Sirach, Chapter 6, Verse 16-17
16 Faithful friends are life-saving medicine; those
who fear God will find them. 17 Those who fear the Lord enjoy stable
friendship, for as they are, so will their neighbors be.
It has been said a man is never
poor who has friends. If making friends has always been difficult for you try
these tips that I gleamed from an old public domain book authored by Henney,
Nella Braddy, published in 1922, The Book of Business Etiquette, that
has some timeless advice.
·
People are now more dependent on one another
than they have ever been before, and the need for confidence is greater. We
cannot depend upon one another unless we can trust one another.
·
We ask you, then, to remember that our
growth—and your opportunities—depend not only upon the friends we make, but the
enemies we do not make.
·
Remember names and faces.
·
Listen to and help those around you.
·
“We are all nobly born; fortunate those who know
it; blessed those who remember.”
·
No man has a right to impose his opinions and
prejudices, his sufferings and agonies, on other people. It is the part of a
coward to whine.
·
A lack of understanding, which is a form of
ignorance, is the cause of nearly all discourtesy.
Married love should be a union of two
friends but because of human nature each friend in order to give themselves
fully to the other must practice the virtue of chastity. To do otherwise is to
invite unhappiness.
Catechism of the Catholic Church
II. THE VOCATION TO CHASTITY
2337 Chastity means the
successful integration of sexuality within the person and thus the inner unity
of man in his bodily and spiritual being. Sexuality, in which man's belonging
to the bodily and biological world is expressed, becomes personal and truly
human when it is integrated into the relationship of one person to another, in
the complete and lifelong mutual gift of a man and a woman. The virtue of
chastity therefore involves the integrity of the person and the integrality of
the gift.
The
integrity of the person
2338 The chaste person
maintains the integrity of the powers of life and love placed in him. This
integrity ensures the unity of the person; it is opposed to any behavior that
would impair it. It tolerates neither a double life nor duplicity in speech.
2339 Chastity includes an
apprenticeship in self-mastery which is a training in human freedom. The
alternative is clear: either man governs his passions and finds peace, or he
lets himself be dominated by them and becomes unhappy. "Man's dignity therefore requires him to act out of
conscious and free choice, as moved and drawn in a personal way from within,
and not by blind impulses in himself or by mere external constraint. Man gains
such dignity when, ridding himself of all slavery to the passions, he presses
forward to his goal by freely choosing what is good and, by his diligence and
skill, effectively secures for himself the means suited to this end."
2340 Whoever wants to
remain faithful to his baptismal promises and resist temptations will want to
adopt the means for doing so: self-knowledge, practice of an ascetic adapted to
the situations that confront him, obedience to God's commandments, exercise of
the moral virtues, and fidelity to prayer. "Indeed it is through chastity
that we are gathered together and led back to the unity from which we were
fragmented into multiplicity."
2341 The virtue of
chastity comes under the cardinal virtue of temperance, which seeks to permeate
the passions and appetites of the senses with reason.
2342 Self-mastery is a
long and exacting work. One can never consider it acquired once and for all. It
presupposes renewed effort at all stages of life. The effort required can be
more intense in certain periods, such as when the personality is being formed
during childhood and adolescence.
2343 Chastity has laws of
growth which progress through stages marked by imperfection and too often by
sin. "Man day by day builds himself up through his many free decisions;
and so he knows, loves, and accomplishes moral good by stages of growth."
2344 Chastity represents
an eminently personal task; it also involves a cultural effort, for there is interdependence
between personal betterment and the improvement of society." Chastity
presupposes respect for the rights of the person, in particular the right to
receive information and an education that respect the moral and spiritual
dimensions of human life.
2345 Chastity is a moral
virtue. It is also a gift from God, a grace, a fruit of spiritual effort. The
Holy Spirit enables one whom the water of Baptism has regenerated to imitate
the purity of Christ.
Today is the 9th
day of Christmas and the nine lady’s dancing is a sign of the fruits of
the Holy Spirit for those who are not afraid: love, joy,
peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,
and self-control.
For Catholics today is
the Feast of St. Basil who stated, “When
I think of all this, I am left terrorized and swallowed up with fear that,
because of fickleness of heart or preoccupation with things of no importance, I
may weaken in my love of God and even become a reason of shame or disorder for
Christ.”
Christmas Calendar[1]
Read: Today we read about St. Basil the Great, revered as a Doctor of the Church.
Reflect: "St. Basil, in a much-quoted homily, once declared
that the bread we clutch in our hands belongs to the starving, the cloak we
keep locked in our closet belongs to the naked, the shoes we are not using
belong to the barefooted. In these ways in the post-biblical age Christians
strove to keep a religious perspective on their use of material
things."
Pray: As many prepare to return to work today, say a prayer for work.
Act: St. Basil once wrote, "Do everything possible to make
yourself worthy of the Kingdom. Do not disdain the invitation you have
received" (Exhortation to Baptism, 7-8).
St. Basil’s Bread[2]
In the Eastern Churches St. Basil's Bread is blessed on his feastday. This blessing has been adapted for home use. The family gathers at the table where the bread is placed along with an icon of St. Basil (if available). The parts marked leader are done by the father or other suitable person.
Prayer
Leader: Through
the prayers of our holy fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on
us! All: Amen.
Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us. (three times) Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and forever. Amen.
Most holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, cleanse us of our sins. Master, forgive our transgressions. Holy One, come to us and heal our infirmities for Your Name's sake.
Lord, have mercy. (three times)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and forever. Amen.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Leader: For Thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, now and ever, and forever.
All: Amen.
Troparion - Tone 1 Your voice resounds throughout the world * which has excepted the lessons so well taught by you. * You have given explanation of divine truths. * You have clarified the nature of created things. * You have made a rule of life for men. * By your royal priesthood, O venerable father Basil, * intercede with Christ to save our souls.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and forever. Amen.
Kondakion - Tone 4 O venerable and heavenly inspired Basil, * you were a firm foundation of the Church * by giving to all treasure * and impressing them with your teachings.
Leader: Let us pray to the Lord. All: Lord, have mercy.
Prayer of Blessing
Leader: O Lord, King of the Ages and Creator of all things; You are abounding in mercy and plenteous in goodness! You accepted the gifts of the Wise Men in Bethlehem. You are the Bread of Life Who came down from heaven. You put times and years under Your authority and hold our lives in Your hands. Hear us on this auspicious day of the beginning of this New Year of (name the year) and bless + this sweet bread which is offered for Your glory and honor and in memory of our Father among the Saints Basil the Great, Archbishop of Caesarea in Cappodocia. O Generous One, look down from heaven and send down Your heavenly gifts upon us, those who prepared this bread and all who shall partake of it, because we have placed our hope in You, the Eternal Living God! Bless our coming and going, enrich our lives with Your abundant blessings and direct our steps in the working of Your Divine commandments, because we shall not live by bread alone. Through the intercessions of Your all-pure and holy Mother, of our Father amoung the Saints, Basil the Great, and of all Your Saints, who have pleased You over the ages.
All: Amen.
The leader takes a knife and incises the sign of the Cross in the bottom of the loaf. It is then cut. It is eaten after the prayers are complete.
Closing Prayers
All: Lord, have mercy. (three times)
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and forever. Amen.
More honorable than the Cherubim, and beyond compare more glorious than the Seraphim, who, a virgin, gave birth to God the Word, true Birth-giver of God, we magnify you!
Leader: Lord Jesus Christ, our true God, circumcised in the flesh, through the prayers of His most pure Mother, of Saint Basil the Great, whom we honor this day and of all the saints, have mercy on us and save us.
All: Amen.
49
Godly Character Traits[3]
During
this Christmas season let us take up the nature of God by reflecting on these
traits that make us a model for our children and our sisters and brothers in
Christ. Today reflect on:
Punctuality vs.
Tardiness
Showing high esteem for other people and their time (Ecclesiastes 3:1)
2708 Meditation
engages thought, imagination, emotion, and desire. This mobilization of
faculties is necessary in order to deepen our convictions of faith, prompt the
conversion of our heart, and strengthen our will to follow Christ. Christian
prayer tries above all to meditate on the mysteries of Christ, as in lectio
divina or the rosary. This form of prayerful reflection is of great value,
but Christian prayer should go further: to the knowledge of the love of the Lord Jesus, to union with him.
1866 Vices
can be classified according to the virtues they oppose, or also be linked to
the capital sins which Christian experience
has distinguished, following St. John Cassian and St. Gregory the Great. They
are called "capital" because they engender other sins, other vices.
They are pride, avarice, envy, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth or acedia.
Daily
Devotions
·
Please pray for me and
this ministry
No comments:
Post a Comment