Tied Up

 Day's Saints
Vincent of Saragossa, Martyr
Blessed Giuseppe Nacimbeni, Franciscan

Gospel
Mk 3:22-30
The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus,
"He is possessed by Beelzebul," and
"By the prince of demons he drives out demons."
Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables,
"How can Satan drive out Satan?
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
And if a house is divided against itself,
that house will not be able to stand.
And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided,
he cannot stand;
that is the end of him.
But no one can enter a strong man's house to plunder his property
unless he first ties up the strong man.
Then he can plunder his house.  
Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies
that people utter will be forgiven them.
But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will never have forgiveness,
but is guilty of an everlasting sin."
For they had said, "He has an unclean spirit."

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Beware, and pay heed to what He says about how a house is plundered; the thief must first tie up, restrain or incapacitate a person before he can help himself to his property.

For us, it is a warning equally applicable, concerning our treasure. We cannot be blinded or bound by evil without our consent, and he knows enough tricks to bind many, and without the mercy of the Lord, they cannot be freed. One may implore the Lord to be freed and do penance to atone for sins, and gain His favor. But do not wait to act, lest you be called before Him and must explain, for what can you says but " I have sinned in your sight and I ask your mercy", as you work to atone. He may allow us to do more when we have stood before Him by way of purgation in suffering because we are not rejoined to Him to remain forever.

Pray for one another, and do not hesitate to do penances for each other, for such a kindness deserves a considerable blessing. If you suffer, do not hesitate to use it to advantage for souls, for you will earn no punishment that way, but rather your eyes will be cleansed so you may see Him clearly, a blessing much desired by holy souls.

Do not be startled or dismayed by what evil men say to gain power over people so that they may plunder and ravage and do all sorts of evil. Those who do such things are anti-Christs, and God gives them no power. Nations might be annihilated, but the children of God will be protected by God, while the enemy is being cast into the shouldering depths of hell. If their sins are revealed to all, they are to be shunned as the evil they are.

Tied Up

 Day's Saints
Vincent of Saragossa, Martyr
Blessed Giuseppe Nacimbeni, Franciscan

Gospel
Mk 3:22-30
The scribes who had come from Jerusalem said of Jesus,
"He is possessed by Beelzebul," and
"By the prince of demons he drives out demons."
Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables,
"How can Satan drive out Satan?
If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
And if a house is divided against itself,
that house will not be able to stand.
And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided,
he cannot stand;
that is the end of him.
But no one can enter a strong man's house to plunder his property
unless he first ties up the strong man.
Then he can plunder his house.  
Amen, I say to you, all sins and all blasphemies
that people utter will be forgiven them.
But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit
will never have forgiveness,
but is guilty of an everlasting sin."
For they had said, "He has an unclean spirit."

+

Beware, and pay heed to what He says about how a house is plundered; the thief must first tie up, restrain or incapacitate a person before he can help himself to his property.

For us, it is a warning equally applicable, concerning our treasure. We cannot be blinded or bound by evil without our consent, and he knows enough tricks to bind many, and without the mercy of the Lord, they cannot be freed. One may implore the Lord to be freed and do penance to atone for sins, and gain His favor. But do not wait to act, lest you be called before Him and must explain, for what can you says but " I have sinned in your sight and I ask your mercy", as you work to atone. He may allow us to do more when we have stood before Him by way of purgation in suffering because we are not rejoined to Him to remain forever.

Pray for one another, and do not hesitate to do penances for each other, for such a kindness deserves a considerable blessing. If you suffer, do not hesitate to use it to advantage for souls, for you will earn no punishment that way, but rather your eyes will be cleansed so you may see Him clearly, a blessing much desired by holy souls.

Do not be startled or dismayed by what evil men say to gain power over people so that they may plunder and ravage and do all sorts of evil. Those who do such things are anti-Christs, and God gives them no power. Nations might be annihilated, but the children of God will be protected by God, while the enemy is being cast into the shouldering depths of hell. If their sins are revealed to all, they are to be shunned as the evil they are.

Caring

 It is as much work not caring as it is caring. One can go through life oblivious of the outrageous behavior of nations and their leaders, but what will you say to the Lord when you stand before Him having lived your life as a slob who didn't care?

For me, my pain is private, and if they have any clue, it is hard to tell. I only know I can greet the stranger and welcome the immigrant ( and we have many here). But the Lord is present in my pain, and my happiness is in His embrace that reassures and comforts me, so I may extend it to the other people in my life.

I have said often enough, that we should occupy ourselves doing penance for our sins, so we can so penance for those who do not seek foregiveness because they are afraid to ask, lest they be forbidden.

But if His life tells us anything, He never withheld His mercy or His love, and on too many occasions, those who were leaders were uncaring and saw nothing wrong with treating others as merely disposable objects.

None of us likes to be treated as disposable, as if our feelings do not matter and our pain nothing that requires us to make any effort to care or to comfort. Nevertheless, we all need His care and His love, and we need to realize just how much effort He put into His children's well-being.

To counteract the the violence and destructive hatred in the world, we need to care beyond our strength. We cannot grow weary or give up in despair, because His power is total, not limited like nations and armies.

The earth displays its violence on occasion, and then it is all open and visible to see, nothing hidden, as homes and lives are overturned and destroyed. He cares, whatever happens to us. If we wish it for ourselves, we must make sure we care for others, and then what we have afforded others comes back as our consolation.

In our daily lives, we are meant to ponder and penetrate the mystery of His passion. It was a passonate passion; He cared and spare Himself nothing in order to reach the point of sacrifice which could redeem us. The temple veil was torn from top to bottom, the sky was dark for three hours, and the earth trembled and tossed in the moments after He died, a fact noted in the Gospels.

Do you honestly think that He shows no signs in our world around us of His love for us? You are mistaken. Take hope and comfort one another and do not give up. Do not give up feelings because you are tired of hurting without rest. Jesus did not give up during the three hours He hung crucified. His last act on the cross was to forgive the centurion who lanced His Heart.

Caring

 It is as much work not caring as it is caring. One can go through life oblivious of the outrageous behavior of nations and their leaders, but what will you say to the Lord when you stand before Him having lived your life as a slob who didn't care?

For me, my pain is private, and if they have any clue, it is hard to tell. I only know I can greet the stranger and welcome the immigrant ( and we have many here). But the Lord is present in my pain, and my happiness is in His embrace that reassures and comforts me, so I may extend it to the other people in my life.

I have said often enough, that we should occupy ourselves doing penance for our sins, so we can so penance for those who do not seek foregiveness because they are afraid to ask, lest they be forbidden.

But if His life tells us anything, He never withheld His mercy or His love, and on too many occasions, those who were leaders were uncaring and saw nothing wrong with treating others as merely disposable objects.

None of us likes to be treated as disposable, as if our feelings do not matter and our pain nothing that requires us to make any effort to care or to comfort. Nevertheless, we all need His care and His love, and we need to realize just how much effort He put into His children's well-being.

To counteract the the violence and destructive hatred in the world, we need to care beyond our strength. We cannot grow weary or give up in despair, because His power is total, not limited like nations and armies.

The earth displays its violence on occasion, and then it is all open and visible to see, nothing hidden, as homes and lives are overturned and destroyed. He cares, whatever happens to us. If we wish it for ourselves, we must make sure we care for others, and then what we have afforded others comes back as our consolation.

In our daily lives, we are meant to ponder and penetrate the mystery of His passion. It was a passonate passion; He cared and spare Himself nothing in order to reach the point of sacrifice which could redeem us. The temple veil was torn from top to bottom, the sky was dark for three hours, and the earth trembled and tossed in the moments after He died, a fact noted in the Gospels.

Do you honestly think that He shows no signs in our world around us of His love for us? You are mistaken. Take hope and comfort one another and do not give up. Do not give up feelings because you are tired of hurting without rest. Jesus did not give up during the three hours He hung crucified. His last act on the cross was to forgive the centurion who lanced His Heart.

Grains of Wheat

 Day's Saints
Honoratus of Arles, Abbot
Blessed Giuseppe Antonio Tovini, Franciscan Tetiary

1 Sm 16:1-13 Samuel and the anointing of David

Gospel Mk 2:23-28
As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.
At this the Pharisees said to him,
“Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?
How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat,
and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them,
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

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God did not make human beings so they could be oppressed by other human beings, and enslaved by those who think they know more than all the rest.

Sufficient to the task was the will of men, to know and love Him and serve Him. Beyond even that, He made men to serve one another by giving good example and doing the Will of God. Neither He make it so difficult to know His Will that they could not succeed; they were not made so God could have something to condemn. But He did make us all to use our minds and our wills and train them to align with His thoughts and Will, for in these He provides what we need to do what pleases Him.

Men in power over others have a double responsibility to make sure laws are reasonable and in accordance with God's Will. He did not intend men to become ravenous beasts, devouring one another in greed. 

The grain in the field was God's gifts to men to sustain their labors and help them live. Do not take away from others what is necessary to live.

Do not empower men who will oppress others, for to cause grief separates God's children from Himself, and He will not bless what separates men from God. He is with men of His own accord, but it is difficult to seek and find what unites to  God. If you empower an immoral man and men sin on account of it, will He not look into the matter and set things straight?

Bring down on yourselves no wrath from God, but do as He asks, for He has only the best in mind for you.

Grains of Wheat

 Day's Saints
Honoratus of Arles, Abbot
Blessed Giuseppe Antonio Tovini, Franciscan Tetiary

1 Sm 16:1-13 Samuel and the anointing of David

Gospel Mk 2:23-28
As Jesus was passing through a field of grain on the sabbath,
his disciples began to make a path while picking the heads of grain.
At this the Pharisees said to him,
“Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?”
He said to them,
“Have you never read what David did
when he was in need and he and his companions were hungry?
How he went into the house of God when Abiathar was high priest
and ate the bread of offering that only the priests could lawfully eat,
and shared it with his companions?”
Then he said to them,
“The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath.
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.”

+

God did not make human beings so they could be oppressed by other human beings, and enslaved by those who think they know more than all the rest.

Sufficient to the task was the will of men, to know and love Him and serve Him. Beyond even that, He made men to serve one another by giving good example and doing the Will of God. Neither He make it so difficult to know His Will that they could not succeed; they were not made so God could have something to condemn. But He did make us all to use our minds and our wills and train them to align with His thoughts and Will, for in these He provides what we need to do what pleases Him.

Men in power over others have a double responsibility to make sure laws are reasonable and in accordance with God's Will. He did not intend men to become ravenous beasts, devouring one another in greed. 

The grain in the field was God's gifts to men to sustain their labors and help them live. Do not take away from others what is necessary to live.

Do not empower men who will oppress others, for to cause grief separates God's children from Himself, and He will not bless what separates men from God. He is with men of His own accord, but it is difficult to seek and find what unites to  God. If you empower an immoral man and men sin on account of it, will He not look into the matter and set things straight?

Bring down on yourselves no wrath from God, but do as He asks, for He has only the best in mind for you.

Light

I was watching "Shoes of the Fisherman" again yesterday. It dawned on me that, although the world is flooded with light, few can see it, mostly because so few do anything with God's grace, which changes us so we can see.

There is no point in decrying the darkness, or mourning the sting of pain, if we do nothing with the grace of God that will open our eyes to see the real light. The light of the world is disappointing, and garish, making us see all the ugliness there is around us. 

The light of God is strong so as to penetrate everything, everywhere. Neither will we be allowed the joy of a good night's sleep or rest, until our hearts have at last responded to what it found so hard to see.

Time which has so often dragged for us, leaps up refreshed and renewed for us if we respond to God. Just as the moon causes  immense tides of water in the sea, in its orbit around the earth, just so God is moving, a living being, around us, so that if we pay attention, we are aware of God and His light, once we have passed the tide of emotion so we may have a grasp on it. Look beyond the tide of light and the emotion, and what remains is God.

He is everywhere, always until the end of the universe passes away, like the moon setting at night. Who has not felt his heart stir to realize it will be there tomorrow, if you know where to look. The moon sets two hours later every night until it is new, and does not show its light. And if our minds and hearts can be so easily moved by a ball of stone reflecting sunlight, how much more should not our hearts leap up when we recognize the Lord?

On a dark night, in the quiet of the garden, awaken to the light of the Lord. Yet it is not like a child opening a package at a birthday party, well anticipated. The object of our desire does fill us with emotion when we realize the love behind it all. There comes a day when our loved ones pass beyond our gaze and are somewhere we cannot go to listen to them anymore. Yet, just as we anticipate the glory of a full moon rising in a dark sky, we know we will see them again, and that all we have lost to time will be restored to us, in eternity.

So it is worth our while to change a little, to shift the eyes of anticipation to greater things, to do those penitential acts that mean salvation and peace to sinners who repent because we bound the wounds of their sufferings with the bandages of our penances.

We are the focus of His Heart. Open your eyes when He prompts you, and do not refuse to waken from your slumber, for something greater waits to rise in the garden of your life. He permits our self centeredness only long enough to be a child and grow into the splendor of our adulthood; our love, mature in being adult, still has selfish roots, but they have become wonderful possibilities if we desire it. Guard your desires, and guard your heart so they may be for Him entirely.