Dance

They do dance, even with the nail holes in their feet.

It is Thanksgiving Day, a chance to express gratitude for our many blesseings. While it is nominally a happy time, it is also a time when, whether we want ti or not,sorrow insinuates itself into the hours of that day, adding a piquancy to the moments of it.

Wars, natural disasters and many kinds of suffering have a way of muting the warmth of the momennt. Time goes on, things happen, and we are left to deal as best we can, with happenings in the world.

What is important is not the infestation of our universe by evil, but the strength of our love which enlighten  our time.

Like a heavy jacket on a cold day, the cold can be held at bay to some extent, but not elimincated entirely. It is not as if we have some magical power to make the cold warm or to trscend distance and time to unite us to those we love. If we have a place to live and call our own, we should be aware of the multitudes who feel the cold despite the well-meaning wishes of the kind.

The reality is, there is no magical way to dissipate the loneliness and cold; it is a part of this world we cannot dismiss. At best, we can offer the warmth of a smile or a warm greeting. If we can do more, we should be grateful for that as well.

I have often spoken of a special kind of love that is willing to sacrifice itself for those who are without advocate, who are burdened and bound by sin and the need for foregiveness. Perhaps many do not realize the need because they have become so accustomed to the cold dark that they became desnsitized to their sins or the possibility of outright redemption. By offering our sacrifices and and little sufferings, joined together, a mighty manifestation of love is had, and even the most jaded heart can feel the comforrt and pleasure of the Lord and His forgiveness. Be aware, 

Miracles

Ask and you will receive.

How do miracles happen?

I have had some in my life, but I only discuss them in general terms.

Perhaps the one aspect that comes to peoples' minds is that they really have to want the miracle and there can't be any doubt about receiving a miracle.

An honest person will probably be frantic, or the need for an actual miracle would not come up in the first place.

While there are criteria in the Lord's mind, we will never reach such pinnacles of perfection; our selfishness is a very hard burden in life. You don't need to be a saint to ask for a miracle. You do need to be humble and your eyes fixed on the Heart who loves you, because miracles do not take place outside of a great deal of love; very deep and unselfish love.

A person might want to ask, but they may not see themselves worthy. Well, no one is worthy, because we blew in the beginning by the first sin. 

So if you need a miracle, ask for it, humbly and unselfishly, and don't worry about what if. Sometimes the asking must be carried out for a while before it is reoeived. It does not hurt to be a person who bothers to live the way God asks either. 

Peace be with you.

Rapture and other myths

 

The time has come for sober thought. Would God allow a nuclear war? I think the answer has been given before now; we fought the first world war, a second world war, and the VietNam war with the Korean war, the Afghan war and now we prepare for another war. Insofar as war is concerned, another war based on a nuclear exchange would annihilate the human race; there can be no winning side, no thousand year reich or soviet utopia, or wall street atheistic war to establish the kingdom of personal satisfaction and pleasure.

Let that sink in for a bit. The personal guard of Vladimit Putin prance around his palace with a priggish smirk on their face as if they are the master race. As far as human survival is concerned, there is no master race, no master economy and no worker's paradise in which he who works is the slave of the government, whether it resides in Washington DC or Moscow or Beijing or Pyongyang. Every human empire has come to an end; someone smarter and stronger came along and wiped it out, taking possession of everything achieved. Built on the ashes of the last empire, every empire comes to an end.

And if God allows another war, will there be a rapture? Ask yourself, did the people of the first and second world war go away at the height of the veangance rocket? Are we going to give away everything we have achieved? I think not. But even if nucllear weapons disappeared and the very concept was vanished, we would still be at each other's throat without the grace of God, and it is only the grace of God that will allow us to live in peace. Unlike the world that existed in the movie "THe Day the Earth Stood Still", there are no master robots with the ability to totally erase the human race if they don't stop fighting.

No economic system can survive without a radical transformation of human beings by God's grace.

Frankly, I am tired of thinking about these things. I have been thinking about them for 77 years and I participated only in the Vietnam war, and have no desire for any further participation in any further wars. I have seen too much evidence of the consequnces in human lives, young, old and in between.

I think we must insist on His grace, demanding it at any cost. While demanding it may seem arrogant and selfish, people truly in love with each other demand quite a bit from each other, and I am told He loves us with an infinite love. Not much love exists in the world anymore. Only our prayers can preserve it and help it survive and thrive in place of the selfishness and sinfulness of the human race, which seems bent on inventing new heights of sin and hate 

We may be deserving of punishment and chastisement, but even Jesus endured it, when He was whipped at the scourging post in Jerusalem.

That He endured it, not deserving of it, is a fact, and whether we punish ourselves or God punishes us, a lot of unpleasantness and gloomy despair awaits those who will not open their minds and hearts to Christ. I am also tired of having to to shut up and not offend someone who has no clue who God is, let alone what He is really like. The God who allowed the first two world wars was not a woose or a wimp. He is not afraid to punish us justly. We must satisfy His justice, or He will do it.

Rapture refers to a state in which God swoops up a soul and suspends it between heaven and earth, so that nothing of this world affects it and is capable of feeling the full effect of infinite love and joy. It has nothing to do with floating above the scene of a final war, or being lost in God's own bliss to unite us to Himself. The final state of the people who inhabit heaven will be perfected, free of sin or the capacity to commit sin and will be eternally happy. Another word for rapture is ecstasy, in which the senses are suspended along with bodily functions. In that state, the soul feels as God feels, and anything the soul can endure will be at the divine level, and only God can make it possible to be suspended that way and able to endure the happiness. I have never experienced it, though I have experienced great happiness and was not concerned about earthly comfort while I was in His presence.

All in all, I would rather feel that love than suffer anything on earth, but if only some great suffering will satisfy the Lord, then I would choose to be stigmatized, as that was Jesus choice, the choice of St. Francis and the choice of St. Padre Pio when the occasion arose. In Padre Pio's case, he desired the wounds out of love for Jesus, but not the constant harassment he suffered because he bore Christ's wounds. 

So we have come full circle. Much suffering is evident in our future, but loving God, we will not care, because to feel that love is to be wholly abosorbed in Him to the exclusion of everything else. We do have choices, but thus far, the human race has chosen poorly. We see what happened to the Nazi who chose poorly in the ndiana Jones" movie.. Let our intellect be perfected by Jesus so it is at Hs service, then we will not be liable for the sin of selfishness and we may console Jesus hanging still on the cross of selfish loves.

The Solitary Man

 God help the solitary man who seeks God. He is exposed on every side and beset from within and without by evil, gnawing away at his soul for his love of God, subject to the most heartless and descpicable pronouncements possible.

In the midst of such suffering, it does not matter the intensity of pain, or the debilitating loneliness with which he is assaulted, yet even in the midst of total darkness and the assaults of abandonment, he can only see that he is nailed to a cross as real as the ground beneath his feet, and his life blood is flowing away profligately, writhing in suffering that will not end. It makes you  old, and it makes you young.

Hybgry and yearning for sleep, it will not come, until one questions his very vision by which he sees. If it were not for the sudden effulgences of His glory, it might be as bitter as death, yet that does not come either, for men do not stop sinning, and the need that they be punished and chastised never ends, until in a moment He embraces him on the  brink of despair.

Thus a man knows how his brothers are doing, for he is alive with him and all who serve the Lord, and comfort is in their embrace, from far distant shores.

None of it is seen by anyone except God, who measures the weight of sins against the balance of our penances. Yet it is true that we scarcely know His pain and disappointment, and few are those who realize how much He wishes the consolation of our attention, and our desired embrace.

To bleed, the pain must be felt, and the suffering substantial. God deliver him from those who see nothing of the darkness or feel the least prick of any pain, for they are too busy in their merriment and are always busy entertaining themselves while others take up the cross and laid down on it so the nails may the more easilly be imparted all the way through the wood and through the limbs affected. So much will be requited on the final day. Do not fear for your salvation as long as you can feel abandoned and despairing, for the truth is that He loves us greatly for our willingness.

A Prayer

 Oh my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to heaven, especially those who have most need of thy mercy.

One of the prayers said with the other prayers of the Holy Rosary.

A Prayer

 

Selfishness

Donald trump is no savior. He only responds to the possibility of getting something he wants. He has been indicted several times and has hurt people, even raping or molesting them. He doesn't care  if it is possible to get an abortion or not as long as he gets what he wants for himself. Those who voted for him in order to change the law about abortion was tragically wasted. Similalrly, those who are opposed to homosexuality and gay marriage in particularl, will find he hates homosexuals and would hunt them down if he got the chance.

The only thing trump responds to is what he wants, and he will spare no expense to get it, and will say or do anything that will get him what he wants.

Cares

God cares for His children and clothes them in life
and well being.

 It is not difficult to be stunned to silence. Events can freeze us where we stand. It tests what we believe by forcing us to do something, or to admit a truth.

One of my passtimes is watching historical videos about world war 2, and fantasy films like Harry Potter. While some condemn the Harry Potter series, I find that there is a strong current of good versus evil, which is a good thing, I think; if we can see events for what they were, history has a way of repeating irself, which can give us opportunities to take certain actions.

Human ingenuity alters the equation of how time resolves; we can't know how things will change, though we may be quick to pick up on possibilities

People can no longer doubt that changes in the climate have rendered weather forcasts difficult to make. That makes violence in nature very unexpected and if no advance warning is heard, then people die in floods, earthquakes and violent volcanic eruptions. While that list of events is by no means inclusive of everything adverse, it is already close enough.

The bodies discovered at Pompeii  were all that remained after the explosive eruption of Vesuvius volcano, in Italy. So many lives were cut short, and plaster poured into the ash rendered a solid image of the final agonising experience of the inhabitants of Popmpeii.

When ash was removed from parts of Pompeii, frescoes and mosaics appeared, perfectly preserved by the burning cataclysm. People's work was disclosed, the bread baked, and the decorations of the dwellings of the time.

At least some thought should be evoked in encountering these things. Our time is by no means without evidence of sudden and unforeseen catastrophes. People carry on having babies, raising children and working toward retirement and ultimately, passing from this life to the next.

If a person prays their Rosary, they can ponder the meaning of the associated mysteries, and find the comfort nothing else can give. We should ask to be forgiven our sins and we should make atonement for them. Certainly, we should also remember those who have gone before us and encountered the  justice of God. Every sin must be atoned in some way, and an important way is to recall those who have passed on in our prayers, asking for the forgiveness of their sins.

It is certain that none of us will have the excuse "I didn't have time to atone". Sins are committed almost casually, as if there were no consequences. Even priests and bishops nuns and monks must account for their lives before God.

The tragic events of history stand before us as witnesses and admonitions;  such things as the Boxing Day tsunami, and the fire-bombing of Dresden and the use of the first atomic weapon stand demanding explanations and ackowledgments.

"Oh my Jesus, forgive them their sins, be merciful to them and bring them home to you, in your great mercy"; a prayer given me by the Lord. It is a short and simple prayer we can repeat whenever we hear a fire engine or an aid car driving by with their sirens blaring. Then too, when we see the news on the internet or on a tv, we can pray for those who died in catastrophes. Whenever we feel ourselves becoming ill or sudden fear invades our heart, we can make the sign of the cross, and experience the Lord giving us His peace.

In the Rosary we can include the prayer, "Oh my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to Heaven."

We shold pray that the Lord prevent a nuclear exchange, and act to quell wars and disputes that can lead to deaths of millions.

The Lord does not demand the impossible; He gives all the grace and knowledge necessary to be safe and to remain close to Him in time of trial, suffering and terror. Those who perpetrate terror will suffer for it. Those who overthrow governments and foment wars will be punished for it, because God is just, and such things will be accounted for.

Seeing

What did you come out into the desert to see,
a reed shaken in the wind? But what did you come out to see?
I know what you saw, and I recall your reaction to what you saw.
Together we are closer to God for what we saw in all we suffered.

Dear God it does hurt so.

t dawned on me, when I pulled my cross from out from under my shirt and I realized there is no one to see it except me; the whole purpose of wearing the habit is to be SEEN.  To be seen  loving, praying and being absorbed utterly into God and His bliss. That was the whole purpose from the beginning. That things went bad from there, is an understatement, and I did not react well.

 But I understood very well, God's purposes in the matter. Those whom I approached were charged by the Church with shepherding His flock, not manipulating and maneuvering people into suffering and humiliation, but that was their will, and they pressed their advantage; I could do nothing but kneel before St. Therese's statue in the dark cathedral, and beg for peace and a little consolation to dull the pain.

They got what they wanted. What happened to them subsequently I will never know. But it hurt; whether it hurt badly enough to constitute reparation of sins, I don't know. My place is more or less quiet and peacful, and there is little else to do but enter into the suffering and submit to God. I have been submitting now for over ten years. Whatever they were afraid of, by now has dwindled away. I was an amusing anecdote.

I got s place to live, auiet in which to be before God, and occasionally, the bliss of being absorbed into Him when I wasn't suspecting it. What they got, I don't really know, but from their remarks, I can only gather that they did not have peace in which to be enclosed and enraptured, and their use of drugs to combat their illness, or their use of alcohol, pretty much states the obvious.

Things should not forever be being dragged up to humiliate me over and over again, but since it is so searingly successful to torment me can only mean it was significant to God Himself. But atonement implies a certain participation, and that makes me happy; that I sensed the urge to approach to the Cross over and over again, asking for the brandedness implied can only speak to His willingness to enter with me. That I hurt, was simple enough, but that I hurt for a decent purpose drew me up into bliss before hIm, and likely always will.

How, I am not certain, but I will be seen. Many times, wearing street clothes only, people have approached me as if I were a religious, even with my cross tucked safely out of sight. The cross is not a source of shame to anyone who loves and realizes that the essence of love is a pain that can't be borne, and the bearing of which is an unbearable weight of blessedness.

My eyes have looked upon God, and He has not allowed me to be killed. For a long time after I returned to the States from 'Nam, I bore a burden for all who were wounded and killed in that country. That I am often reminded over and over again of scenes from the place, tells me He is not finished with me yet, and with all I undertook while I was there. Now I am free. My continuing participation in the cross is a consequence of love; a pure and purging love that brings freedom to all those for whom I bear it. I was not nailed to the cross to the extent that my hands and feet and side or any other part of me exuded a single drop of blood. All that shedding of blood is unseen, and unseeable. For my part, I continue to hope I may stand beside Him on the last day without taint of any sin, and able to see His Face and embrace Him without obstacle.

In The Odor of Sanctity

 In describing that, Laurentin and Corteville inform us that the visionary, who passed in her seventies (long after her fellow other seer, Maximin Giraud), had stigmata and–did Melanie, who so many found controversial–“died in the odor of sanctity”!

How is it one person can prevent honoring someone eho obviouslly exhibits such signs universally recognised? Ego is a terrible adversary for the just.

In the odor of sanctity

The strength of human custom is so great, that even supreme good can be stymied by ordinary human beings, and God help those who do. I suggest that such a thing is unforgiveable. On the other hand, people regularly pain the Immaculate Heart, that replica of the Sacred Heart which implores us so often and in so many ways, to love Her and never stray from beneath Her mantle of protection. They do so with impunity, and a feeling of immunity from punishment because She has not been shown to punish anyone.

They do so with the conviction they have done right, even as they see Her children's lives cut short by evil. They do it anyway.

That is why the answer to the reality is the Rosary, which She has told us time and again is our sheild and our refuge against evil. We may still see it, and still see the grief that evil has perpetrated, but never have we seen that the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart will be overcome except in the pain of grief as She watches Her children suffer. Make no mistake, if She suffers, so do we and so does Jesus. For the abominable sin of not caring and of inflicting that pain, there can scarcely be forgiveness. Yet, if She chooses to forgive, then no one can gainsay Her.

Accordingly, we may say the Rosary, and there is ample opportunity to pray for the conversion of sinners, and to make reparation for the pain of piercing of the Immaculate Heart. I specifically encourage everyone who recites the Rosary faithfully each day, to offer the Rosary to console that Sorrowful Heart which is daily offended countless times. Still She comes to us and speaks to us, piercing the veil of unbelief. We may pray for the forgiveness of sins, but we ought to also offer our sufferings as a gift to the Mother of God as our caresses and consolations meant soley for Her. Our life may scarcely have meaning, as we are so small in the scheme of things, but we are not so small that Mary cannot see us or not know we exist.

We ought to approach God and His Mother in the deepest humility, realizing the perils of our position in the world. We  ought to plead to be forgiven so that there is nothing to prevent us from growing closer to them. 

If we can but be a tiny votive light in the immense darkness about us, then we can be lost in God, and engulfed in His Sacred Heart and that Sorrowful Heart who is His Mother. How much comfort ought we to receive by steadfastly burning with a shining love. Let us desire to be comfort for our brothers and sisters, especially those in endless suffering, and for Jesus and Mary. Let us stand beside the cross and be engulfed in His passion to the extent we can, and love with all  our ability to love, so that in the end, love blots out the memory of pain and evil. Then our neighbors might see too and be encompassed by it. Our particpation is always increased if He finds us worthy to stand where we are. 

Prayer intentions:

Peace and not war in the world.

The  intention of the Holy Father and priests.

The relief of the suffering of our brothers whom we see suffering.
The healing of our planet.

The forgiveness of sins and reparation for them so that offenders may atone for the sorrow they have caused Jesus and Mary.
That  priests live in peace, forgiven their sins and loving to forgive the sins of sinners.

That all who do not believe should be able to believe and to believe.

That those dying in sin might be forgiven and scape the sad sentence of hell.

For the intentions of souls in purgatory that they may be united at last with Jesus.

That in our last moments the angels surround us and protect us so that we arrive safely at the feet of Jesus and Mary and are welcomed into the eternal enjoyment of their company.

That God may be praised always and everywhere.