Fourth Sunday of Easter

April is the month dedicated to the Holy Eucharist and the Holy Spirit

Good Shepherd Sunday

61st World Day of Prayer for Vocations

Readings for the Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week:  Ch 64 The Election of an Abbot - Ch 69 The Presumption of Defending Another in the Monastery

By the Lord has this been done.

SACRED HOST, IN WHICH THE SOUL IS FILLED WITH GRACE,

HOLY SPIRIT, INSPIRE IN US IN THE PRACTICE OF GOOD,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

VIRGIN MOST POWERFUL,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

All of you and all the people of Israel should know that it was in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead; in His name this man stands before you healed. He is the stone which the builders rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given the human race by which we are saved.

(Acts 4:10-12)

Welcome to the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Good Shepherd Sunday, and the 61st World Day of Prayer for Vocations. First, then, let's hear from Pope Saint John Paul II, from his 1981 Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris Consortio, where, in this passage, he refers to the First Letter of Saint John (1 John 4:8) and Gaudium et spes the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World (12):

God is love and in Himself He lives a mystery of personal loving communion. Creating the human race in His own image and continually keeping it in being, God inscribed in the humanity of man and woman the vocation, and thus the capacity and responsibility, of love and communion. Love is therefore the fundamental and innate vocation of every human being (11).

Now I turn to the passage from the Acts of the Apostles above, from the first reading for today's Mass. Among other things, I keep repeating, "there is no other way, or under any other name." We go to the Name of Jesus. The only Name by which we are saved. If we go elsewhere, we are looking to idols. As Pope Francis has said, "Memory alone enables us to discover God's presence in our midst and makes us realize that every attempt to seek salvation apart from God is an idol." Look to last week. Remember. When are three specific times when you were aware that God was in your midst? Lord, Jesus Christ, thank you.

May we, like Saint Peter, be filled with the Holy Spirit (see Acts 4:8) in this month dedicated to the Holy Spirit. Together we pray, Holy Spirit, shed Thy light in our souls. Stop, look, be attentive, and listen to the voice of the Good Shepherd, the guardian of our souls. He knows us; let us follow Him, united in faith and prayer. 

Now the moment we've all being waiting for, namely, our voices for the week (as if we haven't heard from enough already), a shout from here and there over the course of the history of the Church. 

The hands should be at work, the heart with God.

(Saint Mary Joseph Rosello, 1811-1880)

Believing in Christ means loving Him ... So don't waste time wondering how to do what Christ commands; you cannot not do it if you love Christ. Love, and you do it.

(Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, Doctor of Grace, 354-430)

The world is more beautiful when we are reconciled with God, with ourselves, and with our brothers.

(Mother Elvira Petrozzi, foundress of the Comunita Cenacolo, 1927-2023)

The greatest kindness one can render to another is leading him to the truth.

(Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, Doctor of Grace, 354-430)

If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.

(Jesus in John 8:31-32)

Faith is born from the personal encounter with the risen Christ and becomes an impulse of courage and freedom that makes one cry to the world: "Jesus is risen and alive forever."

(Pope Benedict XVI, 1927- 2022)

Do only what you can offer to God.

(Saint John Vianney, 1786-1859)

What prevents you from being a saint?

(Saint Sharbel Makhluf, 1828-1898)

And a nice addition, added by my brother, Thomas Billard, on his birthday. Auguri, fratello.

Let all nations know that Thou art God alone, and that Jesus Christ is Thy Son, and that we are Thy people and the sheep of Thy pasture.

(Saint Clement of Alexandria, 150-215)

POPE SAINTS CAIUS AND SOTER,

SAINT ANSELM OF CANTERBURY, MONK, BISHOP, DOCTOR,

SAINT MAELRUBHA,

SAINT GEORGE, MARTYR,

SAINT ADALBERT OF PRAGUE, BISHOP, MARTYR,

BLESSED MARIA OF THE CROSS,

SAINT MARK THE EVANGELIST,

BLESSED ROBERT ANDERTON AND WILLIAM MARSDEN,

SAINT ASICUS,

SAINT MAUGHOLD,

BLESSED HOSANNA OF KOTOR, OP,

BLESSED MARIA GABRIELLA SAGHEDDU,

SAINT RAFAEL ARNAIZ BARON,

SAINT ZITA OF LUCA,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: It is wonderful in our eyes.

© Gertrude Feick 2024

Wednesday of the Fifth Week of Lent

The Month of March Devoted to Saint Joseph

Saint: Saint Joseph of Arimathea, Disciple of Jesus Christ; Saint Eustasius, Bishop of Naples (3rd century)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict: Ch 48:10-21 The Daily Manual Labor

Mass:  Dn 3:14-20; 91-91, 95; Resp Ps (Dn 3); Jn 8:31-42 

Blessed is your holy and glorious name.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

SAINT JOSEPH, PATRON OF EXILES,

PRAY FOR US.

Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who sent His angel to deliver the servants who trusted in Him; they disobeyed the royal command and yielded their bodies rather than serve or worship any god except their own God.

(Dn 3:95)

No matter how hot the furnace gets today, trust in the Lord, and serve Him. Remain in His word and you will truly be His disciples; you will know the truth and the truth will set you free (see Jn 8:31ff). 

Thanks to a faithful reader who sent greetings the other day along with a bit about walking and praying on one's knees, I was led to something I read recently. From two late pontiffs, then: 

.

Man is never so great as when he is kneeling.

(Pope Saint John XXIII)

Pope Benedict XVI had this to say about kneeling:

The attitude of kneeling ought never to be allowed to disappear from the Church. It is the most impressive physical expression of Christian piety, by which, on one hand, we remain upright, looking out, gazing upon Him, but, on the other, we nonetheless bow down.*

At the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, every tongue confess Him, king of glory now ...

SAINT JOSEPH OF ARIMATHEA,

SAINT EUSTASIUS,

PRAY FOR US.

* Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger, God and the World: A Conversation with Peter Seewald (Ignatius, 2002), pp. 409-410.

Today's photo: I found these sweet little ones outside the kitchen yesterday morning while on kitchen duty. The God of our fathers.

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs

The Month of December Dedicated to Advent and the Coming of Christ

400th Anniversary of the Death of Saint Francis de Sales, Doctor of the Church (August 21, 1567-December 28, 1622)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict: Ch 70 The Presumption of Striking Another Monk at Will

Mass: 1 Jn 1:5-2:2; Resp Ps 124; Mt 2:13-18

Our soul has been rescued like a bird from a fowler's snare.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

MARY, QUEEN OF MARTYRS,

PRAY FOR US.

God is light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.

(1 Jn 1:5)

UNTIL

(Hafiz, 1320-1389)

I think we are frightened every

Moment of our lives

Until we

Know

Him.

Herod certainly did not know Him. It may be a good day to ask Our Lord to remove the darkness in our hearts and help us to know Him better. No one is beyond fear, anger, or even the "furious rage" (Mt 2:16) of King Herod. With darkness in our hearts each one of us is capable of things better left unsaid. Saint John is clear: "If we say, 'we have fellowship with Him,' while we continue to walk in darkness, we lie and do not act in truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, then we have fellowship with one another, and the Blood of His Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin (1 Jn 1:6-7). Let us not deceive ourselves then and acknowledge our sins. God is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing (1 Jn 1:8-9). United in faith and prayer, with the grace of God, we go forth. Jesus, author of life, have mercy on us. 

In today's General Audience, Pope Francis asked all of us to pray especially for his 95-year-old predecessor Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, who is very ill. The Vatican Press Office confirmed that "in the last few hours there has been an aggravation of his health due to advancing age." We pray then with the Holy Father, "may the Lord sustain him in this witness of love until the very end." The Pope Emeritus has led such a long and full life dedicated to God and the Church. Thank you, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI.

ALL HOLY INNOCENTS,

SERVANT OF GOD JEROME LEJUENE,

SAINT FRANCIS DE SALES, 

PRAY FOR US. 

Today's photo: From the archives, 2021. Just like the holy innocents, this bird is minding his own business, not bothering a soul. He was busy just being a bird. Just like those poor children, all of those boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under (see Mt 2:16). They were just busy being boys. Broken from the snare and we were freed.

© Gertrude Feick 2022

Tuesday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Saints: Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), Martyr, Co-Patron Saint of Europe (1891-1942); Saint Nathy; Saint Felim (6th century)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict: Ch 56 The Abbot's Table

Mass: Ezk 2:8-3:4; Resp Ps 119; Mt 18:1-5, 10, 12-14

Yes, your decrees are my delight.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

HEART OF MARY, SANCTUARY OF THE DIVINE TRINITY,

PRAY FOR US.

Free me from the net they have set for me, for you are my refuge.

(Psalm 31:5)

It was at Lauds this morning that I knew it was good day to turn to the psalms, as are all days. The psalmist sings to us with words of solace, compassion, assistance, and challenge too. Today is an especially good day to turn to the psalms as we commemorate Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein). Born as she was into a Jewish family, Edith would have been familiar with the psalms. At 14, Edith became an atheist, then a scholar of philosophy, studying under Edmund Husserl in Freiburg, Germany. A seeker of the truth, Edith read the autobiography of Saint Teresa Avila and exclaimed, "This is the truth." Subsequently, Edith was baptized into the faith in 1922, and eventually entered the Carmel in Cologne, taking the name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. She was moved to a Carmel in the Netherlands during the growing Nazi threat. After all Jewish converts to the faith were arrested, Teresa Benedicta of the Cross was taken to Auschwitz and killed on August 9, 1942. Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.

When you seek truth you seek God, whether you know it or not.

(Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross)

SAINT TERESA BENEDICTA OF THE CROSS,

SAINT NATHY,

SAINT FELIM,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: More greenery to delight in. I gasp with open mouth.

© Gertrude Feick 2022

Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Easter

Year of the Family "Amoris Laetitia The Joy of Love"

Saints: Saint Bede the Venerable, Priest, Doctor (673-735); Pope Saint Gregory VII (1020-1085); Saint Mary Magdalen de Pazzi, Virgin (1566-1606)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict: Ch 6 Restraint of Speech

Mass: Acts 17:15, 22-18:1; Resp Ps 148; Jn 16:12-15

Praise Him in the heights.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

PRAY FOR US.

The God who made the world and all that is in it, the Lord of heaven and earth ...

it is He who gives to everyone life and breath and everything.

(Acts 17:24)

Let us seek God, then, even grope for Him and find Him, though He is indeed not far from any of us (Acts 17:27). In Him we live and move and have our being (Acts 17:28). Pray. Holy Spirit, come. When He comes, the Spirit of truth, He will guide you to all truth (Jn 16:13). Amen.

I have resolved to keep watch over my ways that I may never sin with my tongue. I have put a guard on my mouth. I was silent and humbled, and I refrained even from good words ...

In a flood of words you will not avoid sin ... the tongue holds the key to life and death.

(Rule of Saint Benedict, 6:1,4-5)

SAINT BEDE THE VENERABLE,

POPE SAINT GREGORY VII,

SAINT MARY MAGDALENE DE PAZZI,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: There are plenty of views like this around here. This is an especially nice one. 😎 Heaven and earth are full of your glory.

© Gertrude Feick 2022

Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter

Year of the Family "Amoris Laetitia The Joy of Love"

Saints: Saint George Preca (1880-1962) 

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict: Ch 1:1-5 The Kinds of Monks

Mass: Acts 11:1-8; Resp Ps 42; 43; Jn 10:1-10

Athirst is my soul for the living God.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

PRAY FOR US.

I am the gate.

(Jn 10:9)

Ready or not, welcome to Monday. Go to Jesus today. He is the way to the Father. As the Lord says: Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in a go out and find pasture ... I came so that they may might have life and have it more abundantly (Jn 10:9-10). United in faith and prayer, we go forth.

Christ is alive! ...

Alive, He can be present in your life at every moment, to fill it with light and to take away all sorrow and solitude. Even if all others depart, He will remain, as He promised: "I am with you always to the end of the age" (Mt 28:20). He fills your life with His unseen presence; wherever you go, He will be waiting there for you. Because He did not come only in the past, but He comes to you today and every day, inviting you to set out to ever new horizons.

(Pope Francis, Christus vivit Christ is alive, 1, 125)

Whoever seeks the truth will find God.

(E. Leseur, The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur, p. 154)

SAINT GEORGE PRECA,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: This was another early morning find in Carmichael, CA, a week ago yesterday.

© Gertrude Feick 2022

Wednesday of the Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time

Year of Saint Joseph

Year of the Family "Amoris Laetitia The Joy of Love"

National Back to School Month

Saints: Saint Louis (1214-1270); Saint Joseph of Calasanz (1557-1648); Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified Baouardy (1846-1878)

Readings of the Day

RB: Ch 67 Brothers Sent on a Journey

Mass: Th 2:9-13; Resp Ps 139; Mt 23:27-32

If I go up to the heavens, you are there.

JESUS, THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

In today's Gospel, Jesus addresses hypocrites. Woe to you (Mt 23:27), He says. Pope Francis, in today's Wednesday Catechesis had this to say about hypocrites:

Hypocrites are people who pretend, flatter and deceive because they live with a mask over their faces and do not have the courage to face the truth. For this reason, they are not capable of truly loving: a hypocrite does not know how to love. They limit themselves to living out of egoism and do not have the strength to show their hearts transparently. There are many situations in which hypocrisy is at work. It is often hidden in the work place where someone appears to be friends with their colleagues while, at the same time, stabbing them in the back due to competition. In politics, it is not unusual to find hypocrites who live one way in public and another way in private. Hypocrisy in the Church is particularly detestable; and unfortunately, hypocrisy exists in the Church and there are many hypocritical Christians and ministers. We should never forget the Lord's words: "Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil" (Mt 5:37). Brothers and sisters, today, let us think about the hypocrisy that Paul condemns, and that Jesus condemns: hypocrisy. And let us not be afraid to be truthful, to the speak the truth, to hear the truth, to conform ourselves to the truth, so we can love. A hypocrite does not know how to love. To act other than truthfully means jeopardizing the unity of the Church, that unity for which the Lord Himself prayed.

And now a word from our saints of the day:

In order to avoid discord, never contradict anyone except in case of sin or some danger to a neighbor.

(Saint Louis IX, King of France)

You should permit yourself to be tormented by every kind of martyrdom before you allow yourself to commit a mortal sin.

(Saint Louis IX, King of France)

All who undertake to teach must be endowed with deep love, the greatest patience, and, most of all, profound humility. They must perform their work with earnest zeal. Then through their humble prayers, the Lord will find them worthy to become fellow workers with him in the cause of truth.

(Saint Joseph of Calasanz)

SAINT LOUIS,

SAINT JOSEPH OF CALASANZ,

SAINT MARY OF JESUS CRUCIFIED,

SAINT JOSEPH,

PRAY FOR US.

 

Today's photo: The Ottos strike again with another beauty from their recent camping adventure to Benson Lake in the Benson State Recreation in Oregon. This shot is from their day hike to Tenas Lakes and the top of Scott Mountain, as seen in yesterday's photo. There is certainly more of this to come. 

© Gertrude Feick 2021

Friday of the Seventh Week of Ordinary Time: Saint Bede the Venerable (673-735)

Friday of the Seventh Week of Ordinary Time

Saint Bede the Venerable (673-735)

Readings of the day: RB 6 Restraint of Speech

Mass: Jm 5:9-12; Resp Ps 103; Mk 10:1-12

N.B. This reflection closed a week-long retreat for a community of Benedictine monks.

Because of the hardness of your hearts.

It seems to me that Jesus is speaking to all of us here, or at least to those of us who are hard of heart for one reason or another, perhaps because of bitterness, resentment, unfulfilled expectations, disappointments, anger, jealousy, diminishment, fatigue, or simply because of the daily pinpricks and contradictions that ‘upset our apple cart’ so to speak. Put another way, we have hearts of stone rather than hearts of flesh. We fail or refuse to see God in our brothers and sisters, especially in those we find most difficult, those we don’t like, and even those we don’t even know, and we fail to see God in ourselves. We don’t recognize how much God loves us, and as a result we don’t love ourselves or our neighbour. Jesus invites us, though, to turn the corner, to recognize and embrace His commandment of Love; to go deeper, to our hearts, to be pierced by His LOVE and move to a place of healing, reconciliation, mercy, compassion, and forgiveness. Jesus searches for us and is knocking at the door of our hearts; He waits patiently for us to let Him in.

There is reason that Jesus speaks of the heart. The Catechism teaches: ‘The heart is the dwelling place where I am, where I live…[it]is our hidden centre, beyond the grasp of our reason and of others; only the Spirit of God can fathom the human heart and know it fully.’ Furthermore, ‘The heart is the place of decision, deeper than our psychic drives. It is the place of truth, where we choose life or death, the place of encounter, because as image of God we live in relation’ (CCC2563).

Today is the day of decision, to be open to encounter, ‘to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ, or at least an openness to letting him encounter us’ (EG, 3); to make our ‘yes’ mean ‘yes’ or our ‘no’ mean ‘no’. Are we ready and open to receive the immense love of God, to be healed of our hardness of heart, and share God’s love with all those we encounter? 

We are about to move to the Liturgy of the Eucharist, a time to turn the corner, to be transformed. In a recent Catechesis on the Mass, Pope Francis told those gathered in St Peter’s Square: “Every time I go to Mass, I must leave better than I entered, with more life, with more strength, with a greater desire to give Christian witness. Through the Eucharist’, says the Holy Father, ‘the Lord Jesus enters in us, in our heart and in our flesh, so that we can ‘express in life the Sacrament received in faith’” (April 4, 2018). In faith then, we receive the Sacrament of Love. We are called to open our hearts so that our hearts can be pierced by Jesus, by Love. We are not to lock Jesus into our hearts though, keeping him for ourselves, not letting him out. Rather, we are to give Christian witness and express in word, gesture, and deed the unconditional love of Jesus Christ. 

There are myriad ways we may express the Sacrament of Love received in faith. A few ideas from St Benedict come to mind: ‘Curb evil speech whereby we honour everyone; do not act in anger or nurse a grudge; do not speak ill of others; respect the elders; bear with one another in weaknesses of body and behaviour, and never do to another what we do not want done to ourselves’. Other ways to express Love received include sitting quietly with someone who is hurting, anxious, or in pain; or reaching out to an estranged member of your family or to a friend, or simply smiling at someone. Most importantly, we can pray, for all those who ask for our prayers, for those who don’t have anyone to pray for them, and also for those with whom we are at odds, as Pope Francis says: ‘We all have our likes and dislikes, and perhaps at this very moment we are angry with someone. At least let us say to the Lord: ‘Lord, I am angry with this person, with that person. I pray to you for him or her’. To pray for a person with whom I am irritated is a beautiful step forward in love, and an act of evangelization.’ Pope Francis encourages us: ‘Let us do it today! Let us not allow ourselves to be robbed of the ideal of fraternal love!’ (EG, 101).

If today you hear God’s voice, then harden not your hearts (Ps 95:7-8). If we are going to hear God’s voice, though, His voice can only be heard if He is listened to through every human being. In other words, we cannot be selective in hearing. For, if we believe what our faith teaches us, namely, that every single person is made in the image and likeness of God, then every single person has something to teach us about God that no one else can. 

As we run on the path of God’s commandments, then, may our hearts be pierced by and overflow with the inexpressible delight of love. Living and true God, grant us the grace to make our ‘yes’ mean ‘yes’, especially those who will renew their monastic profession; and our ‘Amen’ mean ‘Amen’ when we receive the Body and Blood of our Lord, lest we be resounding gongs and clashing symbols. And remember: ‘Jesus wants to be found by those who look for Him. But to look for Him we have to get up and go out’ (Pope Francis, Twitter, February 4, 2018). 

I am reminded of a blessing taught to me by my very Irish great Aunt Mary:

May those that love us, love us.

For those who don’t love us, may God turn their hearts.

If He doesn’t turn their hearts, may He turn their ankles so we’ll know them by their limping.

St Bede the Venerable, pray for us, and most especially this day for Fr Bede and Br Bede.

Feast of Saints Philip and James

Readings of the day: RB Prol 8-13

Mass: 1 Co 15:1-8; Resp Ps 19; Jn 14:6-14

I AM THE WAY AND THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE.

I do not want to be doomed to mediocrity in my feeling for Christ. I want to feel. I want to love. Take me, dear Lord, and set me in the direction I am to go.

(F. O’Connor, A Prayer Journal, p. ix)

LET US GET UP, THEN, AT LONG LAST, FOR THE SCRIPTURES ROUSE US WHEN THEY SAY: IT IS HIGH TIME FOR US TO ARISE FROM SLEEP (Rm 13:11). LET US OPEN OUR EYES TO THE LIGHT THAT COMES FROM GOD, AND OUR EARS TO THE VOICE FROM HEAVEN THAT EVERY DAY CALLS OUT THIS CHARGE:

IF YOU HEAR HIS VOICE TODAY, DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS (Ps 94[95]:8).

(RB Prol. 8-10)

Saint Philip, Saint James,

pray for us.