One Minute Reflection – 17 May – Sixth Sunday of Easter, Readings: Acts 8:5-8, 14-17, Psalm 66:1-7, 16, 20, 1 Peter 3:15-18, John 14:15-21 and the Memorial of Blessed Antonia Messina (1919-1935) Virgin and Martyr
“I am in my Father and you in me and I in you.” ... John 14:20
REFLECTION – “Cloth of scarlet or purple is a very precious and royal fabric, not because of the wool but because of the colour. The actions of good Christians are of such great value, that heaven is given to us for them. However, … it is not because they come from us and are the wool of our hearts. Rather, it is because they are dyed with the blood of the Son of God. I mean, that the Saviour sanctifies our actions by the merits of His blood. A branch of the vine, united and joined to the stock, produces fruit, not by it’s own power but empowered by the stock. Now we are untied by charity to our Redeemer, as members to the head (Eph 4:15-16). That is why our fruits and good works, drawing their value from Him, merit life everlasting.
… We, ourselves, are branches that are dry, unprofitable and unfruitful. We are not competent of ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, our competence is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers (2 Cor 3:5-6) and able to do His will. Therefore, as soon as sacred love engraves on our hearts the name of our Saviour, our great Shepherd (1 Pet 2:25), we begin to bear delicious fruits for life everlasting.” …. St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of Charity
PRAYER – Almighty, ever-living God, bring us to the joy of Your heavenly city, so that we, Your little flock, may follow where Christ, our Good Shepherd, has gone before us, by the power of His Resurrection. May our hearts overflow with the joy of His eternal presence, that in Him and through Him and with Him, we may attain the happiness of life eternal. May the prayers of the Blessed Virgin, guide us and may Blessed Antonia Messina too grant us her intercession, that we may always follow our Shepherd in faithful love. We make our prayer through Christ, our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God now and for all eternity, amen.
Quote/s of the Day – 12 May – “Mary’s Month” Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter, Readings: Acts 14:19-28, Psalm 145:10-13, 21, John 14:27-31
“Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
John 14:27
‘He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit” ‘
Lord Jesus Christ, once again grant that of us, too, there may be but “one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32) for then there will be “a great calm” (Mk 4:39).
My dear listeners, I exhort you to good will and kindness to one another and peace with all. For were we to have charity among ourselves, we would have both peace and the Holy Spirit. Let us undertake to become devout and pray to God… since the apostles persevered in prayer… If we set ourselves to fervent prayer then the Holy Spirit will enter us and say: “Peace be with you! It is ,; be not afraid” (cf. Mk 6:50)…
And what ought we to ask God for, my brethren? For all that is for His honour and the salvation of your souls and, in a word, for the help of the Holy Spirit – “Send forth your Spirit and they will be created” (Ps 104[103]:30) – peace and tranquillity…”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church
First Sermon for Pentecost
“Peace is not the product of terror or fear. Peace is not the silence of cemeteries. Peace is not the silent result of violent repression. Peace is the generous, tranquil contribution of all to the good of all. Peace is dynamism. Peace is generosity. It is right and it is duty.”
St Óscar Romero (1917–1980)
“May the God of love and peace, set your hearts at rest and speed you on your journey, may He meanwhile, shelter you from disturbance by others, in the hidden recesses of His love, until He brings you, at last, into that place of complete plenitude, where you will repose forever, in the vision of peace, in the security of trust and in the restful enjoyment of His riches.”
St Raymond of Peñafort (1175-1275)
“Father of Canon Law”
Quote/s of the Day – 16 February – The Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A
“As to the truth of the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ, there is no room left for doubt. For both, from the declaration of the Lord Himself and from our own faith, it is truly flesh and truly blood. And when these are eaten and drunk, it is brought to pass, that we are both in Christ and Christ is in us. Is this not so?”
St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368)
Doctor of the Divinity of Christ
“Always give good heed to the Word of God, whether you hear or read it in private, or hearken to it when publicly preached. Listen with attention and reverence, seek to profit by it and do not let the precious words fall unheeded but receive them into your heart.”
Quote/s of the Day – 8 February – The Memorial of Blessed Maria Esperanza de Jesus (1893-1983)
Speaking of: Prayer
“The means to obtain grace and glory is prayer.”
Blessed Maria Esperanza de Jesus (1893-1983)
“Half an hour’s meditation each day is essential, except, when you are busy. Then a full hour is needed.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church
“Do not neglect prayer, however busy you may be.”
Blessed William Joseph Chaminade (1761-1850)
“How many things Jesus tells us in our heart, when we stand at His feet, if we are careful to listen to His Voice!”
Blessed Giovanni Maria Boccardo (1848-1913)
“Prayer is our strength, our sword, our consolation and the key to paradise.”
St Joseph Freinademetz (1852-1908)
“Fu Shenfu” – Lucky Priest
“And delicately, gently, by means of this sweet and peaceful dawn, God taught me, too, to obey … God who offers me a little corner on this earth for prayer, who gives me a little corner in which to wait for what I hope.”
Quote/s of the Day – 2 February – The Feast of the Presentation of the Lord
“Be a lamp then in heart, in hand, in lips. The lamp in your heart will shine for you, the lamp in your hand or on your lips will shine out for your neighbours. The lamp in the heart, is loving faith, the lamp in the hand, is the example of good works, the lamp on the lips, is edifying speech.”
Bl Guerric of Igny (c 1080-1157)
“The glorious St Simeon also was very happy… to carry Him as did Our Lady… we do this when we endure with love, the labours and pains He sends us, that is to say, when the love which we bear to the Law of God, makes us find His yoke easy and pleasing, so that we love these pains and labours and gather sweetness in the midst of bitterness. This is nothing else but to carry Our Lord in our arms. Now if we carry Him in this way, He will, without doubt, Himself carry us.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church
“Simeon gave back Jesus to His Mother, he was only suffered to keep Him for one moment. But we are far happier than Simenon. We may keep Him always if we will. In Communion He comes, not only into our arms but into our hearts.”
St John Vianney (1786-1859)
“Those who have met Jesus no longer fear anything. We too can repeat the words of the elderly Simeon, he too was blessed by the encounter with Christ, after a lifetime spent in anticipation of this event: “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation” (Lk 2:29-30). At that instant, at last, we will no longer need anything, we will no longer see in a confused way. We will no longer weep in vain, because all has passed, even the prophecies, even consciousness. But not love – this endures. Because “love never ends” (1 Cor 13:8).”…
Second Thought for the Day – 24 January – Friday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A and The Memorial of St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) “The Gentle Christ of Geneva” – Doctor of the Church: Doctor caritatis (Doctor of Charity)
Devotion Must be Practised in Different Ways
Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Bishop and Doctor of the Church
An excerpt from his Introduction to the Devout Life
“When God the Creator made all things, He commanded the plants to bring forth fruit each according to its own kind, He has likewise commanded Christians, who are the living plants of His Church, to bring forth the fruits of devotion, each one in accord with his character, his station and his calling.
I say that devotion must be practised in different ways by the nobleman and by the working man, by the servant and by the prince, by the widow, by the unmarried girl and by the married woman. But even this distinction is not sufficient, for the practice of devotion must be adapted to the strength, to the occupation and to the duties of each one in particular.
Tell me, please, my Philothea, whether it is proper for a Bishop to want to lead a solitary life like a Carthusian, or for married people to be no more concerned than a Capuchin, about increasing their income, or for a working man to spend his whole day in church like a religious, or on the other hand, for a religious to be constantly exposed like a Bishop to all the events and circumstances, that bear on the needs of our neighbour. Is not this sort of devotion ridiculous, unorganised and intolerable? Yet this absurd error occurs very frequently but in no way, does true devotion, my Philothea, destroy anything at all. On the contrary, it perfects and fulfils all things. In fact if it ever works against, or is inimical to, anyone’s legitimate station and calling, then it is very definitely false devotion.
The bee collects honey from flowers in such a way as to do the least damage or destruction to them and he leaves them whole, undamaged and fresh, just as he found them. True devotion does still better. Not only does it not injure any sort of calling or occupation, it even embellishes and enhances it.
Moreover, just as every sort of gem, cast in honey, becomes brighter and more sparkling, each according to its colour, so, each person, becomes more acceptable and fitting in his own vocation, when he sets his vocation in the context of devotion. Through devotion, your family cares become more peaceful, mutual love between husband and wife becomes more sincere, the service we owe to the Prince becomes more faithful and our work, no matter what it is, becomes more pleasant and agreeable.
It is therefore an error and even a heresy, to wish to exclude the exercise of devotion from military divisions, from the artisans’ shops, from the courts of princes, from family households. I acknowledge, my dear Philothea, that the type of devotion which is purely contemplative, monastic and religious can certainly not be exercised in these sorts of stations and occupations but, besides this threefold type of devotion, there are many others fit for perfecting those who live in a secular state.
Therefore, in whatever situations we happen to be, we can and we must aspire to the life of perfection.”
Quote/s of the Day – 24 January – Friday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A and The Memorial of St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) “The Gentle Christ of Geneva” – Doctor of the Church: Doctor Caritatis (Doctor of Charity)
“Let us think only of spending the present day well. Then, when tomorrow shall have come, it will be called TODAY and then, we will think about it.”
“Don’t get upset with your imperfections. It’s a great mistake, because it leads nowhere – to get angry because, you are angry, upset at being upset, depressed, at being depressed, disappointed, because you are disappointed. So don’t fool yourself. Simply surrender to the Power of God’s Love, which is always greater than our weakness.”
“Don’t sow your desires in someone else’s garden, just cultivate your own, as best you can; don’t long to be other than what you are but desire to be thoroughly what you are. Direct your thoughts, to being very good at that and to bearing the crosses, little or great, that you will find there. Believe me, this is the most important and least understood point to the spiritual life. We all love according to what is our taste, few people like what is according to their duty or to God’s liking. What is the use of building castles in Spain when we have to live in France?”
“The work is never finished, we have continually to begin again and that courageously. What we have done so far is good but what we are going to commence, will be better and when we have finished that, we shall begin something else that will be better still and then another – until we leave this world to begin a new life that will have no end because it is the best that can happen to us.
It is not then a case for tears, that we have so much work to do for our souls, for we need great courage to go ever onwards (since we must never stop) and much resolution to restrain our desires. Observe carefully this precept, that all the Saints have given to those who would emulate them – to speak little, or not at all, of yourself and your own interests.”
“Cook the truth in charity, until it tastes sweet.”
“Half an hour’s meditation each day is essential, except, when you are busy. Then a full hour is needed.”
“Consider all the past as nothing and say, like David – Now I begin to love my God.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church
One Minute Reflection – 24 January – Friday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A and the Memorial of St Francis De Sales OFM Cap (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church ” – Readings: 1 Samuel 24:2-20 (3-21), Psalm 57:2-4, 6, 11, Mark 3:13-19
He appointed Twelve, whom he also named Apostles, that they might be with him … Mark 3:14
REFLECTION – “Jesus calls those he wanted. Jesus chooses. They come to him. He calls the Twelve to be with Him. While they are with Him, listening to Him teach, witnessing the miracles He works, living with Him, the Twelve get to know Him, first hand.
They KNOWJesus, not just about Jesus.
Jesus consecrates them as He takes them apart – forming them to carry on and continue His work.
Having consecrated them – he commissions them, as He sends them forth to preach the good news.
Jesus chooses.
Jesus consecrates.
Jesus commissions.
This explains the dynamics of genuine discipleship.
The disciple must learn TO BE WITH Jesus, before he attempts TO DO ANYTHING FORJesus.
We can be Apostles – only – if we have first been disciples WITH Him.” … Msgr Alex Rebello CMF (Diocese Wrexham, Wales) Claretian Priest
PRAYER – “O my God and my Father, may I know You and make You know, love You and make You loved, serve You and make Your served, praise You and make all creatures, praise You.” [St Anthony Mary Claret CMF (1807-1870)] Lord God, true light and creator of light, grant us the grace to see clearly by the light who is Light, Your only Son. Lead us in His path and send us Your Spirit. Grant us the strength to grow in holiness so that our struggle against the powers of darkness may we a victory over temptation. May the intercession of the master of spirituality, St Francis de Sales, help us and protect us. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for all eternity, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 24 January – Friday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Yea A and the Memorial of St Francis De Sales OFM Cap (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church ”
O Love Eternal By St Francis De Sales (1567-1622) “The Gentle Christ of Geneva” Doctor of the Church
O love eternal,
my soul needs
and chooses You eternally!
Ah, come Holy Spirit,
and inflame our hearts with Your love!
To love – or to die!
To die – and to love!
To die to all other love
in order to live in Jesus’ love,
so that we may not die eternally.
But that we may live in Your eternal love,
O Saviour of our souls,
we eternally sing,
“Live, Jesus!
Jesus, I love!
Live, Jesus, whom I love!
Jesus, I love,
Jesus who lives and reigns
forever and ever.
Amen
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) (Memorial) – Doctor of the Church: Doctor caritatis (Doctor of Charity) “The Gentle Christ of Geneva” and the “Gentleman Saint”
St Anicet Hryciuk
St Artemius of Clermont
St Bartlomiej Osypiuk
Bertrand of Saint Quentin
St Daniel Karmasz
St Exuperantius of Cingoli
St Felician of Foligno
St Filip Geryluk
Bl Francesc de Paula Colomer Prísas
St Guasacht
St Ignacy Franczuk
Bl John Grove
St Julian Sabas the Elder
St Luigj Prendushi
St Macedonius Kritophagos
Bl Marcolino of Forli
Bl Marie Poussepin Blessed Paola Gambara Costa TOSF (1463-1515)
St Projectus
St Sabinian of Troyes
St Suranus of Sora
St Thyrsus
Bl William Ireland
—
Martyrs of Asia Minor – 4 saints: A group of Christians martyred together for their faith. The only details to survive are four of their names – Eugene, Mardonius, Metellus and Musonius. They were burned at the stake in Asia Minor.
Martyrs of Podlasie – 13 beati: Podlasie is an area in modern eastern Poland that, in the 18th-century, was governed by the Russian Empire. Russian sovereigns sought to bring all Eastern-rite Catholics into the Orthodox Church. Catherine II suppressed the Greek Catholic church in Ukraine in 1784. Nicholas I did the same in Belarus and Lithuania in 1839. Alexander II did the same in the Byzantine-rite Eparchy of Chelm in 1874 and officially suppressed the Eparchy in 1875. The bishop and the priests who refused to join the Orthodox Church were deported to Siberia or imprisoned. The laity, left on their own, had to defend their Church, their liturgy, and their union with Rome.
On 24 January 1874 soldiers entered the village of Pratulin to transfer the parish to Orthodox control. Many of the faithful gathered to defend their parish and church. The soldiers tried to disperse the people, but failed. Their commander tried to bribe the parishioners to abandon Rome but failed. He threatened them with assorted punishments but this failed to move them. Deciding that a show of force was needed, the commander ordered his troops to fire on the unarmed, hymn-singing laymen. Thirteen of the faithful died, most married men with families, ordinary men with great faith.
We know almost nothing about their lives outside of this incident. Their families were not allowed to honour them or participate in the funerals and the authorities hoped they would be forgotten. Their names are:
• Anicet Hryciuk
• Bartlomiej Osypiuk
• Daniel Karmasz
• Filip Geryluk
• Ignacy Franczuk
• Jan Andrzejuk
• Konstanty Bojko
• Konstanty Lukaszuk
• Lukasz Bojko
• Maksym Hawryluk
• Michal Wawryszuk
• Onufry Wasyluk
• Wincenty Lewoniuk Martyrdom:
• shot on 14 January 1874 by Russian soldiers in Podlasie, Poland
• buried nearby without rites by those soldiers Beatified
6 October 1996 by Pope John Paul II
Martyrs of Antioch:
Babylas
Epolonius
Prilidian
Urban
Our Morning Offering – 9 January – Fourth Day after Epiphany
Lord I am Yours By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church
Lord, I am Yours,
and I must belong to no-one but You.
My soul is Yours
and must live only by You.
My will is Yours
and must love only for You.
I must love You
as my first cause,
since I am from You.
I must love You
as my end and rest,
since I am for You.
I must love You
more than my own being,
since my being
subsists by You.
I must love You
more than myself,
since I am all Yours
and all in You.
Amen
One Minute Reflection – 8 January – Third day after Epiphany and the Memorial of Blessed Titus Zeman SDB (1915-1969) Priest and Martyr, Readings: 1 John 4:11-18, Psalm 72:1-2, 10-13, Mark 6:45-52
“Take courage, it is I, be not afraid!” … Mark 6:50
REFLECTION – “All ships have a compass which, when touched by the magnet, always turns towards the polar star. And even when the boat is making its way in a southward direction, yet the compass does not cease turning towards its north at all times.
In the same way, let the fine point of your spirit always turn towards God, its north. ( … ) You are about to take to the high seas of the world, do not on this account, alter dial or mast, sail or anchor or wind. Keep Jesus Christ as your dial, at all times, His Cross for mast on which to hoist your resolutions, as a sail. Let your anchor be, profound trust in Him and set out early. May the propitious wind of heavenly inspirations ever fill the sails of your vessel more and more and cause you, to speed forward, to the harbour of a holy eternity. ( … )
Should everything turn upside down, I do not say around us but within us, that is to say, should our soul be sad, happy, in sweetness, in bitterness, peaceful, troubled, in light, in darkness, in temptation, in rest, in enjoyment, in disgust, in dryness, in gentleness, should the sun burn it or the dew refresh it, ah!, this point of our heart, our spirit, our higher will, which is our compass, should, nevertheless, always and at all times turn unceasingly, tend perpetually towards the love of God.” … St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) – Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – God and Father, light of all mankind, make our hearts radiant with the splendour of that light which long ago You shed on our fathers in the faith and give Your people the joy of lasting peace.,, May the prayers of Your blessed saints and martyrs be a comfort on our journey. ,,Blessed Titus Zeman please pray for us all. Through Christ, our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
“Jesus said to her: Mary! She turned and said to him… Teacher!”… John 20:16
REFLECTION – “The true lover’s delight is centred on his beloved, that is why St Paul treated everything else as “refuse” compared with the high privilege of knowing his Saviour (Phil 3,8). That is why the bride in the Song of Songs thinks only of her beloved: “All mine, my true love and I all his… Have you seen him whom my soul loves?” (2,16; 3,3)…
That illustrious lover, Mary Magdalene, encountered angels at the tomb, surely they addressed her angelically (gently, I mean), anxious to allay her sorrow. Utterly disconsolate as she was, however, she could take no comfort from their kindly greeting, their shining garments, their heavenly bearing, or the wondrous beauty of their features; still weeping, “They have carried away my Lord,” she said, “and I cannot tell where they have taken him.” Turning round, she saw her sweet Saviour but he looked like a gardener, so she was not interested. Loving thoughts of her Master’s death filled her heart, what need had she of flowers, of gardeners? Cross, nails and thorns occupied her thoughts; she was looking for her crucified lover. “If it is you, sir,” she said to the gardener, “if it is you who have carried off my beloved Lord’s body, tell me quickly where you have put him, and I will take him away.”
But no sooner did He breathe her name than her grief dissolved into delight – “Rabboni!” she said, “Master!”… To magnify her royal lover still further, the soul must have eyes only for Him, in other words, with an ever-growing, anxiously eager attentiveness. the soul must study all the details of His beauty, His perfections, must keep on discovering motives for finding ever-increasing gratification in the ineffable Beauty with which it is in love.” … St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) – Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church Treatise on the love of God, 5, 7
PRAYER – Almighty, ever-living God, Your only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ made Mary of Magdala the first herald of Easter joy. Grant that, following her example and helped by her prayers, we may, in this life, proclaim the living Christ and come to see Him reigning with You in glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever, amen.
Quote of the Day – 30 June – Thirteenth Sunday of the Year in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 9:51–62
Another said, “I will follow you, Lord but let me first say farewell to those at my home.” Jesus said to him, “No-one who puts his hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”
Luke 9:61-62
“You learn to speak by speaking, to study by studying, to run by running, to work by working and just so, you learn to love by loving. All those who think to learn in any other way deceive themselves.”
“The Lord delights in every little step you take.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church
“You cannot be half a saint. You must be a whole saint or no saint at all.”
“Detach the heart from creatures and you shall find God.”
St Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-1897)
Doctor of the Church
“Why don’t you give yourself to God once and for all… really… NOW!”
St Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975)
“Holiness is heroism.”
Bishop Robert Barron
“If you aren’t changing your schedule to follow Jesus, you are not a disciple of Jesus.”
One Minute Reflection – 28 June – Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and the World Day of Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests, Gospel: Luke 15:3–7
“Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep, which was lost.”…Luke 15:6
REFLECTION – “I feel that my Jesus is drawing ever closer to me. These last days He has let me fall into the sea and drown in the consideration of my wretchedness and pride, so as to make me understand just how much I need Him. Just as I am on the verge of being overcome, Jesus, walking on the water, comes smiling to meet me, so that I may be saved. With Peter I should like to say to Him: “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man” (Lk 5:8) but, I am forestalled, by the gentleness of His heart and sweetness of His words: “Fear not” (Lk 5:10).
Ah! Beside You I am not afraid of anything! I snuggle up against You and, like the lost sheep, hear the beating of Your Heart. Jesus, yet again I am Yours, Yours forever. With You, I am truly great, without You, nothing but a weak reed, upheld by You, I am a pillar. I must never forget my wretchedness, not so as to be constantly trembling but so that, regardless of my lowliness and confusion, I may, with ever greater confidence, draw close to Your Heart. For my wretchedness, is the throne of Your mercy and love.”…St John XXIII (1881-1963)Journal of a soul, 1901-1903
PRAYER – “May Your heart dwell always in our hearts! May Your blood ever flow in the veins of our souls! O sun of our hearts, You give life to all things by the rays of Your goodness! I will not go, until Your heart has strengthened me, O Lord Jesus! May the heart of Jesus be the king of my heart! Blessed be God. Amen.”…St Francis De Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of Charity
Quote of the Day – 23 June – The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ
“When you have received Him, stir up your heart to do Him homage, speak to Him about your spiritual life, gazing upon Him in your soul where He is present for your happiness. Welcome Him as warmly as possible, and behave outwardly in such a way, that your actions may give proof to all, of His Presence.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church
Our Morning Offering – 18 June – Tuesday of the Eleventh week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Month of the Sacred Heart
May the Heart of Jesus be the King of my Heart! By St Francis De Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of Charity
May Your heart
dwell always in our hearts!
May Your blood
ever flow in the veins of our souls!
O sun of our hearts,
You give life to all things
by the rays of Your goodness!
I will not go,
until Your heart has strengthened me,
O Lord Jesus!
May the heart of Jesus
be the King of my heart!
Blessed be God.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 20 May – ‘Mary’s Month’ – Monday of the Fifth week of Easter, C and the Memorial of Saint Bernadine of Siena OFM (1380-1444)
Most Holy Virgin, I Choose You this Day By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church
Most Holy Mary, Virgin Mother of God,
I am unworthy to be your servant.
Yet moved by your motherly care for me
and longing to serve you,
I choose you this day to be my Queen,
my Advocate and my Mother.
I firmly resolve ever
to be devoted to you
and to do what I can
to encourage others
to be devoted to you.
My loving Mor,
through the Precious Blood
of your Son shed for me,
I beg you to receive me
as your servant forever.
Aid me in my actions
and beg for me the grace
never by thought, word or deed
to be displeasing in your sight
and that of your most holy Son.
Remember me, dearest Mother,
and do not abandon me
at the hour of death.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 8 May – “Mary’s Month” – Wednesday of the 3rd Week of Easter, C
Most Holy Virgin, I Choose You this Day By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of Charity
Most Holy Mary, Virgin Mother of God,
I am unworthy to be your servant.
Yet moved by your motherly care for me
and longing to serve you,
I choose you this day to be my Queen,
my Advocate and my Mother.
I firmly resolve ever
to be devoted to you
and to do what I can
to encourage others
to be devoted to you.
My loving Mother,
through the Precious Blood
of your Son shed for me,
I beg you to receive me
as your servant forever.
Aid me in my actions
and beg for me the grace
never by thought, word, or deed
to be displeasing in your sight
and that of your most holy Son.
Remember me, dearest Mother,
and do not abandon me at the hour of death.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 28 April – Low Sunday the Octave Day of Easter and Divine Mercy Sunday, Gospel: John 20:19–31
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. “...John 20:21-22
Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church
First Sermon for Pentecost
‘He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit” ‘
Lord Jesus Christ, once again grant that of us, too, there may be but “one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32) for then there will be “a great calm” (Mk 4:39). My dear listeners, I exhort you to good will and kindness to one another and peace with all. For were we to have charity among ourselves, we would have both peace and the Holy Spirit. Let us undertake to become devout and pray to God… since the apostles persevered in prayer… If we set ourselves to fervent prayer then the Holy Spirit will enter us and say: “Peace be with you! It is I; be not afraid” (cf. Mk 6:50)… And what ought we to ask God for, my brethren? For all that is for His honour and the salvation of your souls and, in a word, for the help of the Holy Spirit – “Send forth your Spirit and they will be created” (Ps 104[103]:30) – peace and tranquillity…
We are to ask for this peace so that the Spirit of peace may come down on us. We should give thanks to God, too, for all His blessings if we want Him to grant us those victories that are the beginning of peace. And to obtain the Holy Spirit we should give thanks to God the Father for having first of all sent Him upon our Head, Jesus Christ, who is our Lord and His Son… – for “from his fullness we have all received” (cf. Jn 1:16) – and for having sent Him upon His apostles that through their hands they might pass Him onto us. We should give thanks to the Son – as God, He sends the Spirit upon those who prepare themselves to receive Him. But, most especially, we should thank Him because, as man, He merited for us, the grace of receiving this divine Spirit…
And how has Jesus Christ merited the Holy Spirit’s coming? When “bowing his head, he gave up his spirit” (Jn 19:30), for, when He gave breathed His last and handed over His spirit to the Father, He merited the Father’s sending His Spirit upon His mystical body.
Lenten Thoughts – 27 March – Wednesday of the Third week of Lent, Year C
Progress towards Perfection
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church
“We too often forget that maxim of the Saints which warns us to consider ourselves as each day recommencing our progress towards perfection. If we consider it frequently, we shall not be surprised at the poverty of our spirit, nor how much we have to refuse ourselves.
The work is never finished, we have continually to begin again and that courageously. What we have done so far is good but what we are going to commence, will be better and when we have finished that, we shall begin something else that will be better still and then another – until we leave this world to begin a new life that will have no end because it is the best that can happen to us.
It is not then a case for tears, that we have so much work to do for our souls, for we need great courage to go ever onwards (since we must never stop) and much resolution to restrain our desires. Observe carefully this precept that all the Saints have given to those who would emulate them – to speak little, or not at all, of yourself and your own interests.”
Quote/s of the Day – 26 March – Tuesday of the Third week of Lent, Year C – Gospel: Matthew 18:21–35
“Speaking of Charity”
“The bread which you use is the bread of the hungry; the garment hanging in your wardrobe is the garment of him who is naked; the shoes you do NOT wear, are the shoes of the one who is barefoot; the acts of charity that you do NOT perform, are so many INJUSTICES that you commit.”
St Basil the Great (329-379) Father & Doctor of the Church
“Give something, however small, to the one in need. For it is not small to one who has nothing. Neither is it small to God, if we have given what we could.”
St Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390) Father & Doctor of the Church
“Charity may be a very short word but with its tremendous meaning of pure love, it sums up man’s entire relation to God and to his neighbour.”
St Aelred of Rievaulx (1110-1167)
“If we look forward to receiving God’s mercy, we can never fail to do good, so long as we have the strength. For if we share with the poor, out of love for God, whatever He has given to us, we shall receive according to His promise, a hundredfold in eternal happiness. What a fine profit, what a blessed reward! With outstretched arms He begs us to turn toward Him, to weep for our sins and to become the servants of love, first for ourselves, then for our neighbours. Just as water extinguishes a fire, so love wipes away sin.”
St John of God (1495-1550)
“Nothing makes us so prosperous in this world, as to give alms.”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church
“Help me, O Lord, … that my eyes may be merciful, so that I will never be suspicious or judge by appearances but always look for what is beautiful in my neighbours’ souls and be of help to them… That my ears may be merciful, so that I will be attentive to my neighbours’ needs and not indifferent to their pains and complaints.… That my tongue may be merciful, so that I will never speak badly of others but have a word of comfort and forgiveness for all.… That my hands may be merciful and full of good deeds.… That my feet may be merciful, so that I will hasten to help my neighbour, despite my own fatigue and weariness.… That my heart may be merciful, so that I myself will share in all the sufferings of my neighbour.”
St Faustina Kowalska (1905–1938)
(Extract from Divine Mercy in My Soul, Diary of St Maria Faustina Kowalska, 163) This prayer was used by Pope Francis for the Year of Mercy 2015 to be universally prayed by the Church.
Our Morning Offering – 26 March – Tuesday of the Third week of Lent, Year C
Lord I am Yours By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church
Lord, I am Yours,
and I must belong to no one but You.
My soul is Yours,
and must live only by You.
My will is Yours,
and must love only for You.
I must love You as my first cause,
since I am from You.
I must love You as my end and rest,
since I am for You.
I must love You more than my own being,
since my being subsists by You.
I must love You more than myself,
since I am all Yours and all in You.
Amen
Lenten Reflection – 19 March – Tuesday of The Second Week of Lent, Year C
The Solemnity of St Joseph, Husband of Mary
“When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church
“How faithful in humility was the great saint we are celebrating! That can’t be said in all its perfection for, in spite of what he was, in what poverty and lowliness he lived all the days of his life, a poverty and lowliness beneath which he kept hidden and concealed his great virtues and dignity!… Truly, I have no doubt at all that the angels came, beside themselves with admiration, rank upon rank, to behold and wonder at his humility, while he sheltered that dearest child in the poor workshop where he worked at his employment so as to feed the little boy and the mother entrusted to him.
There is no doubt at all that Saint Joseph was braver than David and wiser that Solomon [who were his ancestors]. Nevertheless, seeing him reduced to the exercise of carpentry, who could have discerned this unless they were enlightened by a heavenly light, so hidden did he keep the remarkable gifts with which God had favoured him? And what wisdom did he not have? For God gave him his most glorious Son to care for…, the universal Prince of heaven and earth… Nevertheless, you can see how low and humbled he was brought, more than can be said or imagined… he went to his own country and town of Bethlehem and none but he was turned away from all those inns… Notice how the angel turns him about with both hands. He tells him he has to go to Egypt and he goes, he orders him to return and he returns. God wants him to be always poor… and he submits to it with love and not only for a while, for he was poor his whole life long.”
Daily Meditation: Protect us from what could harm us as St Joseph protected our Lord and Saviour.
God the Father has given us His only Son, the Word made man,
to be our food and our life. Let us thank Him and pray:
May the word of Christ dwell among us in all its richness.
Help us in this Lenten season to listen more frequently to Your word,
that we may celebrate the solemnity of Easter with greater love for Christ, our paschal teacher,
that we may encourage those in doubt and error to follow what is true and good.
Enable us to enter more deeply into the mystery of the Anointed One,
that our lives may reveal Him more effectively.
Purify and renew Your Church in this time of salvation,
that it may give an even greater witness to You.
For thy steadfast love was established forever, thy faithfulness is firm as the heavens. Thou hast said, “I have made a covenant with my chosen one, I have sworn to David my servant: ‘I will establish your descendants for ever, and build your throne for all generations.’
Psalm 89:2–4
Closing Prayer:
God in heaven and in my life,
guide me and protect me.
I so often believe I can save myself
and I always end in failure.
Lead me with Your love away from harm
and guide me on the right path.
May Your Spirit inspire the Church
and make us an instrument of Your love and guidance.
Thank You for your care for me.
May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 24 January – “To Philotea – You and Me”
The Memorial of St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church:
Doctor Caritatis (Doctor of Charity) ‘The Gentle Christ of Geneva’
Excerpt from Pope Benedict’s Catechesis on St Francis de Sales Wednesday, 2 March 2011
To Philotea, the ideal person to whom he dedicated his Introduction to a Devout Life (1607), Francis de Sales addressed an invitation that might well have seemed revolutionary at the time. It is the invitation to belong completely to God, while living to the full, her presence in the world and the tasks proper to her state. “My intention is to teach those who are living in towns, in the conjugal state, at court” (Preface to The Introduction to a Devout Life).
The Document with which Pope Leo xiii, more than two centuries later, was to proclaim him a Doctor of the Church, would insist on this expansion of the call to perfection, to holiness.
It says: “[true piety] shone its light everywhere and gained entrance to the thrones of kings, the tents of generals, the courts of judges, custom houses, workshops and even the huts of herdsmen” (cf. Brief, Dives in Misericordia, 16 November 1877).
Thus came into being the appeal to lay people and the care for the consecration of temporal things and for the sanctification of daily life on which the Second Vatican Council and the spirituality of our time were to insist.
The ideal of a reconciled humanity was expressed in the harmony between prayer and action in the world, between the search for perfection and the secular condition, with the help of God’s grace that permeates the human being and, without destroying him, purifies him, raising him to divine heights.
Quote/s of the Day – 24 January – The Memorial of St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church: Doctor Caritatis (Doctor of Charity)
‘The Gentle Christ of Geneva’
“Man is the perfection of the Universe. The spirit is the perfection of man. Love is the perfection of the spirit and charity that of love. Therefore, the love of God is the end, the perfection of the Universe.”
“We must fear God out of love, not love Him out of fear.”
“In the royal galley of divine Love, there is no galley slave – all rowers are volunteers.”
“Nothing makes us so prosperous in this world, as to give alms.”
“Perfection of life, is the perfection of love. For love, is the life of the soul.”
“Let us run to Mary and, as her little children, cast ourselves into her arms, with a perfect confidence.”
“Consider all the past as nothing and say, like David, ‘Now I begin to love my God.'”
One Minute Reflection – 24 January – Thursday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Gospel Mark 3:7–12 and The Memorial of St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor of the Church: Doctor Caritatis (Doctor of Charity) ‘The Gentle Christ of Geneva’
“…a great multitude, hearing all that he did, came to him.”…Mark 3:8
REFLECTION – “Why did the multitude come? What did they need? Whether this multitude went to Jesus out of “need” or because “some were curious”, the true reason is seen in the fact that this crowd was drawn by the Father, it was the Father that drew the crowd to Jesus. We read in the Gospel that ‘Jesus was moved, because He saw these people as sheep without a shepherd’. Therefore, the Father, through the Holy Spirit, draws people to Jesus.
The impure spirits try to impede; they wage war on us. Someone might object – Father, I am very Catholic, I always go to Mass…. But I never have these temptations, thank God! “No! Pray, because you are on the wrong path! because a Christian life without temptations is not Christian – it is ideological, it is gnostic but it is not Christian. When the Father draws people to Jesus, there is another who draws in the opposite way and wages war within you! Thus Saint Paul speaks of Christian life as a struggle – a struggle every day to win.
Therefore, all Christians must make this examination of conscience and ask themselves: “Do I feel this struggle in my heart?” This conflict between comfort or service to others, between having a little fun or praying and adoring the Father, between one thing and the other? Do I feel the will to do good, or is there something that stops me, turns me into an ascetic? And also, do I believe that my life moves Jesus’ heart? If I don’t believe this, I must pray a lot to believe it, so that He may grant me this grace. And we ask the Lord to make us Christians who know how to discern what is happening in our hearts and to choose well the path, through which the Father draws us to Jesus.”..Pope Francis – Santa Marta, 19 January 2017
PRAYER – Lord God, true light and creator of light, grant us the grace to see clearly by the light who is Light, Your only Son. Lead us in His path and send us Your Spirit. Grant us the strength to grow in holiness so that our struggle against the powers of darkness may we a victory over temptation. May the intercession of the master of spirituality, St Francis de Sales, help us and protect us. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for all eternity, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 24 January – The Memorial of St Francis de Sales CO, OM, OFM (Cap) (1567-1622) – Doctor of the Church: Doctor caritatis (Doctor of Charity) – ‘The Gentle Christ of Geneva’
I Will Love You Lord By St Francis de Sales
“Whatever happens, Lord,
You who hold
all things in Your hand
and whose ways
are justice and truth,
whatever You have ordained for me…
You who are ever a just judge
and a merciful Father,
I will love You Lord….
I will love You here,
O my God
and I will always hope
in Your mercy
and will always repeat Your praise….
O Lord Jesus,
You will always be my hope
and my salvation
in the land of the living.
Amen
Saint of the Day – 24 January – St Francis de Sales CO, OM, OFM (Cap) (1567-1622) – Doctor of the Church: Doctor caritatis (Doctor of Charity) – ‘The Gentle Christ of Geneva’ and Patronages – against deafness, authors, writers, Catholic press, confessors, deaf people, journalists, teachers, Champdepraz, Aosta, Italy, 8 Diocese, 7 Cities, the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest, the Salesians of Don Bosco. His motto ‘Non-excidet’ – (No failure).
Excerpt from Pope Benedict’s
Catechesis on St Francis de Sales
Wednesday, 2 March 2011
“God is God of the human heart” (The Treatise on the Love of God, I, XV). These apparently simple words give us an impression of the spirituality of a great teacher of whom I would like to speak to you toda – St Francis de Sales, a Bishop and Doctor of the Church.
Born in 1567, in a French border region, he was the son of the Lord of Boisy, an ancient and noble family of Savoy. His life straddled two centuries, the 16th and 17th and he summed up in himself the best of the teachings and cultural achievements of the century drawing to a close, reconciling the heritage of humanism striving for the Absolute that is proper to mystical currents. He received a very careful education, he undertook higher studies in Paris, where he dedicated himself to theology and at the University of Padua, where he studied jurisprudence, complying with his father’s wishes and graduating brilliantly with degrees in utroque iure, in canon law and in civil law.
In his harmonious youth, reflection on the thought of St Augustine and of St Thomas Aquinas led to a deep crisis. This prompted him to question his own eternal salvation and the predestination of God concerning himself, he suffered as a true spiritual drama the principal theological issues of his time. He prayed intensely but was so fiercely tormented by doubt, that for a few weeks he could barely eat or sleep. At the climax of his trial, he went to the Dominicans’ church in Paris, opened his heart and prayed in these words: “Whatever happens, Lord, You who hold all things in Your hand and whose ways are justice and truth, whatever You have ordained for me… You who are ever a just judge and a merciful Father, I will love You Lord…. I will love You here, O my God and I will always hope in Your mercy and will always repeat Your praise…. O Lord Jesus You will always be my hope and my salvation in the land of the living”(I Proc. Canon., Vol. I, art. 4).
The 20-year-old Francis found peace in the radical and liberating love of God – loving Him without asking anything in return and trusting in divine love, no longer asking what will God do with me – I simply love Him, independently of all that He gives me or does not give me. Thus I find peace and the question of predestination — which was being discussed at that time — was resolved, because he no longer sought what he might receive from God, he simply loved God and abandoned himself to His goodness. And this was to be the secret of his life which would shine out in his main work – the The Treatise on the Love of God.
Overcoming his father’s resistance, Francis followed the Lord’s call and was ordained a priest on 18 December 1593. In 1602, he became Bishop of Geneva, in a period in which the city was the stronghold of Calvinism so that his episcopal see was transferred, “in exile” to Annecy. As the Pastor of a poor and tormented diocese in a mountainous area whose harshness was as well known as its beauty, he wrote: “I found [God] sweet and gentle among our loftiest rugged mountains, where many simple souls love Him and worship Him in all truth and sincerity and mountain goats and chamois leap here and there between the fearful frozen peaks to proclaim His praise” (Letter to Mother de Chantal, October 1606, in Oeuvres, éd. Mackey, t. XIII, p. 223).
Nevertheless the influence of his life and his teaching on Europe in that period and in the following centuries is immense. He was an apostle, preacher, writer, man of action and of prayer dedicated to implanting the ideals of the Council of Trent, he was involved in controversial issues dialogue with the Protestants, experiencing increasingly, over and above the necessary theological confrontation, the effectiveness of personal relationship and of charity, he was charged with diplomatic missions in Europe and with social duties of mediation and reconciliation.
Yet above all St Francis de Sales was a director, from his encounter with a young woman, Madame de Charmoisy, he was to draw the inspiration to write one of the most widely read books of the modern age, The Introduction to a Devout Life. A new religious family was to come into being from his profound spiritual communion with an exceptional figure, St Jane Frances de Chantal -The Foundation of the Visitation, as the Saint wished, was characterised by total consecration to God lived in simplicity and humility, in doing ordinary things extraordinarily well – “I want my Daughters”, he wrote, not to have any other ideal than that of glorifying [Our Lord] with their humility” (Letter to Bishop de Marquemond, June 1615).
He died in 1622, at the age of 55, after a life marked by the hardness of the times and by his apostolic effort.”
Our Morning Offering – 19 January – Saturday of the First week in Ordinary Time “Saturday with Mary”
Most Holy Mary, Virgin Mother of God By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Most Holy Mary,
Virgin Mother of God,
I am unworthy to be your servant.
Yet moved by your motherly care for me
and longing to serve you,
I choose you this day to be my Queen,
my Advocate and my Mother.
I firmly resolve ever to be devoted to you
and to do what I can
to encourage others to be devoted to you.
My loving Mother,
through the Precious Blood
of your Son shed for me,
I beg you to receive me
as your servant forever.
Aid me in my actions
and beg for me the grace
never by thought, word, or deed,
to be displeasing in your sight
and that of your most holy Son.
Remember me, dearest Mother
and do not abandon me
at the hour of death.
Amen
AnaStpaul 
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