Message of 3-26-09
Published: Mon, 03/23/09
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
- - -
MESSAGE OF THE DAY
Going out to another in love means risk - the risks of
self-disclosure, rejection, misunderstanding. It means grief, too,
from the temporary separations, psychological or physical, to the
final separation of death. Whoever insists on personal security and
safety as the nonnegotiable conditions of life will not be willing
to pay love's price or find love's enrichments. Whoever shuts
himself or herself up in the cocoon of self-protective defenses,
keeping others always at a safe distance and holding on tightly to
personal possessions and privacy, will find the price of love far
too high and will remain forever a prisoner of fear.
John Powell S.J., "The Secret of Staying in Love"
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Ex 32:7-14; Ps 106:19-20, 21-22, 23; Jn 5:31-47
R. (4a) Remember us, O Lord, as you favor your people.
Our fathers made a calf in Horeb
and adored a molten image;
They exchanged their glory
for the image of a grass-eating bullock.
They forgot the God who had saved them,
who had done great deeds in Egypt,
Wondrous deeds in the land of Ham,
terrible things at the Red Sea.
Then he spoke of exterminating them,
but Moses, his chosen one,
Withstood him in the breach
to turn back his destructive wrath.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
GOSPEL MEDITATION
from "Praying the Daily Gospels," by Philip St. Romain:
- http://www.liguori.org/productdetails.cfm?PC=6614
- John 5: 31-47 (More on Jesus' credentials)
When Jesus claimed to be doing God's work, it was only natural
that the Jews should ask him for proof that this was actually true.
Crackpots and false messiahs abounded then, as now. Jesus points
to the testimony of Moses and of John the Baptist, the Scriptures,
and the works that he has done as evidence that his claims are not
unfounded.
- What reasoning supports your faith in Jesus? How can you deepen
your understanding of who Jesus is?
- What does human approval mean to you? How important is it in
your involvement in the Church?
- Pray for the grace to be more detached from the need for human
approval.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
PRAYING WITH SCRIPTURE (Carmelite Method)
A. Introduction: settling in, relaxing in awareness of God's
presence.
B. Reading the text slowly, prayerfully.
C. Meditation: imaginative representation of the material; reflection
on the meaning of the material and its application to one's life.
D. Affective prayer: conversation with God, attentive to sharing
feelings awakened in meditation. Prayer of petition, thanksgiving,
remorse.
E. Resting in God in silent loving awareness, if moved to do so.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
NOTES FROM A CLASSICAL WORK
- "Imitation of Christ," by Thomas A. Kempis
The Disciple
In whom shall I put my faith, Lord? In whom but You? You are the
truth
which does not deceive and cannot be deceived. Every man, on the
other
hand, is a liar, weak, unstable, and likely to err, especially in
words, so that one ought not to be too quick to believe even that
which seems, on the face of it, to sound true. How wise was Your
warning to beware of men; that a man's enemies are those of his
own
household; that we should not believe if anyone says: "Behold he
is
here, or behold he is there."
-------- Bk. 3, Chapter 45
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
You can help to "grow" this newsletter by forwarding copies to
friends and family members. Subscribe info is listed below.
Thanks for your support.
- - - -
Please help support Heartland Center's Internet ministries:
- For more info on tax-deductible donations, see
http://shalomplace.com/seed/donations.html.
Thanks for your consideration!
--------------------------------------
- - -
* Web Archive: http://www.aweber.com/z/article/?dailyseed
* RSS: http://www.aweber.com/z/rss/?dailyseed