Keep
your eyes open!...
August 31, 2009
(Joh 3:29-30) He
that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the
bridegroom, who standeth and heareth Him, rejoiceth with joy because of
the bridegroom's voice. This my joy therefore is fulfilled. He must
increase: but I must decrease.
FROM THE MAILBAG
Reflection by Father Ted – August 29, 2009
Help
me, dearest Jesus, help us to do what You want us to do. Help us to
have the courage, to have the love for Your people that John the
Baptist had – whose martyrdom we celebrated today.
He had love
for his king. And because of that love for him – for his eternal
salvation, John was not afraid to tell King Herod that it for was wrong
for him to live with the wife of his own brother.
Because he spoke out even publicly, John was put into prison – to silence him.
Yet even in prison he did not keep silent.
The
king visited him – how many times, we do not know. But what we do know
is that John spoke to him about his, the king’s own immoral behavior.
The
king did not want to hear what John said. Yet he knew that what John
said was the truth. He knew that John spoke the truth because of his
love for him.
John had courage. John loved.
Do I, Lord, have such courage? Do I have such love?
Am I willing to speak out the truth to my brothers and sisters in love? Even when they do not want to hear the truth?
Sometimes, I have.
You know that.
And yet, sometimes I have not.
You know that, too.
When I have not, has that been because I was afraid?
I wish that I could say – no. But would I not be kidding myself?
When I remain silent when You want me to speak out, I do not love my brothers and sisters as You want me too.
Lord,
give me the grace; give me the strength that I need; give me the
courage that I need to speak out in love to these brothers and sisters
of mine, Your beloved children – when You want me to – for their
salvation.
Help me, Lord, to do Your Will as did Saint John the Baptist.
Saint John, pray for me!
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
13. I have seen people mourning who, on being praised,
flared up in anger; and as at a public gathering one passion gave place
to another.
August 27, 2009
THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT
WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).
(John 14:6) Jesus saith to him: I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father, but by me.
INTERMOUNTAIN CATHOLIC: Make death your friend and live life to the fullest, says deacon
CATHOLICISM.ORG: There Is a Hell, and It Makes Perfect Sense
There's Only One Way to Heaven
By the late Father Kilian McGowan, C.P.
Of al the possible questions, the one that begs for a most definite
answer is this: "What is the surest way to eternal life?" The answer
was given by our Blessed Lord to Saint Thomas at the Last Supper.
During His Last Supper, Christ had been predicting His departure when
He suddenly added: "And where I go you know, and the way you know."
Thomas quickly interrupted: "Lord, we do not know where you are going,
and how can we know the way?" Jesus answered: "I am the Way, and the
Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father but through me." (John
14:4-6)
One of the most basic truths of the spiritual life is that Jesus is the
Way of God. He is not one of many ways-He is the ONLY way! It is simply
impossible to overstress this truth! Yet, some of us are like Thomas.
Despite our Christian background, we say: "Lord, how can we know the
way?" The spiritual life is a very personal business between the soul
and God. It is more Someone than something. It is more Someone to
become than some things to be done. For Christianity is Christ! All
progress in the Christian life must be measured by our increasing
knowledge, love, and imitation of Jesus Christ. "This is eternal life
to know Thee, the one true God, and Jesus Christ Whom Thou has sent."
The Christian life is more a "putting-on" of Christ than a putting off
of sin-even though the two-fold effort is inseparable. The task of
becoming more Christlike is chief asceticism of each Christian. It is
better to look at Christ rather than ourselves, and to see ourselves
only in contrast to Him.
There are three stages in the formation of a Christ-like character. The
first is the STUDY of Christ. There can be no progress unless Our Lord
becomes the chief study of our lives. You should have a good working
knowledge of the historical Christ, and be well acquainted with all the
events of His Life.
The second stage is closely related to the preceding-it is PRAYERFUL
MEDITATION on Christ. Through this prayer, strive to penetrate more
deeply into mysteries of His life. There ponder His words, study His
actions, witness His miracles, and strive for a greater insight into
the motives and sentiments of His Sacred Heart.
Third there is the IMITATION of Christ. You will make much greater
progress by the positive effort of imitating His virtue than by trying
to root out your faults and failings. You will discover that the more
faithful you are to the will of God, the greater the revelation God
makes of Himself in the depths of your heart.
And don't be discouraged if at first you seem so unlike your divine
Model. Be encouraged rather, by the words of the Apostle Paul who tells
us to glory in our infirmities that the power of Christ might dwell in
us.
Your weakness is an invitation to His strength, your littleness calls
out to His greatness. Your nothingness is irresistible to His
"allness." Your very need of Him is the perfect complement to His
infinite desire to give Himself. He is more than the Way-He is the
Savior!
Our Blessed Lord is the Only Way that leads to eternal life. And
Study-Prayer-and Imitation are indispensable means for putting us on
the way and making progress along the way. This is the plan produced by
the wisdom of God. Let us follow no other!
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
12. People of high spirit bear offence nobly and
gladly, but only the holy and righteous can pass through praise without
harm.
August 26, 2009
COMMENTARY: A Gruesome Harvest- Aborted Fetuses and Their Organs by Chuck Colson
For
years, scientists and celebrities supporting embryo-destructive stem
cell research have used two arguments. First-blind to the destruction
of the embryo itself-they argue embryonic stem cell research will save
lives. Second, they maintain that embryos leftover from fertility
treatments will otherwise be wasted.
Now, one stem-cell expert is using these same arguments to promote harvesting organs from aborted fetuses.
Speaking
at a conference in March, Oxford University stem-cell expert Sir
Richard Gardner commented that he was surprised the possibility had not
been considered, and that experiments in mice have shown that fetal
kidneys grow extremely quickly when transplanted to adult animals
As
reported in the UK's Daily Mail, Sir Richard, an advisor to Britain's
Human Fertilization and Embryology Authority sees this ghastly practice
as a potential solution to the shortage of donated organs-and to what
we are learning about the ineffectiveness of embryonic stem cells.
While
advocates of using embryonic stem cells have long hailed them as the El
Dorado of disease prevention, they're not. Sir Richard calls the
creation of fully functioning organs from embryonic stem cells "remote."
Gardner
isn't a lone voice in this ethical wasteland. King's College professor
Stuart Campbell did not object. Speaking of the many babies aborted
late in term, he said, "If they are going to be terminated, it is a
shame to waste their organs." He added, "I am sure very few of those on
the transplant list would rather die than accept an organ from an
aborted fetus."
Here in the United States, bioethicist Jacob
Appel, writing on the subject in the Huffington Post, states, "The
first striking feature of fetal organs is that their supply...is
unlimited...pregnant women who provide fetal kidneys could do so
repeatedly."
MORE "MAD SCIENCE"
IN THE NEWS: Scientists Herald Non-Embryonic Stem Cell Breakthroughs
VATICAN RADIO: Adult stem cell therapy welcomed by the Vatican
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
11. The flatterer is a servant of devils, a guide
to pride, a destroyer of contrition, a ruiner of virtues, a misleader.
Those who pronounce you blessed, lead you astray, says the prophet.
August 25, 2009
(Mat 7:13-14) Enter
ye in at the narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way
that leadeth to destruction, and many there are who go in thereat. How
narrow is the gate, and strait is the way that leadeth to life: and few
there are that find it!
POPE BENEDICT XVI: Following Jesus Means Going Against the Trend
Following
Jesus "fills hearts with joy and the full meaning of existence, but it
also brings difficulties and sacrifices because very often it means
going against the trend" of modern global mentality. That is how
Benedict XVI concluded his reflections on the Sunday Gospel (the final
part of the 6th chapter of John), when Jesus, after his speech on the
"bread of life come down from heaven" meets great resistance among the
Jews and the disciples.
"The fourth Evangelist -
explained the pope - relates the reaction of the people and disciples,
shocked by the words of the Lord, to the point that many, after having
followed him until then, exclaim: 'This saying is hard; who can accept
it?' (V. 60). And from that moment on 'many of his disciples returned
to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him' (v. 66).
Jesus, however, does not lessen his claim, indeed, he directly
addresses the Twelve saying: 'Will you also go away?' (V. 67).
"This
provocative question - continued the pope - is not only addressed to
listeners of the time, but to believers and men of every age. Even
today, many are 'shocked' by the paradox of the Christian faith. Jesus'
teaching seems too 'hard', too difficult to accept and put into
practice. As a result there are those who reject and abandon Christ;
those who attempt to 'adapt' his teachings to the fashions of the times
distorting its meaning and value. 'Will you also go away?'. This
unsettling provocation resounds in our hearts and awaits a response
from each one of us. Jesus in fact is not contented by a merely
superficial or formal belonging, an initial and enthusiastic adhesion
is not enough for Him; on the contrary, we must take part in 'his
thinking and his will' throughout our entire life. Following Jesus
"fills hearts with joy and the full meaning of existence, but it also
brings difficulties and sacrifices because very often it means going
against the trend".
EXCERPT LITURGICAL REFORM: The Reform of the Reform
The
Cardinals and Bishops members of the Congregation voted almost
unanimously in favor of a greater sacrality of the rite, of the
recovery of the sense of Eucharistic worship, of the recovery of the
Latin language in the celebration, and of the remaking of the
introductory parts of the Missal in order to put a stop to abuses, wild
experimentations, and inappropriate creativity. They have also declared
themselves favorable to reaffirm that the usual way of receiving
Communion according to the norms is not on the hand, but in the mouth.
There is, it is true, and indult which, on request of the [local]
episcopates, allows for the distribution of the host [sic] also on the
palm of the hand, but this must remain an extraordinary fact. The
"Liturgy Minister" of Pope Ratzinger, Caņizares,
is also having studies made on the possibility to recover the
orientation towards the Orient of the celebrant, at least at the moment
of the eucharistic consecration, as it happened in practice before the
reform, when both the faithful and the priest faced towards the Cross
and the priest therefore turned his back to the assembly.
UCCB: Web site launched to educate Catholics about Missal translation
CHURCH IN CRISIS: Catholics look to reinvigorate church
Ladder of Divine
Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
10. God often hides from our eyes even those perfections
that we have obtained. But he who praises us or, rather, misleads us, opens
our eyes by his praise, and as soon as our eyes are opened, our treasure vanishes.
August 21, 2009
THE TRIB TIMES WILL RETURN NEXT
WEEK, GOD WILLING (James 4:15).
(Mat 5:3) Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
LINK: Poverty in the Modern World by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.
FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA Philip: 10 Suggestions to Help Develop a Healthy Self-Image
Here are 10 suggestions to help you develop and maintain a healthy self-image. Read them slowly. Meditate on them regularly.
1. Hate your sin, but never hate yourself.
2. Be quick to repent.
3. When God gives you light, walk in it.
4.
Stop saying negative things about yourself. God loves you and it's
wrong to hate what He loves. He has great plans for you, so you're in
conflict with Him when you speak negatively concerning your future.
5. Never be afraid to admit that you've made a mistake and don't always assume that when things go wrong, it must be 'my fault'.
6.
Don't meditate excessively on what you've done, right or wrong; both of
these activities keep your mind on you! Center your thoughts on Christ.
7.
Take good care of yourself physically. Make the best of what God gave
you to work with, but don't be obsessed with your appearance.
8.
Never stop learning but don't allow your education to become a point of
pride. God doesn't use you because of what's in your head: He uses you
because of what's in your heart.
9. Realize that your talents
are a gift, not something you have manufactured yourself; never look
down on people who can't do what you do.
10. Don't despise your weaknesses they keep you dependent on God.
Ladder of Divine
Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
8. A vainglorious ascetic is cheated both ways: he
exhausts his body, and he gets no reward.
August 20, 2009
EXCERPT ARCHBISHOP CHAPUT: Act now to ensure health care reform respects sanctity of life
For months now, Congress and the White House have talked about the need
for Americans to seek "common ground" on the issues that face us.
This is a very welcome theme.
The "common good" and "common ground" are central messages in Catholic
social teaching. This is why the Church always seeks to work
cooperatively with people of other faiths and no faith to secure the
basic elements of human dignity for all our citizens—decent
housing, a living wage, justice under the law and adequate food and
health care. It's why America's Catholic bishops have pushed for
national health care reform for the past several decades. It's
also why the Church, in principle, supports current efforts to craft
legislation that would ensure basic health care coverage for all
Americans.
But God, or the devil, is always in the details. As Scripture says,
"You will know them by their fruits" (Mt 7:20). The test of White
House and congressional honesty about seeking "common ground" will be
the details of the health care plan being worked on this summer and
fall. The whole meaning of "health care" would be subverted by
any plan that involves mandated abortion access or abortion
funding. The reason is obvious. Killing or funding the
killing of unborn children has nothing to do with promoting human
health, and including these things in any "health care" proposal, no
matter how shrewdly hidden, would simply be a form of lying.
In speaking for the American Catholic community, both Bishop William
Murphy and Cardinal Justin Rigali of the USCCB have already voiced
strong concerns about a possible stealth mandate for abortion carried
out through national health care. A so-called "compromise" solution
currently offered by Rep. Lois Capps (D-CA) would seemingly ban
abortion coverage as part of a federally mandated minimum benefits
package. But it would require at least one insurance plan in each
"premium rating area" to cover abortion. In its effect, the Capps
approach would lead to elective abortion being covered under a
government-operated public plan by allowing federal subsidies to flow
to private insurance plans that cover elective abortion. This
isn't a compromise. It's a shell game.
As the summer draws to a close, it's very important for Colorado
Catholics to contact their federal lawmakers immediately and demand
that abortion and abortion funding be completely excluded from any
national health care plan. A few key principles should guide the
development of any health care reform legislation, especially in light
of the mixed and sobering track record of national health plans in
other countries:
• It should provide access to basic, quality health services for
all persons, from conception to natural death, with a special concern
for the poor, elderly and disabled, and the inclusion of legal
immigrants;
• It should protect the conscience rights of individuals and religious institutions;
• It should exclude all so-called "services" that involve violence
against the dignity of the human person, such abortion,
physician-assisted suicide and their funding;
• It should be economically realistic and sustainable, with costs spread equitably across all taxpayers.
LINK: USCCB on Health Care
VIEWPOINT: What message should Catholics send Congress on health care reform?
NEWSMAX: Catholics Fight Against Abortion in Obamacare Bills
LIFESITE.COM: Bishop Nickless: "No Health Care Reform is Better than the Wrong Health Care Reform"
"HISTORY PLACE": Homily
by Catholic Cardinal Clemens von Galen, delivered on Sunday, August 3,
1941, in which he risked his life by openly condemning the Nazi
euthanasia program
Ladder of Divine
Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
7. Every lover of self-display is vainglorious.
The fast of the vainglorious person is without reward and his prayer is futile,
because he does both for the praise of men.
August 19, 2009
(Luk 18:7-8) And
will not God revenge his elect who cry to him day and night? And will
he have patience in their regard? I say to you that he will quickly
revenge them. But yet the Son of man, when he cometh, shall he find,
think you, faith on earth?
HEADLINE: Poland marks the Assumption with a secular Madonna
Madonna's
Saturday night concert in Warsaw coincided with an important day for
another Madonna - the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into
heaven. That was a source of dismay to some ultra-Catholic Poles but
did not seem to perturb the tens of thousands of cheerful fans who
attended the concert.
"I'm
a practising Catholic but I don't think there's anything wrong with
going to the concert tonight," said a grinning young woman, clutching
her white Madonna ticket as she pushed past a single protester decked
out in signs condemning the event.
The
failure of the protests to gain much support is another sign of the
growing secularisation of Polish society, which has come to light in
the Catholic Church's recent head counts of the faithful.
The
most recent, last November, found 40 per cent of adults in the pews - a
percentage that would be beyond the dreams of many non-Polish
churchmen. But in Poland the figure is seen as a grim warning because
it marks a 4 percentage point decline from a year earlier and more than
a 6 percentage point drop from 2003.
That
does not mean Polish churches are emptying. The norm is still
standing-room-only Masses in churches across the country, and the
crosses and statues of saints dotting roadsides across Poland are still
decorated with fluttering ribbons tended by the pious.
But
there are signs that something may be shifting. Surveys show that while
95 per cent of Poles identify themselves as Catholics, only 70 per cent
believe in heaven, and one of the lowest birth rates in Europe suggests
the Church's teachings on sexual issues are taken with a pinch of salt.
Another
disconcerting statistic for the Church is the decline in young men and
women deciding to become priests, monks or nuns. In 2004 there were
2,178 in their first year of religious studies; last year there were
only 1,382, a drop of almost 37 per cent.
"We are observing a steady decline, which you can see in vocations and in general religiousness," says Bishop Wojciech Polak.
FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA READER:
The article below on Crisis of Vocations is quite interesting.
But when one is living in a very secular society and people do not know
what it truly means to "live in the world but not of it," and as such,
they are as worldly as everyone else, you will have hardly any
vocations.
I have recently been reading a book (not that
long, only about 141 pages) on Blessed Euphemia of Serbia; The Life of
an Apostolic Eldress." She was an Orthodox Eldress who died in 1958 (so
not so long ago). The book is utterly fascinating and has many very
good commentaries and good sense. I happened to read this from the book:
"By her radiant life, Mother attracted to her community a large number of those seeking salvation."
"....in the center of Serbia, where there were still...children who were raised for the monastery."
When
you think about the above information, well, this should truly tell us
all something. Children raised for monastic life? Think about that one.
From the back of the cover of the book, let me provide what it says:
"By
their nature, women are called by God to reflect the spirit of
other-worldliness in this temporal world. Although often hidden from
common view, by virtue of their humility, holy and righteous women have
spiritually illumined the path to the heavenly realm in all times.
Among them shines the image of this modern day heroine, Blessed
Euphemia of Ravanitsa, as it is presented in this biography lovingly
written by her devoted spiritual daughters. Mother Euphemia had a
wondrous charm and power of spirit. Her external appearance was a
reflection of her prayerful disposition. Her outward activity was
boundless. As a young lay ascetic she preached the Word of God from
village to village; she guided her large sisterhood and hundreds of lay
people through the physical and spiritual dangers of two World Wars and
the communist yoke; she founded orphanages; educated the young; and
translated patristic texts for the spiritual instruction of her people.
Inwardly, Abbess Euphemia lived in the spirit of the ancient desert
Fathers, in fasting, all-night vigils and sleeping only in a sitting
position. For this, God granted her the gifts of clairvoyence and
healing. A renewer of six monasteries, she re-established coenobitic
monastic life in her country to such an extent that the monastic rule
which she instituted was used in women's monasteries all over Serbia.
Who,
in the US would be ever willing to be like her? Yet, this is what
is needed. And true Catholics should be totally honored to have their
children become priests and sisters/nuns. Yet...are they? One cannot be
deeply in the world and also of it, and think that vocations will
abound. It isn't possible. Naturally, a good starting place would be in
the Catholic schools, yet from what I have heard from many different
people, what is being taught in the religious instruction is not very
good. I've heard that alot. Yet, the best place to begin a
serious spiritual life must begin within a home. Every home (like
in many villages in Central Europe even today) should have a prayer
corner where the fmaily gets together and prays daily. But, if there is
no time for God because Johnny has to go here and there, and Mary has
to go thither and yon, well then, there is no time for God because
'everyone is too busy' and a child has no time for the silence
needed to 'listen to what God wants of him or her" (God's will,
not one's own foolish thinking). As such, how are vocations going to
ever begin, let alone grow, when there is constant noise,
interruptions, constant going and moving, computers and TV (which is
just about worthless), and goodness only knows what.
What is
needed is to go back to the beginning and start all over again. Go back
to customs and old traditions. Go back to those wonderful evening
Masses with their novenas, rosaries, and children's processions.
Go back to family gatherings, and not all the so called 'busy' stuff
which as St. Paul states, means nothing. Without the above, vocations
will not increase.
AKITA PRAYER:
"Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, truly present in Holy Eucharist, I
consecrate my body and soul to be entirely one with Your Heart, being
sacrificed at every instant on all the altars of the world and giving
praise to the Father pleading for the coming of His Kingdom."
"Please receive this humble offering of myself. Use me as You will for the glory of the Father and the salvation of souls."
"Most
holy Mother of God, never let me be separated from Your Divine Son.
Please defend and protect me as Your Special Child. Amen."
Ladder of Divine
Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
6. A vainglorious person is a believing idolater;
he apparently honours God, but he wants to please not God but men.
August 18, 2009
(Luk
9:23-24) And he said to all: If any man will come after me, let him
deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whosoever
will save his life shall lose it: for he that shall lose his life for
my sake shall save it.
POPE BENEDICT XVI: Like Mary, we are all called to say yes to God
IN THE NEWS: Catholic study points to crisis in vocations
U.S. Catholic religious communities are attracting more ethnically and
culturally diverse members now than in previous generations, according
to an in-depth survey released Aug. 11.
The "Study of Recent Vocations to Religious Life" also showed that most
U.S. religious communities report diminishing numbers with aging
populations, but at the same time indicated those who are choosing
religious life today are passionate about it and some orders are
cultivating vocations from the millennial generation.
With less than 10 percent of women religious and 25 percent of men
religious under the age of 60, it's imperative that U.S. religious
communities figure out effective methods of recruitment, said Mercy
Sister Mary Bendyna, executive director of the Center for Applied
Research in the Apostolate and principal author of the study.
RELATED: The Catholic Church Calls For Priests
VATICAN CONGREGATION: Letter to Permanent Deacons
FATHER CORAPI: EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE—A DAILY DUTY
QUOTE FROM FATHER CORAPI: "My
job is to confirm you in the faith, educate and inspire. Then it
is your mission to be the salt of the earth and light of the world. It
isn't easy, I know."
Ladder of Divine
Ascent excerpt: Step 22- "On the many forms of vainglory"
4. Observe and you will find unholy vainglory abounding
till the very grave in clothes, oils, servants, perfumes and the like.
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