15 When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." He said to him, "Feed my lambs." 16 A second time he said to him, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." He said to him, "Tend my sheep." 17 He said to him the third time, "Simon, son of John, do you love me?" Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time, "Do you love me?" And he said to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him, "Feed my sheep. 18 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you girded yourself and walked where you would; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go." 19 (This he said to show by what death he was to glorify God.) And after this he said to him, "Follow me."

Meditation: Do you want the fire of God’s love to burn in your heart? John the evangelist tells us that God is love (1 John 4:16). His love is unconditional, unmerited, and without limit. It edurings forever. It’s the beginning and the end – it's the reason God created us wants us to be united with him – and it’s the essence of what is means to be a Christian – one who knows God's love and forgiveness and who loves God in return with all one's heart, mind, soul, and body. God's love heals and transforms our lives and frees us from fear, selfishness, and greed. It draws us to the very heart of God and it compels us to give to him the best we have and all we possess – our gifts, our time, our resources, our full allegiance, and our very lives. Paul the Apostle tells us that God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit which has been given us (Romans 5:5). What can quench such love? Certainly indifference, disbelief, and rejection of God and his word.

Why did Jesus question Peter’s love and fidelity three times in front of the other apostles? It must have caused Peter pain and sorrow since he had publicly denied Jesus three times. Now Peter, full of remorse and humility, unequivocally stated that he loved his master and was willing to serve him whatever it might cost. When Jesus asks him "do you love me more than these?" Jesus may have pointed to the boats, nets and catch of fish. He may have challenged Peter to abandon his work as a fisherman for the task of shepherding God's people. Jesus also may have pointed to the other disciples and to Peter's previous boast: "Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away" (Matthew 26:33). Peter now makes no boast or comparison but humbly responds: "You know I love you."

The Lord calls us, even in our weakness and sin, to love him above all else. Augustine in his Confessions wrote: "Late have I loved you, O Beauty so ancient and so new. Late have I loved you! ...You shone your Self upon me to drive away my blindness. You breathed your fragrance upon me... and in astonishment I drew my breath...now I pant for you! I tasted you, and now I hunger and thirst for you. You touched me! - and I burn to live within your peace." (Confessions 10:27) Nothing but our sinful pride and wilfulness can keep us from the love of God. It is a free gift, unmerited and beyond payment. We can never outmatch God in giving love. He loved us first and our love for him is a response to his exceeding graciousness and mercy towards us. Do you allow God's love to change and transform your heart?

"Lord Jesus, inflame my heart with your love and remove everything that is unloving, unkind, ungrateful, unholy, and not in accord with your will."

Psalm 103:1-2,11-12,19-20

1 Bless the LORD, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless his holy name!
2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,
11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
19 The LORD has established his throne in the heavens, and his kingdom rules over all.
20 Bless the LORD, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, hearkening to the voice of his word!

www.dailyscripture.net

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UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS

Notre Dame's Watershed Moment

University Continues to Struggle With Catholic Identity

By Genevieve Pollock

SOUTH BEND, Indiana, MAY 28, 2009 (Zenit.org).- While the debate over Notre Dame's Catholic identity is nothing new, the recent controversy surrounding its decision to honor President Barack Obama may be a watershed moment for the university.

Father John Jenkins, the university's president, put the issue front and center when he invited Obama, a staunch defender of abortion rights, to give the May 17 commencement address. The university also bestowed on him an honorary law degree.

The gesture drew national and international media attention as some 80 bishops and more than 367,000 Catholics voiced disagreement with Father Jenkins, saying he was compromising the school's Catholic identity. They said he disregarded the 2004 guidelines from the U.S. bishops that state: "Catholic institutions should not honor those who act in defiance of our fundamental moral principles" with "awards, honors, or platforms which would suggest support for their actions."

The university's leadership didn't budge, and Obama was greeted on campus with a standing ovation at commencement. Hecklers were shouted down while students chanted, "Yes, we can." Forty seniors -- out of a graduating class of more than 2,900 -- boycotted the ceremony.

Such a reaction might seem to indicate there is only a small remnant of faith left on campus.

But according to senior Mary Daly, president of the Notre Dame Right to Life group and chief editor of the Irish Rover, a campus newspaper, that's not exactly the case.

Daly told ZENIT that the admissions office reports that 80%-85% of every incoming class is Catholic.

She also noted a "strong subculture within the student body of earnest Catholics: people who are making sincere efforts to grow in their faith and to discern and live out God's will in their lives."

She described Notre Dame as a place that has "adoration five days a week on campus, Mass in all the dormitory chapels at least four times a week, and priests in every dorm."

Faith

Thus, Daly said, "if you are serious about your Catholic faith and want to grow in your personal relationship with Christ, this is an excellent place to do so," though, she acknowledged, you have to be willing to "challenge yourself."

Christina Holmstrom, a 2008 graduate and a campus ministry intern, affirmed to ZENIT that "faith is not only a commonality for much of Notre Dame's population, but it is also a source of challenge and strength."

She reported a "number of students taking part in regular service opportunities through the Center for Social Concerns, student-led faith-based groups, Bible studies and liturgies."

Holmstrom also noted the "hundreds" of graduates who "take their Notre Dame education and apply it to domestic and international volunteer programs, ministry work, teaching, medicine, their careers and their families," as the "greatest testament to the influence of faith on this campus."

At Notre Dame, she said, faith "finds its source and summit in the Eucharist and active participation in the Church and is lived out in a life of service to others."

Paolo Carozza, a law professor at Notre Dame and the faculty advisor to the Communion and Liberation student organization, affirmed: "If faith at Notre Dame remains for us a matter of words, of discourse, of ethics, or of projects, then the university will never correspond to the immensity of what our hearts desire from it.

"Faith has to become an experience, a life."

Identity

The professor added that this happens on campus "all the time." This lived faith is something to "nourish for the life of the Church and for the world," he said, "because it is the only thing, ultimately, capable of generating and sustaining a Catholic university."

Without it, Carozza stated, nothing can keep Notre Dame from "being just like any other institution."

Notre Dame's identity in relation to other institutions, however, is part of the dilemma. The Cardinal Newman Society, in its 2007 publication of "The Newman Guide to Catholic Colleges," wrote the epilogue on Notre Dame, which it describes as being in a "complex" situation.

The guide analyzed a wide spectrum of Catholic colleges: those that "have fallen victim to secularization and have chosen to minimize their Catholic identity," others that are "struggling to determine their direction," and the institutions that live their Catholic mission in "exemplary" ways.

In the spectrum, Notre Dame falls into a category all its own, with a strong academic reputation and overall renown, as well as a "vibrant spiritual life that comes at a time when most large Catholic universities have become increasingly more secularized."

Despite these positive aspects, the Newman society notes issues that "prevent us from recommending Notre Dame." The guide particularly notes the school's debate about "academic freedom," which encompasses the history of performances of the Vagina Monologues, programs supporting a homosexual lifestyle, and faculty members speaking out against Church teaching.

It states that for students to thrive at this school, they need a good Catholic formation, and the "exercise of caution in their course selections and social life."

Truth

As a student, Daly acknowledged that the university lacks resources for "students to actually learn about their Catholic faith."

The senior said: "We need to know what the teachings are, how the doctrine was arrived at, and how sometimes standing up for truth requires us to be somewhat counter-cultural.

"I think students at Notre Dame are interested in their religion and are looking for truth."

What we need from the university, she said, on top of all the beautiful buildings and shrines, is the truth.

Daly reported that every student is required to take two theology classes and two philosophy courses, but most do not receive "very high quality" courses in these subject areas.

She explained that often the introductory course instructors will "give their interpretation" on matters of faith.

Although we "cannot inhibit freedom of speech," she said, "it can be very misleading and disadvantageous to those students" who are not already educated in Catholic theology and philosophy to be presented with personal opinions of instructors.

The Newman guide reports that Catholic professors number around 53% of the total faculty, but noted that Father Jenkins launched an initiative to strengthen the hiring of Catholic faculty.

As well, due to his actions, this year marked the first time in eight years that the Vagina Monologues student production was canceled. Steps such as these are inspiring hope for Notre Dame's future as a Catholic university.

Carozza expressed this hope, noting that "one can see here all sorts of signs that Christ is present in the life of the university as a university."

He noted that this is "evident in relationships among faculty and students, in classrooms, and in research programs."

Carozza acknowledged some "extremely weighty and difficult challenges" in reaching this ideal, including the "dualism between faith and reason that pervades universities and modern life generally."

The professor also noted the difficulty in "understanding and accepting that communion with the Church is not a limitation or restriction on the nature of the university but the opposite -- it is a condition of freedom and a safeguard of reason."

He concluded that these "weaknesses begin in our own hearts, in our personal incapacity, and that is the first place where they need to be met."

Franciscan Father John Coughlin, Notre Dame law professor, echoed this hopeful vision, stating to ZENIT that "prayer is the key to the challenges ahead at our beloved Notre Dame."

There is no "magic plan or program," he said, but the hope for the university lies in "humble prayer to the Sacred Heart and pro-life action based on the reality of people struggling to be saints."

"Hope is a theological virtue," the priest said, that "stems from humble prayer" and "must also be based in reality."

"The fact that there are so many excellent Catholic professors and students" is "the reality upon which I base my hope for a lively Catholic faith at the university," he affirmed.

Father Coughlin added, "We can be the yeast in the dough that becomes the Bread of Life."

Daly, who helped organize a 3,000-strong rally on graduation day to support Notre Dame's pro-life, Catholic identity, affirmed that "there is great support for Notre Dame to do something profound, sincere and real to commit itself to the pro-life cause, and by default to fidelity to the Church."

"Notre Dame needs to celebrate its Catholic identity," she stated. "In an age when diversity is so highly valued, Notre Dame should flaunt its uniqueness as a Catholic institution and refuse to fall in step with other 'prestigious' universities."

The senior asserted, "What makes Notre Dame special is its commitment to the 'pursuit and sharing of the truth for the sake of itself.'

It "needs to return to the basics of what it means to be Catholic, and what it means to be a Catholic university," Daly said.

She added some suggestions for enhancing the school's Catholic identity: "increase the presence of Catholic faculty on campus, make a public statement that confirms they will never participate in embryonic stem cell research, appoint a pro-life ombudsperson, [and] host leaders from the Church at the university so that they can teach young Catholics how they should act in a modern society."

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DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT

May 29, 2009

St. Madeleine Sophie Barat

(1779-1865)

The legacy of Madeleine Sophie Barat can be found in the more than 100 schools operated by her Society of the Sacred Heart, institutions known for the quality of the education made available to the young.

Sophie herself received an extensive education, thanks to her brother, Louis, 11 years older and her godfather at Baptism. Himself a seminarian, he decided that his younger sister would likewise learn Latin, Greek, history, physics and mathematics—always without interruption and with a minimum of companionship. By age 15, she had received a thorough exposure to the Bible, the teachings of the Fathers of the Church and theology. Despite the oppressive regime Louis imposed, young Sophie thrived and developed a genuine love of learning.

Meanwhile, this was the time of the French Revolution and of the suppression of Christian schools. The education of the young, particularly young girls, was in a troubled state. At the same time, Sophie, who had concluded that she was called to the religious life, was persuaded to begin her life as a nun and as a teacher. She founded the Society of the Sacred Heart, which would focus on schools for the poor as well as boarding schools for young women of means; today, co-ed Sacred Heart schools can be found as well as schools exclusively for boys.

In 1826, her Society of the Sacred Heart received formal papal approval. By then she had served as superior at a number of convents. In 1865, she was stricken with paralysis; she died that year on the feast of the Ascension.

Madeleine Sophie Barat was canonized in 1925.

Comment:

Madeleine Sophie Barat lived in turbulent times. She was only 10 when the Reign of Terror began. In the wake of the French Revolution, rich and poor both suffered before some semblance of normality returned to France. Born to some degree of privilege, she received a good education. It grieved her that the same opportunity was being denied to other young girls, and she devoted herself to educating them, whether poor or well- to-do. We who live in an affluent country can follow her example by helping to ensure to others the blessings we have enjoyed.

http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintofDay

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GENERAL MARIOLOGY

THE DIVINE HISTORY AND LIFE

OF THE

VIRGIN MOTHER OF GOD

BOOK THREE Contains the most Exquisite Preparations of the Almighty for the Incar-

nation of the Word in Mary most Holy; the Circumstances Accom-

panying this Mystery; the Exalted State, in which the Blessed

Mother was placed; her Visit to Saint Elisabeth and the

Sanctification of the Baptist: Her Return to Nazareth

and a Memorable Battle of the Virgin with Lucifer

CHAPTER II

THE INCARNATION OF THE SON OF GOD.

Our most prudent and humble Queen alone, among all the creatures, was sufficiently intelligent and magnanimous to estimate at its true value such a new and unheard of sacrament; and in proportion as She realized its greatness, so She was also moved with admiration. But She raised her humble heart to the Lord, who could not refuse Her any petition, and in the secret of her spirit She asked new light and assistance by which to govern Herself in such an arduous transaction; for, as we have said in the preceding chapter, the Most High, in order to permit Her to act in this mystery solely in faith, hope and charity, left Her in the common state and suspended all other kinds of favors and interior elevations, which She so frequently or continually enjoyed. In this disposition She replied and said to holy Gabriel, what is written in saint Luke: "how shall this happen, that I conceive and bear; since I know not, nor can know, man?" At the same time She interiorly represented to the Lord the vow of chastity, which She had made and the espousal, which his Majesty had celebrated with Her.

The holy prince Gabriel replied (Luke 1, 24): "Lady, it is easy for the divine power to make Thee a Mother without the cooperation of man; the Holy Spirit shall remain with Thee by a new presence and the virtue of the Most High shall overshadow Thee, so that the Holy of holies can be born of Thee, who shall himself be called the Son of God. And behold, thy cousin Elisabeth has likewise conceived a son in her sterile years and this is the sixth month of her conception; for nothing is impossible with God. He that can make her conceive, who was sterile, can bring it about, that Thou, Lady, be his Mother, still preserving thy virginity and enhancing thy purity.

With these and many other words the ambassador of heaven instructed the most holy Mary, in order that, by the remembrance of the ancient promises and prophecies of holy Writ, by the reliance and trust in them and in the infinite power of the Most High, She might overcome her hesitancy at the heavenly message. But as the Lady herself exceeded the angels in wisdom, prudence and in all sanctity, She withheld her answer, in order to be able to give it in accordance with the divine will and that it might be worthy of the greatest of all the mysteries and sacraments of the divine power. She reflected that upon her answer depended the pledge of the most blessed Trinity, the fulfillment of his promises and prophecies, the most pleasing and acceptable of all sacrifices, the opening of the gates of paradise, the victory and triumph over hell, the Redemption of all the human race, the satisfaction of the divine justice, the foundation of the new law of grace, the glorification of men, the rejoicing of the angels, and whatever was connected with the Incarnation of the Onlybegotten of the Father and his assuming the form of servant in her virginal womb (Philip 2, 7)

A great wonder, indeed, and worthy of our admiration, that all these mysteries and whatever others they included, should be intrusted by the Almighty to an humble Maiden and made dependent upon her fiat. But befittingly and securely He left them to the wise and strong decision of this courageous Woman (Prov. 31, 11), since She would consider them with such magnanimity and nobility, that perforce his confidence in Her was not misplaced. The operations, which proceed within the divine Essence, depend not on the cooperation of creatures, for they have no part in them and God could not expect such cooperations for executing the works ad intra; but in the works ad extra and such as were contingent, among which that of becoming man was the most exalted, He could not proceed without the cooperation of most holy Mary and without her free consent. For He wished to reach this acme of all the works outside Himself in Her and through Her and He wished that we should owe this benefit to this Mother of wisdom and our Reparatrix.

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DIVINE MERCY

Divine Mercy In my soul

The Mercy of the Lord I will sing Forever.
Divine Mercy in my soul.
Sr. Faustina, Diary
Notebook III

I made an hour of adoration in thanksgiving for the graces which had been granted me and for my illness. Illness also is a great grace. I have been ill for four months, but I do not recall having wasted so much as a minute of it. All has been for God and souls; I want to be faithful to Him everywhere.

During this adoration, I realized the utter care and goodness that Jesus has been lavishing upon me and the protection He has given me against all evil. I thank You especially, Jesus, for visiting me in my solitude, and I thank You also for inspiring my superiors to send me for this treatment. Give them, Jesus, the omnipotence of Your blessing and compensate them for all the losses incurred because of me.

Today, Jesus is bidding me to comfort and reassure a certain soul who has opened herself to me and told me about her difficulties. This soul is pleasing to the Lord, but she is not aware of it. God is keeping her in deep humility. I have carried out the Lord's directives.

O my most sweet Master, good Jesus, I give You my heart. You shape and mold it after Your liking. O fathomless love, I open the calyx of my heart to You alone, my Betrothed, is known the fragrance of the flower of my heart. Let the fragrance of my sacrifice be pleasing to You. O Immortal God, my ever lasting delight, already here on earth, You are my heaven. May every beat of my heart be a new hymn of praise to You, O Holy Trinity! Had I as many hearts as there are drops of water in the oceans or grains of sand in the whole world, I would offer them all to You, O my Love, O Treasure of my heart! Whomever shall I meet in my life, no matter who they may be, I want to draw them all to love You, O my Jesus, my Beauty, my Repose, my sole Master, Judge, Savior and Spouse, all in one; I know that one title will modify the other - I have entrusted everything to Your mercy.

My Jesus, support me when difficult and stormy days come, days of testing, days of ordeal, when suffering and fatigue begin to oppress my body and my soul. Sustain me, Jesus, and give me strength to bear suffering. Set a guard upon my lips that they may address no word of complaint to creatures. Your most merciful Heart is all my hope. I have nothing for my defense but only Your mercy; in it lies all my trust.

March 27, 1937. Today, I returned from Pradnik, after nearly four months of treatment. For everything I give great thanks to God. I have made use of every moment to glorify God. When I went to the chapel for a moment, I realized how much I would have to suffer and struggle, with regard to this whole matter. O Jesus, my strength, You alone can help me; grant me fortitude.

March 28. Resurrection. During the Mass of Resurrection, I saw the Lord in beauty and splendor, and He said to me, "My daughter, peace be with you." He blessed me and disappeared, and my soul was filled with gladness and joy beyond words. My heart was fortified for struggle and sufferings.

Today, I had a conversation with Father (Andrasz) and he recommended great caution in the matter of these sudden appearances of the Lord Jesus. When he was speaking about divine mercy, some sort of strength and power entered my heart. My God, I want so much to express everything and am so very unable to do so. Father tells me that the Lord Jesus is very generous in communicating himself to souls and, on the hand, He is so to speak, stingy. "Although God's generosity is very great" said Father, " be careful anyway, although personally I do not see anything wrong here, or anything contrary to faith. Be a little bit more careful, and when Mother Superior comes, you can talk to her about these things.

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CATHOLIC TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY

Bishops Weigh in on California Gay Marriage Ban

Affirm State's Responsibility to Protect Family Structure

WASHINGTON, D.C., MAY 28, 2009 (Zenit.org).- The U.S. bishops' conference lauded the California Supreme Court's decision to uphold the voter-enacted ban on same-sex marriage.

In a statement released Wednesday, Archbishop Joseph Kurtz of Louisville, chairman of the Ad Hoc Committee for the Defense of Marriage, reported the bishops' satisfaction with the decision.

He stated, "The court has thus respected the eminently reasonable decision of the California electorate to retain the perennial definition of marriage as the union of one man and one woman."

The archbishop explained: "This respects the uniqueness of the marital relationship and its service to the common good by respecting the value of procreation and the good of children as well as the unique complementarity of man and woman.

"Advancing the truth and beauty of marriage enhances, rather than diminishes, the intrinsic dignity of every human person."

In 2000, Californians voted to keep marriage between a man and a woman. But last May, the state's high court overturned that vote and approved same-sex marriage. Some 18,000 gay couples were quick to take advantage of the new prerogative.

California's citizens rallied to put the issue to vote again in November. With slightly more than a 52% majority, same-sex marriage was again made illegal in California, this time with a constitutional amendment.

That measure was known as Proposition 8 and it added to the California Constitution the following clause: "Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California."

However, activists succeeded in taking the issue back to the California Supreme Court, contending that the ban needed legislature approval before being added to the constitution.

The court's decision Tuesday upholds the ban, but does not "un-marry" the 18,000 gay couples who wed between May and November.

The bishops' statement expressed concern that the court failed to apply the marriage definition to these same-sex unions.

Truth

Archbishop Kurtz affirmed, "Attempts to change the legal definition of marriage or to create simulations of marriage, often under the guise of 'equality,' 'civil rights,' and 'anti-discrimination,' do not serve the truth."

"Such attempts," he said, "undermine the very nature of marriage and overlook the essential place of marriage and family life in society."

The prelate continued, "The state has a responsibility to protect and promote marriage as the union of one man and one woman as well as to protect and promote the intrinsic dignity of every human person, including homosexual persons."

He added that there are many ways to accomplish this, but "sacrificing marriage is not one of them."

The California bishops' conference released an additional statement in which Bishop Stephen Blaire of Stockton echoed the words of Archbishop Kurtz.

Quoting the natural law scholar and Princeton professor, Robert George, the prelate affirmed: "No matter what, the law will teach. It will either teach that marriage exists as a natural institution with public purposes and meanings, centered around bridging the gender divide, and bringing together one man and one woman to share their lives as husband and wife and to become father and mother to their children, or it will teach that marriage is a mere creation of the state, recognizing and condoning the private sexual choices of adults."

Dignity

"As Catholic bishops," the statement continued, "we are strongly committed to protecting the dignity and worth of every human person."

It affirmed: "We endorse the intent of law to provide equal protection for all. However, such purpose does not have to trump the natural and traditional definition of marriage between a man and a woman.

"The law has found other ways to regulate civil unions without destroying the traditional understanding of marriage.

"We believe -- as do the majority of Californians -- that marriage between a man and a woman is foundational to our culture and crucial for human perpetuity."

Ron Prentice, executive committee chairman of the coalition ProtectMarriage.com, explained that although this court decision is a victory for all supporters of Proposition 8, the work is not done.

He stated, "We will now turn our attention to public education and outreach so that citizens come to better understand and appreciate the many benefits that traditional marriage provides for society and our families."

"The institution of marriage as we have always understood it has served California and our broader society since the nation was founded," Prentice affirmed.

He added, "We look forward to working with young people, churches, ethnic communities and all of California with an ongoing discussion about the benefits of traditional marriage."

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