In this week between the Solemnities of Corpus Christi and the Most Sacred Heart, every Catholic ought to be especially aware of his or her participation in the work of salvation and, in communion with Jesus Christ and the whole Church, strive to offer oneself to the Father in reparation for sin.
Should a vacation or a summer activity ever pull us away from Sunday Mass or daily prayer, we then would find ourselves worshipping the idol-gods of our own making.
by Fr. Jeff Loseke Devotionally speaking, Pentecost marks the fulfillment of the original “novena” prayed by the early Church in anticipation of the promised Gift of the Holy Spirit. After Jesus’ Resurrection, He spoke repeatedly to His Apostles about how He would send the Holy Spirit to remain with them after He ascended into heavenly glory. The Acts of the Apostles recounts how Mary, the Apostles, and other disciples returned to the upper room and remained there in prayer and supplication. The total number of days between Ascension Thursday and Pentecost Sunday is nine. This is the reason the Church’s…
As we approach the 100th anniversary of Our Lady’s apparitions in Fatima, then, we recommit ourselves to personal prayer and to doing penance so that all souls, especially those most in need of God’s mercy, will be saved.
This world is a battleground, and we, the Church Militant, are called to fight evil – whether on a societal level or in the deepest recesses of our own souls – that we might grow in union with God and join Him for all eternity in heaven.
Do you watch all the ads with the lovey dovey smiles and the flirtatious eyes, and try to remember what that felt like? Do you recall the giddiness of being young fresh and so in love that even folding socks together was fun?
Despite our best intentions, by their very force the material obligations of the Christmas season can push the more spiritual Advent activities aside.
Sometimes I wonder whether God laughs or cries as He watches us taking notes on other families. Does He roll His eyes as He watches us hold onto every off-handed remark that offers any clue about their daily routine, and then shake His head as we rush home to regroup?
Why not make this Holy Week the greatest one yet? Don’t worry. You needn’t drop everything and spend the week in a monastery (lovely thought, but not practical for most of us). Instead, spend some time meditating on the seven last words of Christ. Easter is seven days from now – just enough time to contemplate each. But if you read this later in the week, begin wherever you find yourself. In the interest of space, my words are few, meant only to inspire further contemplation on The Word.
Have you given anything up this Lent? It seems everywhere I turn this year, I have found recommendations about “doing” things for Lent. I’ve seen flyers taped to church doors, I’ve received videos from Catholic apostolates, and I’ve heard discussions via Catholic radio. They don’t suggest that we not attempt a physical discipline; but while they encourage us to engage in spiritual reading, help the poor, perform the corporal and spiritual works for mercy or spend more time in prayer, they say virtually nothing about restraining our appetites in any way. This “do something positive” trend seems to have increased in recent years….
