More Links on The Dark Night Series

There are more than 250 posts now on the Dark Night. This list goes back to the last of the first 50. I am taking a break......and will put more on later...I may find that this series, an appendage to the Perfection Series, is more than 300.

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/finally-fruition-of-gifts-of-holy-spirit.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/king-david-again.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/practicing-virtues-in-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-dryness-of-dark-night-two.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-dryness-of-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/more-dark-nights-in-october-2013.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/dark-night-series-continued.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-purification-of-senses-and-spirit.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/some-back-posts-on-st-teresa-of-avila.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/moving-through-six-levels-of-prayer.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-next-levels-of-prayer-after-dark.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/clarifications-on-prayer-part-one-first.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/memory-understanding-and-will.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/part-five-predominant-fault-and-false.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/following-false-visions-and-predominant.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-crisis-of-nothingness.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/footnote-on-perfection-series.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/09/footnote-on-perfection-series.html

OK more links later

I shall put more links on the Dark Night Series on this blog later today.....I am discovering there are WAY more than I remember writing....

Advent and Death Meditations Part 8

The great St. Thomas More said that he was grateful to have many months in prison in which to prepare for death. How would I prepare for death if I was given a death sentence, such as cancer, or a premonition from God?

The saints were not afraid to prepare for death.

Again, St. Alphonsus helps us in these thoughts. But, I know some elderly people in my parish who do not want to think about death. I am concerned as to why. Can we not repent today and become holy while still here?

Again, it is the busyness which we create, and the complications we prefer in our lives which keep us from facing death.

It is scary, of course. It is hard, naturally, as we were not created originally to die but to live forever.
So, we naturally fear death. But, this fear must be faced in order for each one of us to be ready.

Here are two other posts on this point.

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2012/07/on-four-last-things.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2012/07/on-fear-of-death-among-catholics.html

and more from St. Alphonsus....


1. Be ready : for at what hour you think not, the Son 
of man will come.1 The time of death will not be the time 
to prepare ourselves to die well; to die well and happily, 
we must prepare ourselves beforehand. There will not 
be time then to eradicate bad habits from the soul, to ex- 
pel from the heart its predominant passions, and to ex- 
tinguish all affection to earthly goods. The night comes 
when no man can work.2 All in death will be night, when 
nothing will be seen; and, from here, nothing done. The 
heart hardened, the mind obscured, confusion, fear, the 
desire of health, will all render it almost impossible at 
the hour of death to set in order a conscience confused 
and entangled in sin. 
Sacred wounds of my Redeemer! I adore you, I 
humbly kiss you, and I confide in you. 
2. The saints Thought they did but little, though they 
spent their whole lives in preparing for death, by acts of 
1 "Estote parati, quia, qua hora non putatis, Filius hominis veniet." 
Lk. 12. 40. 

2 "Venit nox, quando nemo potest operari." John 9. 4. 
[36] penance, prayer, and the practice of good works; and 
they trembled when they came to die. The venerable 
John Avila, although he had led a very holy life from his 
youth, when it was announced to him that he was about 
to die, made answer and said, "Oh that I may have a little 
more time to prepare myself for death!" And what 
shall we say when the summons of death shall be brought 
to us? 
No, my God, I do not wish to die troubled and un- 
grateful, as at present I should die, if death were to over 
take me; I desire to change my life, I desire to bewail 
my offences against You, I desire to love You with my 
whole heart. O Lord! help me, enable me to do some 
thing for You before I die, for You who have died for 
the love of me. 
3. The time is short1 says the Apostle. Yes, we have but a 
short time in which to set our accounts in order. 
Hence the Holy Spirit admonishes us, Whatever your 
hand is able to do, do it quickly.2 Whatever you are able 
to do today, do not put off till tomorrow; for today 
is passing away, and tomorrow may bring death, 
which will deprive you of all means of doing good, or 
of amending what you have done badly. Woe to me 
if death should find me still attached to this world! 
Ah, my God, how many years have I lived at a distance 
from You! And how have You had so much patience 
with me, in waiting for me and in calling me so often to 
repentance! I thank You, O my Redeemer! for Your 
long forbearance, and I hope to thank You for it for- 
ever in heaven. The mercies o the Lord I will sing for- 
ever.3 Until now I have not loved You, and have made 
little account of being or not being loved by You, but now 
1 "Tempus breve est." 1 Cor. 7. 29. 
2 "Quodcumque facere potest manus tua, instanter operare." 
Eccles. 9. 10. 

3 "Misericordias Domini in aeternum cantabo." Ps. 88. 2. 
[37] I do love You with my whole heart; I love You above 
all things, more than I love myself, and I desire nothing 
so much as to be loved by You; and, recollecting how I 
have despised Your love, I would willingly die of grief 
for having done so. Jesus, grant me perseverance in 
virtue. Mary, my holy mother, obtain for me the hap- 
piness of being faithful to God.

Dark Night Posts Resuming

Well, it seems I cannot move away from this subject. And, I have amazed myself at all the Dark Night postings. I shall put SOME of the links in this post at the end.

Someone asked me if the Dark Night was marked by a feeling of spiritual emptiness.

Yes, yes, yes.

But, why?

St. John of the Cross gives us several reasons and I shall try and share a few points. Some of this is repetition.

Firstly, we are creatures who rely too much on our senses, even with regard to spiritual things. We crave consolations, and the stroking of our feelings and imaginations in prayer.  Without this purgation of the senses, the first part of the Dark Night, we shall not meet God as He really is.

We need to be separated from habits of self and relying on the senses. This means that God calls us into the desert, and a desert has few colors, few delights.

St. John writes this:

IT now remains to be said that, although this happy night brings darkness to the spirit, it does so only to give it light in everything; and that, although it humbles it and makes it miserable, it does so only to exalt it and to raise it up; and, although it impoverishes it and empties it of all natural affection and attachment, it does so only that it may enable it to stretch forward, divinely, and thus to have fruition and experience of all things, both above and below, yet to preserve its unrestricted liberty of spirit in them all. For just as the elements, in order that they may have a part in all natural entities and compounds, must have no particular colour, odour or taste, so as to be able to combine with all tastes odours and colours, just so must the spirit be simple, pure and detached from all kinds of natural affection, whether actual or habitual, to the end that it may be able freely to share in the breadth of spirit of the Divine Wisdom, wherein, through its purity, it has experience of all the sweetness of all things in a certain pre-eminently excellent way.144And without this purgation it will be wholly unable to feel or experience the satisfaction of all this abundance of spiritual sweetness. For one single affection remaining in the spirit, or one particular thing to which, actually or habitually, it clings, suffices to hinder it from feeling or experiencing or communicating the delicacy and intimate sweetness of the spirit of love, which contains within itself all sweetness to a most eminent degree.145

Remember the flesh pots of Egypt about which I have written here? These fleshpots, which were the memories of good food and comforts even under slavery, kept interfering with the minds and heart of the Israelites.

They were remembering sensual pleasures and comfort in the midst of the long walk around Sinai. This may seem normal to us, but remember also, that we cannot approach God with our imaginations and selves full of the ego and full of memory.

 The reason for this is that the affections, feelings and apprehensions of the perfect spirit, being Divine, are of another kind and of a very different order from those that are natural. They are pre-eminent, so that, in order both actually and habitually to possess the one, it is needful to expel and annihilate the other, as with two contrary things, which cannot exist together in one person. Therefore it is most fitting and necessary, if the soul is to pass to these great things, that this dark night of contemplation should first of all annihilate and undo it in its meannesses, bringing it into darkness, aridity, affliction and emptiness; for the light which is to be given to it is a Divine light of the highest kind, which transcends all natural light, and which by nature can find no place in the understanding.

Note that the Dark Night undoes sensual and spiritual bad habits, concupiscence and finally, even venial sin. 

The darkness, aridity, affliction and emptiness are all to be expected in the Dark Night.

Without this preparation, we are simply not holy enough to see God as He really is and to appreciate the opening up of the life of virtues which He wants to do in us.

To be continued...and more Dark Night posts.

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/again-on-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/dark-night-and-grace.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/on-rational-in-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/more-on-dark-night-in-november.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/on-god-disciplining-his-people.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/on-desert-god.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/second-poem-revealing-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/one-of-two-poems-revealing-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/keeping-goal-in-mind-in-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/on-dark-night-againseries-continued-on.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/what-is-detachment-from-venial-sin.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/a-dark-night-post.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/re-post-from-august-on-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/dark-night-discussion.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-fear-of-being-loved-and-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-strength-of-love-in-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/purgatory-or-dark-night.html

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-end-of-beginning-of-dark-night-and.html

And, there are more....

Doctors of the Church 2:22

Friday, 15 February 2013

More of the Great Albert-Part 24 DoC series and perfection

Posted by Supertradmum

I am not doing these doctors in chronological order,but here we have St. Albert the Great referring to another Doctor of the Church, St. Augustine of Hippo. The heart is the seat of love. But, one must will love.

Chapter 7

How the heart should be gathered within itself

What is more, as is said in the book On the Spirit and the Soul (of St. Augustine), to ascend to God means to enter into oneself. He who entering within and penetrating his inmost nature, goes beyond himself, he is truly ascending to God. So let us withdraw our hearts from the distractions of this world, and recall them to the inner joys, so that we can establish them to some degree in the light of divine contemplation. 

It is important not to skip any steps in this process. I have heard of spiritual directors wanting to introduce contemplation before the two stages of purification or purgation. This is an impossible thing to do. One must learn to meditate, to read the Scriptures with the active then the passive imagination before moving on to contemplation.

And, it must be Catholic not eastern or any other type, as I have noted before on this blog.

Light comes in the Illumination Stage, which is the beginning of contemplation, but only the beginnings.

For this is the life and peace of our hearts - to be established by intent in the love of God, and to be sweetly remade by his comforting. 

But the reason why we are in so many ways hindered in the practical enjoyment of this matter and are unable to get into it is clearly because the human mind is so distracted by worries that it cannot bring its memory to turn within, is so clouded by its imaginations that it cannot return to itself with its understanding, and is so drawn away by its desires that it is quite unable to come back to itself by desire for inner sweetness and spiritual joy. 

This is key. We hinder God's work in ourselves. Beg for grace. Beg for mercy and forgiveness. Beg for healing and the unblocking of all the graces given to us in baptism and confirmation. 

Thus it is so prostrate among the sense objects presented to it that it cannot enter into itself as the image of God. It is therefore right and necessary for the mind to raise itself above itself and everything created by the abandonment of everything, with humble reverence and great trust, and to say within itself, He whom I seek, love, thirst for and desire from everything and more than anything is not a thing of the senses or the imagination, but is above everything that can be experienced by the senses and the intellect. He cannot be experienced by any of the senses, but is completely desirable to my will. He is moreover not discernable, but is perfectly desirable to my inner affections. He cannot be comprehended, but can be loved in his fullness with a pure heart, for he is above all lovable and desirable, and of infinite goodness and perfection. 

Part of my warnings on private revelations is the seeking of consolation. The senses cannot be consoled unless these are purified. And, the fruits of the spirit indicate you are purified.

Are you exhibiting interior sins, thoughts which are petty and not of God? Go back and ask for purification, as the love comes to the pure of heart, mind, and soul.

And then a darkness comes over the mind and it is raised up into itself and penetrates even deeper. And the more inward-looking the desire for it, the more powerful this means of ascent to the mysterious contemplation of the holy Trinity in Unity and Unity in Trinity in Jesus Christ is, and the more interior the yearning, the more productive it is. 

The Holy Spirit dwells within us from baptism and confirmation. It is our sins and hardness of heart which keeps us from living in that unity of the Indwelling of the Trinity. One only has to will to begin the process and persevere in grace and good will. God will do the rest. He is waiting for you.

Certainly in matters spiritual the more inward they are the greater they are as spiritual experiences. For this reason, never give up, never stop until you have tasted some pledge, as I might say, or foretaste of the future full experience, and until you have obtained the satisfaction of however small a first fruits of the divine joy. And do not give up pursuing it and following its scent until you have seen the God of gods in Sion. Do not stop or turn back in your spiritual journey and your union and adherence to God within you until you have achieved what you have been seeking. 

Persevere!

Take as a pattern of this the example of those climbing an ordinary mountain. If our mind is involved by its desires in the things which are going on below, it is immediately carried away by endless distractions and side tracks, and being to some extent divided against itself, is weakened and as it were scattered amongst the things which it seeks with its desires. The result is ceaseless movement, travel without an arrival, and labour without rest. 

Learn to be by yourself. and if you are by yourself, consider that a gift from God and not a burden.

If on the other hand our heart and mind can withdraw itself by its desire and love from the infinite distraction below of the things beneath it, can learn to be with itself, abandoning these lower things and gathering itself within itself into the one unchanging and satisfying good, and can hold to it inseparably with its will, it is correspondingly more and more gathered together in one and strengthened, as it is raised up by knowledge and desire. In this way it will become accustomed to the true supreme good within itself until it will be made completely immovable and arrive securely at that true life which is the Lord God himself, so that it can now rest in him within and in peace without any changeability or vicissitude of time, perfectly gathered within itself in the secret divine abode in Christ Jesus who is the way for those who come to him, the truth and life.

Doctors of the Church 2:21

Friday, 15 February 2013

Part 22 Doctors of the Church and Perfection-Albert the Great and the "Shipwreck of this Present Age"

Posted by Supertradmum

Because this is heavy stuff at this time of intensity for all of us. I shall try and unpack as much as I can.

I shall have several days on Albert the Great. One could do worse than study him for the rest of one's life. And, after him, comes, of course, his most famous student, Thomas Aquinas...

Too much, like a overdose of chocolate!

Chapter 5

On purity of heart which is to be sought above all things

If your desire and aim is to reach the destination of the path and home of true happiness, of grace and glory, by a straight and safe way then earnestly apply your mind to seek constant purity of heart, clarity of mind and calm of the senses. Gather up your heart’s desire and fix it continually on the Lord God above. To do so you must withdraw yourself so far as you can from friends and from everyone else, and from the activities that hinder you from such a purpose. Grasp every opportunity when you can find the place, time and means to devote yourself to silence and contemplation, and gathering the secret fruits of silence, so that you can escape the shipwreck of this present age and avoid the restless agitation of the noisy world. 

This sounds like all my posts in the past week. Think about his call to get away, somehow. 

For this reason apply yourself at all times to purity, clarity and peace of heart above all things, so that, so far as possible, you can keep the doors of your heart resolutely barred to the forms and images of the physical senses and worldly imaginations by shutting off the doors of the physical senses and turning within yourself. After all, purity of heart is recognised as the most important thing among all spiritual practices, as its final aim, and the reward for all the labours that a spiritual-minded person and true religious may undertake in this life.

For this reason you should with all care, intelligence and effort free your heart, senses and desires from everything that can hinder their liberty, and above all from everything in the world that could possibly bind and overcome you. 

Seek freedom of heart, which is a type of objectivity. Ask for the grace to have freedom of desires.

So struggle in this way to draw together all the distractions of your heart and desires of your mind into one true, simple and supreme good, to keep them gathered within yourself in one place, and by this means to remain always joined to things divine and to God in your mind, to abandon the unreliable things of earth, and be able to translate your mind continually to the things above within yourself in Jesus Christ. 

I am reminded of the hymn by Ka­tha­ri­na A. von Schle­gel, and the music of Sibelius

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change, He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake
To guide the future, as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below.

Be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart,
And all is darkened in the vale of tears,
Then shalt thou better know His love, His heart,
Who comes to soothe thy sorrow and thy fears.

Be still, my soul: thy Jesus can repay
From His own fullness all He takes away.

Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
When we shall be forever with the Lord.
When disappointment, grief and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past
All safe and blessèd we shall meet at last.

Be still, my soul: begin the song of praise
On earth, believing, to Thy Lord on high;
Acknowledge Him in all thy words and ways,
So shall He view thee with a well pleased eye.

Be still, my soul: the Sun of life divine
Through passing clouds shall but more brightly shine.

---

To which end, if you have begun to strip and purify yourself of images and imaginations and to simplify and still your heart and mind in the Lord God so that you can draw and taste the well of divine grace in everything within yourself, and so that you are united to God in your mind by a good will, then this itself is enough for you in place of all study and reading of holy scripture, and as demonstration of love of God and neighbour, as devotion itself testifies. So simplify your heart with all care, diligence and effort so that still and at peace from the products of the imagination you can turn round and remain always in the Lord within yourself, as if your mind were already in the now of eternity, that is of the godhead. 

In this way you will be able to renounce yourself through love of Jesus Christ, with a pure heart, clean conscience and unfeigned faith, and commit yourself completely and fully to God in all difficulties and eventualities, and be willing to submit yourself patiently to his will and good pleasure at all times. 

For this to come about you must repeatedly retreat into your heart and remain there, keeping yourself free from everything, so far as is possible. 

You must always keep the eye of your mind clear and still. You must guard your understanding from daydreams and thoughts of earthly things. You must completely free the inclination of your will from worldly cares and cling with all your being to the supreme true good with fervent love. You must keep your memory always lifted up and firmly anchored in that same true supreme good and only uncreated reality. In just this way your whole mind gathered up with all its powers and faculties in God, may become one spirit with him, in whom the supreme perfection of life is known to consist. This is the true union of spirit and love by which a man is made compliant to all the impulses of the supreme and eternal will, so that he becomes by grace what God is by nature. 

At the same time it should be noted that in the very moment in which one is able, by God’s help, to overcome one’s own will, that is to cast away from oneself inordinate love or strong feeling, in other words so as to dare simply to trust God completely in all one’s needs, by this very fact one becomes so pleasing to God that his grace is imparted to one, and through that very grace one experiences that true love and devotion which drives out all uncertainty and fear and has full confidence in God. What is more, there can be no greater happiness than to place one’s all in him who lacks nothing. 

This is key to Albert's understanding of love--freedom from fear and full confidence in God.

So why do you still remain in yourself where you cannot stay. Cast yourself, all of yourself, with confidence into God and he will sustain you, heal you and make you safe. If you dwell on these things faithfully within, they will do more to confer a happy life on you than all riches, pleasures and honours, and above all the wisdom and knowledge of this present deceitful world and its life, even if you were to excel in them all that ever lived.

Advent Thoughts on Death Part Seven

In this mini-series, I have moved from thoughts of suffering and death, to the process of dying and now, to the particular judgment.

Many people have no just fear of God. They look on Jesus only as a friend and not as a judge. They do not understand the Scriptures that the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity will come gain to judge the living and the dead.

We will be in one or the other category.

But, before that General Judgment is our Particular Judgment, a long-standing teaching of the Catholic Church. As I have noted, some people I have talked with in Europe have told me they have already experienced their particular judgment. One person I know in America has told me she has as well.

In their experience of this particular judgment, they have seen all the sins of their past life and all the people they have hurt though sin. One may told me he sobbed for three days and repented, asking God for purification.

Ask for this grace now, rather than later, in order to be made into a saint, now.

Here is St. Alphonsus on the particular judgment.


1. It is appointed unto men once to die, and after this 
the judgment.1 It is of faith, that immediately after death 
we shall be judged according to our works in this life. 
And it is also of faith, that upon this judgment will de- 
pend our eternal salvation or perdition. Imagine your- 
self to be in your agony, and to have only a short time 
to live. Think that in a short time you would then have 
to appear before Jesus Christ to give an account of your 
whole life. Alas! how alarming would the sight of your 
sins then be to you! 
Jesus, my Redeemer! pardon me, I beseech You, be- 
fore You judge me. I know that I have many times 
1 "Statutum est hominibus semel mori; post hoc autem, judicium." 
Heb. 9. 27. 
[34] already deserved to be sentenced to eternal death. 
No, I desire not to present myself guilty before You, but 
penitent and pardoned. O my sovereign good! I am 
grievously sorry for having offended You, 


2. O God! what will be the anguish of the soul when 
it shall first behold Jesus Christ as its judge, and behold 
him terrible in his wrath? It will then see how much 
he has suffered for its sake; it will see what great 
mercies he has exercised towards it, and what powerful 
means he has bestowed upon it for the attainment of 
salvation; then will it also see the greatness of eternal 
goods, and the vileness of earthly pleasures, which have 
wrought its ruin; it will then see all these things, but to 
no purpose, because then there will be no more time to 
correct its past errors; what shall have then been done 
will be irrevocable. Before the judgment seat of God, 
no nobility, nor dignity, nor riches will be considered; 
our works alone will be weighed there. 
Grant, O Jesus! that when I first behold You I may 
see You appeased; and, for this end, grant me the grace 
to weep, during the remainder of my life, over the evil 
which I have done in turning my back upon You, to 
follow my own sinful caprices. No, I desire never more 
to offend You. I love You and desire to love You 
forever. 

3. What contentment will that Christian enjoy at the 
hour of death who has left the world to give himself to 
God; who has denied his senses all unlawful gratifica- 
tions: and who, if he has on some occasions been negligent, 
has at last been wise enough afterwards to do worthy 
penance for it! On the other hand, what anguish will 
that Christian experience who has continually relapsed 
into the same vices, and at last finds himself at the point 
of death! Then will he exclaim: "Alas! in a few moments 
I must appear before Jesus as my judge, and I have not 
as yet even begun to change my life! I have many times 
[35] promised to do so, but I have not done it; and now, in 
a short time, what will become of me?" 



Ah, my Jesus and my judge! I give You thanks for 
the patience with which You have until now waited for 
me. How many times have I myself written my own 
eternal condemnation . Since You have thus waited to 
pardon me, reject me not, now prostrate at Your feet. 
Receive me into Your favor through the merits of Your 
bitter Passion. I am sorry, my sovereign good! for hav- 
ing despised You. I love You above all things. I de- 
sire never more to forsake You. O Mary! recommend 
me to Your Son Jesus, and do not abandon me. 

To be continued....

The Perfection Series

Please take time to follow the Perfection Series on this blog....all about personal holiness. Follow the tags.

Big Post Day

16 to date--I cannot go anywhere today because of the weather, so on line in a warm place! And, no place to go today, anyway.

It is minus 20 F with the wind chill and there is a huge wind...even the birds are not out.

Many birds winter in Iowa: downy woodpeckers, chickadees, finches, cardinals and others.

All hiding today....

Anglicans push off vote on women bishops again

http://www.churchofengland.org/media-centre/news/2013/12/meeting-of-house-of-bishops-december-2013.aspx

Repeat, repeat, repeat

http://guildofblessedtitus.blogspot.com/2013/02/a-time-machine-back-to-1581-death-of.html

For adults only again-interviews with the saints in Argentina

http://protectthepope.com/

Repeat Post on St. Lucy Kats

Tuesday, 11 December 2012

St. Lucy Kats

Posted by Supertradmum

Because I grew up in a family with long Catholic roots in Europe, I celebrated Advent in different ways than families where the customs had been interrupted by the Protestant Revolt. Now, thankfully, many of those customs have returned, including celebrating St. Nicholas Day and the Feast Day of St. Lucy. This feast day is celebrated on December 13th in these countries: 

Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, 

Italy, Latvia, Finland, 

Hungary, Malta, Bosnia, 

Bavaria, Croatia, Slovakia, 

Spain and St. Lucia, West Indies (Wiki has this list).

I first made St. Lucy "Kats" or St. Lucy Buns in the 1970s after I moved to Minneapolis. One needs saffron, which is really expensive now, but here is a recipe for "Lussekatter" .

St. Lucy Kats

Prep Time: 2 hours

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup melted butter
• 1/2 tsp. saffron threads, finely crumbled (or 1 tsp. powdered saffron)
• 1 cup milk
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 2 pkg. dry active yeast (4 1/2 tsp)
• 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 eggs, well-beaten, plus one egg white
• raisins or currants to decorate

Preparation:

Crumble saffron threads into melted butter. Let sit 30 minutes to an hour (this intensifies the saffron flavor).

Heat milk to a light boil, turning off heat when it reaches the scalding point (with small bubbles across the top). Stir in melted butter, sugar, and salt. Pour mixture into mixing bowl and allow to cool until “finger-warm” (still quite warm, but just cool enough to touch). Stir in yeast and let sit for 10 minutes.

Mix 3 1/2 cups flour into liquid. Stir in two well-beaten eggs. Add enough of the remaining flour to form a soft dough (just until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. You don't want to add too much flour).

Transfer dough to a large greased bowl and turn to coat all sides. Cover with a clean towel and allow to rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Punch down risen dough. Lightly knead two or three times on a floured surface. Pinch off small handfuls of dough (about the size of a racquetball) and roll into "snakes." Shape snakes into "S"-shaped buns or other desired shapes (please see my photo gallery of Lucia buns for traditional examples). Place on a lightly greased baking sheet, cover with the towel again, and allow to rise until doubled (about an hour).

Decorate buns with raisins, brush with egg white, and bake in preheated 375º oven about 15 minutes, just until brown. Yield: 20 St. Lucia Buns 

Immediate Prayers, Please

For a young man who is on suicide watch and needs immediate prayers. Thank you. He is in high school.

Important Reminder: Noon Prayer against World Hunger and Poverty

I cannot for some reason put the Pope's video on this blog-it is on YouTube.

In case you missed the Holy Father's request, he wants all Catholics in the world to stop at noon and pray against world hunger and poverty.

Please do so.  I am sorry I cannot show you the Papal video. Stop and pray....

Remember, when Christ multiplied the loaves and fishes, He was feeding people, not only giving us a symbol of the Eucharist.

Pray for Sad Ireland

A New Bill, called Assisted Decision-Making (Capacity) Bill 2013 (but is really about assisted killing of people who areincapacitated) is currently being debated in Dail Eireann.  It was introduced by Kathleen Lynch.  If passed, it will give the Courts the authority to decide who should be euthanized and who should not.   This is the first step towards legalizing euthanasia in Ireland. 

 CONTACT YOUR T.D.s AND SENATORS  IRISH CITIZENS FOR THE CULTURE OF LIFE

   

Advent and Death Part 6

Many graces come out of suffering, but one of the most important is that of detachment. When one is facing death, either as a meditation, or in illness or old age, detachment from people, things, status allows one to face God with purity of heart.

Remember, only the perfect see God, and suffering remains an important part of the process of purification.

If you have been following the mini-series, you have been reading the snippets from St. Alphonsus.

Here is another one for today. I have looked at his writings on not abusing God's mercy and on the shortness of human life. This part is connected to detachment, for, if we do not lose ourselves now, we shall lose God for all eternity.

Thanks to the great men of Papa Stronsay for this picture. http://papastronsaypictures.blogspot.com/

The Pain of Loss 
1. The greatest pain of hell is not the fire nor the 
darkness, not the stench, nor any other of all the material 
torments of that dreadful prison of despair; it is the 
pain of loss - that is, the pain of having lost God which 
of itself may be said to constitute hell. The soul was 
created to be forever united with God, and to enjoy the 
sight of his enrapturing countenance. God is its last 
[32] end, its only good, so that all the goods of earth and 
heaven, without God, could not make it happy. Hence 
it is that if a condemned soul in hell could possess and 
love God, hell, with all its torments, would be to it a 
paradise. But this will be its greatest punishment, 
which will render it forever inconceivably miserable, to 
be deprived of God for all eternity, without the least 
hope of ever again beholding him or loving him. 
Jesus, my Redeemer! nailed to the cross for my sake, 
You are my hope; oh that I had died rather than offended 
You! 
2. The soul, being created for God, has an instinctive 
tendency to become united with its sovereign good, its 
God; but being united with the body, when it wallows 
in iniquity, it becomes so darkened by the created ob- 
jects which allure the senses that it loses its sight, 
and has so little knowledge of God as no longer to desire to 
be united with him. But when separated from the body, 
and from sensible objects, then it will know that God is 
the only good that can render it happy. Therefore, as 
soon as it shall have departed from here, it will feel itself 
drawn with most powerful attraction towards a union 
with God; but having left this life an enemy of God, it will 
be not only kept back from him by its sins, as by a chain, 
but dragged by them into hell, there to be forever sepa- 
rated and at a distance from God. The wretched soul in 
that eternal dungeon will know how beautiful God is, 
but will not be able to behold him. It will know how 
amiable God is, but will not be able to love him; it will 
even feel itself forced by its sins to hate him; and this 
will be its hell of hells, to know that it hates a God who 
is infinitely lovely. It will desire that it were possible 
to destroy God, to whom it is hateful; and to destroy 
itself, hating God; and this will be the eternal occupa- 
tion of this unhappy soul. 
O Lord! have pity on me. 
[33] 3. This torment will be immensely increased by the 
remembrance of the graces that God bestowed upon it, 
and the love which he evinced towards it during its 
lifetime. It will especially call to mind the love of 
Jesus Christ in shedding his blood, and laying down his 
life for its salvation; but, ungrateful soul, not to forego 
its own miserable gratifications, it consented to lose God, 
its sovereign good; and it will find that no hope will be 
left of ever regaining him. 
Ah, my God! If I were in hell, I would not be able to 
love You, nor to repent of my sins; but as I have it now 
in my power to repent and to love You, I am sorry with 
my whole soul for having offended You, and love You 
above all things. Grant me to remember continually 
that hell which I have deserved, that I may love You 
with still greater and greater fervor. O Mary, refuge of 
sinners! do not abandon me. 

Faith helps as well-I like this article

http://www.forbes.com/sites/cherylsnappconner/2013/11/18/mentally-strong-people-the-13-things-they-avoid/