Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

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. Vinny Flynn “The first level of contrition is a contrition of fear. It's called, "imperfect contrition" or "attrition," because it's motivated by awareness of the ugliness of sin and by fear of eternal damnation. Prompted by the Holy Spirit, it begins a process of inner conversion that disposes us to grace and is completed by sacramental absolution...The second level of contrition, called "perfect contrition," [is] motivated not by a self-oriented fear, but by love for God and the awareness of how good He is. This is much more personal, leading to a deeper relationship with God and a growing desire to avoid anything that might offend Him." (From 7 Secrets of Confession )   St. Teresa of Avila "I believe we shall never learn to know ...

(Photo©Michael Seagriff) "Our churches are holy, consecrated, sacred, because God made man dwells there day and night. In early times, many Christians crossed the seas to see the holy places where the great mystery of our redemption was wrought. Oh, blessed places! they exclaimed, where so many wonders were worked to save us! And they could hardly tear themselves away from the Cenacle or the Garden of the Agony without shedding tears. On Calvary, when Jesus Christ endured such great sufferings for us, they felt their faith rekindled and their hearts burning with a new fire. But without going so far, or exposing ourselves like them to many dangers, have we not Jesus Christ in the midst of us, not only as God, but Body and Soul? Are not our churches as worthy of reverence as the holy places? What a blessed people are Christians, who see renewed each day on the altars all the wonders that Almighty God worked formerly on Calvary."   (From  THE EUCHARISTIC MEDITATIONS OF THE C...

[We MUST listen to Blessed John Henry Newman.  We MUST conduct ourselves with the utmost reverence every time we enter a Catholic Church since our loving Lord is really and substantially present there. It is His House!   We MUST understand why we come to, who is really present at, and what is actually happening during the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. Our continued failure to address these issues  jeopardizes the salvation of lost and confused souls.]   (Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) “…all we do in Church is done on a principle of reverence; it is done with the thought that we are in God's presence. But irreverent persons, not understanding this, when they come into Church, and find nothing there of a striking kind, when they find everything is read from a book, and in a calm, quiet way, and still more, when they come a second and a third time, and find everything just the same, over and over again, they are offended and tired. "Ther...

When we read or hear the Scriptural reminder of the eternal consequences for our failing to visit the imprisoned (Matthew 25: 31-46) more often than not the image that first comes to mind is of those locked behind bars in the far too numerous Federal and State prisons and local jails that saturate the landscape of this nation – some 2,266,800 adults in 2010 according to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. More than 2 million! Many of them are Catholic and none of them are there voluntarily! Admittedly, Jesus is not calling every Catholic to be His representative and ambassador to our forgotten convicted brothers and sisters. Certainly though more are being invited to this needed ministry than are responding. Is God calling you? Is fear holding you back? But there is one prisoner you need not fear. One that each and everyone who professes to be Catholic, without exception, is being called to visit. He has been imprisoned and been ignored for more than two thousand yea...