Reflection: You are My beloved...

You are so beautiful to Me.  You are precious.  These are God's words to you.  Have you ever pondered how much God loves you?  His love is unconditional.  You are His beloved.  What a beautiful word!  Beloved

How beautiful you are, my friend, how beautiful you are! Song of Songs 4:1  

I have had a glimpse of what it means to be "beloved" with the beautiful gift of a child who has Down Syndrome, Lily Grace.  She is love and her love is unconditional.  She has a pure heart.  She is perfect and she brings and spreads love wherever she goes.  This video captures the essence of her relationship with her little sister Norah.  Two little sisters...precious gifts from God.

Saint Therese, the Little Flower:

"How shall I show my love is proved by deeds?  Well, the little child will strew flowers...he will embalm the Divine Throne with their fragrance, will sing with silvery voice the canticle of love."

"Yes, my Beloved, it is thus that my life's brief day shall be spent before Thee.  No other means have I of proving my love than to strew flowers; that is, to let no little sacrifice escape me, not a look, not a word, to avail of the very least actions and do them for Love.  I wish to suffer for Love's sake and for Love's sake even to rejoice; thus I shall strew flowers.  Not one shall I find without shedding its petals for Thee...and then I will sing.  I will always sing, even if I must gather my roses in the very midst of thorns and the longer and sharper the thorns, the sweeter shall be my song."  

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.  1 John 4:7

How do we get to know God?  By spending time with Him.  Go to Eucharistic Adoration and just sit with Him.  He is waiting for you.  When you sit before the Blessed Sacrament, rays of His love pour out from the Eucharist into your heart.  When you sit with Him, He will speak to you.  Tell Him the desires of your heart. Tell him your pain and sorrow.  He will listen and He will comfort you.  He will heal you and shower you with His love.  

See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.  The reason why the world does not know us is it did not know Him.  Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him because we shall see Him as He is.  1 John 3:1-2

Saint Augustine

"Late have I loved you, O Beauty ever ancient, ever new, late have I loved you! You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there that I searched for you. In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created. You were with me, but I was not with you. Created things kept me from you; yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all. You called, you shouted, and you broke through my deafness. You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness. You breathed your fragrance on me; I drew in breath and now I pant for you. I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more. You touched me, and I burned for your peace."  Excerpt from the Confessions of Saint Augustine

Today is the Feast Day of Saint Augustine. Through trust and persistent prayer of Saint Monica, his mother, Augustine converted and became one of the most influential thinkers of the Church. Saint Monica's life can never be separated from that of her son, the great Saint Augustine, convert, bishop, and Doctor of the Church. What we know of her, for the most part, is the account that Augustine gives of her in his Confessions. The story of Augustine's life, up until his conversion, is written in the autobiographical Confessions, the most intimate and well-known glimpse into an individual's soul ever written, as well as a fascinating philosophical, theological, mystical, poetic and literary work.

Monica's almsgiving and her habits of prayer annoyed her husband, but he treated her with a sort of reverence. By Monica’s sweetness and patience, she began a successful apostolate among the wives and mothers of her native town. They knew that she suffered, as they did, and her words and example had a proportionate effect. All Monica's anxiety centered on her son Augustine. He was wayward and lazy. Monica prayed constantly to God for the soul of her son. She went tearfully to the bishop to ask him to help and he responded famously,

"the child of those tears shall never perish."

Augustine went to Rome and then Milan in 386. Monica followed him and they met Saint Ambrose, who was able to see the conversion of her son and his Baptism after Monica's years of tears and prayer. Saint Ambrose, the bishop and Doctor of the Church, gave sermons that inspired Augustine to look for the truth he had always sought in the faith he had rejected. He received baptism and soon after, his mother, Saint Monica, died with the knowledge that all she had hoped for in this world had been fulfilled.

On a visit to Hippo, he was proclaimed priest and then bishop against his will. He later accepted it as the will of God and spent the rest of his life as the pastor of the North African town, from where he spent much time refuting the writings of heretics. Saint Augustine grew to become one the most significant and influential thinkers in the history of the Catholic Church. Augustine was a great seeker of truth. His teachings were the foundation of Christian doctrine for a millennium.

Saint Augustine and Saint Monica, pray for us and for all the names we receive through this prayer ministry.

Saint Monica

Next to the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Monica is one of the best examples of Christian motherhood. Today we celebrate her Feast Day. For years, she prayed for the conversion of her son. Her persistence was answered with abundant grace. Her son, Augustine, became a saint and a Doctor of the Church. Like all God's saints Monica is a woman "for all seasons." Her advice and her powerful example as a wife can be an inspiration and a model for domestic peace and stability. Monica's years of caring and crying, coupled with continual prayer, speak eloquently of her perseverance and trust in God's providence. Monica did not plead for a miracle; she prayed and sacrificed for the conversion of her son. Her prayers, disappointments, and tears were all means of drawing her closer to God. In her heroic efforts for her son's conversion, she herself became a saint. Monica's whole life, as well as her sanctification, was inextricably bound up with Augustine's, her faith, hope, and love were heroically tested and proved pure in the crucible of suffering.

Her marriage to Patricius, a pagan Roman official, does not appear to have been a particularly happy one, but it was peaceful and stable due mainly to the patience and prudence of Monica. Patricius was often a volatile man, and though he was often unfaithful to Monica, at heart he was a good father to Augustine. With Monica, he made many personal sacrifices to educate their promising son. This cooperative effort probably brought them together. Patricius became a Christian before he died. When her circle of friends asked her how she lived with such an excitable man and not be battered, Monica replied that there were two things necessary for domestic peace: firstly, she recalled the matrimonial contract which they agreed to; secondly, she counseled silence when the husband was in a bad mood. Augustine adds that those women who took her advice found peace and better treatment from their husbands.

Saint Monica faced a culture in which Christianity had not yet fully taken hold. We live in a culture in which Christianity is increasingly marginalized and children are pulled from the Faith. This prayer for her intercession, therefore, is particularly appropriate today.

Prayer to Saint Monica for Mothers
Exemplary Mother of the great Augustine, you perseveringly pursued your wayward son not with wild threats, but with prayerful cries to heaven. Intercede for all mothers in our day so that they may learn to draw their children to God. Teach them how to remain close to their children, even the prodigal sons and daughters who have sadly gone astray.

Prayer of Adoration
Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and magnify thy name? For thou only art holy: for all nations shall come, and shall adore in thy sight, because thy judgments are manifest. Revelation 15:4

Prayer and Meditation: Praise to You, Heavenly Father, to Jesus Christ Your Son, and to the Holy Spirit. We adore and thank you for the gift of the Blessed Mother. As I walk with the Mother of Jesus today, I honor her sorrow and her tears. As she is known to do with all her children who make such journeys, she ultimately brings me here, to the Father's throne room and to the feet of Jesus. I beg you to honor my efforts as I join with the Blessed Mother and ask that the hearts of prodigal Catholics be softened and opened to allow them to search for and discover the truth. I pray this prayer in the Jesus' name. Amen.

Glory Be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen

Saint Monica, pray for us and for all the intentions we receive.

O Mary, Queen of the angels and saints, pray for us and for our children.
Sacred Heart of Jesus, we place our trust in You.

Reflection: Our Father's Love...

"Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk, who took them in my arms; but they did not know that I cared for them.  I drew them with human cords, with bands of love; I fostered them like those who raise an infant to their cheeks; I bent down to feed them."  Hosea 11:3-4

What a beautiful image!  Our Heavenly Father draws us with human cords, with bands of love.  He raises us up tenderly to His cheek.  He is always seeking us.  He will never let us go.  He will never abandon us. 

Last month, I heard a talk given by a wonderful seminarian Phil.  He spoke of God's Condescension of Compassion as "God stooping down to us." This image of God stooping down to us has returned to my mind often.  Below is a beautiful passage from Pope Saint Leo the Great about the Condescension of Compassion.  He describes how Christ’s incarnation “enlarged” humanity but did not “diminish” His divinity:

He took the nature of a servant without stain of sin, enlarging our humanity without diminishing his divinity. He emptied himself; though invisible he made himself visible, though Creator and Lord of all things he chose to be one of us mortal men. Yet this was the condescension of compassion, not the loss of omnipotence. So he who in the nature of God had created man, became in the nature of a servant, man himself.

Thus the Son of God enters this lowly world. He comes down from the throne of heaven, yet does not separate himself from the Father’s glory. He is born in a new condition, by a new birth.

He was born in a new condition, for, invisible in his own nature, he became visible in ours. Beyond our grasp, he chose to come within our grasp. Existing before time began, he began to exist at a moment in time. Lord of the universe, he hid his infinite glory and took the nature of a servant. Incapable of suffering as God, he did not refuse to be a man, capable of suffering. Immortal, he chose to be subject to the laws of death.

He who is true God is also true man. There is no falsehood in this unity as long as the lowliness of man and the pre-eminence of God coexist in mutual relationship.

As God does not change by his condescension, so man is not swallowed up by being exalted. Each nature exercises its own activity, in communion with the other. The Word does what is proper to the Word, the flesh fulfills what is proper to the flesh.

One nature is resplendent with miracles, the other falls victim to injuries. As the Word does not lose equality with the Father’s glory, so the flesh does not leave behind the nature of our race.

One and the same person – this must be said over and over again – is truly the Son of God and truly the son of man. He is God in virtue of the fact that in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He is man in virtue of the fact that the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.

This prayer ministry began praying for a little unborn baby who would need heart surgery after she was born.  After her birth, the doctors wanted her to gain a little weight before the surgery.  Feeding her was an all consuming task since she would tire easily.  It would take her so long to drink two ounces that, by the time she was done, it was time for another feeding.  Her Dad came up with a little way to help her drink.  He held the bottle in her mouth and placed his thumb and index finger on her cheeks, gently pressing her cheeks to help her suck.  When she was a few months old, weighing five pounds, the heart surgery was done.  She is a little miracle. The image of Our Father comes to mind as I remember this Dad and precious baby.  Our Heavenly Father cares for us, tenderly, raising us up to His cheek and holding us with human cords, with bands of love.  God sent His Son to feed us with the Eucharist and He gave us His Word to nourish us.  

Let us ponder this beautiful image!  The Condescension of Compassion is "God stooping down to us."  Our Heavenly Father draws us with human cords, with bands of love.  He is always seeking us.  He will never abandon us.  He will never let us go.  He raises us up tenderly to His cheek.  

The Assumption of Mary

A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.  Revelation 12:1

Today is the Feast of the Assumption of Our Blessed Mother Mary. This day has always been loved by the children of Mary who try to live each day in the School of Mary. It is a sign to us that someday, through God's grace and our efforts, we too may join the Blessed Mother in giving glory to God. The Assumption is a source of great hope for us because it points the way for all followers of Christ who imitate her fidelity and obedience to God's Holy Will. Where she now is, we are meant eventually to be, and may hope to be through Divine grace. Mary was taken to heaven, body and soul, after her life on earth was ended because of her Immaculate nature, uniquely protected by God's grace from personal sin. May we seek to imitate her self-sacrificing love, her indestructible faith and her perfect obedience. Mary chose, with the God’s grace, to preserve her God-given purity throughout the whole of her life. It is fitting that she who knew no sin should know no decay and no delay in enjoying the full fruits of her Son’s work. It is fitting that she who stood by Christ under the Cross should stand by him bodily at the right hand of the Father.

The Queen stands at your right hand, in gold of Ophir. Psalm 45

Blessed is she who trusted that the Lord's words to her would be fulfilled. May we see heaven as our final goal and come to share her glory. Blessed Mother Mary, Queen of Heaven and Earth, pray for us and all those for whom we pray.

Saint Maximilian Kolbe

O Lord Jesus Christ, who said, "greater love than this no man has that a man lay down his life for his friends," through the intercession of Saint Maximilian Kolbe, Priest and Martyr, whose life illustrated such love, we beseech you to grant us our petitions . . .

(here mention prayer requests)

Through the Militia Immaculata movement, which Maximilian founded, he spread a fervent devotion of Consecration to Our Lady throughout the world. He gave up his life for a total stranger and loved his persecutors, giving us an example of unselfish love for all men, a love that was inspired by true devotion to Mary.  He said, "Genuine love rises above creatures and soars up to God.  In Him, by Him and through Him, it loves all men, both good and wicked, friends and enemies." Saint Maximillian Kolbe, through his great devotion to Our Lady, teaches us how to have a forgiving heart.  

Grant, O Lord Jesus, that we too may give ourselves entirely without reserve to the love and service of our Heavenly Queen in order to better love and serve our fellowman in imitation of your humble servant, Maximilian. Amen.  Pray 3 Hail Marys and a Glory Be

Saint Maximilian Kolbe, pray for all the intentions we receive, through the intercession of Immaculate Mary, Mother of God.

Saint Clare of Assisi

The Contemplative Life

Today is the Feast Day of Saint Clare. When Clare heard Saint Francis of Assisi preach his Lenten homilies at the Church of San Giorgo, she felt a fire stir within her soul and became determined to live the Gospel in a radical way. On the evening of Palm Sunday, at the age of 18, she secretly left her home with her cousin Pacifica, never to return. In the middle of the night, Clare met Francis and his friars at the Portiuncola, the little chapel of ‘Mary of the Angels’. Francis cut her long blond hair and Clare laid aside her fine clothes, clothing herself in a simple dress of sackcloth and a thick veil. She vowed from that moment on to give herself totally to God, her eternal spouse.

Clare was placed by Francis temporarily with the Benedictine nuns until Francis built with his own hands a cloister for her and her community, the Order of Poor Ladies, later known as the Poor Clares. The Poor Ladies lived apart from the world and supported Francis and his followers through their hidden life of prayer and sacrifice.

Lover of the Eucharist

Clare loved to come before the Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament. She looked to the Lord in the Eucharist as her dearest Love. She received Jesus in Holy Communion as often as she was permitted. One day after she had received Holy Communion, the Child Jesus came to visit her. He lay in her arms and covered her with kisses.

Our Lord was close to Clare and her Sisters all the time. Once, He saved them from a great danger in answer to Saint Clare's prayer. An army of rough soldiers came to attack Assisi and they planned to raid the convent first. Although very sick, she had herself carried to the wall and right there, where the enemies could see it, she had the Blessed Sacrament placed. Then on her knees, she begged God to save the Sisters.  "O Lord, protect these Sisters whom I cannot protect now," she prayed. A voice seemed to answer: "I will keep them always in My care." At the same time a sudden fright struck the attackers and they fled as fast as they could.  This became known as the miracle of the Blessed Sacrament.

In speaking of Eucharistic Adoration, Saint Clare said,

"Gaze upon Him, consider Him, contemplate Him, as you desire to imitate Him."

And, imitate Him she did. Due to her great zeal and deep devotion for the Holy Eucharist, Clare came to resemble that which she consumed and gazed upon so frequently during her life. Saint John Paul II said of Saint Clare: "her whole life was a Eucharist because from her cloister she raised up a continual thanksgiving to God in her prayer, praise, supplication, intercession, weeping, offering and sacrifice. She accepted everything from the Father in union with His only begotten Son."

“Place your mind before the mirror of eternity! Place your soul in the brilliance of glory! And transform your entire being into the image of the Godhead Itself through contemplation." Saint Clare

Saint Clare, pray for us and all those we pray for through this ministry.

Reflection: Jesus walking on the water...

After he had fed the people, Jesus made the disciples get into a boat and precede Him to the other side, while He dismissed the crowds.  After doing so, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray.  When it was evening, He was there alone.  Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it.  During the fourth watch of the night, He came toward them walking on the sea. When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified.  “It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear.  At once Jesus spoke to them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”  Peter said to Him in reply, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”  He said, “Come.”  Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus.  But when he saw how strong the wind was, he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!”  Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught Peter, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” After they got into the boat, the wind died down.  Those who were in the boat did Him homage, saying, “Truly, You are the Son of God.”  Matthew 14:22-33  Today's Gospel

Jesus went up on the mountain by Himself to pray.  Oh, how important it is for us to go to a place by ourselves to pray!  When we pray alone in silence, we can hear His voice.  By spending time listening during prayer, we come to know His voice.  We recognize Him.

A strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks before the Lord but the Lord was not in the wind.  After the wind there was an earthquake but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was fire but the Lord was not in the fire.  After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound.  When he heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at the entrance of the cave.  1 Kings 19:11-13  Today's First Reading

The Lord was in the whispering sound.  We can only hear the whispering sound of His voice if we go alone to a place to pray.  When we pray in silence, He speaks and we can hear Him.

When the disciples were in the boat, being tossed around by the waves and wind, they were terrified, even though many of them were fishermen and spent most of their lives working on boats.  When Jesus was walking on the water toward them, they did not recognize Him.  When we are afraid, our fear can color or distort our vision and we can make decisions out of fear, instead of with prudence and wisdom.

Jesus spoke to Peter, "Come" and He speaks that word to us.  When we come to Him and we are still afraid, Jesus speaks these words to us, "Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid."  Peter did have enough courage to get out of the boat, but when he was being tossed by the wind and water, he became afraid and cried out, "Lord, save me."  When we are being tossed about by the trials and storms of our lives, Jesus knows we are afraid.  He is always with us and He calls on us to have courage and to step out of the boat and walk to Him.  Like Peter, if we take our eyes off the Lord and we fall, cry out, "Lord, save me."  Jesus will extend His hand and bring us to safety and give us His peace.

Recently, I was with my family on a raft ride in Storyland, New Hampshire.  The raft floated along gently and went through a series of twists and turns.  At unexpected times, we were sprayed with water.  As I have reflected on that experience and the words of the Gospel, I am reminded that we cannot control our emotions, such as fear, but we can keep our eyes always fixed on the Lord.  When we experience the unexpected spray of water, we can make a conscious decision of the will to be not afraid and remember the Lord's words, "Take courage, it is I; be not afraid."  

Saint Dominic and Our Lady of the Rosary

Today is the Feast Day of Saint Dominic.  During his life, he tried to convert non-believers to Catholicism, founded the Order of Dominicans, experienced apparitions of Blessed Mother Mary and was linked to the Middle Ages Inquisition by the Catholic Church.  Through his apparitions with Our Lady, the Saint Dominic rosary provided the structure of the Most Holy Rosary we pray today.

Dominic was born of Spanish parents in Spain and spent his early years there. In neighboring southern France in those same years was a religious sect called Cathars. This sect had some elements of the Catholic faith, but held a fundamental belief which Catholicism considered heresy. Cathars believed there was an evil god that created the material world and a good god that created the spiritual world.  Cathars main heresy was their belief in dualism: the evil God created the materialistic world and the good God created the spiritual world. The Pope dispatched missionaries to southern France, including Saint Dominic, to convert the Cathars, to accept Catholic teaching and cease belief in separate gods.

Saint Dominic was especially devoted to what is now considered the predecessor of the modern rosary. This was simply a tallying mechanism to count the number of prayers recited which in early times was called paternoster, which translates roughly from Latin as father (pater) and ours (noster). Often the person reciting a penance would recite 150 Our Fathers and use the paternoster to keep an accurate count. In the year 1214, Saint Dominic was in anguish because his attempt to convert the Cathars was basically a failure because he converted so very few. Saint Dominic attributed this to the deepness and gravity of sinfulness of the people. He went alone in to the forest and wept and prayed continuously for three days to appease the anger of Almighty God. After three days, he passed in to a coma.

Dominic experienced an apparition of Blessed Mother Mary while in the coma, which forever links Saint Dominic and the rosary. Mary appeared and asked him : "Dear Dominic, do you know which weapon the Blessed Trinity wants to use to reform the world?" Dominic's response was Blessed Mary knew better than he because she is a part of our salvation.

Mary continued : "I want you to know that, in this kind of warfare, the battering ram has always been the Angelic Psalter which is the foundation stone of the New Testament. Therefore if you want to reach these hardened souls and win them over to God, preach my Psalter" which is the rosary.

Shortly after this apparition he preached the Holy Rosary to the unconverted Carthars. To modify the paternoster (150 Our Fathers) and in compliance with the instruction in the apparition, the design of the Saint Dominic rosary came in to being. He set apart 15 mysteries of the rosary, grouped them in to 3 sets of 5 decades each.

From the Encyclical of Pope Benedict XV on Saint Domonic, FAUSTO APPETENTE DIE "Saint Dominic had a most zealous piety towards the Mother of God by Divine revelation of the victory of Lepanto achieved at that very moment when through the Catholic world the pious sodalities of the Holy Rosary implored the aid of Mary in that formula initiated by the Founder of the Friar Preachers and diffused far and wide by his followers. Loving the Blessed Virgin as a Mother, confiding chiefly in her patronage, Dominic started his battle for the Faith."

Mother of Grace, Mother of Mercy, help us turn to you by praying the Rosary.

Our Lady of the Rosary, Saint Dominic, pray for us.