We know that every Mass is worth as much as the sacrifice of our Lord’s life, suffering and death, and so we too are invited, even empty handed and hungry to sit down and eat not only with the Lord, but of the Lord. He is our Good Shepherd who provides abundantly and leads us by safe paths to be with Him all the days of our lives.
Read MoreThe complaining disciples of John, remind us how easy it is to come to conclusions about someone and to feel jealousy when we think the other one is getting something that we might deserve. But in his humility, John was making the way for Christ and his joy was complete. John was the best man, Jesus was the groom and the Church, his mystical body born from his side, would be his bride.
Read Morewe have all heard that we are to love God with our whole heart and to love our neighbors as ourselves. But how do we go about this? He is calling each of us to look deep inside ourselves to ask ourselves who we are. And so we must. We will find things we like about ourselves, and some things we would rather not bring to the surface.
Read More“This place is holy,
it is good to be here.”
Set apart,
consecrated,
an aura rests upon it,
a rarified sense of ‘other.’
There are no outsiders with God. As I have prayed and ministered to post-abortive women, I have witnessed the mighty hand of God restore dignity and hope to those who thought of themselves as outsiders not worthy of God’s mercy or deserving of new life.
Read MoreWhy should anyone even think that praying is a battle? Isn’t praying about communicating with God, and or with the saints? Why would there be a battle? Prayer is a battle against our own wounded nature, the distractions of the world, and Satan. We rely on God to help us pray. A loving perseverance, firm in the hope of our salvation, is essential.
Read MoreTrees of grace
bearing fruit,
wisdom peers from the cave,
into the vastness of the desert.
All things are recapitulated in Christ. All things become one in Him. All things are made new. All through the power of His cross. Time and eternity are juxtaposed in the prayer. Each entity is a pair. There are like verbal crosses. They number five as the wounds of Christ.
Read More"Father, into your hands I commend my spirit."
"Pater, in manus tuas, commendo spiritum meum."
"At the ninth hour Jesus called out in a loud voice: It is finished. His head dropped forward and He died."
"It is finished."
"Consummatum est."
"So that the Scriptures might be fulfilled, Jesus said,
‘I thirst’."
"sitio"
"Darkness covered the whole earth."
My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
"Eloi, Eloi, lama Sabacthani"
"Deus meus, ut guid dereliquiste me?"
"Standing at the cross of Jesus was his mother.
"Woman behold your son, son behold your mother."
"Mulier, ecce filius tuus, ecce mater tua."
"Jesus, remember me, when you come into your kingdom."
“Amen, I say to you, this day you will be with me in Paradise."
"Amen dico tibi, hodie mecum eris Paradiso."
Many years ago in a country far across the big waters, in a small village in the center of Africa lived a Mystic who was very beloved to the people. The children loved to gather around her dwelling and listen to her stories. The elders and tribal chiefs would often consult her for her wisdom and guidance.
Read More"It was the sixth hour and they crucified him."
"Father, forgive them, they know not what they do."
"Pater, di mitte illis, non enim sciunt, quid faciunt"
I pray the Last Words of Jesus using the Seven Dolors Rosary. The form of the Seven Dolors Rosary lends itself very well to the prayer. It is the trellis upon which the prayer grows.
Read MorePeople cling to every syllable of word spoken by the dying. These words are remembered, repeated, treasured, and passed down in families. The Gospels have done this for the Church. Those who stood at the foot of the cross and heard the last words of Our Lord clung to them and remembered. Within these last words of Our Lord was a treasure.
Read MoreWe must never forget that the baptized are all called to imitate Christ according to their state in life. Throughout scripture we find that Jesus taught poverty of spirit by his life, his words and his works. It is not incidental that Jesus chose to be born in a stable in Bethlehem and to end his life bereft of all things of this world by his death on a cross.
Read MoreOctober 20th, 2012, the solemnity of our Holy Founder, St. Paul of the Cross, was a glorious celebration here at the monastery, as we commemorated the 15th anniversary of the foundation of the Passionist Oblates, and received 16 new members into the Oblate formation program.
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