Weekend Edition - A Daily Spiritual Seed
Published: Fri, 09/10/10
- 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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SPIRITUAL GROWTH RESOURCE OF THE MONTH
"Growing in Inner Freedom: A Guide for Today," by Philip St. Romain
- reprint of 1986 best-seller
Free eBook - for iPhone, iPod, iPad and other ebook readers.
Also available as paperback book and pdf file download.
40 ways to become more inwardly free! Using Jesus Christ as a model
of spiritual freedom, and citing lessons found in the Scriptures,
"Growing in Inner Freedom" contains 40 time-tested practices,
including: Living by Faith, Don't Worry Uselessly, Count Your
Blessings, Practice Forgiveness, Go the Extra Mile and many more.
- see http://shalomplace.com/view/gifview.html for sample chapters
and order links.
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WEEKEND READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Saturday: 1 Cor 10:14-22; Ps 116:12-13, 17-18; Lk 6:43-49
Sunday: Ex 32:7-11, 13-14; Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 17, 19; 1 Tm
1:12-17; Lk 15:1-32
R. (Lk 15:18) I will rise and go to my father.
Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
A clean heart create for me, O God,
and a steadfast spirit renew within me.
Cast me not out from your presence,
and your Holy Spirit take not from me.
O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth shall proclaim your praise.
My sacrifice, O God, is a contrite spirit;
a heart contrite and humbled, O God, you will not spurn.
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THEOLOGY NOTE OF THE WEEK
- Heaven
Heaven is the dwelling place of God and for those who go there a
place of everlasting bliss.
Scripture implies three heavens, since "the third heaven" is
revealed to exist (2 Cor. 12:2). It is logical that a third heaven
cannot exist without a first and second. Scripture does not
describe specifically the first and second heaven. The first,
however, apparently refers to the atmospheric heavens of the fowl
(Hosea 2:18) and clouds (Dan. 7:13). The second heaven may be the
area of the stars and planets (Gen. 1:14-18). It is the abode of
all supernatural angelic beings. The third heaven is the abode of
the triune God. Its location is unrevealed. (See Matt. 23:34-37;
Luke 10:20; and Rev. 22:2, 20-27).
- http://www.carm.org/h
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SAINT OF THE WEEK
- St. John Chrysostom - (?? - d.407): September 13
The ambiguity and intrigue surrounding John, the great preacher
(his name means "golden-mouthed") from Antioch, are characteristic
of the life of any great man in a capital city. Brought to
Constantinople after a dozen years of priestly service in Syria,
John found himself the reluctant victim of an imperial ruse to make
him bishop in the greatest city of the empire. Ascetic, unimposing
but dignified, and troubled by stomach ailments from his desert
days as a monk, John became a bishop under the cloud of imperial
politics.
If his body was weak, his tongue was powerful. The content of his
sermons, his exegesis of Scripture, were never without a point.
Sometimes the point stung the high and mighty. Some sermons lasted
up to two hours.
His lifestyle at the imperial court was not appreciated by many
courtiers. He offered a modest table to episcopal sycophants
hanging around for imperial and ecclesiastical favors. John
deplored the court protocol that accorded him precedence before the
highest state officials. He would not be a kept man.
His zeal led him to decisive action. Bishops who bribed their way
into office were deposed. Many of his sermons called for concrete
steps to share wealth with the poor. The rich did not appreciate
hearing from John that private property existed because of Adam's
fall from grace any more than married men liked to hear that they
were bound to marital fidelity just as much as their wives were.
When it came to justice and charity, John acknowledged no double
standards.
Aloof, energetic, outspoken, especially when he became excited in
the pulpit, John was a sure target for criticism and personal
trouble. He was accused of gorging himself secretly on rich wines
and fine foods. His faithfulness as spiritual director to the rich
widow, Olympia, provoked much gossip attempting to prove him a
hypocrite where wealth and chastity were concerned. His actions
taken against unworthy bishops in Asia Minor were viewed by other
ecclesiastics as a greedy, uncanonical extension of his authority.
Two prominent personages who personally undertook to discredit John
were Theophilus, Archbishop of Alexandria, and Empress Eudoxia.
Theophilus feared the growth in importance of the Bishop of
Constantinople and took occasion to charge John with fostering
heresy. Theophilus and other angered bishops were supported by
Eudoxia. The empress resented his sermons contrasting gospel values
with the excesses of imperial court life. Whether intended or not,
sermons mentioning the lurid Jezebel (see 1 Kings 9:1--21:23) and
impious Herodias (see Mark 6:17-29) were associated with the
empress, who finally did manage to have John exiled. He died in
exile in 407.
- http://www.americancatholic.org/features/saints/saint.aspx?id=1137
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BOOK OF THE WEEK
"A Marginal Jew: Rethinking the Historical Jesus: The Roots of the
Problem and the Person, Vol. 1 [Hardcover]," by John P. Meier.
Anchor Bible Publ., 1991.
-
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0385264259/ref=noism/christianspiritu/
Why even bother trying to learn about the historical Jesus? Why try
where so many others have given up or gotten bogged down in
disagreement? In his great, academic book, Fr. John Meier recalls
Plato: "The unexamined life is not worth living." For the
Christian, some things are sacred, but nothing about Yeshu the
"marginal" Jew is forbidden in a proper historical examination. And
Fr. Meier does just that in this, the first of three volumes. Was
Jesus an illegitimate child? Could he read? Did he have brothers
and sisters? Why was he "marginal"? What was his early life like?
The scarcity of the evidence can at first be discouraging, but Fr.
Meier takes us through the centuries of scholarship and the best
available modern evidence to paint us a picture of the young son of
Mary and Joseph. Faithless and faithful alike may be unhappy with
Meier's conclusions, but his arguments are well-researched and
presented. You can read the text and skip the chapter endnotes for
a decent academic presentation, or you can delve into the notes and
branch off into the cutting edge discussion on the Jesus of history.
Most interesting to me was the fact that the book bears the
Imprimatur of Bp. Sheridan, but does not have the Nihil Obstat, or
the approval of the Church's censor office. Normally the two go
together. Fr. Meier's message may not be popular among modern
Christians, Catholic or otherwise, but he's not been censured
either. It's a testimony the the impeccability of his scholarship
and the validity of his message: The historical Jesus is not the
Jesus of faith. He is also not the "real" Jesus, irrecoverable now
after 2000 years. He is simply the Jesus that we can recover from
"purely historical sources and arguments."
- by Mark Lees, Amazon.com book reviewer
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
A variety of topics are under discussion.
ObamaNation - Religion and Culture forum.
The God dimension of experience - Christian Spirituality Issues
forum.
Isha Yoga experience - Transformative Experiences forum.
- see http://shalomplace.org/eve/forums for this and hundreds of
other discussions.
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AFFILIATE WEB SITES (please give them a visit)
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: supporting those who served and who suffer
from PTSD.
http://serenityofthemind.com/default.html
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
Institute for Women's Spiritual Dynamics: holistic, flexible,
sensible Christian spirituality for women.
http://www.womensspiritualdynamics.com/
SeeScapes. Picturing the deeper dimensions of our spirituality.
http://www.seescapes.com
(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
Magis Center of Faith and Reason
- http://magisreasonfaith.org/
You may have heard or read recently of the physicist Stephen
Hawking's contention (in his new book) that the origin of the
universe can be explained without reference to God. This has
caused quite a stir on the Internet, prompting a vigorous debate
concerning what Christianity actually teaches about creation.
This web site features teaching by Jesuit Father Robert Spitzer,
who offers a response to Hawking. Take a few minutes to view the
Youtube video, or puruse the links with fact sheets and other
apologetic material. It'll do your mind some good, I'm sure.
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JOKE OF THE WEEK
- Kids and church
A little boy was attending his first wedding. After the service,
his cousin asked him,
"How many women can a man marry?"
"Sixteen," the boy responded. His cousin was amazed that he had an
answer so quickly.
"How do you know that?"
"Easy," the little boy said.
"All you have to do is add it up, like the pastor said,
4 better, 4 worse, 4 richer, 4 poorer."
After a church service on Sunday morning, a young boy suddenly
announced to his mother,
"Mom, I've decided to become a minister when I grow up."
"That's okay with us, but what made you decide that?"
"Well," said the little boy,
"I have to go to church on Sunday anyway, and I figure it will be
more fun to stand up and yell than to sit and listen."
- Thanks, Bill
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