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Delivered Monday through Friday!
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August 15,
2008
Ave Maria (Bach)
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Please, God, Help Me!
Gail L. Creswell
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
My most memorable answer to prayer occurred when I was fifteen years old. Having been educated in a Catholic school, I knew what prayer was, and like all the other children in my school, I sometimes said my prayers, and always attended Mass on Sundays.
Unfortunately, my family life was anything but spiritual: My father was an extremely abusive alcoholic, and my mother had severe psychiatric problems.
I remember the day so clearly. I had been through a particularly rough time with my father and was hiding under the house, in the dark, hugging my dog. I was crying on the outside, and screaming on the inside. My prayer was a silent scream from the heart: "Please, God, help me! You have to get me away from here! I just want to be loved!"
I was heartbroken. In my pain and anguish, I repeated my prayer over and over again.
More
http://blog.seattlepi.nwsource.com/monasticmoments/archives/146139.asp
From the book 101 Inspirational Stories of the Power of Prayer
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Danielle Bean
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Rejoice in Me
by Msgr. David E. Rosage
Divine Deliverer
Psalm 18:4
Praised be the Lord, I exclaim,
and I am safe from my enemies
In the opening verses the writer uses many terms in an attempt to describe the powerful protection which God has been for him. He calls God "my strength, my fortress, my deliverer, my rock of refuge, my stronghold, the horn of my salvation."
When we contemplate the countless times God has shielded and protected us from spiritual and physical danger, we too will find ourselves groping for expressions to describe God's fidelity.
St. Paul reveals God's protective power as he relates his own transformation from foe to friend: 'They had only heard that "he who was formerly persecuting us is now preaching the faith he tried to destroy,' and they gave glory to God on my account." (Gal 1:23-24)
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A Smile from Home - Danielle Bean
Today's Thought
Visit Danielle's Blog to see
pictures and links to go with this text.
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Greetings from London with Sister Janet Fearns, FMDM
Pause for Prayer
Visit Janet's Blog to see pictures to go with this text.
On a personal note…
As God pleases. As God wills
Just a little thought amidst the anxiety that so many are facing at this time…
This week we celebrated the feast of St Clare, but I’ve been thinking about her successor, St Colette, and in particular, have been reflecting on some of her words.
We hear much about mantras and of the way in which the constant, steady repetition of a few words helps to calm the mind and heart. Some people travel the world to find their guru and a mantra that will help them to face the ups and downs of life.
Yet, think for a moment. Is not the Rosary a type of mantra? Then, too, try using St Colette’s refrain, “As God pleases. As God wills” as you breathe in and breathe out. After repeating these words even for as short a time as ten breaths, you will find yourself gradually becoming more calm, more peaceful, more disposed to hear what the will of God might be, more prepared to listen then to object.
So little in exchange for so much! As God pleases. As God wills. His plans might not always be comfortable in the short term, but the long term rewards are heavenly!
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Spiritual Blessings from Father Rory Pitstick
A Virtual Retreat
Reflections following the Daily Liturgical cycle
Visit Fr. Rory's Blog
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Rv 11: 19a; 12: 1-6a. 10ab
Ps 44(45): 10. 11. 12. 16
1 Cor 15: 20-27
Lk 1: 39-56
Daily Readings
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Aug 15 Fri: ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY S
From today's readings:
“A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars.... The queen takes her place at Your right hand in gold.... For just as in Adam all die, so too in Christ shall all be brought to life, but each one in proper order.... And Mary said: My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for He has looked with favor on His lowly servant....”
Body AND Soul
We’re all aware that God created each of us humans as a unity of body AND soul - it’s impossible, of course, to be unaware of our material aspect (body), and all except the most obstinate close-minded atheist will admit of some type of non-material, spiritual dimension (soul). Since God created both our bodies AND our souls, they must both be good. This point was reiterated when God sent His Son to take on our human nature (body AND soul!) at the moment of His Incarnation. Again, when Jesus brought about our redemption by His bodily death on the cross, AND through His bodily Resurrection, God re-emphasized the connection and inherent goodness of the human body AND soul.
Tragically, though, there is a tendency to view the body and soul as mutually incompatible, radically opposed or at odds with one another. This tendency is called dualism, and although there are many variations of this grave fallacy, it is usually expressed in either the (mistaken) view that “everything spiritual is good, everything material is evil,” or in the (equally erroneous) idea that “materialism is all that really counts in the world.”
Both these extremes of dualism have often corrupted the Christian faith. For instance, after a persons’s death, relatives and friends will at times show a disregard or even downright contempt for the human corpse, dismissing it as an empty shell merely “used” by the person’s soul during earthly life. They forget that the corpse was not merely “used,” rather, the body was an integral part of that person, and the Christian belief is that the body will be resurrected and re-united with the soul at the end of time! Or, for an example of the other extreme of dualism, consider how tempting it is to focus (whether in ourselves or in others) exclusively on material needs and wants, ignoring spiritual hungers and desires.
The celebration of Mary’s Assumption body AND soul into Heaven is the benchmark to measure if we have succumbed in big ways or small ways to the poison of dualism. Are our bodies AND our souls reaching out with all our might to Heaven? God created us body AND soul; He redeemed us body AND soul; His eternal plan is to unite us with Him, body AND soul, just as He has already taken the Blessed Virgin, body AND soul, to be with Him forever in Heaven!
See also Catechism of the Catholic Church §974.
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Last night I was listening to a secular radio interview by Terry Gross of NPR. I was listening to it, because I was asking for some interview tips to improve my own interviewing skills and was she suggested as a great interviewer. So... the interview was about this guy who has done extensive research on right and left brain - and it got sort of complicated but then Terry asked him about religion and did he believe in God or was it just a right or brain function (forgot which one he said was the religion side) anyway he admitted that no he did not believe in God - it was just a brain function.
