No cowards in the Kingdom by Fr Noel Connolly

In the early 70s I read Eugene Cuskelly's, No Cowards in the Kingdom. It was a call for courage in living the faith. I found it inspiring. But at the time there were only intimations of the problems to come. We were still young and energised by Vatican II. There were plenty of priests and sisters. Superiors were in their forties and the Church scandals of those days were minor compared to today.

Now priests are ageing and critically short in number. I find it difficult to imagine the Columbans and many congregations in 10 years time they will have to be lay run. Most dioceses are also struggling to care for their people. What is worse in a post-modern secular society like Australia religion is increasingly marginalised and we are struggling to learn how to communicate with youth who seem to want to believe but not belong to any of our institutions. Religion is greeted by many with apathy rather than anger. God is missing but not missed.

There are pockets of success and the Church is taking initiatives such as World Youth Day but I still believe we need Cuskelly's courage, persistence and faith-filled hearts.

I am reminded of another book, David Bosch's Transforming Mission. He tells us that while mission may be in crisis that is healthy. It is normal for Christians to live in a situation of crisis but we are only occasionally aware of this. We are blinded by our successes and consequently depressed by failure when it comes. The Church needs apparent failure and suffering to realise that mission requires profound faith. We have to allow God the freedom to save the world in his way. At times our challenge is to be faithful without success. We have to learn to love and live through all our questions patiently and hopefully.

I think we often misunderstand the purpose of religion. For most of us the purpose of religion is to give us easy, comfortable certainties [a fundamentalist approach]. Actually religion should provoke in us deeper and greater questions but also give us the faith and hope to live courageously through them into a deeper and more joyful life.

Fr Noel Connolly

Freedom from Illusion By Jeff Mirus

In a fine recent article in First Things entitled "The Freedom of Heaven & the Freedom of Hell", Anthony Esolen mines Dante’s Divine Comedy to give us a striking image of what it means to be free. To be truly free, Esolen says, we must first free ourselves from the illusion that we are our own—the illusion that we belong to ourselves.

Ancient spiritual writers used to emphasize that we have been bought at a great price, the price of Christ’s blood. This is a direct reference to an important aspect of the Christian concept of "redemption", which always includes a buying back by God of souls in bondage to sin and to the Devil. And before that, of course, God created us. He is the potter, we the clay. We were made by God and for God. We are not our own.

Esolen sees Dante’s depiction of Satan, whom Dante encounters in the very depths of hell, as a telling reminder of this truth. Satan sits at the very bottom of hell frozen in ice. He eternally flaps his reptilian wings, trying to rise under his own power. But his flapping creates bitter cold winds which keep the waters frozen, locking Satan in their grasp. Cut off from God, Satan's power of flight is utterly self-defeating. He refuses to admit that he is not his own, yet he cannot rise even the slightest amount under his own power.

So it is with us, and it makes a wonderful Lenten meditation. Every time we feel or think or act as if we belong to ourselves, our efforts are miserably self-defeating. For we are not our own. We belong to God.

Written by Jeff Mirus

St. Therese of Lisieux Quote

To offer oneself as a victim to Divine Love is not to offer oneself to sweetness - to consolation; but to every anguish, every bitterness, for Love lives only by sacrifice; and the more a soul wills to be surrendered to Love, the more must she be surrendered to suffering.

St. Therese of Lisieux

Charity Where to Begin?

If you listen to many Heads of Goverment the world is on the brink of collapse and we all may as well give up and lock our doors and hearts.

I don't believe Governments solve problems in fact and in many cases they are the problem.

But I do believe in people.

I believe in the strength and courage of the American people. I believe in the grit and determination of the British people. I believe in the doggedness and generosity of the Australian people. I believe in the goodness of ALL people in all lands, no matter where you are.

But how can we help when the problems are so enormous?

You do so one step at at time.

Charity doesnt always mean a giving of money, if anything money is the easy option. A giving of your time is of more value than money.

In most countries there are nursing homes for the aged. Perhaps it is time to consider spending an hour or two a week visiting the aged in their hospital beds? Maybe you could organize a Rosary prayer group or any other form of prayer which can include singing, have you thought of this?

When you give to charity either monetarily or with your time. It is not about making you feel good it IS about making the person you visit feel special and unique.

If you belong to a prayer group, bible study or mothers group perhaps you could contribute a certain amount of money and buy good quality books for schools that do not get enough funding.

Don't always wait for the 'government' to do something. If you see a school that is in disrepair where noone cares, DO something about it yourself. Get your friends involved and your Parish if possible.

Many people are good and generous at heart and want to help in a beneficial way. If this is YOU then explore your community and see where you can help and then do it.

Remember many of our greatest Saints began their work in their own communities.

We cannot help everyone but that should never be an excuse to help noone.

Written by Marie

Lenten Reflection with St. Therese of Lisieux

"Since it had been necessary for Christ to suffer so that he would enter through that into glory, you must also drink from his same chalice if you want to have a place at his side."

++++++++++++++++

Many times when I have spoken to people who are suffering in one form or another and they are complaining that God is punishing them. My first question to them is this; what have you been praying for? There answer is always "to be closer to God."

I then ask them if they know how this is achieved and they have different responses, some say through prayer, attending daily Mass, praying the Rosary three times a day and the list goes on. No one mentions suffering.

When I tell them that the only way to become closer to God is through the Cross which means suffering they look at me askance.

Do we really believe that we are so holy, so pure that God does not need to purify and discipline us?

Do we believe that we can legally murder the unborn, euthanize the ill and elderly, legalize prostitution and narcotics(in some countries) and demand that homosexual couples marry in the name of civil rights and think that God is not going to call an accounting?

We are living in the days of a new Sodom and Gomorrah and just like the people of those towns we think there will be no reckoning for the continued abuses of society. And so we dance and make merry with no thought for tomorrow.

God calls us to make reparation for all the evils that are now taking place in the world, but are we ready for it?

Are YOU ready?

Are you ready to suffer for those who spit in God's face? Who ignore His Commandments? For people who on one day can march to save the Whales (& other wildlife) and the next day march to kill the unborn?

The only way to Christ is through the Cross. There are no short cuts.

Are YOU ready to answer God's call?

Reflection Written by Marie

A PRAYER FOR LENT

O gracious Master,

infuse in our hearts

the spotless light of Your Divine Wisdom

and open the eyes of our mind

that we may understand the teachings of Your Gospel.

Instill in us also the fear of Your blessed commandments,

so that having curbed all carnal desires,

we may lead a spiritual life,

both thinking and doing everything to please You.

For You, O Christ, our God,

are the enlightenment of our souls and bodies;

and to You we render glory,

together with Your eternal Father,

and with Your all holy,

life-creating Spirit,

now and ever, and forever.

Amen.

What is Lent Really About?

Within my parish many are following this season of penance, by giving up 'things'. Some have decided to go without sugar in their coffee, one lady said she would go without cream in her cup of tea and also give up eating dessert. Others said they were forgoing watching their favourite television shows 'for God.'

How does this affect God? I don't think it affects God at all. What can we give to God who is sufficient unto Himself?

Lent is about purification and a time to reflect and ask within ourselves the hard questions. Lent is also a time of inner surgery, where we find and search deep within our souls and personality to see where have we offended God. Where have we failed to do His Will? Where have we wounded Him and in so doing wounded ourselves and others?

Where have we walked away from God and what opportunities to do good did we overlook or fail to act on even though we knew it would benefit another?

Then there are the other questions we need to ask. What have we placed before God, where have we been inattentive to His Will. And most importantly how much time do we spend with God, alone.

These weeks of Lent are our time 'spent in the desert' as we seek God's guidance and weed out our weaknesses and those things which seperate us from His Divine Love.

In order for God to work fully within our souls we need Him to purify us from all that which holds us to the world. It is time to weed out selfishness, laziness, unkindness, impatience, anger, pride. This is a momentous task, for me at least especially as I fall into many of the above categories.

Once we confront these lesser qualities within ourselves and through the Sacrament of Penance only then can God fill the empty vessels of our souls with His Divine Love so that we too arise, renewed and filled with joy.

Rather than give something up, give of yourself to those in your community who are hungry, tired, lonely, sick, deprived and unloved.

What is our most precious commodity? The thing we prize most of all?

Our time.

Amen, Amen my God, breatheth in me the dew of thy Grace which bringeth me to the well spring of they Awesome Love, which overcometh my timid soul, and fills it with all good things, so that I may boast, here in lay my strength. I am nothing and God is ALL.

Written by Marie

Ash Wednesday Prayer

God of the desert,

as we follow Jesus into the unknown,

may we recognise the tempter when he comes;

let it be Your bread we eat,

Your world we serve

and You alone we worship.

The Power of Suffering

God does not create diseases nor does God `bless' a person with illness for our Loving God is just that loving and only wanting our well being.

At times we must also take responsibility for our own health, and not blame God, when through bad decisions or bad habits we become ill. For instance, smoking is now well known for causing cancer, and other complications. Abusing alcohol will also hold serious consequences when it comes to the liver and brain. Food too can be hazardous when we overeat the wrong foods which can lead to obesity, and the ensuing complications that goes with it. If we behave immorally and lead a dissolute life then we also open ourselves to other diseases that will attack our body.

But when illness does strike, then God will not let us think that we have become `useless' and a `burden', instead He leads us into expiation and reparation for our sins and the sins of others. For nothing we do is `useless' to our Father in Heaven, and everything is `gift' to Him who needs us not, yet longs for our love with the deepest of yearnings. God will help us as we suffer to join Jesus in the redemptive power of the suffering soul to intercede and in reparation offer our sufferings to Him, who is all Powerful, for the salvation of souls. That great Saint and Doctor of the Church, St. Teresa of Avila understood totally the Gift that can be reparative suffering for as she wrote, "Lord, either to suffer or to die....Oh, my Lord! How true it is that whoever works for you is paid in troubles! And what a precious price to those who love you if we understand its value."

Suffering only becomes a useless thing when we do not utilise the redemptive qualities of illness, and choose to resent rather than consent on this painful journey of total dependence on our Loving Father. God legitimises suffering as Holy, thereby bestowing and restoring our uniqueness and our value in His Loving Plan for the redemption of all men.

So illness in itself is not a gift from God, but it can be our gift to Him, when we incorporate the self sacrifice of the One who showed the Way, to pick up our cross, and with courage and fortitude, say as did our Lord, "not my will, but Your Will be done"…even it is one step at a time. As Mother Teresa explained to those who did not understand the connection between suffering people and how God can use our own pain and anguish for His Glory, expressed it this way, "Without our suffering, our work would be just social work - it would not be the work of Jesus Christ, not part of the redemption."

As our society leans more and more towards a culture of death we can see the aspect of souls lost due to those who refuse the Gift of suffering and instead choose to end their lives not in an act of 'mercy killing' but in a spirit of despair that has locked God out of the equation.

If through illness you are unable to visit the sick or give of your time to the lonely, do not despair or feel worthless. Instead embrace your cross and unite your suffering with the Man of Sorrows on behalf of sinners, just as the Master did before you.

To suffer for loves sake is to become one with the Divine, an embrace of unequal love as God lifts us to Himself as He immerses us in the fiery depths of His Tremendous Love.

Written by Marie

Loving God-Loving The Least

Often times we think we love God to our utmost being, but do we? During Lent I have read where many have decided to abstain from their favourite foods or beverages, which is a good thing, but it doesnt affect God one iota.

Did Jesus die to teach us to go without sugar or cream?

To try and at least see God through a thick fog of incomprehension we must recognise His Majesty.

This is a God who Created the Heavens above, galaxy upon galaxy both seen and unseen by man's limited eye. A God who Created all things on this earth which we all take for granted. The sun rises because God Wills it. The moon shines its pearly whiteness against the blackened sky because God ordered it's design.

A butterfly floats past, it's gossamer wings spread in all its colourful glory as it moves with the breeze, and we barely see it. The ants which seem to run in a scurrying hurry with no particular purpose as they run from one place to another and we step on them.

A baby's scream pierces the air as the Doctor brings it forth from its mothers womb, and both mother and father weep as they behold their beloved and longed for child.

A mother screams in anguish as she holds the body of her malnourished child as the child breathes it's last, in a world grown indifferent from the suffering of others.

It is 4PM and the air is charged with expectation as parents wait, every now and again they will surreptitiously look at the clock on the wall. Will today be different? Will today be THE day? By 6PM they no longer look at the clock as with bowed heads and heavy hearts they realise they are the forgotten one's.

To love God is to love the least amongst us.

Our love for God is measured by how we care for the forgotten and unloved amidst our own communities.

Are we indifferent to Christ's Passion?

We can spend copious hours in prayer contemplating Christ's Passion whilst ignoring the passion of those who have been forgotten or rejected by society.

Prayer is not about getting it IS about giving. Prayer should compassionate our hearts, soften our rugged harsh edges till we in our own dark abyss understand, WE are the poor for our love is limited.

We shake our heads at the heartlesness of the world around us. We see the suffering in Darfur or Rwanda feel pity for those poor people. But is our hearts rent asunder?

We go about our daily business as baby upon baby are torn from their mothers womb and tossed in the incinerator. Their unheard screams reach Heaven, 'how long Lord, how long?'

Still, God waits for us to care. To give. To love, selflessly. To love till it costs because He did.

Are you indifferent to Christ's Passion?

A Letter From Jesus

I write this letter to enlighten my little ones through the Holy Spirit. Who, with groans speaks what your own soul cannot convey in words.

I ask one thing of my little one's, and that is to love God above all other things. This includes putting aside that which distracts you from this calling.

There is also one thing you need to understand, and that is I have won the Victory against that treacherous serpent known as Lucifer. Therefore the victory is also yours.

Though the devil tempts you to do evil, I have equipped you all with the right weaponry to use against the foe of my children. That weapon is participation of the Sacraments and prayer.

My Father in Heaven longs to hear from His beloved children, but, sadly little one's, often times His Holy Name has become a profanity! This offends the Creator of all things. Stop it!

In order to know Me you must read the Scriptures and meditate on it's meaning as it pertains to your life through the guidance of the Catholic Church.

The devil likes nothing better than to confuse and accuse my little one's pay no heed to his malicious nonsense. Remember I comfort those who are sorrowful, and those who have led upright lives. It is always the devil who accuses my little one's unjustly. It is The Holy Spirit who comforts the stricken and remorseful.

I know that though you long to do good often times you fall short so it is vital that you make a full and sincere confession through the Sacraments of My Church. Do not fall into despair am I not Merciful to my little ones?

It is your responsibility my little ones to stand against the great sins of this world one of which is the slaughter of the innocents. This tears My Heart asunder and arouses My Fathers Justice, speak up now against this most grievous of sins.

Remember to not judge one another, or count yourself more than who you are, for are you not all sinners who fall short of My Glory? So who among you can say he is the greatest?

Your bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit, honour and respect your bodies and do the work of God for which you have been commissioned since the beginning.

Always be modest in your dress and in your words, remember My Father is listening and He see's all.

If you wish to follow Me remember I did not accommodate the worldly I accused them. I was Crucified for Your sake and for speaking the Truth will you live with a lie?

I had no place to lay my head, why do you seek the comforts of the world when I have given you everything?

Be careful of what comes out of your mouth for from the heart either holiness or corruption is revealed. You will be held accountable for every word you speak. Therefore speak wisely.

Think humbly of yourself for whatever you have achieved was given as Gift from Me.

Do not bicker among yourselves or envy each other, do I make mistakes? Why then do you covet your neighbors goods?

Remember love comes at a cost, I paid it in full, why then do you short change me by ignoring My Commandments?

Lastly remember love one another as I have loved you. For when I see you face to face, my question will be, did you love till it cost, because I did!

with Love,

Jesus (PS: Keep in touch I miss you.)

Written by Marie

It's The Little Things...

Sometimes we can become confused over what charity is. We tend to think it is a giving of 'things' to those who cannot afford to buy these 'things' for themselves. Yes, that is a charitable act to give food, clothes and other essentials to those in need.

Charity is also Spirit, which brings forth the little things, those small acts of love which we can do but out of self-consciousness we fail to do.

There is also the case that many mothers and fathers simply do not have the time to spend an hour with the lonely and oppressed and this is perfectly understandable and reasonable. Even this can be turned around when you look at things through the inspiration of the Divine.

We are not called to make grand gestures or to give what we cannot afford so we can give the appearance of being generous.

Give from the heart.

Many of us have to do grocery shopping, when was the last time you thanked the check out assistant? Have you ever thought about phoning the store manager and letting him/her know how helpful you found a particular worker or workers?

Nearly all Parishes have a sick list have you considered making home made cards with your children to send to those who need the uplift? A kind word or to know that someone is praying for them?

God doesnt need grand gestures from us, but when we do these little acts of kindness it rings out in Heaven like a symphony of such beauty that God fills our own hearts with the Grace we need to Love as He does.

To give from the heart, is a Gift that is priceless, because it comes not from you but from God Himself.

Fasting- A Scriptural Look

Is this the manner of fasting I wish, of keeping a day of penance: That a man bow his head like a reed, and lie in sackcloth and ashes? Do you call this a fast, a day acceptable to the LORD? This, rather, is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own. Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; Your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am! If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech; If you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; Then light shall rise for you in the darkness, and the gloom shall become for you like midday; Then the LORD will guide you always and give you plenty even on the parched land. He will renew your strength, and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring whose water never fails. (Isaiah 58:5-11)

Lent What Can I Give Up For God?

I was inspired to write this piece because of a post I read over at A Catholic Mom Climbing the Pillars. I expanded on the issue.

What can I give up for God?

This is the one sentence that many Catholics say that I just dont 'get.' After all, what can we give God?

A God who created the universe, galaxy upon galaxy, planets including our own planet earth and who also Created that which man's eyes has not yet beheld.

So what can we give up for God?

Will it matter to God if you go without sugar during Lent? Or if you give up putting cream in your coffee? Is this what Lent is all about? Going without cream or sugar?

Rather than think 'what can I give up for God,' turn it around and say, 'what can I do with God?' How can I give as God gives?

What do we prize most? Our time. We have time to spend on the computer, we make time to watch our favourite programes on TV. We set aside time to read our favourite books.

How much time do we spend visiting the sick, the lonely and the oppressed?

This Lent think about making a difference in someone else's life. Spend your time giving your company to one who is lonely and abandoned, those poor elderly souls sitting lonely and unloved in nursing homes. It is these wonderful gentlefolk who have become the West's, 'untouchables.'

Forget about going without sugar or cream but rather give of your time to one who needs you right now. Spend an hour a week where it matters, giving yourself to another because you love.

Give Love and Love will give to you.

AS I AM LORD

Because I am obnoxious, forgive me Lord.

Because I am dishonest, forgive me Lord.

Because I am egotistical, forgive me Lord.

Because I am undisciplined, forgive me Lord.

Because I am weak, forgive me Lord.

Because I am impure, forgive me Lord.

Because I am arrogant, forgive me Lord.

Because I am self-centered, forgive me Lord,

Because I am pompous, forgive me Lord.

Because I am insincere, forgive me Lord.

Because I am unchaste, forgive me Lord.

Because I am grasping, forgive me Lord.

Because I am judgmental, forgive me Lord.

Because I am impatient, forgive me Lord.

Because I am shallow, forgive me Lord.

Because I am inconsistent, forgive me Lord.

Because I am unfaithful, forgive me Lord.

Because I am immoral, forgive me Lord.

Because I am ungrateful, forgive me Lord.

Because I am disobedient, forgive me Lord.

Because I am selfish, forgive me Lord.

Because I am lukewarm, forgive me Lord.

Because I am slothful, forgive me Lord.

Because I am unloving, forgive me Lord.

Because I am uncommitted, forgive me Lord.

Because I am sinful, forgive me Lord.

Because I am loved by You, thank you Lord!

Father Raymond

Lent- A Journey of Intimacy

Lent is the Springtime of the Church year, a period of preparation for Easter. God's gift to us in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and the sending of the Spirit of life in all its fullness, but we know that there remains an undertow in daily life which carries us away into negativity and forgetfulness. Our lives become old again. We need an annual review.

Perhaps, however, it is not so strange that Lent has not caught the popular mood. Center stage for us is our individual consumption of life, each of us operating on his own profile and image to produce a trimmer, more effective figure. If a person takes up religion in this mood, then it is because God is an asset in this process.

By contrast, the Christian faith promises new life, life in all its fullness to those who open themselves up to God, emptying themselves so that they can be filled with the life that flows from Him.

The Christian Lent is not a time for reinventing the self by a supreme effort. It is a time for opening up to God and seeing through some of the shadows inside us. Jesus the Anointed One faced a crescendo of temptations from desert, to temple wall, to high mountain. He saw through the daydreams about power and possession and emerged equipped by the Spirit for His work.

The Spirit drove him into the wilderness which is indeed a place for confronting oneself at depth. The desert is a great leveler and revealer. Lent is not about my digging about in my darkest self and dwelling there, it is about moving on more deeply into intimacy with God, coming home to God the source of all goodness, light and love.

Lent is the season of deepening intimacy with Jesus. An exciting time. Jesus came because of the great love for me, for all of us. Jesus stayed and Jesus died for love of me, for all of us. A pure gift from the Lover to us the beloved. What did we ever do to deserve this love? Nothing! – again the irony. We have not earned this love, but are continually invited, coaxed and being lured into this rich and holy relationship. I will come to know, God will reveal my brokenness and that I am lovable and I will want to give back, to respond lovingly to this free love.

Lent is a time for reducing some of the chronic over-stimulation which is so much a part of modern living, a time when we protect ourselves a little more from the daily bombardment of images and stimuli, the pressures which keep us trapped on the surface. You will know the pressure points in your own lives, but now is the time for deciding how to use this Lent.

Perhaps by not reading so many newspapers, hearing so much, watching so much, consuming so much, so that we can be liberated from the sick hurry which dulls our capacity to hear the still small voice. Perhaps it is the time to live more simply in order to tighten up the drum skin, so that God's drumbeat can be heard more clearly in our lives. Perhaps it is a time for carving out some solitude so that we can become aware of those senses which are deadened in daily life. The choice is yours. You have to decide what is most relevant. Just giving up chocolate, which can be resumed in a great binge on Easter Day, does little good and can easily fill us with an unhelpful sense of spiritual achievement.

Lent is an opportunity for Springtime cleansing and we can encourage one another in observing it. Let us walk with Jesus these next 40 days, beg to share in His joys and friendships, as well as His sufferings, trials, and betrayals and to invite Jesus into our sufferings, trials, and betrayals, as well as our joys.

This is the good news of Jesus: Come with Me, walk with Me, eat with Me, laugh and weep with Me. And I with you. Be not afraid. Let Me tell you, about you. Listen with your heart. Come to me, I love you.