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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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October 4/2009 - 27th Sunday of
Ordinary Time
LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION:
"What God has joined together, let no
man put asunder"
UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S):
Tulsa Professor Named to
Social Sciences Academy
SAINT OF THE DAY
St. Francis of Assisi
GENERAL
MARIOLOGY
Book Six - Chapter IV
THE PRAYER IN
GETHSEMANI AND HOW MARY JOINED
THEREIN.
DIVINE MERCY
Divine Mercy in My Soul
NOTEBOOK VI
TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION:
TRẦU CAU (Folktale)
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DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION |
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Sunday (10/4): "What God has joined together,
let no man put asunder"
Scripture: Mark 10:2-16
2 And Pharisees came up and in order to test him asked, "Is it
lawful for a man to divorce his wife?" 3 He answered them, "What did
Moses command you?" 4 They said, "Moses allowed a man to write a
certificate of divorce, and to put her away." 5 But Jesus said to
them, "For your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. 6
But from the beginning of creation, `God made them male and female.'
7 `For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be
joined to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh.' So they
are no longer two but one flesh. 9 What therefore God has joined
together, let not man put asunder." 10 And in the house the
disciples asked him again about this matter. 11 And he said to them,
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits adultery
against her; 12 and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery."
13 And they were bringing children to him, that he might touch
them; and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw it he
was indignant, and said to them, "Let the children come to me, do
not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 15 Truly, I
say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child
shall not enter it." 16 And he took them in his arms and blessed
them, laying his hands upon them.
Meditation: What is God's intention for our state in life,
whether married or single? Jesus deals with the issue of divorce by
taking his hearers back to the beginning of creation and to God's plan
for the human race. In Genesis 2:23-24 we see God's intention and ideal
that two people who marry should become so indissolubly one that they
are one flesh. That ideal is found in the unbreakable union of Adam and
Eve. They were created for each other and for no one else. They are
the pattern and symbol for all who were to come. Jesus explains that
Moses permitted divorce as a concession in view of a lost ideal.
Jesus sets the high ideal of the married state before those who are
willing to accept his commands. Jesus, likewise sets the high ideal for
those who freely renounce marriage for the sake of the kingdom of heaven
(Matthew 19:11-12). Both marriage and celibacy are calls from God to
live a consecrated life, that is to live as married couples or as
singles who belong not to themselves but to God. Our lives are not our
own, but they belong to God. He gives the grace and power to those who
seek to follow his way of holiness in their state of life. Do you seek
the Lord and his grace in your state of life?
Do you seek to help others draw near to the Lord? The parents who
brought their children to Jesus wanted Jesus to lay his hands upon
them. They knew of the healing power, both physical and spiritual,
which came from Jesus' touch. Jesus, in turn, rebuked his disciples for
hindering the children from coming. No doubt the disciples wanted to
shield Jesus from the nuisance of noisy children. But Jesus delighted
in the children and demonstrated that God's love has ample room for
everyone. No one is unimportant to God. He comes to each person
individually that he might touch them with his healing love and power.
May we never hinder our youth from coming to the Lord to receive his
blessing and healing power. And as we grow with age, may we never lose
that child-like simplicity and humility which draws us into Christ's
loving presence. Do you show kindness to the youth you encounter in your
neighborhood, home, and church and do you pray for them that they may
grow in the knowledge and wisdom of Jesus Christ?
"Lord Jesus Christ, your call to holiness extends to all in every
state of life. Sanctify our lives — as married couples and as singles —
that we may live as men and women who are consecrated to you. Make us
leaven in a society that disdains life-long marriage fidelity, chastity,
and living single for the Lord".
Psalm 119: 33-40
33 Teach me, O LORD, the way of thy statutes; and I will keep it to
the end.
34 Give me understanding, that I may keep thy law and observe it with my
whole heart.
35 Lead me in the path of thy commandments, for I delight in it.
36 Incline my heart to thy testimonies, and not to gain!
37 Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; and give me life in thy ways.
38 Confirm to thy servant thy promise, which is for those who fear thee.
39 Turn away the reproach which I dread; for thy ordinances are good.
40 Behold, I long for thy precepts; in thy righteousness give me life!
www.dailyscripture.net
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UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS |
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Tulsa Professor Named to Social Sciences Academy
Russell Hittinger and Janne Haaland Matlery Appointed
VATICAN CITY, OCT. 2, 2009 ( Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI named Russell Hittinger, a U.S. philosophy professor, and Janne Haaland Matlary, a Norwegian political science professor, as ordinary members of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences.
A Vatican communiqué reported the appointments today of the two members who will serve in the academy that is led by Mary Ann Glendon, former ambassador of the United States to the Holy See.
Hittinger, who was born in Virginia in 1949, is currently the chair of the department of philosophy and religion at the University of Tulsa, where he holds the William K. Warren Chair of Catholic Studies.
He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame, and afterward got his master's degree and doctorate from the University of St. Louis.
Hittinger has taught at Fordham University, the Catholic University of America, New York University, Princeton University, Regina Apostolorum university and Providence College.
He is a member of the Pontifical Academy of St. Thomas Aquinas. His writings include: "Law and Human Nature: Teachings of Modern Christianity" (2005), "The First Grace: Re-Discovering Natural Law in a Post-Christian Age" (2003), and "A Critique of the New Natural Law Theory" (1987).
Matlary, born in 1957, is currently a professor of international politics at the University of Oslo.
She converted to Catholicism while studying at that university, and received her doctorate in political science in 1994. Matlary specializes in energy policy, security policy and international human rights.
She is a member of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, and a consultor of the Pontifical Council for the Family. She is also a dame in the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
Matlary's writings include: "European Union Security Dynamics: In the New National Interest" (2009), "When Might Becomes Human Right" (2007), "Faith Through Reason" (2006), and "Values and Weapons: From Humanitarian Intervention to Regime Change?" (2006).
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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 SIX
The Marriage
at Cana; How Most Holy Mary Accompanied the Re-
deemer of the
World in His Preaching: the Humility shown by the
Heavenly Queen
in regard to the Miracles Wrought by Her
Divine Son;The
Transfiguration of the Lord;His Entrance
into
Jerusalem; His Passion and Death; His Triumph
over Lucifer
and his Demons by His Death on
the Cross; the
Most Sacred Resurrection
of the Savior
and His Wonderful As-
cension into
Heaven
CHAPTER IV.
THE PRAYER IN GETHSEMANI AND HOW MARY JOINED
THEREIN.
During these words and prayers of the Author of life
Judas advanced in order to give the signal upon which he had agreed with
his companions (Matth. 26, 48), namely the customary, but now feigned
kiss of peace, by which they were to distinguish Jesus as the One whom
they should single out from the rest and immediately seize. These
precautions the unhappy disciple had taken, not only out of avarice for
the money and hatred against his Master, but also, on account of the
fear with which he was filled. For he dreaded the inevitable necessity
of meeting Him and encountering Him in the future, if Christ was not put
to death on this occasion. Such a confusion he feared more than the
death of his soul, or the death of his divine Master, and, in order to
forestall it, he hastened to complete his treachery and desired to see
the Author of life die at the hands of his enemies. The traitor then ran
up to the meekest Lord, and, as a consummate hypocrite hiding his
hatred, he imprinted on his countenance the kiss of peace, saying: "God
save Thee, Master." By this so treacherous act the perdition of Judas
was matured and God was justified in withholding his grace and help. On
the part of the unfaithful disciple, malice and temerity reached
their highest degree; for, interiorly denying or disbelieving the
uncreated and created wisdom by which Christ must know of his treason,
and ignoring his power to destroy him, he sought to hide his malice
under the cloak of the friendship of a true disciple; and all this for
the purpose of delivering over to such a frightful and cruel death
his Creator and Master, to whom he was bound by so many obligations. In
this one act of treason he committed so many and such formidable sins,
that it is impossible to fathom their immensity; for he was treacherous,
murderous, sacrilegious, ungrateful, inhuman, disobedient, false, lying,
impious and unequalled in hypocrisy; and all this was included in one
and the same crime perpetrated against the person of God made man.
The most pure Mother of Christ our Lord was most
attentive to all that passed in his capture, and by means of her clear
visions saw it more clearly than if She had been present in person; for
by means of supernatural visions She penetrated into all the mysteries
of his words and actions. When She beheld the band of soldiers and
servants issuing from the house of the high priest, the prudent Lady
foresaw the irreverence and insults with which they would treat their
Creator and Redeemer; and in order to do what was within her power, She
invited the holy angels and many others in union with Her to render
adoration and praise to the Lord of creation as an offset to the
injuries and affronts He would sustain at the hands of those ministers
of darkness. The same request She made to the holy women who were
praying with Her. She told them, that her most holy Son had now given
permission to his enemies to take him prisoner and illtreat him, and
that they were about to make use of this permission in a most impious
and cruel manner. Assisted by the holy angels and the pious women the
faithful Queen engaged in interior and exterior acts of devoted faith
and love, confessing, adoring, praising and magnifying the infinite
Deity and the most holy humanity of her Creator and Lord. The holy
women imitated Her in the genuflections and prostrations, and the
angelic princes responded to the canticles with which She magnified,
celebrated and glorified the Divinity and humanity of Christ. In the
measure in which the children of malice increased their irreverence and
injuries, She sought to compensate them by her praise and veneration.
Thus She continued to placate the divine justice, lest it be roused
against his persecutors and destroy them; for only most holy Mary was
capable of staying the punishment of such great offenses.
And the great Lady not only placated the just Judge,
but even obtained favors and blessings from the divine clemency for the
very persons who irritated Him and thus secured a return of good for
those who were heaping wrongs upon Christ the Lord for his doctrine and
benefits. This mercy attained its highest point in the disloyal and
obstinate Judas; for the tender Mother, seeing him deliver Jesus by the
kiss of feigned friendship and considering how shortly before his mouth
had contained the sacramental body of the Lord, with whose sacred
countenance so soon after those same foul lips were permitted to come in
contact, was transfixed with sorrow and entranced by charity. She asked
the Lord to grant new graces, whereby this man, who had enjoyed the
privilege of touching the face whereon angels desire to look, might, if
he chose to use them, save himself from perdition. In response to this
prayer of most holy Mary, her Son and Lord granted Judas powerful
graces in the very consummation of his treacherous delivery. If the
unfortunate man had given heed and had commenced to respond to them, the
Mother of mercy would have obtained for him many others and at last also
pardon for his sin. She has done so with many other great
sinners, who were willing to give that glory to Her and thus obtain
eternal glory for themselves. But Judas failed to realize this and thus
lost all chance of salvation, as I shall relate in the next chapter.
When the servants of the high priest laid hands on
and bound the Savior, the most blessed Mother felt on her own hands the
pains caused by the ropes and chains, as if She Herself was being bound
and fettered; in the same manner She felt in her body the blows and
torments further inflicted upon the Lord, for, I have already said, this
favor was granted to his Mother, as we shall see in the course of the
Passion. This her sensible participation in his sufferings was some kind
of relief of the pain, which She would have suffered in her loving soul
at the thought of not being with Him in his torments.
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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 I
J.M.J.
April 10, 1938.
Palm Sunday. I attended Holy Mass, but did not have the strength to go and
get the palm. I felt so weak that I barely made it till the end of Mass.
During Mass, Jesus gave me to know the pain of His soul, and I could clearly
feel how the hymns of Hosanna reverberated as a painful echo in His Sacred
Heart. My soul, too, was inundated by a sea of bitterness, and each Hosanna
pierced my own heart to its depths. My whole soul was drawn close to Jesus.
I heard Jesus’ voice: My daughter, your
compassion for Me refreshes Me. By meditating on My Passion, your soul
acquires a distinct beauty.
I received Holy Communion upstairs, for there
was no question of my going down to the chapel since I was exhausted because
of intense sweating, and when that passed, I had a fever and chills. I felt
completely worn out. Today, one of the Jesuit Fathers [Father Zukowicz]
brought us Holy Communion. He gave the Lord to three other sisters and then
to me; and thinking I was the last, he gave me two hosts. But one of the
novices was lying in bed in the next cell, and there was no Host left for
her. The priest went back again and brought her the Lord, but Jesus told me,
I enter that heart unwillingly. You received
those two hosts, because I delayed My coming into this soul who resists My
grace. My visit to such a soul is not pleasant for Me.
At that point, my soul was drawn close to Him,
and I received a deep inner light which gave me to understand, in spirit,
all the workings of mercy. It was like a flash of lightning, but more
distinct than if I had watched it for hours with the eyes of my body.
Still, in order to write anything at all, I must make use of words, though
they cannot render all of what my soul enjoyed on seeing the glory of God’s
mercy. The glory of the Divine Mercy is resounding, even now, in spite of
the efforts of its enemies and satan himself, who has a great hatred for
God’s mercy. This work will snatch a great number of souls from him, and
that is why the spirit of darkness sometimes tempts good people violently,
so that they may hinder the work. But I have clearly seen that the will of
God is already being carried out, and that it will be accomplished to the
very last detail. The enemy’s greatest efforts will not thwart the smallest
detail of what the Lord has decreed. No matter if there are times when the
work seems to be completely destroyed; it is then that the work is being all
the more consolidated.
My soul was filled with a peace much deeper than anything I had experienced
before, a divine reassurance which nothing can efface, a deep peace which
nothing can disturb, even though I were to go through the severest of
ordeals. I am at peace; God himself governs all things.
I spent the whole day in thanksgiving, and gratitude kept flooding my soul.
O my God, how good You are, how great is Your mercy! You visit me with so
many graces, me who am a most wretched speck of dust. Prostrating myself at
your feet, O Lord, I confess with a sincere heart that I have done nothing
to deserve even the least of Your graces. It is in Your infinite goodness
that You give yourself to me so generously. Therefore, the greater the
graces which my heart receives, the deeper it plunges itself in humility.
O Christ, suffering for You is the delight of my heart and my soul. Prolong
my sufferings to infinity, that I may give You a proof of my love. I accept
everything that Your hand will hold out to me. Your love, Jesus, is enough
for me. I will glorify You in abandonment and darkness, in agony and fear,
in pain and bitterness, in anguish of spirit and grief of heart. In all
things may You be blessed. My heart is so detached from the earth, that You
yourself are enough for me. There is no longer any moment in my life for
self concern.
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CATHOLIC TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY |
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nce upon a time, in a land far across the sea, there lived a
rich old man with a beautiful daughter, his only child. When she
came of marrying age, he began to think of finding her a
suitable husband. Among the young men of the village were two
brothers, both of them fine-featured and intelligent. In fact,
they were identical twins, known for the love and loyalty they
bore for one another, and so alike in every way that not even
their mother could tell them apart. The old man decided that he
would marry his daughter to the elder brother, and devised a
clever little test to find out which was which.
One evening, the old man invited both brothers over to
dinner. The maiden, curious to know the faces of her suitors,
came softly to the door of the sitting room and peered inside.
Both brothers fell instantly in love. It was the smooth black of
her hair, the soft, young curve of her form, and the sweet catch
of her lower lip in her teeth. She disappeared in a moment, and
the men went in to dinner. When they sat down, the twins found
to their suprise that, though the table had been set with three
bowls of rice, there were but two pairs of chopsticks: a pair
for the girl's father, and a pair for the both of them. As was
his duty, the younger brother pushed the chopsticks to the older
and said, "Here, brother. You use these." "Ah," said the old
man, looking at the recipient of his chopsticks. "So you're the
elder brother. Well then, my son, if she pleases you, I give you
my daughter to be your wife."
The wedding came before they knew it, and it was grand, and
joyous, and painful. The younger brother would not have wished
his twin a less beautiful, less virtuous wife, but he felt
bitterly that someone had done him wrong.
When he came to visit his brother at his house one day, the
new husband was absent. The younger brother was greeted instead
by his sister-in-law, who mistaking him for the man she'd
married, came to him all smiles, carresses, and open invitation.
It was too easy not to resist, too easy to play along, and then
it was over. He got up, got dressed, and left, suddenly loathing
the thought of touching her, seeing her, speaking to her. He
ran, and when he became too tired to run he walked, then
crawled, then finally stopped.
"Forgive me," he whispered, and there, beside a small, clear
brook in the mountains, he died. His body sank into the ground,
and in its place appeared a block of limestone, "ñaù voâi".
In the meantime, the older brother had come home to an
anxious and bewildered bride.
"Are you alright, beloved? You made me worry. What made you
leave without a word?"
Her husband shook his head slowly. "What are you talking
about?"
But as she tried to jog his memory, the husband realized what
must have passed. Feigning recollection, he first soothed his
wife, then left to find his brother, but soon discovered that no
one knew where the latter had gone. The husband began to fear
that his younger brother might not come back. No matter what had
happened, they were still family, and he must bring his brother
home.
Telling his wife very little, the husband set out. Although
he had no idea which paths his brother had taken, he somehow
followed the same blind footsteps to the very spot beside the
very brook where his younger brother had died. He too paused
there to rest, but sitting there on the ground, leaning against
the rock, fell asleep and never rose again. His body turned into
a tall, slender areca tree, "caây cau", growing there beside the
limestone to give it shade.
The older brother had left his wife with assurances that he
would be home soon, but as the time drew on and he did not
return, she began to grow concerned, and to have doubts about
his well-being. Finally, she could bear the waiting no longer
and left to look for him. The young woman, too, found herself
unwittingly following that same route that both the brothers had
taken before her, and eventually she ended up by the brook as
well. Too tired to cross it just yet, she leaned on the areca
for a moment to rest, her cheek against the bark, then slipped
to her knees, her hands sliding gently down its trunk. She
closed her eyes, and her spirit slipped away. The wife became a
betel vine, "caây traàu", winding itself delicately around the
trunk of the areca.
Ever since, it has been a tradition at Vietnamese weddings to
have "traàu cau" ground areca nut, wrapped in a betel leaf
smeared with lime. Chewed together, the betel, areca, and
limestone yield a juice as red as blood. And the redder the
juice, they say, the deeper the love.
(translated by Erin Ninh)
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