Pondering Tidbits of Truth - November 8, 2012

A Reminder: The Purpose of Pondering Tidbits of Truth

We are all busy people. Many of us have convinced ourselves that we simply do not have the time to read, ponder and reflect on the Scriptures and the wealth of spiritual wisdom our Church has accumulated over the centuries. Yet, we owe God and ourselves this reflective time.

If we spend little or no time, pondering the truths and mysteries of our Faith, we are not going to progress spiritually - a growth essential to our eternal well-being and that of those around us.

Pondering Tidbits of Truth is my simple and inadequate way of providing nuggets of spiritual wisdom for you to chew on from time to time. Rarely will they share a common thread. Today is an exception.

Every other Thursday, I will offer some quotations for your reflection. This is my challenge to you. Read and ponder them. Invest at least five minutes of your time on each of them over the course of two weeks, asking God to let you understand what He wants you to learn from this material.

I suspect if you give Him these minutes, you will be hungry for additional nourishment and eager to give Him even more of your time. You may even want to share what you have learned – at least we hope you will.

(Note: Normally, I offer only three quotations. Given the events of this week, I was prompted to expand this week's offerings.)

Scripture

 

“…It is easy for many to be overcome by a few; in the sight of Heaven there is no difference between deliverance by many or by few; for victory in war does not depend on the size of the army, but on strength that comes from Heaven.” 

(From 1 Maccabees 3:18-19)

 

 

Pope Paul VI

 "[The Church] exists in order to evangelize, that is to say, in order to preach and teach, to be the channel of the gift of grace, to reconcile sinners with God, and to perpetuate Christ's sacrifice in the Mass, which is the memorial of His death and glorious resurrection." 

(From Evangelii Nuntiandi)

 

Father Giovanni Salerno
 

“For Missionary Servants of the Poor it is a great privilege to represent the Church and the Holy Father in the midst of the poor. When the missions of the Third World are spoken of, many think that the best way to help the poor is to address their material needs: clothing, medicine, food, etc. In my life as missionary, after forty-six years, I have realized that the greatest gift we can give the poor is God and His divine grace through the Sacraments of the Church.” 

(From Letter to Abbot at Our Lady of Clear Creek Abbey)

 

Father Peter John Cameron, O.P.
 

“We live in an age that is preoccupied with social questions, and Catholics are being challenged to justify their faith by its concrete success in dealing with these questions. Aware of the great contributions which the Church’s doctrines have in fact to make in this sphere, Catholics may be led to speak and act as if it were the main concern of the Church instead of the secondary, if important, one. As the Second Vatican Council has vigorously reasserted, the real mission of the Church is to bring the world back to God, to make it conscious of him as the supreme, adorable reality and its own highest good."

(From Editorial - Magnificat – Year of Faith Companion)

  

Fulton J. Sheen, Servant of God

 

"He [Jesus] refused to lead any revolutionary movement even among a conquered people and His own people. At no time did He take a stand in the quarrel between Herod and Pilate, or against the numerous political scandals that were so rampant in Judea. He never raises his voice against crucifixions, which he knew well as a boy when 3000 were crucified in the town easily visible from Nazareth. He was indifferent to power, except to affirm that all power comes from God."  

(From Those Mysterious Priests)

 

Madeleine Delbrel,  Servant of God

 

“Saving the world does not mean making it happy; it means showing the world the meaning of its suffering and giving it a joy that “nothing can take away.” If we must fight against the misery and misfortune which Christ took so seriously as to speak of judging us in the end solely by what we did for others in this regard, we must keep in mind that what is at stake is ultimately not solving these problems and constructing a second earthly paradise; rather, what is at stake is eternal life.” 

(From We the Ordinary People of the Streets)