Then you'd get to see one of these banners using humor to sell My Life with the Saints. They're trying to get drivers' attention on the busy Kennedy Expressway in Chicago to take a new look at the saints in their lives. The campaign starts officially today at 3:00 p.m.The first Christians were true salt of the earth, and they preserved people and institutions -- the whole of society -- from corruption. What can it be that has happened in so many nations? Why is it that Christians should now be giving the sad impression that they are unable to slow down and halt that wave of corruption that is burning in on the family, on schools, and on institutions ...? The Faith is still the same. And Christ lives among us now just as He did previously. His power is still infinite -- divine. Only the lukewarmness of so many thousands, indeed millions, of Christians, explains how we can offer to the world the spectacle of a Christianity that allows all kinds of heresies and destroys the strength and endurance of the Faith, and is the soulmate, in both a personal and a collective way, of compromise and of a spirit of comfort-seeking (P. Rodriguez, Faith and Life of Faith). It is difficult to explain many of the things that happen nowadays at a personal and at a public level, if we do not bear in mind that so many people who should be awake, watchful and attentive have allowed their Faith to fall asleep; love has been snuffed out in so many hearts. In many spheres, the "normal Christian" now generally means someone who is lukewarm and mediocre. Among the first Christians the "normal Christian" meant one who lived the heroism of every day, and when the occasion presented itself, accepted martyrdom itself: it could and did mean very often the surrender of one's very life in defense of the Faith ...
Let us fervently ask God for the strength to react. We will be the true salt of the earth if we keep up our daily conversation with God and if we go with ever-greater faith and love to receive the Holy Eucharist. Love was, and is, the moving force in the life of the saints. It is the whole raison d'etre of every life dedicated to God. Love gives us wings with which to soar over any personal barriers to our advance, or any obstacles presented to us by our surroundings. Love makes us unyielding when confronted by set-backs ... Love for God ... makes a molehill out of a mountain; it transforms the soul, gives it new lights and opens up new horizons for it; it makes the soul capable of achieving its highest desires and gives it capacities it had never as much as dreamed of possessing.
Funny, smart, orthodox , good housekeeper, lousy cook, and I love monthy python movies and sports. I am the whole package. Who wouldn't want me as their loving loyal wife?And she's not kidding ... check it out y'all!
Dear Youth, you tell me that you often think the Church is an institution that does nothing but promulgate rules and laws... And you conclude that there is a deep discrepancy between the joy that issues from the word of Christ and the feeling of oppression that the Church's rigidity gives you.. But the Gospel shows us a very demanding Christ who invites to a radical conversion of the heart, to detachment from the goods of the earth, to forgiveness of offenses, to love of the enemy, to patient acceptance of persecutions and even to the sacrifice of one's own life out of love for our neighbor. Where the particular area of sexuality is concerned, we know the firm position he took in defending the indissolubility of marriage and his condemnation even as regards the simple adultery committed in the heart. And could anyone not be impressed when faced with the precept to "tear out one's eye" or to "cut off one's hand" when these members are an occasion of "scandal"? ...
Moral licentiousness does not make people happy. Similarly, the consumer society does not bring joy of heart. The human being only fulfills himself to the extent to which he is able to accept the demands which flow from his dignity as a being created "in the image and likeness of God" (Gen 1:27). That is why, if the Church today says things that are not pleasing, it is because it feels obliged to do so. It does so out of a duty to fidelity...
So is it not true that the gospel message is a message of joy? On the contrary! It is absolutely true. And how is that possible? The answer can be found in one word, one single word, one short word, but its contents are as vast as the sea. And that word is love. It is perfectly possible to reconcile the stringency of the precept and joy of heart. The person who loves does not fear sacrifice. And he even seeks in sacrifice the most convincing proof of the authenticity of his love.John Paul II
Discourse to young people in the Netherlands, May 14, 1985
Via The Daily Gospel
For all our technological advances, people haven't really changed much since the time of Jesus. Nowhere is this more evident than in the way most people view the Beatitudes. Then as now, they represent what the world would consider weakness and softness. After all, who wants to be poor, meek, and persecuted? ...
But when we look at Jesus, we realize that he is the both the perfect example of the Beatitudes lived out and also the strongest and most secure person who walked the earth. Jesus was nobody's fool and he was certainly no shrinking violet. At the same time, he was constantly mourning over those who didn't know God. In silent strength -- meekness -- he taught his disciples by example, by parable, by reaching out to everyone who would accept him.
Perhaps if we thought more about Jesus, or tried to place ourselves among the crowds who heard him teach and saw him minister, we would change our point of view... We might see that living the Beatitudes requires a good amount of strength and decisiveness.Word Among Us
2,996 is a tribute to the victims of 9/11.Sign up here. Via My Domestic Church.
On September 11, 2006, 2,996 volunteer bloggers will join together for a tribute to the victims of 9/11. Each person will pay tribute to a single victim.
We will honor them by remembering their lives, and not by remembering their murderers.
... the tributes should celebrate the lives of these people–kind of like a wake. Over the last 5 years we’ve heard the names of the killers, and all about the victim’s deaths. This is a chance to learn about and celebrate those who died. Forget the murderers, they don’t deserve to be remembered. But some people who died that day deserve to be remembered–2,996 people.
For from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, my name is great among the nations; And everywhere they bring sacrifice to my name, and a pure offering; For great is my name among the nations, says the LORD of hosts.Who knew that Malachi 1:11 was so popular? Not me, considering I never heard of it until I went to see where one of the new pieces of the liturgical translation might originate.NAB, Malachi 1:11
God gives us a heart, a human heart like Christ's. I don't have one heart for loving God and another for loving people. I love Christ and the Father and the Holy Spirit and Our Lady with the same heart with which I love my parents and my friends. I shall never tire of repeating this. We must be very human, for otherwise we cannot be divine.I saw this vividly displayed in Hannah's friends' generous behavior. These kids have got heart y'all! They rallied round to distract her, support her, and keep her too busy to dwell on her problems too often. Just when she'd be sinking very low, one of them would be on the phone or at the door with another plan of action ... a movie, a cd made just for her, swing dancing lessons, going shopping, whatever it took. I was so grateful that she had such good friends who obviously cared so much. (Because, let's face it, nothing her family could do was going to have the same effect.)
Human love, the love we experience on earth when it is really genuine, helps us to savor divine love. That is how we grasp the love by which we rejoice in God and which we will share in heaven when the Lord is "everything to everyone." If we begin to understand God's love, we will feel impelled to become increasingly more compassionate, more generous, more dedicated.
We must give what we receive, we must teach what we learn. Very simply, without any kind of conceit, we must help others to share in the knowledge of God's love.St. Josemaria Escriva
From age to age you gather a people to yourself, so that from east to west a perfect offering may be made to the glory of your name...Becomes in the new translation:
…you never cease to gather a people to yourself, so that from the rising of the sun to its setting a pure oblation may be offered to your name”In Mass this week I noticed a few of spots that will be changed when the new liturgical translation is used. One was the above quoted "east to west" line.
For from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, my name is great among the nations; And everywhere they bring sacrifice to my name, and a pure offering; For great is my name among the nations, says the LORD of hosts.NAB, Malachi 1:11
SOLEMNITY OF THE MOST HOLY BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST
This Solemnity goes back to the thirteenth century. It was first established in the diocese of Liége, and Pope Urban IV instituted it in 1264 for the whole Church. The meaning of this feast is the consideration of and devotion to the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. The center of the feast was to be, as Pope Urban IV described it, a popular devotion reflected in hymns and joy. In the same year Saint Thomas Aquinas, at the Pope's request, composed for this day two Offices which have nourished the piety of many Christians throughout the centuries. In many different places the procession with the Monstrance through specially bedecked streets gives testimony of the Christian people's faith and love for Christ, who once again passes through our cities and towns. The procession began in the same way as the feast itself.
In places where the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood is not observed as a holy day of obligation, it is kept on the Sunday after the Most Holy Trinity as its proper day.
For many years God fed manna to the people of Israel as they wandered in the wilderness. This was an image and symbol of the pilgrim church and of each individual who journeys towards his or her definitive homeland -- Heaven. That food given in the desert of Sinai is a figure of the true food, the Holy Eucharist. This is the sacrament of the human pilgrimage ... Precisely because of this, the annual feast of the Eucharist that the Church celebrates today contains within its liturgy so many references to the pilgrimage of the people of the Covenant in their wanderings through the wilderness (John Paul II)....
Today is a day of thanksgiving and of joy because God has wanted to remain with us in order to feed us and to strengthen us, so that we many never feel alone. The Holy Eucharist is the viaticum, the food for the long journey of our days on Earth towards the goal of true Life. Jesus accompanies us and strengthens us here in this world, where our life is like a shadow compared to the reality that awaits us. Earthly food is a pale image of the food we receive in Holy Communion. The Holy Eucharist opens up our hearts to a completely new reality.In Conversation With God Vol 6
Daily Meditations, Special Feasts: January - June
Justice is the virtue that seeks to promote fair play. It's the desire and resolve to give each person his due. It demands that you reward goodness and punish evil. Justice can be one of three different types: commutative. Distributive, and social.Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).
Commutative justice concerns the relationship between equals -- between two people, such as a customer and a merchant. [This involves fair prices and honesty about merchandise, not cheating the merchant, and restitution in case of theft of damage to property.]
Distributive justice involves the relationship between one and many -- between an individual and a group. This kind of justice is most obvious in the relationship between a citizen and his or her government [such as charging fair taxes or knowing where one's taxes go].
Social justice concerns the relationship of both individuals and groups between one another and everyone. The bottom line is the common good -- the public welfare of all. Social justice is concerned with the environment, the economy, private property, civil rights and church-state relations.Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio
Sometimes people set up a false dichotomy between justice and charity. Read the following.
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Catechism of the Catholic Church
1807 Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. "You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor." "Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven."
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Justice makes charity a duty, not an option. Charity serves the glory of God and the authentic good (not necessarily convenience) of my neighbor. Justice is, in the words of the CCC above, "the constant and firm WILL to give" glory to God and to do what is authentically good for my neighbor. It is justice that receives charity as an OBLIGATION. As Jesus put it:
"I give you a new COMMANDMENT-- love another as I have loved you."
When we behave without justice, charity is already dead.
