Daily Thought

  Be Ablaze With Enthusiasm Be not lax in celebrating. Be not lazy in the festive service of God. Be ablaze with enthusiasm. Let us be an alive, burning offering before the altar of God. St. Hildegard of Bingen

  Pope Francis ⏤ Don't Be A "Sleepy" Christian Dear brothers and sisters, buongiorno! The Gospel of today’s liturgy, the First Sunday of Advent, speaks to us about the Lord’s coming at the end of time. Jesus announces bleak and distressing events, but precisely at this point He invites us not to be afraid. Why? Because everything will be okay? No, but because He will come. Jesus will return as He promised. This is what he says: “Stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand” (Lk 21:28). It is nice to hear this encouraging Word: stand up straight and raise our heads because right during those moments when everything seems to be coming to an end, the Lord comes to save us. We await Him with joy, even in the midst of tribulations, during life’s crises and the dramatic events of history. We await Him. But how do we raise our heads and not become absorbed with difficulties, suffering and defeat? Jesus points the way with a strong reminder: “Beware that yo...

  1st Sunday of Advent THE MARKING OF TIME and its turning is a remarkably human thing. Inexorably, the minutes and hours move forward and never reverse. Yet the discovery of cycles of years connotes its own hope. We may begin anew, make resolutions, hope that love will flourish again. For Christian churches the message of Jesus Christ is condensed in a year’s cycle—celebrated from glory to glory: his coming, his ministry, his death, his resurrection, and his future coming. Advent begins a new year. Yes, Jesus came and he will come again. He will be with us and take us home. Till then our life is a pilgrimage. Each Advent we may start once more to live with him and in him. We have the option to become a testimony of his loving redemption, to share in it through who we are and what we do, and finally to recall our own eternal destiny.     Advent Wreath   A wreath is a ring; a ring has no end. Advent wreaths are usually made of evergreens to remind us of life everlasti...

  The Importance of Leisure Together with a culture of work, there must be a culture of leisure as gratification. To put it another way: people who work must take the time to relax, to be with their families, to enjoy themselves, read, listen to music, play a sport. Pope Francis

  Happy Thanksgiving!                    Father all-powerful,          your gifts of love are countless          and your goodness infinite;          as we come before you on Thanksgiving Day          with gratitude for your kindness,          open our hearts to have concern          for every man, woman, and child,          so that we may share your gifts in loving service.          Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,          who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,          God, for ever and ever.  Collect for Thanksgiving Day Mass

  By Your Perseverance You Will Save Your Lives Lectio Luke 21:12–19 Meditatio “By your perseverance you will secure your lives.” Who wants to reflect on persecution and possible martyrdom? Yet, here they are in today’s Gospel. We can’t honestly think that this passage isn’t meant for us. So what can we take with us for today and the future? I believe we can start with humility. Saint Augustine, painfully aware that many Christians had apostatized, wrote that we could never be sure that we’d have the strength to endure martyrdom. This thought, he said, should make us humble. But then we can move on to confidence—not in ourselves, but in Jesus. In this same passage, the Lord says he will enlighten his followers as to what to say when brought before those hostile to the faith. This indicates that whatever might befall us, Jesus will be with us in our hour of need. But we have to ask for his help instead of caving in. We have to let him be enough for us. He is the Faithful O...

  Blessed Are Those Who Trust Blessed indeed are “those who have not seen, and yet have learned to believe.” Those who ask for no miracles, demand nothing out of the ordinary, but who find God’s message in everyday life. Those who require no compelling proofs, but who know that everything coming from God must remain in a certain ultimate suspense, so that faith may never cease to require daring. Those who know that the heart is not overcome by faith, that there is no force or violence there, compelling belief by rigid certitudes. What comes from God touches gently, comes quietly, does not disturb freedom, and leads to quiet, profound, peaceful resolve within the heart. And those are called blessed who make the effort to remain open-hearted; who seek to cleanse their hearts of all self-righteousness, obstinacy, presumption, and inclination to “know better”; who are quick to hear, humble, and free-spirited. Romano Guardini

  A Glorious Transaction Jesus Christ, in His infinite love, has become what we are, in order that He may make us entirely what He is. St. Iranaeus of Lyon

  Be On The Lookout! Understand this well: there is something holy, something divine hidden in the most ordinary situations, and it is up to each one of you to discover it. St. Josemaria Escriva

  Asking With Confidence The greater and more persistent  your confidence in God,  the more abundantly  you will receive,  all that you ask. St. Albert the Great

 Trust Entrust everything to Me and do nothing on your own, and you will always have great freedom of spirit. St. Faustina Kowalska

 Discipleship Jesus promised his disciples three things—that they would be completely fearless, absurdly happy, and in constant trouble.  G.K Chesterton 

  We Need More Joy! Joy must be one of the pivots of our life. It is the token of a generous personality. Sometimes it is also a mantle that clothes a life of sacrifice and self-giving. A person who has this gift often reaches high summits. He or she is like sun in a community. St. Teresa of Calcutta

  A Great Prayer To Start The Day! Lord, help me to live this day, quietly, easily. To lean upon Thy great strength, trustfully, restfully. To wait for the unfolding of Thy will, patiently, serenely. To meet others, peacefully, joyously. To face tomorrow, confidently, courageously. St. Francis of Assisi

  Powerful Words From A Powerful Saint! Remember that when you leave this earth, you can take with you nothing that you have received - only what you have given: a full heart, enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage. St. Francis of Assisi

  Put Your Hand In The Hand! In face of the hatred and anger of the world, we must bring the gentleness and the smile of the Infant Jesus of Bethlehem. In face of the pride of the world, we must bring the littleness and powerlessness of the tiny newborn baby of the crib. . . Be a tiny baby in the Lord's hands. Close your eyes and put your hand in his. Let go and be supple and then he can send you where he wants!" Little Sister Magadeleine of Jesus

  The Value of Wisdom My child, if you accept my words and treasure up my commandments within you, making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; if you indeed cry out for insight, and raise your voice for understanding; if you seek it like silver, and search for it as for hidden treasures— then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk blamelessly, guarding the paths of justice and preserving the way of his faithful ones. Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path; for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; prudence will watch over you; and understanding will guard you. It will save you from the way of evil, from those who speak perversely, who forsake the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways...

  Great Reflection On The Dishonest Steward Were you startled when you read this verse? Why would the master commend this steward? He’d already been chastised for squandering his master’s property. And now he was doing something that appeared even worse—he was telling his master’s debtors to reduce their debt! And these were no small accounts! One hundred measures of olive oil alone could translate to eight hundred gallons. But let’s look at what this steward was actually doing. Like many other stewards, he had likely been inflating the amount his master’s debtors owed and keeping the extra money for himself. By decreasing their debt, he was giving away his own profits, not actually causing his master to lose money. He knew he would soon be out of work and possibly unemployable, so he gave the debtors a break in the hope that they would help him out later on. So this wily steward corrected his fraudulent ledgers and made friends for himself in the process! Jesus wants us to learn f...

  Keeping Focused If we wish to make any progress in the service of God we must begin every day of our life with new eagerness. We must keep ourselves in the presence of God as much as possible and have no other view or end in all our actions but the divine honor.We must meditate before, during and after everything we do. The prophet says: “I will pray, and then I will understand.” This is the way we can easily overcome the countless difficulties we have to face day after day, which, after all, are part of our work. In meditation we find the strength to bring Christ to birth in ourselves and in others.If a tiny spark of God’s love already burns within you, do not expose it to the wind, for it may get blown out. Keep the stove tightly shut so that it will not lose its heat and grow cold. In other words, avoid distractions as well as you can.Be sure that you first preach by the way you live. If you do not, people will notice that you say one thing, but live otherwise, and your words ...

  St. Martin De Porres St. Martin de Porres was born in Lima on December 9, 1579, the son of a Spanish father and a black mother. As a youth, he learned the basics of medical practice by helping one of the local pharmacist-physicians. He felt called to the religious life, but because he was a mulatto he thought that that way of life was not for him. Instead, he took a job—he was then fifteen years of age—doing domestic work in a Dominican monastery. During his nine years there, the monks witnessed his humility, goodness, and charity, and eventually they asked him if he would not want to become a Dominican brother. This he did in 1603. In addition to his regular tasks in the community (as barber, surgeon, and infirmarian), Br. Martin cared for the sick and the poor of the city, and when he returned home he spent his nights more in prayer than in sleep. To the people of the city and to his religious brethren, he was the living symbol of generosity and humility. He died in Lima on Nov...