Rachel’s Corner
When they had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt,* and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him.”.
(Matthew 2:10-13)
· Spirit: German Beer or Asbach
· do a personal eucharistic stations of the cross.
· Bucket List: Military Hop-Rota, Spain
Thursday Feast
Thursday is the day of the week that our Lord gave himself up for consumption. Thursday commemorates the last supper. Some theologians believe after Sunday Thursday is the holiest day of the week. We should then try to make this day special by making a visit to the blessed sacrament chapel, Mass or even stopping by the grave of a loved one. Why not plan to count the blessing of the week and thank our Lord. Plan a special meal. Be at Peace. According to Mary Agreda[5] in her visions it was on a Thursday at six o'clock in the evening and at the approach of night that the Angel Gabriel approached and announced her as Mother of God and she gave her fiat.
Menu for Feast of St. Boniface: German Meat Balls with Sour Cream Gravy
Best Places to Visit in June
See London Bridge in honor of the American and British fallen during D-Day June 6th. The bridge was relocated in 1968 from London to Lake Havasu, Arizona. On day 2 then go to Santa Barbara, California for the Beach and fun.
Nestled in the foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains and the Pacific Ocean, Santa Barbara has a Mediterranean-like climate throughout the year, and I love its dreamy, elegant vibe!
With about 300 days of sunshine, remarkably consistent weather, and warm currents, Santa Barbara offers a relaxing day at the beach with pristine Pacific Ocean waters and excellent dining and shopping.
June temperatures average around 22 degrees, and if you visit towards the beginning of this month, you’ll see fewer crowds alongside the stable weather conditions.
- Visitor’s Center Address: State Street Visitors Center 120 State Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101
- Average temperature – 71.6 degrees
My favorite highlights…
- Exploring the gorgeous shoreline with a sunset kayak tour.
- Checking out the State Street Promenade Market filled with artisan stalls, performers, and non-profit organizations.
- Going on the fabulous Santa Ynez Wine Tour.
- Dining on tasty veggie tacos at La Super-Rica.
Writer O. Henry died 1910
JUNE
5 Thursday-Saint Boniface, Bishop and Martyr
Acts, Chapter 23, verse 10
The dispute was so serious that the commander, AFRAID that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, ordered his troops to go down and rescue him from their midst and take him into the compound.
During Paul’s time the Jewish people were divided into two camps. Paul in his fearlessness had spoken the truth and it struck a nerve with both sects wanting his death. How often is truth and reason ignored? Men find it easier to fall into camps and rationalize or justify their actions. Christ tells us to use reason much as He did with Thomas and believe. God has given us intelligent foresight as well as the Holy Spirit.
The Virtue of Foresight: A Mark of Wisdom[1]
The ancient philosophers
identified man’s
capacity for thought by the use of different words for perceiving reality: sensus
(the five senses), imaginatio (the ability of the mind to recall
pictures from the past or paint pictures of the future), ratio (the
ability to think in logical steps to reach a conclusion), and intellectus
(the ability to perceive the truth all at once as self-evident). While animals
have instincts as a form of knowledge, they do not reflect on the past or
ponder the future with the capacity to think that distinguishes human virtues
such as foresight and prudence, a mark of wisdom.
While ants prepare for the
winter, they do not contemplate eternity. While dogs have keen memories, they
do not gather wisdom from the accumulated experience of the entire human race
as a source of universal truth.
Beyond the Present
Because man is a rational
animal with the power of intelligence, human thinking goes beyond the immediate
concerns and duties of the present moment. Man’s memory allows him to recall the
mistakes of the past and not repeat them and to learn from the previous
experience of older generations in his study of history. Man’s imagination allows him to project
into the future and consider possibilities, consequences, and likely outcomes. The
art of living requires this capacity to think today while mindful of the past
and conscious of the future. This wise thinking, however, is not escaping into
the past with nostalgia or calculating about the future with cunning. The
foresight of a wise man is a far cry from the reckoning of a fox or rat.
Exceeding our Grasp
Foresight does not mean
simply being insured for accidents to protect against harm to a person’s health or damage to his home.
While home and car insurance show prudential judgment, foresight is more than
prevention or precaution. It goes beyond not taking foolish chances but rather
embraces noble efforts and daring initiatives to achieve an ideal. It
encompasses the common good, the welfare of future generations, the happiness
of all family members young and old, and an awareness of the four last things:
death, the final judgment, heaven, and hell. Foresight strives for excellence
and imagines always the difference between the way things are in the present
and the way things ought to be in the future. Famous characters in literature
like Don Quixote seek to restore the best of the past—the virtues of knighthood—to inspire future generations with
truth, honor, chivalry, and courtesy. Robert Browning writes that “man’s reach should exceed his grasp, “Or
else what’s a
heaven for?” Foresight
always aspires to perfection and never rests complacent with mediocrity, the
lowest common denominator, or the average. Just as God in His Divine Providence
foresees man’s needs
and plans for them, man too needs to be provident—to be far-seeing, to think ahead,
to be mindful of consequences, and to realize that the outcome of the future
depends on the choices of today. Created in God’s image, man imitates God by
providing for others and acting with prudence about the future with the virtue
of foresight. For example, God’s
all-wise plan for life—envisioning
a child’s needs—prepares for the birth of the
newborn by endowing man and woman with parental instincts to care for and
protect the infant. All good parents are provident as they attend not only to
the present needs of their children but also think ahead for their future.
Looking Ahead
The word “pro-vide” comes from two Latin words that
mean to look before or ahead. To be Godlike, to be wise, to be prudent, and to
exercise common sense means to weigh consequences and be aware of both the
present and the future. All actions bear fruit for good or for ill. As the
parable of the talents illustrates, God expects the coins to be multiplied and
earn interest—evidence
of foresight and imagining the future with good judgment. God judges’ man by
the abundance of his harvest: “By
their fruits you shall know them.” There
is no interest earned, no bountiful harvest, no fruitful field without
foresight, without sowing the right seeds in the springtime of life for the
later years. Unlike animals that live in the present and do not foresee the
future with vision or ideals, man enjoys a greater awareness of time as he
recollects the past and anticipates the future. In fact, the cardinal virtue of
prudence takes account of past, present, and future—learning from the mistakes and
experience of the past, making a practical judgment based on the reality of the
present, and foreseeing the consequences of actions today that affect others
for the common good in the days ahead. To be responsible, moral, and sensible,
a person naturally thinks ahead—living
today but anticipating tomorrow, saving money now for next year’s purchases, educating children in
their youth for their later adult life, keeping the Ten Commandments and living
the life of the Beatitudes in the expectation of life everlasting.
Foresight for the Future
Christ taught his
followers to be both “gentle
as doves and wise as serpents.”
The serpent looks to the left and to the right, moves slowly and cautiously,
and checks for dangers and enemies. Thinking must always precede acting;
otherwise, a person acts foolishly or imprudently without weighing the effects
or reactions beforehand. Without foresight a person wastes money, time, or
effort and accomplishes nothing. Without foresight—an intelligent plan of action to
achieve a moral goal—no
one progresses toward a destination. To live only for the present and think “eat, drink, and be merry, for
tomorrow we die”
does not amount to wisdom because the future always comes. Man enters the
future either prepared or unprepared—like
the ants in Aesop’s
fable that prepared for winter or the cicada that only sang in the summer and
froze in the cold. Foresight for students means not only preparing for a career
through a good education but also gathering wisdom to live well and to enjoy an
abundant life. Nothing learned—no
matter the subject matter, book, or class—is
ever wasted. Whatever a person learns in science, social studies, religion, or
English, he will use in one capacity or another. Not to learn is to show no
foresight. If not in his own profession, then in his own personal life a person
will be glad he knows, glad he can teach others, glad he possesses an informed
mind capable of making intelligent decisions. A person in high school or
college is not just qualifying for a profession but providing for a life of the
mind, one of the greatest sources of human happiness because man is designed to
love truth, to desire knowledge for its own sake, and ultimately to know God. It
is not only human wisdom to think ahead for the sake of one’s own happiness but also charity to
be far-sighted on behalf of the well-being of others. Just as a Christian is
obligated to love others as Christ loves him and forgive others as God forgives
him, he also needs to think of others and provide for their future as God
provides for the birds of the air and the lilies of the field.
Saint
Boniface[2]
A Benedictine monk was
chosen by divine Providence to become Germany's great apostle and patron. In
724 he turned his attention to the Hessian people. near the village of Geismar
on the Eder, he felled a giant oak that the people honored as the national sanctuary
of the god Thor. Boniface used the wood to build a chapel in honor of St.
Peter. This courageous act assured the eventual triumph of the Gospel in
Germany. Conversions were amazingly numerous. In 732 Boniface devoted his time
and talent to the organization of the Church in Germany. He installed bishops,
set diocesan boundaries, promoted the spiritual life of the clergy and laity,
held national synods (between 742 and 747), and in 744 founded the monastery of
Fulda, which became a center of religious life in central Germany. The final
years of his busy life were spent, as were his earlier ones, in missionary
activity. Word came to him in 754 that a part of Frisia had lapsed from the
faith. He took leave of his priests and, sensing the approach of death, carried
along a shroud. He was 74 years of age when with youthful enthusiasm he began
the work of restoration, a mission he was not to complete. A band of
semi-barbarous pagans overpowered and put him to death when he was about to
administer confirmation to a group of neophytes at Dockum. Patron: Brewers; Tailors; Germany; Prussia.
Things to
Do
·
One tradition about Saint Boniface says that he
used the customs of the locals to help convert them. There was a game in which
they threw sticks called kegels at smaller sticks called heides. Boniface
bought religion to the game, having the heides represent demons, and knocking
them down showing purity of spirit. You might use your ingenuity to imitate
this game for your children and tell them the story of St. Boniface. Sounds like bowling maybe go bowling in
honor of St. Boniface.
·
St. Boniface was the uncle of St.
Walburga.
·
St. Boniface, although an Englishman, planted
the seeds of the Catholic Faith in Germany (at that time "Germany"
included the domains of the Frankish monarchs, present-day Belgium, and the
Netherlands), and now Germany calls St. Boniface her patron. Bake some special German cookies or treat
and learn some of the religious customs that come from this country.
Apostolic Exhortation[3]
Veneremur
Cernui – Down in Adoration Falling
of The Most
Reverend Thomas J. Olmsted, Bishop of Phoenix,
to Priests, Deacons, Religious and the Lay Faithful of the Diocese of Phoenix
on the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist
My beloved Brothers and
Sisters in Christ,
Part III
Loving and Adoring the
Eucharistic Lord
II. Go to daily Mass, if
possible.
76. The beauty of the Lord’s Day is
meant to spill over into the rest of the week. Saint Augustine wrote of his
mother, Saint Monica: “She did not let a day pass without being present at the
Divine Sacrifice before Your altar, O Lord”. Regarding the harsh deprivations
during his nine-month imprisonment, Saint John of the Cross said that the worst
suffering was not being able to celebrate Mass nor receive Holy Communion. Of
course, daily duties can make daily Mass impossible for some. But for many of
us, it is simply a question of appreciating the immeasurable value of the Mass
and organizing our time accordingly.
77. In the Lord’s prayer, Jesus taught
us to ask Our Father to “give us this day our daily bread.” Like God raining
down Manna in the wilderness with the morning dew, Christ nourishes his Church
daily in the Mass. When we realize that the Lord desires to renew for us the
gift of the Sunday Eucharist every day of the week, how can we not be
overwhelmed with gratitude and a deeper spiritual hunger for more of the Bread
of Life?
78. In this busy world, is it really
possible to go to daily Mass? Or perhaps we are tempted to think that this is a
luxury only for clergy or those persons who have extra time on their hands? Not
at all. The Eucharist, as we have seen, fuels the mission of the members of
Christ’s Body in the world. Christians who are active in the world have a great
need for spiritual strength to bring Christ into the arena of their work.
Perhaps we could even say that those who have the greatest demand in their
secular pursuits are most in need of the great strength which comes from the
daily Eucharist. Not long ago, the great Italian Saint Joseph Cottolengo
encouraged daily Mass for the busiest of workers: doctors, nurses, manual
laborers, teachers, parents, and so on. When they told him they didn’t have the
time, he would tell them starkly that they had plenty of time – they just were
not managing it properly. With so many distractions and demands competing for
our attention, Mass can become a daily source of peace and strength. It turns
us from “Marthas” into recollected “Mary’s”, who learn to choose the “better
part” each day (cf. Lk 10:42). I challenge you to commit to at least one
weekday Mass. I guarantee that you will notice within the next six months what
a significant difference it will make in your life.
To be continued…
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
Day 353 2759
PART FOUR: CHRISTIAN PRAYER
SECTION TWO-THE LORD'S PRAYER
I. "OUR FATHER!"
2759 Jesus
"was praying at a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his disciples
said to him, 'Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his
disciples.'" In response to this request the Lord entrusts to his
disciples and to his Church the fundamental Christian prayer. St. Luke presents
a brief text of five petitions, while St. Matthew gives a more developed
version of seven petitions. The liturgical tradition of the Church has
retained St. Matthew's text:
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.
2760 Very
early on, liturgical usage concluded the Lord's Prayer with a doxology. In the
Didache, we find, "For yours are the power and the glory
forever." The Apostolic Constitutions add to the beginning: "the
kingdom," and this is the formula retained to our day in ecumenical
prayer.
The Byzantine tradition adds after "the glory" the words
"Father, Son, and Holy Spirit." the Roman Missal develops the last
petition in the explicit perspective of "awaiting our blessed hope"
and of the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. Then comes the
assembly's acclamation or the repetition of the doxology from the Apostolic
Constitutions.
I. At the Center of the Scriptures
2762 After
showing how the psalms are the principal food of Christian prayer and flow
together in the petitions of the Our Father, St. Augustine concludes:
Run through
all the words of the holy prayers [in Scripture], and I do not think that you
will find anything in them that is not contained and included in the Lord's
Prayer.
2763 All the
Scriptures - the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms - are fulfilled in
Christ. The Gospel is this "Good News." Its first proclamation
is summarized by St. Matthew in the Sermon on the Mount; The prayer to our
Father is at the center of this proclamation. It is in this context that each
petition bequeathed to us by the Lord is illuminated:
The Lord's
Prayer is the most perfect of prayers.... In it we ask, not only for all the
things we can rightly desire, but also in the sequence that they should be
desired. This prayer not only teaches us to ask for things, but also in what
order we should desire them.
2764 The
Sermon on the Mount is teaching for life, the Our Father is a prayer; but in
both the one and the other the Spirit of the Lord gives new form to our
desires, those inner movements that animate our lives. Jesus teaches us this
new life by his words; he teaches us to ask for it by our prayer. The rightness
of our life in him will depend on the rightness of our prayer.
Teaching the Faith[4]
PRACTICE OF THE MONTH—SIGN OF THE CROSS
Do this at Meals-Insist on attendance of all for one
meal a day-no phones.
The making of the Sign of the Cross,
however, we must attend to carefully. We have not mentioned this before,
thinking it just as well to leave it to the mothers to observe whether the
little ones have imitated them in blessing themselves.
The only easy way to teach the Sign of
the Cross is to have the baby imitate you. If you face him, he will go wrong.
Stand alongside him, a little slanting, so that he can watch your hand when it
moves to the left shoulder.
In the name of the Father (right
hand to forehead) and of the Son (right hand to chest) and of the
Holy (right hand to left shoulder) Ghost (right hand to right
shoulder) Amen. (Both hands clasped).
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: True
Masculinity
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
[5] Venerable Mary of Agreda. The Mystical City of God: Complete Edition Containing all Four Volumes with Illustrations (p. 770). Veritatis Splendor Publications. Kindle Edition
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