St. Faustina's vision of Heaven

[Diary 777]

November 27, [1936]. Today I was in heaven, in spirit, and I saw its inconceivable beauties and the happiness that awaits us after death. I saw how all creatures give ceaseless praise and glory to God. I saw how great is happiness in God, which spreads to all creatures, making them happy; and then all the glory and praise which springs from this happiness returns to its source; and they enter into the depths of God, contemplating the inner life of God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, whom they will never comprehend or fathom. This source of happiness is unchanging in its essence, but it is always new, gushing forth happiness for all creatures. Now I understand Saint Paul, who said, "Eye has not seen, nor has ear heard, nor has it entered into the heart of man what God has prepared for those who love Him."

Source: DIARY, Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul © 1987 Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M.  Stockbridge, MA 01263.  All Rights Reserved. Used with permission.

Note: If you like my post then consider buying the Book "Divine Mercy in my Soul" from the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception website. The owner of this blog have no other intention but to spread and proclaim the "Divine Mercy".

Jesus before Pilate [Solemnity of Christ the King - November 25, 2012]

The Sunday Gospel [Solemnity of Christ the King - November 25, 2012]

John 18:33-37

33So Pilate went back into the praetorium and summoned Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” 34Jesus answered, “Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?” 35Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?” 36Jesus answered, “My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants [would] be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.” 37So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”

Reflection

Today is the last Sunday in the church year. So it’s appropriate to reflect on the end of time, on judgment, and our life to come. These topics can fill us with a number of positive thoughts and few fearful ones. In our anxious moments, we may worry about whether we or our loved ones will get into heaven. We may worry about death itself or what we will be actually be doing for all eternity in heaven.

Thinking about the Second Coming can help remind us of a key truth to our faith. We cannot save ourselves. Only Jesus can do that – and he did, when he died on the cross for us. But isn’t it ironic that while we cannot save ourselves, God will still judge us based on how we have loved one another and cared for the poor and needy around us? How is that possible?

The truth is, our acts of love and charity should be a direct consequence of our realization that Jesus, our King, loves us. The experience of Jesus’ love should send us to our knees in worship, and it should send us out into the world , eager to spread  that love to everyone we come in contact with – our loved ones, the needy, and even our enemies.

So as we contemplate our loving, merciful King today, let us ask him to inspire us to serve his kingdom. And whenever we perform acts of charity, let’s see them as a way that we can give our hearts back to Jesus, who gave himself for us.

Prayer Response

Jesus, give me a generous heart. Teach me how to open my heart – and my hands – to everyone around me. Amen.

Credits: the WORD among us

Source: The Reflection is from Bro. Abel Navarro (you can visit his blog at http://myblogabelnavarroabel.blogspot.com/).

O Mary, my Mother and my Lady

[Diary 79] 

O Mary, my Mother and my Lady, I offer You my soul, my body, my life and my death, and all that will Follow it. I place everything in Your hands. O my Mother, cover my soul with Your virginal mantle and grant me the grace of purity of heart, soul and body. Defend me with Your power against all enemies, and especially against those who hide their malice behind the mask of virtue. O lovely lily! You are for me a mirror, O my Mother!

Source: DIARY, Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul © 1987 Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M.  Stockbridge, MA 01263.  All Rights Reserved. Used with permission.

Note: If you like my post then consider buying the Book "Divine Mercy in my Soul" from the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception website. The owner of this blog have no other intention but to spread and proclaim the "Divine Mercy".

The Coming of the Son of Man [November 18, 2012]

The Sunday Gospel [November 18, 2012]

Mark 13:24-32

24“But in those days after that tribulation the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, 25and the stars will be falling from the sky, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 26And then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’ with great power and glory, 27and then he will send out the angels and gather [his] elect from the four winds, from the end of the earth to the end of the sky.

28“Learn a lesson from the fig tree. When its branch becomes tender and sprouts leaves, you know that summer is near. 29In the same way, when you see these things happening, know that he is near, at the gates. 30Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. 31Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. 32“But of that day or hour, no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

Reflection

As we draw near to the close of the liturgical season, we are reminded of the “last day” which is the fulfillment of our hope. The Gospel gives us sayings of Jesus expressed in apocalyptic language. As such, they are not meant to cause fear, but rather hope and encouragement to people undergoing persecution and tribulations. In Mark’s time, the hope and courage of Christians were being severely tested. In their suffering and impatience, they thought and prayed that the Lord Jesus would come back soon. They were mistaken in their opinion that the Parousia would occur during their lifetime, but certainly not in watchfulness. But as John Henry Newman would say: “It is better to be wrong in watching, than not to watch at all.”

The spirit of Advent is that of watchfulness and expectation for God’s coming into our lives. Certainly we cannot predict when Jesus will come because ”only the Father knows that day or hour.” It is sufficient for us to know with certainty that the Day of the Lord will come, and to go on with our lives with trust and eager longing.

Credits: Fr. Gil A. Alinsangan, SSP; On the Way to the Cross, excerpts

Source: The Reflection is from Bro. Abel Navarro (you can visit his blog at http://myblogabelnavarroabel.blogspot.com/).

Not in the beauty of the color, nor of the brush lies the greatness of this image, but in My grace

[Diary 313]

+Once, when I was visiting the artist [Eugene Kazimirowski] who was painting the image, and saw that it was not as beautiful as Jesus is, I felt very sad about it, but I hid this deep in my heart. When we had left the artist's house, Mother Superior [Irene] stayed in town to attend to some matters while I returned home alone. I went immediately to the chapel and wept a good deal. I said to the Lord, "Who will paint You as beautiful as You are?" Then I heard these words: Not in the beauty of the color, nor of the brush lies the greatness of this image, but in My grace.

Source: DIARY, Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul © 1987 Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M.  Stockbridge, MA 01263.  All Rights Reserved. Used with permission.

Note: If you like my post then consider buying the Book "Divine Mercy in my Soul" from the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception website. The owner of this blog have no other intention but to spread and proclaim the "Divine Mercy".

The Poor Widow’s Mite [November 11, 2012]

The Sunday Gospel [November 11, 2012]

Mark 12:38-44

38In the course of his teaching he said, “Beware of the scribes, who like to go around in long robes and accept greetings in the marketplaces, 39seats of honor in synagogues, and places of honor at banquets. 40They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext, recite lengthy prayers. They will receive a very severe condemnation.”

 41He sat down opposite the treasury and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. 42A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents. 43Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, “Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. 44For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood."

Reflection

A part of the Jewish temple was the court of women where “collection boxes” were established. People would drop money in these trumpet-shaped boxes for the support of God’s temple.

In today’s Gospel, we find Jesus observing the crowd putting in their offerings, the priest-guardian of the treasury calling the name of the generous donors and the amount of their offering and then thanking them and blessing them in return.

Lost in the clinging of golden and silver coins is the clang of a widow’s two lepta (copper coins), which have the least value among the coins in circulation. She may as well have given only one, yet she gives all that she has to live on. That sound, however, is music  to Jesus’ ears and he plucks her out of from anonymity and raises her above all the benefactors of the temple. In the eyes of God, her two coins are far more valuable than the contributions of the wealthy because in them is her “everything.”

The poor widow represents the true believer who entrusts everything to God, the figure of the poor Church which is blessed by God. She is the one who observes the greatest commandment of loving God with all her heart, mind, and strength. And God, who is rich in mercy, becomes her defender.

What a contrast to the Scribes who “devour the savings of widows.” They are experts in the Mosaic Law, and most probably for their “lawyer’s fee,” they charge the widows too much that these have to use their savings or sell their properties to pay them. How ironic that the sizable amounts offered by all the ostentatious rich have come from the poor and simple people. The prophets have proclaimed that true religion in the case of foreigners, widows, and orphans who are most in need of protection takes the form of justice and defense, and yet the so-called practitioners and teachers of God’s law do the opposite. In this case, what they offer God is “blood” money.

Poverty is not synonymous with misery and the poor have often a certain nobility. Archbishop Helder Camara of Recife, Brazil, was told by a widow when a Frenchman whom she he was accompanying in a poor quarter mumbled how miserable the people were: “Please tell our visitor that we are not so miserable as he thinks we are. We have our hands, our feet, our eyes, and, most importantly, we have God.” A proud claim, but knowing Jesus’ praise for the widow, she is not far from the truth.

Reflection Credits: Fr. Gil A. Alinsangan, SSP, On the Way to the Cross

Source: The Reflection is from Bro. Abel Navarro (you can visit his blog at http://myblogabelnavarroabel.blogspot.com/).

"Pray for the dying"

[Diary 314]

+When I went to the garden one afternoon, my Guardian Angel said to me, "Pray for the dying." And so I began at once to pray the rosary with the gardeners for the dying. After the rosary, we said various prayers for the dying. After the prayers, the wards began to chat gayly among themselves. In spite of the noise they were making, I heard these words in my soul: "Pray for me!" But as I could not understand these words very well, I moved a few steps away from the wards, trying to think who it could be who was asking me to pray. Then I heard the words: "I am Sister ...."[78] This sister was in Warsaw while I was, at the time, in Vilnius. "Pray for me until I tell you to stop. I am dying." Immediately, I began to pray fervently for her, [addressing myself] to the expiring Heart of Jesus. She gave me no respite, and I kept praying from three [o'clock] until five. At five, I heard the words: "Thank you!" and I understood that she had died. But during Holy Mass on the following day, I continued to pray fervently for her soul. In the afternoon, a postcard came saying that Sister ... had died at such and such a time. I understood that it was at the same hour when she had said to me, "Pray for me."

Source: DIARY, Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul © 1987 Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M.  Stockbridge, MA 01263.  All Rights Reserved. Used with permission.

Note: If you like my post then consider buying the Book "Divine Mercy in my Soul" from the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception website. The owner of this blog have no other intention but to spread and proclaim the "Divine Mercy".

The Greatest Commandment [November 4, 2012]

The Sunday Gospel [November 4, 2012]

Mark 12:28-34

28One of the scribes, when he came forward and heard them disputing and saw how well he had answered them, asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” 29Jesus replied, “The first is this: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! 30You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ 31The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” 32The scribe said to him, “Well said, teacher. You are right in saying, ‘He is One and there is no other than he.’ 33And ‘to love him with all your heart, with all your understanding, with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself’ is worth more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” 34And when Jesus saw that [he] answered with understanding, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And no one dared to ask him any more.

Reflection

The year is drawing to a close and we are summoned to declare as a people where we stand before God. We are to fear God, listen and obey the commandments, with love that is all encompassing. We stand with Jesus our priest/leader so that we approach God, with Jesus interceding on our behalf. Jesus is our sacrifice that makes us holy before God, with him. How devotedly do we love God with all our heart, soul, mind, resources, body and strength that endures? And do we love our neighbor/enemy/friend with the same passion? Then today, we will hear Jesus tell us that we are not far from the kingdom of God – God wants that practical love more than sacrifice. God wants us as a people.

Reflection Credits: Megan McKenna, Theologian, Tasting the word of God

Source: The Reflection is from Bro. Abel Navarro (you can visit his blog at http://myblogabelnavarroabel.blogspot.com/).