Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

[On November 15, 2015, we began our 15th year of Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. It was my privilege to share a few words before the Holy Hour of Thanksgiving, Mercy and Healing began. I hope that something I said on that occasion may resonate with those who visit this blog.] Let us first give thanks to our Lord for the gift of His Eucharistic presence here among us and for our Chapel of Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration. Now let’s pause for a few minutes and ponder these Truths: When Jesus walked among us, few hesitated to bring their sick and lame to Him for healing. They expected miracles. Jesus did not disappoint. That same Jesus remains with us – ready to heal us and those we love.  We must have the same expectant faith that those who approached Jesus physically while He walked among them had - expecting a miracle. Let me briefly share a few examples of the miracles that have taken place here at St. Agatha’s:

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. But first a heartfelt prayer for a happy and blessed Thanksgiving ! Rev. M. Raymond, O.C.S.O. "So long as God, who is all good, wills a thing, we are fools if we do not say Fiat – and thus will it with Him. The lone exception is sin." (From God, A Woman and The Way )  

Thank you Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan, for inviting your fellow Catholic bloggers to re-post their favorite articles on "Worth Revisiting” Wednesdays.  Go there now (and every Wednesday) and enjoy what these authors have to offer. During the rest of each week. visit Allison at  Reconciled To You and Elizabeth at Theology Is A Verb .  Given the rampant disbelief in and irreverence toward the Holy Eucharist, I chose to share this 2013 post: "Holy Spirit" vs. "Spirit of Vatican II" (Originally posted January 21, 2013) I have made a commitment during this Year of Faith to do a number of things, including reading the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the Vatican II Documents. Both exercises have been worthwhile. From time to time I hope to share the fruits of my efforts. Today, I will start with a few questions. (Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) Did you know that at the time of Vatican II the vast majority of C...

“It is extraordinary that there are to be found Christians, and those not a few, who grow weary and do not know what to do at Mass.  (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) Can a sick man be tired of seeing the efforts made to cure him? Or can a person, loaded with debts, find it difficult to know what to do, in the presence of a powerful monarch who has offered him all his treasures?  You do not know what to do at Mass? How is this? says Fr. la Colombiere, in his Reflections on this subject; have you never received any favor from God? Alas, we are surrounded, loaded, overwhelmed with His benefits, and we have never thanked Him as we ought. At Mass, at least, give a thought to these various benefits; so many sins over- looked, so loving a Providence continually exercised in your regard, so sweet and so constant an effort to draw you to Him, to gain your heart, to make you holy. The graces that you receive in one single day would suffice to occupy you during the...

(Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) I thought I would share an early Christmas reflection with you today -  a different way, I hope, of approaching Christmas Day.  You can listen here.

Pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." (1Thess 5:17-18). (Image Source - The Rosary Trail)

How different our Church and this world might be today had we listened to even a tenth of what he shared: (Source: Posted by Dorothy B.G. on Google+ )

Thank you Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan, for inviting your fellow Catholic bloggers to re-post their favorite articles on “It’s Worth Revisiting” Wednesdays. Go there now (and every Wednesday) and enjoy what these authors have to offer. During the rest of each week. visit Allison at  Reconciled To You and Elizabeth at Theology Is A Verb . Here is what I am sharing this week:  I Am Confused. How About You? (Originally posted October 28, 2013) From much of what has been written recently, some would have us conclude that the problems with, within the Catholic Church and with how the secular world views the Church are the result of the Church’s obstinate insistence on hammering home one difficult moral principle after another and its failure to make its primary mission the physical, emotional, medical, and social well-being of all those in need. (Abbey at Genesee) Correct me if I am wrong. Is it not beyond dispute th...

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) “Without the Holy Eucharist, earth would seem to us empty, the temple of God desolate, the soul cold, the heart isolated. Oh God, this earth is a vale of tears where I weep and sigh! Here I cannot remain alone – alone with people who are careless and indifferent to my suffering; I have need of Thee.” (From The Holy Eucharist: Our All by Father Lukas Etlin, O.S.B.)

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) In the early days of Christ's Church, it was risky business to be Catholic - persecutions, lions, crucifixions and martyrs come to mind. It is going to get more difficult again and soon. Many argue (and correctly so) that the world is more pagan today than it was at the time of Christ. This has prompted a great deal of discussion (and confusion) about the need for a "New Evangelization". What is this "New Evangelization? And is it really new? Listen here if you want to know what I think.

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) Today is the feast day of St. Albert the Great (1206-1280). Who was this noted Dominican friar?    The following brief summary from the Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic ( St. Joseph ’s Province) highlights some of his accomplishments: “German Bishop, theologian of renown, philosopher, scientist, diplomat, inventor, teacher of St. Thomas Aquinas…crisscrossed his diocese on foot and so nicknamed “Doctor Boots by his contemporaries. “Universal Doctor’ of the Church…”     He was also the teacher of St. Thomas Aquinas! Today also marks the beginning of the fifteenth year of Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration at St. Agatha's parish! Praise God for such a inestimable Gift!   May I suggest we commemorate both of these great occasions by taking a look at what St. Albert the Great had to say about the Eucharist: “This sacrament [the Eucharist] is profitable because it grants remissions of sins; it ...

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) 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. St. John Paul II "For me prayer is the first priority. Prayer is the basic prerequisite to service of the Church and the world...Every believer should always think of prayer as an essential  and indispensable component of one's vocation. It is the opus divinum which precedes and overshadows every work. We well know that faithfulness to prayer, or its neglect, is a test of the vitality of religious life, apostolate and Christian fidelity." (From Address October 7, 1979)

(Photo©Michael Seagriff) Thanks to the generosity and encouragement of Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan, an interesting group of Catholic bloggers take the time each week to re-post their favorite articles on “It’s Worth Revisiting” Wednesday. Do yourself a favor- go there now (and every Wednesday) and let these authors bless and challenge you in your Faith journey. During the rest of each week. visit Allison at   Reconciled To You and Elizabeth at Theology Is A Verb .  You will be pleased with what they share. Here is what I am sharing this week: Abortion and Adoration (Originally posted January  25, 2013) As we continue fighting to protect life from the moment of conception to natural death, I thought today – a day when tens of thousands will be publicly standing up for life and protesting the horror and slaughter of millions of innocent lives in this nation facilitated by the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade decision ...

Elizabeth Reardon has invited me to return as a guest on her radio show “An Engaging Faith” this Thursday, November 12, 2015 from 4 to 5 PM EST. What an honor and privilege! We will be exploring and discussing my books, as well as offering a few free copies to some lucky listeners. We pray that God will use our words and these books to touch hearts and stir souls! Hope you can join us on Breadbox Media . If the time is not convenient, go back to Breadbox Media when you have time and listen to a podcast of the show.

(Photo©Michael Seagriff) Speak my Love, tell me, what is it that You desire of me? I want your time for Me, my child, for that is not completely Mine. It is not perfect in all of its parts…No, not all of your moments are Mine, as I desire then to be. Your body is here but worldly things and your very self rob Me of your heart and your thoughts. Search within yourself and you will see…Can you with your hand upon your heart, tell your Jesus that this is not true? Lord, it is true…Unfortunately my time is not what it should be for You…But what can I do to please You? “To have Me always present…and to never lose Me from your sight…and to always act with the purest intention of only being pleasing to Me. Time is an on-going gift…a precious gift that many waste, and I do not want this to happen with my beloved children: I wish that their life, day and night, be a single act of love, in the midst of any cross.” ( From Holy Hours by Concepcion Cabrera de Armid...