Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. . . . Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him” (James 1:2-4,12).
Author: Melissa Moody
Offer It Up
What does this phrase mean?
We are priests of God by our baptism. We are not ministerial priests, who offer up the sacrifice of Christ upon the altar at Holy Mass. But, as non-ministerial priests, we do offer something to God: our bodies, our actions, our labor, and even our sufferings.
We can we “offer it up” simply by asking God, in the midst of our suffering, to join our suffering to Christ’s, and to use our suffering.
Your Soul Can Save Another Soul
From November 1 through November 8, we can help the Holy Souls in Purgatory, —those who have died in grace, yet who failed in this life to make satisfaction for all of their sins. On each of those days that we receive Communion, we can visit a cemetery, pray for the dead, and gain a plenary indulgence, for one soul—thus releasing him or her from Purgatory.
Am I Willing…to Let It Go
Am I willing…
Memento Mori
November is the month of Souls. Memento mori, or also memento mortis, “remember death”, is the Latin medieval designation of the theory and practice of the reflection on mortality, especially as a means of considering the vanity of earthly life and the transient nature of all earthly goods and pursuits and turning your attention towards the immortality of the soul and the afterlife.
The Lord’s Prayer is the Matrix of Prayer
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come.
Thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
and the power, and the glory,
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Next Step, Next Breath, Check Out Momo
“…it’s like this. Sometimes, when you’ve a very long street ahead of you, you think how terribly long it is and feel sure you’ll never get it swept. And then you start to hurry. You work faster and faster and every time you look up there seems to be just as much left to sweep as before, and you try even harder, and you panic, and in the end you’re out of breath and have to stop–and still the street stretches away in front of you. That’s not the way to do it.
You must never think of the whole street at once, understand? You must only concentrate on the next step, the next breath, the next stroke of the broom, and the next, and the next. Nothing else.
That way you enjoy your work, which is important, because then you make a good job of it. And that’s how it ought to be.
And all at once, before you know it, you find you’ve swept the whole street clean, bit by bit. what’s more, you aren’t out of breath. That’s important, too… (28-29)”
Michael Ende, Momo
Michael Ende was one of the most popular German authors of the 20th Century, captivating millions of children around the world with his fantasy stories. His most successful book, The NeverEnding Story (1979) has been translated into more than 30 languages, made into a hit movie in 1984, and remains a much-loved, international bestseller.
Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity – October 21, 2014
On Tuesday October 21, 2014, many students around the world will commit to remain silent the entire day to show their solidarity with the children still in the womb, who are killed silently by the violent act of abortion. This “Pro-life Day of Silent Solidarity” was started by Bryan Kemper, the Youth Outreach Director for Priests for Life. The students say nothing, and if they are approached, they hand the person a brochure explaining abortion. Go to SilentDay.org for more information on how to participate this October 21.
Heaven In A Wild Flower
An early morning walk began through the back entrance of a garden sanctuary. The fields were damp with the morning dew and the sun postured itself for a glorious autumn day. You can barely see anything, its a messy weedy field, un-kept at the moment. Perfect for my feelings.
Coming from behind, the white cross hidden above the purple plum leaves, I love the way the cross appears light amid the dark leaves. And the high heavens above for the cross to bloom infinitely.
I kneel beneath the cross, recite my thoughts into prayers, speaking to our creator, a way to being whole, hearing my heart, laying down my burdens, side by side.
Followed my eyes to these beauties….nature doesn’t think, it unfolds in perfect harmony to the rhythm of the universe.
Looking and being one with nature is a sure way to find your ohm and begin to understand our human nature through the fine details of mother nature.
If they could speak,
“Good morning, my love. Watch me grow. And know everything that’s broke, leave it to the breeze.”
Upon leaving, Mother Mary meets me, we talk and say the Rosary together. So me, how I go in the exit and leave through the entrance. A sign, I see across the way, surely was supposed to meet me as I entered. But really fit for me to read on the way out.
An Invocation to the Sacred Heart
O Heart of love, I put all my trust in Thee; for I fear all things from my own weakness, but I hope for all things from Thy goodness. Amen.
-A short prayer to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (meant to be recited several times a day.) It was written by Saint Margaret Mary Alocoque, whose visions of Jesus Christ in the late 17th century are the source of the Feast of the Sacred Heart.
