Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

Thank you Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan for another opportunity to re-publish our favorite posts on  Worth Revisiting . Go there now  and be nourished spiritually. Be sure to visit Allison at  Reconciled to You  and Elizabeth at  Theology Is A Verb  during the rest of the week. You will be glad you stopped by. I trust you will find something of value in this post: Sound and Timely Advice For the Rest of Us (Originally published on November 16, 2011) (Photo©Michael Seagriff) As we pray for the sanctification of our priests, we should also pray and aspire for our own sanctification and that of our family and loved ones. Like our beloved priests, we lay members of Christ's Church must  also spend time in adoration before our loving and often abandoned Lord. Picking up on a previous post and  melding it with the advice offered at a healing Mass that my wife and I were blessed to attend last week, may each of us consider offering the following prayer i

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) “What is the fact of the Eucharist? It is that the same Jesus Who was born on earth not only became man but remains man. He not only came into the world, He is in the world. In a word, He came to stay. The Eucharist is Christmas prolonged, because faith tells us that once God became man, He decided to remain man. From all the reaches of past eternity, God had only been God. But having once taken on human flesh, into now the future reaches of eternity, God will always remain man. And this God-Man is here; Bethlehem is wherever there is a Catholic Church or chapel in which Christ is present…” (Servant of God - Father John Hardon, S.J.)

He is here among us - waiting for our love!

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. Pius X "...men are only instruments which God makes use of for the salvation of souls We have to make sure those instruments are in a good state of repair so that God can use them." (From Encyclical - Haerent animo )

Thank you Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan for another opportunity to re-publish our favorite posts on  Worth Revisiting . Go there now  and be nourished spiritually. Be sure to visit Allison at  Reconciled to You  and Elizabeth at  Theology Is A Verb  during the rest of the week. You will be glad you stopped by. Here is my plug for a great vocation: Great Way To Begin and End Each Day (Originally posted September 22, 2011) Lay Dominicans have a great love for the Eucharist and the Rosary. We begin our days with Morning Prayer and as often as we can on our knees at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Somewhere during the course of our daily journey, we offer a Rosary or two to our Blessed Mother and spend some time studying, reading and meditating Scripture. Our days end with Evening Prayer and/or Night Prayer and with this moving tribute to our Heavenly Queen. This prayerful rhythm brings a sense of stability to our otherwise challenging and hectic li

O Jesus, You instituted this Sacrament, not through any desire to draw some advantage from it for Yourself, but solely moved by love which has no other measure than to be without measure. You instituted this Sacrament because Your love exceeds all words.  (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) Burning with love for us, You desired to give Yourself to us and took up Your dwelling in the consecrated Host, entirely and forever, until the end of time. And You did this, not only to give us a memorial of Your death which is our salvation, but You did it also, to remain with us entirely and forever. St. Angela of Foligno

Scripture reports many instances where people flocked to Jesus like metal to a magnet. One example is set forth in the Gospel of Luke (6:12-19).  Everyone in the crowd,” the evangelist tells us, “sought to touch Jesus because power came forth from Him and healed them all.” (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) Oftentimes, we muse what it might have been like if we could have been there in the crowd reaching out to touch Jesus. We ignore the fact that He is still here among us, locked as a prisoner in the tabernacles of His Churches.  Oh, that we would flock to Him there  where He awaits our visits and remains just as willing to heal us. What ingratitude we display our loving Lord by our absence and lack of belief. Why not take a moment today or during the week to pause before the tabernacle and thank God for the Gift of His Presence?

Today is a good time to recall that Herod feared and hated the infant King of the Jews so much, he ordered the execution of all male children around Jesus’ age in the vicinity of Bethlehem ( Mt 2:13-18).  He wanted to prevent Jesus’ kingship – but that he was powerless to accomplish.  How horrible it had to have been where mother after mother had their child ripped out from their arms and murdered in their sight. There was nothing these women could do to stop it The slaughter of innocents began by Herod has not ended. It has just taken another form  – the millions of children brutally killed in their mother’s wombs through abortion.  Where is the outrage? Why the silence? Why have we not stopped these atrocities? Speak up against the evil of abortion.  Save lives and souls.

(Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) At first glance, some things just do not seem fair. Take for example the parable of the laborers in the vineyard in chapter 20 of Matthew's Gospel - the last got paid as much as those who worked all day.  Maybe it is time to take another look from a different perspective. Listen h ere .

Thank you Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan for another opportunity to re-publish our favorite posts on  Worth Revisiting . Go there now  and be nourished spiritually. Be sure to visit Allison at  Reconciled to You  and Elizabeth at  Theology Is A Verb  during the rest of the week. You will be glad you stopped by. Here is my contribution this week: Praying With Your Eyes (Originally posted May 14, 2011) Sometimes as you drive around, you simply have to get out of your car and allow the beauty of God's creation stir your imagination and capture your heart  On those occasions, let your eyes prayerfully process the images God has placed before you. Be still! Gaze upon the work of His Hands! Be filled with awe, amazement and gratitude! Or Or As magnificient as these images may be, they are nothing in comparison to He Who awaits your visit: Our Abandoned, Ignored and Forgotten Lord

“When I stand up to talk, people listen to me; they will follow what I have to say. Is it any power of mine? Of course not. St. Paul says, 'What have you that you have not received and you who have received, why do you glory as if you had not?' But the secret of my power is that I have never in fifty-five years missed spending an hour in the presence of our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. That's where the power comes from. That's where sermons are born. That's where every good thought is conceived." Venerable Fulton J. Sheen

(Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) We can all use some pruning from time to time. This is especially true for our spiritual lives.  Learn more here .

Stirring Slumbering Souls - 250 Eucharistic Reflections   is doing just that - stirring souls to rediscover and treasure Christ's Real and Substantial Presence here among us. Read what noted Catholic authors, Connie Rossini and Virginia Lieto, have to say about this inspiring book.  Consider sharing this post and a copy of Stirring Slumbering Souls with those you know and love. Join the effort to quench our Lord's Thirst to be visited, adored and loved.

Thank you Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan for another opportunity to re-publish our favorite posts on  Worth Revisiting . Go there now  and be nourished spiritually. Be sure to visit Allison at  Reconciled to You  and Elizabeth at  Theology Is A Verb  during the rest of the week. You will enjoy your visit. Here is my contribution this week: God Calls us to Come and Adore Him! Why Do We Ignore His Invitation? (Originally posted on September 11, 2013) Few individuals write as passionately and fervently of the need for us to adore Our Lord, Who though still physically here with and among us, is for the most part ignored and left alone, than Father Mark. Visit him regularly  at Vultus Christi . He speaks particularly to his brother priests - a message we must help him share. This week is no exception. Do yourself, your loved ones and the priests you know a favor - read, ponder and share the two articles Father posted this week.

(Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) When you come into church, genuflect or make a profound bow and say, "O Jesus, it's good to be here." Talk to Him; don't ignore Him... Pour our your heart to Him. There is nothing that we have, illness, trials or tribulations that He can't remedy. So pour our your love to Him. Is it difficult to love Him? Why?  A cat gets move love than the Lord Jesus Christ. My dogs get more love than the Lord Jesus Christ, and it breaks my heart. The clothes we wear probably get more attention than the Lord Jesus Christ. What are we all about? Are we about rubies and diamonds and coats and cars and furniture, or are we all about Jesus? Let’s look within ourselves. He loves us so much, Even if we ignore Him, He pursues us by grace. What a lover. I tell you one thing, you’ve never been kissed until you have been kissed by the Lord. You’ve never been loved until you have been loved by the Lord. Now is the hour. Fall in love

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 . Jean-Baptiste Chautard, O.C.S.O. A preacher endowed with learning but of only mediocre piety may be able to paint a picture of Christian Truth that will stir souls, bring them a little closer to God, even increase their faith. But if one is to fill souls with the life-giving savor of virtue, he must first have tasted the true spirit of the Gospel and made it enter into the substance of his own life by means of mental prayer.  (From The Soul of the Apostolate)  

Once again we thank Allison Gingras and Elizabeth Riordan for another opportunity to re-publish our favorite posts on  Worth Revisiting . Go there now  (and every Wednesday) and be nourished spiritually. Be sure to visit Allison at  Reconciled to You  and Elizabeth at  Theology Is A Verb  during the rest of the week. You will enjoy your visit. This week's contribution is a little different from my normal posts... Gazing In Silent Reflection at God's Creation (Originally posted on September 18,  2014) I sat in my car outside my daughter's home early one  morning while everyone else was still asleep. I intended to savor my cup of coffee in the silent shadows of the changing sky and to pray my daily rosary. I pulled the beads out of my pocket. Just as I was about to make the Sign of the Cross, I  looked up and was mesmerized as the darkness of night was replaced with the light of day. Clouds became visible and began floating past my eyes.  I was

We must always have courage, and if some spiritual languor comes upon us, let us run to the feet of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, and let us place ourselves in the midst of the heavenly perfumes, and we will undoubtedly regain our strength. St Padre Pio

Those who visit here, know how blessed I have been over the years to spend time in retreat at the Abbey at the Genesee in Piffard, New York. [If you missed those posts and wish to take a peek, you can find them  here , here ,  here  and here .] (Image Source: Abbey at the Genesee) This present post was prompted by an e-mail I received last week from the Abbey’s Retreat House manager, reminding me of what a perfect time of the year it is to visit this Trappist monastery. He enclosed this breathtakingly beautiful image of our Blessed Mother located near the entrance door to the Abbey. Since death can occur at any time and since we must always be prepared for it, the beginning of this new year seems an appropriate time for me to highlight some of what Father John Eudes, O.C.S.O. shared when I last made a retreat at the Abbey. He began his presentation by reminding us that “there are many surprises in life, that some are life-changing, and that our life in thi