35 And as Jesus taught in the temple, he said, "How can the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? 36 David himself, inspired by the Holy Spirit, declared, `The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I put thy enemies under thy feet.' 37 David himself calls him Lord; so how is he his son?" And the great throng heard him gladly.

Meditation: What kind of ruler does the world need today? Who can establish true peace and justice? When the people of Israel settled into the promised land, they wanted a king to unite and rule them like the other nations around them. Their first king, Saul, failed to establish a dynasty. But when David was annointed king God established a covenant with him and promised that his dynasty would last forever. Among the Jews the most common title for the Messiah (the Hebrew word for Christ or the Anointed One) was the Son of David. The Jews looked forward to the long-expected Savior who would come from the line of David. Jesus was often addressed with that title, especially by the crowds (Mark 10:47ff, Matthew 9:27; 12:23).

Why did Jesus question the Jews on the claim that their Messiah or Christ would be the son of David? After all the New Testament makes clear that Jesus himself is a direct descendant from the line of David's throne (Romans 1:3, 2 Timothy 2:8, Matthew 1:1-17, Luke 3:23-38). Jesus posed the question to make his hearers understand that the Messiah is more than the son of David. Jesus makes his point in dramatic fashion by quoting from one of David's prophetic psalms, Psalm 110: The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I put your enemies under your feet. How can the son be the lord of his father? Jesus, who took upon himself our human nature for our sake, is not only the son of David, he is first and foremost the Son of God eternally begotten of the Father. The Messiah King whom God promised to send would not only come from David's line, but would be greater than any earthy ruler who came before or would come after. Jesus claimed a sovereignty that only God can claim – a sovereignty that extends not only to the ends of the earth but to the heavens as well. But the way Jesus would establish his kingdom was far different from any of the expectations of the tiny nation of Israel. Jesus came to rule hearts and minds not lands and entitlements. He came to free people from the worst tyranny possible – slavery to sin, Satan, and a world ruled by greed and lust for power and wealth.

Paul the Apostle states that no one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3). It is the role of the Holy Spirit to make the Lord Jesus present and known in our lives. We can accept the Lord Jesus or reject him, love him or ignore him. He will not force his rule upon us. But the consequences of our choice will not only shape our present life but our destiny as well. What does it mean to acknowledge that Jesus is Lord? The word lord means ruler or king – the one who is owed fealty and submission. The Lord and Master of our lives is the person or thing we give our lives over to and submit to in a full way. We can be ruled by many things – our possessions, the love of money, our unruly passions, alcohol, drugs, and other forms of addictions. Only one Lord and Master can truly set us free to love and serve others selflessly and to be loved as God intended from the beginning. When we acknowledge that Jesus is Lord we invite him to be the king of our heart, master of our home, our thoughts, our relationships, and everything we do. Is the Lord Jesus the true king and master of your heart and do you give him free reign in every area of your life?

"Lord Jesus, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of David and the Son of God. You are my Lord and I willingly submit myself to your rule in my life. Be Lord and King of my life, my thoughts, heart, home, relationships, work, and all that I do."

Psalm 119:157,160-161,165-166,168

157 Many are my persecutors and my adversaries, but I do not swerve from thy testimonies.
160 The sum of thy word is truth; and every one of thy righteous ordinances endures for ever.
161 Princes persecute me without cause, but my heart stands in awe of thy words.
165 Great peace have those who love thy law; nothing can make them stumble.
166 I hope for thy salvation, O LORD, and I do thy commandments.
168 I keep thy precepts and testimonies, for all my ways are before thee.

www.dailyscripture.net

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UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS

Notre Dame Alumni Report Feeling Disenfranchised

Concerned Students Are Not Learning Catechesis

By Genevieve Pollock

DEARBORN, Michigan, JUNE 2, 2009 (Zenit.org).- A Notre Dame alumni coalition is entering phase two in the program to replace the university's leadership, using their pocketbooks as leverage.

David DiFranco, '95 graduate and spokesman of ReplaceJenkins.com, told ZENIT that although the initiative materialized amid the public protest of the school's decision to honor President Barack Obama at the May 17 commencement ceremony, the work is far from being over.

The coalition launched the national outreach effort in April appealing to alumni and benefactors to hold back donations until the university's president, Father John Jenkins, is replaced.

"Our endeavor is entering a new phase," he said. "We did not establish ourselves to prevent Obama from speaking" at the university's commencement ceremony.

This event gave us a "rallying cry," DiFranco said, but "the culminating point in our endeavor is still a long way off."

The problem at Notre Dame, he explained, is that "something needs to change in the leadership."

The coalition is calling for a new university head "who is committed to the authentic identity of Notre Dame, grounded in the teachings of the Catholic Church."

The protest against Obama's invitation to give the commencement address and receive an honorary law doctorate served to "wake people up," the spokesman said, as many alumni did not realize the situation at the school.

The alumni are "feeling disenfranchised," he said. They are surprised at the bad leadership of administration and faculty.

"Obama's invitation to speak was not the worst part," DiFranco explained. The defense made by university president Father John Jenkins of the decision "angered alumni even more."

He added that there was also an outcry over the fact that during the commencement ceremony, many students showed support for Obama, shouting campaign slogans, which "shows that the students are not learning their catechesis."

Clear cut

Over 80 bishops and more than 367,000 Catholics voiced disagreement with Father Jenkins, saying 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."

This is a very "clear cut case," DiFranco said. Obama is not just pro-choice, but is among a very small minority who actively defends abortion rights in every instance.

The spokesman asserted that the percentage of students standing against the decision should match the percentage that is Catholic.

The admissions office of the university estimates that 80%-85% of each incoming freshman class identifies themselves as Catholic.

DiFranco acknowledged that although most media attention focused on the fact that only 40 seniors out of some 2,900 boycotted the ceremony, there may have been many more who were against the university's decision.

Now, he said, although the press dropped the story after commencement day, we are just beginning the second phase of the campaign, to "connect with Notre Dame individuals who have power to induce change."

DiFranco affirmed that the project has been initially successful, with responses from every alumni era.

On graduation day, the coalition had confirmed over $15 million in donations withheld from the university.

Although the coalition has not released an updated number, the spokesman affirmed that the total number of donations "has swelled."

The group is carefully sorting through and confirming other pledges, and DiFranco stated that there are still tens of millions of dollars to be authenticated.

The coalition will formally deliver its campaign results to the Notre Dame administration at a moment it deems "appropriate," he said.

The alumnus concluded by affirming that there are glimmers of hope for Notre Dame, despite the need for some changes.

He reported that several faculty members contacted the coalition to express support, though requesting anonymity.

At Notre Dame, "there is a contingent with some strength," DiFranco said, and with the right environment and situation, "you may see something positive coming out."

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DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT

June 5, 2009

St. Boniface

(672?-754)

Boniface, known as the apostle of the Germans, was an English Benedictine monk who gave up being elected abbot to devote his life to the conversion of the Germanic tribes. Two characteristics stand out: his Christian orthodoxy and his fidelity to the pope of Rome.

How absolutely necessary this orthodoxy and fidelity were is borne out by the conditions he found on his first missionary journey in 719 at the request of Pope Gregory II. Paganism was a way of life. What Christianity he did find had either lapsed into paganism or was mixed with error. The clergy were mainly responsible for these latter conditions since they were in many instances uneducated, lax and questionably obedient to their bishops. In particular instances their very ordination was questionable.

These are the conditions that Boniface was to report in 722 on his first return visit to Rome. The Holy Father instructed him to reform the German Church. The pope sent letters of recommendation to religious and civil leaders. Boniface later admitted that his work would have been unsuccessful, from a human viewpoint, without a letter of safe-conduct from Charles Martel, the powerful Frankish ruler, grandfather of Charlemagne. Boniface was finally made a regional bishop and authorized to organize the whole German Church. He was eminently successful.

In the Frankish kingdom, he met great problems because of lay interference in bishops’ elections, the worldliness of the clergy and lack of papal control.

During a final mission to the Frisians, he and 53 companions were massacred while he was preparing converts for Confirmation.

In order to restore the Germanic Church to its fidelity to Rome and to convert the pagans, he had been guided by two principles. The first was to restore the obedience of the clergy to their bishops in union with the pope of Rome. The second was the establishment of many houses of prayer which took the form of Benedictine monasteries. A great number of Anglo-Saxon monks and nuns followed him to the continent. He introduced Benedictine nuns to the active apostolate of education.

Comment:

Boniface bears out the Christian rule: To follow Christ is to follow the way of the cross. For Boniface, it was not only physical suffering or death, but the painful, thankless, bewildering task of Church reform. Missionary glory is often thought of in terms of bringing new persons to Christ. It seems—but is not—less glorious to heal the household of the faith.

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 III.

MOST HOLY MARY VISITS ELISABETH.

Just as saint Elisabeth was the first one who heard this sweet canticle from the mouth of most holy Mary, so she was also the first one who understood it and, by means of her infused knowledge, commented upon it. She penetrated some of the great mysteries. which its Authoress expressed therein in so few sentences. The soul of most holy Mary magnified the Lord for the excellence of his infinite Essence; to Him She referred and yielded all glory and praise (I Tim. 1, 17), both for the beginning and the accomplishment of her works. She knew and confessed that in God alone every creature should glory and rejoice, since He alone is their entire happiness and salvation (11 Cor. 10 17). She confessed also the equity and magnificence of the Most high in attending to the humble and in conferencing upon them his abundant spirit of divine love (Ps. 137, 6). She saw how worthy of mortals it is to perceive, understand and ponder the gifts that were conferred on the humility of Her, whom all nations were to call blessed, and how all the humble ones, each according to his degree, could share the same good fortune. By one word also She expressed all the mercies, benefits and blessings, which the Almighty showered upon Her in his holy and wonderful name; for She calls them altogether "great things" since there was nothing small about anything that referred to this great Queen and Lady.

And as the mercies of the Most High overflowed from Mary's plenitude to the whole human race, and as She was the portal of heaven, through which they issued and continue to issue, and through which we are to enter into the participation of the Divinity; therefore She confessed, that the mercy of the Lord in regard Her is spread out over all the generations, communicating itself to them that fear Him. And just as the infinite mercies raise up the humble and seek out those that fear God; so also the powerful arm of divine justice scatters and destroys those who are proud in the mind of their heart, and hurls them from their thrones in order to set in their place the poor and lowly. This justice of the Lord was exercised in wonderful splendor and glory upon the chief of all the proud, Lucifer and his followers, when the almighty arm of God scattered and hurled them (because they themselves precipitated themselves) from their exalted seats which befitted their angelic natures and their graces, and which they occupied according to the original (Isaias 14; Apoc. 12) decree of the divine love. For by it He intended that all should be blessed (I Tim. 2, 4) while they, in trying to ascend in their vain pride to positions, which they neither could attain nor should aspire to, on the contrary cast themselves from those which they occupied (Isaias 14,13).

When it was time to come forth from their retirement, saint Elisabeth offered herself and her whole family and all her house for the service of the Queen of heaven. She asked Her to accept, as a quiet retreat, the room which she herself was accustomed to use for her prayers, and which was much retired and accommodated to that purpose. The heavenly Princess accepted the chamber with humble thanks, and made use of it for recollecting Herself and sleeping therein, and no one ever entered it, except the two cousins. As for the rest She offered to serve and assist Elisabeth as a handmaid, for She said, that this was the purpose of visiting her and consoling her. O what friendship is so true, so sweet and inseparable, as that which is formed by the great bond of the divine love! How admirable is the Lord in manifesting this great sacrament of the Incarnation to three women before He would make it known to any one else in the human race! For the first was saint Anne, as I have said in its place; the second one was her Daughter and the Mother of the Word, most holy Mary; the third one was saint Elisabeth, and conjointly with Her, her son, for he being yet in the womb of his mother, cannot be considered as distinct from her. Thus "the foolishness of God is wiser than men," as saint Paul says.

The most holy Mary and Elisabeth came forth from their retirement at nightfall, having passed a long time together; and the Queen saw Zacharias standing before her in his muteness, and She asked him for his blessing as from a priest of the Lord, which the saint also gave to Her. Yet, although She tenderly pitied him for his affliction, She did not exert her power to cure him, because She knew the mysterious occasion of his dumbness; yet She offered a prayer for him. Saint Elisabeth, who already knew the good fortune of the most chaste spouse Joseph, although he himself as yet was not aware of it, entertained and served him with great reverence and highest esteem. After staying three days in the house of Zacharias, however, he asked permission of his heavenly Spouse Mary to return to Nazareth and leave Her in the company of saint Elisabeth in order to assist her in her pregnancy. The holy husband left them with the understanding that he was to return in order to accompany the Queen home as soon as they should give him notice; saint Elisabeth offered him some presents to take home with him; but he would take only a small part of them, yielding only to their earnest solicitations, for this man of God was not only a lover of poverty, but was possessed of a magnanimous and noble heart. Therewith he pursued his way back to Nazareth, taking along with him the little beast of burden, which they had brought with them. At home, in the absence of his Spouse, he was served by a neighboring woman and cousin of his, who, also when most holy Mary was at home, was wont to come and go on necessary errands outside of the house.

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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

May 6, (1937). The Ascension of Our Lord.
Since early this morning, my soul has been touched by God. After Holy Communion, I communed for a while with the heavenly Father. My soul was drawn into the glowing center of love. I understood that no exterior works could stand comparison with pure love of God.... I saw the joy of the Incarnate Word, and I was immersed in the Divine Trinity. When I came to myself, longing filled my soul, and I earned to be united with God. Such tremendous love for the heavenly Father enveloped me that I call this day an uninterrupted ecstasy of love. The whole universe seemed to me like a tiny drop in comparison with God. There is no greater happiness than when God gives me to know interiorly that every beat of my heart is pleasing to Him, and when He shows me that He loves me in a special way. This strong inner conviction, by which God assures me of His love for me and of how much my soul pleases Him, brings deep peace to my soul. Throughout this day I was unable to take any food; I felt gratified to the full with love.

God of great mercy, who deigned to send us Your only - begotten Son as the greatest proof of Your fathomless love and mercy, You do not reject sinners; but in Your boundless mercy You have opened for them also Your treasures, treasures from which they can draw abundantly, not only justification, but also the sanctity that a soul can attain. Father of great mercy, I desire that all hearts turn with confidence to Your infinite mercy. No one will be justified before You is he is not accompanied by Your unfathomable mercy. When You reveal the mystery of Your mercy to us, there will not be enough of eternity to properly thank You for it.

Oh, how sweet it is to have in the depths of one's soul that which the Church tells us we must believe. When my soul is immersed in love, I solve the most intricate questions clearly and quickly. Only love is able to cross over precipices and mountain peaks. Love, once again, love.

12 (May 1937). A strange darkness sometimes invades my intellect. I am submerged in nothingness against my will.

May 20. 1937. When for a whole month I had been enjoying good health, it occurred to me that I did not know which was more pleasing to the Lord - my serving Him in illness or in the robust health for which I had asked Him - and I said to the Lord, "Jesus, do with me as You please," and Jesus returned me to my previous condition.

Oh, how sweet it is to live in a convent among sisters, but I must not forget that these angels are in human bodies.

On one occasion, I saw Satan hurrying about and looking for someone among the sisters, but he could find no one. I felt an interior inspiration to command him in the Name of God to confess to me what he was looking for among the sisters. And he confessed, though unwillingly, "I am looking for idle souls (Si. 33:28; pr. 12:11)." When I commanded him again in the Name of God to tell me to which souls in the religious life he has the easiest access, he said, again unwillingly, "To lazy and idle souls". I took note of the fact that, at present, there were no such souls in this house. Let the toiling and tired souls rejoice.

May 22, 1937. The heat is so intense today that it is difficult to bear. We are all thirsting for rain, and still it does not come. For several days the sky has been overcast, but there is no rain. When I looked at the plants, thirsting for the rain, I was moved with pity, and I decided to say the chaplet until the Lord would send us rain. Before supper, the sky covered over with clouds, and a heavy rain fell upon the earth. I had been saying this prayer without interruption for three hours. And the Lord let me know that everything can be obtained by means of this prayer.

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CATHOLIC TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY

Testimony of David Brewer, MD, former Abortion Provider

(This testimony was originally given at a "Meet the Abortion Providers" workshop sponsored by the Pro-life Action League of Chicago, directed by Joe Scheidler. Priests for Life offers their video, "Inside the Abortion Industry," containing excerpts of the testimonies of many former providers. Contact us for more details.)

Mr. Scheidler mentions that there are other chapters to be written; that the 99 is just a beginning, and he challenges us and invites us to come against the hypocrisy and the wickedness that we find in our own country. I'm suggesting to you that it may not be wickedness necessarily in a person's heart, like mine when I was doing abortions, but just the fact that nobody came and really took me aside and said, Dave, do you understand what you're doing? What is your concept of what you're doing? What do you feel you're doing when you do those D&Cs?

Okay, well let me share with you what I see. I just needed somebody to love me. Somebody to come and share and talk with me, because we know that old cliché that no man is an island. And we all know that money is not where it's at...that those things go away. It doesn't matter how much money a man has; it's our feeling of comfortableness in our heart. We can't be comfortable with ourselves and have a real inner peace and happiness if we're doing things that we know are wrong; if we're unsettled and troubled. So we need to share with those people. We need to get them, not once they're doing abortions necessarily, but before. We need to get back at the medical school time.

But now, like the shoes that kept changing size on me as I kept moving back the viability of a child, I think we should focus on the fact that it's not going to the abortionist. If we move back farther, it's not going to the medical students. If we move back father, it's not necessarily going to the parents, but it's going back to the children where we need to start.

How do we teach others to hate abortion? In Proverbs 21, the Bible tells us that the King's heart is in God's hands, and he turns it withersoever He wills. So the reason that the Supreme Court judges are still voting for abortion is because God hasn't changed their hearts. Why wouldn't God change their hearts because God hates abortion? We know that, the Bible tells us that God loves children and God loves life. In Psalms 75, we're told that God is the judge; that He puts one down and sets another up. So he set those judges up. Romans 13 tells us that there's no power but of God, and that God ordains those powers. So God ordained the powers that ruled that abortion was legal in our land. The point is that the government and the rules that God has given us are reflections of our own hearts.

Well, what's in our hearts? I would submit to you that in our hearts is the same attitude that the abortionists have. To abortionists, babies are a bother. To the mother who goes for an abortion, the baby is a bother. To the mother who can't wait until September 1st comes when school starts because the kids will then be back in school and it's been a really tough summer, children are a bother. And kids pick up our attitudes, believe me. To the mother who puts the kids in nursery school and is not working and just wants time for herself, children are a bother. For the parents that do good and go to lots of clubs and aren't home when the kids come home and go out in the evening and go to lots of clubs and do a lot of church work and do a lot of Pro-Life work, kids are a bother. Why do we have drugs and drug problems? Because kids are a bother. Because parents aren't in the home with their kids.

I'm not saying don't do Pro-Life work. But you understand it's the attitude in our hearts. Psalm 127:3-5 tell us that God loves children, and it says that children are a heritage of the Lord. And it says that children are the fruit of the womb and that they are a reward that God gives us. So that is our reward on earth. It's not the money and the cars and the boats and the planes, but it's our children that are the reward. God also tells us there that children are arrows, they're our arrows. If we want to change the world it's great to work Pro-Life, but by raising Godly children and sending them out as arrows, we may be able to do more than we could have done by ourselves.

Consider Matthew 18:5 where it says: And who shall receive one such little child in My name, receiveth Me. That was Jesus talking. Do you know what the word "receive" means? The word receive in Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon means to take into one's family, and to raise and educate. That's what the Greek meaning of that word that the people at the time of King James English translated receive. And Jesus is telling us to take children and raise them. He's not saying to have them be aborted. So it is our selfish attitude.

In Malachi 4:6, the last Scripture I'll mention and, as a matter of fact, it's the last scripture in the Old Testament. It says: And He shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children. It doesn't say to their children; it says to the children, for the children of our land, and the heart of the children will be turned to their fathers. Not to the fathers, to their fathers. Lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. And our land is cursed today. It's cursed with abortion. But the abortion arises because of the attitude in our hearts.

How can we train others not to hate children? We can do that by loving children ourselves. We can take care of our children and spend time with them. What can I do as a physician? One thing I have done is make a personal commitment to not put in IUDs any more because I believe that they cause abortion. I've made a commitment not to give out birth control pills to women for contraception because there are approximately four cycles in a hundred where there will breakthrough ovulation and fertilization can occur, but the baby can then not form because the pills have changed the lining of the uterus, and I realized, finally, that that is just like an IUD. There is conception, and my new definition of life is when conception occurs. So that, for me, is an abortion, for me to give a prescription out to a girl and allow her to take the pill.

However, there is one other reason--talking about the attitude about pills. When I give someone the pill, I'm telling them, go and be selfish, have your own attitude about God's timing for your family, plan your children for later, and be busy and get into clubs and take a second job, and neglect your children now so that you can get ahead and get things. And that's the wrong attitude.

I've stopped doing tubal ligations and we're committed to doing tubal reversals. We left our home in Mississippi; we had a swimming pool, a private airplane, a nice practice with a large retirement. We've come up here on faith to start a solo practice dedicated to treating the whole person and to doing tubal reversals for those people who want to have a tubal reversal.

In essence, change the attitude in our hearts by loving God, by loving our families, by loving our children, and by loving our neighbor as ourselves. It's very simple.

Thank you.

(to be continued)

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