Private Vows in The Laity/Spirituality

[Guest]

Our parish priest is back after a long break and a prostate surgery followed by complications.  He does not look well at all and has lost weight.  Now his mother is in hospital.

Prayer for Father and his Mum very much appreciated.

I get to the Church early for Vigil Mass and tonight was praying the First Sorrowful Mystery of The Rosary, the Agony in the Garden.  It occurred to me that the anxiety I can suffer can be an identifying with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane.  It has granted me meaning when anxiety does overcome - I can reflect how terrible were the Sufferings of Jesus and I am gifted to share a very small part of it.

[Guest]

Read about St Agostina HERE

Nothing can be enough for The Lord but it is not an invitation to anxiety and lack of prudence, rather it is the road to humility.

It is also a matter of perspective.  From our perspective, nothing indeed is enough for God when our prayer, works, sacrifices are compared to the Glory of God; however, from the perspective of The Glory of God, the smallest movement of love is embraced by Him with great Love and gratitude, appreciation.

There is an excellent book well worth the read on "The Humility of God" by a Franciscan Sister drawing on the thought of St Bonaventure.   At times I found it not the easiest of reads but well worth the effort -  https://www.amazon.com/Humility-God-Franciscan-Perspective/dp/0867166754

[Guest]

St Vincent de Paul Society (FAMVIN)

Daily Reflection – November 11

Quote

 

“Corporal maladies are advantageous to us when we suffer them for the love of God and with conformity to His holy will. We prove thereby that the soul, the nobler part of our being, is in perfect health.”
– St. Louise de Marillac

 

 

 

[Guest]

 

 

_______________

 

St Vincent de Paul Society (FAMVIN)

Daily Reflection – November 12

Quote

“I beg you to consider all things in the designs of Providence and, while humbly and carefully doing your share to contribute to success, leave the rest to the good pleasure of God.”
– St. Vincent de Paul

 

[Guest]

• 

 

_____________________________

 

VERY SHORT DAILY PRAYER

ALETEIA.ORG

Aleteia.org has now included a very short form of daily prayer for each day.  It is based on The Divine Office but far shorter by a long shot - Morning, Meditation, Evening.  You can subscribe to the daily newsletter here: https://aleteia.org/newsletter/

[Guest]

[Guest]

Quote

 

(St Catherine of Sienna)

 

Vincent's Quote of the Day (FAMVIN)

5th November 2017

I must be afire with love for those with whom I live

and with edifying others by the exercise of love (XII:215).

 

 

 

 

 

What can be helpful is to begin with a short prayer from the heart to the Holy Spirit and then slowly read quotations in this thread.  When a quote makes a different type of impact, stop and reflect on that quotation.

[Guest]

 

[Guest]

 

____________________

The Australian Ecumenical Council for Spiritual Direction has published a revised code for spiritual direction: HERE

I don't know much about the organization except that the Jesuits here in South Australia are connected to it.  The Council does have links on their website to locate spiritual directors in each state of Australia - make sure you check any cost involved.

 

[Guest]

 

_________________

 

Saint John Climacus (c.575-c.650), monk on Mount Sinai
The Ladder of Divine Ascent (trans. Archimandrite Lazarus Moore; cf. coll. Spiritualité orientale no. 24, pp. 290.299-300 rev.)
 

God, our only teacher of prayer

 

Prayer by reason of its nature is the converse and union of man with God, and by reason of its action upholds the world and brings about reconciliation with God; it is a bridge over temptations, a wall against afflictions, a crushing of conflicts, future gladness, boundless activity, the source of graces, invisible progress, food of the soul, the enlightening of the mind, an axe for despair, the annulling of sorrow, the reduction of anger, the mirror of progress, the realization of success, a proof of one's spiritual condition, a revelation of the future, a sign of glory.

Have great courage, and you will have God himself for your teacher in prayer. Just as it is impossible to learn to see by word of mouth because seeing depends on one's own natural sight, so it is impossible to realize the beauty of prayer from the teaching at others. Prayer is learned by praying and it has a Teacher all its own: God, who teaches knowledge and grants the prayer of him who prays and blesses the years of the just.

Daily Gospel.org

[Guest]

If Buddie doesn't go to the bathroom by tomorrow morning, I have to take him over to the Vet.  I rang them today as I think Buddie is constipated - the Codeine is addressing the cough successfully to date - but causing problems at his other end.   More money perhaps out the budget - but thanking God that I have it - I have taken out an Advance on the pension.

I am cruising along in a normal fashion i.e. what is normal for me.  Two lines really struck me in a Psalm at Vespers tonight:
 

Quote

 

I trust in the Lord, so why do you say to me:

  “Fly up to the mountain like a sparrow”?

 

It seemed to summarise the theology of St Therese of Lisiuex.  If I trust totally in The Lord, there is no need for me to attempt to climb mountains as others seem to do - for The Lord indeed cares for the oppressed and the weak, even if all the oppression/disturbance comes largely from oneself.   It is not so much the oppression/disturbance that concerns me so much as (futile most often) attempts to bear it in Peace.  But in the theology of St Therese that inability can be an offering to Jesus who indeed cares for the weak.

"Jesus, Your Arms are the elevator that will lift me to Heaven".

Quote

 

http://www.integratedcatholiclife.org/2016/10/carmelite-sisters-st-therese-and-st-teresa/ "On the other hand, St. Thérèse gave us a glimpse of the path that she was called to follow when she wrote:

"You know, Mother, that I have always wanted to become a saint. Unfortunately when I have compared myself with the saints, I have always found that there is the same difference between the saints and me as there is between a mountain whose summit is lost in the clouds and a humble grain of sand trodden underfoot by passersby. Instead of being discouraged, I told myself: God would not make me wish for something impossible and so, in spite of my littleness, I can aim at being a saint. It is impossible for me to grow bigger, so I put up with myself as I am, with all my countless faults. But I will look for some means of going to heaven by a little way which is very short and very straight, a little way that is quite new[…] It is your arms, Jesus, which are the lift to carry me to heaven, And so there is no need for me to grow up. In fact, just the opposite: I must stay little and become less and less. (The Story of a Soul)."

 

It does amaze me just how much St Therese and her theology speak to me in a meaningful way.  I chose her as my Confirmation saint for two reasons:

1 - She was the only saint I had ever seen with a smile and with a crucifix and roses, which meant much to me long before I chose St Therese.

2 - I could have a REAL picture of a REAL saint.

Back when I was confirmed at 12yrs of age, there was no internet and our information was totally limited to a quite marked degree when one considers what 12year olds know today from the internet.

The theology of St Therese is something that has grown on me over a very long period and did not commence with my Confirmation - it commenced somewhere many years later and probably only since I have had access to the internet around 12 years ago or so.

I went to our Catholic bookshop not long after my Confirmation and flicked through the Story of A Soul - all I can recall from that is "and that is not the prayer of quiet" (connected to the times St Therese was annoyed with the jangling of Rosary Beads at Prayer time) - I came away wondering what on earth she was on about.  Years later after I married I borrowed a book on St Teresa of Avila because I read she wrote about The Prayer of Quiet.  I thought that at last I would find out what it was all about.  I don't think I have yet!

[Guest]

Quote

From Meditation to Contemplation, by James Arraj

- Reprinted from St. John of the Cross and Dr. C. G. Jung. 

  http://innerexplorations.com - Entering the Dark Night, pt. 1

The heights of consolation for the beginner often have a mystical flflavor to them; there is a certain savour and experience and sense of the presence of God which is best described as the sensible analogate of contemplative experience. Unfortunately, the limitations of this state are quite hidden from the person experiencing these consolations. For this reason the sudden cessation of consolation is experienced as a terrible trial. There is intense soul-searching for the reason why it has happened. There is a fruitless search for the unrepented sin which must underlie God’s apparent anger. The resultant anxiety is more oppressive than the loss of consolation itself, for it centers on the apparent loss of God. The frantic attempts to recapture this lost sense of communion by a return to meditation and spiritual practices is doomed to failure, and only exacerbate the predominant mood of anxiety. Seen objectively, it is clear that the person is already learning the necessary distinction between sensible consolation and God Himself by means of this privation, but subjectively he is convinced that God has left him.

Shalom Place newsletter

Dominican Sisters of Peace

 

As one goes along it is very important to know the difference between the Consolations of God and The God of Consolations, Who Is Ultimate Mystery.

 

 

[Guest]

Catechism in a Year

Subscribe: http://flocknote.com/catechism

527. What is required by the ninth commandment?

The ninth commandment requires that one overcome carnal concupiscence in thought and in desire. The struggle against such concupiscence entails purifying the heart and practicing the virtue of temperance.

Further reading: CCC 2514-2516

528. What is forbidden by the ninth commandment?

The ninth commandment forbids cultivating thoughts and desires connected to actions forbidden by the sixth commandment.

Further reading: CCC 2517-2519, 2531-2532

[Guest]

 

https://www.catholic.com/qa/marys-dna-in-the-eucharist

Cattholic Answers Q & A

Quote

 

Is Mary's DNA in the Eucharist?

Answer

The DNA Our Lord had from Our Lady as her son is present in the Holy Eucharist, like all the other necessary components of his body. Even so, this DNA is not present in the Eucharist in a manner that the senses would be able to perceive, since Our Lord's bodily qualities are present in a substantial mode, perceptible to faith and understanding but not the senses, not even his senses.

 

 

[Guest]