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Few souls understand what God would accomplish in them if they were to abandon themselves unreservedly to Him and if they were to allow His grace to mold them accordingly.
- Ignatius of Loyola
(Unreserved abandonment to God . . . Let this be your prayer.) |
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Is 38:1-6, 21-22, 7-8; Isaiah 38:10-12, 16; Mt 12:1-8
R. You saved my life, O
Lord; I shall not die.
Once I said,
"In the noontime of life I must depart!
To the gates of the nether world I shall be consigned
for the rest of my years."
I said, "I shall see the LORD no more
in the land of the living.
No longer shall I behold my fellow men
among those who dwell in the
world."
My dwelling, like a shepherd's tent,
is struck down and borne away from me;
You have folded up my life, like a weaver
who severs the last thread.
Those live whom the LORD protects;
yours is the life of my spirit.
You have given me health and life.
USCCB Lectionary
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Matthew 12: 1-8 (God wants mercy)
At this point in Matthew’s Gospel, the Jewish
authorities begin to openly try to trap Jesus and discredit his ministry. Jesus does not accept their accusations of disobedience to the Law, however, reminding them that the mercy of God is the heart of the Law.
- What are some key issues facing the Church today? What are you doing to inform yourself about these issues? How are you expressing your opinions about
the Church?
- How do you generally react when other people confront you for something you’ve done wrong? Why do you respond like this? Is there a better way to respond?
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The Way of Perfection, by Teresa of Avila (1515-1582)
Describes how, by striving always to walk in the love and fear of God, we shall travel safely amid all these temptations.
May His Majesty be pleased to grant us to experience this before He takes us from this life, for it will be
a great thing at the hour of death, when we are going we know not whither, to realize that we shall be judged by One Whom we have loved above all things, and with a passion that makes us entirely forget ourselves. Once our debts have been paid we shall be able to walls in safety. We shall not be going into a foreign land, but into our own country, for it belongs to Him Whom we have loved so truly and Who Himself loves us. For this love of His, besides its other properties, is better than all
earthly affection in that, if we love Him, we are quite sure that He loves us too. Remember, my daughters, the greatness of the gain which comes from this love, and of our loss if we do not possess it, for in that case we shall be delivered into the hands of the tempter, hands so cruel and so hostile to all that is good, and so friendly to all that is evil. - Chapter 40 (Keep in mind that she is writing to sisters in a cloistered contemplative order.)
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