Weekend Edition - A Daily Spiritual Seed
Published: Tue, 01/26/10
- readings, teachings, references and reviews -
Contents:
- Ad - Amazon.com gift cards
- Spiritual Growth Resource of the Month
- Weekend Readings
- Theology Note of the Week
- Saint of the Week
- Book of the Week
- Shalom Place Discussion Board
- Personal Spiritual Guidance
- Affiliate Web Sites
- Website of the Week
- Joke of the Week
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Amazon.com gift cards
- http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00067L6TQ/?tag=christianspiritu
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SPIRITLIFE Enrichment Series
Audio presentations (60 hrs.) and handout materials from the
two-year spiritual formation program offered at Heartland Center
for Spirituality in Great Bend, KS. Preview samples available.
Opportunity to purchase individual classes, courses, or the entire
series.
- see http://shalomplace.com/inetmin/spiritlife/index.html
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WEEKEND READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Saturday: 2 Sm 12:1-7a, 10-17; Ps. 51:12-13, 14-15, 16-17;
Mk 4:35-41
Sunday: Jer 1:4-5, 17-19; 1 Cor 12:31--13:13; Lk 4:21-30
R. I will sing of your salvation.
In you, O LORD, I take refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
In your justice rescue me, and deliver me;
incline your ear to me, and save me.
Be my rock of refuge,
a stronghold to give me safety,
for you are my rock and my fortress.
O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked.
For you are my hope, O Lord;
my trust, O God, from my youth.
On you I depend from birth;
from my mother's womb you are my strength.
My mouth shall declare your justice,
day by day your salvation.
O God, you have taught me from my youth,
and till the present I proclaim your wondrous deeds.
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THEOLOGY NOTE OF THE WEEK
- The Fall
The fall is that event in the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve
disobeyed the command of God and ate of The Tree of the Knowledge
of Good and Evil (Gen. 2 and 3). Since Adam represented all of
mankind, when He sinned, all of mankind fell with Him (Rom. 5:12).
- http://www.carm.org/dictionary.htm
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SAINT OF THE WEEK
- St. Blase: February 3
We know more about the devotion to St. Blase by Christians around
the world than we know about the saint himself. His feast is
observed as a holy day in some Eastern Churches. The Council of
Oxford, in 1222, prohibited servile labor in England on Blase's
feast day. The Germans and Slavs hold him in special honor and for
decades many United States Catholics have sought the annual St.
Blase blessing for their throats.
We know that Bishop Blase was martyred in his episcopal city of
Sebastea, Armenia, in 316. The legendary Acts of St. Blase were
written 400 years later. According to them Blase was a good bishop,
working hard to encourage the spiritual and physical health of his
people. Although the Edict of Toleration (311), granting freedom of
worship in the Roman Empire, was already five years old,
persecution still raged in Armenia. Blase was apparently forced to
flee to the back country. There he lived as a hermit in solitude
and prayer, but made friends with the wild animals. One day a group
of hunters seeking wild animals for the amphitheater stumbled upon
Blase's cave. They were first surprised and then frightened. The
bishop was kneeling in prayer surrounded by patiently waiting
wolves, lions and bears.
As the hunters hauled Blase off to prison, the legend has it, a
mother came with her young son who had a fish bone lodged in his
throat. At Blase's command the child was able to cough up the bone.
Agricolaus, governor of Cappadocia, tried to persuade Blase to
sacrifice to pagan idols. The first time Blase refused, he was
beaten. The next time he was suspended from a tree and his flesh
torn with iron combs or rakes. (English wool combers, who used
similar iron combs, took Blase as their patron. They could easily
appreciate the agony the saint underwent.) Finally he was beheaded.
- http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/Saints/saint.aspx?id=1280
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BOOK OF THE WEEK
"In Due Season: A Catholic Life," by Paul Wilkes. Jossey-Bass.
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http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0470423331/ref=noism/christianspiritu/
This book is termed a confessional memoir because it portrays the
various shards, scraps, and fragments of the author's life. He
found that most of these events were gateways to grace, but some
were mere tin idols. Wilkes believes that he has changed
dramatically since childhood, and yet he seems to be the same
person.
He was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1938, and attended St. Benedict's
and then Cathedral Latin School, where he felt called to become a
Maryknoll priest. But the sweet attraction he felt to "sex"
distracted him from his first fervor. He often got into troubles in
school, but after reading Merton's "Seven Story Mountain" underwent
a remarkable change in his life.
Wilkes tells of the death of his mother killed in a car accident
when he was driving her to the doctor. For a while he was an angry
young man in college, doing some factory work by night, and just
getting by in his studies. His relief at this time was booze. He
graduated and then joined the navy during the Cuban crisis, fell in
love with a Methodist missionary, and became a teetototaler. In a
second marriage he had a family and took on new responsiblities by
being a good father and husband.
Eventually Wilkes moved to New York and became a successful
journalist. "A sense of purpose conspired to focus me as never
before in my life as a writer, a clarity as to what to write about,
and a way to write about it." The IT was the sights, the smells of
Catholicism which captured his imagination and pierced his heart
far more deeply than the Church's dogmas, doctrines, laws, and
prohibitions. He came to want to believe and found this more
attractive that having to believe.
As Wilkes describes his own life, he offers others both absolution
and hope.
(Thanks to Sr. Irene Hartman OP for this review.)
Make the Christian Spirituality Bookstore your starting point for
online shopping at Amazon.com. You can buy books, cds, videotapes,
software, appliances and many other products at discount prices.
As Amazon.com affiliate, we are paid a small fee for purchases
originating from our web site. Every little bit helps!
http://shalomplace.com/books/index.html
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- PERSONAL SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE -
Need a companion for the spiritual journey? We have several
wonderful people ready to help, using email and telephone
conferences to bridge the miles.
- Now providing -
Consultations: this option is best for short-term guidance
pertaining to a specific issue.
Spiritual Direction: ongoing relationship with a spiritual director
to become more attuned to God's presence in all of life.
See http://shalomplace.com/direction/
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SHALOM PLACE DISCUSSION BOARDS
Topics under discussion include:
Liberal Media - Religion and Culture forum
Enlightenment and Christian Spirituality - Christian Spirituality
Issues forum.
- http://shalomplace.org/eve/forums
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AFFILIATE WEB SITES (please give them a visit)
The Ark: Providing a variety of scripture and lectionary study
resources.
http://www.theark1.com
Kyrie Places of Pilgrimmage and Renewal.
http://www.kyrie.com/places/index.htm
Contemplative Rudder: "In the midst of Consecrated Silence'
atmospherics ... a Rudder!
http://www.contemplativerudder.com/
Inner Explorations: a vast array of spirituality resources for the
mature Christian.
http://innerexplorations.com
The Sanctuary Foundation for Prayer: resources for spiritual growth.
http://fromholyground.org/index.htm
SeeScapes. Picturing the deeper dimensions of our spirituality.
http://www.seescapes.com
Temenos Catholic Worker: support for homeless youth in Polk Street
neighborhood, San Francisco
http://www.temenos.org/
Contemplative Ministries of the Pacific Northwest: teaching and
support on contemplative practice
http://www.prayeroftheheart.com
Heartland Center for Spirituality (retreat center in central
Kansas).
http://heartlandspirituality.org/index.html
Emanuella House of Prayer: a place for prayer and silence in
British Columbia
http://members.axion.net/~massf/
Serenity of the Mind: supportint those who served and who suffer
from PTSD.
http://serenityofthemind.com/default.html
(Reach other people who have a similar interest in Christian
spirituality. Simply publish a link to Daily Spiritual Seed--
http://shalomplace.com/seed --on a prominent place on your web site
and we will reciprocate with a weekly link to your site in the
newsletter. Contact the Editor when you're ready to begin.)
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WEB SITE OF THE WEEK
Renovare'
- http://www.renovare.us/
"Renovaré is a nonprofit Christian organization headquartered in
Englewood, Colorado, and active worldwide. We seek to resource,
fuel, model, and advocate more intentional living and spiritual
formation among Christians and those wanting a deeper connection
with God. A foundational presence in the spiritual formation
movement for over 20 years, Renovaré is Christian in commitment,
ecumenical in breadth, and international in scope."
- from the website
This website introduces you to the work of Renovare' as well as
making available some of their resources and training. The
ministry team includes a number of well-known authors and
lecturers, including Richard Foster, Dallas Willard, and Emilie
Griffin.
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JOKE OF THE WEEK
- The Confessional
An Irishman goes into the confessional box after years of being
away from the Church. He is amazed to find a fully equipped bar
with Guinness on tap. On the other wall is a dazzling array of the
finest cigars and chocolates.
Then the priest comes in. Excitedly, the Irishman
begins...."Father, forgive me, for it's been a very long time since
I've been to confession, but I must first admit that the
confessional box is much more inviting than it used to be."
The priest replies, "Get out. You're on my side."
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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!
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