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May
29
Mark 10: 46 - 52
Filed Under Today's Gospel | Leave a Comment
46 And they came to Jericho; and as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great multitude, Bartimae’us, a blind beggar, the son of Timae’us, was sitting by the roadside.
47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart; rise, he is calling you.”
50 And throwing off his mantle he sprang up and came to Jesus.
51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Master, let me receive my sight.”
52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.
May
29
St Francis de Sales
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In the royal galley of divine Love, there is no galley slave: all rowers are volunteers.
– St Francis de Sales
May
28
Co-Workers of the Truth 5/28
Filed Under Co-Workers of the Truth, Pope Benedict XVI | Leave a Comment
The act of faith is a deeply personal act, anchored in the innermost depths of the human I. But precisely because it is so personal, it is also an act of communication. In the depths of its being, the I is always related to the thou and vice versa: that true relationship that becomes “communion” can be born only in the deep places of the human I. The act of faith is a participation in the seeing of Jesus, a dependence on Jesus. John, who reclined next to Jesus at the Last Supper, is a symbol of what faith actually means. Faith is communion with Jesus and, consequently, a liberation from the repression that is opposed to truth, a liberation of my I from its preoccupation with self, a liberation that sets me free to respond to the Father, to speak the Yes of Love; that sets me free to say Yes to being, free for that Yes that is our salvation and that overcomes the “world”. If follows, then, that faith is, in its innermost essence, a “being with”, a breaking out of the isolation that is the malady of my I. The act of faith is an opening of oneself to the whole world, a breaking open of the door of my subjectivity, which Paul described in the words: “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20). The I that has been redeemed finds itself again in a greater new I. In this new I, fow which faith has liberated me, I find myself united not only with Jesus, but with all who travel the same road. In other words, faith is necessarily ecclesial faith. It lives and moves in the we of the Church, one with the universal I of Jesus Christ. In this new person, the wall between me and other has fallen, the wall between me and the depth of being. In this new person, I am contemporary of Jesus and all the experiences of the Church belong also to me, have become my own.
From Auf Christus schauen, pp. 39-40
May
28
Mark 10: 32 - 45
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32 And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them; and they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him,
33 saying, “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, and deliver him to the Gentiles;
34 and they will mock him, and spit upon him, and scourge him, and kill him; and after three days he will rise.”
35 And James and John, the sons of Zeb’edee, came forward to him, and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.”
36 And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?”
37 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.”
38 But Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”
39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized;
40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.”
41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John.
42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are supposed to rule over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them.
43 But it shall not be so among you; but whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.
45 For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
May
28
St John Vianney
Filed Under The Wisdom of the Saints | Leave a Comment
What then must we think of the sin of those who curse themselves in moments of worry and difficulty? This is an appalling crime which is contrary to nature and to grace, for both nature and grace inspire us with love for ourselves. Those who curse themselves are like insane people who die by their own hands!
– St John Vianney
May
27
Crucified frog controversy
Filed Under News & Current Events | Leave a Comment
A sculpture of a crucified frog holding a mug of beer on display at a Bolzano museum has sparked outrage in Italy.ANSA reports that local clerics and politicians want the work removed.
The one metre high work by late German artist Martin Kippenberger belongs to his Fred the Frog series and depicts a warty, pop-eyed amphibian nailed to a cross with a frothing mug of beer in one hand.
Curators at Bolzano museum of modern art Museion said that Kippenberger’s work was a self portrait of the artist ”in a state of profound crisis”, but their explanation has been given short shrift by local bishop Wilhelm Egger.
May
27
Co-Workers of the Truth 5/28
Filed Under Quotes & Excerpts | Leave a Comment
The act of faith is a deeply personal act, anchored in the innermost depths of the human I. But precisely because it is so personal, it is also an act of communication. In the depths of its being, the I is always related to the thou and vice versa: that true relationship that becomes “communion” can be born only in the deep places of the human I. The act of faith is a participation in the seeing of Jesus, a dependence on Jesus. John, who reclined next to Jesus at the Last Supper, is a symbol of what faith actually means. Faith is communion with Jesus and, consequently, a liberation from the repression that is opposed to truth, a liberation of my I from its preoccupation with self, a liberation that sets me free to respond to the Father, to speak the Yes of Love; that sets me free to say Yes to being, free for that Yes that is our salvation and that overcomes the “world”. If follows, then, that faith is, in its innermost essence, a “being with”, a breaking out of the isolation that is the malady of my I. The act of faith is an opening of oneself to the whole world, a breaking open of the door of my subjectivity, which Paul described in the words: “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20). The I that has been redeemed finds itself again in a greater new I. In this new I, fow which faith has liberated me, I find myself united not only with Jesus, but with all who travel the same road. In other words, faith is necessarily ecclesial faith. It lives and moves in the we of the Church, one with the universal I of Jesus Christ. In this new person, the wall between me and other has fallen, the wall between me and the depth of being. In this new person, I am contemporary of Jesus and all the experiences of the Church belong also to me, have become my own.
From Auf Christus schauen, pp. 39-40
May
27
Mark 10: 28 - 31
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28 Peter began to say to him, “Lo, we have left everything and followed you.”
29 Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel,
30 who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life.
31 But many that are first will be last, and the last first.”
May
27
St Josemaria Escriva
Filed Under The Wisdom of the Saints | Leave a Comment
If things go well let’s rejoice, blessing God, who makes them prosper. And if they go wrong? Let’s rejoice, blessing God, who allows us to share in the sweetness of His Cross.
– St Josemaria Escriva
May
23
Journey to the Truth
Filed Under Quotes & Excerpts | Leave a Comment
Posted By Anna Pier Day On May 23, 2008 @ 12:00 am for Catholic Exchange
I argued with the priest — the strong-willed one — who sat opposite me in the confessional. For every argument I presented, though, his response was the same: a calm, understanding, but firm, “There are no exceptions to the Church’s teaching against contraception.”
Truth be told, if the Church had been less wise and had made exceptions, our family situation might have qualified as one. A few months earlier, after the birth of our youngest son, I had suffered from an acute depression with accompanying suicidal thoughts and a brief psychotic episode that had landed me in two different mental hospitals. I had been torn away from my life as the stay-home mother of a toddler and a still-nursing infant for the two weeks of hospitalization my treatment required, and the whole experience had been devastating — not only for me, but also for my family and everyone who cared about us. As a result, my husband and I were very afraid of the possible ramifications of another bout of post-partum hormone fluctuations. And, having recently returned to the Church after a 20-year absence, I was finding her teaching against contraception very difficult to accept.
But there was something about the way this priest calmly stood his ground (even when I told him for the twenty-third time why my family should be exempt from this particular teaching) that made me believe he was giving me the Truth. So, after a few more weeks, my husband and I discussed natural family planning, and we (somewhat fearfully) agreed to try it.
