Forum on Christianity and Spirituality
December 4, 2025, 7:30 p.m. CST Topic: Our Original Face: The Immaculate Conception by Carla Mae Streeter, OP See https://shalomplace.com/inetmin/forum.html for more information and registration.
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Message of the Day
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Each of us has two natures: one, a hard outer husk,
which is an old nature; the other an inner softness, which constitutes our true self. The outer husk is that part of us that, while we are flesh-center beings, is used to protect ourselves from the harshness of our world. Before we come to Christ, that “husk” protects the inner softness, which otherwise cannot endure the struggles of life in this hostile, devil-filled world. But when we come to Christ, the husk must be broken and die. We cannot rely on the way of the flesh to protect us; we must
become Christ-centered. - Francis
Frangipane
How are you being called to let go of that “hard outer
husk” and be transformed in Christ?
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Readings of the Day
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Daniel 2:31-45
Daniel 3:57, 58, 59, 60,
61 Luke 21:5-11 When some were talking about the Temple, remarking how it was adorned with fine stonework and votive offerings, Jesus said, ‘All these things you are staring at now – the time will come when not a single stone will be left on another: everything will be destroyed.’ And they put to him this question: ‘Master,’ they said ‘when will this happen, then, and what sign
will there be that this is about to take place?’
‘Take care not to be deceived,’ he said ‘because many will come using my name and saying, “I am he” and, “The time is near at hand.” Refuse to join them. And when you hear of wars and revolutions, do not be frightened, for this is something that must happen but the end is not so soon.’ Then he said to them, ‘Nation will fight against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be great earthquakes
and plagues and famines here and there; there will be fearful sights and great signs from
heaven.’ USCCB lectionary
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Reflection on the Scripture
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“The great God has revealed to the king what shall be in the future; this is exactly what you dreamed, and its meaning is sure.” —Daniel 2:45 Nebuchadnezzar had a vision representing the destruction of the Babylonian, Median, Persian, and Hellenistic empires (Dn 2:31ff). Hundreds of years of world history were reduced to nothing. Jesus expressed a similar revelation concerning the Temple. He prophesied that the five-hundred-year-old Temple would be utterly destroyed, with not one stone left on a stone (Lk 21:6). This prophecy was fulfilled in detail in 70 A.D., less than forty years after Jesus announced this
shocking revelation. There’s no security in military power, the governments of the world, or the most prodigious wealth. There’s no security in social security or even in religious organizations. We must pray with the psalmist: “Only in God be at rest, my soul, for from Him comes my hope. He only is my Rock and my Salvation, my Stronghold; I shall not be disturbed”’ (Ps 62:6-7). We
must totally give our lives to Jesus. Thus we will “build a secure foundation for the future, for receiving that life which is life indeed” (1 Tm 6:19). In His Word, the Lord promises: “The God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed or delivered up to another people...and it shall stand forever” (Dn 2:44). We can count on having nothing to count on but the Word of God. Prayer: “I love You, O Lord, my Strength, O
Lord, my Rock, my Fortress!” (Ps 18:2-3) Promise: “But the stone that struck the statue became a great mountain and filled the whole earth.” —Dn 2:35 Presentation Ministries
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Spiritual Reading
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Dilexi Te: On the Human and Divine Love of the Heart of Jesus Christ, by Pope Francis (completed by Pope Leo XIII), 2025.
https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/encyclicals/documents/20241024-enciclica-dilexit-nos.html
CHAPTER ONE
THE HEART UNITES THE FRAGMENTS
17. At the same time, the heart makes all authentic bonding possible, since a relationship not shaped by the heart is incapable of overcoming the fragmentation caused by individualism. Two monads may approach
one another, but they will never truly connect. A society dominated by narcissism and self-centredness will increasingly become “heartless”. This will lead in turn to the “loss of desire”, since as other persons disappear from the horizon we find ourselves trapped within walls of our own making, no longer capable of healthy relationships. [14] As a result, we also become incapable of openness to God. As Heidegger puts it, to be open to the divine we need to build a “guest house”.
[15] 18. We see, then, that in the heart of each person there is a mysterious connection between self-knowledge and openness to others, between the encounter with one’s personal uniqueness and the willingness to give oneself to others. We become ourselves only to the extent that we acquire the ability to acknowledge others, while only those who can acknowledge and accept themselves are then able to encounter
others. 19. The heart is also capable of unifying and harmonizing our personal history, which may seem hopelessly fragmented, yet is the place where everything can make sense. The Gospel tells us this in speaking of Our Lady, who saw things with the heart. She was able to dialogue with the things she experienced by pondering them in her heart, treasuring their memory and viewing them in a greater perspective. The best expression of how the
heart thinks is found in the two passages in Saint Luke’s Gospel that speak to us of how Mary “treasured (synetérei) all these things and pondered (symbállousa) them in her heart” (cf. Lk 2:19 and 51). The Greek verb symbállein, “ponder”, evokes the image of putting two things together (“symbols”) in one’s mind and reflecting on them, in a dialogue with oneself. In Luke 2:51, the verb used is dietérei, which has the sense of “keep”. What Mary “kept” was not
only her memory of what she had seen and heard, but also those aspects of it that she did not yet understand; these nonetheless remained present and alive in her memory, waiting to be “put together” in her heart. |
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