Our priests are under attack. We can no longer be timid in our prayer support for them. Remember: No priests, No Eucharist, No Mass, No Sacraments. Join the battle to strengthen our priests and to save souls."
(Photo ©Father Lawrence Lew, O.P. Used with Permission)
Book Review - One Hour for My Priest by Tina Jost
Eucharistic Reflection - The True Light
The Lay Dominicans of St. Joseph Province invite you to spend some time with our Eucharistic Lord. They pray that the reflection that follows (as well as the other 174 in their book, Godhead Here in Hiding Whom I Do Adore - Lay Dominicans Reflect on Eucharistic Adoration) will draw you to Him and provide you with much to ponder, meditate and contemplate.
"The
light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Last night,
Lord, on a dark and starless night, with no moon in evidence, a lone star was
shining and breaking through the darkness. It had a brilliant radiance. The
star was surrounded by the reaching branches of trees, which seemed so much
like the distractions and the problems of our lives which try to tear us from
our focus on the Light.
The
radiance of this star kept calling to me again and again, drawing my attention
to the radiance. I was unable to tear my gaze away. Is this what the star of
Bethlehem was like? Did it so penetrate and permeate into the hearts, minds,
and souls of the onlookers? Did it draw them in so completely, that they could
not resist following the star? Those wise and learned men saw what was beyond
the star and knew that they must attain it. They were compelled to travel with
joyful anticipation to reach the source of that light.
After
a time of soaking in the brilliance, light pollution had crept in, and I really
had to search to see the star. I had the desire to see the star, and I searched
for it. O, Lord, is that the way the world is now? So many things try to blot
out the natural light of that star to distract us. So many seemingly radiant
objects try to cover up the true Light that You are, and Your Light is
obscured. Everything that should be so clear, is not. People accept artificial
light readily instead of holding fast to Your true Light. As long as others are
happy, people will offer the excuse that this artificial light is another’s
“truth”.
Much
like those tree branches that seemed to be clutching to reach the star, how
many things seem to clutch at us in our lives, as if trying to pull us away
from Your Light. They seem to tear at us in order to turn us in a completely
different direction than the way that You would have us travel. We need the
Eucharist as the lodestar of our lives. Our Eucharistic Lord has come so near
and keeps beckoning us further along the path of light and life.
Precious
Lord, draw us always to Your true light. May we always desire to attain Your
Light. Direct us and order our lives in the way that You would have us go, for
Your greater honor and glory. May our lives reflect Your light to others, and
may You, the one true Light, always be reflected in our lives and actions, so
that we may draw others from the darkness to your marvelous Light."
Mrs. Melanie Von Gunten, OP, St.
Thomas Aquinas Fraternity, Zanesville, OH
Eucharistic Reflection - God Is Thirsting for Our Love
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When
you grow to love Jesus more, you will feel a very special and deep closeness
with Him and a growing awareness of His presence in your midst.
When
a soul feels His love, it will be overflowing with love, peace and joy. It will
be drunk on the love of God. Stay still with the Lord. Just as the baby falls
asleep in his mother's arms, fall asleep in the presence of the Lord.
Instead
of gossiping, bring Jesus all your worries and concerns. Tell Him, instead of
your friends! God is my best friend! He will never leave me or forsake me. He
loves me unconditionally!
In
the Sacrament of the Eucharist, You Lord have left us a memorial of Your
Passion. Help us, we beg You, to so reverence the Sacred Mysteries of Your Body
and Blood that we may constantly feel within our lives the effects of Your
redemption. You who love and reign forever!
“O Most Holy Trinity I adore you. My
God, my God I love You in the Most Blessed Sacrament!
Ponder
this Truth:
“The union between God and man in Holy
Communion is the one thing that terrifies hell.”—Pope Benedict XVI.
God
will shower you with the graces you need to get to heaven. God is thirsting for
our love!
Remember:
“The
Eucharist is the Sacrament of Love, it signifies love, it produces love.” —St.
Thomas Aquinas
Now go love Him as you ought and as He
deserves!
(Donna Catherine Karas, St. Louis
Bertrand Fraternity, Louisville, KY, excerpted from Godhead Here In Hiding Whom I Do Adore - Lay Dominicans Reflect on Eucharistic Adoration)
Pondering Tidbits of Truth - January 16, 2024
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.
|
Father
John Catoir (An excerpt
from Uplifting Thoughts for Every Day) |
|
St. Peter Julian Eymard “What displeases God most on earth and in us is sin. You must give this truth your attentive consideration. The just and the saints themselves are not exempt from sin. And we, have we not at least venial sins on our conscience? The just and the saints themselves are not exempt from sin. Have we never had to weep for mortal sins? There is only one evil on earth, only one thing which should fill us with dread: sin. All created things please God, even those which seem obnoxious to us; neither the earthworm nor mud are offensive in the sight of God. Those things are in their natural state. Sin, on the contrary, is a perversion of the divine will, a degradation of God's work, a contradiction to his nature and to his divine being. Sin is an offense and an insult to God's sovereign authority, to his majesty, and to his empire; it is an insult of the creature to its Creator." (An excerpt from 30 Day Eucharistic Revival) |
Eucharistic Reflection - Would A Stranger Know?
|
"The Eucharist is alive. If a stranger who knew nothing about the Eucharist were to watch the way we receive, would he know this? When you and I approach the Eucharist, does it look like we believe we are about to take into our bodies the living person, Jesus Christ, true God and true man? How many times, Lord, have I forgotten that the Eucharist is alive! As I wait in line to receive you each day, am I thinking about how much you want to unite yourself with me? Am I seeing your hands filled with the graces you want to give me? Am I filled with awe and gratitude that you love me so much as to actually want to come to me in this incredibly intimate way? Or am I distracted, busy with other thoughts, preoccupied with myself and my agendas for the day? How many times, Jesus, have I made you sad, mindlessly receiving you into my body, into my heart, with no love and no recognition of your love? How many times have I treated you as a dead object? The Host that we receive is not a thing! It’s not a wafer! It’s not bread! It’s a person – He’s alive!" |
|
(Vinny Flynn, excerpt from 7 Secrets of the Eucharist) |
Pondering Tidbits of Truth - January 2, 2025
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.
Father Jose Gonzalez
“Reflect upon the unique
mission that God has given to you whatever he has called you to do with your
life it is a calling given only to you do not run from it do not reluctantly
accept it instead run to it with your whole being and allow God to do great
things through you.”
(From Catholic Daily Reflections - October 20, 2024)
St. Teresa
of Avila
"We must beg God constantly in our prayers to uphold us by His hand; we should keep ever in our minds the truth that if He leaves us, most certainly we shall fall at once into the abyss, for we must never be so foolish as to trust in ourselves. After this I think the greatest safeguard is to be very careful and to watch how we advance in virtue; we must notice whether we are making progress or falling back in it, especially as regards the love of our neighbor, the desire to be thought the least of all and how we perform our ordinary, everyday duties. If we attend to this and beg Our Lord to enlighten us, we shall at once perceive our gain or loss.
(From Interior Castle)
St. Catherine of Siena
"He will provide the way and the means, such as you could never
have imagined. Leave it all to Him, let go of yourself, lose yourself on the
Cross, and you will find yourself entirely.”
(From The Letters
of St. Catherine)
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