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TRÁI TIM
MẸ: NƠI CON NƯƠNG NÁU - ĐƯỜNG ĐẾN VỚI CHÚA |
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"Chúa Giêsu muốn dùng con để làm
cho Mẹ được nhận biết và yêu mến" |
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August 22, 2009 - Saturday of
Twentieth Week Ordinary Time
LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION:
"Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever
humbles himself will be exalted"
UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S):
Teaching Bioethics to
Teenagers
SAINT OF THE DAY
Queenship of Mary
GENERAL
MARIOLOGY
THE DIVINE
HISTORY AND LIFE
OF THE
VIRGIN MOTHER OF GOD
Book Five -
Chapter I
INTERIOR TRIALS OF MARY; JESUS IN THE TEMPLE.
DIVINE MERCY
Divine Mercy in My Soul
NOTEBOOK V
TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION:
From Abortion to Conversion: Testimony of a
Former Abortion Provider
KATHY SPARKS
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DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION |
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Saturday (8/22): "Whoever exalts himself will
be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted"
Scripture: Matthew 23:1-12
1 Then said Jesus to the crowds and to his disciples, 2 "The scribes
and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat; 3 so practice and observe whatever
they tell you, but not what they do; for they preach, but do not
practice. 4 They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's
shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with their finger. 5
They do all their deeds to be seen by men; for they make their
phylacteries broad and their fringes long, 6 and they love the place of
honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues, 7 and salutations
in the market places, and being called rabbi by men. 8 But you are not
to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brethren.
9 And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is
in heaven. 10 Neither be called masters, for you have one master, the
Christ. 11 He who is greatest among you shall be your servant; 12
whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will
be exalted.
Meditation: Does your practice match your talk? Jesus scolds
the scribes and Pharisees, the religious leaders of the Jews, for their
showy practices. In a way they wanted to be good models of observant
Jews. See how well we observe all the ritual rules and regulations of
our religion! In their misguided zeal for religion they sought
respect and honor for themselves rather than for God and for his word.
They wanted the people to treat them as great teachers and rulers. They,
unfortunately, made the practice of their faith a burden rather than a
joy for the people they were supposed to serve.
Was Jesus against calling anyone rabbi or father? Or was he just
directing this sharp rebuke to the scribes and Pharisees? Jesus seemed
to be warning both his disciples and the religious leaders about the
temptation to seek titles and honors to increase one's personal
reputation and admiration by others. The scriptures give ample warning
about the danger of self-seeking pride: "Pride goes before destruction,
and a haughty spirit before a fall." (Proverbes 16:18) "God opposes the
proud, but gives grace to the humble." (James 4:6; Proverbs 3:24)
Jerome, an early church father (347-420 AD) and bible scholar who
translated the bible from the original Hebrew and Greek into the common
Latin tongue, comments on this passage: "No one should be called teacher
or father except God the Father and our Lord Jesus Christ. He alone is
the Father, because all things are from him. He alone is the teacher,
because through him are made all things and through him all things are
reconciled to God. But one might ask, 'Is it against this precept when
the apostle calls himself the teacher of the Gentiles? Or when, as in
colloquial speech widely found in the monasteries of Egypt and
Palestine, they call each other Father?' Remember this distinction. It
is one thing to be a father or a teacher by nature, another to be so by
generosity. For when we call a man father and reserve the honor of his
age, we may thereby be failing to honor the Author of our own lives. One
is rightly called a teacher only from his association with the true
Teacher. I repeat: The fact that we have one God and one Son of God
through nature does not prevent others from being understood as sons of
God by adoption. Similarly this does not make the terms father and
teacher useless or prevent others from being called father." [Jerome's Commentary
on Matthew]
Respect for God and his ways inclines us to Godly humility and
simplicity of heart. The word disciple means one who listens in
order to learn. Jesus shows us the way to the Father – the way of peace,
joy, righteousness, holiness, and true happiness. He showed us the way
by lowering himself as a servant for our sake. He humbled himself, even
to death on a cross, that we might be raised up and exalted at the
Father's right hand in heaven (Philippians 2:1-11). What is true
Christ-like humility? Humility is true self-knowledge – regarding
oneself as God sees each of us. The humble do not rely on themselves,
but trust in God and in the power of his love and saving grace. True
humility is a servant-like quality which enables us to place our life at
the service of God and the service of our neighbor. Do you know the joy
of Christ-like humility and simplicity of heart?
"Lord Jesus, teach me your way humility and servanthood that I may
walk in love as you have loved me. Fill me with the joy of servanthood
that I may know the true freedom of selfless love and generous care for
my neighbor."
Psalm 128
1 Blessed is every one who fears the LORD, who walks in his ways!
2 You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be
happy, and it shall be well with you.
3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your
children will be like olive shoots around your table.
4 Lo, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD.
5 The LORD bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem
all the days of your life!
6 May you see your children's children! Peace be upon Israel!
www.dailyscripture.net
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UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS |
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Teaching Bioethics to Teenagers
New High School Offers Unique Approach
By Carrie Gress
DUMFRIES, Virginia, AUG. 20, 2009 ( Zenit.org).- While many dioceses are shuttering and consolidating schools, the Diocese of Arlington has opened a new state-of-the-art high school with a special curriculum focused on bioethics.
Guided by Dominican sisters of St. Cecilia of Nashville, Tennessee, John Paul the Great High School is in its second year of operation after 13 years of planning.
Bishop Paul Loverde of the Diocese of Arlington said it was his conviction that Catholics need to be educated in the fullness of their faith that led him to put such a strong emphasis on bioethics into the new school's curriculum.
"[W]e must enable them to understand not only what the Church teaches, but also why she teaches what she teaches. There are many people who do not understand the Church’s teachings on life. Young people must be formed in the beauty of this teaching," the bishop explained.
Benedict XVI blessed the school's tabernacle during his visit to the United States in April 2008.
Joelle Santolla, director of communications for the Diocese of Arlington, revealed the story of how the tabernacle came to be a part of the school is itself a lesson in bioethics.
She explained that the school found the tabernacle in the trash. "Now refurbished," she added, "the tabernacle that sits in the chapel is the central focal point of the high school and serves as a reminder that many of the things our culture considers trash are truly the most precious, like the unborn child."
Named after John Paul II, who even the youngest students remember, the school is located within 10 miles of the first Catholic settlement in Virginia, dating back to 1647. "In God’s providence, it is wonderful that the school can be there," said Bishop Loverde.
Integrated curriculum
With the only curriculum of its kind at the high school level, students are given a strong dose of the philosophical principles that underpin the Church's teaching on the culture of life in a four-year comprehensive program.
The school's principal, Sister Mary Jordan Hoover, said that: "We are trying to frame the entire education around Jesus Christ and moral truth, as is reflected in the architecture with the chapel as the center of the campus.
"When you look at how quickly science has changed over the last 10 to 15 years, we can see that so many Catholics aren't able to keep up. So this is really 21st century education in terms of its approach because the philosophical principles are needed for people to understand the issues. We want to prepare [our students] to think clearly with the Church now and in the future."
With philosophical texts unique to the school, including one called "The Human Person" that covers such topics as human anthropology and John Paul II's teaching on the theology of the body, the students are learning. "Last year was our first take at it and it does work. Ninth graders can learn philosophy," acclaimed Sister Hoover.
In fact, the Dominican principal explained, the lessons taught at John Paul the Great are not just staying in the classroom, but are being brought home to the dinner table. "When students talk to their parents, the dialogue can really help the students and the parents to grow."
Opportunity for truth
Sister Hoover emphasized that the heresy of today is that "[o]ur children are being told 'it is your body, do whatever you want with it' and we need to give them the foundational philosophical principles to help them to seek the truth."
"It is not enough," she added, "to just say 'the Church says so,' but we need to explain to the students why. There is a desire to understand why that is on their hearts and by developing the curriculum that has philosophy as part of it, we are giving them the means to really explore the whys."
It is Bishop Loverde's hope that the graduates of John Paul the Great "will be articulate and faithful members of the Catholic Church, having been formed to participate in the life of the Church both in the parish and the diocese, but also responsible citizens and instruments for bringing about a new civilization of love rooted in the culture of life."
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DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT |
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http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintofDay
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GENERAL
MARIOLOGY |
THE DIVINE HISTORY AND
LIFE
OF THE
VIRGIN MOTHER OF GOD
BOOK FIVE
Concerning
the Perfection with which the most Holy Mary copied and
Imitated
the Activity of the Soul of Christ; how the Incarnate Word
Instructed
Her in the Laws of grace, the Articles of Faith, the
Sacraments, the Ten Commandments; and with what
Alacrity
and Noble Promptitude She Corresponded.
Also
concerning the Death of Saint Joseph, the
Preaching
of Saint John, the call of the
First
Disciples and the Baptism
Of the
Virgin Mary, our
Blessed
Lady
CHAPTER I.
INTERIOR TRIALS OF MARY; JESUS IN THE TEMPLE.
The Evangelist says that they did not understand the
mystery of these words (Luke 2, 50); for it was hidden at the time to
most holy Mary and saint Joseph. And for two reasons; on the one hand,
the interior joy now reaping what they had sown in so much sorrow, and
the visible presence of their precious Treasure, entirely filled the
faculties of their souls; and on the other hand, the time for the full
comprehension of what had just been treated of in this discussion had
not yet arrived for them. Moreover, for the most solicitous Queen there
was another hindrance just at that time, and it was, that the veil,
concealing the interior of her most holy Son had again intervened and
was not removed until some time later. The learned men departed,
commenting in their amazement upon the wonderful event, by which they
had been privileged to hear the teaching of eternal Wisdom though they
did not recognize it. Being thus left almost alone, the blessed Mother,
embracing Him with maternal affection, said to Him: "Permit my longing
heart, my son, to give expression to its sorrow and pain; so that it may
not die of grief as long as it can be of use to Thee. Do not cast me off
from thy sight; but accept me as thy slave. If it was my negligence,
which deprived me of thy presence, pardon me and make me worthy of thy
company, and do not punish me with thy absence." The divine Child
received Her with signs of pleasure and offered Himself as her Teacher
and Companion until the proper time should arrive. Thus was the
dove-like and affectionate heart of the great Lady appeased, and They
departed for Nazareth.
They arrived at Nazareth, where they occupied
themselves in what I shall record later on. The evangelist Luke
compendiously mentions all the mysteries in few words, saying the Child
Jesus was subject to his parents, namely most holy Mary and saint
Joseph, and that his heavenly Mother noted and preserved within her
heart all these events; and that Jesus advanced in wisdom, and age, and
grace with God and men (Luke 2, 52), of which, as far as my
understanding goes, I will speak later on. Just now I wish only to
mention, that the humility and obedience of our God and Master toward
his parents were the admiration of the angels. But so was also the
dignity and excellence of his most blessed Mother, who thus merited that
the incarnate God should subject himself and resign Himself to her care;
so much so, that She, with the assistance of saint Joseph, governed Him
and disposed of Him as her own.
To the obedience and subjection of her most holy Son
the great Lady on her part responded by heroic works. Among her other
excellences She conceived as it were an incomprehensible humility and a
most heartfelt gratitude for having regained the companionship of her
Son. This blessing, of which the heavenly Queen deemed Herself unworthy,
vastly increased in her most pure heart her love and her anxiety to
serve her divine Son. And She was so constant in showing her gratitude,
so punctual and solicitous to serve Him, kneeling before Him and
lowering Herself to the dust, that it excited the admiration of the
highest seraphim. Moreover, She sought with the closest attention to
imitate Him in all his actions as they became known to Her and exerted
Herself most anxiously to copy them and reproduce them in her own life.
The plenitude of her perfection wounded the heart of our Christ and
Lord, and, according to our way of speaking, held him bound to Her with
chains of invincible love (Osee 11, 4). His being thus bound as God and
as Son to this heavenly Princess, gave rise to such an interchange and
divine reciprocity of love, as surpasses all created understanding. For
into the ocean of Mary's soul entered all the vast floods of the graces
and blessings of the incarnate Word; and this ocean did not overflow
(Eccles. 1, 7), because it mined the depth and expanse necessary to
receive them.
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DIVINE MERCY
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Divine Mercy In my soul
The Mercy of the Lord I will sing Forever.
Divine Mercy in my soul.
Sr. Faustina, Diary
NOTEBOOK V
January 2, 1938. As I
was preparing for Holy Communion today, Jesus demanded that I should write
more; not only about the graces which He grants me, but also about external
matters, and this for the consolation of many souls.
After that night of suffering, when the priest [Father Matzanger] entered my
cell with the Lord Jesus, such fervor filled my whole being that I felt that
if the priest had tarried a little longer, Jesus himself would have leaped
out of his hand and come to me.
After Holy Communion the Lord said to me, If the
priest had not brought Me to you, I would have come Myself under the same
species. My daughter, your sufferings of this night obtained the grace of
mercy for an immense number of souls.
My daughter, I have something to tell you, I
replied, “Speak, Jesus, for I thirst for Your words.”
It displeases Me that, because the sisters were
murmuring, you did not ask to have Father Andrasz hear your confession in
your cell. Know that, because of this, you gave them even greater cause for
murmuring. Very humbly I begged the Lord’s
forgiveness. O my Master, rebuke me, do not overlook my faults, and so not
let me err.
O my Jesus, when I am misunderstood and my soul is in anguish, I want to
stay a while alone with You. The words of mortals give me no comfort. Do not
send me, O Lord, such messengers as speak only for themselves and say what
their own nature dictates to them. Such consolers make me very tired.
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CATHOLIC TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY |
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From Abortion to Conversion: Testimony of a Former
Abortion Provider
KATHY SPARKS
(continued)
I woke up the next day.
Guess where Mike went the next day? He went over to his mother's house.
He didn't know I'd been there the night before. He proceeds to tell his
mother what a horrible person I am and how he just can't stand me and
how he has to get this divorce. She listened, and finally told him that
I had been there the night before. He thought, great! She said, Kathy
gave her life to the Lord last night, Mike. He said, right, mom, not
Kathy! She said, Mike, it's true. I prayed with her on this very porch.
She told him that she had something for him, and she went inside and got
a copy of the King James Bible that she had bought for him seven years
previously (that he had never read, of course), and gave it to him. He
took the Bible and left, and came home. He obviously didn't go to the
attorney that day.
For three weeks, all he
did was read the Bible. Every time I looked at him he was reading the
Bible. I must tell you one thing about my husband, a very Godly man now,
but he has a wonderful desire to read. He loves reading and retains
everything he reads. He took the Bible with him in the squad car, he
came home, and he'd read again. He wasn't talking to me; he didn't like
me too much, but he was reading all the time. I didn't care; I was
happy, folding my laundry and taking care of the baby, I was so happy
and I didn't know why.
Three weeks later he came
to me and said, Kathy, last night I gave my life to the Lord in the
squad car. I just started crying. He said, you know, Kathy, I don't love
you and I know that you don't love me. He had his red Bible. He said,
but I believe that Jesus Christ can give us a love for one another, and
so it was really exciting. He said, you know, it says here in the Bible
that we're new creatures in Christ, so it looks like I better take you
out on a date. Okay with me, so we got a babysitter and went out for
dinner, and he kind of held my hand. It was so exciting. We courted in
the Lord, it was really exciting what the Lord did for us in our
marriage.
Here I am, going into the
abortion clinic every day. When Mike was very, very young his family
were Mormons. Mike's mom had gotten saved and gotten out of it, and his
dad not yet, but not really practicing. We talked about religion and
talked about what we were going to be. He said, Kathy, I'm not going to
be Catholic. He went to the Catholic church with me a couple of times,
but he said, I'm not going to be Catholic. I said, well, I'm not going
to be Mormon. So we didn't go to church. That was kind of bad because,
after three months, I'm still going to the abortion clinic.
After three months, Mike
is still reading the Bible, and he came to me, and said, "Kathy, guess
what I read?" He said, "I want to tell you that God says that we are
lukewarm. And he would rather spit us out of his very mouth." What? I
made him show it to me and I read it. It convicted to me. We had still
been kind of partying on the weekends and didn't know any different. We
still had our worldly friends. That night, Mike and I prayed together
for the first time. We held hands and prayed together and said, Lord,
this is it, we're going for it. Everything that is within us, we're
going to serve you, no matter what it takes, no matter what the cost is.
We went through our entire apartment and tore up every single piece of
literature that was not Godly. Cosmopolitan Magazine, I had stock
in that company, let me tell you. All of our worldly albums; we broke
every single album up and took them took them to the dumpster. When we
went outside to barbecue, we looked over an open field and we saw two
double rainbows from the beginning to the end. We even have a picture of
it on our little instamatic. Mike said, Kathy, I read about it. It was a
covenant that God made with Noah. He said, God's making a covenant with
us this day. Boy, were we excited!
The next day I went into
the abortion clinic. It was so
completely different than the very
day before. It was freezing cold. I could not get warm. I was chilled
all the way down to my bones. I just couldn't get warm. I had a sweater
on, and it was incredible because no one else seemed to notice. There
was a smell, a stench in the air that I couldn't get away from. I kept
breathing it and breathing it and it was making me nauseous. One of the
first abortions done that day was on a woman who was 23 weeks pregnant.
This woman should have had a saline or a laminaria abortion, or even a
hysterectomy. Anything would have been better than to try to do a D&C on
a woman who was that far along. You have to realize that in this
particular abortion clinic, what would be done was she would be examined
one side; a pelvic exam by one doctor; then she'd come over and go
through all the blood work and sign a release paper, etc. Then, by the
time it was time for her abortion, she would be examined a second time.
So we're talking about two different doctors doing a pelvic exam who
knew this lady was farther than certainly 12 weeks along. She lay on the
table. She was a regular-built person, and she had a belly. And I
thought, no way! That couldn't be the baby! So the doctor did the pelvic
and sat down on his chair and mouths up to me, "very big." I'm thinking,
very big, what are you going to do this for? I was trembling and getting
a little bit nervous. But he began the procedure. He started to dilate
her with the dilating rods and the water broke. He began to do a
procedure that normally would take five to eight minutes, and we were in
there for an hour. This woman was in so much pain, she was coming off
the table. Every medical assistant and nurse was in that room. The nurse
had to give her three doses of Sublimaze to try to calm her down. She
was screaming; the nurse was yelling at her because everybody else was
getting quite upset in the waiting area, as you can imagine, from this
woman who was screaming. The doctor was trying to do the abortion, and
the baby's bones were far too developed to rip them up with this
curette, and so he had to try to pull the baby out with forceps, which
he brought out three or four major pieces. Then he scraped and suctioned
and scraped and suctioned. There this little baby boy was laying on the
tray. I took the baby and I took him to the clean-up room, and I set him
down, and I began weeping, uncontrollably sobbing for what I had been a
part of because God showed me that was a baby, they were all babies, and
I had been a part of murdering probably nearly 1,000 babies, and I cried
and cried. His little face was perfectly formed, just like the sign you
saw, perfectly formed; little eyes were closed, little ears and
everything was perfect about this little boy.
(to be continued)
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