Catholic Fire

By Jean M. Heimann John 8: 1 - 11 In today's gospel, Jesus forgives Mary Magdalene of her sins, while the Pharisees condemn her. Each time I read this passage, I can't help but think of the woman in our own day who has not only slept with a man and become pregnant, and has sought an abortion as a way out of the situation. Society condemns her of her grievous sin, yet what good does that do the sinner? Does it encourage her to repent and reach out to God in her misery? Each one of us is capable of committing the most serious of sins due to our fallen nature. I wonder how many of these upright Pharisees preparing to cast their stones had actually participated in the sin of adultery with her. Jesus seems to be writing something on the ground -- is it the sins of the Pharisees? He is alone with the woman and looks upon her in her frightened and lowly state and He pardons her, opening up His heart of tender love and mercy to her. In the words of Fr. Philippe, OP, " As soon as J...

John 11: 1 - 45 - Today's Gospel Reading We must love considering the Church in the light of glory, and this is how we should consider her. Just as Jesus lived the entire mystery of the Cross and even His entire apostolic life in the light of this great assertion, "I am the Resurrection", so should we consider the mystery of the Church, and our own lives as well, in the light of the Resurrection. This is what will give us an ever greater hope, since hope already lives the victory of love. The Sacrament of Reconciliation should be understood in this light, as something connected to the Resurrection. Each time the priest gives absolution, each time he makes this gesture of God's forgiveness, his action is directly connected to Jesus' Resurrection, and it thereby prepares us for the mystery of our own Resurrection. Return to Me ... Daily Meditations for Lent by Fr. Philippe, O.P. By Fr. Philippe, O.P., Priest, Philosopher, and Founder of the Community of St. Jo...

"Laetare Sunday", the Fourth Sunday in Lent, is filled with light and celebrated in joy. At the beginning of the Mass today, the Church commands us: "Rejoice!" (Laetare). The vestments for this day will be rose and flowers may even adorn the Altar! In England, this Sunday is known as Mothering Sunday, a custom that began during the Middle Ages, because the Epistle for the day said, "But Jerusalem which is above, is free, which is the mother of us all" [Galatians 4:26]. The Church is "Jerusalem which is above." On Lætare Sunday people went to Church where they were baptized (their mother church); and visited their own mothers, as well, often bringing gifts of flowers and simnel cakes (so-called because they were made with fine white flour, or simila.) There are many different recipes for this cake, but all are fruit-cakes covered with almond paste. Mothering Sunday is similar to the American Mother's Day, which is unrelated to Lent and was fi...

"Amen, amen I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM." John 8:58 Once a group of teachers from the United States came through Calcutta. One of them asked me if I would say something that they could keep as a remembrance of the visit and that could also be useful to them. "Smile at one another. Smile at your wives." (I have the feeling that we are in such a hurry that we do not even have time to look at one another and smile.) One of them said, "Mother it is obvious that you are not married!" "Yes, I am," I answered. "Sometimes it is very difficult for me to smile at Jesus because He asks too much of me." ~ Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta

If you remain in my word, you will truly be my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. ~ John 8: 31 - 32 "Jesus Christ is the personified Truth who attracts the world to Himself ... every other truth is a fragment of the The Truth that He is and refers to Him. Thus, He fills our hearts, overwhelming them with joy, extending our minds toward unexplored horizon, uplifting it from the narrowness of selfishness and making it capable of authentic love." ~ Pope Benedict XVI " Today ... even after two thousand years, we see Christ as the one who brings man freedom based on truth, frees man from what curtails, diminishes and as it were breaks off this freedom at its root, in man's soul, his heart and his conscience." ~ Pope John Paul II " Whoever seeks the truth seeks God, whether he is conscious of it or not." ~ St. Teresa Benedicta

"Whoever then relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who does them and teaches them shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven." ~ Matthew 5:19 "The devil doesn't fear austerity but holy obedience." ~ St. Francis de Sales God's laws are His gifts to us. They protect us from ourselves, give us freedom, and lead us to become the person we want to be. The closer we are to that vision of what we truly want to be and who really are, the happier we will be in this present life as well as in the life to come. God's commandments give us values, mold our hearts, our thoughts, and our actions. They guide us in learning how to love God and our neighbors. They shape us into His image and help us to behave as royal sons and daughters of our Father, the King. We are the ones He has chosen to live a grace-filled life, to follow in His footsteps, and to receive an inheritance that la...

"Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful."~ Luke 6:36 The flames of mercy are burning Me -- clamoring to be spent; I want to keep pouring them out upon souls; souls just don't want to believe in My goodness. ~ Jesus to St. Faustina

"Are you able to drink the cup that I am to drink?" ~ Matthew 20:22 "Suffering is the very best gift He has to give us. He gives it only to His chosen friends." ~ St. Therese of Lisieux

"Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted. " ~ Matthew 23: 12 ‘There is something in humility which, strangely enough, exalts the heart, and something in pride, which debases it.” ~ St. Augustine

"Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not, and you will not be condemned; forgive, and you will be forgiven..." ~ Luke 6:36-37 "If we really want to love we must learn how to forgive." "People ask me what advice I have for a married couple struggling in their relationship. I always answer: pray and forgive. And to young people from violent homes, I say pray and forgive. And again even to the single mother with no family support: pray and forgive.” ~Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta

"So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. " ~ Matthew 5: 23-24 "Do we forgive our neighbors their trespasses? God also forgives us in His mercy. Do we refuse to forgive? God, too, will refuse to forgive us. As we treat our neighbors, so also does God treat us. The forgiveness, then, of your sins or unforgiveness, and hence also your salvation or destruction, depend on you yourself, man. For without forgiveness of sins there is no salvation. You can see for yourself how terrible it is." ~ St. Tikhon of Zadonsk

"Ask and it will be given to you: seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; and the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened." ~ Matthew 7:7 - 8 "Pray with great confidence, with confidence based on the goodnesss and infinite generosity of God and upon the promises of Jesus Christ. God is a spring of living water which flows unceasingly into the hearts of those who pray." ~ St. Louis de Montfort

Wednesday of the First Week of Lent Meditation - The Faults of Our Neighbor Daily Lenten Reflection and Prayer This Day in History 1759 Pope Clement XIII (1693–1769) granted permission for the Bible to be translated into all the languages of the Roman Catholic states. 1873 The Society of Mary (the Marist Fathers) was officially sanctioned by Pope Pius IX. This Roman Catholic religious order, founded in 1816, seeks to unite the work of education with missions. 1944 Nazi soldiers invaded the home of Dutch Christian Corrie ten Boom (1892–1983) and arrested the family on the charge of harboring Jews. Births 1901 - Linus Pauling , American chemist, Nobel laureate (d. 1994 ) 1923 - Charles Durning , American actor 1930 - Gavin MacLeod , American actor 1931 - Dean Smith , American basketball coach 1940 - Mario Andretti , American race car driver Quote of the Day "Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use violence to get what they want. Tha...

After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, "Follow me." And he got up, left everything, and followed him." ~ Luke 5: 27 - 32 "Lord Jesus Christ, you called sinners and outcasts to follow you. Through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary, your mother, grant us the grace to leave behind all the values and behaviors which ties us down to this world's wisdom; free us to follow you that we may share in the Easter banquet with you, who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God forever. Amen. "God does not ask of us the perfection of tomorrow, nor even of tonight, but only of the present moment." ~ St. Madeleine Sophie Barat "God does not call us to be successful, but to be faithful." ~ Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta "Remember that nothing is small in the eyes of God. Do all that you do with love." ~ St. Therese of Lisieux

"Rend your hearts, not your garments, and return to the Lord, your God, for gracious and merciful is He." ~ Joel 2 "May our lives become a continuous prayer." ~ Blessed Charles of Jesus Prayer Almighty and everlasting God, you despise nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our brokenness, may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness;through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

"Lent is the time for entering into oneself. It is the period of the particular intimacy with God in the secrecy of one’s own heart and conscience… Lent is essentially an invitation to conversion." "Let ourselves be reconciled with God, for He has done so much for this reconciliation." ~ Pope John Paul II Lent begins today on Ash Wednesday. Lent is a time when we are called as Catholics to a deeper conversion and cleansing of our hearts. It is a time where we are called to give ourselves totally to God and to remove any obstacles that prevent Him from drawing nearer to us. Lent reminds me of the spring-cleaning that I do each year. Each spring, I clean my house thoroughly and throw out or give away the items in my home that I no longer use. I rid my house of the clutter and make room for the necessary items or create new space so I can move about more freely without stumbling over things. It is certainly not an easy task because I am a packrat and sentimentally atta...