Message of 12-14-07
Published: Sat, 12/08/07
MESSAGE OF THE DAY
Love comes to those who still hope even though they've been
disappointed, to those who still believe even though they've been
betrayed, to those who still love even though they've been hurt
before."
- Anonymous
(Love comes . . . )
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Is 48:17-19; Ps 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6; Mt 11:16-19
R. (see John 8:12) Those who follow you, Lord, will have the light
of life.
Blessed the man who follows not
the counsel of the wicked
Nor walks in the way of sinners,
nor sits in the company of the insolent,
But delights in the law of the LORD
and meditates on his law day and night.
He is like a tree
planted near running water,
That yields its fruit in due season,
and whose leaves never fade.
Whatever he does, prospers.
Not so the wicked, not so;
they are like chaff which the wind drives away.
For the LORD watches over the way of the just,
but the way of the wicked vanishes.
- - -
Advent Reflections
Friday, 2nd week in Advent
"I lead you in the way that you must go. If only you had been alert
to my commandments, your happiness would have been like a river..."
(Isaiah 48: 17-18)
Advent is a time of coming home to our humanness. We sometimes
forget that Jesus chose to be human, that he wanted to be part of
the human community and human love. He joined us out of friendship
because he likes our companionship. When he walked this earth,
happiness flowed like a river through him. He savored a warm slice
of bread, a nap in Peter's boat, children's smiles, a friend's word
of concern for him.
Sometimes its hard to love being human. The days after chemo every
muscle and joint in my body persistently throbs and my hands and
feet cramp unexpectedly. God seems to have left me floundering on
my own and the river of happiness dwindles to a trickle on the dry
bed of pain. But it never fails..some LIGHT enters the darkness to
show me where I am and who I am. The call to experience my
humanness as both agony and ecstasy seems renewed with each dawn.
It's another day. A friend will call, a card will arrive in the
mail, someone will massage my shoulders as they pass my desk and a
tiny wellsprings of joy will gurgle up.
Tomorrow, if you catch the sunrise, pause a moment to thank God for
the human experience this day will bring. Look for agony and
ecstasy following one another as the day unfolds.
(by Sr. Joel Christoph, O.P.)
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ABANDONMENT TO DIVINE PROVIDENCE
- by Jean Pierre de Caussade, S.J.
Do you know better than God?
As he ordains it thus why do you desire it differently? Can His
wisdom
and goodness be deceived? When you find something to be in
accordance with
this divine wisdom and goodness ought you not to conclude that
it must needs
be excellent? Do you imagine you will find peace in resisting
the Almighty?
Is it not, on the contrary, this resistance which we too often
continue
without owning it even to ourselves which is the cause of all
our troubles?
It is only just, therefore, that the soul that is dissatisfied
with the
divine action for each present moment should be punished by
being unable to
find happiness in anything else.
-- Book 1, Chapter 1, Section 7
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PRAYING WITH SCRIPTURE (Contemplative Method)
- adapted by Philip St. Romain from a variety of sources -
A. Select a short passage that you will use for prayer.
B. Settle in by sitting straight (on tailbone, spine erect).
Notice sensations in your body, sounds around you, the manner of
your breathing. Call to mind that God is present in and amidst all
of this.
C. Read the passage aloud slowly, prayerfully. Let the words make
their own impact, and voice whatever they awaken in your mind and
heart to God.
- proceed to Step E if you already feel yourself coming to
contemplative silence -
D. Read the passage a second time silently. Again, voice whatever
is awakened to God, or acknowledge before God in your heart. Let
this be a spontaneous conversation which includes your questions,
intellectual reflections, petitions, resolutions, and so forth.
E. Read the passage a third time. If there is a word or phrase
that sums up this passage, or that speaks to you in a special way,
repeat it in your mind prayerfully. Let it express your
willingness to allow God to be God in your life.
F. Allow yourself to simply be present to God in loving silence,
aware of God's unfailing Presence to you in love. When
distractions come which capture your attention, re-introduce the
sacred word from Step E. Continue with this resting until your
prayer time is over.
G. Close your prayer time with a sincere vocal recitation of the
Lord's prayer, putting your whole being into the words.
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