Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation

Photo©Michael Seagriff 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. Bernard "O Jesus..., how consoling You are to those who invoke You! How good You are to those who seek You! What will You not be to those who find You! Only he who has felt it can know what it is to languish in love for thee, O Jesus!" (From Sermons on the Canticles )

Thank you Allison Gingras  (Reconciled To You) and Elizabeth Riordan ( Theology Is A Verb ) for hosting  Worth Revisiting . Be sure to stop by every Wednesday . You will enjoy your visits. I offer this reflection: Eucharistic Reflection - The Blessed Sacrament - Magnet of Souls (Originally posted on March 18, 2014) (Source: Wikimedia Commons ) “…the Blessed Sacrament is the magnet of souls. There is a mutual attraction between Jesus and the souls of men. Mary drew Him down from heaven. Our nature attracted Him rather than the nature of angels. Our misery caused Him to stoop to our lowness. Even our sins had a sort of attraction for the abundance of His mercy and the predilection of His grace. Our repentance wins Him to us. Our love makes earth a paradise to Him; and our souls lure Him as gold lures the miser, with irresistible fascination. This is the attraction on our side. On the other hand, He draws us to Himself by grace, by example, by power, by ...

"Each time we go to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, we touch His heart with our faith. Each Holy Hour we make in His Presence, each Mass we attend and Eucharist we receive, releases power and grace upon us, our families, our parishes, our country, our world. We pay thousands of dollar to doctors and psychiatrists to heal our bodies and minds, yet how often do we make a visit to the Blessed Sacrament, where for free we can receive physical, emotional and spiritual healing from our Divine Physician?  (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) A mystic who devoted her life to the Blessed Sacrament and whom the Pope beatified some years ago, Dina Belanger, said that if we really knew and understood Who was residing in the tabernacles of our Churches, we would have to have armed guards posted to the entrances to keep the crowds from overrunning the buildings. (Joan Carter McHugh from Feast of Faith )

After reading a recent syndicated column in my Diocesan newspaper, I could not remain silent. The columnist, Father Ron Rolheiser, a well-known Catholic priest and theologian, criticized a brother priest who had had the courage to preach the Truth. (Image Source: Wikimedia Commons ) Some background first.  For decades, observers have decried the absence of quality catechesis within the Catholic Church – this despite the universal recognition that many Catholics do not know or fully understand their Faith. Several respected polls have concluded that as many as seventy-five per cent of those professing to be Catholic do not attend Sunday Mass on any regular basis, if at all. The number of non-attendees may be even greater than this reported percentage. The salvation of its members’ souls is the Church’s primary mission. Yet rarely is the necessity of attending and participating in Sunday Mass ever addressed. When was the last time you heard a homily on the ...

(Images Source: Wikimedia Commons ) Rarely do we hear anything about the salvation of souls - an oddity since that is the sole reason for which the Catholic Church exists.  Do you know what I wish? Listen here .

Thank you Allison Gingras  (Reconciled To You) and Elizabeth Riordan ( Theology Is A Verb) for hosting  Worth Revisiting . Be sure to stop by every Wednesday . You will enjoy your visits. I have decided to share this post: Imagine God Embracing You While You Pray!  (Originally posted August 15, 2016) (Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) Nearly a year ago, I shared a brief article on prayer – a gift I received while on retreat at the Abbey of Genesee . That post was well-received. You can read it here. If you read that simple reflection, you will understand what a blessing it was for me to return to that special place a few weeks ago and to hear Father John Denburger, O.C.S.O. discuss prayer once again.  Father did not disappoint. Underlying all prayer, he told us, is God’s decisive love for each of us. During the course of his presentation, this soft-spoken and insightful teacher drew a distinction between two types of prayer: main...

(Image source: Wikimedia Commons ) “Our union with Christ in the Eucharist must be expressed in the truth of our lives today – in our actions, in our behavior, in our life-style and in our relationships with others. For each one of us the Eucharist is a call to ever greater effort, so that we may live as true followers of Jesus: truthful in our speech, generous in our deeds, concerned, respectful of the dignity and rights of all persons – whatever their rank or income – self-sacrificing, fair and just, kind, compassionate and self-controlled…The truth of our union with Jesus Christ in the Eucharist is tested by whether or not we really love our fellow men and women; it is tested by how we treat others; especially our families…, by whether or not we try to be reconciled with our enemies, or whether or not we forgive those who hurt us or offend us.” (St John Paul II from Homily in Phoenix Park, September 29, 1979)