Repent or Perish Luke 13:3

The First Joyful Mystery: The Annunciation to Mary

The angel's greeting to Mary is one of joy as the hoped-for Messiah's coming is announced. Ask Our Lady to help you pray this decade, pondering the joy of God's coming to save His people.

--from Praying the Rosary: With the Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, and & Mysteries by Michael Dubruiel and Amy Welborn.

Repent or Perish Luke 13:3

To experience the joy of the joyful mysteries of the rosary one must truly repent, change their way of thinking--and learn a new what is really important in life. What should you and I really be awaiting? What is the ultimate event we should be looking forward to in our lives?

Isn't it interesting how the day that commemorates the birth of Jesus has been poluted in modern times as an event that is looked forward to for material gifts that in the end disappoint? Isn't this our first lesson in that not to repent leads to a life that is constantly passing where a final perishing is the end result?

Most of us can remember the many times that we have finally received what we thought would bring us ultimate happiness only in the end to realize that there is something more, something beyond what any of the earthly desires and fulfillment can bring. But the game goes on and we continue to replace one fantasy with another, thinking that this new "thing" will be "it."

This can happen even in religion, when one thinks the perfect liturgy, preacher, pope, spiritual director, (fill in your blank) will bring us to the heights that hitherto we haven't accomplished. This is a far cry from Jesus' admonition not to go off in search of the false messiahs, but rather to die to oneself. Repentance is hard. Most of us don't repent we just change our addictions, replacing one for the other--and experience the same disappointments over and over because X has let us down.

Imagine the joy of Mary as she hears the announcement that a savior is coming. The joy of a St. Paul when he realizes "wretched man that I am, who will save me?" "Thanks be to God, Jesus Christ!" (See Romans) Imagine your joy, my joy when we finally repent, turn away from Satan and all his empty promises and place our hope in God alone.

Thursday's Forecast

For all of you who live in the south, here is what we are already looking at for this week (although it is supposed to be in the 70's today), from the Weather Channel:

Mix of rain and snow. Highs in the upper 40s and lows in the upper 20s.

Irish Priests and the Florida Missions

From the Sun Sentinel:

In 1914, none of the four Catholic pastors in South Florida was Irish born, according to the Rev. Michael McNally's book, Catholicism in South Florida. By 1940, Irish clergy predominated.

About 1,250 Irish-born priests were serving in the United States in 1997, according to a study by sociologist William Smith of Georgia Southern University.

The very uncertainty of a religious frontier was a lure for the Irish, said the Rev. Gerald Grace of Highland Beach, one of 16 foreign-born Irish still serving in the Diocese of Palm Beach. "It was the missionary endeavor, never knowing what you're going to find."

For Grace, pastor of St. Lucy church in Highland Beach and a theology instructor at St. Vincent de Paul Seminary west of Boynton Beach, the appeal of South Florida so far has lasted 41 years.

"Any time you serve the needs of others -- seeing their perspective, affirming their goodness -- it's always fulfilling," he said. "That's at the heart of the gospel."

Pope: The Family Against Hedonism and Relativism

From Asia News Italy:

Citing Gaudium et Spes and Vatican Council II, the pope recalled that “God himself is the author of marriage”. And it is precisely from this Origin that the definition of marriage is born as “no longer two, but one flesh”. For this reason, any division or breaking of the marital bond is excluded: ‘Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate’ (Mk 10:8-9).

So the pope exhorted Christian spouses “to remain faithful to their vocation in every stage of life, ‘in joy and sorrow, in health and sickness’, as they promised to do in the sacramental rite. Aware of grace received, may Christian spouses build families open to life and capable of confronting together the many complex challenges of our time.”

Overcoming hedonism and relativism, parents are “true ‘missionaries’ of love and of life (cfr n.54).This mission is directed within the family – especially in reciprocal service and children’s education – and outside: the domestic family, in fact, is called to be a sign of God’s love towards all. It is a mission, this, that the Christian family can bring to fulfillment only if sustained by divine grace.”

Feast of the Holy Rosary

Commemorating a different type of crusade, reminiscent of the one that engaged most of the 20th century against the spread of communism and needed today to overcome new battles of the decline of faith in the West.

The rosary book that Amy and I wrote:

Feast of St. Bruno

Founder of the Carthusians...a great English Cathusian site

Repent or Perish Luke 13:3

The Second Sorrowful Mystery: The Scourging at the Pillar

The path of faithfulness to the will of the Father is difficult. Our Lord is scourged at the pillar and endures horrible torture out of love for us. Ask Our Lady to help you pray this decade to experience sorrow for your sins that cause the Lord to suffer so greatly.

--from Praying the Rosary: With the Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful, and & Mysteries by Michael Dubruiel and Amy Welborn.

Repent or Perish Luke 13:3

When someone experiences the love of God and converts everything seems so easy. Suddenly doing the will of the Father is not a task but a delight. Yet at some point the "felt" empowering love leaves the individual and it as though one is set free into a fog where one is not sure anymore.

The Passion of the Lord has been meditated since the inception of Christianity as the sure path of navigating these difficult waters. Trust in God, in the valley of darkness becomes the keystone of a person's faith. St. Ignatius of Loyola counseled remembering frequently the past consolations given by God during such periods--no doubt this counsel was inspired by the Psalmist who in the midst of trials would "remember" leading the rejoicing crowds into the Temple.

Following Christ is not easy. Doing the will of God requires a submission to His love as we walk our own Calvary path behind Christ. When Christianity fails to preach this hard truth it ceases to be Christianity. The suffering of the present moment is nothing compared to the glory that awaits those who trust in Him, as St. Paul counseled the early Church.