How to Use Suffering

I have considerable pain today, from a hand injury involving several fingers, from sciatica, from a knee injury, and from chronic tendinitis in one foot.

Now, I am sharing this to show you how to use pain. God allows physical suffering. Sometimes, like today, when I have been doing some chores, to slow down, to reflect more.

Sometimes, it is to remind us of mortality and death.

Sometimes, we can offer pain up for others. Today, I am praying especially for Dan, Rys, Edward, and Susan, (not their real names). So, I can ask God to use the pain, (without any complaining on my part), as an offering for those people today.

Sometimes, all we can give to another is our suffering, not by uniting it with the suffering of Christ, which would be hubris, but by understanding that pain is already an invitation from God to enter into suffering. See the difference?

Do not waste suffering.

Do not waste existential suffering, either.

From One of My Readers to All of You

Strive for Sanctity
The Lord's Exhortation

Know this, My daughter: if you strive for perfection you will sanctify many souls; and if you do not strive for sanctity, by the same token, many souls will remain imperfect. Know that their perfection will depend on your perfection, and the greater part of the responsibility for these souls will fall on you (Diary, 1165).

My Prayer Response:
Thank you, St. Faustina, for listening to and obeying the Lord by striving for great sanctity. May I and all the readers of this exhortation of the Lord follow your example of striving for great sanctity. Lord, give us the grace to be saints like St. Faustina.

from The Divine Mercy Messenger for July 26th

Prayers Needed for Net

I am in an area right now where I cannot watch any videos and I cannot get to some research sites.

I do not know why this is except the Internet is all satellite here.

Please pray for my needs for this blog. It takes me three times as long, if not longer, to do the blog, which usually takes about an hour a day or at most, two hours, if I am checking news sources, which I am having a hard time doing

.

"A Quiet Mind"

A friend of mine and I were discussing home schooling children today and why so many vocations come out of such a relatively small group of youth.

She correctly pointed out that home schooling children and teens have, each, "a quiet mind". Their minds have remained much more pure than those of children in the schools. They have learned how to work diligently, be self-motivated, and pray. They have learned the value of work and the value of reflection.

It is so sad to state that the vast majority of Catholic schools do not train a child to have a "quiet mind". Reading about the conversions experiences of such people and saints, as Cardinal Newman, Cardinal Manning and others, I realized that they had the ability not only to study and pray, but to reflect in the quietness of their minds.

I have written many times on this blog of St. Catherine of Siena's idea that we must all create a cell in our minds to which we can go to pray and reflect.

If you are not doing this, you will miss the Voice of God, Who does not shout.

If you are not doing this, you are not passing the real Faith to your children, which is the ability to pray, study, reflect.

God will punish parents for not training their children to have "a quiet mind" based on purity and serenity.

But, parents cannot give their children what they do not have. The adult must come into the realization that the vast majority of things which impede scheduling and reflection, prayer and fasting, must be sought and worked for daily.

Cooperating with grace is hard work.

Choose What You Must

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/07/25/Sessions-To-America-I-Need-Your-Help-To-Stop-Obama-s-Executive-Amnesty-Plans

US Embassy Evacuated

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/07/26/libyan-embassy-evacuated/13195671/

Question for Readers

http://www.mariancatechist.com/burke/rechristianize.html

Does anyone know if the Marian Catechist movement is still going? I met some people involved in 2004, but have not kept in touch.

Also, I just found out today that Servant of God, John Hardon, had asthma. Could you join me in prayer to ask him to go to God for healing? Thanks.

Finally

I have been reading other books and I am getting to the bottom of the pile. Am still reading the biography of Cardinal Manning and now, the book on the Eucharist, by Cardinal Burke
.
http://www.amazon.com/Divine-Flesh-Raymond-Cardinal-Burke/dp/0981631428

I need, then, to get to a real history of Mexico and the Masons I am borrowing from a friend, and one more after that on some of the Doctors of the Church. This is my plan for August, anyway....God willing. I am still trying to find hard copies of Suarez and Alonso Rodriquez, if anyone wants to share. Also, does anyone have a copy or know how to find an inexpensive copy of Catholic Gentry in English Society, edited by Peter Marshall and Geoffrey Scott (OSB.)?  Thanks for any tips.

Indeed....

http://rorate-caeli.blogspot.com/2014/07/you-seek-sign-behold-it-sign-of-jonah.html

Happy Feast of SS. Joachim and Anne

St. Anne is the patron of many things and people, including the patron saint of poverty.

Here is an 8th century painting of her in Moscow. Pray to her for children, if you are childless.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/30/Faras_Saint_Anne_%28detail%29.jpg/640px-Faras_Saint_Anne_%28detail%29.jpg

Get and Read NOW!

It is nice to read a book which gives facts for one's hunches, gut reactions and instincts.

I am not going to comment on this book on the blog, but all readers who love the Church must get this and read it and pass it on. If you love Pope Pius XII, you must read this book.

A few tidbits-Putin is worth at least 40 billion USD. And, guess who is behind many Islamic "rebels"?

I ask Carinals Mindszenty and Stepinac, Cardinal Slipyj, Cardinals Beran and Wyszynski to pray for us all, as they were victims of disinformation and suffered for the Faith. Also, I ask St. John XXIII to intervene in the Ukrainian situation, as he may have done in the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Here

http://www.amazon.com/Disinformation-Strategies-Undermining-Attacking-Promoting/dp/1936488604/ref=la_B001JS0PBQ_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1406326365&sr=1-1

Are you ready?

...for an isolated Church, a Church completely marginalized by governments, a Church separated from all civil power?

If not, get ready.

We shall be as the early Church soon, very soon.

Predestination Part Nine

This is the last posting on Garrigou-Lagrange's book for a long time. I have other things I need to write, and I highly suggest that readers get the book from Tan and read it.

I would like to highlight two points from the book. One are a list of possible (not infallible) signs of predestination as listed by many saints, including SS. John Chrysostom, Augustine, Bernard of Clairvaux, Gregory the Great and Anselm.

These are as follows: quoted from the book.

• a good life
• testimony of a conscience that is free from serious sins and prepared to die rather than offend God grievously
• patience in adversities endured for the love of God
• readiness to hear the world of God
• compassion for the poor
• love of one's enemies
• humility
• a special devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary whom we ask every day to pray for us at the hour of our death.

It is clear from the writings of the saints, including St. Thomas, that many more people are damned than saved.

I suggest you read this book and meditate on your own life and death.