Ijournal entry 011816 # 03. January, dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. Quotes from St Jose Escrivá, Mignon, Fr. Francis Fernandez, and St. John of The Cross. Fr. Bob’s Prayer, by Fr. Bob Colaresi, O. Carm. "SPIRITUAL PROGRESS", by Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen. "Work of Mercy Testimony", by Celia
"This Divine Name is in truth a mine of riches; it is the fount of the highest holiness and the secret of the greatest happiness that a man can hope to enjoy on this earth.
It is so powerful, so certain, that it never fails to produce in our souls the most wonderful results. It consoles the saddest heart and makes the weakest sinner strong. It obtains for us all kinds of favors and graces, spiritual and temporal.
Two things we must do. First of all, we must understand clearly the meaning and value of the Name of Jesus.
Secondly, we must get into the habit of saying it devoutly, frequently, hundreds and hundreds of times every day. Far from being a burden, it will be an immense joy and consolation". By Fr. Paul O'Sullivan, O.P. (E.D.M.)
Mignon, RIP
Found out the shocking news on January 11th from Milton, while at the Adoration Chapel, that Mignon was summoned home to the Father's house on January 2nd. Knew her from the Catholic Book store and was able to renew our friendship as we saw each other infrequently at the chapel. Absolutely, able to echo the same sentiments that others posted about her. People always say favorable things about those recently deceased, but it was not just talk about Mignon, it was really true.
It seems we all share not only a sorrow, but feel a great loss. This was even felt by people who never did get a chance to meet her personally. There was this godly attribute that dominated her personality, it was so captivating. In her presence you felt peaceful, and experienced a sense of well being. It truly was an encounter of love to converse with her. It felt as if the circle of God's love was unbroken. The refreshing odor of "holiness trying to reach higher ground", was an aroma that was her spiritual signature scent. The following scripture is coming to mind,so here's to you Mignon:
It is so powerful, so certain, that it never fails to produce in our souls the most wonderful results. It consoles the saddest heart and makes the weakest sinner strong. It obtains for us all kinds of favors and graces, spiritual and temporal.
Two things we must do. First of all, we must understand clearly the meaning and value of the Name of Jesus.
Secondly, we must get into the habit of saying it devoutly, frequently, hundreds and hundreds of times every day. Far from being a burden, it will be an immense joy and consolation". By Fr. Paul O'Sullivan, O.P. (E.D.M.)
Mignon, RIP
Found out the shocking news on January 11th from Milton, while at the Adoration Chapel, that Mignon was summoned home to the Father's house on January 2nd. Knew her from the Catholic Book store and was able to renew our friendship as we saw each other infrequently at the chapel. Absolutely, able to echo the same sentiments that others posted about her. People always say favorable things about those recently deceased, but it was not just talk about Mignon, it was really true.
It seems we all share not only a sorrow, but feel a great loss. This was even felt by people who never did get a chance to meet her personally. There was this godly attribute that dominated her personality, it was so captivating. In her presence you felt peaceful, and experienced a sense of well being. It truly was an encounter of love to converse with her. It felt as if the circle of God's love was unbroken. The refreshing odor of "holiness trying to reach higher ground", was an aroma that was her spiritual signature scent. The following scripture is coming to mind,so here's to you Mignon:
Even though we only saw each other infrequently and never was able to connect for lunch, it's really sad to lose another sparking gem, to be no more seen here on earth. My comfort is the following scripture, and may it bring comfort to her family as well. May we all live so that we may be able to take up residence above, and one day see her again.
🔴 "We are blocks of stone that can move and feel, that have a perfectly free will. God himself is the stone-cutter who works on us, chipping off the rough edges, shaping us as he desires, with blows of the hammer and chisel. Don't let us try to draw aside, don't let us want to escape his will, for in any case we won't be able to avoid the blows. We will suffer all the more, and uselessly- and instead of polished stone, ready for the work of building, we will be a shapeless heap of gravel that people will trample contemptuously under foot". By St. Jose Escrivá
🔵 "Anyone can see-saw, but it's really hard to balance". By Mignon
⚫️ "Growth comes from grace, obtained especially through the Sacraments and continual practice of the virtues. Grace, deposited in our hearts like seed, struggles to grow and bring us to it's fullness. The obstacle it contends with is sin - in it's essentials a diminution of the human person - which prevents a man reaching his fullness of spirit". By Fr. Francis Fernandez
⚪️ "Have a great love for those who contradict and fail to love you, for in this way love is begotten in a heart that has no love.” By St. John of the Cross
🔵 "Anyone can see-saw, but it's really hard to balance". By Mignon
⚫️ "Growth comes from grace, obtained especially through the Sacraments and continual practice of the virtues. Grace, deposited in our hearts like seed, struggles to grow and bring us to it's fullness. The obstacle it contends with is sin - in it's essentials a diminution of the human person - which prevents a man reaching his fullness of spirit". By Fr. Francis Fernandez
⚪️ "Have a great love for those who contradict and fail to love you, for in this way love is begotten in a heart that has no love.” By St. John of the Cross
👁🗨The intent here is to show
👁🗨That one must constantly spiritually grow
👁🗨When we find ourselves going along with da flow & acting like da rest
👁🗨We must be at the moment donning a spiritual bullet proof vest
👁🗨Apparently repelling God's amazing grace
👁🗨Mediocrity coupled with irreverence may be the reason for this case
👁🗨Going to Holy Hour seven days a week and also Daily Mass
👁🗨How in world can such a believer allow so sad a state to develop & come to pass?
👁🗨Time expended, precious minutes gone by, what a waste
👁🗨When da true fruits of holiness aren't partaken of, not even a little taste
👁🗨No improvement in behavior, continuing unchanged in any significant way
👁🗨How can one justify spending all that time with God hour by hour & day by day?
👁🗨Something is wrong, truly, truly, wrong
👁🗨When blindness continues & lasts for periods ever so long
👁🗨Others aren't found in places where graces are continually being poured out to receive.
👁🗨Therefore their actions falling short are justifiable, easy to understand & believe
👁🗨What good is it to pray, pray, pray,
👁🗨When Jesus is not allowed in come in & have over all things His Sovereign say
👁🗨Is not that the purpose that He be our all in all?
👁🗨Letting God dominate & have on each life HIs own Divine Call
👁🗨That means giving up the reins to which we want personal control
👁🗨An emptying of da heart & listening in silence will help start da ball to roll
👁🗨Having nothing much to show after frequently inhabiting many a prayerful place
👁🗨Will be a travesty & something that'll honestly be hard in time & eternity to face
👁🗨Of da spiritual bulletproof vest repelling graces, it's time to be rid
👁🗨Get clothed in Christ & steeped in the Gospel, pattering what the saints did.
👁🗨Surely then, in mercy and leniency God will judge
👁🗨Because our desires & actions no longer static, having us in the right direction budge
👁🗨My friends, truly, truly, it is really, really so
👁🗨We must not waste & squander all the opportunities we have by grace, but grow
👁🗨To whom much have been given much will be required
👁🗨Most certainly we don't want to be found wanting when for great things we have been wired
👁🗨Yes, it's true, true, true, true
Much can be accomplished, we have a free will, it's up to me & to you
👁🗨To allow our souls to be tilled
👁🗨As God so wants them to be fertile & absolutely grace filled
👁🗨God will surely finish what we start
👁🗨If sincere in heart, we as best we can, do our part
👁🗨All pride by repentance should be removed
👁🗨And it's to offer no resistance when we are reproved
👁🗨Vigilantly paying strict attention to another deadly sin, that is sloth
👁🗨Will all the help from heaven, ushered in will be much needed growth
👁🗨Then we'll have profited from every grace, shown by the splendid fruit
👁🗨Visible to all that grow in holiness is a reality for those in constant pursuit
👁🗨That one must constantly spiritually grow
👁🗨When we find ourselves going along with da flow & acting like da rest
👁🗨We must be at the moment donning a spiritual bullet proof vest
👁🗨Apparently repelling God's amazing grace
👁🗨Mediocrity coupled with irreverence may be the reason for this case
👁🗨Going to Holy Hour seven days a week and also Daily Mass
👁🗨How in world can such a believer allow so sad a state to develop & come to pass?
👁🗨Time expended, precious minutes gone by, what a waste
👁🗨When da true fruits of holiness aren't partaken of, not even a little taste
👁🗨No improvement in behavior, continuing unchanged in any significant way
👁🗨How can one justify spending all that time with God hour by hour & day by day?
👁🗨Something is wrong, truly, truly, wrong
👁🗨When blindness continues & lasts for periods ever so long
👁🗨Others aren't found in places where graces are continually being poured out to receive.
👁🗨Therefore their actions falling short are justifiable, easy to understand & believe
👁🗨What good is it to pray, pray, pray,
👁🗨When Jesus is not allowed in come in & have over all things His Sovereign say
👁🗨Is not that the purpose that He be our all in all?
👁🗨Letting God dominate & have on each life HIs own Divine Call
👁🗨That means giving up the reins to which we want personal control
👁🗨An emptying of da heart & listening in silence will help start da ball to roll
👁🗨Having nothing much to show after frequently inhabiting many a prayerful place
👁🗨Will be a travesty & something that'll honestly be hard in time & eternity to face
👁🗨Of da spiritual bulletproof vest repelling graces, it's time to be rid
👁🗨Get clothed in Christ & steeped in the Gospel, pattering what the saints did.
👁🗨Surely then, in mercy and leniency God will judge
👁🗨Because our desires & actions no longer static, having us in the right direction budge
👁🗨My friends, truly, truly, it is really, really so
👁🗨We must not waste & squander all the opportunities we have by grace, but grow
👁🗨To whom much have been given much will be required
👁🗨Most certainly we don't want to be found wanting when for great things we have been wired
👁🗨Yes, it's true, true, true, true
Much can be accomplished, we have a free will, it's up to me & to you
👁🗨To allow our souls to be tilled
👁🗨As God so wants them to be fertile & absolutely grace filled
👁🗨God will surely finish what we start
👁🗨If sincere in heart, we as best we can, do our part
👁🗨All pride by repentance should be removed
👁🗨And it's to offer no resistance when we are reproved
👁🗨Vigilantly paying strict attention to another deadly sin, that is sloth
👁🗨Will all the help from heaven, ushered in will be much needed growth
👁🗨Then we'll have profited from every grace, shown by the splendid fruit
👁🗨Visible to all that grow in holiness is a reality for those in constant pursuit
Fr. Bob’s Prayer, by Fr. Bob Colaresi, O. Carm.
Info from this site:
http://daretobeholy.tumblr.com/post/848249768/httpwwwlittleflowerorgprayersdailyscripture
"Till the soil of our hearts again, Eternal Gardener. We are such a mixture of hardened paths, cynical expectations, superficial enthusiasm, and soft, fertile soil. Yet You faithfully plant Your seed, for You forever call us back to life, that Your reign might blossom. We get so easily distracted by our needs, emptiness, disappointments and old behaviors. Till us again, Faithful Farmer, and plant Your seed to mysteriously and faithfully grow in us until we blossom as the garden of Your delight, fruitful in justice, weeded of iniquity, and flowering as the Jerusalem of Your dwelling. Let our growth be a tribute to Your life-giving power"
Info from this site:
http://daretobeholy.tumblr.com/post/848249768/httpwwwlittleflowerorgprayersdailyscripture
"Till the soil of our hearts again, Eternal Gardener. We are such a mixture of hardened paths, cynical expectations, superficial enthusiasm, and soft, fertile soil. Yet You faithfully plant Your seed, for You forever call us back to life, that Your reign might blossom. We get so easily distracted by our needs, emptiness, disappointments and old behaviors. Till us again, Faithful Farmer, and plant Your seed to mysteriously and faithfully grow in us until we blossom as the garden of Your delight, fruitful in justice, weeded of iniquity, and flowering as the Jerusalem of Your dwelling. Let our growth be a tribute to Your life-giving power"
Almost two hours later after writing the poem, happened to see this
article and was delighted by the help the Holy Spirit provided for me in getting this entry together.
"SPIRITUAL PROGRESS", by Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen
Info from this site:
http://www.spiritualdirection.com/2014/09/25/spiritual-progress
"Presence of God – Help me, O Lord, to advance rapidly in the path of virtue.
MEDITATION:
article and was delighted by the help the Holy Spirit provided for me in getting this entry together.
"SPIRITUAL PROGRESS", by Father Gabriel of St. Mary Magdalen
Info from this site:
http://www.spiritualdirection.com/2014/09/25/spiritual-progress
"Presence of God – Help me, O Lord, to advance rapidly in the path of virtue.
MEDITATION:
This is the will of God, this is our vocation, the object of all our desires and efforts. Created to the likeness of God, we do not wish His image in us to be dimmed by our sins and passions, but to shine forth clear and pure, reflecting His sanctity as far as possible. In order to make us like Himself, God has infused into our soul, together with grace, the moral and theological virtues, the purpose of which is to reproduce in us to some degree His infinite perfections; and as a father delights to find in his children some traces of resemblance to himself, so God greatly desires to see us grow in virtue. St. John of the Cross says, “The virtues cannot be wrought by the soul alone, nor can it attain to them alone without the help of God, neither does God work them alone in the soul without its cooperation” (Spiritual Canticle, 30,6). In fact, although God has infused the virtues into us at Baptism without any merit on our part, He does not make them grow without our collaboration; it remains for us, always with the help of grace, to put into practice the virtuous principles he has given us. Only in this way shall we acquire good habits of virtue and facility in practicing them.
Therefore, if we desire to cooperate with the action of God who wishes to make us like to Himself, we should apply ourselves with great zeal to the practice of the virtues. We should concentrate particularly on the virtue that we see is most necessary in order to correct our faults, or to overcome our dominant passion. This should be the special subject of our resolutions, of our examinations of conscience, and of the account given to our spiritual director. We should not think that this exercise is only for beginners, for “the obligation to advance in the love of God–and therefore, in all the other virtues as well–lasts even unto death” (St. Francis de Sales). No one, however advanced in the spiritual life, can consider himself dispensed from the practice of the virtues.
COLLOQUY
“O Lord, You said, ‘Be ye holy because I am holy.’ I think this was the wish You expressed on the day of creation when You said, ‘Let us make man to our image and likeness.’ It is Your continual desire to associate and identify Yourself with Your creatures…. How can I better satisfy Your desire than by keeping myself simply and lovingly turned toward You, so that You can reflect Your own image in me, as the sun is reflected through pure crystal?… But if I am to reflect Your perfections, I must first put off the old man before I can put on the new man created by You in justice and holiness of truth. The path is traced for me. To walk therein as You intend, I have but to deny myself, to die to self, to lose sight of self”(Elisabeth of the Trinity. Last Retreat, 9 – I, 7).
Help me, O God, to combat my faults and to put off the old man; help me to practice virtue in order to put on the new man. You have far greater esteem for the practice of virtue than for magnificent deeds or the fame of a great name"
Therefore, if we desire to cooperate with the action of God who wishes to make us like to Himself, we should apply ourselves with great zeal to the practice of the virtues. We should concentrate particularly on the virtue that we see is most necessary in order to correct our faults, or to overcome our dominant passion. This should be the special subject of our resolutions, of our examinations of conscience, and of the account given to our spiritual director. We should not think that this exercise is only for beginners, for “the obligation to advance in the love of God–and therefore, in all the other virtues as well–lasts even unto death” (St. Francis de Sales). No one, however advanced in the spiritual life, can consider himself dispensed from the practice of the virtues.
COLLOQUY
“O Lord, You said, ‘Be ye holy because I am holy.’ I think this was the wish You expressed on the day of creation when You said, ‘Let us make man to our image and likeness.’ It is Your continual desire to associate and identify Yourself with Your creatures…. How can I better satisfy Your desire than by keeping myself simply and lovingly turned toward You, so that You can reflect Your own image in me, as the sun is reflected through pure crystal?… But if I am to reflect Your perfections, I must first put off the old man before I can put on the new man created by You in justice and holiness of truth. The path is traced for me. To walk therein as You intend, I have but to deny myself, to die to self, to lose sight of self”(Elisabeth of the Trinity. Last Retreat, 9 – I, 7).
Help me, O God, to combat my faults and to put off the old man; help me to practice virtue in order to put on the new man. You have far greater esteem for the practice of virtue than for magnificent deeds or the fame of a great name"