Message of 5-8-08
Published: Sat, 05/03/08
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
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MESSAGE OF THE DAY
When we trust in God, we live in the light of true faith, and our
obedient souls are set on fire in the furnace of divine love.
- Catherine of Siena
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SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
Acts 22:30; 23:6-11; Ps. 16:1-2a and 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11; Jn
17:20-26
R. (1) Keep me safe, O God; you are my hope.
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge; I say to the LORD, "My
Lord are you."
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence;
Because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
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GOSPEL MEDITATION
- from http://www.dailyscripture.net/
Because Jesus loved us first and united us in baptism we are called
to live in a unity of love. Jesus' prayer on the eve of his
sacrifice shows the great love and trust he has in his beloved
disciples. He knows they would abandon him in his hour of trial,
yet he entrusted to them the great task of spreading his name
throughout the world and to the end of the ages. The Lord entrust
us with the same mission...to make him known and loved by all.
Jesus died and rose again that all might be one as he and the
Father are one. Do you love and accept all baptized Christians as
your brothers and sisters in Christ?
"Lord God, have mercy on your people and heal the divisions in the
body of Christ. May all Christian people throughout the world
attain the unity for which Jesus prayed on the eve of his
sacrifice. Renew in us the power of the Spirit that we may be a
sign of that unity and a means of its growth. Increase in us a
fervent love for all our brothers and sisters in Christ."
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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.
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NOTES FROM A CLASSICAL WORK
- "Imitation of Christ," by Thomas A. Kempis
The Voice of Christ
"I counsel thee to buy of me gold, fire-tried, that thou mayest be
made rich"[38]38 -- rich in heavenly wisdom which treads
underfoot all
that is low. Put aside earthly wisdom, all human self-complacency.
I have said: exchange what is precious and valued among men for
that
which is considered contemptible. For true heavenly wisdom --
not to
think highly of self and not to seek glory on earth -- does indeed
seem mean and small and is well-nigh forgotten, as many men
praise it
with their mouths but shy far away from it in their lives. Yet
this
heavenly wisdom is a pearl of great price, which is hidden from
many.
-------- Bk. 3, Chapter 32
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