Tuesday, January 23, 2018

How to Pray a Novena by Michael Dubruiel





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. 

"michael Dubruiel"

Thursday, January 18, 2018

Free Catholic Book

The human race has been fighting the battle against pride
since the Fall. Discontent with the lofty position God had given
them, they wanted to be just like God—but independent of
him. This disordered desire continues to be at the heart of human
nature. Only when God’s spirit lives within us to the fullest are
we able to be most fully human. And the only way to be filled
with God’s spirit is to empty ourselves of any false sense of who
we are, or who we think we have to be. This is the way of humility,
what St. Paul calls having “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians
2:16).
In the gospels, Jesus warns his disciples against desiring titles
and lofty honors. If we achieve greatness in life, as Cardinal del
Val did, we must guard against becoming attached to the position
or to the glory attached to it. Cardinal del Val gave the following
spiritual advice often to those who came to him for
counsel:
Have a great devotion to the Passion of Our Lord.
With peace and resignation, put up with your daily
troubles and worries. Remember that you are not a disciple
of Christ unless you partake of His sufferings and
are associated with His Passion. The help of the grace
of silence was the only thing that enabled the saints to
carry their extremely heavy crosses. We can show our
love for Him by accepting with joy the cross He sends
our way.
The cross sheds light on the way of humility; it is the path
that Christ took and the surest path for us to receive all the blessings
that Christ wishes to bestow upon us.

-The Power of the Cross  by Michael Dubruiel


"michael dubruiel"

Thursday, January 11, 2018

How to Pray by Michael Dubruiel

The letter to the Hebrews draws a strong connection
between the cross and prayer. Because every moment of our
earthly existence is threatened by death, and we know neither the
day nor the hour when that existence will come to an end, we,
too, need to cry out to the God who can save us. Like Moses, we
need the help of our fellow Christians to hold up our arms when
they grow tired. We, too, need the help of the Holy Spirit to
make up for what is lacking in our prayer. 


-The Power of the Cross 
 by Michael Dubruiel


"michael dubruiel"

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Bored at Mass? by Michael Dubruiel



When our Lord gave the disciples on the road to Emmaus the bread that He had blessed and broken, "he vanished out of their sight" (Luke 24:31). It was then that they recognized Him. We receive the Lord as they did in receiving the Eucharist. Now, at the moment that He is within us, we too should reflect, as they did, on the Scriptures that He has opened to us during this Mass, especially on what has made our "hearts burn."

In our consumer-minded society, we can miss the treasure that we receive if we treat it like one more thing to "get" and then go on to the next thing. Our Lord is not a "thing." He is God, who has deigned to come intimately into our lives. We should reflect on His Presence within us and ask what He would have us do.

More on The How to Book of the Mass here. 

"michael dubruiel"