Keep
your eyes open!...
August 31, 2016
(Deu 30:19-20) I
call heaven and earth to witness this day, that I have set before you
life and death, blessing and cursing. Choose therefore life, that both
thou and thy seed may live: And that thou mayst love the Lord thy God,
and obey his voice, and adhere to him (for he is thy life, and the
length of thy days,) that thou mayst dwell in the land, for which the
Lord swore to thy fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that he would give
it them.
COURAGEOUS PRIEST: Priest Praying at a Planned Parenthood Clinic Calls for Prayerful Protest
VICTIMS OF ABORTION Newsletter: Broken Branches Issue 212
LIFESITE EXCERPT: Catholic discernment in the U.S. presidential election of 2016
The Catechism teaches that “citizens should take an active part in public life” (n. 1915).
And what about voting “according to my conscience”? Once more, the bishops of our nation provide sound instruction:
The Church equips
its members to address political and social questions by helping them
to develop a well-formed conscience. Catholics have a serious and
lifelong obligation to form their consciences in accord with human
reason and the teaching of the Church. Conscience is not something that
allows us to justify doing whatever we want, nor is it a mere “feeling”
about what we should or should not do. Rather, conscience is the voice
of God resounding in the human heart, revealing the truth to us and
calling us to do what is good while shunning what is evil. Conscience
always requires serious attempts to make sound moral judgments based on
the truths of our faith. As stated in the Catechism of the Catholic
Church, “Conscience is a judgment of reason whereby the human person
recognizes the moral quality of a concrete act that he is going to
perform, is in the process of performing, or has already completed. In
all he says and does, man is obliged to follow faithfully what he knows
to be just and right.” (n. 17)
Certain issues must always be entered into the moral calculus of one’s
vote. The bishops are crystal clear about priorities:
There are some
things we must never do, as individuals or as a society, because they
are always incompatible with love of God and neighbor. Such actions are
so deeply flawed that they are always opposed to the authentic good of
persons. These are called “intrinsically evil” actions. They must
always be rejected and opposed and must never be supported or condoned.
A prime example is the intentional taking of innocent human life, as in
abortion and euthanasia. In our nation, “abortion and euthanasia have
become preeminent threats to human dignity because they directly attack
life itself, the most fundamental human good and the condition for all
others” (Living the Gospel of Life, n. 5). It is a mistake with grave
moral consequences to treat the destruction of innocent human life
merely as a matter of individual choice. A legal system that violates
the basic right to life on the grounds of choice is fundamentally
flawed. (n. 22)
Is this “single-issue” voting? No, while I do not vote for someone
solely on the basis of one issue, there are certain issues that are
what we can call “automatic disqualifiers.” Just as one would most
reasonably conclude that a member of the KKK or a neo-Nazi should never
hold public office because of his racism, so too any reasonable person
can and should conclude that anyone who favors the killing of innocent
human life in the womb is manifestly unfit to hold any position of
influence in a civilized society. Or, as the bishops put it:
As Catholics we
are not single-issue voters. A candidate’s position on a single issue
is not sufficient to guarantee a voter’s support. Yet if a candidate's
position on a single issue promotes an intrinsically evil act, such as
legal abortion, redefining marriage in a way that denies its essential
meaning, or racist behavior, a voter may legitimately disqualify a
candidate from receiving support. (n. 42)
And what about “all the other good positions” a candidate may have,
even if lacking in that one area? St. John Paul II, in Christifideles
Laici, could not be clearer:
Above all, the
common outcry, which is justly made on behalf of human rights –
for example, the right to health, to home, to work, to family, to
culture – is false and illusory if the right to life, the most basic
and fundamental right and the condition for all other personal rights,
is not defended with maximum determination. (n. 38)
Following on Pope John Paul’s assertion, the bishops leave no doubt
about Catholic social teaching on abortion and euthanasia: “The direct
and intentional destruction of innocent human life from the moment of
conception until natural death is always wrong and is not just one
issue among many. It must always be opposed.” (n. 28)
“Faithful Citizenship” also has counsel on what to do if all candidates are equally bad on critical issues:
When all
candidates hold a position that promotes an intrinsically evil act, the
conscientious voter faces a dilemma. The voter may decide to take the
extraordinary step of not voting for any candidate or, after careful
deliberation, may decide to vote for the candidate deemed less likely
to advance such a morally flawed position and more likely to pursue
other authentic human goods. In making these decisions, it is essential
for Catholics to be guided by a well-formed conscience that recognizes
that all issues do not carry the same moral weight and that the moral
obligation to oppose policies promoting intrinsically evil acts has a
special claim on our consciences and our actions. These decisions
should take into account a candidate’s commitments, character,
integrity, and ability to influence a given issue. (nn. 36, 37)
How do the two principal parties compare on issues traditionally of great import to Catholics?
The Democratic National Committee brags about how far it has gone on abortion “rights:”
The platform goes
further than previous Democratic platforms on women’s reproductive
rights. It champions Planned Parenthood health centers and commits to
push back on all Republican efforts to defund it. The platform also
vows to oppose, and seek to overturn, all federal and state laws that
impede a woman’s access to abortion, including by repealing the Hyde
Amendment.
It also strongly supports the repeal of harmful restrictions that
obstruct women’s access to healthcare around the world, including the
Global Gag Rule and the Helms Amendment, which bars U.S. assistance to
other countries that provide safe, legal, abortion.
On the other hand, the Republican platform contains seven full paragraphs condemning every aspect of the abortion culture.
The Washington Blade (the premier gay rights publication in the nation)
observes approvingly that the Democratic platform “has a specific LGBT
plank titled ‘Guaranteeing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender
Rights’ and includes LGBT references in planks throughout the
document.” It continues: “The LGBT plank endorses LGBT comprehensive
non-discrimination legislation ... condemns violence against
transgender people, endorses the U. S. Supreme Court decision in favor
of same-sex marriage and repudiates state laws seeking to undermine
LGBT rights.” Further: “‘Democrats applaud last year’s decision
by the Supreme Court that recognized that LGBT people – like other
Americans – have the right to marry the person they love,’ the platform
says.” Then the paper considers the Republican platform on this issue:
“In contrast, the platform adopted last week at the Republican National
Convention seeks to reverse the Supreme Court decision on same-sex
marriage, indicates supports for widely discredited ‘ex-gay’ conversion
therapy and supports state anti-trans bathroom laws.”
On school choice, the Republican platform is squarely in the corner of
enhancing parental freedom of choice – a matter on which the Catholic
Church in the United States has been engaged for nearly two centuries.
The Democratic Party is squarely aligned with the public school
teachers unions – even though such a position causes irreparable harm
to minority communities locked in failed government schools.
Religious freedom is highlighted in the GOP platform but is reduced to concern for LGBT rights in the Democratic plan.
Of course, the fundamental problem in our political landscape is that
the nation (or at least the nation’s opinion-makers) have moved in an
aggressive fashion toward the secularization that has crippled Europe.
We need to recall and reinstate attitudes that first put the United
States on the right track and then kept her there for generations.
James Madison, the primary author of our Constitution, asserted: “We
have staked the whole future of our political constitutions upon the
capacity of each of ourselves to govern ourselves according to the
moral principles of the Ten Commandments.” John Adams declared:
“The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: It connected in
one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the
principles of Christianity.” A century later, Calvin Coolidge
reaffirmed that truth when he wrote: “The foundations of our society
and our government rest so much on the teachings of the Bible that it
would be difficult to support them if faith in these teachings would
cease to be practically universal in our country.” But isn’t that
exactly where we are – “faith in these teachings” practically gone from
the public square?
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
12. He who has obtained heartfelt tears will find
any place convenient for mourning. But he whose weeping is only outward
show will spend endless time discussing places and manners. Hidden treasure
is safer from robbery than that exposed in the market; let us apply this
to what we have just said.
August 29, 2016
(Mar 6:27-29) But
sending an executioner, he commanded that his head should be brought in
a dish. And he beheaded him in the prison, and brought his head in a
dish: and gave to the damsel, and the damsel gave it her mother. Which
his disciples hearing came, and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.
GENERAL AUDIENCE POPE BENEDICT (2012): Martyrdom of St John the Baptist
BLOG: Caravaggio’s Beheading of St. John the Baptist
EXCERPT: The Beheading of the Holy Glorious Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist John
The prophet of God John openly denounced Herod for having left his
lawful wife, the daughter of the Arabian king Aretas, and then instead
cohabiting with Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip (Luke
3:19-20). On his birthday, Herod made a feast for dignitaries, the
elders and a thousand chief citizens. Salome, the daughter of Herod,
danced before the guests and charmed Herod. In gratitude to the girl,
he swore to give her whatever she would ask, up to half his kingdom.
The vile girl on the advice of her wicked mother Herodias asked that
she be given the head of John the Baptist on a platter. Herod became
apprehensive, for he feared the wrath of God for the murder of a
prophet, whom earlier he had heeded. He also feared the people, who
loved the holy Forerunner. But because of the guests and his careless
oath, he gave orders to cut off the head of St John and to give it to
Salome.
According to Tradition, the mouth of the dead preacher of repentance
once more opened and proclaimed: “Herod, you should not have the wife
of your brother Philip.” Salome took the platter with the head of St
John and gave it to her mother. The frenzied Herodias repeatedly
stabbed the tongue of the prophet with a needle and buried his holy
head in a unclean place. But the pious Joanna, wife of Herod’s steward
Chuza, buried the head of John the Baptist in an earthen vessel on the
Mount of Olives, where Herod had a parcel of land. (The Uncovering of
the Venerable Head is celebrated February 24 in the Orthodox Church).
The holy body of John the Baptist was taken that night by his disciples
and buried at Sebastia, there where the wicked deed had been done.
After the murder of St John the Baptist, Herod continued to govern for
a certain time. Pontius Pilate, governor of Judea, later sent Jesus
Christ to him, Whom he mocked (Luke 23:7-12).
The judgment of God came upon Herod, Herodias and Salome, even during
their earthly life. Salome, crossing the River Sikoris in winter, fell
through the ice. The ice gave way in such a way that her body was in
the water, but her head was trapped above the ice. It was similar to
how she once had danced with her feet upon the ground, but now she
flailed helplessly in the icy water. Thus she was trapped until that
time when the sharp ice cut through her neck.
Her corpse was not found, but they brought the head to Herod and
Herodias, as once they had brought them the head of St John the
Baptist. The Arab king Aretas, in revenge for the disrespect shown his
daughter, made war against Herod. The defeated Herod suffered the wrath
of the Roman emperor Caius Caligua (37-41) and was exiled with Herodias
first to Gaul, and then to Spain.
EXCERPT HOMILY: Beheading of John the Baptist
The English word “martyr” comes to us from both Latin and Greek, the
word “martyr” being translated as “witness,” the ultimate witness to
Christ being the offering of our life’s blood. I suspect that for
most all of us here, we won’t likely face some kind of blood-red
martyrdom, at least today, nonetheless, there will be countless
occasions to give witness to Christ. There will most likely be
more than a few opportunities for us to “lay down our life” for a
brother or sister, even today… not in some kind of ostentatious
showings of heroism and notoriety, but in some very mundane and rather
hidden ways.
Certain people who – as we say – absolutely “kill us,” we’ll be invited
to forgive. We’ll be invited, undoubtedly, to offer the
generosity of our tried patience, the withholding of our judgment, the
readiness to be helpful and not retiring, the opportunity to bless and
not curse. Not everyone, we pray, will face John the Baptist’s
fate; but I would say that all of us who profess Jesus as our Lord and
Savior will be invited to die more than once, maybe more than once a
day, even today, to die, like a grain of wheat. Something great
or puny that we are sorely tempted to clutch at and save at all costs,
some thing – some image of our selves, some impression or decision or
resolution or right or fear or time that we feel is our possession –
will get in the way of life, what Jesus calls “life,” if we don’t let
it go, don’t give it up, don’t let it die. Today will be a
“killer” in the working out of our salvation and claiming this
“abundant life” promised by Jesus.
In the SSJE brothers’ Rule of Life, we speak about an identification
with martyrdom, not because we are monks but because we are
baptized. In our baptismal vows, we profess that we “have died
with Christ and are raised with him.” We do say in our Rule
that “…from the beginning monks and nuns have been encouraged to
understand their own life commitment in the light of the freedom and
trust that enables martyrs to give up their lives to the glory of
God.” And we remind ourselves that “the witness of the martyrs
should never be far from our minds as we go forward in the vowed life
day by day.” But we as monks recognize that our identification
with martyrdom, which gives us the grace to surrender our lives to God
through our monastic vows, comes from our the grace of baptism, where
we – all of us here who are baptized – “have died with Christ and
are raised with him.” What would that mean to you? That you
“have died with Christ and are raised with him?”
Surrender. The surrendering of our lives. Surrendering any
notion that we “possess” our own lives. My life does not belong
to me. That is how I would speak about having died with Christ
and being raised with him. We don’t possess our own lives.
I would say we are stewards of the life that God has given us, and for
however long God continues to give us breath. I think of it as
being loaned back into life after baptism. And so I would say
that our life is not about hoarding or about conserving itself for its
own sake but its opposite: about giving. Our life is about
willingly giving up our life and our life’s energies as we see in
Christ’s own self-emptying.
A wonderful way to think and pray about the life you’ve been given to
steward is to face into the certainty of your own death. The only
thing uncertain about death is how and when we will die. Death is
a part of life. By facing into the inevitably of death you may
find enormous freedom and clarity in the moments of life which are
still ahead for you – be it as much as another day or week or month or
year or perhaps many years. (We brothers make our funeral plans
and keep them up to date. Your survivors would sure find that
helpful if you did that… and in the meantime it might prove enormously
helpful for you personally.)
So we say that in our baptism we give up the delusion that we possess
our own life, and we acknowledge that our life needs to be salvaged by
Christ. And then we are loaned back into life for a little while
with Jesus’ promise that he’s going to use us, he’s going to use
you. You will re-present Christ to this world – your sheer
presence, your words, your touch, your actions, beyond which you could
ask or imagine, and in ways that Christ will set up. Channel
it. Channel that power, that light, that life, that love of
Christ. Channel it, generously, don’t hoard… and don’t worry.
As you leave the chapel this evening you might find it meaningful to
dip your fingers in the holy water basins near a doorway. This is
baptismal water, placed there at the doorways as a reminder of our own
baptism, where we “have died with Christ and are raised with
him.” We give up both the delusion and the burden of possessing
life. We acknowledge that we are neither the author nor finisher
of life. We’re a steward of life, a participant, a player, an
agent, an ambassador on a short-term, mortal assignment by
Christ. Who knows for how long? Give it your all; you will
be given all you need.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
11. During prayer and supplication, stand with
trembling like a convict standing before a judge, so that, both by your
outward appearance as well as by your inner disposition, you may extinguish
the wrath of the just Judge; for He will not despise a widow soul standing
before Him burdened with sorrow and wearying the Unwearying One (cf. Luke
18:5).
August 26, 2016
(Luk 13:23-24) And
a certain man said to him: Lord, are they few that are saved? But he
said to them: Strive to enter by the narrow gate: for many, I say to
you, shall seek to enter and shall not be able.
POPE FRANCIS: With
the image of the door, He wants to explain to his listeners that it is
not a question of numbers – how many people will be saved.
It doesn’t matter how many, but it is important that everyone
knows which is the path that leads to salvation: the door.
To go along this path, one must pass
through a door. But where is the door? What is it like? Who
is the door? Jesus himself is the door (cf. Jn 10,9). He
himself says it, ‘I am the door’ in John’s Gospel. He leads us in
communion with the Father, where we find love, understanding and
protection. But why is this door narrow? One can ask. Why is it narrow?
It is a narrow door not because it is oppressive - no, but
because it asks us to restrict and limit our pride and our fear, to
open ourselves with humble and trusting heart to Him, recognizing
ourselves as sinners, in need of his forgiveness. For this,
it is narrow: to contain our pride, which bloats us. The door of
God's mercy is narrow but always wide open, wide open for everyone! God
has no favorites, but always welcomes everyone, without distinction. A
door, that is narrow to restrict our pride and our fear. Open
because God welcomes us without distinction. And the
salvation that He gives us is an unceasing flow of mercy…which breaks
down every barrier and opens up surprising perspectives of light and
peace. The narrow but always open door: do not forget
this. Narrow door, but always open.
ESSAY: THE CAUSE OF OUR MISFORTUNES, TROUBLES, AND SUFFERINGS: OUR SINS
Before the fall of our first ancestors, mankind was happy: living in
Paradise in close union with God and showing child-like devotion and
obedience to Him, they were in need of nothing, suffered from nothing,
and were fully satisfied with life. Living in happiness, man openly
poured out his soul before God with childlike love, receiving Divine
help from Him for his development. Man knew neither sickness nor
death. All of man's happiness was because he was close to God and God
was with him. As a loving father, God appeared in Paradise and
conversed with man, as with good, obedient children. All of the
surrounding nature was subject to man, as to its king, as the image of
the Creator Himself. The inanimate earth, by the will of the Lord,
brought forth only what was beneficial, what was needed by man. Sinless
man knew nothing that was unneeded, that was harmful to himself, to his
health or welfare. Man was placed over everything in the world. Being
the image of God, a little lower than angels, he was crowned with glory
and honor. But because of the cunning and evil plotting of the devil,
man decided to not obey God. He independently decided to arrange his
own welfare with his own power and means. He began to act against the
Divine will, in opposition to Divine commandments. He ceased to obey
God and at the same time was deprived of Divine help and was left alone
in the midst of nature and its inhabitants. Not only did man understand
and realize that all of his greatness, all of his well-being and his
happiness depended not on himself, and not on nature, but that it was
only and exclusively a consequence of man's proximity to God, of
Divine help.
Having been deprived, because of sin, of the happiness of conversing
with God and receiving instructions, man now understood his
nothingness: his understanding, no longer enlightened with Divine
precepts, became confused and lost in errors. His heart, no longer
warmed with Divine love, became darkened with sinful inclinations and
passions of the flesh. His will, not supported by help from above,
became weak and unable to resist the attraction of sin and evil. Now
man began to notice how evil would entangle his soul, darken his heart,
and captivate his will. Although he had an understanding of good and he
preferred good, loved it and hated evil, most of the time in spite of
his desire, he would do evil, for evil and sin became alluring and
tempting to him, while good became laborsome. Having been deprived of
communion with God, the nature of man became weak, for it lost the
source of its strength. It began to dry up and wither, just as a river
dries up when it is separated from the sources which feed it. Before
sin man was peaceful, healthy, joyful and happy, without any needs,
without any sorrows, but now his conscience began to reprove him for
sinning, to wound his soul like a sharp-clawed beast, giving him no
peace. His body, deprived of Divine grace, subject to the changes of
weather—heat, cold, and other weather conditions—became susceptible to
sickness, suffering, and gradually became worn out, grew decrepit, and
died. For man, death became a silent but constant reminder of his sin.
Seeing man deprived of his former royal greatness, nature ceased to be
subject to him and even began to oppose him, to war against him: wild
beasts began to attack him and harm him. Even the inanimate earth began
to bring forth weeds instead of grain, and for his nourishment it
required from him persistent heavy labor for its cultivation and
fertilization. From this, misfortunes began to surround and oppress
man—misfortunes on the water and on land, in the desert and among
brethren, misfortunes from friends and from strangers. In the further
history of mankind, all of this only continued and developed.
So this is where we must look for the cause of our misfortunes, sorrows
and unhappiness. And for us the cause of our difficult life, the source
of our sufferings is sin. And in our time, people who have learned to
refrain from sin, people who have come close to God through prayer and
fulfilling His commandments, are happy, but sinners are unhappy.
It's true that in this earthly life this is not always clearly evident.
Often you can see the opposite. Very often the righteous suffer while
sinners seem to prosper, enjoying all the good things in life. But this
prosperity is not real. A Christian must measure life mainly by the
inner spiritual condition, not by the external. Oh, if only we could
see what often happens to the souls of those who seem happy! How often
tears flow through the gold, how often outward prosperity merely serves
as a cover for the most serious spiritual sufferings and sorrows! On
the other hand, the visible daily sufferings of a righteous person
only strengthen his faith in God, they only strengthen his soul and
guide him along the path of moral perfection and bring him closer to
God. It only seems to us that the righteous man suffers from poverty
and the lack of respect for him from the powerful of this world, while,
in fact, the righteous man never seeks worldly glory, and furthermore,
he does not seek riches, and the loss of them is nothing to him. He
always remembers the words of the Savior: Seek ye first the Kingdom of
God and His righteousness, and all these things—everything needed for
this temporal, earthly life—shall be added unto you (Matt. 6:33).
Let us remember that sin separates us from God and brings us closer to
the devil as St. John the Theologian said: He that committeth sin is of
the devil, for the devil sinneth from the beginning (I John 3:8). The
devil is the bearer of sin, its source. Good, the fulfillment of the
Lord's commandments, brings a man closer to God, brings him closer to
happiness. Whoever loves himself, whoever desires happiness for
himself, must withdraw from sin with all his might, he must strive for
good, for whoever strives for good, strives for God. God is good, and
those who do good are children of God.
In trying to justify ourselves, we often say: "We don't have any
serious sins. We are ordinary sinners, like all other people." Let us
remember that in evaluating a sin, most important is the spiritual
disposition. As long as we are spiritually devoted to God, we speak
with love to Him and we honor His commandments as the highest law for
us. And if we sin out of ignorance, through weakness, not
intentionally, then those sins will of course be forgiven by God, if
we repent of them and make every effort to make amends with good works
and almsgiving. But if our soul is far from God, if there is not a
spark of good in it, no searching for God, then every foolish deed is
disastrous and very consequential, for it reveals a soul that does not
love God and does not seek Him. Therefore, every sin that meets no
opposition in the soul of a man, quickly, albeit gradually, will grow
into a transgression. From small sins come serious sins. Every
transgression begins with something minor, and through repetition they
gradually grow and increase.
God, teach us and help us to love good and hate evil. Blessed art Thou, O Lord! Teach us to fulfill Thy Commandments!
ST. MAXIMILIAN KOLBE:
Whenever you feel guilty, even if it is because you have consciously
committed a sin, a serious sin, something you have kept doing many,
many times, never let the devil deceive you by allowing him to
discourage you. Whenever you feel guilty, offer all your guilt to the
Immaculate, without analyzing it or examining it, as something that
belongs to her… My beloved, may every fall, even if it is serious and
habitual sin, always become for us a small step toward a higher degree
of perfection.
In fact, the only reason why the
Immaculate permits us to fall is to cure us from our self-conceit, from
our pride, to make us humble and thus make us docile to the divine
graces.
The devil, instead, tries to inject in
us discouragement and internal depression in those circumstances, which
is, in fact, nothing else than our pride surfacing again.
If we knew the depth of our poverty,
we would not be at all surprised by our falls, but rather astonished,
and we would thank God, after sinning, for not allowing us to fall even
deeper and still more frequently.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
10. Do not cease to picture and scrutinize the
dark abyss of external fire, and the merciless servants, the uncompassionate
and inexorable Judge, the bottomless pit of subterranean flame, the narrow
descents to the awful underground chambers and yawning gulfs, and all such
things, so that the sensuality of our soul may be checked by great terror
and give place to incorruptible chasitity, and itself receive the shining
of the immaterial Light which radiates more than any fire.
August 25, 2016
(Mat 5:10-12) Blessed
are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake: for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye when they shall revile you, and
persecute you, and speak all that is evil against you, untruly, for my
sake: Be glad and rejoice for your reward is very great in heaven. For
so they persecuted the prophets that were before you.
NATIONAL CATHOLIC REGISTER: Comfort Catholicism Has to Go; It is Time to Prepare for Persecution by Msgr. Charles Pope
THE DOWNLOAD—THE COMING PERSECUTION
COURAGEOUS PRIEST: Most of Our World is Neo-Pagan- Have we had Enough?
EXCERPT: Putting God’s Will First by Fr. Joseph Esper
Anyone who thinks Jesus was merely a nice, likeable fellow, always
smiling, saying nice things, and never making demands on anyone, needs
to look carefully at the Gospel of Luke (12:49-53). Our Lord speaks of
setting the world on fire in a spiritually painful way, breaking up
families and bringing controversy and religious division. This is the
nature of truth, which confronts us, convicts us, and often provokes a
response of either grateful love or angry rejection. The prophet
Jeremiah (38:4-6, 8-10) experienced this firsthand and the Letter to
the Hebrews (12:1-4)—reminds us how Jesus Himself suffered—urges us to
persevere, and not grow weary and lose heart. A stark choice is
presented to us. We can go along with the crowd and take the path of
least resistance, only to find ourselves on the broad and easy way that
leads to hell, or we can follow the painful but joy-filled path of
self-surrender and sacrifice that leads to the Kingdom of God. There
are no other possibilities, and there are no shortcuts.
It is a wonderful thing if our families and loved ones also cherish and
practice the Catholic Faith—and if that’s the case, we should certainly
give thanks to God and count our blessings. Sadly, however, the
situation is often quite different. Many families today settle for a
bland and mediocre experience of religion; some have little or no
religious commitment at all, and still others are even fiercely divided
over religious issues. Throughout the world—even here in the United
States—some Christians still suffer severely at the hands of radical
Muslims, Hindus, atheists, and even nominal Christians; by putting
Jesus first in their lives, they risk being insulted, rejected,
disinherited, persecuted, and even killed. If we take our faith
seriously, we too may be misunderstood, scorned, laughed at, not taken
seriously, or blamed for causing trouble. A sincere and committed
practice of our Catholic Faith is no longer politically correct, and we
are even seeing increasingly ominous signs of a religious persecution
coming over the next few years to the United States—something which
previously would have been unthinkable.
If we were in John’s situation, what would we do? Would we be willing
to give up almost everything—family, wealth, and home—in order to know
and follow Jesus? Thankfully, we don’t have to do anything quite that
radical—at least not yet—but the Lord does expect us to make whatever
sacrifices are necessary in order to live out our faith. This might be
something as simple as making the Sign of the Cross and saying the
Grace before Meals in a restaurant while others stare at us, or as
difficult as letting a lifelong friendship come to an end because we
refuse to compromise our moral and religious values. We may need to
miss out on fun and fellowship because we refuse to participate in
morally-objectionable forms of entertainment, and we may find ourselves
all alone in defending unpopular but unchanging teachings of the
Church. These and other sacrifices may be difficult and painful, but
the Lord will be with us, sustaining us and giving us a deep inner
peace. In all things, we must pray for the Holy Spirit’s strength and
guidance and strive to put God’s Will first—for only in this way will
we remain true to Jesus, and one day be found worthy of entering His
Kingdom.
RELATED: What's it like to be a persecuted Christian? This exhibit shows you
COMMENTARY: May the Persecuted Find Comfort
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
9. Keep a firm hold of the blessed gladdening sorrow
of holy compunction, and do not stop working at it until it raises you
high above the things of this world, and presents you pure to Christ.
August 23, 2016
(1Co 11:23-27) For
I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that
the Lord Jesus, the same night in which he was betrayed, took bread,
And giving thanks, broke and said: Take ye and eat: This is my body,
which shall be delivered for you. This do for the commemoration of me.
In like manner also the chalice, after he had supped, saying: This
chalice is the new testament in my blood. This do ye, as often as you
shall drink, for the commemoration of me. For as often as you shall eat
this bread and drink the chalice, you shall shew the death of the Lord,
until he come. Therefore, whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink the
chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and of the
blood of the Lord.
The Eucharistic Miracles of the World- Catalogue Book of the Vatican International Exhibition
Five Extraordinary Eucharistic Miracles that Left Physical Evidence (With Pictures!)
Two Eucharistic miracles 1,300 years apart show same blood type and DNA
FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA The Shield of Faith Blog: The Holy Spirit at Mass
It is the teaching of the Catholic Church that at Mass, the Holy Spirit
descends from heaven and comes down upon the altar to bless and hallow
the Divine Sacrifice. What follows is an inspiring story
confirming this teaching, which recounts a supernatural event that
occurred at the end of the first millennium, probably during the
pontificate of Pope Agapetus II, pope from 946 to 955.
From The Incredible Catholic Mass, by Fr. Martin von Cochem, pp. 265-67, TAN Books.
"At Formello, near Rome, there was in early times a bishop who
acquitted himself most conscientiously of all the duties appertaining
to his office and was most reverent in his manner of saying Mass.
Notwithstanding this, he was accused by some evil-minded persons to
Pope Agapetus of having given scandal to his flock by using one of the
sacred vessels at table. The pope, believing the accusation, caused the
bishop to be brought to Rome and put into prison.
"On the morning of the third day of his unjust incarceration, a Sunday,
an angel appeared to the pope in a dream and said to him, "On this
Sunday neither shalt thou nor any other prelate say Mass, but only the
bishop whom thou hast placed in confinement." The Pontiff awoke,
and thinking over this dream, said to himself, "Shall I allow a prelate
to say Mass under so grave an accusation of sacrilege? Before answering
his own question he fell asleep again, and again heard the same voice
saying, "I told thee, no one but the imprisoned bishop is to say
Mass." While the pope still hesitated whether he should comply
with this injunction, the voice spoke for the third time, "Beware that
thou not permit any other than the bishop who is in prison to celebrate
in thy presence today."
"Thereupon, the pope in some alarm sent for the bishop and inquired of
him what was his manner of life and bade him give an account of his
actions. The prelate answered with only these words, "I am a
sinner." Then the pope asked, "Is it true that you ate and drank
out of the vessels consecrated to the service of the altar?" The bishop
replied as before: "I am a sinner." As no other answer could be
elicited from him, the Pontiff proceeded, "You will celebrate Mass in
our presence today." And when the bishop in his humility begged
to be excused, he only repeated the command: "You will officiate at a
Solemn High Mass today before ourselves and all the cardinals."
"Upon receiving this express order the good bishop expostulated no
longer, but prepared to obey. Attended by many acolytes, he went to the
altar and commenced the Mass. When he got to the prayer which is
said at the time of making the first Sign of the Cross over the host
and chalice, "Come O Sanctifier, Almighty, Eternal God, and bless this
sacrifice prepared to Thy holy name," he repeated it four times, and
then stopped. The people grew impatient; at length the pope said:
"Why do you delay and repeat this prayer so often?"
"The bishop answered, "Pardon me Holy Father, I repeated the
prayer because I have not yet seen the Holy Ghost descend upon the
altar. May I request your holiness to bid the deacon leave my
side? I cannot venture to do so myself." The pope then told the
deacon to move a little distance; no sooner had he done so than both
the pope and the bishop beheld the Holy Ghost come down from heaven,
while the celebrant, with the deacon and acolytes, was enveloped in a
luminous cloud.
"This miracle convinced pope Agapetus of the innocence and sanctity of
the bishop, and he much regretted having put him in prison. He
resolved for the future not to act so precipitously and to investigate
a charge carefully before giving credence to it."
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
8.
If nothing goes so well with humility as mourning,
certainly nothing is so opposed to it as laughter.
August 18, 2016
(Mat 24:9-13) Then
shall they deliver you up to be afflicted and shall put you to death:
and you shall be hated by all nations for my name's sake. And then
shall many be scandalized and shall betray one another and shall hate
one another. And many false prophets shall rise and shall seduce many.
And because iniquity hath abounded, the charity of many shall grow
cold. But he that shall persevere to the end, he shall be saved.
CRISIS MAGAZINE: Must Catholics Believe that Islam Is Peaceful?
FAITHZETTE: A Christian Duty in the Face of Terror by Fr. George Rutler
MORE ON FR. HAMEL
Priest Martyrdom a Warning to the West
Father Jacques Hamel a saint in life and in death
French bishop plans speedy cause for beatification of Father Hamel as martyr
EDITORIAL: Why France? It's in the Math
As France reels from yet another terrorist attack on its citizens, many
commentators are asking why that particular country has borne the brunt
of recent terrorist attacks on the West. It's true that other
atrocities have been carried out earlier in the USA, UK, Belgium, Spain
and other Western locations, but France seems to be particularly
targeted and has suffered an especially high toll over the last 18
months. Mass murder in the name of Islam has been carried out in the
Charli Hebdo offices (January 2015), on the streets of Paris (November
2015), on the seaside boulevard in Nice (July 2016), with several
smaller scale but similarly murderous attacks in various locations
across France in between times.
Demographics and statistics are a great help in trying to understand
the scale of the French problem. Also helpful are public opinion
surveys taken among Muslim communities both in the majority Muslim
world and in the West. Liberal commentators regularly remind their
audiences of the diversity of Muslims and some even go so far as to
declare Islam as a religion of peace. And indeed, many Muslims are as
horrified by terrorist attacks as are non-Muslims.
But public opinion surveys among Muslims reveal a very worrying
statistic. Such surveys regularly show support for radical jihadist
activity running at somewhere between 5 -- 10%. Such are the findings
of small-scale surveys taken among Muslims in Britain and European
countries, as well as larger surveys taken among Muslims in the Middle
East and other majority Muslim locations.
Extrapolating from these figures, we begin to understand why the Muslim
world is in such a mess. Four countries that are typically torn apart
by violent conflict are Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria. The Muslim
proportion of the populations of the first three countries is over 95%,
while in Syria Muslims represent around 85% of the population. So if a
minimum of 5% of the population is inclined to jihadi activity, that
translates to 1.6 million Afghans, 1.9 million Iraqis, 320,000 Libyans
and 850,000 Syrians. Such figures do not even take account of floating
radicals coming in from other locations. Simply put, majority Muslim
societies are prone to political and social conflict because of the
significant presence of trouble-making radical Islamist elements. And
indeed, the terrorist strikes in France that have stunned the West are
sadly relatively commonplace in countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq,
Libya and Syria, so much so that when they occur media reporting is
barely sufficient.
With Muslim communities typically containing within themselves the
dangerous radical fringe, it is little wonder that as Muslim minorities
grow in the West, a radical Islamist fringe will similarly grow in
those Western locations. Some Western countries are a lot further down
the road in hosting the growing Islamic presence, but none more so than
France. That country's hospitality to North African migrants was
facilitated by a sense of guilt felt by the French liberal elite in the
wake of the Algerian Civil War and France's colonial history in North
Africa. Hence North Africans flocked to France in the last decades of
the 20th century, with the result that today the French Muslim
community constitutes around 10% of the population, equal to around 6
million people. By contrast, the smaller Muslim communities of other
European countries are still playing catch-up. Muslims represent 6% in
the Netherlands, a rapidly growing 4% in Germany, 3% in Britain and
2.5% in Spain.
So if we apply the 5% jihadi rule, that means that French hospitality
has resulted in approximately 300,000 Muslims in France today being in
clear sympathy with the terror strikes in Paris, Nice and elsewhere. In
such circumstances, it is surprising that there have not in fact been
more strikes, and this is probably testimony to the efficiency of the
French security services. However, there will be more. France is at a
crossroads and its ruling elites need to take some very hard decisions
if this situation is not to spiral out of control, leading to eventual
civil conflict.
At the same time, other Western nations should be asking hard questions
of their own immigration policies. If Muslim immigration means
significant growth of radical jihadi sentiment, do immigration policies
need to be reviewed to favour those communities who are more likely to
contribute to social cohesion, rather than fragmentation? Do the
political elites of Western countries have the courage to address such
questions? Only time will tell, but time is of the essence.
RELATED: Christian-Muslim relations have taken turn for worse in the Philippines
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
7.
Groanings and sorrows cry to the Lord. Tears
shed from fear intercede for us; but tears of all-holy love show us
that
our prayer has been accepted.
August 17, 2016
(Isa
49:13-15) Give praise, O ye heavens, and rejoice, O earth, ye
mountains, give praise with jubilation: because the Lord hath comforted
his people, and will have mercy on his poor ones. And Sion said: The
Lord hath forsaken me, and the Lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman
forget her infant, so as not to have pity on the son of her womb? and
if she should forget, yet will not I forget thee.
CRISIS MAGAZINE: A Tsunami of Mercy
EXCERPT Time for God by Fr. Jacques Philippe: THE TRAP OF FALSE
HUMILITY
We need to be on our guard against the false
argument we have just considered, which sometimes takes a subtler form. St.
Teresa of Avila almost fell into the trap and abandoned her mental prayer, and
that would have meant an irreplaceable loss for the whole Church! One of her
reasons for writing her Autobiography was to warn
people against this trap, which the devil is very skillful at setting. It’s
this: someone who begins to do mental prayer soon realizes his or her own
faults, infidelities, and areas not yet touched by grace. Then such a person
may be tempted to abandon mental prayer, arguing “I am full of faults, I’m not
making any progress, I’m incapable of being really converted and loving God
seriously. Presenting myself before him in such a state is just hypocrisy—I’m
pretending to be a saint, when I am worth no more than people who don’t pray at
all. It would be much more honest in God’s eyes if I just dropped it
completely!”
St. Teresa let
herself be fooled by this argument. As she tells it in chapter 19 of her
autobiography, after practicing mental prayer assiduously for some time, she
abandoned it for over a year. Then she spoke to a Dominican friar who, luckily
for us, put her back on the right path. At the time she was living in the
Convent of the Incarnation at Avila. She had sufficient goodwill to want to
give herself to God and practice mental prayer, but she was not yet a saint—far
from it! In particular, although she knew Jesus was asking her to stop, she
could not break the habit of going to the convent parlor where—happy, friendly,
and affectionate by nature—she took great pleasure in conversing with Avila’s
high society. She was not doing anything really wrong, but Jesus was calling
her to something else. Mental prayer became a real torture to her; she found
herself in the presence of our Lord, aware of being unfaithful to him, but
without the strength to give up everything for him. She thought: “I am unworthy
to come before the Lord, since I am not capable of giving him everything. I’m
not taking him seriously—it would be better to stop praying…”
St. Teresa of Avila later
called this a temptation to “false humility.” She had in fact abandoned mental
prayer when a confessor made her realize just in time that in so doing she was
also abandoning every chance of ever improving. She had to do just the
opposite: persevere, because
it was precisely by perseverance that she would obtain, in due course, the
grace of a complete conversion and of giving herself totally to our Lord.
This is very
important. When we start doing mental prayer we are not saints, and the more we
do it the more we realize that fact. People who never come face to face with
God in silence are never really conscious of their infidelities and faults, but
when we pray, such things become much more obvious. That may give rise to a lot
of suffering and the temptation to stop praying. We should not be discouraged
at that stage, but should persevere, convinced that perseverance will obtain
for us the grace of conversion. Our sinfulness, however grave, should never be an excuse to abandon prayer, contrary to what we
may imagine or the devil may suggest. Just the opposite: the more wretched we
are, the more motivated we should be to do mental prayer. Who will heal us of
our infidelities and sins if not our merciful Lord? Where will we find health
for our souls except in humble, persevering prayer? “It is not those who are
healthy who need a doctor, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the
just, but sinners” (Mt 9:13). The illness which is sin should spur us on to do
mental prayer. Wounded as we are, we must take refuge in the Heart of Jesus! He
alone can cure us. If we wait until we are just or righteous before doing
mental prayer, we may have to wait a very long time. Thinking like that would
only prove we had not understood a word of the Gospel. It might look like
humility, but it would only be presumption and lack of trust in God.
MEDITATION: Thoughts
by St Theophan (1815-1894)
[I Cor. 10:28-11:7; Matt. 16:24-28]
The Lord demands decisive self-denial of those who want to follow Him:
Let him deny himself, He says. It could be expressed like this: Cast
aside your interests and pursue only the interests of the Lord. You
will be fulfilling this when you always do what is pleasing to Him. How
can one do this? Mind carefully what is in you, and what around you on
the outside, and discern strictly in one or another situation, be it
internal or external, how to act in the way that is most pleasing to
God — then, not pitying yourself and not inserting your own
calculations, act accordingly, with complete self-denial.
You say, “It is hard to determine this.” No, it is not hard. We have
been given clear and fixed commandments — they express what we can do
to be pleasing to the Lord. All that remains is to apply them to the
given situation, and this does not present any great problem. Having
common sense is enough. If you cannot figure something out, ask your
spiritual father or someone else whose words you respect, and act
according to his directions. But it is always better to sharpen your
discernment through reading the word of God and writings of the
fathers, so that you will always have a decision-maker with you.
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
6.
Greater than baptism itself is the fountain
of tears after baptism, even though it is somewhat audacious to say so.
For baptism is the washing away of evils that were in us before, but
sins
commited after baptism are washed away by tears. As baptism is received
in infancy, we have all defiled it, but we cleanse it anew with tears.
And if God in His love for mankind had not given us tears, those being
saved would be few indeed and hard to find.
August 15, 2016
(Rev 12:14-17) And
there were given to the woman two wings of a great eagle, that she
might fly into the desert, unto her place, where she is nourished for a
time and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. And the
serpent cast out of his mouth, after the woman, water, as it were a
river: that he might cause her to be carried away by the river. And the
earth helped the woman: and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up
the river which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was
angry against the woman: and went to make war with the rest of her
seed, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus
Christ.
NOVENA FOR OUR NATION: The
nation-wide prayer campaign – Novena for Our Nation – begins this
Monday, August 15, the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, and goes until
October 7, the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary. If you can join us, a
Rosary Rally will be held in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington DC
on October 7.
The "Novena for Our Nation" website is
here (You can sign-up to receive daily emails at the website. Also, you
can find the daily 54 Day Novena reflections at the website): NovenaForOurNation.com
EWTN: THE ASSUMPTION OF MARY: A BELIEF SINCE APOSTOLIC TIMES
ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY: A Foretaste of Our Own Resurrection
GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH: Feast of the Dormition of our Most Holy Lady, The Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary
FROM THE MAILBAG
VIA A MOMENT WITH MARY: Three days later, the tomb was opened, but the body was gone
The Orthodox Church celebrates the Dormition of the Mother of God on
August 15th. This feast day celebrates Our Lady’s death and ascension
into heaven, in her body and soul. Actually, it is similar to the
Assumption of the Catholic Church, although the term "dormition" puts
more emphasis on the death of the Mother of God.
Around 600, the Byzantine Emperor Maurice extended this feast to the
entire Empire and it was set permanently on August 15th, called the
Dormition in the East and the Assumption in the West. The feast called
the Dormition is celebrated on August 13th in the Catholic Church.
According to the Synaxarion of August 15th as well as Pseudo-John the
Theologian, and Pseudo-Melito (5th-7th century), the death of Mary took
place in Jerusalem where the Blessed Virgin received the visit of the
twelve apostles and Paul, who were notified by Heaven of her imminent
death and miraculously transported from the ends of the earth in the
clouds—representing the Church of heaven and earth—to be at her side.
She died peacefully, then they saw the Lord Jesus appear, accompanied
by a multitude of angels, who received his Mother’s soul into his
hands. The Apostles carried Mary’s body to Gethsemane and buried her in
a grave. Three days later, the tomb was opened, but the body was gone,
leaving a sweet fragrance.
VIA A MOMENT WITH MARY: August is the month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
The Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary is celebrated on the Saturday
immediately after the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the third
Saturday after Pentecost.
The devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary is based on the Marian
theology of Saint Bernard, private revelations to Saint Gertrude and
Saint Mechtild, the holy visions of Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque in the
seventeenth century, and was widely spread by Saint John Eudes. In the
nineteenth century, the Augustinian Order and the Diocese of Rome
continued to spread the devotion by celebrating this feast. In 1969,
Pope Paul VI established the celebration of the Immaculate Heart of
Mary in the Universal Church.
Since the apparitions of Fatima (1917), devotion to the Immaculate
Heart of Mary has increased worldwide. Pope Pius XII instituted the
feast of the Queenship of Mary in 1954 (moved by Paul VI from May 31st
to August 22nd), ordaining that "on the same day the consecration of
the human race to the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary be
renewed …" (Pius XII, Ad Coeli Reginam §47).
Ladder
of Divine Ascent excerpt: Step 7- "On Joy-Making Mourning"
5.
If you possess the gift of mourning, hold on
to it with all your might. For it is easily lost when it is not firmly
established. And just as wax melts in the presence of fire, so it is
easily
dissolved by noise and bodily cares, and by luxury, and especially by
talkativeness
and levity.
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