SAINT BERNARD DIXIT

 

FLEE FROM THEM

“Know also this, that in the last days shall come dangerous times. Men shall be lovers of themselves, covetous, haughty, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, wicked. Without affection, without peace, slanderers, incontinent, unmerciful, without kindness, traitors, stubborn, puffed up, and lovers of pleasure more than of God: Having an appearance indeed of godliness but denying the power thereof. Now these avoid.”

Sain Paul 11 Tim 3: 1-5

AN EXCELLENT ADVICE FROM SAINT JOHN MARY VIANNEY, VERY SUITABLE FOR THE END OF THE YEAR

“Most Christians do nothing but work to satisfy this corpse [he always called the body “corpse”] that will soon fall under the ground, with no regard for the poor soul, who is destined to be happy or unhappy for eternity. Their lack of spirit and good sense makes the skin leap. See, my children, we must reflect that we have a soul to save, and an eternity that awaits us. The world, its riches, pleasures, and honours will pass away, Heaven and Hell will never pass. Let us take care, then.”

Saint John Mary Vianney

MERRY CHRISTMAS

 

ANNE CATHERINE EMMERICH’S VISIONS AND REVELATIONS

“I saw within a city, a meeting of clergy, laymen and women, who were sitting together, eating and making frivolous jokes, and above them a dark cloud which descended in a plain submerged in darkness. Amid this fog, I saw Satan sitting and around him, many companions as people were in the meeting which was going on underneath. All these evil spirits were continually moving and busy trying to push the people at this meeting to do evil. They whispered to them to their ears and acted on them in all possible ways. These people were in a very dangerous state of sensual excitement and in provocative conversations. Churchmen were those whose principle were: “You have to live and let live. In our time we should not be apart or be a misanthrope (a person who hates or distrusts humankind): we must rejoice with those who rejoice.”

Blessed Catherine Emmerich, AA II. 488.

CHESTERTON, ALWAYS GREAT

 

ACTUS CONTRITIONIS

O My God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee and I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more and avoid the near occasions of sin. Amen.

HOW WE SHOULD ACT EVERY DAY

"May all of our actions, words or thoughts be like those of a person who will leave this earth today and appear before the Judgment of God."

Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

BY THE HAND OF MARY

“With Mary everything is easy. I place all my confidence in her, despite the snarls of the world and thunders of hell. I say with St. Bernard: ‘In her I have placed unbounded confidence; she is the whole reason for my hope. Have these words explained to you for I would not have dared to propose them on my own authority. It is through Mary that I seek and that I will find Jesus, that I will crush the head of the serpent and overcome all my enemies and myself, to the greater glory of God.”

Saint Louis Marie de Montfort

AM I NOT HERE WHO AM YOUR MOTHER?

 

“AM I NOT HERE WHO AM YOUR MOTHER?  ARE YOU NOT UNDER MY SHADOW AND PROTECTION? AM I NOT THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUR JOY?  ARE YOU NOT IN THE FOLD OF MY MANTLE, IN THE CRADLE OF MY ARMS? DO NOT GRIEVE NOR BE DISTURBED BY ANYTHING. DO NOT BE AFFLICTED BY THE ILLNESS OF YOUR UNCLE, WHO WILL NOT DIE NOW OF IT, BE ASSURED THAT HE IS NOW CURED.”  

OUR LADY HAD ALREADY WARNED US ABOUT IT

 

All the civil governments will have one and the same plan, which will be to abolish and do away with every religious principle to make way for materialism, atheism, spiritualism, and vice of all kinds.

May those in charge of religious communities be on their guard against the people they must receive, for the devil will resort to all his evil tricks to introduce sinners into religious orders, for disorder and the love of carnal pleasures will be spread all over the earth.

Our Lady of La Salette

THE IMMACULATE CONCEPCIÓN (8-XII)

 

GOD'S WORD

 

THE WISDOM OF CHESTERTON

 

HOMELAND OF THE JUST

"In eternity alone, the country of the just, can you find rest, because there alone there is no combat; but do not imagine, however, that the gates of eternity shall be opened for you, unless you first show the wounds you bear; those gates are only opened for those who gloriously fought here the battles of the Lord, and were, like the Lord, crucified.”

Donoso Cortés, Essay on Catholicism, liberalism and socialism

MARY’S YES

With her "Yes" Mary signed the holy new covenant between God and the souls, and she was the first to put her entire life at the service of God's plan of salvation. If it had not been for her "Yes", the Redeemer could not have been conceived at that moment stipulated by the perfect wisdom of God. Mary's perfect consecration to the works of God became the foundation of our redemption.

Labels: Virgin Mary

ON THE LOVE OF GOD

On the day of our Judgment, our Lord will reproach us our little love for Him. "You loved Me less than creatures. You did not seek the happiness of your life in Me. You loved Me enough not to offend Me mortally, but not enough to live of Me!"

Some might say: "But all this is exaggeration!" Love is nothing but exaggeration; to exaggerate is to go beyond the strict requirements of the law. Love must exaggerate.

Come! Let us be all taken up with our Lord! Let us love Him a little for His own sake. Let us forget ourselves and give ourselves to this good Savior! Let us sacrifice ourselves a bit! Look at the candles and the sanctuary lamp, which burn without leaving any trace, without reserving anything for themselves.

Saint Peter Julian Eymard

ARCHBISHOP FULTON J. SHEEN DIXIT

"Dostoevsky wrote that in a future day men would say there is no crime, there is no sin, there is no guilt, there is only hunger; then men will come crying and fawning at our feet saying to us, "Give us bread." Nothing will matter except the economic."

Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen

BAD SOLDIERS

"I must say something about the bad soldiers of Christ the King, that is, the cowardly Christians. Nothing displeases a King so much as the cowardice of his soldiers; if his soldiers are cowardly, the King is ready. Christians who have a kind of inferiority complex of being Christians do not honor Christ the King [...] For Christ to be truly King, at least in us, we have to overcome fear, cowardice, pusillanimity, without being “little men”, as Saint Teresa said. And how can we overcome fear? Fear is a giant! 'Did you forget that I was with you?'"

Father Leonardo Castellani

THE TRUE OPIUM

 

PEOPLE WHO WATCH PORN LOSE THEIR CAPACITY TO LOVE

It is incredible how even five seconds of a pornographic image can stay in the mind for a lifetime, and many years of Christian formation can be forgotten in a matter of a just moment when we choose to sin. Pornography torments the soul, destroys it and leads it to perdition. It takes away the person’s will, because it leads them to a difficult addiction that enslaves them.

Unfortunately, someone who is used to watching pornography looks for in a woman what he has seen and reduces her to a simple object that serves for sexual pleasure, since this is what pornography presents, that is, a woman being used as a mere object created for satisfying carnal urges.

Little by little, the consumer of pornography loses his capacity to love, because every vice leads us away from God who is the one who instills true love in us. The person stops thinking that women should be conquered with affection and respect, because they are human beings who love and want to be loved, instead he thinks that he has to win them to take them to bed and satisfy his own pleasure. The consumer of pornography will not be able to love because true love is sacrifice and self-giving, when spouses come together in the conjugal act, they make a sacrifice of love, they seek to give themselves to each other, and not only to satisfy themselves. It is in this sacred giving that God makes himself present and that He can be glorified.

Now, if I am a consumer of pornography and I still want to know what it is to love and be loved, can I still do it?

As long as you continue to watching pornography, you will never be able to experience this because every time you get further away from God, but if you sincerely repent of having offended God so much and you flee from the occasion of sin (that is, if it is necessary, to get rid of your computer, cell phone, television, magazines, records, staying away from certain "friends" or family, etc. for the love of God), seek the life of grace, go to Confession frequently, frequently attend the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, pray the holy rosary, practice daily mortification and read the life of the saints trying to imitate them, trying with all your heart to detest sin, with these practices you surely can love and be loved, but as with all vice, the virtue of perseverance is necessary, not to give up, nor to believe that as you haven’t fallen into sin for months or years you will never fall into it again, because the reality is that it is a LIFELONG struggle, but one that is worth everything.

THE PRAYER OF SAINT PHILIP NERI

 

ONE DAY WE WILL UNDERSTAND

How great will be our confusion when we appear before God and see the reasons why He sent us these crosses that we now complain about! We have mourned the death of that son in the prime of his age, but we do not know that if he had lived a few more years, he would have died in mortal sin. We have mourned the breakup of that courtship, but we do not know what consequences would have had. We complain about that physical ailment that has been bothering us for thirty or forty years, but we ignore that we owe our salvation to this penance.

Saint Claude de la Colombière

THANK YOU, LORD

Jesus, my Redeemer, I thank Thee that Thou didst not let me die when I was in disgrace with Thee! During how many of the past years have I not deserved to be cast into hell!... If I had died on such a day, or on such a night, what would have become of me for all eternity?... I thank Thee for this, O my Lord!

I accept my death as a satisfaction for my sins ; and I accept it in whatever manner it may please Thee to send it to me. But since Thou hast waited for me until now, wait for me yet a little longer.

Give me time to weep over the offences which I have committed against Thee, before Thou comest to judge me. (Job 10, 20.)  

I will no longer resist Thy sweet voice that calls me. Perhaps these words which I have just read may be the last call for me! I confess that I do not deserve pity, for Thou hast so often pardoned me; and I, ungrateful one that I am, have again offended Thee!; 

But "a broken and contrite heart, O God, shalt Thou not despise." (Ps. li. 17.) O Lord, since Thou wilt not despise a broken and contrite heart, look upon a traitor, who being repentant, flees unto Thee." Cast me not away from Thy presence." 

In mercy, do not cast me from Thee, for Thou hast said, "Him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out." It is true that I have offended Thee more tnan many others, because I have been favoured by Thee with light and grace; but the blood which Thou hast shed for me gives me courage, and gives me pardon, if only I repent. Yes, O my Sovereign Good, I do repent with my whole heart for having despised Thee. 

Pardon me, and give me grace to love Thee for the time to come. I have offended Thee too many times already. I will not spend the life that remains to me, O my Jesus, in giving Thee offence, but I will spend it ever weeping over the displeasure I have caused Thee, and in loving Thee with all my heart, Thou, O God, who art so worthy of infinite love!

Preparation for Death – Saint Alphonsus Maria Liguori

DOES GOD HEAR THE PRAYERS OF THOSE WHO ARE IN MORTAL SIN?

In a sinner we have to consider two things: his nature, which God loves; and his fault, which God hates. If, then, a sinner asks something of God formally as a sinner --that is, according to his sinful desires-- God, out of His mercy, does not hear him, though sometimes He does hear him in His vengeance, as when He permits a sinner to fall still farther into sin. 

But that prayer of a sinner which proceeds from the good desire of his nature God hears, not, indeed, as bound in justice to do so, for that the sinner cannot merit, but out of His pure mercy, and on condition, too, that the four above-mentioned conditions are observed -- namely, that he prays for himself, for things needful for his salvation, that he prays devoutly and perseveringly.

Summa Theologica, II-II, 83, 16, by Saint Thomas Aquinas.

BLESSED HENRY SUSO (OR SUSSO)

Beatification date: In 1831 by Gregory XVI.

German mystic, he was born at Constance on March 21, probably 1295; he died at Ulm, January 25, 1366.

HIS LIFE

His father belonged to the noble family of Berg; his mother, a holy woman from whom he took his name, to a family of Sus (or Süs). When thirteen years of age, he entered the Dominican convent at Constance, where he made his preparatory, philosophical, and theological studies.

From 1324 to 1327 he took a supplementary course in theology in the Dominican studium generale at Cologne, where he sat at the feet of Johann Eckhart, "the Master", and probably at the side of Tauler, both celebrated mystics. Returning to Constance, he was appointed to the office of lector, from which he seems to have been removed some time between 1329 and 1334. In the latter year he began his apostolic career. About 1343 he was elected prior of a convent, probably at Diessenhofen. Five years later he was sent from Constance to Ulm where he remained until his death.

Suso's life as a mystic began in his eighteenth year, when giving up his careless habits of the five preceding years, he made himself "the Servant of the Eternal Wisdom", which he identified with the Divine essence and, in a concrete form, with the personal Eternal Wisdom made man. Henceforth, a burning love for the Eternal Wisdom dominated his thoughts and controlled his actions. He had frequent visions and ecstasies, practised severe austerities (which he prudently moderated in later years), and bore with rare patience corporal afflictions, bitter persecutions and grievous calumnies.

In the world he was esteemed as a preacher, and was heard in the cities and towns of Swabia, Switzerland, Alsace, and the Netherlands. His apostolate, however, was not with the masses, but rather with individuals of all classes who were drawn to him by his singularly attractive personality, and to whom he became a personal director in the spiritual life.

It has often been incorrectly said that he established among the Friends of God a society which he called the Brotherhood of the Eternal Wisdom. The so-called Rule of the Brotherhood of the Eternal Wisdom is but a free translation of a chapter of his "Horologium Sapientiae", and did not make its appearance until the fifteenth century.

HIS WRITINGS

The first writing from the pen of Suso was the "Büchlein der Wahrheit", which he issued while a student at Cologne. Its doctrine was unfavourably criticized in some circles — very probably on account of its author's close relations with Eckhart, who had just been called upon to explain or to reject certain propositions — but it was found to be entirely orthodox.

As in this, so in his other writings Suso, while betraying Eckhart's influence, always avoided the errors of "the Master". The book was really written in part against the pantheistic teachings of the Beghards, and against the libertine teachings of the Brethren of the Free Spirit. Father Denifle considers it the most difficult "little book" among the writings of the German mystics.

Whereas in this book Suso speaks as a contemplative and to the intellect, in his next, "Das Büchlein der ewigen Weisheit", published early in 1328, he is eminently practical and speaks out of the fullness of his heart to "simple men who still have imperfections to be put off". Bihlmeyer accepts Denifle's judgment that it is the "most beautiful fruit of German mysticism", and places it next to the "Homilies" of St. Bernard, and the "Imitation of Christ" by Thomas à Kempis. In the second half of the fourteenth and in the fifteenth century there was no more widely read meditation book in the German language.

In 1334, Suso translated this work into Latin, but in doing so added considerably to its contents, and made of it an almost entirely new book, to which he gave the name "Horologium Sapientiae". Even more elevating than the original, finished in language, rich in figure, rhythmic in movement, it became a favourite book in the cloisters at the close of the Middle Ages, not only in Germany, but also in the Netherlands, France, Italy, and England.

To the same period of Suso's literary activity may belong "Das Minnebüchlein" but its authenticity is doubtful.

After retiring to Ulm Suso wrote the story of his inner life ("Vita" or "Leben Seuses"), revised the "Büchlein der Wahrheit", and the "Büchlein der ewigen Weisheit", all of which, together with eleven of his letters (the "Briefbüchlein"), and a prologue, he formed into one book known as the "Exemplar Seuses".

Besides the above-mentioned writings we have also five sermons by Suso and a collection of twenty-eight of his letters (Grosses Briefbuch), which may be found in Bihlmeyer's edition.

Suso is called by Wackernagel and others a "Minnesinger in prose and in the spiritual order." The mutual love of God and man which is his principal theme gives warmth and colour to his style. He used the full and flexible Alamannian idiom with rare skill, and contributed much to the formation of good German prose, especially by giving new shades of meaning to words employed to describe inner sensations. His intellectual equipment was characteristic of the schoolmen of his age. In his doctrine there was never the least trace of an unorthodox tendency.

For centuries he exercised an influence upon spiritual writers. Among his readers and admirers were Thomas à Kempis and Bl. Peter Canisius.

By A.L. McMahon | Source: Santopedia.com

THEY HAVE CONSENTED TO INIQUITY

Whose coming is according to the working of Satan, in all power and signs and lying wonders:

And in all seduction of iniquity to them that perish: because they receive not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. Therefore God shall send them the operation of error, to believe lying:

God shall send. . .That is God shall suffer them to be deceived by lying wonders, and false miracles, in punishment of their not entertaining the love of truth. That all may be judged who have not believed the truth but have consented to iniquity.

Saint Paul to Thessalonians 2, 9

CHRIST THE UNIVERSAL KING (prayer)

 

THE VIRGIN AT NOON

By Paul Claudel

It is noon. I see the church is open. I must go in.

Mother of our Lord, I have not come to pray.

I have nothing to offer and nothing to ask.

I am here only, my Lady, to look at you.

To say nothing, to look at your face.

To let my heart sing in its own language.

Because you are beautiful, because you are immaculate,

The woman of Grace finally restored.

The creature in its first honor and in its final blossoming,

As it came out of God in the morning of its original splendor.

Ineffably intact because you are the Mother of Jesus Christ,

Who is the truth in your arms, and the only hope and the only fruit.

Because you are the woman, the Eden of the old forgotten tenderness.

May all creation sing to you in gratitude, Mother of Jesus Christ, simply because you exist!

MARY’S POWER

“Mary’s power over all demons will shine in a particular way in the end times, when Satan will undermine her heel, that is, her poor slaves and humble children whom she will raise up to wage war against him. These will be small and poor according to the world, as low to all as the heel, trampled and abused as the heel is in comparison to the other limbs of the body. In exchange they will be rich in divine grace, which Mary will communicate to them in abundance; great and elevated in holiness before God; superior to any other creature because of their ardent zeal; and so strongly supported by divine help, that with the humility of their heel, united with Mary, they will crush the head of the devil and make Jesus Christ triumph”.

Saint Louis Marie de Montfort

IMMODESTY AND PORNOGRAPHY WITHIN THE REACH OF CHILDREN AND ADULTS

After a century of struggle, modesty has now disappeared in millions of women, who do not hesitate to exhibit themselves semi-naked every summer, to which must be added others -men and women- who undress for money on television sets and in pornographers' studios. The result is a meat market turned into a lucrative business —cinema, television and the Internet through— within the reach of all budgets and of all ages. 

Those responsible for the corruption of children should be reminded Christ’s words:

"And whosoever shall scandalize one of these little ones that believe in me: it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck and he were cast into the sea." Mark 9: 42.

DO NOT ERR

“Know you not that the unjust shall not possess the kingdom of God? Do not err: Neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers. Nor the effeminate nor liers with mankind nor thieves nor covetous nor drunkards nor railers nor extortioners shall possess the kingdom of God. The body is not for fornication, but for the Lord: and the Lord for the body. Fly fornication. Every sin that a man doth is without the body: but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. Or know you not that your members are the temple of the Holy Ghost, who is in you, whom you have from God: and you are not your own?

For you are bought with a great price. Glorify and bear God in your body.” (1 Cor. 6, 9-20).

OCTOBER 15TH: SAINT TERESA OF AVILA

 

MONS. FULTON J. SHEEN DIXIT

 

TRUE HONOR

"You fear dishonor, slander, humiliation, and very often, in order to preserve an imaginary honor before men, you offend God! Wretched, don't you know that true honor is based on virtue? What does it matter to you what men think of you, as long as God esteems you and rewards you? Strange blindness! Human laws are feared and the Gospel is despised as if the orders of Jesus Christ were not worth what the decrees of princes are worth."

Saint Jerome

NEVER FORGET TO PRAY IT

 

DON'T FORGET THE HOLY SOULS IN PURGATORY

 

Those who die in the grace and friendship of God, but not completely clean, although sure of their eternal salvation, undergo a purification after death, in order to obtain the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.

This doctrine is also based on the practice of praying for the dead, of which the Holy Scripture speaks. That is why Judas Maccabaeus made a sacrifice of atonement for the dead, so that they might be delivered from their sins (2 Mac 12, 46). From the earliest times, the Church has honored the memory of the dead and offered suffrages in their favor, especially the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, so that they might be purified and reach the beatific vision of God. The Church also recommends alms, indulgences and works of penance in favor of the deceased.

Prayer of Saint Gertrude

Eternal Father, I offer You the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal Church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.

Let us pray for the souls in purgatory!

"MY VOCATION IS LOVE!": SAINT THERESE OF LISIEUX

"I thought of the Mystical Body of the Church, but I could not recognise myself in any of its members listed by St Paul - or rather I wanted to recognise myself in all of them. Charity gave me the key to my vocation. I realised that if the Church was a body made up of different members, she would not be without the greatest and most essential of them all. I realised that love includes all vocations, that love is all things, and that, because it is eternal, it embraces every time and place. I understood that the Church had a Heart and that this Heart was burning with love. I understood that only love is what drives the members of the Church to act and that, if this love were lacking, neither would the apostles announce the Gospel, nor would the martyrs shed their blood. I clearly recognized and convinced myself that love encompasses all vocations, that love is everything, that it encompasses all times and places, in a word, that love is eternal. 

 Then in the excess of my delirious joy, I cried out: 

 O Jesus, my Love...my vocation, at last I have found it...My vocation is Love! Yes, I have found my own place in the Church, and this place is the one you have pointed out to me, my God. In the heart of my Mother, the Church, I will be love; then I will be everything and my desire will be fulfilled.” 

IN THE SIMPLE THINGS

 

THE WORST DANGER

"The worst danger for a wounded foot is that it no longer hurts, because it means that blood is not circulating anymore and gangrene will set in. The most terrible and dreadful evil for a sinful soul is that she no longer feels remorse for having sinned. If she doesn’t feel it, she will be hopelessly lost. But if her conscience pricks her and she listens to her conscience, she still has hope of amendment and salvation."

Saint Augustine quoted in the book "The Spiritual Combat" by Father Lorenzo Scupoli.

THE GOD WHO PROTECTED DANIEL...

 

Daniel was framed by others and thrown into the den of lions. He prayed to God, cried out to Him, and relied on God in his heart. And God was with him, so he was not afraid. God sealed the lions’ mouths and kept Daniel unharmed. From this, we can see that the God we believe in has authority and power. Therefore, we must believe in God. He could protect Daniel in the den of lions and can also protect us from any danger. 

“He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in Him will I trust” (Psalm 91:2).

SAINT AUGUSTINE DIXIT

 

SPEECH GIVEN BY ANACLETO GONZÁLEZ FLORES, MEXICAN MARTYR:

 “Many Catholics are unaware of the seriousness and especially of the causes of the disaster; they overlook the fact that the three great enemies, Protestantism, Freemasonry, and Revolution, work tirelessly and with an alarming and well-organized program of action.

These three enemies are defeating Catholicism on all fronts, at all hours and in all possible ways. They fight in the streets, in the squares, in the press, in the workshops, in the factories, in the homes. In the case of a generalized battle, they have their sword drawn and their battalions deployed everywhere. This is a fact. Christ does not reign in the streets, in the schools, in the Parliaments, in books, in universities, in the public and social life of the countries. Who reigns there is the devil. In all those environments you can see the smoke of Satan.

And what do we do? We content ourselves with praying, going to church, practicing some works of mercy, as if that were enough "to counteract all the vast conjuration of God's enemies." We have left them everything else, the streets, the press, the teaching at various levels of education. In none of these places have they encountered serious opposition. And if sometimes we have acted, we have done it so poorly, so weakly, that it can be said that we have not fought at all. We have sung in churches but we have not announced God in schools, in squares, in Parliaments, and so, we have cornered Christ out of fear.

Reducing Catholicism to a secret prayer, to a grievous complaint, to trembling and fright before public authorities when they kill the national soul and destroy everything before everyone’s eyes, is not only cowardice and excusable disorientation, but also a religious, public and social historical crime, which deserves all execrations.

...Souls suffer from spiritual anemia. We have become beggars, renouncing ownership of our destinies. We have been evicted from everywhere, and we have abandoned everything.

So far, almost all Catholics have done nothing but ask God to do, to work, to accomplish, to do something or everything for the fate of the Church in our countries. And that's why we have only prayed, waiting for God to work. And all this under the mask of a so called "prudence". We need the imprudence of Christian boldness.

Moreover, there are many Catholics who dare to call imprudent those who know how to assert their rights before their persecutors. It is necessary that this situation of isolation, estrangement, national dispersion, ends once and for all, and that as soon as possible we think in a serious way that we are all Catholics of our country, not a lot of particles without union, but an immense body that has one program, one head, one thought, one organizing flag to face all persecutors."

THE SACREDNESS OF THE TRADITIONAL MASS

 At the moment of the Consecration, a great surge of adoration rises up toward God. Its prelude is the Gloria and the Sanctus, whose beauty is enhanced on certain days by gregorian chant, the most exalted, simplest, and purest of all religious chants . . . But when the moment of the double Consecration arrives, all is silent. This silence tells in its won way what music cannot express.

Father Garrigou-Lagrange O.P.

CHARITY

 

Let us not forget that in the evening of life, we will be judged according to the measure of love. Of love for God and of our neighbor. It will all depend on how much you loved, fulfilled, gave yourself and helped. Do not close your hand, help the neighbor who needs it.

Mark 12:28-31: 

“And there came one of the scribes that had heard them reasoning together, and seeing that he had answered them well, asked him which was the first commandment of all. And Jesus answered him: The first commandment of all is, Hear, O Israel: the Lord thy God is one God. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart and with thy whole soul and with thy whole mind and with thy whole strength. This is the first commandment. And the second is like to it: Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is no other commandment greater than these.”

SEPTEMBER 14TH, THE EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS

O holy Cross, you have been the only one worthy of carrying the King and Lord of heaven and earth.

O wonderful Cross, on whose branches hung the treasure and the redemption of captive men, through you the world is redeemed by the blood of the Lord.

Hail, O Cross, consecrated by the body of Christ, whose members, like precious jewels, adorn your wooden beams. Through you, the world is redeemed by the blood of the Lord. 

THE DANGERS IN COURSTHIP!

Courtship is in serious danger when the couple begin to advance in caresses or kisses, when physical pleasure becomes an important part of the "demonstration of love" that they have for each other. Passion blinds reason and kills love.

Young people, you must take care of each other's purity, which is the most beautiful thing you have. Do not give in to sin, do not forget that premarital sexual relations leave deep wounds in your soul, in the love you have for each other, and in your courtship, the stain of sin is difficult to erase. Sexual relations between people who are not bound together by the bond of a valid marriage are always contrary to the will of God and constitute a grave offense against God.

Repeat together firmly like Saint Maria Goretti, the martyr of purity: "It is better to die a thousand times than to commit one mortal sin!”

SOMETHING TO MEDITATE

What would you say of someone who, condemned to death went out to execution mockingly, laughing, looking about on every side, thinking of shows, celebrations and entertainments? And you, are you too not on your way to death? And where do your thoughts turn? Meditate on those tombs of your relatives and friends, whose sentence has already been carried out.

Preparation for Death, Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori

GOD DOES NOT ALLOW TRIALS THAT WE CANNOT OVERCOME NOR DICTATES IMPOSSIBLE COMMANDMENTS TO FULFILL

If even a mule-driver knows how much his mule can carry and does not try to kill it by overloading it, and if the potter knows how long the clay should bake to be suitable for use and does not leave it longer in the kiln than is necessary, then it would show very little appreciation of God to venture to think that He who is wisdom itself and loves us with an infinite love would load our backs with too heavy a burden or leave us longer than is necessary in the fire of tribulation. We can be quite sure that the fire will not last longer or be hotter than is NECESSARY to bake our clay to the right point.

Father Jean Baptiste Saint-Jure (1656).

THE BEAUTY OF HUMAN LIFE

She is Anabelle Raelynne Danison, she passed away at 8 weeks gestation due to natural causes and her parents wanted to show the beauty of intrauterine human life. At this age, many babies already lose their lives due to abortion.

At 8 weeks the baby already has the eyelids, the nose and the upper lip formed. It already has a heartbeat. The body measures between 12 and 17 mm. Through the translucent skin you can see the skeleton which is currently made up of cartilage. The liver is also fully functional.

From this moment the baby feeds exclusively through the umbilical cord. The wonder of the human being…

Share this if you believe in the right to life of this and all children.