Thursday, February 5, 2009

Friday, February 6, 2009

From Thought and Saint For Every Day,

by Blessed James Alberione


Sts. Paul Miki and Companions

Martyrs


On February 5, 1597, twenty-six Catholics - Japanese and European - were crucified for their belief in the Lord Jesus and their loyalty to the Catholic Church. The brave band of martyrs included Franciscans, Jesuits and lay people.

Paul Miki, one of the twenty-six martyred that day at Nagasaki, preached about his love for Christ even from the cross.

Let us remember the courage of the martyrs when daily annoyances cause us to be anxious and troubled.


Christ, the Perfect Man


Jesus Christ, the Apostle of the Father, was first "the perfect man"; even in this He is the Way. The concept "perfect man" does not imply only a rational soul and an organic body. It means the perfect order of His faculties, according to God on the one hand and according to reason on the other. Who could accuse Him of sin? He was the perfect son, the perfect child, the perfect youth, the perfect worker, the perfect citizen, the perfect subject, the perfect king. He was perfect at home, in society, in manners, in prayer, in solitude; perfect in prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance; perfect in learning as a disciple and perfect in teaching as a master; perfect in seeking the glory of God and the salvation of men as an apostle.


From A Year With Blessed James Alberione,

Compiled by J. Maurus


Be attentive to self


Attend to yourself, that is:

A commitment to correct the defects,

A commitment to cultivate virtues,

A commitment to an ever better prayer life,

A commitment to practice a habitual union with God,

A commitment to grow in intimacy with the eucharistic Christ,

A commitment to make a little progress daily that at the end of the week you can say: I have made seven steps; at the end of the month: I have made 30 small steps, and at the end of the year: 365 steps.

However small the steps may be, they are 365 steps, and a person becomes aware that he has become better, that he has become more pleasing to God, that he has more spirit of sacrifice, that his faith has been deepened, that he has a more intense and nobler supernatural spirit, and a greater degree of love for God and for others.


What Strikes Me Most Today


What strikes me most today is the universality of our Church. St. Paul wanted to reach all nations. I am moved by the examples of St. Paul Miki and his companions in Japan. I love how Blessed Alberione points out the martyrs were Japanese and Europeans, Jesuits and Franciscans and lay people. We are all part of the same Church - the Church that Christ established with St. Peter - the first vicar of Christ.


I love looking at the maps and lists on the right side of this blog and seeing where people are throughout the world - sharing the faith with us!



What strikes you most today?


Please click on "COMMENTS" below to share your thoughts, or just to let everyone know where in the world you are!




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2 comments:

  1. tkiehlFebruary 6, 2009 at 9:20 AM

    And you are helping the university of our church with this blog as well. Over 1000 hits from 12 different countries is such a few short weeks, this is a phenomenal achievement.
    Great Job Jeff!

    ReplyDelete
  2. victorFebruary 6, 2009 at 5:49 PM

    Today in Canada, our gasoline jumped up by fifteen cents in just a few hours and I must confess that being human I voiced my paranoia to my wife. I could have done a lot more mouthing off but instead, I quietly prayed and then mouth off a little more. Go figure us humans.

    We'll never be as perfect as Jesus Our Lord and Savior but I hear ya!
    That's no reason to stop trying every day!

    Keep UP The Good Work.

    God Bless all His Children no matter what part of His World they might find themselves in.

    Peace

    ReplyDelete

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Why?

Why a blog? Why St. Paul? Why do I think I have any business doing this?
We are all on a spiritual journey. We all want that journey to lead us to heaven, to eternity with God. For this journey, we need one another.
The journey so far has led me to read and learn about so many forms of authentic Catholic spirituality - Ignatian, Benedictine, Carmelite, Dominican, Franciscan, etc. My biggest problem was that I came to love each one tremendously. I began reading more and more, spending more and more time at the Daughters of St. Paul bookstore on Watson Road here in St. Louis. Who would have thought my greatest conversion story would take place in a bookstore? Mine was not quite as sudden or dramatic as St. Paul on the road to Damascus, but getting to know the Daughters of St. Paul affected me no less significantly.
The sisters are Eucharistic by nature. The first time I entered the chapel in their bookstore, the Blessed Sacrament was exposed and one of the sisters was on her knees, gazing at Christ, with an indescribably beautiful smile on her face. I had a glimpse of heaven. I knelt at one of the other kneelers and noticed on the wall behind the monstrance the words: "Fear not, I am with you. From here I want to enlighten. Atone for sin." I had that brief moment of absolute certainty that I was on the right path.
Over the last several years I have worked my way through as many books, CD's, DVD's and conversations with the Daughters of St. Paul that time has allowed. Time is at such a premium for all of us. Years ago we were told that with advances in technology we would have much more free time on our hands. We all know this has not been the case. Our lives are busier and more hectic than ever. Even if we are unable to find time to read good books, see enlightening movies or attend lectures and discussions, maybe we could all spend a little time on the internet supporting one another on our faith journeys. Many of you know more about many aspects of Catholic spirituality than I do.
Pope John Paul the Great called us all to a New Evangelization, to share the Gospel with the world. I am hoping we can all be St. Paul in this blog space by sharing Christ with one another and with others. St. Paul travelled to many foreign and often hostile regions to evangelize the world; we are fortunate to be able to use the internet to reach even farther and more quickly.
The idea of using today's means of social communication to spread the Gospel was given to Blessed James Alberione on the night between the centuries (December 31, 1900 - January 1, 1901). He was a 16 year-old seminary student adoring Christ in the Blessed Sacrament when a special light came to him from the Host. Following this, Blessed James Alberione became the founder of the Society of St. Paul priests, the Daughters of St. Paul, the Pious Disciples of the Divine Master, Sisters of Jesus the Good Shepherd, Sisters of the Queen of Apostles, and numerous institutes that are also part of the Pauline family.
So what is Pauline spirituality? In my experience, Pauline spirituality encompasses all the teachings of Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and love of all the other spiritualities and Saints of the Church. It is the members of the Pauline family who are the happiest people I know! It is loving God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit with all our hearts and souls, through the intercession of Mary, Queen of the Apostles, and St. Paul.
So why St. Paul? I can relate to St. Paul. We first meet him in the New Testament as a sinner. He has a thorn in his side that God decides is best not to take away. I sometimes wish I knew what that thorn was, but it's probably better I don't know. I like to pretend it is one of my many weaknesses or faults. If St. Paul could go from persecuting Christ and His Church to becoming the person responsible for spreading the Gospel and establishing the Church in foreign lands, the least I can do is start a blog. I have been especially inspired by my two favorite bloggers, Sr. Margaret Charles Kerry, fsp, and a Pauline Cooperator named Rae Stabosz. I believe Sr. Margaret and Rae are doing just what St. Paul and Blessed James Alberione would be doing with the internet.
In future blogs (which will be shorter than this first post!), I would like to share writings of St. Paul, Blessed James Alberione, and many others. I look forward to others sharing writings from other Catholic spiritualities and writers. An especially Pauline way of sharing is to point out to one another what aspects particularly speak to each of us.
Another Pauline trait is to pray for one another. My prayer is that we support one another on our path to holiness. Our goal is to glorify God in all that we do - so let's do it!