Conversion

Conversion means turning from ourselves and what would lead us away from God and returning to Christ, a dynamic which the New Testament calls metanoia. Conversion involves the whole person in a lifelong, life-changing process that is inspired by the Holy Spirit. True conversion is marked by daily prayer and a commitment to Christ that guides our every thought, word and deed.
Conversion, however, is not simply individual reconciliation with God to the exclusion of our neighbor. “Conversion is incomplete if we are not aware of the demands of the Christian life and if we do not strive to meet them,” the pope [John Paul II] writes, citing 1 John 4:20: “He who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen.”
--Archbishop Wuerl

Love for life

What do "denying oneself" and "hating one's life" mean? These words, wrongly understood, have sometimes portrayed Christianity as a religion that humiliates man, whereas Jesus came so that man might have life and have it abundantly. The fact is that Christ, unlike the false teachers of the past and present, does not deceive. He knows the human creature in his depths and knows that, in order to attain life, he must go through a "passage", a "passover", from the slavery of sin to the freedom of God's children by renouncing the "old man" to make way for the new man, redeemed by Christ.

"He who loves his life loses it". These words do not express contempt for life but, on the contrary, authentic love for it: a love that does not want this fundamental good instantly and only for itself, but for all people and for all time, in sharp contrast with the mentality of the "world". In fact, it is by following Christ on the "narrow way" that we find life; those who choose the "broad" and comfortable way instead, exchange life for fleeting pleasures, disregarding their own dignity and that of others.

--Pope John Paul II, March 2001

Call to Holiness

To be holy is our vocation. To be holy corresponds to God’s will in creating us. To be holy corresponds to the truth of our nature. By calling us to conversion, Christ is telling us that there is another opportunity to turn to God, to divest ourselves of sin and to live according to the holiness of God.

—Justin Cardinal Rigali

Commemoration of St. Polycarp, bishop and martyr

For the cross destroyed the enmity of God towards man, brought about the reconciliation, made the earth Heaven, associated men with angels, pulled down the citadel of death, unstrung the force of the devil, extinguished the power of sin, delivered the world from error, brought back the truth, expelled the Demons, destroyed temples, overturned altars, suppressed the sacrificial offering, implanted virtue, rounded the Churches. The cross is the will of the Father, the glory of the Son, the rejoicing of the Spirit, the boast of Paul, "for," he says, "God forbid that I should boast save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ."
-St. John Chrysostom

Feast of the Chair of St. Peter

Jesus Christ, in beginning it, still spoke to many: "Go, preach; I send you." Now, when He would put the last hand to the mystery of unity, He speaks no longer to many: He marks out Peter personally, and by the new name which He has given him. It is One who speaks to one: Jesus Christ the Son of God to Simon son of Jonas; Jesus Christ, who is the true Stone, strong of Himself, to Simon, who is only the stone by the strength which Jesus Christ imparts to him. It is to him that Christ speaks, and in speaking acts on him, and stamps upon him His own immovableness. "And I," He says, "say to you, you are Peter; and upon this rock I will build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." To prepare him for that honor Jesus Christ, who knows that faith in Himself is the foundation of His Church, inspires Peter with a faith worthy to be the foundation of that admirable building. "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." By that bold preaching of the faith he draws to himself the inviolable promise which makes him the foundation of the Church.

It was, then, clearly the design of Jesus Christ to put first in one alone, what afterwards He meant to put in several; but the sequence does not reverse the beginning, nor the first lose his place. That first word, "Whatsoever you shall bind," said to one alone, has already ranged under his power each one of those to whom shall be said, "Whatsoever you shall remit"; for the promises of Jesus Christ, as well as His gift, are without repentance; and what is once given indefinitely and universally is irrevocable. Besides, that power given to several carries its restriction in its division, while power given to one alone, and over all, and without exception, carries with it plenitude, and, not having to be divided with any other, it has no bounds save those which its terms convey.
--The See of St. Peter, Jacques Bossuet

Ash Wednesday

"Your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Mt 6: 4, 6, 18)

Jesus' words are addressed to each one of us at the beginning of our Lenten journey. We begin it with the imposition of ashes, an austere penitential gesture very dear to Christian tradition. It emphasizes the awareness of sinners as they stand before the majesty and holiness of God. At the same time, it demonstrates readiness to accept and to transform into concrete choices adherence to the Gospel...

The Gospel emphasizes that the Lord "sees in secret", that is, he scrutinizes our hearts. The external gestures of penance are valuable if they are an expression of an inner attitude and demonstrate the firm determination to shun evil and to take the path of righteousness. This is the profound sense of Christian ascesis.

"Ascesis": the very word evokes the image of ascending to lofty heights. This necessarily entails sacrifices and renunciation. Indeed, to make the journey easier, one must be reduced to the bare essentials; to be prepared to face every hardship and overcome every obstacle in order to reach the pre-established goal. To become authentic disciples of Christ, it is necessary to deny oneself, take up one's cross and follow him. This is the arduous path to holiness that every baptized person is called to follow.

--Pope John Paul II, Ash Wednesday Homily, 2004

Girls' Night

All are invited to join us for a Girl's Night this Friday, February 23! We'll be going to the Fish Fry & Stations of the Cross at the Cathedral and hanging out afterwards. FMI email: sttheresesociety@gmail.com. Hope to see you there!

“Sister, God is preparing many special graces for you, but try to make your life as clear as crystal before the Lord, paying no attention to what anyone else thinks about you. Let God suffice you; He alone.”

—From the Diary of St. Maria Faustina

Purpose of Loneliness

Loneliness cannot be overcome by focusing on self, fretting over one’s own needs or catering to desires for power or pleasure. The prospect of happiness moves farther away if attention is fixed on oneself and one’s possessions.

The antidote to loneliness lies in stretching beyond our own little world and reaching out in faith to the living God. St. Augustine, after years of seeking comfort in all the wrong places, eventually discovered this truth and cried out to God, “You made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you." Indeed Augustine is right. No one but God can calm our restlessness. Nothing created can still the longings of the heart. To deal successfully with feelings of being isolated and all alone, we have to reach out to what is greater than our selves. We need to believe in God and to experience His love. This call extends to us all; it is hidden within our loneliness.

Psalm 73 captures this truth in dramatic fashion. In it, a man of faith who has tried to live a virtuous life faces a crisis of intense suffering. His faith is tested to the limit. Finally, he cries out to the Lord,“What else have I in heaven but you? Apart from you I want nothing on earth. My body and my heart faint for joy. God is my possession forever… To be near God is my happiness."

--Bishop Thomas Olmstead, September 2005

To love...

“The important thing is not to think much, but to love much and so do that which best stirs you to love. Love is not great delight, but desire to please God in everything."

--St. Therese of the Child Jesus

Seek ye first

Whereas material goods, the more they are sought for their own sake, tend to cause disunion among men, spiritual goods unite men more closely in proportion as they are more greatly loved. This principle helps us to appreciate how necessary is the interior life; and, incidentally, it virtually contains the solution of the social question and of the economic crisis which afflicts the world today. The Gospel puts it very simply: “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his justice, and all these things shall be added unto you. “ If the world today is on its death-bed, it is because it has lost sight of a fundamental truth which for every Christian is elementary.
--Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange

Memorial of Ss. Cyril & Methodius

The brothers Cyril and Methodius, born in Thessalonica, went as boys to Constantinople in order to study the humanities in the chief city of the East. The spark of genius already discerned in these young men soon became apparent. They both advanced quickly, especially Cyril, who became so distinguished in learning that he won for himself the title of "The Philosopher." Soon after this, Methodius undertook the monastic life. Under the influence of the Patriarch Ignatius, the Empress Theodora commissioned Cyril to teach the Christian faith to the Khazer tribes who dwelt beyond the Chersonese. These people had asked that suitable priests might be sent to them from Constantinople. Cyril accepted the mission willingly and departed for Tauric Chersonese so that, as some relate, he could study the language of the people. It was at this time that he had the good fortune to discover the remains of Pope Clement I. This courageous martyr was thrown into the sea by order of the Emperor Trajan and was afterwards buried with the anchor to which he had been fastened. The anchor, together with the ancient tradition, made it very easy to identify the remains. With this priceless treasure, Cyril went into the towns and homes of the Khazars. In a short time, after abolishing many superstitions, he won for Jesus Christ these people, who were taught by his word and moved by the spirit of God. To the new Christian community Cyril gave an example of self-control and charity by refusing all the gifts offered to him by the inhabitants, except the slaves whose liberty he restored to them when they embraced Christianity. He soon returned to Constantinople to enter the monastery of Polychronius, which Methodius had entered.

--Grande Munus (On Ss. Cyril And Methodius), Pope Leo XIII, Sept. 30, 1880

March Meeting

Date: Thursday, March 8

Time: 7:30 pm

Location: Archdiocese Vocations Office (map)

Topic: Lent

We will be joined by a couple Daughters of St. Paul who will lead us in a Lenten reflection. They will also share some information about their community. There will also time for Q & A with the sisters. Please join us!!
Questions? Email us at: sttheresesociety@gmail.com!

A vocation is the recognition that we are not on our own in this life. We come from God and we are on our way back to him. His plan for us is the surest way for our happiness and our salvation. So we listen for his call as Mary did. Ordinarily this call is heard through the inclination of our own gifts, our desires and the providential details of daily life. We are led through ordinary happenings and the stirrings of our hearts and minds.

To be attentive to this inner process one must pray, one must become a man or woman of prayer. In prayer we become sensitive to the movements of the Holy Spirit who leads us into the path God has marked out for us.

--Fr. Gabriel O’Donnell, OP

Imitation of Christ

“Following Christ is not an outward imitation, since it touches man at the very depths of his being. Being a follower of Christ means becoming conformed to him who became a servant even to giving himself on the Cross. Christ dwells by faith in the heart of the believer, and thus the disciple is conformed to the Lord. This is the effect of grace, of the active presence of the Holy Spirit in us.”
—Veritatis Splendor, 21

Use your tongue for the good of others, for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. We have to possess before we can give. Those who have the mission of giving to others must grow first in the knowledge of God.

--Blessed Mother Teresa

“Do not say: it is impossible for me to influence others. If you are a Christian, it is impossible for this not to happen. Things found in nature cannot be denied; so here, for it is a question of the nature of the Christian. Do not insult God. If you say that the sun cannot shine, you have insulted him. If you say that a Christina cannot help others, you have insulted God and called him a liar. It is easier for the sun not to give warmth or shine than for the Christina not to shed his light. It is easier for light to be darkness than for this to happen. Do not say then that it is impossible. The opposite is impossible…The light of a Christian cannot escape notice. So bright a lamp cannot be hidden.”
—St. John Chrysostom

God's Love

The Goodness of God means that God gives us what we need for our perfection, not what we want for our pleasure and sometimes for our destruction. As a sculptor, He sometimes applies the chisel to the marble of our imperfect selves and knocks off huge chunks of selfishness that His image may better stand revealed. Like a musician, whenever He finds the strings too loose on the violin of our personality, He tightens them even though it hurts, that we may better reveal our hidden harmonies.

As the Supreme Lover of our soul, He does care how we act and think and speak. What father does not want to be proud of his son? If the father speaks with authority now and then to his son, it is not because he is a dictator, but because he wants him to be a worthy son. Not even progressive parents, who deny discipline and restraint, are indifferent to the progress of their children. So long as there is love, there is necessarily a desire for the perfecting of the beloved.

That is precisely the way God's goodness manifests itself to us. God really loves us and, because He loves us, He is not disinterested. He no more wants you to be unhappy than your own parents want you to be unhappy. God made you not for His happiness, but for yours, and to ask God to be satisfied with most of us as we really are, is to ask that God cease to love.

--Archbishop Fulton Sheen

Memorial of St. Paul Miki & Companions

While hanging upon a cross Paul Miki preached to the people gathered for the execution: "The sentence of judgment says these men came to Japan from the Philippines, but I did not come from any other country. I am a true Japanese. The only reason for my being killed is that I have taught the doctrine of Christ. I certainly did teach the doctrine of Christ. I thank God it is for this reason I die. I believe that I am telling only the truth before I die. I know you believe me and I want to say to you all once again: Ask Christ to help you to become happy. I obey Christ. After Christ's example I forgive my persecutors. I do not hate them. I ask God to have pity on all, and I hope my blood will fall on my fellow men as a fruitful rain."

--Leonard Foley, O.F.M

On Meditation

Meditation is getting to know God with a growing intimacy. We do not simply listen to his word and read and study about him (good as these things are). We get to know a human beloved not by merely reading and studying but by being in the presence of and conversing with the person. Meditation is the early stage of a developing interpersonal intimacy.
Those in love long to spend time with their beloved. Meditation is time spent with the supreme Beloved. Even if right now you are not inclined to say you are in love with God, just act that way: Be faithful, simple, humble. If you do not feel much of anything, just say the words. Your will is with God, even if your feelings are not yet there. As you delve into Scripture, notice how biblical writers take it for granted that we are to be head over heels in love. This is logical: If a human beloved can be mightily attractive, how endlessly more beautiful is our triune God?
--Fr. Thomas Dubay

Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

Now let your servant go in peace; your word has been fulfilled:

My own eyes have seen the salvation which you have prepared in the sight of every people:

a light to reveal you to the nations and the glory of your people Israel.

~Lk. 2:29-32

The feast was first observed in the Eastern Church as "The Encounter". In the sixth century, it began to be observed in the West: in Rome with a more penitential character and in Gaul (France) with solemn blessings and processions of candles, popularly known as "Candlemas". The presentation of the Lord concludes the celebration of the Nativity and with the offerings of the Virgin Mother and the prophecy of Simeon, the events now point toward Easter.
--From Catholic Culture

Prayer in Honor of the Holy Family

O God, heavenly Father, it was part of Thine eternal decree that Thine only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, should form a holy family with Mary, His blessed mother, and His foster father, Saint Joseph. In Nazareth home life was sanctified, and a perfect example was given to every Christian family. Grant, we beseech Thee, that we may fully comprehend and faithfully imitate the virtues of the Holy Family so that we may be united with them one day in their heavenly glory. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen