

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

St Augustine (354-420) Father & Doctor

Blessed Sancja Szymkowiak (1910-1942)

Share this:

O Eternal Truth, True Love and Beloved Eternity

Saint Augustine of Hippo Bishop and Great Western Father of the Church

St Augustine, Pray for Us!

Share this:

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

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Blessed John Henry Newman (1801-1890)

Pope Benedict XVI (27 August 2006)

St Monica, Pray with us for our sons, Pray for Us!

Share this:

Share this:

Homily of St Augustine

St Peter, Pray for Us!

Share this:

“Speaking of: Temptation”

Matthew 13:27

St Cyprian of Carthage (200-258) Bishop, Martyr, Father of the Church

Saint Cyril of Jerusalem (315-387) Father & Doctor of the Church

St Ambrose (339-397 AD) Doctor of the Church

Saint Augustine (354-430) Bishop and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church

St John Marie Vianney (1786-1859)

St Padre Pio of Pietrelcina (1887-1968)

Share this:

Share this:

Matthew 12:50

St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor

St Bridget of Sweden (c 1303 – 1373)

St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

The Voice of One Crying in the Wilderness

Saint Augustine (354-430) Bishop and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church

St John the Baptist, Pray for Us!

Share this:

Share this:

Mary Mater Ecclesiae – Mary , Mother of the Church – 10 June 2019

St Augustine (354-430) Doctor of Grace

Spe Salvi 49 – Pope Benedict XVI

Prayer to Mary, Mother of the Church and Mother of our Faith By our Holy Father, Pope Francis

St Augustine(354-430) The Image of the Holy Church

Share this:

“O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart.

Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling

and scatter there Your cheerful beams.”

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

St Augustine (354-430)
Father & Doctor (Sermon 69)

St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)
Doctor of the Church

St John of the Cross (1542-1591)
Doctor of the Church

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

St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor
(Sermo 103, 1-2, 6: PL 38, 613, 615)

St Augustine (354-420)
Father & Doctor

Saint Augustine of Hippo
Bishop and Great Western Father of the Church

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

St Cyprian of Carthage (200-258)
Bishop, Martyr, Father of the Church

Saint Cyril of Jerusalem (315-387)
Father & Doctor of the Church

St Ambrose (339-397 AD)
Doctor of the Church

Saint Augustine (354-430)
Bishop and Great Western Father
and Doctor of the Church

Saint Augustine (354-430)
Bishop and Great Western Father and Doctor of the Church

Prayer to Mary, Mother of the Church and Mother of our Faith
By our Holy Father, Pope Francis

St Augustine(354-430)
The Image of the Holy Church

DAY FOUR
Begin by reciting the following prayer…