Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

 

 (Originally posted January 9, 2023) "In last week's post , which explored t he 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...

[I have shared this post before. Its content is forever relevant and worthy of our consideration.] The gifts of the Magi - gold, frankincense, and myrrh - were expensive and very significant physical gifts. But they pale in comparison to the spiritual gifts we can give our Infant, Crucified, and Risen Lord – if we would but choose to do so. (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) The gifts I am about to describe, when given to our Lord in love and gratitude, weekly (daily if possible), will not only please Him, but will result in our being united more intimately with the Prince of Peace. What follows are some concrete suggestions as to what each of us can and should do every time we attend Mass, if we are serious about loving God as He deserves and as we ought. We don’t need any one’s permission to do any of these things.  We will just do these things out of love and reverence and let God do the rest:        Read and ponder the Mass reading...

[I have shared this post before. Its content is forever relevant and worthy of our consideration.] The gifts of the Magi - gold, frankincense, and myrrh - were expensive and very significant physical gifts. But they pale in comparison to the spiritual gifts we can give our Infant, Crucified, and Risen Lord – if we would but choose to do so. (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) The gifts I am about to describe, when given to our Lord in love and gratitude, weekly (daily if possible), will not only please Him, but will result in our being united more intimately with the Prince of Peace. What follows are some concrete suggestions as to what each of us can and should do every time we attend Mass, if we are serious about loving God as He deserves and as we ought. We don’t need any one’s permission to do any of these things.  We will just do these things out of love and reverence and let God do the rest:        Read and ponder the Mass reading...

T hank you Elizabeth Riordan at  Theology Is A Verb for hosting Worth Revisiting each week. It is a privilege to share our work with you and your followers .   I would like to share the first part of a two part post: Let Us Love God As We Ought And As He Deserves - Part I (Originally posted February 17, 2020) [What follows is a slightly modified version of a presentation I made to the St. Thomas Aquinas Chapter of The Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic in Charlottesville, Virginia on  Saturday September 8, 2018]   (Photo©Michael Seagriff) God loves each and every one of us and is waiting for and thirsting for each of us to love Him in return. My comments today and the reason I wrote and edited Stirring Slumbering Souls – 250 Eucharistic Reflections and I Thirst for Your Love is to address what I believe are the two most pressing problems in our Church today – the loss of the sense of the sacred in our churc...

[What follows is a slightly modified version of a presentation I made to the St. Thomas Aquinas Chapter of The Lay Fraternities of St. Dominic in Charlottesville, Virginia on  Saturday September 8, 2018]   (Photo©Michael Seagriff) God loves each and every one of us and is waiting for and thirsting for each of us to love Him in return. My comments today and the reason I wrote and edited Stirring Slumbering Souls – 250 Eucharistic Reflections and I Thirst for Your Love is to address what I believe are the two most pressing problems in our Church today – the loss of the sense of the sacred in our churches AND the lack of belief in, and reverence for, our Eucharistic Lord! I am a simple sinful man – too simple perhaps for some of you and no doubt more sinful than I ought to be. Just ask my wife and daughter. Second thought don’t. But if God were to wait for only sinless and intellectual people to speak of Him, the world would be quite silent n...

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 to...

(Photo©Michael Seagriff) The sense of the Sacred has been absent from far too many of our Churches for some time now. The lack of belief in the Real Presence among Catholics today, as noted by the recent PEW research, is intrinsically tied to that lack of Sacredness. Our eyes and ears will not deceive us. As you enter Church, look around; listen. Does what you do, see and hear demonstrate that those in attendance actually believe that they in the Presence of the living Christ? Is there much difference in the conduct you witness within the nave of our Churches from that you experience when in secular, fraternal, sporting and entertainment venues? Is this how you experience Mass? THIS insulting irreverence to our loving Lord must end. We must address this issue NOW! We can no longer wait for our Bishops and priests to address this pressing issue.  Our Churches are intended to be unlike any other earthly edifice - they house the Son of God. Everyone who enters must co...