Trump and Kim - Peacemakers????

When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, 

and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. 
He began to teach them, saying:

"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you
and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad,
for your reward will be great in heaven.
Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

The Beatitudes can be the subject of a long dissertation but since it is Monday and we have to get our week started, let us concentrate on just one of these important sayings of Jesus. 

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the Children of God.

I know what follows borders on political commentary but please humor me and read it to the point I run out of words, I think you will be glad you did...

Seeing what is going on in Singapore this week, I have to say that I cannot see two more unlikely candidates to be called "Children of God" then Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump. The two of them are certifiable with Donald coming up just a bit higher on the Lesser Scale of Pointy Headedness.  Look at the two of them.  Kim has a haircut that is being held down by five pounds of the finest grease that can be found in the railroad yards of North Korea and Donald, why is a seventy plus-year-old man with hair that  is blonder than most of the porn-stars that he has interviewed privately and paid a princely sum to keep the said meeting out of the newspapers, money it turns out that was not well spent.   

Now, I am not a fortune teller so I cannot tell what, if anything, this meeting in Singapore will do to bring peace to the world but if it can help that process then I pray to God that it is the most successful conference in history.  The two men conferring together are unlikely peacemakers.  But, we have to recognize that God might just be at work here.  It is through our weakness that he shows His strength.  God has chosen the weak among us to further His Kingdom.  Moses had a temper and a speech impediment and yet God was able to use him to lead the Hebrews out of bondage in spite of the weakness of His champion. 

I am asking today that all of us pray that these two leaders can come together and defuse the situation on the Korean peninsula.  Let us pray for the people of North Korea that this conference begins their peaceful liberation and that those things that we all take for granted in the western world, peace, freedom, and dignity, begin to come their way because of the talks between Kim and Trump.  Peace and dignity is the birthright of all God's children and blessed be those that foster its distribution. 

No matter what happens in Singapore, the Poor Souls still need our prayers  Remember to pray for them today., 

Sunday Edition - Have We Lost The Keys To The Kingdom?

Sunday Edition

For Catholics that like to think

Do The Keys To The Kingdom Really Reside At The Vatican?

Teaching Authority and the Papacy

Protestants believe that the Bible is a document that is simple enough that even the unlearned can read it and that the Holy Spirit will interpret the meaning of the readings to the person. There is no central authority in the Protestant world that functions as a clearinghouse for dogma.  With no teaching authority, the Protestants find themselves in a world of spiritual chaos. While many of the meanings of the teachings found in the Bible are clear and undisputed, they are not the ones that are causing us difficulty in Christian unity. This lack of authority has caused divisions and divisions of the divisions until today there is at least thirty-thousand different denominations each claiming that they are the owners and holders of the complete truth of Christianity. The fact that there are so many divisions, one division is too many, proves that without authority comes the chaos of denominationalism. `

At the Last Supper Jesus did not pray that we split into denominations.  His prayer to the Father was that we remain united and He and the Father were united.  Take a moment if you will and consider how close He wants the members of His church to be. He wants us a close as He is to God the Father.  That is quite different then the situation we find ourselves in today.   But was there some mechanism put in place to help us remain as one?  The plan of Jesus was to have a single man in charge, a man named Simon whose name was changed to Peter which in the language that Jesus spoke meant rock and Jesus said He was going to build His Church upon the rock of Peter.   In scripture, we show that when problems came up they were discussed but when Peter spoke, the problems were solved.  Peter was not just one of the Apostles, he was the leader of the Apostles and as such was the leader of the Church.

The Church needed leaders and the Apostles fulfilled that role.  But what happened once they were no more?  Did the Church go out of business?  No, the Apostles saw to it that their mission would continue and they appointed successors to themselves, trusted men who would carry on and pass the teachings, unchanged to the next generation who would do so for the next until we come to the present time.  These men that were appointed were called bishops and they certainly were needed to keep the teachings pure and the Church together.  Heresies, that is, false teachings would try to tear the Church apart very early in its history.  By the year 110AD the Church had been assailed by many novel practitioners who wanted to change the Gospel to make it fit with their beliefs.  When these things arose, the Church did not take a vote to see what the most popular belief would be.  She went back to the teachings of the Apostles and all disputes were settled not in the light of popular opinion but in the light of the teachings of Christ as handed down from the Apostles. This authority of the bishops was further subjected to the authority of the Bishop of Rome who was considered the leader of the church or as we call him today, the Pope.

The Protestant world gives the Pope more power than He actually has because it fits their corrupted view of the Church and makes them feel more comfortable in despising the Catholic Church for what they consider to be her great wrongs. We Catholics do recognize the Pope as the successor of Peter.  The old saying is that “Where Peter is, there is the Church.”  The Pope is the final authority on all things that touch on faith and morals in the Church.  He has been given immunity from teaching error through the protection of the Holy Spirit.  What many Protestants think is that we believe that the Pope cannot sin.  That is certainly not true.  The Holy Father has a priest as his confessor.  If he could not sin, he would not need a confessor.  The Pope is only infallible when he speaks ex-cathedra, that is literally, “from the chair.”  So, even though it is a good idea to take to heart the messages that come from the encyclicals of the pope and pastoral exhortations, they are not considered as infallible utterances but they should be used as an aid for Catholics to form their consciences.  Much is made of the infallibility of the Pope but you have to understand that it is invoked normally when heresy or moral issues come into question and that there is a danger of it splitting the Church.

So, we have seen that the teaching authority of the Church comes from the Apostles and the Apostles appointed their successors, we call them bishops, and that Peter, who was the head of the Church appointed his successor and that they have handed the faith down faithfully from the beginning until now.  So, the keys to the kingdom remain in good hands and my fellow Catholics, we can continue to rely on the Holy Spirit to protect and guard the Bride of Christ.

Please pray for the Holy Father this week and for the magisterium that they are fully docile to the promptings of the Spirit.

A Brief Word About Sacred Tradition

What is Sacred Tradition?  Sacred Tradition is not mere human traditions.  For example, putting up a Christmas tree is a human tradition.  Eating turkey on Thanksgiving is a human tradition and these human traditions have nothing to do with Sacred Tradition.  Sacred Tradition is the handing down of the treasury of faith from one generation to the next.  Sacred Tradition includes things that are written down and things that are not.  One Sacred Tradition that we pass down to the following generation is the Holy Bible.  More examples of Sacred Tradition the Sacraments, the Mass, the prayers and teachings of our faith.  Sacred Tradition is not a thing, it is a process.

REMEMBER TO PRAY FOR THE POOR SOULS IN PURGATORY.  DON’T LEAVE YOUR LOVE AT THE EDGE OF THE GRAVE. PRAYERS AND SACRIFICES FOR THE POOR SOULS WILL BE GREATLY APPRECIATED BY THEM AND YOU WILL MAKE A FOREvER FRIEND! 

The Unforgivable Sin

Leave it up to Michael the Lesser to find the one sentence presented to us by the Church on this tenth Sunday of Ordinary Time that speaks of doom and gloom. We hear Jesus utter a stark warning that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.  What a bummer to have to read this on a summer Sunday.  Why should I add this to the list of worries that I carry around with me?

This is, of course, a very serious saying of Jesus. He does not say this lightly.  It is a side of Jesus we tend to marginalize somewhat because speaking about loving one another and how the Father loves us is much more palatable than how to get yourself into an eternal mess that you cannot get out of. 

How do I know if I have blasphemed the Holy Spirit? I mean I sometimes use God’s name in vain, which is wrong, but I confess these slips in confession and I am forgiven and reconciled with the Father.  I cannot remember ever saying anything bad about the Holy Spirit but I might have and now I am doomed to hell forever!  What can I do?

The one thing you can do is stop worrying about blaspheming against the Holy Spirit. It is possible to commit this unforgivable sin but if you are worried about it at all, it is unlikely that you would be able to commit this unpardonable sin.  This sin is not forgivable because if you commit it, it is you yourself that will reject the offer of God’s mercy and forgiveness.  This sin consists of refusing the mercy of God, turning down all of the second chances and all of the graces He sends you to save you and to persist in your sin shunning the love of God.

Give God just one chance to win you back and accept His Mercy and His Love and you will have made it impossible to commit this most deadly of sins.

We must be alert and awake at all times and be ready to say “shamata” which in Japanese means “I have made a mistake”  If we live our lives the best way that we can and we are humble enough to admit where we went wrong and if we make a resolution to mend our ways we need not fear committing blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

We Catholics are especially blessed over all of the other denominations. Because the Catholic Church has one-hundred-percent of the Gospel truth, we have a ready means that will help us to repair any tear in the relationship between ourselves and God. This blessing is one of the seven sacraments instituted by Christ to give grace.  It is called by a couple of names including Penance, Confession, and Reconciliation.  The sacrament of Confession is so important to our spiritual well-being that the Church has found it necessary to make it an actual rule that we have to go to confession at least once a year around Easter.  It is called our Easter duty.  Can you imagine if you washed your car only once a year how dirty and dusty it would get?  We see that the car is dirty and we get it washed.  We do not have to wait for General Motors to come out with an edict stating that we have to wash our cars once a year.  How foolish we can be.

There are some people who never go to confession.  Is it because they don’t sin?  Probably not.  They don’t go because they haven’t been in five, ten or even twenty-five years and they are ashamed. Or they decide they come from a small church and are well known to the priest and they are afraid that the priest would think less of them if he knew what kind of sins he committed.  Let’s address both of these concerns one at a time.

Michael the Lesser once stayed away from confession for years, five years to be exact.  To be honest, I was angry at God as I had tried to enter the Franciscans and long story short, it just did not work out. I returned from the time there very angry that God seemingly rejected me.  It hurt, and it hurt bad for a while.  I still went to church and on the outside, I was a good little Catholic Do-Be. Inside my anger and hurt went beyond description and I could not get over it.  One day I was in downtown Chicago and went into St. Peter’s Church.  At the time as they do now, they have confessions available all day long.  I went in just to reflect and to visit the Eucharist and had no intention of going to confession. The confessional called me and the Holy Spirit moved me and I entered and for the next fifteen minutes I poured out my heart to the unknown priest. At the end, he told me that it was a good confession and he welcomed me back home. I left the box and it was as if the weight of the ages was removed from my back. I felt joyful again and felt like I was in God’s good graces again.  If you are in a similar position, swallow your pride, because that is what is keeping you away and walk into the confessional and make things good again between you and God. 

I go to the same priest every time I go to confession. Father Joe is a kind confessor and he has helped me through several spiritual messes that I have gotten myself into. He knows me by name and by sight and I have known him for at least twenty years. Never once in all that time has he ever in any way shape or form even hinted at anything I have ever told him in the confessional. Is it because Father Joe is an extraordinarily holy priest that he is able to keep my confessions from affecting how he treats me?  Well, while he is an extraordinarily holy priest, I believe that our priests simply forget what we tell them. Even if he does not forget, although the modern priest has so much to do that I do not know why he would bother trying to remember my petty sins, he simply purges them out of his mind.  Besides, even if you are really shy and really concerned about your particular priest thinking the worse of you because of your sins, then go anonymously behind the screen.  If that still isn’t good enough for you, then by all means, seek out another parish and another priest who does not know you.   One way or another, you need to get yourself right with God

Please remember that God’s ways are not man’s ways. There is no trickery involved in accepting God’s mercy.  When God says, “Gotcha,” He says it with love.

Purgatory – please remember to pray for the poor souls. They are mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers to all of us and they need our help. 

Mary Our Mother and Her Immaculate Heart

Each year Jesus' parents went to Jerusalem for the feast of Passover,
and when he was twelve years old,
they went up according to festival custom.
After they had completed its days, as they were returning,
the boy Jesus remained behind in Jerusalem,
but his parents did not know it.
Thinking that he was in the caravan,
they journeyed for a day
and looked for him among their relatives and acquaintances,
but not finding him,
they returned to Jerusalem to look for him.
After three days they found him in the temple,
sitting in the midst of the teachers,
listening to them and asking them questions,
and all who heard him were astounded
at his understanding and his answers.
When his parents saw him,
they were astonished,
and his mother said to him,
"Son, why have you done this to us?
Your father and I have been looking for you with great anxiety."
And he said to them,
"Why were you looking for me?
Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?"
But they did not understand what he said to them.
He went down with them and came to Nazareth,
and was obedient to them;
and his mother kept all these things in her heart. 

What's this? Another day honoring a heart? What is it with us Catholics?  Besides, why do we honor Mary at all much less her heart?  What is this all about?   Okay, Protestants, listen up. 

There is nobody that can love you like a mother can. A mother's child is part of her and always will be.  A mother hurts when their child hurts and is happy when the child is happy.  But, when we look at Mary, the mother of Jesus, the Mother of God, there is an even deeper relationship between the mother and the Son. 

Mary was the very first Christian because she believed what the angel Gabriel told her.  She carried the Lord inside of her for nine months and her body provided the building blocks and nourishment that was needed to bring the Savior into the world.  Also, the Son was a fusion of her body and the Holy Spirit, a truly miraculous Child. 

As a mother, Mary could love her Son fully and deeply. She understood why He had come but could not have a clue as to what was to be His ultimate fate at the hands of men.  

Mary would have seen to it that Jesus learned the basics about God that all children learned, for the Bible tells us that Jesus grew in wisdom and this wisdom would have come from the basic teachings that His mother gave to Him.  Mary was there to propel Jesus into His public ministry.  It must have seemed to her that He was reluctant.  At Cana, the wine ran out and she gave out the best advice given to anyone when she said, "Do whatever He tells you to do." 

Mary's heart would have been filled with joy as the ministry of Jesus would have started to gather steam. But deep inside she remembered the words that had been spoken to her by Simeon, the old man at the temple when he said, "And a sword shall pierce your heart..."  And that sword cut her to the quick as she saw her Son mistreated, tortured, and finally killed on a criminal's deathbed, the cross of shame.  Her heart would have been broken as the lifeless body of her Son would have been placed in her hands and she would have wailed as only a mother could wail at the bloody death of her beloved Son.

So, it was Mary's heart, a symbol for her soul and the place that love resides that was pierced by the sword of the Crucifixion and it was the same heart that was filled with a joy beyond our understanding when she beheld her Son alive again on that Easter Sunday. 

It is right and proper that we remember this sinless, immaculate heart that was always turned towards Jesus and His mission.  Without Mary and her Immaculate Heart, perhaps we would still be waiting for the Messiah to come. 

PURGATORY - THE FACTS

We have a very loving God.  He sent us His only Son who took upon Himself all of the sins of the world, past, present, and the sins yet to be committed.  All of these sins were forgiven when Jesus died on the Cross.  For this, we must be forever grateful.  But, if Jesus died and all sins were forgiven why would a place like Purgatory be needed?  Isn't this slapping the crucified Christ and telling Him that His saving death was not enough?  Actually, no.  Read further and hopefully, my poor attempt at an explanation will help you understand.

Once I was playing softball in a vacant lot across from my childhood home.  In Chicago, we play Clincher softball.  A Clincher is a large softball and it is played using underhand slow pitch. I was up at bat and the pitcher sent me a beautiful pitch, it was coming in low and slow, just where I liked them to be.  I swung the bat but was a bit too early and I tipped the ball to the first base side and it hit the fence of the house behind our field and went through a window making a crash that I swear was heard around the world.  Suddenly, I was the only person standing in the field.  There was no point in running away, the neighbor knew who played in the field.  He came out and surveyed the damage.  I looked at him and was very scared. He saw I was alone and said to not worry, that this could be fixed. and that I was forgiven because accidents happen.  He measured the window and said he would be back soon with the glass.  Shortly he came back and he removed the broken pieces, laid in a fresh bead of putty and the window was as good as new.  He then turned to me and gave me the receipt for the glass and asked if I would please ask my parents to give me the money for the glass.  I looked at the receipt, it was for five whole dollars - a fortune for a kid who was making twenty-five cents a week for an allowance.  I gulped and went to see my Dad. There was no sense in seeing Mom about this, she would just send me to Dad.  He said he saw what happened, looked at the receipt and pulled out his wallet and gave me the five dollars.  He did not holler, he said accidents happen and he would front the money and I could do extra chores to pay him back. 

So in our little story, we have an offense, a broken piece of glass.  We have repair of the issue and forgiveness, but we still had to deal with repaying my father for the money the glass cost.  I was forgiven, but the effect on the family budget had to be cured, I had to restore what I had broken. These extra chores can be likened in a very imperfect way to purgatory.  We all sin on earth and our sins are all forgiven but we have left on our soul the effects of our sins. The sin is gone, but the stain, caused by our attachment to sin, remains.  It is this stain that those of us in Purgatory are getting rid of.  Heaven is a place where no evil is allowed to exist because it is a place where we see God face to face.  

When we die in the grace of God, we will still have all of these stains that have to be bleached out. For example, when you died, you hated George because he stole your pencil (or whatever) and you left earth with this on your soul.  What would happen if you met George in heaven?  Discord at the very least would follow.  So you, yourself, will choose to go to purgatory because in your love for God you will know that this burden needs to be fully released.  

Purgatory is a painful place.  The pain comes from the fire of God's love and your longing to be with Him in heaven.  Purgatory is also a joyful place because all of the people there know that at one point in the future this suffering will end and they will be with God in heaven.  The souls in Purgatory pray unceasingly. The sad part is that they cannot pray themselves out of Purgatory.  The time for making up for temporal punishment for sins is while we are on earth through our prayers and sacrifices.  So the Poor Souls, some who have been there for centuries as we reckon time, need our help, our prayers, and our sacrifices to help them escape Purgatory and enter heaven earlier than they might if depending on themselves. Purgatory is a joyful place.  If you were to offer a poor soul the chance to come back to earth, he or she would reject that choice because of the great happiness they feel at being assured that they cannot offend God anymore and that soon they will be with Him face to face. That joy is greater than any joy we can experience on earth. 

How can we help them?  Well, we can offer our own prayers and sacrifices and we can offer them our mass attendance and the grace from every time we take the Holy Eucharist. The Mass and the Eucharist are the most efficient ways.  From the website "Our Catholic Prayers"  A link to their website is below. 

In purgatory, the souls of many of those who have died in God’s grace undergo purification so that they may enter heaven. The Prayer of St. Gertrude, below, is one of the most famous of the prayers for souls in purgatory. St. Gertrude the Great (pictured at left) was a Benedictine nun and mystic who lived in the 13th century. According to tradition, our Lord promised her that 1000 souls would be released from purgatory each time it is said devoutly.

 

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen

Our Catholic Prayers WEbsite

Sacred Heart of Jesus

Since it was preparation day,

in order that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath,

for the sabbath day of that week was a solemn one, 

the Jews asked Pilate that their legs be broken 

and they be taken down.

So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first 

and then of the other one who was crucified with Jesus.

But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, 

they did not break his legs, 

but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, 

and immediately blood and water flowed out.

An eyewitness has testified, and his testimony is true; 

he knows that he is speaking the truth, 

so that you also may come to believe.

For this happened so that the Scripture passage might be fulfilled:

Not a bone of it will be broken.

And again another passage says:

They will look upon him whom they have pierced.

Today is a most wonderful feast day,  The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  So, now we worship body parts, is that it? I can hear Protestants cry.  But they do not understand what this devotion entails. Let's see if we can help them understand just a little better. 

The heart beats inside of the chest of a person. The heart is a symbol of the soul and of love. So, when we say we have a devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, we have a devotion to the flesh and blood heart that beat in His chest and for the love, he showered upon us when he died on the cross and that heart temporarily ceased it's mighty beating until on the third day it began again and He rose in splendor and in complete victory over sin and death. We cannot separate the physical heart that went so far for us from the sacred Person of Jesus Christ Himself. 

It was Jesus Himself that suggested this devotion to Sister Margret Mary in 1672 in an apparition and the Church approved devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus based not only on the apparition but also because the devotion to Christ and the love that flowed from that mighty heart was something that was worthy of devotion.  

I have borrowed from our friends at the Catholic Exchange the following list of promises made to the good sister for those who undertake this devotion: 

This list of twelve promises does not comprise all of the promises Christ made to Saint Mary Margaret concerning the devotion to His Sacred Heart. These are the twelve promises most likely to draw faithful souls to this most worthy devotion. But still, they are only a few of the many graces promised to those willing to offer up their broken hearts to the Sacred Heart of Jesus for nine consecutive first Fridays.

1. Christ promises: “I will give them all the graces necessary for their state in life.” Our particular gifts and challenges carry with them different needs for different graces. Our individual particular state in life will be met with the requisite graces to strengthen the bond of sanctity to His Sacred Heart and thus prepare our way to salvation.
2. Christ promises: “I will give peace in their families.” In these troubled times when the family is under such immense attack from the powers and principalities seeking to destroy our bond with God, the consolation of peace in the family is devoutly to be wished. Who would not greatly prize bringing the graces of peace to his family that they may draw closer to the imitation of the Holy Family?
3. Christ promises: “I will console them in all their troubles.” Surely troubles abound in this vale of tears, let us devote ourselves to the Sacred Heart and enjoy the comfort only the Lord can give. Though our troubles will never vanish on this side of Paradise. Christ’s consolations make all things bearable. Further, by Christ’s abundant graces, our troubles become the means to the further conversion of our hearts by the fruits of redemptive suffering.
4. Christ promises: “They shall find in my heart an assured refuge during life and especially at the hour of death.” At what precise moment are we in the greatest need of Christ’s graces? At the hour of our death. Most welcome is this promise to be with us at that hour that signals our departure from this mortal world as we either ascend or descend to our final destination. With Christ present to us at our final hour, we are assured the most efficacious means of salvation.
5. Christ promises: “I will pour abundant blessings on all their undertakings.” In the great and small things we undertake, may God sanctify our every action so that we may amass treasure in heaven while we live in this world, all the while trying not to be of it. Our final disposition may require a cost of reserves not available here on earth. Certainly, it is wise to invest in our eternal future and with the help of God’s graces, all the more profitable.
6. Christ promises: “Sinners shall find in my heart the source and infinite Ocean of mercy.” As Holy Mother Church is a hospital for sinners and no man is capable of nearing perfection without the grace of God, let us accept the gift of infinite mercy offered to the faithful by this devotion. To benefit from this extraordinary offer of mercy we must accept it by the submission of our broken hearts to our Father in heaven.
7. Christ promises: “Tepid souls shall become fervent.” The promise of a heart on fire for Christ saves the tepid soul from the slothful spiritual malaise that grips this mortal coil. The tepid will be spewed from His mouth with more violently than the rebellious will be rejected. Let God makes us pleasing to His sight by a fervent heart.
8. Christ promises: “Fervent souls shall speedily rise to great perfection.” Once the tepid heart is imbued with fervency, the soul will be given further graces to advance towards the perfection required by the good citizen belonging to the City of God.
9. Christ promises: “I will bless the homes in which the image of my Sacred Heart shall be exposed and honored.” As soon as is possible let us procure an image of Christ’s Sacred Heart for prominent display in our homes that we may be reminded daily to accept the abundant graces flowing towards us. Dare to house the family at peace by God’s grace in a peaceful home with the icon of Christ’s love, the image of His Sacred Heart.
10. Christ promises: “I will give to priests the power to touch the most hardened hearts.” Let us contribute to our communities by ushering graces onto our shepherds to draw more souls into the Body of Christ. Imagine what joy there will be in heaven at the conversion of each hardened heart!
11. Christ promises: “Those who propagate this devotion shall have their name written in my heart and it shall never be effaced.” The indelible imprint of our names on Christ’s own heart a consolation too precious to bear. Let it happen as He promises and let us be drawn into a permanent bond with our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ by the ineffaceable imprint of our names on His Sacred Heart!
12. Christ Promises: “The all-powerful love of my Heart will grant to all those who shall receive communion on the first Friday of nine consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they shall not die under my displeasure, nor without receiving the sacraments; my heart shall be their assured refuge at the last hour.”

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God of the Living

Jesus said to them, "Are you not misled
because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God?

When they rise from the dead,
they neither marry nor are given in marriage,
but they are like the angels in heaven.
As for the dead being raised,
have you not read in the Book of Moses,
in the passage about the bush, how God told him,
I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,
and the God of Jacob?
He is not God of the dead but of the living.
You are greatly misled."

Why do us Catholics think it is possible for those that have died, who are no longer animated flesh and bone, who do not have a physical body to support them on this planet to be able to hear us?  Dead is dead.  Dig up any corpse and you will clearly see the results of corruption.  How can the dust and bones hear us if we pray to them?  

It is simply that we know from the words of Jesus himself that God is not the god of the dead but He is God of the living.  The lives of the saint in heaven are a continuation of the mortal life that they have left behind.  The tent that they dwelled in has been folded up and put away and they enjoy the vision of our God in heaven.  They are no longer subject to the limitations of human flesh.  They possess powers that we cannot understand but will on the day we enter heaven and become as they are.  If the saints are dead then there is no reason to believe in God for we too will follow them.  But since we have the testimony of God's only Son that God is the God of the living, then we have the assurance of His Word that we will not die but live on.  As the Church says, for us life is not ended but changed.  So, the Saints in heaven can hear us and they can pray to God for us and it is their pleasure to do so.  They exist in perfect love and charity.  Praise our God and Father for His lavish love.  May we serve Him in all that we do and dedicate our lives to the building up of the kingdom here on earth one brick and one soul at a time. 

Remember the Poor Souls in Purgatory! 

End Times - What To Do While We Wait

Beloved:

Wait for and hasten the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved in flames and the elements melted by fire. But according to his promise, we await new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. Therefore, beloved, since you await these things, be eager to be found without spot or blemish before him, at peace. And consider the patience of our Lord as salvation. Therefore, beloved, since you are forewarned, be on your guard not to be led into the error of the unprincipled and to fall from your own stability. But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Our evangelical friends spend a lot of time, effort, and study regarding the end of the world. Certain pseudo-Christians such as the Jehovah Witnesses were founded on the principle that the end of the world was not only coming but that it was predictable.  They predicted the day of Christ's return over and over and as you can see they were right every time (not)!  There have been books that have been written that show how current news supports the fact that the end times are here. One of the most famous is "The Late Great Planet Earth" by Hal Lindsey who predicted the imminent return of Jesus.  It is a well-written book and I confess that I did read it back in 1970 when Hal predicted that the world would end on such and such a day so we can see that he too was absolutely correct in his predictions as the world ended just as he said. 

The fact is that every generation, from the time of the Ascension of the Lord to the present day believes that they will be the generation to see the return of Christ on the Day of the Lord. One generation is fated to be correct and the rest of us are fated to be waiting. 

Human beings over the years have wasted a great deal of time and energy trying to predict the date of the end of the world when even Jesus said only the Father knew the date and time. We all await that day, some with great fear and others with great anticipation.  Our author of today's reading tells us we should prepare ourselves and be eager to be found without spot or blemish when the Lord returns.  On the day of our Baptism, we or our godparents accepted on our behalf a white garment which symbolized our soul's purity because we had died with Christ and were reborn in the cleansing waters of Baptism.  We were told to bring the garment back unstained.  

Instead of wasting time looking to the sky for signs and wonders, we should look inside ourselves and make our souls as ready as we can for the return of Christ whenever that may be.  The only thing we can be absolutely sure about that day is that it will be at a date and time of God the Father's choosing. Look to tend the fields that God has given you to tend. Take care of those around you as if they were plants of great price and irreplaceable.  Through your work, bring light to the world that mostly lives in darkness. If you do these things you need not fear the terror of the night nor the arrow that flies by day nor the devastating plague at noon. Though a thousand fall at your side, ten thousand at your right side, near you it shall not come. The day of the Lord will find you safe beneath the wings of God who will protect and nurture you and show you the way home. 

Our relatives, friends, and neighbors who have gone before us might be in Purgatory. This is good news because it means that eventually, they will see God in heaven.  This is bad news because they cannot do anything for themselves to hasten that day. Don't let your love for these people that you know end at the edge of the grave. Your prayer support of them will net you rewards as they will remember those that helped them. Remember too the millions of faith-filled Protestants in Purgatory, they spent their lives not believing in it and now they are there with none of their relatives willing to pray for them.  Please offer some prayers today.  Remember, as they are today someday you might also be.