The Annunciation

The moment when God began his descent to humanity, so that we could be lifted up out of our despair and sinfulness.  Our faithful mother is so beautiful in her gentleness and love of God.

"Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more."

St. John 8:1-11 "Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

But early in the morning he arrived again in the temple area, and all the people started coming to him, and he sat down and taught them.

Then the scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery and made her stand in the middle.

They said to him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery.

Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?"

They said this to test him, so that they could have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and began to write on the ground with his finger.

But when they continued asking him, he straightened up and said to them, "Let the one among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her."

Again he bent down and wrote on the ground.

And in response, they went away one by one, beginning with the elders. So he was left alone with the woman before him.

Then Jesus straightened up and said to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"

She replied, "No one, sir." Then Jesus said, "Neither do I condemn you. Go, (and) from now on do not sin any more."

Sin no more

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 5:1

There was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 
Now there is in Jerusalem at the Sheep (Gate) a pool called in Hebrew Bethesda, with five porticoes.
In these lay a large number of ill, blind, lame, and crippled.

One man was there who had been ill for thirty-eight years. 
When Jesus saw him lying there and knew that he had been ill for a long time, he said to him, "Do you want to be well?" 
The sick man answered him, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am on my way, someone else gets down there before me." 
Jesus said to him, "Rise, take up your mat, and walk." 
Immediately the man became well, took up his mat, and walked. Now that day was a sabbath. 
So the Jews said to the man who was cured, "It is the sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to carry your mat." 
He answered them, "The man who made me well told me, 'Take up your mat and walk.'" 
They asked him, "Who is the man who told you, 'Take it up and walk'?" 
The man who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had slipped away, since there was a crowd there. 
After this Jesus found him in the temple area and said to him, "Look, you are well; do not sin any more, so that nothing worse may happen to you."
The man went and told the Jews that Jesus was the one who had made him well. 
Therefore, the Jews began to persecute Jesus because he did this on a sabbath. 

Your son will live

Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint John 4:43
"At that time Jesus left [Samaria] for Galilee. 
For Jesus himself testified that a prophet has no honor in his native place.
When he came into Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, since they had seen all he had done in Jerusalem at the feast; for they themselves had gone to the feast. 
Then he returned to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. Now there was a royal official whose son was ill in Capernaum.
When he heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and asked him to come down and heal his son, who was near death. 
Jesus said to him, "Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe." 
The royal official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies." 
Jesus said to him, "You may go; your son will live." The man believed what Jesus said to him and left. 
While he was on his way back, his slaves met him and told him that his boy would live.
He asked them when he began to recover. They told him, "The fever left him yesterday, about one in the afternoon." 
The father realized that just at that time Jesus had said to him, "Your son will live," and he and his whole household came to believe. 
(Now) this was the second sign Jesus did when he came to Galilee from Judea."

How many times have we felt that a situation was hopeless, and then were thrilled and surprised when the outcome was positive.  Did we remember to thank God for answering our prayers or did we forget and assume that it was meant to work out anyway?  The official in this story remembered, but more importantly, he believed when Jesus told him his son would live.  Even though he couldn't see it because he wasn't there, he believed.

We need to remember that God is working things out for us and answering our prayers, even though we may not see what's going on behind the scenes. We still need to believe, without seeing the signs and wonders.

Catholics Come Home

On EWTN this evening, I saw an episode of Catholics Come Home which featured a woman who was raised Catholic but left the faith while at college, eventually becoming an atheist.  After 52 years, she was moved by the Holy Spirit through a series of seemingly coincidental, random events, to return to her faith.  She found catholicscomehome.org and returned to God, and to the church.  It was beautiful to listen to her describe going to confession and receiving the Lord in the Eucharist after 52 years!  The parable of the prodigal son came to mind and I felt the joy that the father in the parable felt when he saw his son returning, even though I don't know this woman.  Still, for some reason, it moved me to hear this beautiful story of her return after so many years.  The Lord's happiness is unmeasurable though when a lost sheep returns.

He never gives up searching for us, calling our names, beckoning to us.  He loves us, each and every one of us, perfectly, and completely.  The series of "coincidences" that led this woman back was remarkable also.  Who knows?  She may have been receiving these cues since the day she became an atheist, but she never noticed them because her heart was too hardened.  It's easy and it happens to every one.  We can become despondent, consumed by daily tasks, or just spiritually disconnected from the Holy Spirit and our hearts aren't open to noticing.  It's always a great feeling when one of these "coincidences" happens to me.  I've begun saying "Thank you, God, I know that was You!" when they occur now.

God bless you.

Mary's 10 Principal Virtues

St. Louis-Marie de Montfort's
Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary

108. Third, true devotion to our Lady is holy, that is, it leads us to avoid sin and to imitate the virtues of Mary. Her ten principal virtues are: deep humility, lively faith, blind obedience, unceasing prayer, constant self-denial, surpassing purity, ardent love, heroic patience, angelic kindness, and heavenly wisdom. 

Faithfully persistent in prayer

"Then Jesus went from that place and withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon. But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.” He said in reply, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But the woman came and did him homage, saying, “Lord, help me.” He said in reply, “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” Then Jesus said to her in reply, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour."  Matthew 15:21-28.

The woman had great faith that Jesus could save her daughter and approached the Lord with humility and love for the sake of love.  She didn't give up asking the Lord for help in order to save her daughter.  How far would we go for love?  Are we faithfully persistent in our prayers?

"O woman, great is your faith!", the Lord lovingly exclaims!  I pray that your faith and mine is always strong.  God bless you.

Trust

Acceptance and trust in God are what the Holy Mother teaches us.  Sometimes we all encounter difficulties, disappointments, and heartache.  Those are the times we need to pray harder.  Share our grief with God.  Ask for His help.  Don't lose heart.  Don't lose hope.