Feast of St. Francis of Assisi - October 4

St. Francis of Assisi taught his followers to reverence Christ and

his cross wherever they might find themselves. The prayer attributed

to St. Francis that begins, “Lord, make me a channel of your

peace,” was in fact not composed by St. Francis; it was misapplied

to him in a prayer book. The true prayer of St. Francis was one

he taught his friars to pray whenever they would pass a Church

or the sign of the cross made by two branches in a tree. They were

to prostrate themselves toward the church or the cross and pray,

“We adore you Christ and we praise you present here and in all

the Churches throughout the world, because by your holy cross

you have redeemed the world.”

The cross reminds us of the true Christ, the one in the

Gospels who was constantly misjudged by the religious figures

of his day. If we are not careful, he will be misjudged by us as well.

We need to worship him alone.

 

From The Power of the Cross , available as a free download by clicking the cover below:

 

Free Catholic Book by Michael Dubruiel

In standing up for justice, we must not become tyrants.
Those who lead successful revolutions against injustice often
become the next abusive regime. The cross of Christ teaches us
a path of humility and obedience to God alone, not to any ideology
but to Christ. Standing up for what is right is the duty of
every child of God, and the Son of God has shown us the way.
We strive to be like him, not to obtain some position or false
power. The cross of Christ restores our status as children of God;
like Our Lord we should ever remember that we are children of
God and trust in Him alone.

-The Power of the Cross  by Michael Dubruiel

October 1- St. Therese

Today is the Feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus



From theOffice of Readings



When I had looked upon the mystical body of the Church, I recognised myself in none of the members which St. Paul described, and what is more, I desired to distinguish myself more favourably within the whole body. Love appeared to me to be the hinge for my vocation. Indeed I knew that the Church had a body composed of various members, but in this body the necessary and more noble member was not lacking; I knew that the Church had a heart and that such a heart appeared to be aflame with love. I knew that one love drove the members of the Church to action, that if this love were extinguished, the apostles would have proclaimed the Gospel no longer, the martyrs would have shed their blood no more. I saw and realised that love sets off the bounds of all vocations, that love is everything, that this same love embraces every time and every place. In one word, that love is everlasting.

October 1- St. Therese

Therese imagined that in the spiritual life we are all like infants at the foot of the stairs being summoned by our Heavenly Father to climb the heights--which try as we might we cannot do. Finally the Heavenly Father will come down the stairs and pick us up and carry us up the stairs. Which of course is a beautiful child like summary of what the Trinity has done in the incarnation of Jesus.
Are you and I trying to climb the stairs? Is our Faith in Him? Abandon yourself to the God as a child abandons oneself to their parents.
St. Therese, pray for us!

How to Go to Confession

For a brief, pointed and helpful guide,

All of Michael Dubruiel's books listed on Amazon.

The Power of the Cross free download and audio files.

The New Version of the Stations of the Cross link

Novena to St. Therese by Michael Dubruiel

The Novena to St. Therese continues.  It's included in this pocket-sized book.

The Church's Most Powerful Novenas is a book of novenas connected with particular shrines.  Michael Dubruiel wrote in the introduction to this book he compiled:

When Jesus ascended into heaven, he told his Apostles to stay where they were and to "wait for the gift" that the Father had promised: the Holy Spirit.  The Apostles did as the Lord commanded them. "They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers" (Acts 1:14). Nine days passed; then, they received the gift of the Holy spirit, as had been promised. May we stay together with the church, awaiting in faith with Our Blessed Mother, as we trust entirely in God, who loves us more than we can ever know. 

73 Steps to Communion with God - 73

This is a continuation of the 73 Steps to Communion with God. The previous postings are found in the archives to the right. This is the 73rd Step:



(73) And never to despair of God's mercy.



We fall, time and again after numerous resolutions that we won't ever sin again. In a matter of seconds we are passing judgment on someone or even worst--once again falling into sin.



The tool that we most overlook in this great toolbox that we have been given to grow in communion with God is trust. Most of our acts of conversion are feeble attempts when we turn to God and ask Him to trust in us, but this is not what the spiritual life is about. Rather it is about knowing that we cannot be trusted but that God can be.



Turning to God is what the spiritual life is all about. It begins and ends with an act of trust in God's love and His mercy. There is nothing more tragic than when someone ceases to believe that God could ever love them or when they feel that they have done something that God could never forgive. Despair and closing ourselves off from God's mercy is the only act that can keep us from receiving it.



The devotion to the Divine Mercy that swept the Catholic world in the late 1900's and continues to thrive today is a great way to keep our focus on God's love and mercy by daily at 3:00 P.M. calling to mind God's mercy. The revelation to St. Faustina by Our Lord was that His death on the cross was for our sins, nothing new here, but He lamented that people were not availing themselves to His mercy and that she would become His Apostle of Mercy. "Jesus, I trust in you" is a powerful antidote to the many other voices that seek to destroy our lives. Focusing on the crucifix and meditating on the Passion of Christ as the supreme sign of God's love and mercy is powerful way to remind ourselves of how much God loves us.



Through the many counsels that we have looked at this is the most important--to remember God's mercy. God is our savior. Jesus we trust in you!