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May 24, 2009 -  Seventh Sunday of Easter      LITURGICAL/THEME MEDITATION: Sanctified and consecrated in God's truth" UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENT(S): Bishops Weigh in on US Stem Cell Proposal SAINT OF THE DAY St. Felix of Cantalice  GENERAL MARIOLOGY THE DIVINE HISTORY AND LIFE OF THE VIRGIN MOTHER OF GOD Book Three - Chapter I    HER WONDERFUL ESPOUSAL WITH SAINT JOSEPH.  DIVINE MERCY Divine Mercy in My Soul Notebook III  TEACHING/TESTIMONY/CONVICTION: Official: No Easy Way to Stop Human Trafficking

DAILY LITURGICAL MEDITATION

Sunday (5/24): "Sanctified and consecrated in God's truth" Scripture: John 17:11-19  [alternate reading for the Feast of Ascension: Mark 16:15-20] 11 And now I am no more in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me; I have guarded them, and none of them is lost but the son of perdition, that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you; and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that you should take them out of the world, but that you should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you did send me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth. Meditation: Do you know why God created you – what purpose and mission he has entrusted to you? Jesus' aim and mission was to glorify his heavenly Father. All he said and did gave glory to his Father. On the eve of his sacrifice and in the presence of his disciples, Jesus made his high priestly prayer: "Holy Father, keep them in your name that they may be one as we are one". Jesus prayed for the unity of his disciples and for all who would believe in him. Jesus' prayer for his people is that we be united with God the Father in his Son and through his Holy Spirit and be joined together, in unity with all who are members of  Christ's body. Jesus saw glory in the cross rather than shame. Obedience to his Father's will was his glory. Jesus kept his Father's word even when tempted to forgo the cross. His strength was not in himself but in his Father who kept him. We, too, must take up our cross and follow the Lord Jesus whever he may call us. He will give us the strength and power of the Holy Spirit to live as his disciples. John Henry Newman wrote: "God has created me, to do him some definite service; he has committed some work to me which he has not committed to another. I have my mission – I may never know it in this life, but I shall be told it in the next. I am a link in a chain, a bond of connection between persons. He has not created me for nothing. Therefore, I will trust him. Whatever, wherever I am. I cannot be thrown away." Do you trust in God and in his call and purpose for your life? Jesus prayed that his disciples would be sanctified and consecrated in God's truth and holiness. The scriptural word for consecration comes from the same Hebrew word which means holy or set apart for God. This word also means to be equiped with the qualities of mind and heart and character for such a task or service. Just as Jesus was called by the Father to serve in holiness and truth, so we, too, are called and equipped for the task of serving God in the world as his ambassadors. God's truth frees us from ignorance and the deception of sin. It reveals to us God's goodness, love, and wisdom. And it gives us a thirst for God's holiness. The Holy Spirit is the source and giver of all holiness. As we allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, he transforms us by his purifying fire and changes us in the likeness of Christ. Is your life consecrated toGod? "Lord Jesus, take my life and make it wholly pleasing to you. Sanctify me in your truth and guide me by your Holy Spirit that I may follow you faithfully wherever you lead." 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   RETURN TO TOP

UNIVERSAL CHURCH/WORLD EVENTS

Bishops Weigh in on US Stem Cell Proposal Participate in Public Comment Period   WASHINGTON, D.C., MAY 22, 2009 (Zenit.org).- As the National Institutes of Health is considering guidelines on federally funding embryonic stem cell research, the U.S. bishops say the proposal is not only "morally objectionable" but also increasingly "scientifically obsolete." Monsignor David Malloy, general secretary of the U.S. episcopal conference, submitted comments on the draft guidelines. The public comment period on the guidelines ends Tuesday. The bishops' have provided citizens an easy way to submit comments at their Web site. For his part, the monsignor affirmed the dignity of human life at every stage and the right to not be subjected to harmful experimentation without one's consent. The "central fact of science," he added, is that the embryo to be destroyed to obtain stem cells, "is a human being at a very early stage of his or her development." Not about religion Monsignor Malloy affirmed that the stem cell debate is not a matter of religious belief. The priest recalled the conclusion of the National Bioethics Advisory Commission appointed by President Bill Clinton, that "because human embryos deserve 'respect' as a form of human life, destroying them for stem cells is 'justifiable only if no less morally problematic alternatives are available for advancing the research.'" He went on to note that alternatives are not only available, but have been found to offer the only effective promise for stem cell cures. He said "science and ethics have been ignored" in President Barack Obama's March decision to rescind both the policy preventing researchers from destroying live human embryos for federally funded research and the executive order instructing the NIH to thoroughly explore new avenues for obtaining pluripotent stem cells without destroying human embryos. "As the president noted," Monsignor Malloy said, "we must not make 'a false choice between sound science and moral values.' In fact, these sources of guidance both point in the same direction, away from destructive embryonic stem cell research. His executive order and these guidelines nonetheless insist on a course of action that is both morally objectionable and, increasingly, scientifically obsolete." RETURN TO TOP

DAILY LITURGICAL SAINT

May 24, 2009 St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi (1566-1607)   Mystical ecstasy is the elevation of the spirit to God in such a way that the person is aware of this union with God and both internal and external senses are detached from the sensible world. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi was so generously given this special gift of God that she is called the "ecstatic saint." She was born into a noble family in Florence in 1566. The normal course would have been for Catherine de Pazzi to have married wealth and enjoyed comfort, but she chose to follow her own path. At nine she learned to meditate from the family confessor. She made her first Communion at the then-early age of 10 and made a vow of virginity one month later. When 16, she entered the Carmelite convent in Florence because she could receive Communion daily there. Catherine had taken the name Mary Magdalene and had been a novice for a year when she became critically ill. Death seemed near so her superiors let her make her profession of vows from a cot in the chapel in a private ceremony. Immediately after, she fell into an ecstasy that lasted about two hours. This was repeated after Communion on the following 40 mornings. These ecstasies were rich experiences of union with God and contained marvelous insights into divine truths. As a safeguard against deception and to preserve the revelations, her confessor asked Mary Magdalene to dictate her experiences to sister secretaries. Over the next six years, five large volumes were filled. The first three books record ecstasies from May of 1584 through Pentecost week the following year. This week was a preparation for a severe five-year trial. The fourth book records that trial and the fifth is a collection of letters concerning reform and renewal. Another book, Admonitions, is a collection of her sayings arising from her experiences in the formation of women religious. The extraordinary was ordinary for this saint. She read the thoughts of others and predicted future events. During her lifetime, she appeared to several persons in distant places and cured a number of sick people. It would be easy to dwell on the ecstasies and pretend that Mary Magdalene only had spiritual highs. This is far from true. It seems that God permitted her this special closeness to prepare her for the five years of desolation that followed when she experienced spiritual dryness. She was plunged into a state of darkness in which she saw nothing but what was horrible in herself and all around her. She had violent temptations and endured great physical suffering. She died in 1607 at 41, and was canonized in 1669. Comment: Intimate union, God's gift to mystics, is a reminder to all of us of the eternal happiness of union he wishes to give us. The cause of mystical ecstasy in this life is the Holy Spirit, working through spiritual gifts. The ecstasy occurs because of the weakness of the body and its powers to withstand the divine illumination, but as the body is purified and strengthened, ecstasy no longer occurs. On various aspects of ecstasy, see Teresa of Avila, Interior Castle, Chapter 5, and John of the Cross, Dark Night of the Soul, 2:1-2. Quote: There are many people today who see no purpose in suffering. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi discovered saving grace in suffering. When she entered religious life she was filled with a desire to suffer for Christ during the rest of her life. The more she suffered, the greater grew her desire for it. Her dying words to her fellow sisters were: "The last thing I ask of you—and I ask it in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ—is that you love him alone, that you trust implicitly in him and that you encourage one another continually to suffer for the love of him."         http://www.americancatholic.org/Features/SaintofDay RETURN TO TOP

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 I. THE NOVENA BEFORE THE INCARNATION. In this contest (just as it once happened to Jacob) our Lady and Queen was asked, what was her name; and She said: "I am a daughter of Adam, formed by thy hands from the insignificant dust." And the Most High answered: "Henceforth Thou shalt be called: Chosen for the Mother of the Onlybegotten." But the latter part of this name was heard only by the courtiers of heaven, while to Her it was as yet hidden until the proper time. She therefore heard only the word "Chosen." Having thus protracted this amorous contention according to the disposition of his divine wisdom and as far as served to inflame the heart of this elected One, the whole blessed Trinity gave to Mary, our most pure Queen, the explicit promise, that They would now send into the world the eternal Word made man. Filled with incomparable joy and exultation by this fiat, She asked and received the benediction of the Most High. Thus this strong Woman issued forth from the contest with God more victorious than Jacob; for She came out rich, strong and laden with spoils, and the One that was wounded and weakened (to speak in our way) was God himself; for He was drawn by the love of this Lady to clothe Himself in that sacred bridal chamber of her womb with the weakness of our passible nature. He disguised and enveloped the strength of his Divinity, so as to conquer in allowing Himself to be conquered, and in order to give us life by his death. Let the mortals see and acknowledge, how most holy Mary, next to her most blessed Son, is the cause of their salvation. During this vision were also revealed to this great Queen the works of the fifth day of the creation in the manner in which they happened; She saw how, by the force of the divine command, were engendered and produced in the waters beneath the firmament, the imperfect reptiles, which creep upon the earth, the winged animals that course through the air, and the finny tribes that glide through the watery regions. Of all these creatures She knew the beginnings, the substance, the form and figure according to their kinds; She knew all the species of the animals that inhabit the fields and woods, their conditions, peculiarities, their uses and connections; She knew the birds of heaven (for so we call the atmosphere), with the varied forms of each kind, their ornaments, feathers, their lightness; the innumerable fishes of the seas and the rivers, the differences between the whales, their forms, composition and qualities, their caverns and the foods furnished them by the sea, the ends which they serve, the use to which they can be put in the world. And his Majesty especially commanded all these hosts of creatures to recognize and obey most holy Mary, giving Her the power to command all of them, as it happened on many occasions to be mentioned later on. Therewith She issued from the trance of this day and She occupied Herself during the rest of it in the exercise and petitions, which the Most High had pointed out to Her. Having seen God in this vision She was immediately shown the works on the sixth day of the creation of the world. She witnessed, as if She Herself had been present, how at the command of the Lord the earth brought forth the living beings according to their kinds, as Moses says (Gen. 1, 24). Holy Scripture here refers to the terrestrial animals, which being more perfect than the fishes and birds in life and activity, are called by a name signifying the more important part of their nature. She saw and understood all the kinds and species of animals, which were created on this sixth day, and by what name they were called: some, beasts of burden, because they serve and assist man, others, wild beasts, as being more fierce and untamed; others, reptiles, because they do not raise themselves or very little from the earth. She knew and comprehended the qualities of all of them: their fury, their strength, the useful purposes which they serve, and all their distinctions and singularities. Over all these She was invested with dominion and they were commanded to obey Her. She could without opposition on their part have trodden upon asps and basilisks, for all would have meekly borne her heel. Many times did some of these animals show their subjection to her commands, as when, at the birth of her most Holy Son, the ox and the ass prostrated themselves and by their breaths warmed the infant God at the command of his blessed Mother. After seeing the creation of all the irrational creatures, She became aware, how the most blessed Trinity, in order to complete and perfect the world, said: "Let us make man to our image and likeness" (Gen. 1, 26), and how by virtue of this divine decree the first man was formed of the earth as the first parent of all the rest. She had a profound insight into the harmonious composition of the human body and soul and of their faculties, of the creation and infusion of the soul into the body and of its intimate union with the body. Of the structure of the human body and all its parts, She obtained a deep knowledge: She was informed of the number of the bones, veins, arteries, nerves and ligatures; of the concourse of humors to compose the befitting temperaments, the faculties of nutrition, growth and locomotion; She learned in what manner the disturbances or changes in this harmony caused the sicknesses, and how these can he cured. All this the most prudent Virgin understood and comprehended without the least error, better than all the wise men of the world and better than even the angels. The Lord manifested to Her also the happy state of original justice, in which He placed the first parents Adam and Eve; She understood their condition, beauty and perfection of innocence and grace; and for how short a time they persevered in it. She perceived how they were tempted and overcome by the astuteness of the serpent (Gen. 2, 51), and what were the consequences of their sin; and how great were the fury and hate of the demon against the human race. At the vision of all these things our Queen made great and heroic acts of virtue, highly pleasing to God. She understood, that She was a daughter of these first parents and that She descended from a nature so thankless to its Creator. In the remembrance of this She humiliated Herself in his divine presence, thereby wounding the heart of God and obliging Him to raise Her above all that is created. She took it upon Herself to weep for the first sin and for all the rest, that followed from it, as if She Herself had been guilty of them all. Hence, even at that time, that first sin might have been called a fortunate fault, which caused tears so precious in the eyes of the Lord, and which earned us such sureties and pledges of our Redemption.    RETURN TO TOP

DIVINE MERCY

Divine Mercy In my soul   NOTEBOOK II The Mercy of the Lord I will sing Forever. Divine Mercy in my soul. Sr. Faustina, Diary Notebook III   Today, I received some oranges. When the sister had left, I thought to myself, "Should I eat the oranges instead of doing penance and mortifying myself during Holy Lent? After all, I am feeling a bit better." Then I heard a voice in my soul: "My daughter, you please Me more by eating the oranges out of obedience and love of Me than by fasting and mortifying yourself of your own will. A soul that loves Me very much, ought to live by My will. I know your heart, and I know that it will not be satisfied by anything but My love alone." I would not know how to live without the Lord. Jesus often visits me in this seclusion, teaches me, reassures me, rebukes me, and admonishes. He himself forms my heart according to His divine wishes and likings, but always with much goodness and mercy. Our hearts are fused as one. March 19, 1937. Today, I united myself in spirit with the Adoration that is taking place in our house (40 - hour adoration in Cracow), but my soul was full of torments, and some strange kind of apprehension was piercing my heart. Because of this, I redoubled my prayers. Suddenly I saw the gaze of God reaching into the depths of my heart. As I sat down to a very tasty breakfast, I said to the Lord, "Thank you for these gifts, but my heart is dying of longing for You, and nothing earthly is tasty to me. I desire the food of Your love". Today I was drawn by some mysterious force to act. I must resist this attraction, or else I would follow it at once. March 21, 1937. Palm Sunday. During Mass, my soul was steeped in the bitterness and suffering of Jesus. Jesus gave me to understand how much He had suffered in that triumphal procession. "Hosanna" was reverberating in Jesus' heart as an echo of "Crucify". Jesus allowed me to feel this in a special way. The doctor did not allow me to go to the chapel to attend the Passion Service, although I had a great desire for it; however, I prayed in my own room. Suddenly I heard the bell in the next room, and I went in and rendered a service to a seriously sick person. When I returned to my room, I suddenly saw the Lord Jesus, who said, "My daughter, you gave me greater pleasure by rendering Me that service than if you had prayed for a long time." I answered, "But it was not to You, Jesus, but to that patient that I rendered this service." And the Lord answered me, "Yes, My daughter, but whatever you do for your neighbor, you do for Me." O my Jesus, give me wisdom, give me a mind great an enlightened by Your light, and this only, that I may know You better, O Lord. For the better I get to know You, the more ardently will I love You, the sole object of My love. In You my soul drowns, in You my heart dissolves. I know not how to love partially, but only with the full strength of my soul and the total ardor of my heart. You yourself, O Lord, have enkindled this love of mine for You; in You my heart has drowned forever. March 22, 1937. As I was talking, today, to a certain person, I recognized that she was suffering greatly in spirit, although exteriorly she pretended that she was very happy and was not suffering at all. I felt inspired to tell her that what was troubling her was a temptation. When I disclosed to her what was torturing her, she burst into tears and told me that she had come to see me precisely to speak to me, because she felt that it would bring her relief. The suffering was of such a kind that the soul was being attracted by God's grace on the one hand and by the world on the other. She was going through a terrible struggle that brought her to the point of weeping like a little child. But she went away soothed and set at peace. During Holy Mass, I saw the Lord Jesus nailed upon the cross amidst great torments. A soft moan issued from His Heart. After some time, He said, "I thirst. I thirst for the salvation of souls. Help Me, My daughter, to save souls. Join your sufferings to My Passion and offer them to the heavenly Father for sinners." When I see that the burden is beyond my strength, I do not consider or analyze it or probe into it, but I run like a child to the Heart of Jesus and say only one word to Him: "You can do all things". And then I keep silent, because I know that Jesus himself will intervene in the matter, and as for me, instead of tormenting myself, I use that time to love Him.     RETURN TO TOP

CATHOLIC  TEACHING/CONVICTION/TESTIMONY

Official: No Easy Way to Stop Human Trafficking Archbishop Considers Roots of Problem   ROME, MAY 22, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Though trafficking in human beings is a "tremendous offense to dignity," there is no easy solution to this multifaceted and international problem, says a Vatican official. Archbishop Agostino Marchetto, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers, considered the gravity of human trafficking during an address Wednesday at a conference organized by the Association of the Pope John XXIII Community. The prelate called trafficking "one of the most shameful [phenomena] of our epoch." He recognized that "poverty and the lack of opportunities and social cohesion" are at the root of this tragedy, since these causes "bring people to seek a better future despite risks." And trafficking in human beings continues to spread, in part because of "an absence of specific norms in some countries, victims' ignorance of their rights, the sociocultural structure and armed conflicts," Archbishop Marchetto contended. He also mentioned the "current restrictions that emigrants find in legally going to developed countries." What to do Archbishop Marchetto lamented that "there are no easy solutions," and affirmed that a "coherent and integral approach" is needed to stop this particular form of abuse. "Not only the need of the victims [should be considered]," he said, "but also the just punishment for those who benefit from this activity and the implementation of preventive measures, in the first place to increase awareness and sensitivity, and also to take on the causes of this phenomenon." The prelate affirmed that this effort should also promote victims' integration in their new societies, "especially those who collaborate with authorities against traffickers." At the same time, the Vatican official suggested that a possible return to the nations of origin should be considered, a return that "can be accompanied with the proposal of a microcredit or loans, thereby ensuring that victims do not return to the same environment of dangers without resources." He further proposed a system of reimbursement to be financed with assets confiscated from the traffickers. Multifaceted Trafficking in human persons, Archbishop Marchetto stated, is a "multifaceted problem, often linked to immigration, which goes beyond the sex industry and also includes the forced labor of men, women and children in various industrial sectors, including construction, renovation and tourism, agriculture and domestic services." "Even if a part of forced labor is linked to discrimination and poverty, to local customs, to the victims' lack of a home and illiteracy, another part is related to the flexible and cheap labor, that often facilitates low prices for the consumer, which makes it attractive for the employers," he explained. And the prelate lamented that victims are often only protected during the course of investigations against traffickers; they are then repatriated, with or without a "packet" of support to help them restart their lives. "Only in a few countries are their measures to guarantee the protection of these victims," he said, "offering them the possibility of staying in the society that received them and integrating themselves, at least with certain conditions."   RETURN TO TOP

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