Eucharistic Reflection - Are You Not As Happy As Zacheus, St. John, St Joseph and Our Blessed Virgin Mary?

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)

"You consider Zacheus happy because Our Lord vouchsafed to enter his house and eat with him; you deem St. John happy because he rested on the breast of our Savior at the Last Supper; and, above all, you regard St. Joseph and the Blessed Virgin Mary so very happy because they nourished and supported Our Dear Lord. But are you not as happy as they? Are you not even happier? You do not hold Our Lord in your arms as Simeon did, but you receive Him into your heart in Holy Communion; you do not rest on the bosom of St. John, but the Savior rests in your heart after Holy Communion; you do not nurse and support Our Lord like St. Joseph and the Blessed Virgin, but you have a still greater happiness, for the Savior Himself nourishes you and gives Himself to you as your food. O Love! O Love! O who can understand the love of God for men!"

(The Blessed Eucharist, Father Michael Muller, C.S.S.R.)

Book Review - The Bishop of the Abandoned Tabernacle – St. Manuel Gonzalez Garcia By Victoria Scheider

The Bishop of the Abandoned Tabernacle – St. Manuel Gonzalez Garcia is a must read for every Catholic, especially in these times of Eucharistic Revival, where so few of us still believe Jesus is really, substantially and physically present in the Eucharist.

Thank you to the author, Victoria Schneider, who took the time to translate and make the good Bishop’s words known to the English-speaking world. She has done a great service to all souls.

Bishop Manuel Gonzalez “was outraged by the indifferent attitude towards the Eucharist that he observed in the Church during his lifetime” (1877-1940). “What would he say today?” is the poignant question Father Sean Davidson, MSE poses in the Forward to this book. In the Preface, Father describes both the anguish in the good Bishop’s heart and the purpose of this book:

“Though the Sacred Eucharistic Heart of Jesus trembles with love for us in the tabernacle, our hearts are often indifferent to His love, sadly enough. The heart of Christ is as pierced and rejected today as it was on Calvary two thousand years ago. Love is not loved! The tabernacles are abandoned. St. Manuel would spend himself to correct this injustice. May we all follow his example.”

Restoration of belief in our Lord’s Real Presence in the Eucharist must be the Catholic Church’s priority.

Contemplating his death and the importance of this effort, Bishop Gonzalez wrote this:

“I ask to be buried next to a tabernacle, so that my bones, after death, as my tongue and my pen during life, can say to those who pass by: Jesus is there! There He is! Do not leave Him abandoned.”

Share this book with friends and family. Let everyone know that Jesus is in every Tabernacle of every Catholic Church! Let us no longer abandon Him! Visit Him! 

Eucharistic Reflection - The Bread For Which Humanity Was Famishing

 

“Ah, yes! The Eucharist began at Bethlehem in Mary's arms. It was she who brought to humanity the Bread for which it was famishing, and which alone can nourish it. She, it was who took care of that Bread for us. It was she who nourished the Lamb whose life-giving Flesh we feed upon. 

She nourished Him with her virginal milk; she nourished Him for the sacrifice, for she foreknew His destiny. Yes, she knew from the beginning, and every day she realizes it more fully, that her Lamb is only for immolation. She accepts God's will, and bearing Him in her arms, herself prepares for us the victim at Calvary - that Victim of our Altars.”

(From Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament by Saint Peter Julian Eymard)

Monday Musings - Let Us Be Real About Eucharistic Revival

 (Originally posted January 9, 2023)

"In last week's post, which explored the dishonor accorded the sacredness of the Mass, I asked: "How can we expect the current efforts toward Eucharistic Revival to bear fruit when we have not addressed the real and obvious reasons why so few Catholics believe in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament?

This week I invite you to read the following post on lack of reverent silence and sacredness within our Churches. Are there any specific Revival efforts planned to catechize and instruct souls as to how they should conduct themselves while in the Presence of God? 

Without Reverent Silence Nothing Else We Do Will Be of Any Value

A Forgotten Truth:  "The Blessed Sacrament is that Presence which makes a Catholic Church different from every other place in the world; which makes it, as no other place can be, holy." - St. John Henry Cardinal Newman:

A Catholic Church must be unlike any other building in the world because God resides there. A Catholic Church is holy ground. All who enter must conduct themselves in a manner consistent with being in the Presence of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We must enter, remain and exit it in reverent and total silence. God deserves nothing less.

In far too many of our Catholic parishes we have lost the sense of the sacred and an appreciation for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass that are both essential for fostering and maintaining a belief in the Real Presence. We have forgotten how to pray. We have forgotten how to act while we are in Church and no one teaches or corrects us. Many ignore He Who is Love to engage in inane chatter on topics more appropriately discussed at social and sporting events. The actions and demeanor of so many souls are inconsistent with one who professes to believe that Jesus Christ is really and truly present on the altar and in their hands.

You can read this post in its entirety here.

As Only A Mother Can

(Originally posted on October 17, 2017)

While I was on retreat a few years ago at the Abbey of the Genesee, I paused (as I often do on my visits there) before the statue of our Blessed Mother which welcomes visitors to the monastery. 

It is a simple but beautiful image. I think you will agree.

On that day, as I prayerfully gazed into her eyes, these words came to me:

"Come closer my child. Draw near to me. I want to embrace and kiss you as only a Mother can."

What a gift to us "poor banished children of Eve"!

Book Review – A Little Book of Reparation – First Friday Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus by Anne Costa

Anne Costa’s books are always challenging, clear, informative, necessary, and timely.   A Little Book of Reparation – First Friday Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is no exception.

In this brief volume, Anne explains the origin of the Frist Friday Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, its spirit and purpose, the dispositions one must have in making this devotion, and the benefits awaiting those who do so -one offers this devotion by going to Mass on the first Friday of nine consecutive months, receiving Holy Communion with the intention of honoring Christ’s Sacred Heart and making reparation to It.

In a world which has lost any sense of sin, reparation is a word foreign to many contemporary ears. This devotion, as Anne makes clear, is a gift God has given us “not just to atone for our own faults and sins, but also to obtain grace for others who may be confused or steeped in sin or rebellion”.

This devotion shows how much we love God and draws us nearer to Him. Jesus, in turn, promised St. Margaret Mary Alacoque He would “grant the grace of final repentance to all those who will receive Holy Communion on the first Friday of the month for nine consecutive months. They will not die in My disgrace, nor without having received the holy Sacraments, and in those last moments, My Heart will be a safe refuge for them.”

In addition to describing nine specific acts of reparation that could be offered in conjunction this First Friday devotion and providing concrete examples of other daily acts of reparations, the author sets forth a number of beautiful prayers: Act of Reparation to the Sacred Heart, Novena of Reparation, and Litany of Reparation in Honor of the Blessed Sacrament.

In this little gem of a book, Anne Costa provides the reader with all one will need to offer this devotion well, benefit from it, and make reparation to a God who has been abandoned by so many of those He created.

A Little Book of Reparation – First Friday Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is another one of those special books that we should read and place in the hands of our spouses, children and loved ones.

Eucharistic Reflection - Become An Interior Soul

(Photo©Lawrence Lew, O.P. Used With Permission)

“Hence I say, if we wish to become saints, we must become interior souls. We are obliged thereto by our vocation as adorers. Without this interior spirit, how can we pray? If in the presence of our Lord we cannot spend a single instant without a book, if we have nothing to say to Him from our own heart, what are we going to do at Adoration? What can we never speak to Him from the abundance of our own heart? Must we always borrow the thoughts and words of strangers? No, no! Let us strive to become recollected interior souls.

No one can be this in the way that Jesus and Mary were; but everyone can become recollected in the degree given him by grace. Without the interior life, we shall never receive any consolation, encouragement in prayer; we shall only be unhappy at the feet of our Lord. If you wish to become true adorers, we must have this interior spirit. We should talk to our Lord when kneeling in His presence, ask Him questions, await His reply; we should enjoy God's presence. We should be happy in His company, happy in His service; we should take pleasure in His familiarity, so sweet, so encouraging. But to discover the Heart of Jesus we must be interior.

After all, what does it mean to be interior? It means to love, to converse, to live with Jesus. But Jesus does not make Himself heard by bodily ears, nor seen with bodily eyes; He speaks only to the recollected soul. He is wholly interior in the Blessed Sacrament: He no longer enters into the heart through the sight, as during His mortal life; He now enters the soul direct and speaks to it alone. When the soul does not expand in His presence it is because He does not act upon it - there is some obstacle in His path.

Ah! Do not make our Lord out to have said what is not true! He has said that His yoke is sweet and His burden light. But it is only so for him who carries it in a prayerful, recollected spirit; otherwise, he will find it heavy and fatiguing. When we do not lead interior lives, everything we do goes haltingly. Oh, how I should wish to see accomplished in us what was so fully realized in the Blessed Virgin: ‘The Kingdom of God is within you’ - the Kingdom of love, of virtue and of interior graces. Then indeed shall we begin to be adorers and saints. The grass of the field dies yearly because its roots do not lie deep in the soil; but the oak, the olive and the cedar stand year after year because their roots run deep into the earth. In order to grow strong, to endure, we must descend to the very depths, even to self-annihilation…There we shall find Jesus. He is there annihilated... it was such that Mary found Him. Oh, may that Blessed Mother, our perfect exemplar of the interior life, make us live, as she did, in Jesus! May we, like her, remain always in Him and never leave Him!”

(From Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament by Saint Peter Julian Eymard)

Monday Musings - What Harm Could Possibly Befall Our Parishes?

As we begin the second year of the U.S. Bishop's National Eucharistic Revival efforts, I must ask: where is the evidence that our efforts to date have resulted in any significant increase in the numbers of Catholics who now believe in our Lord's Real Presence in the Eucharist? I have not seen it. Have you?

Consequently, I must inquire with an even greater sense of urgency than I did in September 2019 when I originally published the post that follows: What harm could possibly befall our parishes if we return to those practices originally recommended in that post?

(Image Source: Wikimedia Commons)

As we face the tragic reality that so few Catholics believe our Lord is really and substantially present in the Holy Eucharist, we must be honest in assessing the reasons why this has occurred. While there are many possible explanations, there is one common denominator: we abandoned sacred rituals and conduct for the banal - discarding that which elevated our minds and hearts to the heavenly King, for practices that center on ourselves and the mundane.

So many Catholics today either do not remember or never experienced the sacred practices of days gone by. It is important then that those practices and the reasons for them be shared anew if we are ever to re-establish belief in, awe and amazement for our Eucharistic Lord.

Actions do indeed speak louder than words:

Toward that end, let me share again the observations of columnist, James Monti:

Book Review of The Saint Michael Chaplet – A Divine Catechesis on the Angels and Gifts of Heaven by Carol Puschaver

Arm Yourself For Spiritual Battle

Too many of us Catholics know very little substantively about our Faith. We know even less about the nine choirs of angels, their powers, our need for their assistance, and St. Michael the Archangel. Very few of us appreciate the fact that each of us is engaged in a spiritual battle every day of our earthly lives to save our souls – a battle we cannot expect to win without the Eucharist, the Rosary and angelic assistance.

Thankfully, author Carol Puschaver has gathered into one little power-packed booklet, the essential information we need to educate ourselves and to better understand the role of these angelic beings. Learn about the nine angelic choirs, the role of St. Michael the Archangel and the power and graces that flow from daily recitation of the St. Michael Chaplet.

Arm yourselves and your loved ones with a copy of Carol’s book, The Saint Michael Chaplet – A DivineCatechesis on the Angels and Gifts of Heaven. Don’t be blind-sided by the evil one and his minions. Be prepared for battle.

I highly recommend this book.

Eucharistic Reflection - Mother, Make Us Comprehend

"Virgin Immaculate, who, after the Ascension of thy Divine son, didst console thy exile on earth by the Real Presence of Jesus in the Sacrament and didst spend before the Tabernacle the greater part of thy days and even thy nights, make us comprehend the treasure we possess on the altar. Inspire us to visit often the God of Love in the Sacrament in which He abides to receive the homage that He deserves by so many titles, and to guide, protect and console us in this exile."

(From Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament by Saint Peter Julian Eymard)

Monday Musings - I Kissed His Feet

(Originally posted January 2, 2017)

God calls all of us to walk the Via Dolorosa with Him, to spend time at the foot of His cross, to be there as He is nailed to it, to be there throughout the entire three hours of His agonizing death, to be there as He is taken down from the cross, to be there as He is placed in His mother’s arms and to be there at the tomb. 

I have tried from time to time to obey Him. But I have found it hard to do. Painful would be more accurate. I don’t want to be reminded of the price He paid for my sins. I don’t want to acknowledge how ungrateful I have been for such an undeserved sacrificial gift. I am afraid of what other things He might ask of this obstinate sinner and of the additional disappointment, pain and anguish my refusing to change may cause such a loving and merciful Lord.

Yet, if I am ever to succeed in abandoning my will for His, of allowing Him to make of me the new creation He intended, and of spending eternity in His glorious and magnificent Presence, I must obey.  I must daily walk that road and spend time at the foot of His cross.

I am hopeful that as a result of my visit to St. Joseph's Oratory in Montreal – the work of Saint Andre Bessett, more commonly known as Brother Andre – I will be successful in this most difficult but necessary exercise. Let me tell you why.

Shortly after arriving at the Oratory and during a casual conversation at lunch with other pilgrims, I heard for the first time of a Crucifix in the Grotto Church at the Oratory to which a great devotion had developed. Over the years, many answered prayers and miracles have been reported by those who spent time at the foot of that Cross and who left their written prayers and petitions there.

I wanted to find that special place.

I had never been to the Oratory but went to look for that Crucifix. I had not walked very far at all when I saw the Grotto’s entrance just feet from where I stood. 

I entered with joyful expectation. Mass was about to begin but there was still a line down the side aisle in front of a Crucifix that was in the sanctuary next to the altar rail. 

My wife and I got on the line. At first I was unsure whether I was disrespecting our Lord and the priest who had just begun Mass but felt compelled to remain in the line, joining in the hymns and Mass responses. I was moved by the depth of emotion others displayed as they approached the Crucifix and held on to our Lord’s nailed feet while praying silently.

 When it was my turn, I snapped a quick picture of the crucifix and then reached up and put my two hands on Jesus’ crucified feet. I rested my head there as well, pleading for the salvation of my soul and the souls of my loved ones. I shed a few tears. I did not want to leave or remove my hands but knew I had to do so. Others were waiting.

I kissed those nailed and blood-stained feet. Suddenly I was filled with a brief tingling sensation – a powerful awareness of God’s Presence and of His undying love for me.

And then it struck me.

I had finally come to the foot of the cross. Now I understood why Jesus so persistently invites us there and why I owe Him and myself total obedience to His invitation in the future.

May I not disappoint Him. 

Come Meet St. Vincent Ferrer, O.P.

(Originally posted on April 5, 2014)

(Church of St. Vincent Ferrer, NYC)

Today, we will celebrate the feast day of one of the greatest preachers, confessors and healers in the history of the Dominican Order, St. Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419).

He preached throughout Europe, unafraid to share the Truth knowing It had the power to convert and transform reluctant and sinful hearts. Thousands of lukewarm Catholics and clergy had their faith reignited. Similarly thousand of Jews and Muslims became Catholics.

One thing is crystal clear: St. Vincent Ferrer’s zeal for the salvation of souls knew no bounds. He valued and tried to reach every soul that crossed his path.

Pondering Tidbits of Truth - May 4, 2023

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. Catherine of Siena

“To join two things together, there must be nothing between them or there cannot be a perfect fusion. Now realize that this is how God wants our soul to be, without any selfish love of ourselves or of others in between, just as God loves us without anything in between.” 

(From thehookoffaith.com)

 

Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen 

“How God will judge my life I know not, but I trust he will see me with mercy and compassion. I am only certain there will be three surprises in Heaven. First of all, I will see some people whom I never expected to see. Second, there will be a number whom I expect who will not be there. And – even relying on God’s mercy – the biggest surprise of all may be that I will be there. When the record of any human life is set down, there are three pairs of eyes who see it in a different light. 1. As I see it. 2. As others see it. 3. As God sees it.”

 (From Treasures In Clay)

 

St. Josemaría Escrivá

"Going to Communion every day for so many years! Anybody else would be a saint by now", you told me, "and I … I’m always the same!" "Son," I replied, "keep up your daily Communion, and think: what would I be if I had not gone.”

(From The Way) 

Eucharistic Reflection - The Primary Injustice

 

Monday Musings - Our Priests

 

Our Priests 

According to St. Pius X, our sanctity depends in large measure on the holiness of our priests. Every day and most especially each Holy Thursday is an appropriate time to reflect on our priests, the imperative that the Eucharist be the source, center and summit of their and our lives, and our duty as laity to treasure, encourage and support them. 

We begin by recalling how eloquently St. Gregory of Nazianzus, Doctor of our Church, wrote of what it is to be a priest: 

“We must begin by purifying ourselves before purifying others; we must be instructed to be able to instruct, become light to illuminate, draw close to God to bring Him close to others, be sanctified to sanctify, lead by the hand and counsel prudently…I know God’s greatness and man’s weakness but also his potential. The priest is the defender of Truth, who stands with angels, gives glory with archangels, causes sacrifices to rise to the altar on high, shares Christ’s priesthood, refashions creation, restores it in God’s image, recreates it for the world on high and, even greater, is divinized and divinizes.”