Even Michael Voris can't get through this e-mail without laughter. I am so glad I am a Catholic.
Tuesday, 21 August 2012
OMGoodness, how we laughed...
Even Michael Voris can't get through this e-mail without laughter. I am so glad I am a Catholic.
A Cardinal, a Bishop, and a Government
Getting better everyday, LifeSitesNews, which I have been following for years, has an excellent article on the strained relationship between the Scottish Government and Cardinal Keith O'Brien of Edinburgh. I wish we had such leaders in certain state capitols in America. Could he talk with Cardinal Dolan, please?
Part of the article noted that:
Edinburgh archdiocesan spokesman Peter Kearney, however, belied this, saying relations between the cardinal and the Scottish Government are “strained”.
“There was never a suggestion that people were not going to talk. Things are definitely strained and more difficult since they made the decision on same-sex marriage.
“It’s difficult to continue a dialogue with someone when they consistently ignore all the points you make. That’s definitely put a strain on the relationship,” Kearney said.
“Having said that, the Church remains committed to dialogue on this subject. It will be dialogue between Church and Government officials as opposed to the Cardinal and the First Minister but there is a feeling of deep disappointment in the Church and a sense that engagement and dialogue is possible but difficult when the Government continually ignores all the concerns raised by the Church,” Kearney continued.
The Scottish government launched a public consultation in September 2011, for which the overwhelming response was negative. Legal experts warned that “gay marriage” and religious freedom and freedom of expression could not co-exist. The government, however, announced that it would be forging ahead regardless of the dangers to civil liberties or the wishes of the majority of the public.
The consultation produced a record 77,508 responses, two thirds of which were opposed on a wide variety of grounds. In response, Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the consultation is only one among many factors to be considered in the process. Despite the overwhelming opposition from the general public, the government announced last month that it would be going ahead with the proposal and expect to see the first public ceremonies, including in churches, beginning in 2015.
The Bishop of Glasgow is also leading the way in public statements regarding the coming loss of religious freedom in Scotland.
With the recent appointment of Bishop Philip Tartaglia to the Catholic see of Glasgow, the two prelates have become the most vocal opponents of the political homosexualist agenda in the UK. The Catholic Church, however, is not alone in the fight. In July, the Rev Alan Hamilton, convener of the Church of Scotland legal questions committee, said, “We are concerned the government will legislate without being able to effectively protect religious bodies or their ministers whose beliefs prevent them from celebrating civil-partnerships or same-sex marriages.”
The Pope and Lebanon
I read The Times of Israel online. I suggest readers do also. The blogs connected are especially good. If you do not follow what is happening in Israel, you may be surprised at a series of events.
The Pope is due to visit Lebanon next month. This is from a Reuters article on that trip.
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The Pope is due to visit Lebanon next month. This is from a Reuters article on that trip.
Benedict's visit to Lebanon is scheduled for Sept. 14-16. But escalating violence in Syria and sectarian tensions in Lebanon prompted speculation last week that the pontiff might be forced to postpone the trip.
“The preparations for the visit are going ahead without any uncertainty on the part of the Vatican,” Federico Lombardi, spokesman for the Holy See, told reporters.
The Times of Israel reported on the Saudi government telling its nationals to leave Lebanon, now.
I really wonder if the Pope will be able to visit the increasingly unstable nation. Here is another site for the article. Keep the Pope in your prayers, please.
Third Poem for the Dog Days-Two Dogs
The saint with the little white dog, walking through the wet streets
to San Girolamo della Carità to sit in the shade and pray far from
the Vallicella, which he really did not like to visit...
To Santa Maria, Chiesa Nuova, he went under obedience, missing
his place on the left-hand side of the dark chapel. But, the youths
needed him in those dog days, during the "dangerous part of the day"
When all slept, or sort of, the shutters closed to heat and eyes,
but ears could hear the names of Massimo or Martino wafting
over the eaves in sighs and shadows. The saint stood firm then
And by the doors of the Venerabile, blessing all those pale
men, the "flowers of the martyrs" returning to England and
butchery. His songs would survive and come back to those
Cold shores three hundred years later in another street, with
baroque and Counter-Reformation punch. The young are
still hot so far away, with love in their hearts and not much
In their heads, but beer and boredom. The little white dog
and saint knew best, and in the heat of the day found songs
to sing to cool the body and soul. Another Dog running
Across the night sky, might find more peace than passion. But,
here, in this city of the dead and dying, of the voices of bravado
silenced forever by confusion, cowardice and fear, the good
Saint still finds some young men to call his own.
to San Girolamo della Carità to sit in the shade and pray far from
the Vallicella, which he really did not like to visit...
To Santa Maria, Chiesa Nuova, he went under obedience, missing
his place on the left-hand side of the dark chapel. But, the youths
needed him in those dog days, during the "dangerous part of the day"
When all slept, or sort of, the shutters closed to heat and eyes,
but ears could hear the names of Massimo or Martino wafting
over the eaves in sighs and shadows. The saint stood firm then
And by the doors of the Venerabile, blessing all those pale
men, the "flowers of the martyrs" returning to England and
butchery. His songs would survive and come back to those
Cold shores three hundred years later in another street, with
baroque and Counter-Reformation punch. The young are
still hot so far away, with love in their hearts and not much
In their heads, but beer and boredom. The little white dog
and saint knew best, and in the heat of the day found songs
to sing to cool the body and soul. Another Dog running
Across the night sky, might find more peace than passion. But,
here, in this city of the dead and dying, of the voices of bravado
silenced forever by confusion, cowardice and fear, the good
Saint still finds some young men to call his own.
Second Poem for the Dog Days
The Romans most likely left this town in summer,
the heat being oppressive without the view of
Rome or Capri, but I am here, looking at the
pink and blue clouds coming off the Estuary.
At least, now, there are fish in the Thames again,
and there are children, but not those of the Cantiaci,
rather of the Commonwealth. Heat and a modern
version of the fog keep me awake at night.
I cannot sleep as I hear those Londoners walking
home from the pub, or wherever, like characters
from Dickens, yelling their names under the lamplight,
telling their stories after midnight, as if no one could hear.
Eppillus would be amused at the various lovers' tiffs
surrounding his lands and punctuating the steam of the night.
But, I would rather listen to the silence, and miss the sea;
too far from the Thames are the waves off Dubris.
Sleep evades us all in London in August, and the ancients,
as well as the descendants of Austen, left for cooler climes.
Did they go to Aquae Sulis with their new loves, or Vectis with
the children and matrona, playing in the sand, dreaming
Of Stabiae, and the Bay of Naples, with clearer springs
than those of Aquae Sulis and did the materfamilias complain
of the lack of shops and popinae as well as the humidity?
Will we ever see villa and canis again, and where is a decent
Wine to celebrate Vinalia rustica? But, no, not on these shores
under the sign of Canis major, whose star hides under the
clouds and fog from the Tames, who gives potters a name.
No Opiconsivia here on the embankment.
So, I think of other things, listening as the small birds
which linger in the late summer wake and sing slow songs
without passion, but out of habit, or wanting to praise God,
which is what I do in the early dawn, of blue and pink
A mirror image of the dusk seen so many hours ago.
the heat being oppressive without the view of
Rome or Capri, but I am here, looking at the
pink and blue clouds coming off the Estuary.
At least, now, there are fish in the Thames again,
and there are children, but not those of the Cantiaci,
rather of the Commonwealth. Heat and a modern
version of the fog keep me awake at night.
I cannot sleep as I hear those Londoners walking
home from the pub, or wherever, like characters
from Dickens, yelling their names under the lamplight,
telling their stories after midnight, as if no one could hear.
Eppillus would be amused at the various lovers' tiffs
surrounding his lands and punctuating the steam of the night.
But, I would rather listen to the silence, and miss the sea;
too far from the Thames are the waves off Dubris.
Sleep evades us all in London in August, and the ancients,
as well as the descendants of Austen, left for cooler climes.
Did they go to Aquae Sulis with their new loves, or Vectis with
the children and matrona, playing in the sand, dreaming
Of Stabiae, and the Bay of Naples, with clearer springs
than those of Aquae Sulis and did the materfamilias complain
of the lack of shops and popinae as well as the humidity?
Will we ever see villa and canis again, and where is a decent
Wine to celebrate Vinalia rustica? But, no, not on these shores
under the sign of Canis major, whose star hides under the
clouds and fog from the Tames, who gives potters a name.
No Opiconsivia here on the embankment.
So, I think of other things, listening as the small birds
which linger in the late summer wake and sing slow songs
without passion, but out of habit, or wanting to praise God,
which is what I do in the early dawn, of blue and pink
A mirror image of the dusk seen so many hours ago.
First Poem of the Dog Days
To Sirius
The dog runs without its master
looking at the small earth beneath
a dot in the universe, hot and cold
but full of life
looking at the small earth beneath
a dot in the universe, hot and cold
but full of life
Even in August, one feels the age
of summer draining, straining, as
the last harvests reach out to the skies
in hope
of summer draining, straining, as
the last harvests reach out to the skies
in hope
As I watch the Dog Star, I seek for
more rain, more energy, more life
than is given in the dank nights
forbidding sleep
more rain, more energy, more life
than is given in the dank nights
forbidding sleep
How little I am, Sirius, as you
lead me on to the One who made
both of us-you the brightest in
the firmament and me
lead me on to the One who made
both of us-you the brightest in
the firmament and me
One of the smallest, and yet
as I strain to see you through
the mist and clouds, I know
we have the same Master.
as I strain to see you through
the mist and clouds, I know
we have the same Master.
Happy Feast Day, St. Pius X
I love this Pope. He is a great model for us all in these hard times.
Read everything that he has written. Here is the list and you can go to either the Vatican website, or here, as I have made it really easy for all of you. http://search.freefind.com/find.html?id=1269098&pid=r&mode=ALL&n=0&_charset_=UTF-8&bcd=%C3%B7&query=encyclicals+of+pius+x
Pope St. Pius X
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Monday, 20 August 2012
The Forgotten Commandment
The Telegraph is pushing an idea today that adultery helps marriage. Good grief! How stupid can sin get? Of course, Paul VI prophesied all of these happenings because of the acceptance of contraception and abortion. Separating love and commitment from sex is easy when pregnancy is not involved. Women are less free than they were 100 years ago, IMO. Adultery, as good Catholics know, a mortal sin, separating the two invovled from God and eternal life. No person is worth that.
Here is an extract for the online publication:
Alongside the internet dating revolution, these “playfairs” are evidence of a potentially dramatic shift in British marriage. As dating websites open up a global shop window of sexual possibilities, as life expectancy continues to rise and we become increasingly sexually aware, how can we still take the crushing old rules of fidelity, that turn marriage into a prison, for granted? Why should we not be able to recapture the heady thrills of youth, while protecting a secure home life?
The time has come, alongside the technology, to redraw the rules of marriage for the 21st century. Just as the Pill opened up premarital sex in the Sixties, the internet is opening up a whole new culture of affairs among married people. Sex has become a major leisure activity of our time, accessible to everyone, married or not, rich and poor. It’s time to start honing our seduction skills and join the playground.
Yet it is the most puritanical nations, including Britain and America, that have traditionally resisted the notion of adultery most rigorously. Here, couples endure the challenges of child care, work pressures, mid‑life crisis and dwindling marital sex against a backdrop of repressive Anglo-Saxon hang‑ups about infidelity, seen always in pejorative terms such as “cheating”.
Of course, in journalism, "puritanical" is a buzz word used to pretend the Puritans created the Ten Commandments. Nope, sorry, God did.
Another False Prophet
Satan wants you in hell for all eternity. He will even use the name of the Blessed Virgin Mary to get you there. Also, if a seer is a heretic in one area only, he or she is a heretic. Most likely, errors are in other areas of doctrine as well as the one noticed, but one is enough for censure.
A reader pointed out to me another dangerous false seer. People, if someone contradicts Church teaching in faith and morals, that person is not from God. The Nicene and Apostle's Creed hold the doctrines we must believe in the Catholic Church. These credal statements are integral to our Faith and cannot be changed. Any seer who states Mary changed our creeds is blatantly in serious error. Here is the false statement and website:
A reader pointed out to me another dangerous false seer. People, if someone contradicts Church teaching in faith and morals, that person is not from God. The Nicene and Apostle's Creed hold the doctrines we must believe in the Catholic Church. These credal statements are integral to our Faith and cannot be changed. Any seer who states Mary changed our creeds is blatantly in serious error. Here is the false statement and website:
Also, my dear ones, when you say the Apostles’ Creed, do not say “descended into Hell” but
add the words, “descended into the lower part of Purgatory.
Our Blessed Mother would never say anything contrary to the Teaching Magisterium of the Church. Never.
Look at this document from Blessed John Paul II.
BY WHICH CERTAIN NORMS ARE INSERTED INTO THE
IOANNES PAULUS PP. II
Our Blessed Mother would never say anything contrary to the Teaching Magisterium of the Church. Never.
Look at this document from Blessed John Paul II.
JOHN PAUL II
APOSTOLIC LETTER MOTU PROPRIO
AD TUENDAM FIDEM
BY WHICH CERTAIN NORMS ARE INSERTED INTO THE
CODE OF CANON LAW
AND INTO THE
CODE OF CANONS OF THE
EASTERN CHURCHES
TO PROTECT THE FAITH of the Catholic Church against errors arising from certain members of the Christian faithful, especially from among those dedicated to the various disciplines of sacred theology, we, whose principal duty is to confirm the brethren in the faith (Lk 22: 32), consider it absolutely necessary to add to the existing texts of the Code of Canon Law and the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches new norms which expressly impose the obligation of upholding truths proposed in a definitive way by the Magisterium of the Church, and which also establish related canonical sanctions.
1. From the first centuries to the present day, the Church has professed the truths of her faith in Christ and the mystery of his redemption. These truths were subsequently gathered into the Symbols of the faith, today known and proclaimed in common by the faithful in the solemn and festive celebration of Mass as the Apostles' Creed or the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed.
This same Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed is contained in the Profession of Faith developed by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which must be made by specific members of the faithful when they receive an office that is directly or indirectly related to deeper investigation into the truths of faith and morals, or is united to a particular power in the governance of the Church.
2. The Profession of Faith, which appropriately begins with the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, contains three propositions or paragraphs intended to describe the truths of the Catholic faith, which the Church, in the course of time and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit "who will teach the whole truth" (Jn 16: 13), has ever more deeply explored and will continue to explore.
The first paragraph states: "With firm faith, I also believe everything contained in the Word of God, whether written or handed down in Tradition, which the Church either by a solemn judgement or by the ordinary and universal Magisterium sets forth to be believed as divinely revealed". This paragraph appropriately confirms and is provided for in the Church's legislation in canon 750 of the Code of Canon Law and canon 598 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.
The third paragraph states: "Moreover I adhere with submission of will and intellect to the teachings which either the Roman Pontiff or the College of Bishops enunciate when they exercise their authentic Magisterium, even if they do not intend to proclaim these teachings by a definitive act". This paragraph has its corresponding legislative expression in canon 752 of the Code of Canon Law and canon 599 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.
3. The second paragraph, however, which states: "I also firmly accept and hold each and everything definitively proposed by the Church regarding teaching on faith and morals", has no corresponding canon in the Codes of the Catholic Church. This second paragraph of theProfession of Faith is of utmost importance since it refers to truths that are necessarily connected to divine revelation. These truths, in the investigation of Catholic doctrine, illustrate the Divine Spirit's particular inspiration for the Church's deeper understanding of a truth concerning faith and morals, with which they are connected either for historical reasons or by a logical relationship.
4. Moved therefore by this need, and after careful deliberation, we have decided to overcome this lacuna in the universal law in the following way:
A) Canon 750 of the Code of Canon Law will now consist of two paragraphs; the first will present the text of the existing canon; the second will contain a new text. Thus, canon 750, in its complete form, will read:
Canon 750 1. Those things are to be believed by divine and catholic faith which are contained in the word of God as it has been written or handed down by tradition, that is, in the single deposit of faith entrusted to the Church, and which are at the same time proposed as divinely revealed either by the solemn Magisterium of the Church, or by its ordinary and universal Magisterium, which in fact is manifested by the common adherence of Christ's faithful under the guidance of the sacred Magisterium. All are therefore bound to avoid any contrary doctrines.
2. Furthermore, each and everything set forth definitively by the Magisterium of the Church regarding teaching on faith and morals must be firmly accepted and held; namely those things required for the holy keeping and faithful exposition of the deposit of faith; therefore, anyone who rejects propositions which are to be held definitively sets himself against the teaching of the Catholic Church.
Canon 1371, n. 1 of the Code of Canon Law, consequently, will receive an appropriate reference to canon 750, 2, so that it will now read:
Canon 1371 The following are to be punished with a just penalty:
1° a person who, apart from the case mentioned in canon 1364, 1, teaches a doctrine condemned by the Roman Pontiff, or by an Ecumenical Council, or obstinately rejects the teachings mentioned in canon 750, 2 or in canon 752 and, when warned by the Apostolic See or by the Ordinary, does not retract;
2° a person who in any other way does not obey the lawful command or prohibition of the Apostolic See or the Ordinary or Superior and, after being warned, persists in disobedience.
B) Canon 598 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches will now have two paragraphs: the first will present the text of the existing canon and the second will contain a new text. Thus canon 598, in its complete form, will read as follows:
Canon 598 1. Those things are to be believed by divine and catholic faith which are contained in the word of God as it has been written or handed down by tradition, that is, in the single deposit of faith entrusted to the Church, and which are at the same time proposed as divinely revealed either by the solemn Magisterium of the Church, or by its ordinary and universal Magisterium, which in fact is manifested by the common adherence of Christ's faithful under the guidance of the sacred Magisterium. All Christian faithful are therefore bound to avoid any contrary doctrines.
2. Furthermore, each and everything set forth definitively by the Magisterium of the Church regarding teaching on faith and morals must be firmly accepted and held; namely, those things required for the holy keeping and faithful exposition of the deposit of faith; therefore, anyone who rejects propositions which are to be held definitively sets himself against the teaching of the Catholic Church.
Canon 1436, 2 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, consequently, will receive an appropriate reference to canon 598, 2, so that it will now read:
Canon 1436 1. Whoever denies a truth which must be believed with divine and catholic faith, or who calls into doubt, or who totally repudiates the Christian faith, and does not retract after having been legitimately warned, is to be punished as a heretic or an apostate with a major excommunication; a cleric moreover can be punished with other penalties, not excluding deposition.
2. In addition to these cases, whoever obstinately rejects a teaching that the Roman Pontiff or the College of Bishops, exercising the authentic Magisterium, have set forth to be held definitively, or who affirms what they have condemned as erroneous, and does not retract after having been legitimately warned, is to be punished with an appropriate penalty.
5. We order that everything decreed by us in this Apostolic Letter, given motu proprio, be established and ratified, and we prescribe that the insertions listed above be introduced into the universal legislation of the Catholic Church, that is, into the Code of Canon Law and into the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, all things to the contrary notwithstanding.
Given in Rome, at St Peter's, on 28 May, in the year 1998, the twentieth of our Pontificate.
NOTES
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Profession of Faith and Oath of Fidelity (9 January 1989): AAS 81 (1989), 105.
Cf. Code of Canon Law, canon 833.
Cf. Code of Canon Law, canon 747, 1; Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 595, 1.
Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church Lumen gentium, n. 25; Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation Dei Verbum, n. 5; Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Instruction on the Ecclesial Vocation of the Theologian Donum veritatis (24 May 1990), n. 15: AAS 82 (1990), 1556.
Code of Canon Law, canon 750 Those things are to be believed by divine and catholic faith which are contained in the word of God as it has been written or handed down by tradition, that is, in the single deposit of faith entrusted to the Church, and which are at the same time proposed as divinely revealed either by the solemn Magisterium of the Church, or by its ordinary and universal Magisterium, which in fact is manifested by the common adherence of Christ's faithful under the guidance of the sacred Magisterium. All are therefore bound to avoid any contrary doctrines.
Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 598 Those things are to be believed by divine and catholic faith which are contained in the word of God as it has been written or handed down by tradition, that is, in the single deposit of faith entrusted to the Church, and which are at the same time proposed as divinely revealed either by the solemn Magisterium of the Church, or by its ordinary and universal Magisterium, which in fact is manifested by the common adherence of Christ's faithful under the guidance of the sacred Magisterium. All Christian faithful are therefore bound to avoid any contrary doctrines.
Cf. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Instruction on the Ecclesial Vocation of the Theologian Donum veritatis (24 May 1990), n. 17: AAS 82 (1990), 1557.
Code of Canon Law, canon 752: While the assent of faith is not required, a religious submission of intellect and will is to be given to any doctrine which either the Supreme Pontiff or the College of Bishops, exercising their authentic Magisterium, declare upon a matter of faith and morals, even though they do not intend to proclaim that doctrine by definitive act. Christ's faithful are therefore to ensure that they avoid whatever does not accord with that doctrine.
Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 599 While the assent of faith is not required, a religious submission of intellect and will is to be given to any doctrine which either the Supreme Pontiff or the College of Bishops, exercising their authentic Magisterium, declare upon a matter of faith and morals, even though they do not intend to proclaim that doctrine by definitive act. Christ's faithful are therefore to ensure that they avoid whatever does not accord with that doctrine.
Cf. Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Instruction on the Ecclesial Vocation of the Theologian Donum veritatis (24 May 1990), n. 16: AAS 82 (1990), 1557.
(©L'Osservatore Romano - 15 July 1998)
The last meditation on Ephesians for awhile...
This is the last day I am thinking on the pericope from Ephesians, which was a reading at Mass over a week ago. What really struck me was this verse: And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath delivered himself for us, an oblation and a sacrifice to God for an odour of sweetness. Ephesians 5:2 DR
The word "us" refers to the company of the believers, the people of Ephesus who were Christians, Catholics already.
Wow. What does this mean? That Christ offered Himself up for those who believe. The non-believer and those who have rejected Christ, and some who hate Him, are not here being addressed.
Christ offered Himself up as Victim, as Sacrifice, which is His Body and Blood. And, those who partake in the Holy Eucharist receive both Victim and Priest.
He is the Priest and the priest at Mass is the alter Christus.
We are reminded that He offered Himself for us as we sin daily.
Thanks be to God. I would love to go to the Holy Land. I would love to visit the earliest churches in the cities mentioned in Revelation. Ephesus had a library...
These Christians were urbane and yet, open to Christ. Read, think, pray, act....evangelize.
A Novena to St. Raphael
St. Raphael helped Tobit find Sarah, his true wife, in order to complete God's plan for that family and the tribe. Many of my single friends have asked me to pray for them for a spouse. Here is a novena I am starting today for A, T, J, D, and M. Please join me in this prayer.
Novena to St Raphael for people desirous of making a good marriage. Obviously, say for nine days
NOVENA PRAYER TO ST RAPHAEL
O Glorious St. Raphael, Patron and Lover of the Young, I call upon thee and plead with thee for thy help.In all confidence I open my heart to thee, to beg thy guidance and assistance in the important task of planning my future. Obtain for me through thy intercession the light of God’s grace, so that I may decide wisely concerning the person who is to be my partner through life. O Angel of Happy Meetings, lead us by the hand to find each other. May all our movements be guided by thy light and transfigured by thy joy. As thou didst lead the young Tobias to Sara and opened up for him a new life of happiness with her in holy marriage, lead me to such a one whom in thine angelic wisdom thou dost judge best suited to be united with me in marriage.
St. Raphael, loving Patron of those seeking a marriage partner, help me in this supreme decision of my life. Find for me as a helpmate in life that person whose character will reflect the traits of Jesus and Mary. May he (she) be upright, loyal, pure, sincere and noble, so that with united efforts and with chaste and unselfish love, we both may strive to perfect ourselves in soul and body, as well as the children it may please God to entrust to our care.
St. Raphael, Angel of chaste courtship, bless our friendship and our love, that sin may have no part in it. May our mutual love bind us so closely that our future home may ever be most like the home of the Holy Family of Nazareth. Offer thy prayers to God for both of us and obtain the blessing of God upon our marriage, as thou wert the herald of blessing for the marriage of Tobias and Sara.
St. Raphael, Friend of the Young, be thou my friend, for I shall always be thine. I desire ever to invoke thee in my needs. To thy special care I entrust the decision I am to make as to my future wife (husband). Direct me to the person with whom I can best cooperate in doing God’s Holy Will, with whom I can live in peace, love, and harmony in this life and attain to eternal joy in the next. Amen.
In honor of St. Raphael recite one Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be.
O Glorious St. Raphael, Patron and Lover of the Young, I call upon thee and plead with thee for thy help.In all confidence I open my heart to thee, to beg thy guidance and assistance in the important task of planning my future. Obtain for me through thy intercession the light of God’s grace, so that I may decide wisely concerning the person who is to be my partner through life. O Angel of Happy Meetings, lead us by the hand to find each other. May all our movements be guided by thy light and transfigured by thy joy. As thou didst lead the young Tobias to Sara and opened up for him a new life of happiness with her in holy marriage, lead me to such a one whom in thine angelic wisdom thou dost judge best suited to be united with me in marriage.
St. Raphael, loving Patron of those seeking a marriage partner, help me in this supreme decision of my life. Find for me as a helpmate in life that person whose character will reflect the traits of Jesus and Mary. May he (she) be upright, loyal, pure, sincere and noble, so that with united efforts and with chaste and unselfish love, we both may strive to perfect ourselves in soul and body, as well as the children it may please God to entrust to our care.
St. Raphael, Angel of chaste courtship, bless our friendship and our love, that sin may have no part in it. May our mutual love bind us so closely that our future home may ever be most like the home of the Holy Family of Nazareth. Offer thy prayers to God for both of us and obtain the blessing of God upon our marriage, as thou wert the herald of blessing for the marriage of Tobias and Sara.
St. Raphael, Friend of the Young, be thou my friend, for I shall always be thine. I desire ever to invoke thee in my needs. To thy special care I entrust the decision I am to make as to my future wife (husband). Direct me to the person with whom I can best cooperate in doing God’s Holy Will, with whom I can live in peace, love, and harmony in this life and attain to eternal joy in the next. Amen.
In honor of St. Raphael recite one Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be.
Catholic Reminder
Catholics, if you forget who you are, if you forget Who Christ Is, if you forget to be grateful, watch
The Passion of the Christ again.
The Passion of the Christ again.
Bless the Lord, O my soul...O God, Who stretchest out the heaven like a pavilion
For David himself. Bless the Lord, O my soul: O Lord my God, thou art exceedingly great. Thou hast put on praise and beauty:
and art clothed with light as with a garment. Who stretchest out the heaven like a pavilion:
who coverest the higher rooms thereof with water. Who makest the clouds thy chariot: who walkest upon the wings of the winds. Who makest thy angels spirits: and thy ministers a burning fire.
Who hast founded the earth upon its own bases: it shall not be moved for ever and ever.
The deep like a garment is its clothing: above the mountains shall the waters stand.
At thy rebuke they shall flee: at the voice of thy thunder they shall fear.
The mountains ascend, and the plains descend into the place which thou hast founded for them.
Thou hast set a bound which they shall not pass over; neither shall they return to cover the earth.
Thou sendest forth springs in the vales: between the midst of the hills the waters shall pass.
All the beasts of the field shall drink: the wild asses shall expect in their thirst.
Over them the birds of the air shall dwell: from the midst of the rocks they shall give forth their voices.
Thou waterest the hills from thy upper rooms: the earth shall be filled with the fruit of thy works:
Bringing forth grass for cattle, and herb for the service of men. That thou mayst bring bread out of the earth:
and that wine may cheer the heart of man. That he may make the face cheerful with oil: and that bread may strengthen man's heart.
The trees of the field shall be filled, and the cedars of Libanus which he hath planted:
there the sparrows shall make their nests. The highest of them is the house of the heron.
The high hills are a refuge for the harts, the rock for the irchins.
He hath made the moon for seasons: the sun knoweth his going down.
Thou hast appointed darkness, and it is night: in it shall all the beasts of the woods go about:
The young lions roaring after their prey, and seeking their meat from God.
The sun ariseth, and they are gathered together: and they shall lie down in their dens.
Man shall go forth to his work, and to his labour until the evening.
How great are thy works, O Lord? thou hast made all things in wisdom: the earth is filled with thy riches.
So is this great sea, which stretcheth wide its arms: there are creeping things without number: Creatures little and great.
There the ships shall go. This sea dragon which thou hast formed to play therein.
All expect of thee that thou give them food in season.
What thou givest to them they shall gather up: when thou openest thy hand, they shall all be filled with good.
But if thou turnest away thy face, they shall be troubled: thou shalt take away their breath, and they shall fail, and shall return to their dust.
Thou shalt send forth thy spirit, and they shall be created: and thou shalt renew the face of the earth.
May the glory of the Lord endure for ever: the Lord shall rejoice in his works.
He looketh upon the earth, and maketh it tremble: he toucheth the mountains, and they smoke.
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live: I will sing praise to my God while I have my being.
Let my speech be acceptable to him: but I will take delight in the Lord.
Let sinners be consumed out of the earth, and the unjust, so that they be no more: O my soul, bless thou the Lord.
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Sunday, 19 August 2012
St. Bernard on Using Knowledge as Charity and Wisdom
“There are people who only wish to know for the sake of knowing: this is base curiosity. Others wish to know in order that they themselves may be known: this is shameful vanity, and such people cannot escape the mockery of the satirical poet who said about their likes: ‘For you, knowing is nothing unless someone else knows that you know.’ Then there are those who acquire knowledge in order to re-sell it, and for example to make money or gain honours from it: their motive is distasteful. But some wish to know in order to edify: this is charity. Others in order to be edified: this is wisdom. Only those who belong to these last two categories do not misuse knowledge, since they only seek to understand in order to do good.” (St. Bernardus, Sermo XXXVI in Cantica, PL, CLXXXIII, 968.)
Fourth part of the mini-series on St. Bernard, the Saint of Love
The Blessed Virgin Mary is St. Bernard's Lady. Bernard was born and lived in the age of the great poets of Romance. He experienced an intense love of God and the Theotokos. In The Paradiso, as seen in the first of this series, Bernard takes Dante to the Beatific Vision. But, they encounter Our Lady, in the White Rose. The White Rose is the Perfect Love of God, and Mary is there at the center.
Can we not all spend time and let our longings for love center on Mary and Her Son? Today, I ask St. Bernard to lead us, as he led Dante in the poem, to Mary and through Mary to the Trinity. Remember all those medieval Christmas carols calling Mary the Rose.
Beauty, grace, love...this is our Faith. This is our heritage through baptism. This is the goal of our short lives.
Be bold, like St. Bernard. Let your soul be led to Love, Who is Three Persons in One God.
God is The Rose. He is Love. On this vigil of the feast day of St. Bernard, open yourselves up to Love. Mary, Our Lady, guide us. Be not afraid.
Third part of the mini-series on the Saint of Love
from Sermons on The Song of Songs, 2
It would seem that this holy kiss was of necessity bestowed on the world for two reasons. Without it the faith of those who wavered would not have been strengthened, nor the desires of the fervent appeased. Moreover, this kiss is no other than the Mediator between God and man, himself a man, Christ Jesus, who with the Father and Holy Spirit lives and reigns as God for ever and ever.
I first discovered him a long time ago and was enraptured by his personal knowledge of Christ and his great response of love for Love. The sermons on The Song of Songs can only be called amazing. That a man would have such boldness to write of his love for Christ and Christ's love for him is only matched, if at all, by the writings of SS. Augustine and John of the Cross.
Where are the men today who show us and communicate the Love Who is a Person to us? Why do we not have examples of such in the recent years? Is it that men who are called by God have to be so macho as not to be able to receive Christ's Love? Think on this. The Church has chosen so many business types of priests and bishops that the poets are missing. Our present Pope Benedict XVI in his encyclical on love, which I have written about here, comes close. But, the romantic age seems to be over and the language of love lost.
Here is St. Bernard. How wonderful are these bold words. The conscientious man of those days might repeat to himself: "Of what use to me the wordy effusions of the prophets? Rather let him who is the most handsome of the sons of men, let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth. No longer am I satisfied to listen to Moses, for he is a slow speaker and not able to speak well. Isaiah is a man of unclean lips, Jeremiah does not know how to speak, he is a child ; not one of the prophets makes an impact on me with his words. But he, the one whom they proclaim, let him speak to me, “let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth.” I have no desire that he should approach me in their person, or address me with their words, for they are “'a watery darkness, a dense cloud;” rather in his own person “let him kiss me with the kiss of his mouth;” let him whose presence is full of love, from whom exquisite doctrines flow in streams, let him become “a spring inside me, welling up to eternal life.” Shall I not receive a richer infusion of grace from him whom the Father has anointed with the oil of gladness above all his rivals, provided that he will bestow on me the kiss of his mouth? For his living, active word is to me a kiss, not indeed an adhering of the lips that can sometimes belie a union of hearts, but an unreserved infusion of joys, a revealing of mysteries, a marvelous and indistinguishable mingling of the divine light with the enlightened mind, which, joined in truth to God, is one spirit with him. With good reason then I avoid trucking with visions and dreams; I want no part with parables and figures of speech; even the very beauty of the angels can only leave me wearied. For my Jesus utterly surpasses these in his majesty and splendor. Therefore I ask of him what I ask of neither man nor angel: that he kiss me with the kiss of his mouth.
Note how I do not presume that it is with his mouth I shall be kissed, for that constitutes the unique felicity and singular privilege of the human nature he assumed. No, in the consciousness of my lowliness I ask to be kissed with the kiss of his mouth, an experience shared by all who are in a position to say: “Indeed from his fullness we have, all of us, received.”
I know some monks today would be squirming in their stalls today if their abbot spoke like this. But, these are the words of experience, of a mystical union with God. And, as Garrigou-Lagrange writes, this experience is for all Catholics, not merely the great ones.
Do we believe that?
I must ask you to try to give your whole attention here. The mouth that kisses signifies the Word who assumes human nature; the nature assumed receives the kiss; the kiss however, that takes its being both from the giver and the receiver, is a person that is formed by both, none other than "the one mediator between God and mankind, himself a man, Christ Jesus." It is for this reason that none of the saints dared say: "let him kiss me with his mouth," but rather, "with the kiss of his mouth." In this way they paid tribute to that prerogative of Christ, on whom uniquely and in one sole instance the mouth of the word was pressed, that moment when the fullness of the divinity yielded itself to him as the life of his body. A fertile kiss therefore, a marvel of stupendous self-abasement that is not a mere pressing of mouth upon mouth; it is the uniting of God with man. Normally the touch of lip on lip is the sign of the loving embrace of hearts, but this conjoining of natures brings together the human and divine, shows God reconciling "to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven.'' "For he is the peace between us, and has made the two into one.'' This was the kiss for which just men yearned under the old dispensation, foreseeing as they did that in him they would "find happiness and a crown of rejoicing," because in him were hidden "all the jewels of wisdom and knowledge.' Hence their longing to taste that fullness of his.
Second part of the mini-series on St. Bernard of Clairvaux
One of the sermons, Number 20, is called the "Three Qualities of Love". I would like to share part of this beautiful meditation with you. The saint begins with the realization that we are all called to love God and that we all fall short of doing this. But, this monk is on fire with real love.
Turn toward yourself, O God, this little that you have granted me to be; take from this miserable life, I beg you, the years that remain. In place of all that I lost in my evil way of living, O God, do not refuse a humble and penitent heart. My days have lengthened like a shadow and passed without fruits I cannot bring them back, but let it please you at least if I offer them to you in the bitterness of my soul. As for wisdom -- my every desire and intention is before you -- if there were any in me, I would keep it for you. But, God, you know my stupidity, unless perhaps it is wisdom for me to recognize it, and even this is your gift. Grant me more; not that I am ungrateful for this small gift, but that I am eager for what is lacking. For all these things, and as much as I am able, I love you.
He continues referring to the fact that Christ's suffering in His Passion is the great sign of His Love given freely.
As St John said: "Not that we had loved him, but that he first loved us." He loved us even before we existed, and in addition he loved us when we resisted him. According to the witness of St Paul: "Even when we were still his enemies we were reconciled to God through the blood of his Son." If he had not loved his enemies, he could not have had any friends, just as he would have had no one to love if he had not loved those who were not.
St. Bernard gives his monks and us three qualities of love: the first is that it is tender or sweet. We do not use this word so much in 2012. Tenderness means sweetness, a kindness and an appropriate compassion. Christ taking on our humanity in the Incarnation is the sign of sweet love for St. Bernard. Because of the Incarnation, men and women can have a loving relationship with Christ. Bernard calls Christ his Friend. But, He is also Lover. The tender concern of a lover is a sign of love.
The second is wisdom, like the wisdom with God has given us in Confirmation and perfected in prayer and fasting, as well as practising virtues. But it is also the wisdom of God to allow Christ to suffer and die for us. In the plan of God, the Passion is necessary. Bernard sees this, of course, as love and zeal.
The third characteristic of love is strength. We see this in the psalms, which the monks say and said then, daily. Love is as strong as death. Bernard writes:
He is the one who conquered all things, even death, and tricked the serpent, the seducer of the world, with a holy deception. He was more prudent than the one, more powerful than the other. He took to himself a true body but only the likeness of sin, giving a sweet consolation to weak men in the one and in the other hiding a trap to deceive the devil. To reconcile us to the Father he bravely suffered death and conquered it, pouring out his blood as the price of our redemption. His divine majesty would not have sought me in chains unless he had loved me so tenderly, but he added wisdom to his affection by which he deceived the serpent. Then he added patience with which to appease his divine Father who had been offended...So love the Lord your God with the full and deep affection of your heart, love him with your mind wholly awake and discreet, love him with all your strength, so much so that you would not even fear to die for love of him. As it is written: "For love is strong as death, jealousy is bitter as hell." Your affection for your Lord Jesus should be both tender and intimate, to oppose the sweet enticements of sensual life. Sweetness conquers sweetness as one nail drives out another. No less than this keep him as a strong light for your mind and a guide for your intellect, not only to avoid the deceits of heresy and to preserve the purity of your faith from their seductions, but also that you might carefully avoid an indiscreet and excessive vehemence in your conversation. Let your love be strong and constant, neither yielding to fear nor cowering at hard work. Let us love affectionately, discreetly, intensely. We know that the love of the heart, which we have said is affectionate, is sweet indeed, but liable to be led astray if it lacks the love of the soul. And the love of the soul is wise indeed, but fragile without that love which is called the love of strength.
We are all called to an intimate relationship with Christ, either through celibacy or marriage. Let us not be afraid of love. I like to think of myself in that cold chapter house listening to the warm words of the saint, looking out at the stones and grass, knowing that I, too, can return that Love for Love.
to be continued....
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