Neil Armstrong
RIP
ST.
LOUIS OF FRANCE
Acts,
Chapter 9, verse 26
When he arrived
in Jerusalem he tried to join the disciples, but they were all AFRAID of
him, not believing that he was a disciple.
The “he” in
this verse is the same Saul that was killing the early Christians that later
became the Apostle Paul.
Christ tells us to love our enemy which is much easier to say than to do. Yet as much as possible we are to not fear them but strive to love them. Often, we find it difficult to love even our family and neighbors let alone our enemies. In fact, the opposite of fear is not courage but love. Hebrews, Chapter 13, Verse’ 1-6 show the following ways of living to demonstrate true love or charity.
The true meaning of love is to seek the good of the other as other.
·
In
all that you do be an agent of hospitality.
o
That
is to be generous. Even the poor can be rich in their praise and love of
others. Share not only your time, talent and treasure but truly give of
yourself to others of your intellect, emotional support, and physical presence.
A good guide is the spiritual works of mercy: instruct the ignorant;
counsel the doubtful; admonish sinners; bear wrongs patiently;
forgive offences willingly; comfort the afflicted; pray for
the living and the dead.
·
Do
what you can to free others of their prisons whether these are
self-imposed i.e. addictions or through ignorance.
o
A
good guide is the corporal works of mercy: feed the hungry; give drink to the
thirsty; clothe the naked; harbor the harbor-less; visit the sick; ransom the
captive; bury the dead.
·
Marriage
is the physical reality of our soul’s marriage to God through the Holy Spirit;
therefore.
o
If
married love and honor your wife; be chase in spirit whether married or single
knowing that marriage is the physical sign of your union with God. Disdain any
kind of sexual defilement.
·
Avoid
the love of money.
o
Seek
simplicity and contentment. Treat all the wealth you have as if it were Gods;
on loan to you to build the Kingdom; which it is. You can do this if you know
and trust God will never forsake you or abandon you.
Render unto Caesar[1]
This country cannot afford to be materially rich and
spiritually poor.
John F. Kennedy
Have
we become a soulless Nation? Have we in the pursuit of happiness; ignored the
Gospel of Life. Realizing that if we put success or liberty as greater values
than life that we are serving Caesar and not God. To understand this, we need
to review the US Bishops “The Gospel of Life”.
The Gospel of Life[2]
Brothers and sisters in the Lord:
At the conclusion of the 1998 ad limina visits of the bishops of the United
States, our Holy Father Pope John Paul II spoke these words:
Today I believe the Lord is saying to us all: do not hesitate, do not be afraid to engage the good fight of the faith (cf. I Tim 6:12). When we preach the liberating message of Jesus Christ we are offering the words of life to the world. Our prophetic witness is an urgent and essential service not just to the Catholic community but to the whole human family.
In this statement we attempt to fulfill our role as teachers
and pastors in proclaiming the Gospel of Life. We are confident that the
proclamation of the truth in love is an indispensable way for us to exercise
our pastoral responsibility.
"Your country stands upon the world scene as a
model of a democratic society at an advanced stage of development. Your
power of example carries with it heavy responsibilities. Use it well,
America!" --Pope John Paul II, Newark, 1995
When
Henry Luce published his appeal for an "American century" in 1941, he
could not have known how the coming reality would dwarf his dream. Luce
hoped that the "engineers, scientists, doctors . . . builders of roads
[and] teachers" of the United States would spread across the globe to
promote economic success and American ideals: "a love of freedom, a
feeling for the quality of opportunity, a tradition of self-reliance and
independence and also cooperation." Exactly this, and much
more, has happened in the decades since. U.S. economic success has
reshaped the world. But the nobility of the American experiment flows
from its founding principles, not from its commercial power. In this
century alone, hundreds of thousands of Americans have died defending those
principles. Hundreds of thousands more have lived lives of service to
those principles -- both at home and on other continents -- teaching, advising
and providing humanitarian assistance to people in need. As Pope John
Paul has observed, "At the center of the moral vision of [the American]
founding documents is the recognition of the rights of the human person . .
." The greatness of the United States lies "especially [in its]
respect for the dignity and sanctity of human life in all conditions and at all
stages of development."
Now the word of the Lord came to me saying: Before I
formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born, I consecrated you; a
prophet to the nations I appointed you.
--Jeremiah 1:5
St.
Louis of France[3]
Reigning from 1226 to 1270, Louis IX showed how a saint would act on the throne of France. He was a lovable personality, a kind husband, a father of eleven children, and at the same time a strict ascetic. To an energetic and prudent rule Louis added love and zeal for the practice of piety and the reception of the holy sacraments. He was brave in battle, polished at feasts, and addicted to fasting and mortification. His politics were grounded upon strict justice, unshatterable fidelity, and untiring effort toward peace. Nevertheless, his was not a weakly rule but one that left its impress upon following generations. He was a great friend of religious Orders, a generous benefactor of the Church. The Breviary says of him: "He had already been king for twenty years when he fell victim to a severe illness. That afforded the occasion for making a vow to undertake a crusade for the liberation of the Holy Land. Immediately upon recovery he received the crusader's cross from the hand of the bishop of Paris, and, followed by an immense army, he crossed the sea in 1248. On the field of battle Louis routed the Saracens; yet when the plague had taken large numbers of his soldiery, he was attacked and taken captive (1250). The king was forced to make peace with the Saracens; upon the payment of a huge ransom, he and his army were again set at liberty." While on a second crusade he died of the plague, with these words from the psalm upon his lips: "I will enter Thy house; I will worship in Thy holy temple and sing praises to Thy Name!" (Ps. 5). It was his mother's supreme desire that her son should become a kind, pious and just ruler. She was wont to say to him: "Never forget that sin is the only great evil in the world. No mother could love her son more than I love you. But I would rather see you lying dead at my feet than know that you had offended God by one mortal sin." These words remained indelibly impressed upon his mind. St. Louis was a member of the Third Order of St. Francis and so is included in the family of Franciscan saints.
St. Louis’ Last Instructions to
his Eldest Son
Then he [Louis] called my Lord Philip,
his son, and commanded him, as if by testament, to observe all the teachings he
had left him, which are hereinafter set down in French, and were, so it is said,
written with the king's own saintly hand:
·
"Fair son, the first thing I would teach
thee is to set thine heart to love God; for unless he love God none can be
saved. Keep thyself from doing aught that is displeasing to God, that is to
say, from mortal sin. Contrariwise thou shouldst suffer every manner of torment
rather than commit a mortal sin.
·
"If God send thee adversity, receive it in
patience and give thanks to our Savior and bethink thee that thou hast deserved
it, and that He will make it turn to thine advantage. If He send thee
prosperity, then thank Him humbly, so that thou becomest not worse from pride
or any other cause, when thou oughtest to be better. For we should not fight
against God with his own gifts.
·
"Confess thyself often and choose for thy
confessor a right worthy man who knows how to teach thee what to do, and what
not to do; and bear thyself in such sort that thy confessor and thy friends
shall dare to reprove thee for thy misdoings. Listen to the services of Holy
Church devoutly, and without chattering; and pray to God with thy heart and
with thy lips, and especially at Mass when the consecration takes place. Let
thy heart be tender and full of pity toward those who are poor, miserable, and
afflicted, and comfort and help them to the utmost of thy power.
·
"Maintain the good customs of thy realm and
abolish the bad. Be not covetous against thy people and do not burden them with
taxes and imposts save when thou art in great need.
·
"If thou hast any great burden weighing
upon thy heart, tell it to thy confessor or to some right worthy man who is not
full of vain words. Thou shalt be able to bear it more easily.
·
"See that thou hast in thy company men,
whether religious or lay, who are right worthy and loyal and not full of
covetousness, and confer with them oft; and fly and eschew the company of the
wicked. Hearken willingly to the Word of God and keep it in thine heart, and
seek diligently after prayers and indulgences. Love all that is good and
profitable and hate all that is evil, wheresoever it may be.
·
"Let none be so bold as to say before thee
any word that would draw or move to sin, or so bold as to speak evil behind
another's back for pleasure's sake; nor do thou suffer any word in
disparagement of God and of His saints to be spoken in thy presence. Give often
thanks to God for all the good things he has bestowed on thee, so that thou be
accounted worthy to receive more.
·
"In order to do justice and right to thy
subjects, be upright and firm, turning neither to the right hand nor to the
left, but always to what is just; and do thou maintain the cause of the poor
until such a time as the truth is made clear. And if anyone has an action
against thee, make full inquiry until thou knowest the truth; for thus shall
thy counsellors judge the more boldly according to the truth, whether for thee
or against.
·
"If thou holdest aught that belongeth to
another, whether by thine own act or the act of thy predecessors, and the
matter be certain, make restitution without delay. If the matter be doubtful,
cause inquiry to be made by wise men diligently and promptly.
·
"Give heed that thy servants and thy
subjects live under thee in peace and uprightness. Especially maintain the good
cities and commons of thy realm in the same estate and with the same franchises
as they enjoyed under thy predecessors; and if there be aught to amend, amend
and set it right, and keep them in thy favor and love. For because of the power
and wealth of the great cities, thine own subjects, and especially thy peers
and thy barons and foreigners also will fear to undertake aught against thee.
·
"Love and honor all persons belonging to
Holy Church, and see that no one take away or diminish the gifts and alms paid
to them by thy predecessors. It is related of King Philip, my grandfather, that
one of his counsellors once told him that those of Holy Church did him much
harm and damage in that they deprived him of his rights, and diminished his
jurisdiction, and that it was a great marvel that he suffered it; and the good
king replied that he believed this might well be so, but he had regard to the
benefits and courtesies that God had bestowed on him, and so thought it better
to abandon some of his rights than to have any contention with the people of
Holy Church.
·
"To thy father and mother, thou shalt give
honor and reverence, and thou shalt obey their commandments. Bestow the
benefices of Holy Church on persons who are righteous and of a clean life, and
do it on the advice of men of worth and uprightness.
·
"Beware of undertaking a war against any
Christian prince without great deliberation; and if it has to be undertaken,
see that thou do no hurt to Holy Church and to those that have done thee no
injury. If wars and dissensions arise among thy subjects, see that thou appease
them as soon as thou art able. "Use diligence to have good provosts and
bailiffs, and inquire often of them and of those of thy household how they
conduct themselves, and if there be found in them any vice of inordinate
covetousness or falsehood or trickery. Labor to free thy land from all vile
iniquity, and especially strike down with all thy power evil swearing and
heresy. See to it that the expense of thy household be reasonable.
·
"Finally, my very dear son, cause Masses to
be sung for my soul, and prayers to be said throughout thy realm; and give to
me a special share and full part in all the good thou doest. Fair, dear son, I
give thee all the blessings that a good father can give to his son. And may the
blessed Trinity and all the saints keep and defend thee from all evils; and God
give thee grace to do His will always, so that He be honored in thee, and that
thou and I may both, after this mortal life is ended, be with Him together and
praise Him everlastingly. Amen."
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
PART TWO: THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
SECTION TWO-THE SEVEN SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH
Article 4-THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE AND
RECONCILIATION
XI. The
Celebration of the Sacrament of Penance
1480 Like all the sacraments, Penance is a liturgical action.
the elements of the celebration are ordinarily these: a greeting and blessing
from the priest, reading the word of God to illuminate the conscience and
elicit contrition, and an exhortation to repentance; the confession, which
acknowledges sins and makes them known to the priest; the imposition and
acceptance of a penance; the priest's absolution; a prayer of thanksgiving and
praise and dismissal with the blessing of the priest.
1481 The Byzantine Liturgy recognizes several formulas of
absolution, in the form of invocation, which admirably express the mystery of
forgiveness: "May the same God, who through the Prophet Nathan forgave
David when he confessed his sins, who forgave Peter when he wept bitterly, the
prostitute when she washed his feet with her tears, the Pharisee, and the
prodigal son, through me, a sinner, forgive you both in this life and in the
next and enable you to appear before his awe-inspiring tribunal without
condemnation, he who is blessed for ever and ever. Amen."
1482 The sacrament of Penance can also take place in the
framework of a communal celebration in which we prepare ourselves together for
confession and give thanks together for the forgiveness received. Here, the
personal confession of sins and individual absolution are inserted into a
liturgy of the word of God with readings and a homily, an examination of
conscience conducted in common, a communal request for forgiveness, the Our
Father and a thanksgiving in common. This communal celebration expresses more
clearly the ecclesial character of penance. However, regardless of its manner
of celebration the sacrament of Penance is always, by its very nature, a
liturgical action, and therefore an ecclesial and public action.
1483 In case of grave necessity recourse may be had to a
communal celebration of reconciliation with general confession and general absolution.
Grave necessity of this sort can arise when there is imminent danger of death
without sufficient time for the priest or priests to hear each penitent's
confession. Grave necessity can also exist when, given the number of penitents,
there are not enough confessors to hear individual confessions properly in a
reasonable time, so that the penitents through no fault of their own would be
deprived of sacramental grace or Holy Communion for a long time. In this case,
for the absolution to be valid the faithful must have the intention of
individually confessing their sins in the time required. The diocesan
bishop is the judge of whether or not the conditions required for general
absolution exist. A large gathering of the faithful on the occasion of
major feasts or pilgrimages does not constitute a case of grave necessity.
1484 "Individual, integral confession and absolution
remain the only ordinary way for the faithful to reconcile themselves with God
and the Church, unless physical or moral impossibility excuses from this kind
of confession." There are profound reasons for this. Christ is at
work in each of the sacraments. He personally addresses every sinner: "My
son, your sins are forgiven." He is the physician tending each one of
the sick who need him to cure them. He raises them up and reintegrates
them into fraternal communion. Personal confession is thus the form most
expressive of reconciliation with God and with the Church.
Daily
Devotions
·
30 DAY TRIBUTE TO MARY 11th ROSE: Virgin
Most Faithful, Looks for Lost Jesus at the Temple
o
30
Days of Women and Herbs – Frauendreissiger
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: The
sanctification of the Church Militant.
·
do
a personal eucharistic stations of the cross.
·
Religion
in the Home for Preschool: August
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
No comments:
Post a Comment