St. Ignatius of Loyola

Inigo de Loyola (Basque: Ignazio Loiolakoa, Spanish: Ignacio de Loyola) (1491 - July 31, 1556) was a Spanish knight from a Basque noble family, hermit, priest since 1537, and theologian, who founded the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and was its first Superior General. Ignatius emerged as a religious leader during the Counter-Reformation. Loyola's devotion to the Catholic Church was characterized by unquestioning obedience to the Catholic Church's authority and hierarchy.

Early Life

Inigo was born in Azpeitia in the Basque province of Guipuzcoa in northern Spain. He was the youngest of thirteen children. At the age of sixteen years he was sent to serve as a page to Juan Velazquez, the treasurer of the kingdom of Castile. Two years later, he fought for Antonio Manrique de Lara, Duke of Nájera and Viceroy of Navarre. Somewhere around this time, he changed his name to Ignatius, a simple variant of his name.

Ignatius served the Duke by participating in many battles. During a French attack in May of 1521, a cannonball struck Íñigo, wounding one of his legs and breaking the other. Returning to the castle, he underwent several surgical operations. His situation turned from bad to worse and he was asked by doctors to prepare for death.
On the feast of Saints Peter and Paul (29 June) he took an unexpected turn for the better. The leg healed, but when it did the bone protruded below the knee and one leg was shorter than the other. This was unacceptable to Ignatius, who considered it a fate worse than death. He underwent several surgical operations, which were very painful in the days before anaesthetics. Unfortunately, all the operations were unsuccessful. Hence, all his life he walked with a limp because one leg was shorter than the other.

The Conversion

During his recovery, he resorted to reading books. With no other option available, he was forced to read books on saints and the life of Christ. Ludolph of Saxony's 'De Vita Christi' influenced his life greatly. The book is a commentary on the life of Jesus-Christ and on the Gospels borrowing extracts from the works of over sixty of the Fathers of the Church. The book contains quotes of St Gregory the Great, St Basil, St Augustine and the Venerable Bede, asking the reader to place himself at the scene of the Gospel story. This is a method of prayer called Simple Contemplation (also seen in the 'Spiritual Exercises' of Íñigo, in the later years).

After reading Ludolph's book, Ignatius was inspired to lead a life of self-denying labour and imitate the heroic deeds of great monastic leaders, such as St. Francis of Assisi and others. He had set a new mission for himself - converting the non-Christians to Christianity. After complete recovery, he visited the Benedictine monastery of Our Lady of Montserrat, Santa Maria de Montserrat, in 1522. There he made a general confession, and knelt all night in vigil before Our Lady's altar, following the rites of chivalry. He left his sword and knife at the altar, went out and gave away all his fine clothes to a poor man, and dressed himself in rough clothes with sandals and a staff and proceeded to a cave near the town of Manresa, Catalonia, to practice the most rigorous asceticism.

While in the cave he started having visions that played one of the most significant roles in his life. These visions, though never revealed, are said to be represent Ignatius' encounter with God. Through them, he was able to picture God in all things, one of the central characteristics of Jesuit spirituality. For Ignatius, since God was everywhere, all times were times of prayer. He never imposed the fact that there should be a definite time or duration of prayer.

His Journey

Ignatius resumed his journey from Manresa, crossing Barcelona and finally reaching Rome. After the meeting with Pope Adrian VI, he was granted permission to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, the Holy Land. Though Ignatius had wanted to remain in the Holy Land, the dangerous situations that were existing at that point of time, and the threat of being excommunicated, forced him to leave the place and return to Spain.

Unfamiliar with Latin language, Ignatius, at the age of 33 (1524-26), enrolled himself in a school in Barcelona, to study language and grammar. After about 2 years (1526-27), he gained admission in the University of Alcala, in the University, he used to gather students and adults, explaining the Gospels and teaching them the right way to pray. This act was not appreciated by the Spanish Inquisition and he was sent to prison, for about 42 days. Such restrictions made life difficult for Ignatius and he moved to the University of Salamanca (1527-28). There again he suffered brief imprisonment. After his release, he was strictly instructed to teach children only. Unhappy with this, Ignatius left for Paris.

In Paris, Ignatius started studying literature, philosophy and theology. He befriended Francis Xavier and Peter Faber, who were also his roommates. Together with six followers ( Francis Xavier, Alfonso Salmeron, Diego Laynez, and Nicholas Bobadilla, all Spanish; Peter Faber, a Frenchman; and Simão Rodrigues) he took vows of poverty and chastity. This group was the nucleus of the future Jesuits. They planned to go to the Holy Land and live in imitation of Christ, working to convert the Muslims, but the Turkish wars intervened, and they went to Rome instead. They were ordained (1537) and received by the pope (1538), who set them to work in Italy.

In 1539, Ignatius drew up a Formula for a new order and secured (1540) papal approval. In 1540, the Jesuit Constitution was adopted. Written by Ignatius, the doctrine stressed absolute self-abnegation and obedience to Pope and the superiors. The main motto of Jesuits became 'Ad maiorem Dei gloriam' [A.M.D.G] i.e. for "the greater glory of God." It served as the basis for the later Constitutions, published at his death, by which Jesuits have been governed ever since. Ignatius was elected (1541) general of the order and remained its leader, with headquarters in Rome, until his death.

He was dominated all his life by a desire to imitate Christ. His Spiritual Exercises, written over a number of years, are a series of reflections, examinations of conscience, and prayers, grouped according to a traditional set of four steps leading to mystical union with God. The spirituality identified with St. Ignatius is characterized by emphasis on human initiative. His little book is a classic of Christian mysticism and is much used by devout Catholics. His concept of the “soldier of Christ” has often been understood too militaristically: Ignatius used the image in obvious imitation of St. Paul (Eph. 6.10-17).

Death

The stomach problem, which started early in the life of Ignatius, gave him much trouble. During the summer of 1556, the pain worsened. Though he asked his secretary to get the papal blessing for him, the latter did not pay heed to the advice, thinking Ignatius would survive. However, on July 30th, 1556, around midnight, the stomach pain of Ignatius worsened. Sometime later, he left for the heaven abode, making the date of his death to be 31st July. He is buried in the Gesù at Rome.

Canonization

Ignatius was beatified by Pope Paul V on July 27, 1609 and canonized by Pope Gregory XV on March 13, 1622. His feast day is celebrated annually on July 31, the day he died. Saint Ignatius is venerated as the patron saint of Catholic soldiers, the Military Ordinariate of the Philippines, Society of Jesus, Educators and Education, the Basque country and various towns and cities in his native region.

Feast Day: July 31

Let Your Good Works Be Your Deposits

Let everything be done for God's honour

Avoid evil practices: indeed, preach against them. Tell my sisters to love the Lord and be content with their husbands in the flesh and in the spirit, and in the same way bid my brothers in Christ’s name to love their wives as the Lord loves his Church. If anyone can remain chaste in honour of the Saviour’s flesh, then let him do so without boasting. For if he boasts of it, he is lost; and if he thinks himself for this reason better than the bishop, he is lost. Those who marry should be united with the bishop’s approval, so that the marriage may follow God’s will and not merely the prompting of the flesh. Let everything be done for God’s honour.

Hear your bishop, that God may hear you. My life is a sacrifice for those who are obedient to the bishop, the presbyters and the deacons; and may it be my lot to share with them in God. Work together in harmony: struggle together, run together, suffer together, rest together, rise together, as stewards, advisors and servants of God. Seek to please him whose soldiers you are and from whom you draw your pay; let none of you prove a deserter. Let your baptism be your armour, your faith your helmet, your charity your spear, your patience your panoply. Let your good works be your deposits, so that you may draw out well-earned savings. So be patient and gentle with one another, as God is with you. May I have joy in you for ever!

Since I have heard that the church of Antioch in Syria is in peace through your prayers, I too am more tranquil in my reliance upon God. If only I may find my way to God through my passion and at the resurrection prove to be your disciple! My most blessed Polycarp, you should convene a godly council and appoint someone whom you consider dear and especially diligent to be called God’s courier and to have the honour of going into Syria and advancing God’s glory by speaking of your untiring charity. A Christian is not his own master: his time is God’s. This is God’s work, and it will be yours as well when you have performed it. I have trust in the grace of God that you are ready to act generously when it comes to God’s work. Since I knew so well your zeal for truth, I have limited my appeal to these few words.

I could not write to all the churches because I am sailing at once from Troas to Neapolis, as is required of me. I want you, therefore, as one who knows God’s purpose, to write to the churches of the East and bid them to follow the same procedure. Those who can should send representatives, while the rest should send letters through the messengers you have sent. Thus your community will be honoured for a good work of eternal value, as you yourself deserve.

I wish all of you well for ever in Jesus Christ; through him may you all remain in God’s unity and in his care. Farewell in the Lord!

~From a letter to Polycarp by Saint Ignatius of Antioch

St.Martha

Today, July 29, we celebrate the feast day of Saint Martha, sister of Mary and Lazarus (whom the Lord raised from the dead), and friend and follower of Jesus. Saint Martha is frequently referred to as “the Lord’s Worker and Servant,” given her role in Scriptures as cooking and serving the Lord upon his visits to the home of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Following the initial rebuke of her resentment by Jesus, Martha became recognized for her embodiment of Christian hospitality. She remains the patron saint of cooks and servants.

Biblically

We first encounter Martha in the Scriptures, during a visit that Jesus and the disciples make to her home. Apparently Jesus was a frequent guest at Martha's home in Bethany, a small village two miles from Jerusalem We are told in the Gospel of John that "Jesus loved Martha and Mary and Lazarus," suggesting the quality of the special relationship Jesus shared with these three siblings.

(Luke 10: 38-42) Martha, initially resentful of her sister, must have dwelt upon the words of Our Lord during her household tasks, and over time, realized that Jesus was speaking of the promise of eternal salvation.

Next we encounter Martha, at her brother’s death. Having sent word to Jesus (who risked certain death upon returning to Judea), Martha is overjoyed when he arrives, and runs to greet him while her sister stays behind. It is here that we see the true conversion of Martha’s heart, as she proclaims her faith in Jesus: "Yes, Lord," she told him, "I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world" (John 11: 27).

(John 12: 1-11) We last find Martha, in Scripture, back where she began—toiling in the kitchen, serving the Lord, His disciples, and her brother and sister. This time, she does so without complaint, preparing a Last Supper of sorts for the family, as Jesus was moving steadily toward his arrest and crucifixion. We hear how Mary causes a commotion at dinner by anointing Jesus with expensive perfume. But all we hear about Martha is the simple statement: "Martha served." She isn't in the spotlight, she doesn't do showy things, she doesn't receive spectacular miracles. She simply serves Jesus.

Traditionally

We are told that Saints Martha, Mary, and Lazarus went to southern France in A.D. 48, accompanied by Saint Mary Magdalene and Saint Maximin. Here, Saint Mary Magdalene retired to a life of penance, and Saint Lazarus acted as Bishop of Marseilles. St. Martha's life in Europe was a very interesting one according to the Golden Legend:

“After the Ascension of our Lord, when the disciples were departed, she with her brother Lazarus and her sister Mary, also Saint Maximin which baptized them, and to whom they were committed of the Holy Ghost, and many others, were put into a ship without sail, oars, or rudder, which by the conduct of our Lord they came all to Marseilles, and after came to the territory of Aquense or Aix, and there converted the people to the faith. Martha was right fecund of speech, and courteous and gracious to the sight of the people.

There was that time upon the river of Rhone, in a certain wood between Arles and Avignon, a great dragon, half beast and half fish, greater than an ox, longer than an horse, having teeth sharp as a sword, and horned on either side, head like a lion, tail like a serpent, and defended him with two wings on either side, and could not be beaten with cast of stones nor with other armor, and was as strong as twelve lions or bears; which dragon lay hiding and lurking in the river, and perished them that passed by and drowned ships. He came thither by sea from Galicia, and was engendered of Leviathan, which is a serpent of the water and is much wood, and of a beast called Bonacho, that is engendered in Galicia. And when he is pursued he casts out of his belly behind, his ordure, the space of an acre of land on them that follow him, and it is bright as glass, and what it toucheth it burneth as fire.

To whom Martha, at the prayer of the people, came into the wood, and found him eating a man. And she cast on him holy water, and showed to him the cross, which anon was overcome, and standing still as a sheep, she bound him with her own girdle, and then was slain with spears and glaives of the people.

The dragon was called of them that dwelled in the country Tarasconus, whereof, in remembrance of him that place is called Tarasconus, which tofore was called Nerluc, and the Black Lake, because there be woods shadowous and black. And there the blessed Martha, by license of Maximin her master, and of her sister, dwelled and abode in the same place after, and daily occupied in prayers and in fastings, and thereafter assembled and were gathered together a great convent of sisters, and builded a fair church at the honor of the blessed Mary virgin, where she led a hard and a sharp life. She eschewed flesh and all fat meat, eggs, cheese and wine; she ate but once a day. An hundred times a day and an hundred times a night she kneeled down and bowed her knees.”

Saint Martha assembled a holy company of women, with whom she lived in great austerity of life and admirable sanctity at Tarascon where her tomb is venerated. Saint Mary’s tomb is at La Sainte-Baume; Saint Lazarus is venerated as the founder of the Church of Marseilles.

The life of Saint Martha, recorded in the Gospels of John and Luke, remind us of the importance of hospitality and service. But more importantly, they direct us back to the importance of placing Jesus at the center of our lives. Jesus clearly (and kindly, suggesting his love for Martha) says to Martha: “you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.” In that moment, we can all identify with this humble saint—how frequently do the small worries of our lives distract us from the love of the Lord, His plan for our salvation, and the grace which comes to us from Him, through the intercession of Our Blessed Mother? He tells Martha that her sister has, by dropping the cares and worries of the world and sitting at His feet “has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Martha, upon hearing these words, opens herself to the Lord, professes her faith, and continues to serve him humbly and wholeheartedly, without complaint — a lesson which we might all benefit from!

Prayer

Father,
your Son honored St. Martha
by coming to her home as a guest.
By her prayers
may we serve Christ in our brothers and sisters
and be welcomed by you into heaven,
our true home.

We ask this through
our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

Sts. Martha And Mary [Pope Benedict XVI's Homily]

BENEDICT XVI


Courtyard of the Papal Residence, Castel Gandolfo
Sunday, 18 July 2010

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We are now in the heart of summer, at least in the northern hemisphere. This is the period in which schools are closed and the greater part of the holidays are concentrated. Even the pastoral activities in parishes are reduced and I myself have suspended the Audiences for a while. It is therefore a favourable time to give priority to what is effectively most important in life, that is to say, listening to the word of the Lord. We are also reminded of this by this Sunday's Gospel passage with the well known episode of Jesus' visit to the house of Martha and Mary, recounted by St Luke (10: 38-42).

Martha and Mary are two sisters; they also have a brother, Lazarus, but he does not appear on this occasion. Jesus is passing through their village and, the text says, Martha received him at her home (cf. 10: 38). This detail enables us to understand that Martha is the elder of the two, the one in charge of the house. Indeed, when Jesus has been made comfortable, Mary sits at his feet and listens to him while Martha is totally absorbed by her many tasks, certainly due to the special Guest.

We seem to see the scene: one sister bustling about busily and the other, as it were, enraptured by the presence of the Teacher and by his words. A little later Martha, who is evidently resentful, can no longer resist and complains, even feeling that she has a right to criticize Jesus: "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me". Martha would even like to teach the Teacher! Jesus on the other hand answers her very calmly: "Martha, Martha", and the repetition of her name expresses his affection, "you are anxious and troubled about many things; only one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her" (10: 41-42). Christ's words are quite clear: there is no contempt for active life, nor even less for generous hospitality; rather, a distinct reminder of the fact that the only really necessary thing is something else: listening to the word of the Lord; and the Lord is there at that moment, present in the Person of Jesus! All the rest will pass away and will be taken from us but the word of God is eternal and gives meaning to our daily actions.

Dear friends, as I said, this Gospel passage is more than ever in tune with the vacation period, because it recalls the fact that the human person must indeed work and be involved in domestic and professional occupations, but first and foremost needs God, who is the inner light of Love and Truth. Without love, even the most important activities lose their value and give no joy. Without a profound meaning, all our activities are reduced to sterile and unorganised activism. And who, if not Jesus Christ, gives us Love and Truth? Therefore, brothers and sisters, let us learn to help each other, to collaborate, but first of all to choose together the better part which is and always will be our greatest good.


After the Angelus :

I am pleased to greet the English-speaking visitors here in Castel Gandolfo. In today's Gospel we are reminded of the need to rest from our daily labours, so that we may give time to the one thing that is truly necessary in our lives listening to the word of God in attentive stillness. It is Mary, not Martha, who chose the better part. At this time when many of you are on holiday, I pray that you and your loved ones may be truly refreshed in body and spirit, so that you may return with renewed vigour to the responsibilities of your daily lives. May God bless you all!

Lastly, I address a cordial greeting to the Italian-speaking pilgrims and in particular to the AGESCI Scouts from Belcastro, to the Ugandan young people of the Opera Famiglia di Nazareth and to those who come from Cernobbio. I wish everyone a good Sunday.


© Copyright 2010 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Martha Received Her Lord

Blessed are they who deserved to receive Christ in their homes

Our Lord’s words teach us that though we labour among the many distractions of this world, we should have but one goal. For we are but travellers on a journey without as yet a fixed abode; we are on our way, not yet in our native land; we are in a state of longing, not yet of enjoyment. But let us continue on our way, and continue without sloth or respite, so that we may ultimately arrive at our destination.

Martha and Mary were sisters, related not only by blood but also by religious aspirations. They stayed close to our Lord and both served him harmoniously when he was among them. Martha welcomed him as travellers are welcomed. But in her case, the maidservant received her Lord, the invalid her Saviour, the creature her Creator, to serve him bodily food while she was to be fed by the Spirit. For the Lord willed to put on the form of a slave, and under this form to be fed by his own servants, out of condescension and not out of need. For this was indeed condescension, to present himself to be fed; since he was in the flesh he would indeed be hungry and thirsty.

Thus was the Lord received as a guest who came unto his own and his own received him not; but as many as received him, he gave them the power to become sons of God, adopting those who were servants and making them his brothers, ransoming the captives and making them his co-heirs. No one of you should say: “Blessed are they who have deserved to receive Christ into their homes!” Do not grieve or complain that you were born in a time when you can no longer see God in the flesh. He did not in fact take this privilege from you. As he says: Whatever you have done to the least of my brothers, you did to me.

But you, Martha, if I may say so, are blessed for your good service, and for your labours you seek the reward of peace. Now you are much occupied in nourishing the body, admittedly a holy one. But when you come to the heavenly homeland will you find a traveller to welcome, someone hungry to feed, or thirsty to whom you may give drink, someone ill whom you could visit, or quarrelling whom you could reconcile, or dead whom you could bury?

No, there will be none of these tasks there. What you will find there is what Mary chose. There we shall not feed others, we ourselves shall be fed. Thus what Mary chose in this life will be realised there in all its fullness; she was gathering fragments from that rich banquet, the Word of God. Do you wish to know what we will have there? The Lord himself tells us when he says of his servants, Amen, I say to you, he will make them recline and passing he will serve them.

~Saint Augustine

Psalm 84

Psalm 84

A Korah Psalm

^1-2 What a beautiful home, God-of-the-Angel-Armies!
I've always longed to live in a place like this,
Always dreamed of a room in your house,
where I could sing for joy to God-alive!

^3-4 Birds find nooks and crannies in your house,
sparrows and swallows make nests there.
They lay their eggs and raise their young,
singing their songs in the place where we worship.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies! King! God!
How blessed they are to live and sing there!

^5-7 And how blessed all those in whom you live,
whose lives become roads you travel;
They wind through lonesome valleys, come upon brooks,
discover cool springs and pools brimming with rain!
God-traveled, these roads curve up the mountain, and
at the last turn—Zion! God in full view!

^8-9 God-of-the-Angel-Armies, listen:
O God of Jacob, open your ears—I'm praying!
Look at our shields, glistening in the sun,
our faces, shining with your gracious anointing.

^10-12 One day spent in your house, this beautiful place of worship,
beats thousands spent on Greek island beaches.
I'd rather scrub floors in the house of my God
than be honored as a guest in the palace of sin.
All sunshine and sovereign is God,
generous in gifts and glory.
He doesn't scrimp with his traveling companions.
It's smooth sailing all the way with God-of-the-Angel-Armies.

Scripture taken from The Message.

Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.

Moses' Face Was Radiant (Exodus 34:29)

"Moses was not aware that his face was radiant." (Exodus 34:29)

It is said that the face is the index of the mind. In other words it’s an open window into our thoughts and desires. Our feelings somehow show on our faces. We may try to put on an act or hide the way we feel, but sooner or later it’s going to show. Just as a frown symbolizes distress, a smile -joy similarly a glow is sign that there’s something good going on, on the inside of us. In today’s first reading Moses is the one glowing!

After his encounter with God on Mount Sinai, his face started to shine. It shone with the glory of God. If only we would spend quality time with God, we would be called ‘glow in the dark Christians’. Moses did not just climb a mountain to talk to God and come back glowing. No! If you read Exodus 34, you will realize that it took a lot of hard work to get that glow. Moses prepared himself for that meeting. He got up early in the morning to present himself to Almighty God (Exodus 34:2). He was alone no one was to be seen nearby, no man or animal (v.3). When you come to meet God, you’ve got to separate yourself from distractions. No phone or door bell ringing, no radio or TV singing and talking in the background. That’s one reason why we gather in Church, away from all the clutter. It should be just you and God, and that’s exactly what God commanded Moses to do (v.3).

In order for us to grow spiritually, we must put in some effort. There are no short cuts to paradise. No elevators to get there. We have to use the stairway to heaven! Moses climbed up Mount Sinai to meet God. When God talked, Moses listened and made a note of all the commands. When we come in the presence of God, we have to be silent for God to speak to us. Our ears have to be tuned to the frequency of heaven and tuned out to the world. We are to come humbly and in total surrender, yielding our life to God. Moses did not even know that his face was radiant. Our spiritual glory is not something we parade around. That’s the reason it’s only given to the humble. People around should notice the good in us by the lives we live.

Moses covered his face with a veil, for the radiance was too much for the Israelites. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians says, that we are not like Moses with veiled faces, but instead, we, with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord's glory, and are being transformed, into His likeness. (2 Corinthians 3:13,18). Hence, we have to take off the veil and let Jesus, the Sun of Righteousness, shine through us. Light shines brightest in dark places so let us reach out and help those in need. For Christ says, “let your light shine before men, that they may see, your good deeds and praise your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

If you feel discouraged that, though you read the Word of God daily, pray with a total surrender, have been to Church countless times and things are just the same. Take heart, Moses went many times before to meet God. It took him two 40 day trips with the Lord and finally he returns with that radiant look. So be patient, no matter how long it takes, your breakthrough will come eventually.

"Heavenly Father, help me get rid of the mask I hide behind. Give me the boldness to preach your Gospel always and may my deeds glorify you."

Prayer to Sts. Anne and Joachim

Great and glorious patriarch, St Joachim, and good St Anne, what joy is mine when I consider that you were chosen among all God's holy ones to assist in the fulfillment of the mysteries of God, and to enrich our earth with the great Mother of God, Mary most holy.

By this singular privilege, you have become most powerful with both the Mother and her Son, so as to be able to obtain for us the graces that are needful to us.

With great confidence I have recourse to your mighty protection, and I commend to you all my needs, both spiritual and temporal, and those of my family.

Especially do I entrust to your keeping the particular favor that I desire and look for from your intercession.

And since you were a perfect pattern of the interior life, obtain for me the grace to pray earnestly, and never to set my heart on the passing goods of this life. Give me a lively and enduring love for Jesus and Mary.

Obtain for me also a sincere devotion and obedience to Holy church and the sovereign pontiff who rules over her, in order that I may live and die in faith and hope and perfect charity.

Let me ever invoke the holy Names of Jesus and Mary.

And may I thus be saved. Amen

Sts.Joachim and Anne, parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary

By their fruits you will know them

Anne was to be the mother of the Virgin Mother of God, and hence nature did not dare to anticipate the flowering of grace. Thus nature remained sterile, until grace produced its fruit. For she who was to be born had to be a first born daughter, since she would be the mother of the first-born of all creation, in whom all things are held together.

Joachim and Anne, how blessed a couple! All creation is indebted to you. For at your hands the Creator was offered a gift excelling all other gifts: a chaste mother, who alone was worthy of him.

And so rejoice, Anne, that you were sterile and have not borne children; break forth into shouts, you who have not given birth. Rejoice, Joachim, because from your daughter a child is born for us, a son is given us, whose name is Messenger of great counsel and universal salvation, mighty God. For this child is God.

Joachim and Anne, how blessed and spotless a couple! You will be known by the fruit you have borne, as the Lord says: By their fruits you will know them. The conduct of your life pleased God and was worthy of your daughter. For by the chaste and holy life you led together, you have fashioned a jewel of virginity: she who remained a virgin before, during and after giving birth. She alone for all time would maintain her virginity in mind and soul as well as in body.

Joachim and Anne, how chaste a couple! While safeguarding the chastity prescribed by the law of nature, you achieved with God’s help something which transcends nature in giving the world the Virgin Mother of God as your daughter. While leading a devout and holy life in your human nature, you gave birth to a daughter nobler than the angels, whose queen she now is. Girl of utter beauty and delight, daughter of Adam and mother of God, blessed the loins and blessed the womb from which you come! Blessed the arms that carried you, and blessed your parents’ lips, which you were allowed to cover with chaste kisses, ever maintaining your virginity. Rejoice in God, all the earth. Sing, exult and sing hymns. Raise your voice, raise it and not be afraid.

~Saint John Damascene

St. James the Greater [Apostle]

The James was the brother of John (possibly the Evangelist). The Gospels (Matthew 4, 21-22; Mark 1, 19-20; Luke 5, 10-11) record that they were fishermen, the sons of Zebedee and Salome. James and John were among the first apostles of Jesus and were nicknamed 'the sons of thunder’.

James was present during most of the recorded miracles of Jesus. He was there at the healing of Peter's mother-in-law (Mark1, 29), and at the raising of Jairus's daughter (Mark 5, 37; Luke 8, 51). He was also present, at the Transfiguration of our Lord, and again, in the garden of Gethsemane (Matthew 26, 37; Mark 14, 33). James and John are specifically mentioned as being present at one of the post-resurrection appearances (John 21, 2), on the lakeshore of Tiberias; and among those gathered in the upper room after the ascension (Acts 1, 13).

James is often called James Major (= greater or elder) to distinguish him from, James the Less, or James the brother of the Lord (also called by Eusebius James the Just) and a third James, son of Alphaeus.

James, the apostle made a missionary journey to Samaria, Judea and Spain, in order to preach the Gospel. According to ancient local tradition, on 2 January of the year AD 40, the Virgin appeared to James on the bank of the Ebro River at Caesaraugusta, while he was preaching the Gospel in Iberia. She appeared upon a pillar, Nuestra Señora del Pilar, and that pillar is conserved and venerated within the present Basilica of Our Lady of the Pillar, in Zaragoza, Spain. Following that apparition, St James returned to Judea. Shortly before Passover, the Acts of the Apostles records that King Herod Agrippa I, grandson of Herod the Great had James executed by sword in the year 44 AD. He was the first of the Twelve to suffer martyrdom and the only apostle whose death is recorded in the New Testament.

According to legend his body was taken by angels and sailed in a rudderless unattended boat to Iria Flavia in Iberia, where a massive rock closed around it. Later his relics were removed and shifted to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia (Spain). The traditional pilgrimage to the grave of the saint, known as the "Way of St. James", has been the most popular pilgrimage for Western European Catholics from the early Middle Ages onwards.

The feast day of St James is celebrated on 25 July on the liturgical calendars of the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran and certain Protestant churches. He is commemorated on 29 April in the Orthodox Christian liturgical calendar (for those churches which follow the traditional Julian Calendar, 30 April currently falls on 13 May of the modern Gregorian Calendar).

St. James [Feast]

Sharers in the suffering of Christ

The sons of Zebedee press Christ: Promise that one may sit at your right side and the other at your left. What does he do? He wants to show them that it is not a spiritual gift for which they are asking, and that if they knew what their request involved, they would never dare make it. So he says: You do not know what you are asking, that is, what a great and splendid thing it is and how much beyond the reach even of the heavenly powers. Then he continues: Can you drink the cup which I must drink and be baptised with the baptism which I must undergo? He is saying: “You talk of sharing honours and rewards with me, but I must talk of struggle and toil. Now is not the time for rewards or the time for my glory to be revealed. Earthly life is the time for bloodshed, war and danger.”

Consider how by his manner of questioning he exhorts and draws them. He does not say: “Can you face being slaughtered? Can you shed your blood?” How does he put his question? Can you drink the cup? Then he makes it attractive by adding: which I must drink, so that the prospect of sharing it with him may make them more eager. He also calls his suffering a baptism, to show that it will effect a great cleansing of the entire world. The disciples answer him: We can! Fervour makes them answer promptly, though they really do not know what they are saying but still think they will receive what they ask for.

How does Christ reply? You will indeed drink my cup and be baptised with my baptism. He is really prophesying a great blessing for them, since he is telling them: “You will be found worthy of martyrdom; you will suffer what I suffer and end your life with a violent death, thus sharing all with me. But seats at my right and left are not mine to give; they belong to those for whom the Father has prepared them.” Thus, after lifting their minds to higher goals and preparing them to meet and overcome all that will make them desolate, he sets them straight on their request.

Then the other ten became angry at the two brothers. See how imperfect they all are: the two who tried to get ahead of the other ten, and the ten who were jealous of the two! But, as I said before, show them to me at a later date in their lives, and you will see that all these impulses and feelings have disappeared. Read how John, the very man who here asks for the first place, will always yield to Peter when it comes to preaching and performing miracles in the Acts of the Apostles. James, for his part, was not to live very much longer; for from the beginning he was inspired by great fervour and, setting aside all purely human goals, rose to such splendid heights that he straightway suffered martyrdom.

~Saint John Chrysostom

The Kingdom Of Heaven Is Like A Treasure Hidden In A Field (Matthew 13:44)

"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field which someone has found; he hides it again, goes off happy, sells everything he owns and buys that field." (Matthew 13:44)

The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field. For the Gospel preaching is hidden in this world; and if you do not sell your all you will not purchase it; and this you ought to do with joy; wherefore it follows, which when a man has found, goes and hides it again.

He hides it, not because of envy towards others, but as one that treasures up what he would not lose, he hides in his heart that which he prizes above his former possessions.

The treasure hidden in the field is the desire of heaven; the field in which the treasure is hidden is the discipline of heavenly learning, the way of life; this, when a man finds, he hides, in order that he may preserve it. For zeal and affections heavenward it is not enough the we protect ourselves from the evil lures of this world, but also from human praises. For in this present life we are in the war which leads to our country, and evil desires, malice, hatred, unforgiveness are the theives that beset us in our journey. Those therefore who carry their treasure openly, they seek to plunder in the way. This doesn't mean that our neighbours should not see our works, but that in what we do, we should not seek praise from them.

The kingdom of heaven is therefore compared to things of earth, that the mind may rise from things familiar to things unknown. And when we realise the value of that one thing, love for it follows. Hence, out of joy he goes and sells all that he has, and buys that field. In other words, He renounces fleshly delights tramples upon all his worldly desires in his anxiety for the heavenly discipline.

The Fifteen Prayers of Saint Bridget of Sweden

Fifteen Prayers of Saint Bridget

1st Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! You have proved that You have no greater desire than to be among men, even assuming human nature at the fullness of time for the love of men. I recall all the sufferings of Your life especially Your Passion.

I remember, O Lord, that during the Last Supper with Your disciples, having washed their feet, You gave them Your Most Precious Body and Blood, and, while consoling them, You foretold Your coming Passion.

I remember the sadness and bitterness which You experienced in Your Soul as You said, My Soul is sorrowful even unto death.

I remember all the fear, anguish and pain that You did suffer in Your delicate Body before the torment of the Crucifixion, when, after having prayed three times, bathed in a sweat of blood, You were betrayed by Judas, arrested by the people of a nation You had chosen and elevated, accused by false witnesses and unjustly judged by three judges.

I remember that You were despoiled of Your garments and clothed in those of derision, that Your Face and Eyes were covered, that You were beaten, crowned with thorns, a reed placed in Your Hands, that You were crushed with blows and overwhelmed with insults and outrages. In memory of all these pains and sufferings which You endured before Your Passion on the Cross, grant me before my death a true contrition, a sincere and entire confession, worthy satisfaction and the remission of all my sins. Amen.

2nd Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the horror and sadness which You endured when Your enemies surrounded You, and by thousands of insults, spits, blows, lacerations and other unheard-of cruelties tormented You. In consideration of these torments and insulting words, I beg You to deliver me from all my enemies, visible and invisible, and to bring me, under Your protection, to the perfection of eternal salvation. Amen.

3rd Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the very bitter pain You did suffer when the executioners nailed Your Sacred Hands and Feet to the Cross by blow after blow with big blunt nails, and, not finding You in a sad enough state, to satisfy their cruelty they enlarged Your Wounds, and added pain to pain, stretching Your Body on the Cross and dislocated Your Bones by pulling Them on all sides. I beg of You by the memory of this most loving suffering of the Cross to grant me the grace to love You. Amen.

4th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I Remember the bruises You suffered and the weakness of Your Body, which was distended to such a degree that never was there pain like Yours. From the crown of Your Head to the soles of Your Feet there was not one spot on Your Body which was not in torment. Yet, for getting all Your sufferings, You did not cease to pray to Your Heavenly Father for Your enemies, saying: Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.

Through this great mercy and in memory of this suffering, grant that the remembrance of Your most bitter Passion may effect in us a perfect contrition and the remission of all our sins. Amen.

5th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the sadness which You experienced when, foreseeing those who would be damned for their sins, You suffered bitterly over these hopeless, lost and unfortunate sinners.

Through this abyss of compassion and pity and especially through the goodness which You displayed to the good thief when You said to him, This day you will be with Me in Paradise, I beg of You that at the hour of my death to show me mercy. Amen.

6th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the grief which You suffered when, like a common criminal, You were raised and fastened to the Cross, when all Your relatives and friends abandoned You, except Your Beloved Mother who remained close to You during Your agony and Whom You entrusted to Your faithful disciple when You said,

Woman, behold Your son. Son behold your Mother.


I beg You by the sword of sorrow which pierced the soul of Your Holy Mother, to have compassion on me in all my afflictions and tribulations, both of body and spirit, and to assist me in all my trials and especially at the hour of my death. Amen.

7th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember Your profound gesture of love from the Cross when You said, I thirst, and Your suffering from the thirst for the salvation of the human race. I beg You to inflame in our hearts the desire to tend toward perfection in all our actions and to extinguish in us all wordly desires. Amen.

8th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the bitterness of the gall and vinegar which You tasted on the Cross for love of us. Grant us the grace to receive worthily Your Precious Body and Blood during our life and at the hour of our death that It may be a remedy of consolation for our souls. Amen.

9th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the pain You endured when, immersed in an ocean of bitterness at the approach of death, insulted, outraged by the people, You cried out in a loud voice that You were abandoned by Your Father, saying: My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Through this anguish I beg You not to abandon me in the terrors and pains of my death. Amen.

10th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember that for our sakes You were immersed into an abyss of suffering. In consideration of the enormity of Your Wounds, teach me to keep, through pure love, Your Commandments, which are a wide and easy path for those who love You. Amen.

11th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember Your Wounds which penetrated to the very marrow of Your Bones and to the depth of Your Being. Draw me away from sin and hide me in Your Wounds. Amen.

12th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the multitude of Wounds which afflicted You from Head to Foot, torn and reddened by the spilling of Your Precious Blood. O great and universal pain which You suffered in Your Flesh for love of us! What is there You could have done for us which You have not done?

May the fruit of Your sufferings be renewed in my soul by the faithful remembrance of Your Passion and may Your love increase in my heart each day until I see You in eternity, You Who are the treasury of every real good and joy, which I beg You to grant me in Heaven. Amen.

13th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the pain You endured when all Your strength, both moral and physical, was entirely exhausted; You bowed Your Head, saying: It is consummated.

Through this anguish and grief, I beg You to have mercy on me at the hour of my death, when my mind will be greatly troubled and my soul will be in anguish. Amen.

14th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the simple and humble recommendation You made of Your Soul to Your Eternal Father, saying, "Father, into Your Hands I commend My Spirit," and when, Your Body all torn and Your Heart broken, You expired. By this precious death, I beg You to comfort me and give me help to resist the devil, the flesh and the world, so that, being dead to the world, I may live for You alone. I beg of You at the hour of my death to receive me. Amen.

15th Prayer

Recite one Our Father and One Hail Mary.

O Jesus! I remember the abundant outpouring of Blood which You shed. From Your Side, pierced with a lance by a soldier, Blood and Water poured forth until there was not left in Your Body a single Drop; and finally the very substance of Your Body withered and the marrow of Your Bones dried up.

Through this bitter Passion and through the outpouring of Your Precious Blood, I beg You to pierce my heart so that my tears of penance and love may be my bread day and night. May I be entirely converted to You; may my heart be Your perpetual resting place; may my conversation be pleasing to You; and may the end of my life be so praiseworthy that I may merit Heaven and there with Your saints praise You forever. Amen.

The fifteen prayers were taught by Jesus to Saint Bridget. He said to her,

I received 5,480 wounds [5475 blows + 5]on My Body during My Passion. If you wish to honour each of them in some way pray the following prayers each day for a whole year. When the year is over, you will have honored each one of My Wounds

_________________________________________

** There are alleged promises from Our Lord attached to these prayers, but they are problematic, inconsistent with Catholic teaching, hence I haven't posted them.

It was originally approved in 1864 by Pope Pius IX, but later their publication was forbidden, according to a declaration in 1954. It may be that the vision wasn't properly written down, properly translated, consistently handed-down, or otherwise kept intact, but in any case, beware of any "Magnificent Promises" you may hear of in association with the following perfectly pious prayers.

However, "These prayers are published under sanction of the Decree of November 18, 1986, published in the Acts Apostolicae Sedis, Vol. 58, No. 16 of December 29, 1966." In short the prayers are approved (not the promises).

These 15 prayers literally re-live the Passion of Christ. I have been praying it daily for many years and my heart has been transformed. The promises attached to it motivated me in the beginning, I thought I had a visa [not ticket] to Paradise but now I don't think about them [promises]. Some of the miracles I've experienced I can directly attribute to these prayers and promises, but after all these years of praying.. I feel that 'prayer' should change us from within and bring us closer to the Lord. We shouldn't say them because of the promises; [approved or not] but to deepen our devotion and stay in a state of grace. Prayer is a precious gift from God, so cherish it always!**

Prayer - to Christ Our Saviour

Blessed are you, my Lord Jesus Christ. You foretold your death and at the Last Supper you marvellously consecrated bread which became your precious body. And then you gave it to your apostles out of love as a memorial of your most holy passion. By washing their feet with your holy hands, you gave them a supreme example of your deep humility.

Honour be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. Fearing your passion and death, you poured forth blood from your innocent body like sweat, and still you accomplished our redemption as you desired and gave us the clearest proof of your love for all men.

Blessed may you be, my Lord Jesus Christ. After you had been led to Caiaphas, you, the judge of all men, humbly allowed yourself to be handed over to the judgement of Pilate.

Glory be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ, for the mockery you endured when you stood clothed in purple and wearing a crown of sharp thorns. With utmost endurance you allowed vicious men to spit upon your glorious face, blindfold you and beat your cheek and neck with cruellest blows.

Praise be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ: For with the greatest patience you allowed yourself like an innocent lamb to be bound to a pillar and mercilessly scourged, and then to be brought, covered with blood, before the judgement seat of Pilate to be gazed upon by all.

Honour be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. For after your glorious body was covered with blood, you were condemned to death on the cross, you endured the pain of carrying the cross on your sacred shoulders, and you were led with curses to the place where you were to suffer. Then stripped of your garments, you allowed yourself to be nailed to the wood of the cross.

Everlasting honour be to you, Lord Jesus Christ. You allowed your most holy mother to suffer so much, even though she had never sinned nor ever even consented to the smallest sin. Humbly you looked down upon her with your gentle loving eyes, and to comfort her you entrusted her to the faithful care of your disciple.

Eternal blessing be yours, my Lord Jesus Christ, because in your last agony you held out to all sinners the hope of pardon, when in your mercy you promised the glory of paradise to the penitent thief.

Eternal praise be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ, for the time you endured on the cross the greatest torments and sufferings for us sinners. The sharp pain of your wounds fiercely penetrated even to your blessed soul and cruelly pierced your most sacred heart till finally you sent forth your spirit in peace, bowed your head, and humbly commended yourself into the hands of God your Father, and your whole body remained cold in death.

Blessed may you be, my Lord Jesus Christ. You redeemed our souls with your precious blood and most holy death, and in your mercy you led them from exile back to eternal life.

Blessed may you be, my Lord Jesus Christ. For our salvation you allowed your side and heart to be pierced with a lance; and from that side water and your precious blood flowed out abundantly for our redemption.

Glory be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. You allowed your blessed body to be taken down from the cross by your friends and laid in the arms of your most sorrowing mother, and you let her wrap your body in a shroud and bury it in a tomb to be guarded by soldiers.

Unending honour be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ. On the third day you rose from the dead and appeared to those you had chosen. And after forty days you ascended into heaven before the eyes of many witnesses, and there in heaven you gathered together in glory those you love, whom you had freed from hell.

Rejoicing and eternal praise be to you, my Lord Jesus Christ, who sent the Holy Spirit into the hearts of your disciples and increased the boundless love of God in their spirits.

Blessed are you and praiseworthy and glorious for ever, my Lord Jesus. You sit upon your throne in your kingdom of heaven, in the glory of your divinity, living in the most holy body you took from a virgin’s flesh. So will you appear on that last day to judge the souls of all the living and the dead; you who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever.

Amen.

~From the prayers attributed to Saint Bridget

Prayer to St Mary Magdalene by Saint Anselm

Saint Mary Magdalene, you came with springing tears to the spring of mercy, Christ; from him your burning thirst was abundantly refreshed through him your sins were forgiven; by him your bitter sorrow was consoled.

My dearest lady, well you know by your own life how a sinful soul can be reconciled with its creator, what counsel a soul in misery needs, what medicine will restore the sick to health.

It is enough for us to understand, dear friend of God, to whom were many sins forgiven, because she loved much.

Most blessed lady, I who am the most evil and sinful of men do not recall your sins as a reproach, but call upon the boundless mercy by which they were blotted out.

This is my reassurance, so that I do not despair; this is my longing, so that I shall not perish.

I say this of myself, miserably cast down into the depths of vice, bowed down with the weight of crimes, thrust down by my own hand into a dark prison of sins, wrapped round with the shadows of darkness.

Therefore, since you are now with the chosen because you are beloved and are beloved because you are chosen of God, 1, in my misery, pray to you, in bliss; in my darkness, I ask for light; in my sins, redemption; impure, I ask for purity.

Recall in loving kindness what you used to be, how much you needed mercy, and seek for me that same forgiving love that you received when you were wanting it. Ask urgently that I may have the love that pierces the heart; tears that are humble; desire for the homeland of heaven; impatience with this earthly exile; searing repentance; and a dread of torments in eternity.


Turn to my good that ready access that you once had and still have to the spring of mercy.

Draw me to him where I may wash away my sins; bring me to him who can slake my thirst; pour over me those waters that will make my dry places fresh. You will not find it hard to gain all you desire from so loving and so kind a Lord, who is alive and reigns and is your friend.

For who can tell, beloved and blest of God, with what kind familiarity and familiar kindness he himself replied on your behalf to the calumnies of those who were against you? How he defended you, when the proud Pharisee was indignant, how he excused you, when your sister complained, how highly he praised your deed, when Judas begrudged it.

And, more than all this, what can I say, how can I find words to tell, about the burning love with which you sought him, weeping at the sepulchre, and wept for him in your seeking?

How he came, who can say how or with what kindness, to comfort you, and made you burn with love still more; how he hid from you when you wanted to see him, and showed himself when you did not think to see him; how he was there all the time you sought him, and how he sought you when, seeking him, you wept.

But you, most holy Lord, why do you ask her why she weeps?

Surely you can see; her heart, the dear life of her soul, is cruelly slain.

O love to be wondered at;

O evil to be shuddered at;

You hung on the wood, pierced by iron nails, stretched out like a thief for the mockery of wicked men; and yet, 'Woman,' you say, 'why are you weeping?' She had not been able to prevent them from killing you, but at least she longed to keep your body for a while with ointments lest it decay.


No longer able to speak with you living, at least she could mourn for you dead. So, near to death and hating her own life, she repeats in broken tones the words of life which she had heard from the living.

And now, besides all this, even the body which she was glad, in a way, to have kept, she believes to have gone.

And can you ask her, 'Woman, why are you weeping?'

Had she not reason to weep?

For she had seen with her own eyes--if she could bear to look--what cruel men cruelly did to you; and now all that was left of you from their hands she thinks she has lost.

All hope of you has fled, for now she has not even your lifeless body to remind her of you.

And someone asks, 'Who are you looking for? Why are you weeping?'

You, her sole joy, should be the last thus to increase her sorrow. But you know it all well, and thus you wish it to be, for only in such broken words and sighs can she convey a cause of grief as great as hers. The love you have inspired you do not ignore.

And indeed you know her well, the gardener, who planted her soul in his garden. What you plant, I think you also water.

Do you water, I wonder, or do you test her?

In fact, you are both watering and putting to the test.

But now, good Lord, gentle Master, look upon your faithful servant and disciple, so lately redeemed by your blood, and see how she burns with anxiety, desiring you, searching all round, questioning, and what she longs for is nowhere found.

Nothing she sees can satisfy her, since you whom alone she would behold, she sees not.

What then?

How long will my Lord leave his beloved to suffer thus?

Have you put off compassion now you have put on incorruption? Did you let go of goodness when you laid hold of immortality?

Let it not be so, Lord.

You will not despise us mortals now you have made yourself immortal, for you made yourself a mortal in order to give us immortality.

And so it is; for love's sake he cannot bear her grief for long or go on hiding himself. For the sweetness of love he shows himself who would not for the bitterness of tears.

The Lord calls his servant by the name she has often heard and the servant knows the voice of her own Lord.


I think, or rather I am sure, that she responded to the gentle tone with which he was accustomed to call, 'Mary'. What joy filled that voice, so gentle and full of love.

He could not have put it more simply and clearly: 'I know who you are and what you want; behold me; do not weep, behold me; I am he whom you seek.'

At once the tears are changed; I do not believe that they stopped at once, but where once they were wrung from a heart broken and self-tormenting they flow now from a heart exulting. How different is, 'Master!' from 'If you have taken him away, tell me'; and, 'They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him,' has a very different sound from, 'I have seen the Lord, and he has spoken to me.'

But how should I, in misery and without love, dare to describe the love of God and the blessed friend of God? Such a flavour of goodness will make my heart sick if it has in itself nothing of that same virtue.

But in truth, you who are very truth, you know me well and can testify that I write this for the love of your love, my Lord, my most dear Jesus.

I want your love to burn in me as you command so that I may desire to love you alone and sacrifice to you a troubled spirit, 'a broken and a contrite heart'.

Give me, 0 Lord, in this exile, the bread of tears and sorrow for which I hunger more than for any choice delights.

Hear me, for your love, and for the dear merits of your beloved Mary, and your blessed Mother, the greater Mary.

Redeemer, my good Jesus, do not despise the prayers of one who has sinned against you but strengthen the efforts of a weakling that loves you.

Shake my heart out of its indolence, Lord, and in the ardour of your love bring me to the everlasting sight of your glory where with the Father and the Holy Spirit you live and reign, God, for ever.

Amen.

She Who Longed For Christ [Mary Magdalene]

She longed for Christ, though she thought he had been taken away

When Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and did not find the Lord’s body, she thought it had been taken away and so informed the disciples. After they came and saw the tomb, they too believed what Mary had told them. The text then says: The disciples went back home, and it adds: but Mary wept and remained standing outside the tomb.

We should reflect on Mary’s attitude and the great love she felt for Christ; for though the disciples had left the tomb, she remained. She was still seeking the one she had not found, and while she sought she wept; burning with the fire of love, she longed for him who she thought had been taken away. And so it happened that the woman who stayed behind to seek Christ was the only one to see him. For perseverance is essential to any good deed, as the voice of truth tells us: Whoever perseveres to the end will be saved.

At first she sought but did not find, but when she persevered it happened that she found what she was looking for. When our desires are not satisfied, they grow stronger, and becoming stronger they take hold of their object. Holy desires likewise grow with anticipation, and if they do not grow they are not really desires. Anyone who succeeds in attaining the truth has burned with such a great love. As David says: My soul has thirsted for the living God; when shall I come and appear before the face of God? And so also in the Song of Songs the Church says: I was wounded by love; and again: My soul is melted with love.

Woman, why are you weeping? Whom do you seek? She is asked why she is sorrowing so that her desire might be strengthened; for when she mentions whom she is seeking, her love is kindled all the more ardently.

Jesus says to her: Mary. Jesus is not recognised when he calls her “woman”; so he calls her by name, as though he were saying: Recognise me as I recognise you; for I do not know you as I know others; I know you as yourself. And so Mary, once addressed by name, recognises who is speaking. She immediately calls him rabboni, that is to say, teacher, because the one whom she sought outwardly was the one who inwardly taught her to keep on searching.

~ St.Gregory the Great, pope

Song Of Songs 3:1-4

The Bride’s Dream

On my bed by night, I sought him
whom my heart loves;
I sought him, but did not find him.
So I will rise and go through the City;
in the streets and the squares
I will seek him whom my heart loves.
I sought him, but did not find him.
The watchmen came upon me
on their rounds in the City:
'Have you seen him whom my heart loves?'
Scarcely had I passed them
than I found him whom my heart loves.

On my bed by night, I sought him whom my heart loves; I sought him, but did not find him. :-: By night - When others compose themselves to sleep, my affections were working towards him. I sought for Christ's gracious and powerful presence. I sought but I found him not - For he had withdrawn the manifestations of his love from me, either because I had not sought him diligently, or because I had abused his favour.

So I will rise and go through the City; in the streets and the squares I will seek him whom my heart loves. I sought him, but did not find him. :-: The city - The city of God, the church in which Christ resides. Streets and squares - Not finding him in private prayer, and meditation, I sought him in the places of public assemblies and ordinances. But I found him not - He saw fit still to delay the discoveries of his grace.

The watchmen came upon me on their rounds in the City: 'Have you seen him whom my heart loves?' :-: The watchmen - The ministers of Christ, and rulers of the church. Go about - To prevent disorders and dangers. Him - She does not name him, because she thought it needless, as supposing a person of such transcendent excellency could not be unknown to men in that capacity. Their answer is not mentioned, either because they gave her no satisfactory answer, or because by their silence she gathered that they were unable to inform her; and being eager in the pursuit, she would not lose time.

Scarcely had I passed them than I found him whom my heart loves. :-: Found him - Christ met me, and manifested his love to me. Wherever we find Christ, we must take him home with us to our houses, especially to our hearts; and we should call upon ourselves and each other, to beware of grieving our holy Comforter, and provoking the departure of the Beloved.

The Mysteries Of The Kingdom Of Heaven Are Revealed To You (Matthew 13:11)

"Why do you talk to the crowds in parables?" (Matthew 13:10)

In my lifetime I must have heard over two thousand sermons, the ones I remember the most are the ones with parables or stories. No matter how good a memory you possess, you’re bound to pick up the moral of a story rather than a sermon preached to you. Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, because the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven were not plainly revealed to them. He had to break it down to simple everyday stories that were taking place in and around Palestine. His parables helped people understand who God is and what his kingdom is like. It was through parables that Jesus reached the heart of his listeners. The words he spoke were like buried treasure waiting to be discovered (Matthew 13:44).

While Jesus’ parables are two thousand years old, they nonetheless speak of timeless realities to people of every time and place. There is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9). The fact is that, God works in every age and he meets us right in the midst of ordinary, everyday situations of life. This was the truth of the matter that Jesus tried to convey to us. The biblical scholar St. Jerome once said, “The marrow of a parable is different from the promise of its surface, and like as gold is sought for in the earth, the kernel in a nut and the hidden fruit in the prickly covering of chestnuts, so in parables we must search more deeply after the divine meaning.”

Jesus told his disciples that not everyone would understand his parables. “The mysteries of the kingdom of heaven are revealed to you, but they are not revealed to them; so that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not hear” Did Jesus mean to say that he was deliberately confusing his listeners? Definitely not! Jesus was aware that some who heard his parables refused to understand them. It had nothing to do with their intellect, but rather, their hearts were closed to what Jesus was saying. There are people, who tune their hearts and incline their ears to God's word. However, on the other hand, there are people who deliberately block their ears and go deaf to God’s voice. They have already made up their minds to refuse the truth.

God can only reveal the secrets of his kingdom to the humble and trusting person who acknowledges the need for God and for his truth. The parables of Jesus will enlighten us if we approach them with an open mind and heart, ready to let them change and challenge us. If we approach them with the conviction that we already know the answer then we too, may look but not see, hear and not comprehend, and the mysteries will still be mysteries to us. But, when we open our hearts and minds and listen with faith and humility then each of us will be able to receive what Jesus wishes to teach. In conclusion, the best reason why Jesus spoke in parables was that the scriptures said that he would. And, as Jesus himself said, “the scripture cannot be broken (John 10:35).

“Lord, I thank you for daily feeding me with your precious word. Holy Spirit help me in my spiritual growth.”

Pray A Hedge of Thorns

"Therefore I will block her path with thorn-bushes; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way." (Hosea 2:6)

We run from God; He calls us back. We hide from God; He seeks us out. We chase false gods; He reminds us He is the One True God, and He guards us jealously. In order to illustrate his faithfulness and patience with us, God chose a prostitute named Gomer. Many men came to see her, but then one came, not to use her, but to marry her. He was a prophet from God; a holy man committed to pure and righteous living. He came saying God wanted him to marry her. You can imagine the shock, the laughter – and the mixed-up feelings.

But it wasn’t too long before Gomer returned to her old lovers and old friends; however, God told Hosea to always go after her and bring her home – just as God forgives us and brings us home to Him. Even though Gomer thought, “I will go after my lovers..(Hosea 2:5),” God blocked her path with a “hedge of thorns,” a spiritual wall He placed around her so she could not find her way back to those sinful relationships (Hosea 2:6).

We can pray a hedge of thorns be placed around those in rebellion, but the same prayer can also be used as a “hedge of protection” for loved ones in vulnerable situations. For instance, asking God to place a hedge of protection around a child vulnerable to developing some wrong relationships, ones that may cause him to stumble or that may stall her Christian growth. It is this hedge of protection that Satan points to when demanding God allow him to sift Job. The enemy couldn’t get to Job because God had placed a hedge around him (Job 1:8-11).

What does this mean?

· You are protected by God – God places protection around you (although that does not mean you won’t encounter hardship). Pray a hedge of protection for yourself, asking God to guide you decisions and steps.

· Pray for your spouse, children, others – Pray this hedge of protection around you loved ones, friends, or any one else God suggests. Get quiet with God and ask him to identify the fears and vulnerabilities present and pray through those issues. “And do not bring us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]” (Matthew 6:13)

Pray for the prodigals – God says he blocked Gomer’s path with thorns, so she would come back to Him, just as He is faithful to take us back when we return from the far country (Hosea 2:5b-7). ~ Jon Walker

The prayer to bind Satan and build a “Hedge of Thorns:”

Heavenly Father,
I ask you to rebuke and bind Satan in the name and
through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I ask you to build a ‘hedge of thorns’ around my loved ones,
so that anyone with wrong influence
will lose interest in them and leave.
I base this prayer
on the command of Your word which states,
“What therefore God hath joined together,
let not man put asunder.”
Thank You for hearing and answering my prayer.

Amen.

The kingdom of God is the peace and joy of the Spirit

Turn to the Lord with your whole heart and leave behind this wretched world. Then your soul shall find rest. For the kingdom of God is the peace and joy of the Holy Spirit. If you prepare within your heart a fitting dwelling place, Christ will come to you and console you.

His glory and beauty are within you, and he delights in dwelling there. The Lord frequently visits the heart of man. There he shares with man pleasant conversations; welcome consolation, abundant peace and a wonderful intimacy.

So come, faithful soul. Prepare your heart for your spouse to dwell within you. For he says: If anyone loves me, he will keep my word and we shall come to him and make our dwelling within him.

Make room for Christ. When you possess Christ you are a rich man, for he is sufficient for you. He himself, shall provide for you and faithfully administer all your cares. You will not have to place your hope in men. Put all your trust in God; let him be both your fear and your love. He will respond on your behalf and will do whatever is in your best interest.

You have here no lasting city. For wherever you find yourself, you will always be a pilgrim from another city. Until you are united intimately with Christ, you will never find your true rest.

Let your thoughts be with the Most High and direct your prayers continually to Christ. If you do not know how to contemplate the glory of heaven, take comfort in the passion of Christ, and dwell willingly in his sacred wounds. Endure with Christ, suffer for him, if you wish to reign with him.

Once you have entered completely into the depths of Jesus, and have a taste of his powerful love, then you will not care about your own convenience or inconvenience. Rather you will rejoice all the more in insults and injuries, for the love of Jesus makes a man scorn his own needs.

~From the Imitation of Christ

All Night The Lord Drove The Sea Back (Exodus 14:21)

"The Lord is fighting for them against the Egyptians!" (Exodus 14:25)

Israel’s passing through the Red Sea is one of the most exciting events recorded in the Old Testament. It was an event of great importance to the nation. It rid the Israelites, once for all, of Pharaoh’s dominion. This was, in fact, the birth of the nation Israel. Moses did as he was instructed, stretching forth his hand over the sea. The Lord drove back the sea with a strong easterly wind all night. Yes, all night! Such a loving God! It must have taken a great deal of faith on the part of the Israelites to enter into the sea. Of course they had the benefit of the light provided by the pillar of fire. Hence, they were able to see the sea water piled up like walls on either side. The cloud brought darkness on the Egyptians (v.20) thus they followed the Israelites right into the sea.

In the morning watch, that is somewhere around 2 a.m. till dawn, God looked down from the pillar of fire and brought confusion to the Egyptian army (v. 24). The psalmist seems to inform us that the occasion for the confusion was a thunderstorm: “The waters saw you, O God, the waters saw you and writhed; the very depths were convulsed. The clouds poured down water, the skies resounded with thunder; your arrows flashed back and forth. Your thunder was heard in the whirlwind, your lightning lit up the world; the earth trembled and quaked. Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters, though your footprints were not seen” (Ps. 77:16-19). How awesome the works of the Lord, how terrifying for the enemy.

The Egyptians realized that God was fighting for the Israelites and against them (v.25). The Israelites did not need to lift a finger against them. The Lord fought for Israel and drowned the Egyptian warriors in the watery depths. Yes, the Lord fights for the ones he loves. He never tires he is always ready to help us. He waits anxiously for us to call out to him in our times of distress. And He leads his chosen people to safety. What a deliverance for Israel! We serve a majestic, holy and powerful God. He still leads his people to trust and follow him. Who is like the Lord? None! Not one! As the Israelites passed through the waters of the Red Sea from slavery to freedom, so we pass through the waters of Baptism from slavery of sin to the freedom of the children of God. On the cross of Calvary Jesus swept away the mighty enemy of sin and death. With his resurrection from the dead, he gives us assurance of life eternal. So let us joyfully celebrate our freedom from slavery and the promise of eternal life with him.

"Lord, I stand in awe of your wonders. You have delivered my soul from death, for this I thank and praise you."