The Fourteenth Chapter
Consider the Hidden Judgments of God Lest You Become Proud of Your Own Good Deeds
The Disciple
YOU thunder forth Your judgments over me, Lord. You shake all my bones with fear and trembling, and my soul is very much afraid. I stand in awe as I consider that the heavens are not pure in Your sight. If You found wickedness in the angels and did not spare them, what will become of me? Stars have fallen from heaven, and I—I who am but dust—how can I be presumptuous? They whose deeds seemed worthy of praise have fallen into the depths, and I have seen those who ate the bread of angels delighting themselves with the husks of swine.
There is no holiness, then, if You withdraw Your hand, Lord. There is no wisdom if You cease to guide, no courage if You cease to defend. No chastity is secure if You do not guard it. Our vigilance avails nothing if Your holy watchfulness does not protect us. Left to ourselves we sink and perish, but visited by You we are lifted up and live. We are truly unstable, but You make us strong. We grow lukewarm, but You inflame us.
Dear Lord please visit us, lift us up, inflame us with your Holy Spirit and make us strong!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!!+JMJ+
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
A new Bishop...
I wrote the following for my local paper:
It is with great joy and pride when I heard that on Nov 18th Pope Benedict XVI named Monsignor Barry Knestout, as an auxiliary bishop, for the 140 parishes in the Washington diocese, to be ordained a Bishop at St. Matthews Cathedral on Dec. 29th. This is the first Bishop ever from my town, as well as Prince Georges County. I can see Bishop John Carroll smile down from heaven as he sees the fruit from his call in June 1783, when a small group of priests met at the chapel, then called Whitemarsh, and now known as Sacred Heart Chapel right here up on the hill in Bowie, MD, were here to discuss how the Catholic Church in the new United States would be governed and its property managed. Carroll was then chosen to become the first bishop of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States and was sent to England to be consecrated a bishop on August 15, 1790. Who would of thought that my town would be so blessed with so many vocations to the priesthood as well as becoming a bombing community of wonderful people.
Now anyone who grew up in the 70’s around here had to encounter this amazing family!!! The late Deacon Mr. Knestout served as a deacon at St Pius X Catholic Church and his wife Carolyn raised nine great children. To know that our very own streets had kids playing in them like Monsignor Barry who attended St. Pius X elementary school and Bowie Senior High School before receiving a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Maryland in December 1984. In 1985 he entered Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, MD to study for the priesthood and was ordained a priest in June 1989. He received the title Monsignor in 1999 by Pope John Paul II. In my teens I hung out with his brother Mark, the eighth of the nine and another great guy! It was so exciting when Mark joined his brother and was ordained a priest on May 23, 1998. I know my older brothers and sisters went to school with the older Knestout kids too. There is a special pride when the phones are ringing to announce that one of our own has been given this great honor. I love how the Archbishop of Washington Donald Wuerl called our new bishop, “a native son of this archdiocese. He was born, formed in the faith and educated here”.
Bishop-elect Knestouts most recent role in the Washington Diocese was in planning Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Washington this April. He was perfect for the job with his great organization and his degree in architecture from Univ of MD, helped him to oversee a contest for architecture students from Catholic University to design the furnishings for the Papal Mass. Bishop-elect Knestout’s job in the diocese, as of now, is the moderator of the curia and vicar for administration. His role as a bishop will be to assist the archbishop in managing and helping to supervise the administrative work and care for the 580,000 members of the Washington Diocese.
Let us pray for this amazing new Bishop and for all the clergy that try to live a holy and and fruitful life to better serve us!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!!+JMJ+
It is with great joy and pride when I heard that on Nov 18th Pope Benedict XVI named Monsignor Barry Knestout, as an auxiliary bishop, for the 140 parishes in the Washington diocese, to be ordained a Bishop at St. Matthews Cathedral on Dec. 29th. This is the first Bishop ever from my town, as well as Prince Georges County. I can see Bishop John Carroll smile down from heaven as he sees the fruit from his call in June 1783, when a small group of priests met at the chapel, then called Whitemarsh, and now known as Sacred Heart Chapel right here up on the hill in Bowie, MD, were here to discuss how the Catholic Church in the new United States would be governed and its property managed. Carroll was then chosen to become the first bishop of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States and was sent to England to be consecrated a bishop on August 15, 1790. Who would of thought that my town would be so blessed with so many vocations to the priesthood as well as becoming a bombing community of wonderful people.
Now anyone who grew up in the 70’s around here had to encounter this amazing family!!! The late Deacon Mr. Knestout served as a deacon at St Pius X Catholic Church and his wife Carolyn raised nine great children. To know that our very own streets had kids playing in them like Monsignor Barry who attended St. Pius X elementary school and Bowie Senior High School before receiving a bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Maryland in December 1984. In 1985 he entered Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, MD to study for the priesthood and was ordained a priest in June 1989. He received the title Monsignor in 1999 by Pope John Paul II. In my teens I hung out with his brother Mark, the eighth of the nine and another great guy! It was so exciting when Mark joined his brother and was ordained a priest on May 23, 1998. I know my older brothers and sisters went to school with the older Knestout kids too. There is a special pride when the phones are ringing to announce that one of our own has been given this great honor. I love how the Archbishop of Washington Donald Wuerl called our new bishop, “a native son of this archdiocese. He was born, formed in the faith and educated here”.
Bishop-elect Knestouts most recent role in the Washington Diocese was in planning Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Washington this April. He was perfect for the job with his great organization and his degree in architecture from Univ of MD, helped him to oversee a contest for architecture students from Catholic University to design the furnishings for the Papal Mass. Bishop-elect Knestout’s job in the diocese, as of now, is the moderator of the curia and vicar for administration. His role as a bishop will be to assist the archbishop in managing and helping to supervise the administrative work and care for the 580,000 members of the Washington Diocese.
Let us pray for this amazing new Bishop and for all the clergy that try to live a holy and and fruitful life to better serve us!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!!+JMJ+
Meditation of the day...IMITATION OF CHRIST...
Learn to obey, you who are but dust! Learn to humble yourself, you who are but earth and clay, and bow down under the foot of every man! Learn to break your own will, to submit to all subjection! Be zealous against yourself! Allow no pride to dwell in you, but prove yourself so humble and lowly that all may walk over you and trample upon you as dust in the streets!
What have you, vain man, to complain of? What answer can you make, vile sinner, to those who accuse you, you who have so often offended God and so many times deserved hell? But My eye has spared you because your soul was precious in My sight, so that you might know My love and always be thankful for My benefits, so that you might give yourself continually to true subjection and humility, and might patiently endure contempt.
Who would of thought that the Imitation of Christ would speak so clearly to parents!!!
Hmmm...patiently endure contempt...not doing too well in this today. Lord help me prepare myself and my kids for your coming!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!!+JMJ+
What have you, vain man, to complain of? What answer can you make, vile sinner, to those who accuse you, you who have so often offended God and so many times deserved hell? But My eye has spared you because your soul was precious in My sight, so that you might know My love and always be thankful for My benefits, so that you might give yourself continually to true subjection and humility, and might patiently endure contempt.
Who would of thought that the Imitation of Christ would speak so clearly to parents!!!
Hmmm...patiently endure contempt...not doing too well in this today. Lord help me prepare myself and my kids for your coming!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!!+JMJ+
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
IMITATION OF CHRIST: Meditation of the day...
The Thirteenth Chapter
The Obedience of One Humbly Subject to the Example of Jesus Christ
The Voice of Christ
MY CHILD, he who attempts to escape obeying withdraws himself from grace. Likewise he who seeks private benefits for himself loses those which are common to all. He who does not submit himself freely and willingly to his superior, shows that his flesh is not yet perfectly obedient but that it often rebels and murmurs against him.
Learn quickly, then, to submit yourself to your superior if you wish to conquer your own flesh. For the exterior enemy is more quickly overcome if the inner man is not laid waste. There is no more troublesome, no worse enemy of the soul than you yourself, if you are not in harmony with the spirit. It is absolutely necessary that you conceive a true contempt for yourself if you wish to be victorious over flesh and blood.
Because you still love yourself too inordinately, you are afraid to resign yourself wholly to the will of others. Is it such a great matter if you, who are but dust and nothingness, subject yourself to man for the sake of God, when I, the All-Powerful, the Most High, Who created all things out of nothing, humbly subjected Myself to man for your sake? I became the most humble and the lowest of all men that you might overcome your pride with My humility.
Dear Lord help me to overcome my pride and remember it is not all about me!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!!+JMJ+
The Obedience of One Humbly Subject to the Example of Jesus Christ
The Voice of Christ
MY CHILD, he who attempts to escape obeying withdraws himself from grace. Likewise he who seeks private benefits for himself loses those which are common to all. He who does not submit himself freely and willingly to his superior, shows that his flesh is not yet perfectly obedient but that it often rebels and murmurs against him.
Learn quickly, then, to submit yourself to your superior if you wish to conquer your own flesh. For the exterior enemy is more quickly overcome if the inner man is not laid waste. There is no more troublesome, no worse enemy of the soul than you yourself, if you are not in harmony with the spirit. It is absolutely necessary that you conceive a true contempt for yourself if you wish to be victorious over flesh and blood.
Because you still love yourself too inordinately, you are afraid to resign yourself wholly to the will of others. Is it such a great matter if you, who are but dust and nothingness, subject yourself to man for the sake of God, when I, the All-Powerful, the Most High, Who created all things out of nothing, humbly subjected Myself to man for your sake? I became the most humble and the lowest of all men that you might overcome your pride with My humility.
Dear Lord help me to overcome my pride and remember it is not all about me!!!
THY WILL BE DONE!!!+JMJ+
Monday, December 1, 2008
Happy Birthday Cecilia!!!
To our dear feisty Cece!!! Oh how we love you and how you keep us on our toes!!! I know God has a special plan for you!!! Stay close to Jesus and keep him as your best friend!!! ENJOY BEING 3!!!
IMITATION OF CHRIST: Meditation of the day...
The Twelfth Chapter
Acquiring Patience in the Fight Against Concupiscence (part two)
Do you think that men of the world have no suffering, or perhaps but little? Ask even those who enjoy the most delights and you will learn otherwise. “But,” you will say, “they enjoy many pleasures and follow their own wishes; therefore they do not feel their troubles very much.” Granted that they do have whatever they wish, how long do you think it will last? Behold, they who prosper in the world shall perish as smoke, and there shall be no memory of their past joys. Even in this life they do not find rest in these pleasures without bitterness, weariness, and fear. For they often receive the penalty of sorrow from the very thing whence they believe their happiness comes. And it is just. Since they seek and follow after pleasures without reason, they should not enjoy them without shame and bitterness.
How brief, how false, how unreasonable and shameful all these pleasures are! Yet in their drunken blindness men do not understand this, but like brute beasts incur death of soul for the miserly enjoyment of a corruptible life.
Therefore, My child, do not pursue your lusts, but turn away from your own will. “Seek thy pleasure in the Lord and He will give thee thy heart’s desires.” Ps. 36:4. If you wish to be truly delighted and more abundantly comforted by Me, behold, in contempt of all worldly things and in the cutting off of all base pleasures shall your blessing be, and great consolation shall be given you. Further, the more you withdraw yourself from any solace of creatures, the sweeter and stronger comfort will you find in Me.
At first you will not gain these blessings without sadness and toil and conflict. (parenting!!!) Habit already formed will resist you, but it shall be overcome by a better habit.(Virtue) The flesh will murmur against you, but it will be bridled by fervor of spirit. The old serpent will sting and trouble you, but prayer will put him to flight and by steadfast, useful toil the way will be closed to him.
During this Advent let us work together to fight against those temtations that pull us away from the Lord and ask God to grant us an abundance of grace to obtain stronger virtues!!!
Acquiring Patience in the Fight Against Concupiscence (part two)
Do you think that men of the world have no suffering, or perhaps but little? Ask even those who enjoy the most delights and you will learn otherwise. “But,” you will say, “they enjoy many pleasures and follow their own wishes; therefore they do not feel their troubles very much.” Granted that they do have whatever they wish, how long do you think it will last? Behold, they who prosper in the world shall perish as smoke, and there shall be no memory of their past joys. Even in this life they do not find rest in these pleasures without bitterness, weariness, and fear. For they often receive the penalty of sorrow from the very thing whence they believe their happiness comes. And it is just. Since they seek and follow after pleasures without reason, they should not enjoy them without shame and bitterness.
How brief, how false, how unreasonable and shameful all these pleasures are! Yet in their drunken blindness men do not understand this, but like brute beasts incur death of soul for the miserly enjoyment of a corruptible life.
Therefore, My child, do not pursue your lusts, but turn away from your own will. “Seek thy pleasure in the Lord and He will give thee thy heart’s desires.” Ps. 36:4. If you wish to be truly delighted and more abundantly comforted by Me, behold, in contempt of all worldly things and in the cutting off of all base pleasures shall your blessing be, and great consolation shall be given you. Further, the more you withdraw yourself from any solace of creatures, the sweeter and stronger comfort will you find in Me.
At first you will not gain these blessings without sadness and toil and conflict. (parenting!!!) Habit already formed will resist you, but it shall be overcome by a better habit.(Virtue) The flesh will murmur against you, but it will be bridled by fervor of spirit. The old serpent will sting and trouble you, but prayer will put him to flight and by steadfast, useful toil the way will be closed to him.
During this Advent let us work together to fight against those temtations that pull us away from the Lord and ask God to grant us an abundance of grace to obtain stronger virtues!!!
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