Sunday, May 17, 2009

Monday, May 18, 2009

From Saint and Thought For Every Day,
by Blessed James Alberione
St. John I
Pope and Martyr

     St. John governed the Church for three years and he was a strong defender of the Faith.  The Arian King Theodoric had Pope John thrown into a dungeon in Ravenna and there he died of starvation in 526.
     How do I "measure" the daily crosses that come my way?  Am I willing to carry them for love of God?

The Ideal Man and the Ideal Woman

     There was a man who is the ideal to draw inspiration from:  Jesus Christ.  There was a woman whom we can look at to admire and imitate:  Mary.  She is the Woman, the masterpiece of creation, of grace and of glory.  She is "the most sublime of all creatures," privileged at her entrance into the world because of her Immaculate Conception and privileged at her passage to eternity because of her bodily assumption into heaven.

What Strikes Me Most Today

I've been talking recently about how hectic my life has been.  I made a point to get caught up on a list of things that were making me most anxious not getting done - catching up on bills and e-mails and making plans for our upcoming family vacation (to Canada - we leave in 8 days, yeah, I should start getting organized).  I didn't get everything done, but I got enough done that I took 10 minutes to sit outside, alone and quiet, and talked to God.  It may not sound like much, but it was awesome.  I really need to make some time for that every day - the days that are most hectic and I'm most stressed I am most likely to not pray - and those are the days I need it most!

What strikes you most today?  Click on "COMMENTS" below to share your thoughts.
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1 comment:

  1. UnknownMay 18, 2009 at 1:53 AM

    Hi!
    First of all I would like to admit that the way you have described about these Ideal men and women are very nice.
    I went through your blog and i found that in this everything is easy to understand and interesting.
    Good Day
    LaryJonshan

    ReplyDelete

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"I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6

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"Fear not, I am with you. From here I want to enlighten. Atone for sin."

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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!