Thursday, February 28, 2019

A vision that leads...

So I gaze on you in the sanctuary 
to see your strength and your glory.  
For your love is better than life ... 
So I will bless you all my life...Psalm 63:2-4

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“Video caelos apertos, St Stephen cried
as they stoned him:  ‘I see the heavens opened’. 

The elevation is the moment at which the eternal
is made manifest in time, in the ‘divine mystery’,
the moment of vision on the Mount of Vision. 

But we are not meant to think of the vision 
as something which, however precious and sublime,
is fugitive, impermanent:  
essentially it leads on to the moment of communion, 
and that in its turn points onward to the life 
that is to be led in the world when the Mass is over.”

Gerald Vann, O.P.
The Paradise Tree (pg 193)


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The season is soon coming... of deeper... 
Prayer ~ Fasting ~ Almsgiving

"Therefore, do not lose by saving, but gather in by scattering.
Give to the poor, and you give to yourself. You will not be allowed to keep
what you have refused to give to others." - St Peter Chrysologus

Stained Glass:  Elevation of host.  Rothenburg, St Jakob (Bavaria).  Artist: Rafael Toussaint 
Photo: Operation Help the Homeless (LosAngeles ~ USA)

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

Ardent love compels...

 "I will go anywhere and do anything in order to communicate 
the love of Jesus to those who do not know Him 
or have forgotten Him."- St. Frances Xavier Cabrini



"The more ardent the love for the Eucharist in the hearts of the
Christian people, the more clearly will they recognize
the goal of all mission:  to bring Christ to others.

Not just a theory or a way of life inspired by Christ, but the gift
of His very Person.  Anyone who has not shared the Truth of love
with his brothers and sisters has not yet given enough."

Pope Benedict XVI

Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Open invitation...

"Of all devotions, that of adoring Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament
is the greatest after the sacraments, the one dearest to God and
the one most helpful to us.' - St Alphonsus Ligouri

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"He makes it ever clearer to me
that He wants me to burn with love for Him
in devotion to the Blessed Sacrament. 

Every time I receive Him
I must feel renewed that longing
which stirs within me to live for Jesus only and
to obtain the grace of preservation from so many sins
which I should certainly commit
if He did not come to my help. 
How can I remain deaf to His invitation?"

Pope St John XXIII

Lent begins in a week's time. 
Be open to an invitation 
to daily Mass or daily Adoration...

Monday, February 25, 2019

Choosing one's paths...

"God dwells in our midst, in the Blessed Sacrament
of the altar.” – St Maximilian Kolbe

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“When there are two roads
which will bring me to some place, I take the one
with more churches so as to be nearer the Blessed Sacrament.

When I see a place where my Jesus is,
I could not be happier, and I say, 
“You are here, my God and my All.”


Venerable J.J. Olier  (+1657)

Painting: Road to Church ~ Glenn Barclay

Sunday, February 24, 2019

When more is more...

"The Mass is very long and tiresome 
unless you love God." - GK Chesterton 

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"The goods of the soul are an end;
the goods of the body are for an end.

Hence concerning temporal goods
we ought to seek according to a measure,
but concerning the goods of the soul
we ought to seek as much as we can."

St Thomas Aquinas

Painting: "Celebrando la Santa Misa" Girolano Romani


"Let us be greedy for graces."- Fr Joseph Johnson

Saturday, February 23, 2019

Sharing in His Chalice...

This holy man fought to the death for the law of his God 
and did not fear the words of the godless, 
for he was built on solid rock.  (Today's Liturgy - Entrance Antiphon)



 Collect (Today's Liturgy)

God of all creation, who were pleased
to give the Bishop Saint Polycarp
a place in the company of the Martyrs,
grant, through his intercession,
that, sharing with him in the chalice of Christ,
we may rise through the Holy Spirit to eternal life.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.

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 St Polycarp of Smyrna
69-155 AD
Disciple of apostle St John
Friend of Ignatius of Antioch
Apostolic Father 
Bishop of Smyrna, Martyr
Exemplary in catechesis
Feast Day - February 23

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Polycarp was denounced to the government, arrested, and tried on the charge of being a Christian. When the proconsul urged him to save his life by cursing Christ, he replied: “Eighty-six years I have served Him, and He never did me any wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?” 

Earlier, in a Letter to the Philippians...

“Stand fast, therefore, in this conduct and follow the example of the Lord, ‘firm and unchangeable in faith, lovers of the brotherhood, loving each other, united in truth,’ helping each other with the mildness of the Lord, despising no man.”

And wrote on another occasion...

“If we pray to the Lord to forgive us, we ourselves must be forgiving; we are all under the eyes of our Lord and God, and every one of us must stand before the judgment-seat of Christ, where each of us will have to give an account.”



St Polycarp, pray for us!

Friday, February 22, 2019

Abiding in truth that liberates...

Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter the Apostle
February 22

The feast of the Chair of St Peter commemorates the teaching authority 
of the Vicar of Christ. The Catechism teaches that "it is this Magisterium's task 
to preserve God's people from deviations and defections and to guarantee 
them the objective possibility of professing the true faith without error" 
so that "the People of God abides in the truth that liberates" (CCC 890).

 

  Prayer over the Offerings
(Today's Liturgy)

Accept with favor, O Lordwe pray,
the prayers and offerings of your Church,
that, with Saint Peter as her shepherd,
she may come to an eternal inheritance,
for it is through his teaching
that she holds the faith in its integrity.
Through Christ our Lord.

      Communion Antiphon
      (Today's Liturgy - Cf. Mt 16:16, 18)

Peter said to Jesus:  You are the Christ,
the Son of the living God.
And Jesus replied:  You are Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my Church.

Prayer after Communion
(Today's Liturgy )

O God, who at our celebration
of the feast day of the blessed Apostle Peter
have nourished us by communion in the Body
    and Blood of Christ,
grant, we pray, that this redeeming exchange
may be for us a Sacrament of unity and peace.
Through Christ our Lord.


Click here: Of Chairs and Peter | Crisis Magazine

"How blessed is the Church of Rome, on which the Apostles 
poured forth all their doctrine along with their blood!" - Tertullian 

Perugino 

"Perhaps it would be a good thing if every Christian,
certainly every priest, could dream once in his life that he were pope, 
and wake from the nightmare in a sweat of agony." - Msgr Ronald Knox

Thursday, February 21, 2019

Driving out the beasts...

"We need ... to reemphasize the glories of the Cross and 
of our Crucified Redeemer, to reopen the fountains of mercy 
just when the devil would make us the victim of wrath... We must arouse 
them from their insensibility by reminding them that His Blood 
is offered up every morning upon the altars."- St Gaspar del Bufalo

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On one occasion St Peter Damian wrote to a young nephew:

"If I may speak figuratively, drive out the 
roaring beasts from your domain; do not cease from protecting 
yourself daily by receiving the Flesh and Blood of the Lord.  

Let your secret foe see your lips 
reddened with the Blood of Christ. 
He will shudder, cower back, 
and flee to his dark, dank retreat."


St Peter Damian
Italy ~ 1007-1072
Benedictine monk, Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia
Reformer, Author - Liber Gomorrhianus (Book of Gomorrah)
Doctor of the Church
 MOTTO:  “Do not prefer anything to the love of Christ.”
Feast Day - February 21

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“Do not be depressed. Do not let your weakness make you impatient. Instead, let the serenity of your spirit shine through your face. Let the joy of your mind burst forth. Let words of thanks break from your lips.” - St Peter Damian

St Peter Damian, pray for us!

Wednesday, February 20, 2019

Behold...behold...behold...behold...Him! ...

 "Behold, the everlasting oblation!  Of such power it is, 
that in the whole world no other sacrifice 
remains but this." - St Vincent Ferrer

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"Recall that at four important moments during the celebration 
of the Eucharist, the priest elevates the sacred Host and the 
Precious Blood of the Lord. The first moment is the elevation 
during the consecration. The second moment occurs when, at the 
conclusion of the Eucharistic prayer, the priest raises the 
Host and the chalice together just before the recitation of the Lord’s 
Prayer.  Then, before the distribution of Holy Communion, the priest 
presents the sacred Host and the Precious Blood to the 
entire congregation with the words “Behold the  Lamb of God….” 
And finally, in a more personal moment, each communicant is 
invited to behold and adore the sacred Host just before 
receiving the Bread of Life." - Archbishop Augustine Di Noia, OP

 

"At the elevation of the most holy Sacrament, we must strive to 
adore Him with all our heart, then to offer Him to God the 
Father for the remission of our sins and those of all the world, 
then to offer to Him ourselves and all the Church and 
all our relations and friends."- St Francis de Sales

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"The whole life and passion of Christ is expressed in the Mass.  
So when the priest raises the sacred host and chalice, 
he represents how Christ was raised high upon the Cross.  
All must humble themselves and bend the knee when the body of Christ is raised up, for the true Christ who is in heaven is in the host."
 - St Vincent Ferrer 

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 "For the elevation is done that all present may see and ask 
for whatever will profit unto salvation, according to the words: 
And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to 
Myself." - Durandus, Bishop of Mende (France)

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"Behold the Sun of holy Church, that scatters the clouds
and renders heaven again serene!  Behold the heavenly Rainbow, 
pacifying the storms of divine justice!" - St Leonard

Tuesday, February 19, 2019

Jesus, foil my plans...

"Grace is the beginning of glory in us." 
- St Thomas Aquinas

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"The purpose of the Eucharist is your conversion,  
your turning away from your own will so that it may 
gradually disappear in your service to others.

You go to Holy Communion to be converted,
to establish the reign of Christ in your heart from then on,
and for His will to become your supreme value.  Every reception
of the Eucharist should confirm your adherence to His will. 

Consequently, you should wish that Jesus would
foil your plans.  The Eucharist should prepare you for this;
it should contribute to the gradual demise of your egoism,
allowing Christ to grow within you.

Father Tadeusz Dajczer (+2009)
Polish priest and professor of theology in Warsaw
Co-Founder of the Families of Nazareth Movement

 Painting: Girl going to Church, Matthau Schiestl (+1939)