We have all been Confirmed; but do we all know what we have received when the Holy Spirit Confirmed us in the Lord and in His Salvation?
Just as Baptism gives the new child of God the Gifts of Faith, Hope and Charity - all deep salvivic Gifts from the Holy Spirit -- so, too, does the Sacrament of Confirmation give us the Seven
Great Gifts from the Holy Spirit. These gifts are:
1) Sapientia: Wisdom:
2) Intellectus: Understanding:
3) Consilio: Counsel/Right Judgement:
4) Fortitudo: Fortitude/Courage:
5) Scientia: Knowlege:
6) Pietas: Reverence for God:
7) Timor Domini: Fear of the Lord:
Let us look at some examples:
1) Sapientia: Wisdom:
2) Intellectus: Understanding:
3) Consilio: Counsel/right Judgement:
4) Fortitudo: Fortitude/Courage:
5) Scientia: Knowlege:
6) Pietas: Reverence for God:
7) Timor Domini: Fear of the Lord:
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Pio's Proverb 170: Dove's Spring Find: a perfect friend.
What a sight this morning to see a rare dove in these parts. He/she was on my deck - memorized by finding another dove so perfect in resembling his/her own image. This beautiful and gentle dove was big..so plump...so mature and magestic.
We all wish to find such a friend, such a one who looks like and acts like and even walks like we do.
We would be so comfortable with this friend. Such is the case with this dove finding its perfect friend this morning at 8:30 am. I could see that this dove was very surprised and wondering.
You see, I have on my deck against my railing from the deck boards to almost 5 feet square a perfect mirror without edges...that is so placed...that even my neighbor thought I had company when he saw himself in this perfect mirror.
Well, miss or mr dove this morning also made the same mistake. If a human can make such a percepion, how much more so a little innocent dove who was just awed by such a perfect bird? This is not bird narcissim but rather with no realization that this is one's self; but rather to see the beauty in another that perfectly fits one's ideal and natural likeness.
But this is what really happens when God sees us! We are created in His own image and likeness. He loves Himself in what He sees in us: eternal beauty and goodness and love.
Peace and Love, Pio Happy Spring! What other surprises does God have for us today!!
.
We all wish to find such a friend, such a one who looks like and acts like and even walks like we do.
We would be so comfortable with this friend. Such is the case with this dove finding its perfect friend this morning at 8:30 am. I could see that this dove was very surprised and wondering.
You see, I have on my deck against my railing from the deck boards to almost 5 feet square a perfect mirror without edges...that is so placed...that even my neighbor thought I had company when he saw himself in this perfect mirror.
Well, miss or mr dove this morning also made the same mistake. If a human can make such a percepion, how much more so a little innocent dove who was just awed by such a perfect bird? This is not bird narcissim but rather with no realization that this is one's self; but rather to see the beauty in another that perfectly fits one's ideal and natural likeness.
But this is what really happens when God sees us! We are created in His own image and likeness. He loves Himself in what He sees in us: eternal beauty and goodness and love.
Peace and Love, Pio Happy Spring! What other surprises does God have for us today!!
.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Pio's Proverb 169: "Seven Favorite Tools of St. Joseph."
Today is March 19, 20012, the Feast of the Solemnity of St. Joseph! This is a big day for the Church because this saint - after Our Lady - is considered the greatest saint in Heaven. Scripture does not record even one word he ever uttered. How did he become such a great saint?!
He became a great saint by using these -- his seven favorite tools in his tool box -- which are his seven powerful virtues -- that has caused him to be declared Patron and Protector of the Universal Church:
1) St. Joseph is "Protective" of Mary and Jesus in her womb.
2) Joseph is "Chaste" which gives him the power and freedom to be gentle, loving and protective of Holy Family.
3) St. Joseph is "Faithful" to God and to Mary, his wife.
4) St. Joseph is "Obedient" to God by immediately and unhesitatingly heeding the messages of the angel to take Mary into his home as his wife and to flee to Egypt and to stay there until the angel told him to come home to Nazareth.
5) St. Joseph is "Silent" -- does not have one word recorded in the New Testament because he was a contemplative: he worked and did all silently so as to hear God. All great things happen in silence...the sun comes up silently...the clouds sail by us silently...babies are conceived silently. Saints -- like St. Joseph -- ere made silently.
6) St. Joseph is a "Worker" -- a "texton" construction worker in wood and stone... and does all for God and his family. He a homebody worker."
7) St. Joseph is a just man of faith: Like Abraham, Joseph is a "father of faith" for his family. He shows us -- his family of God -- how to have and act on faith. He is a doer...not a talker...not a man of leisure. He is a manly man of faith who loves God and gives all of his life to God by respecting Mary's vocation to be the Virgin Mother of God. By respecting and helping her to fulfill her vocation, he finds and fulfills he own: he is declared Patron of the Universal Church and of a holy death because when he was dying, he had the joy of Jesus and Mary at his side...and before his eyes. No one could have a happier death.
St. Joseph is great saint because of all of the above seven tools in his tool box.
Let us honor St. Joseph with these prayers:
"Hail Joseph, full of the Family of God, the Lord is with you in your arms. Blest are you among me, and blessed is your foster son, Jesus. Holy Joseph, foster father of Jesus, husband of Mary, pray for us now and at the hour of our death. Amen."
Love and thanks to you, Dear St. Joseph!! Please pray of us and bring us safely home to heaven. Please protect us now..and always! Amen.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Ancient prayer found written in the year 50 AD:
"O St. Joseph, whose protection is so strong, so prompt before the throne of God, I place in you all my hopes and desires.
Please obtain from me every grace and blessing.
I never weary of contemplating you and Jesus in your arms.
Press Jesus in my name and kiss His fine head for me. And ask Him to return my kiss when I take my last breath. Amen."
[Those who say this prayer -- over even just hear it -- will be protected from death by drowning, fire or poison.]
HAPPY FEAST DAY, ST. JOSEPH!!!
Let us be grateful to God for this our greatest manly Saint who shows us how to be a good family man, a good husband, a good worker, and a good chaste man by his showing us men how to protect women and never to be a preditor of women...but to honor and protect and love all women as we honor and protect and love our own mothers and sisters. Amen.
Peace and Love, Pio
He became a great saint by using these -- his seven favorite tools in his tool box -- which are his seven powerful virtues -- that has caused him to be declared Patron and Protector of the Universal Church:
1) St. Joseph is "Protective" of Mary and Jesus in her womb.
2) Joseph is "Chaste" which gives him the power and freedom to be gentle, loving and protective of Holy Family.
3) St. Joseph is "Faithful" to God and to Mary, his wife.
4) St. Joseph is "Obedient" to God by immediately and unhesitatingly heeding the messages of the angel to take Mary into his home as his wife and to flee to Egypt and to stay there until the angel told him to come home to Nazareth.
5) St. Joseph is "Silent" -- does not have one word recorded in the New Testament because he was a contemplative: he worked and did all silently so as to hear God. All great things happen in silence...the sun comes up silently...the clouds sail by us silently...babies are conceived silently. Saints -- like St. Joseph -- ere made silently.
6) St. Joseph is a "Worker" -- a "texton" construction worker in wood and stone... and does all for God and his family. He a homebody worker."
7) St. Joseph is a just man of faith: Like Abraham, Joseph is a "father of faith" for his family. He shows us -- his family of God -- how to have and act on faith. He is a doer...not a talker...not a man of leisure. He is a manly man of faith who loves God and gives all of his life to God by respecting Mary's vocation to be the Virgin Mother of God. By respecting and helping her to fulfill her vocation, he finds and fulfills he own: he is declared Patron of the Universal Church and of a holy death because when he was dying, he had the joy of Jesus and Mary at his side...and before his eyes. No one could have a happier death.
St. Joseph is great saint because of all of the above seven tools in his tool box.
Let us honor St. Joseph with these prayers:
"Hail Joseph, full of the Family of God, the Lord is with you in your arms. Blest are you among me, and blessed is your foster son, Jesus. Holy Joseph, foster father of Jesus, husband of Mary, pray for us now and at the hour of our death. Amen."
Love and thanks to you, Dear St. Joseph!! Please pray of us and bring us safely home to heaven. Please protect us now..and always! Amen.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Ancient prayer found written in the year 50 AD:
"O St. Joseph, whose protection is so strong, so prompt before the throne of God, I place in you all my hopes and desires.
Please obtain from me every grace and blessing.
I never weary of contemplating you and Jesus in your arms.
Press Jesus in my name and kiss His fine head for me. And ask Him to return my kiss when I take my last breath. Amen."
[Those who say this prayer -- over even just hear it -- will be protected from death by drowning, fire or poison.]
HAPPY FEAST DAY, ST. JOSEPH!!!
Let us be grateful to God for this our greatest manly Saint who shows us how to be a good family man, a good husband, a good worker, and a good chaste man by his showing us men how to protect women and never to be a preditor of women...but to honor and protect and love all women as we honor and protect and love our own mothers and sisters. Amen.
Peace and Love, Pio
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Pio's Proverb 168: Mario Lanza quote: "to be a Transmitter of Beauty!"
In a rare interview between Mario Lanza with wife, Betty, hosted by Fr. Keller of the Christophers back in 1955, Mario told Fr. Keller that he was an altar boy in a church that was only about 75 yards from his home. During those quiet times in front of the Blessed Sacrament, Mario saw a vision of his whole singing career from beginning to finish. Mario was only nine year old.
Mario was born Alfred Arnold Cocozza in Philadephia, Pennsylvania, on January 31, 1921. He died at the young age of 38 October 7, 1959 due to a heart attack that was brought about as a result of his use of barbituates to help him to lose weight. His wife, Betty, who was born in 1922, died just 5 months later of a broken heart in 1960. She also died at the young age of 38. They were buried in a wall crypt side by side and were survived by their four children...one of whom died in 2008.
During Mario's interview with Fr. Keller, Mario made these wonderful statements:
1) "I was given this singing voice as a gift to give to the public. God gave me this gift to give be a Transmitter of Beauty to the world. This gift is not for me but placed into my keeping for others."
2) "We all are to be transmitters of beauty in the world."
3) "God showed me at the tender age of nine my whole career as a singer...from beginning to end."
4) "We all have a call from God to do something special with our lives."
5) "I love my wife, Betty. She is such a joy and beauty in my life."
6) "I met Betty from my army buddy (Bert Hicks) who showed me her picture and said, 'Isn't she beautiful?' After saying 'Yes', he told me later that she was his sister!"
Mario took his name from his mother's maiden name: "Maria Lanza".
Lesson learned by the Great Mario Lanza for our lives. God gives us gifts and lets us use them for His glory and our livelihood. But God does allow us to make mistakes. Mario who lost the role of the Student Prince because of his weight problem but did do all the singing in the movie, still -- in order to lose weight -- took the way that was dangerous. How dangerous he knew it to be only God knows. But his early death took not only his own life but the life of his wife, Betty, as well.
We learn from all of this that "fame and fortune" are not worth giving your life for...and surely not taking the life of another for. Look at all the famous people of history who have done just that: The Alexanders, the Napoleons, the Wallaces, even the Davids. All these spent their lives in seeking glory. And they all took many lives with them. Mario only took his and his wife's. He did not mean to do so. He was a good Cathoic man, faithful husband and good father; but still "fame and fortune" was his downfall. Let is not be ours.
Eternal rest be on Mario and his wife, Betty's soul, O Lord. Let Your eternal light shine upon them forever. May Mario's most beautiful singing of Shubert's "Ave Maria" be heard and replayed in heaven and echo down the halls of eternity -- as the most beautiful singing of that aria to Mary in the history of music. Amen.
Peace and love, Pio
Mario was born Alfred Arnold Cocozza in Philadephia, Pennsylvania, on January 31, 1921. He died at the young age of 38 October 7, 1959 due to a heart attack that was brought about as a result of his use of barbituates to help him to lose weight. His wife, Betty, who was born in 1922, died just 5 months later of a broken heart in 1960. She also died at the young age of 38. They were buried in a wall crypt side by side and were survived by their four children...one of whom died in 2008.
During Mario's interview with Fr. Keller, Mario made these wonderful statements:
1) "I was given this singing voice as a gift to give to the public. God gave me this gift to give be a Transmitter of Beauty to the world. This gift is not for me but placed into my keeping for others."
2) "We all are to be transmitters of beauty in the world."
3) "God showed me at the tender age of nine my whole career as a singer...from beginning to end."
4) "We all have a call from God to do something special with our lives."
5) "I love my wife, Betty. She is such a joy and beauty in my life."
6) "I met Betty from my army buddy (Bert Hicks) who showed me her picture and said, 'Isn't she beautiful?' After saying 'Yes', he told me later that she was his sister!"
Mario took his name from his mother's maiden name: "Maria Lanza".
Lesson learned by the Great Mario Lanza for our lives. God gives us gifts and lets us use them for His glory and our livelihood. But God does allow us to make mistakes. Mario who lost the role of the Student Prince because of his weight problem but did do all the singing in the movie, still -- in order to lose weight -- took the way that was dangerous. How dangerous he knew it to be only God knows. But his early death took not only his own life but the life of his wife, Betty, as well.
We learn from all of this that "fame and fortune" are not worth giving your life for...and surely not taking the life of another for. Look at all the famous people of history who have done just that: The Alexanders, the Napoleons, the Wallaces, even the Davids. All these spent their lives in seeking glory. And they all took many lives with them. Mario only took his and his wife's. He did not mean to do so. He was a good Cathoic man, faithful husband and good father; but still "fame and fortune" was his downfall. Let is not be ours.
Eternal rest be on Mario and his wife, Betty's soul, O Lord. Let Your eternal light shine upon them forever. May Mario's most beautiful singing of Shubert's "Ave Maria" be heard and replayed in heaven and echo down the halls of eternity -- as the most beautiful singing of that aria to Mary in the history of music. Amen.
Peace and love, Pio
Pio's Proverb 167: We OWE $17,929,824,000: Can ANYONE pay it?
In today's gospel, we see Jesus telling a story of a servant who owed his master "10,000 talents." Jesus -- without doing the exact math -- calls this "a huge amount." Let is see how really "huge" this amount is. Just one "talent" is those days was worth of 66 lbs of gold.
Let us fast-forward to our day: In today's gold market value, gold is going between $1697.90 to $1766.11 per ounce. If there are 16 ounces in a pound, then one pound of gold is worth in today's market $27,166.40. Additionally, if there are 66 lbs in one talent, then one talent is worth today $1,792,982.40. Therefore, "10,000 talents" would be worth exactly: $17,929,824,000.00
Jesus is saying a lot in this parable. Here are a few points He seems to want to make:
1) We all owe a huge amount to God in atonement for our sins. This is so because when a sin is commited against someone, the amount of the greatness of that very offense depends on "against Whom" we have sinned against. Example: If there is a pub-room brall and you punch someone in the face, you may get arrested and spend two days in jail. But if you merely bump into the President of the US with intentions to do him harm, you get two years in jail. Why...because harming the President is a Federal Offense contingent on the importance of the person of the President to National Security. Likewise, if some American citizen were to go infront of the Iman of Pakinstan and burn the Koran in front of him, that American's citizen's apology would do little to make up for the offense. Rather, it would have to be our President who would send his apology to make up for that insulting action of an American citizen did against the Iman. So, too, our offense against God -- even little sins -- are "infinite and eternal acts against God" because God is an Infinite and Eternal Being. So, who can opologize to God for our infinite offenses? Only a God-man can apologize and atone for our sins. Only God is on the level of God. That is exacty what Jesus did! That is why Jesus said that our sins was owing God "a huge" amount. In Confession, Jesus forgives all our debt just as the Master forgave the servant our of compassion. But we must forgive others to receive this forgiveness.
2) Our sins will not be forgiven unless we forgive our fellow servants who have offended us. Jesus says this in this parable and in the Our Father. Did you notice that Jesus -- in this case of the servant whose "huge" amount was forgiven entirely because he could not pay just as none of us can pay our huge deb to God -- that this servant's "huge debt" was re-instated when the Master found out that this servant did NOT forgive the small amount owed to him from a fellow servant. This is scary...because even when we have been forgiven of all our sins...if we do not forgive those who have hurt us, then the punishment -- atonement of our sins -- will be re-instated too. "Once forgiven - always forgiven" is the misnomer just as the false maxim that says: "Once saved, always saved." Clearly Scripture has said that "if a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, then all the good he has done will not be remembered; and because of his sin, he will die." Of course if he turns again to God, then all his past merits for his good deeds done will also return to him. But understand this: no one will be forgiven unless he forgives his brothers and sisters from the heart.
3) Jesus on the cross has nailed our debts to the cross and erased them all. His Precious Blood has was us all clean. Jesus paid our debt of $17,929,824,000! Not only that..but like the good thief on the cross who repented...Jesus used all the sufferings and the sins of the good thief to let him steal heaven at the last minute. Jesus always has to use all confessed sins to our creative good. St. Paul said that: "Where sin abounds, grace abounds more."
4) God is the most creative Being in the cosmos and beyond. He is so Infinite that He can our infinite offenses against Him to our good. Why? Because: "All things work to good for those who love God."
5) We -- after Christ agony and death on the Cross to reconcile us to the Father -- are called to by the Father as He addresses Jesus and address Jesus in us...and addresses us: "This is my beloved son..in whom I am well pleased."
6) Since we owe God $17 Billion+ and cannot pay it unless He pays it for us, then we should forgive the pennies people owe us..those who hurt us..We must forgive them..because compared to our offense against God who did forgive us, these petty little hurts against us must be forgiven and dismissed..They man in the parable did not do that..and got his original debt of $ 17 Billion re-instated...hmmmm....there is a lesson here...
Peace and love, Pio
Let us fast-forward to our day: In today's gold market value, gold is going between $1697.90 to $1766.11 per ounce. If there are 16 ounces in a pound, then one pound of gold is worth in today's market $27,166.40. Additionally, if there are 66 lbs in one talent, then one talent is worth today $1,792,982.40. Therefore, "10,000 talents" would be worth exactly: $17,929,824,000.00
Jesus is saying a lot in this parable. Here are a few points He seems to want to make:
1) We all owe a huge amount to God in atonement for our sins. This is so because when a sin is commited against someone, the amount of the greatness of that very offense depends on "against Whom" we have sinned against. Example: If there is a pub-room brall and you punch someone in the face, you may get arrested and spend two days in jail. But if you merely bump into the President of the US with intentions to do him harm, you get two years in jail. Why...because harming the President is a Federal Offense contingent on the importance of the person of the President to National Security. Likewise, if some American citizen were to go infront of the Iman of Pakinstan and burn the Koran in front of him, that American's citizen's apology would do little to make up for the offense. Rather, it would have to be our President who would send his apology to make up for that insulting action of an American citizen did against the Iman. So, too, our offense against God -- even little sins -- are "infinite and eternal acts against God" because God is an Infinite and Eternal Being. So, who can opologize to God for our infinite offenses? Only a God-man can apologize and atone for our sins. Only God is on the level of God. That is exacty what Jesus did! That is why Jesus said that our sins was owing God "a huge" amount. In Confession, Jesus forgives all our debt just as the Master forgave the servant our of compassion. But we must forgive others to receive this forgiveness.
2) Our sins will not be forgiven unless we forgive our fellow servants who have offended us. Jesus says this in this parable and in the Our Father. Did you notice that Jesus -- in this case of the servant whose "huge" amount was forgiven entirely because he could not pay just as none of us can pay our huge deb to God -- that this servant's "huge debt" was re-instated when the Master found out that this servant did NOT forgive the small amount owed to him from a fellow servant. This is scary...because even when we have been forgiven of all our sins...if we do not forgive those who have hurt us, then the punishment -- atonement of our sins -- will be re-instated too. "Once forgiven - always forgiven" is the misnomer just as the false maxim that says: "Once saved, always saved." Clearly Scripture has said that "if a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, then all the good he has done will not be remembered; and because of his sin, he will die." Of course if he turns again to God, then all his past merits for his good deeds done will also return to him. But understand this: no one will be forgiven unless he forgives his brothers and sisters from the heart.
3) Jesus on the cross has nailed our debts to the cross and erased them all. His Precious Blood has was us all clean. Jesus paid our debt of $17,929,824,000! Not only that..but like the good thief on the cross who repented...Jesus used all the sufferings and the sins of the good thief to let him steal heaven at the last minute. Jesus always has to use all confessed sins to our creative good. St. Paul said that: "Where sin abounds, grace abounds more."
4) God is the most creative Being in the cosmos and beyond. He is so Infinite that He can our infinite offenses against Him to our good. Why? Because: "All things work to good for those who love God."
5) We -- after Christ agony and death on the Cross to reconcile us to the Father -- are called to by the Father as He addresses Jesus and address Jesus in us...and addresses us: "This is my beloved son..in whom I am well pleased."
6) Since we owe God $17 Billion+ and cannot pay it unless He pays it for us, then we should forgive the pennies people owe us..those who hurt us..We must forgive them..because compared to our offense against God who did forgive us, these petty little hurts against us must be forgiven and dismissed..They man in the parable did not do that..and got his original debt of $ 17 Billion re-instated...hmmmm....there is a lesson here...
Peace and love, Pio
Saturday, March 10, 2012
Pio's Proverb 166: "The NON-PRODIGAL SON: is he in all of us?"
Before Jesus told His most magnificent and perfect story of all literature called "The "Prodigal Son" (Today's Mass reading in Luke: 15: 11-32), no one ever knew who God the Father really was. This story revealed God as a loving, forgiving Father more than any book of the Old Testament had ever revealed - even more fully than Jonah encountered in the Lord's treatment and compassion for the people of Neneveh. Actually, this Prodigal Son story revealed the Father that no literature has ever revealed before or after Christ composed this story. I beleve that no story in the Christian future will reveal the Father's love better because Jesus told this story for ALL future generations. Please know that by the talent given to me by God, I am a painter and have done a portrait of Jesus on the wall of St. Timothy's that is 23 feet by 20 feet. Jesus' eyes are the kindest and most merciful and most loving of any portrait I have ever seen done of Jesus. But this Prodigal Son Story is JESUS' MOST PERFECT PORTRAIT OF HIS FATHER EVER COMPOSED OR PAINTED ON THE MINDS AND SOULS OF MEN! Here is why:
1) No one ever had heard this story before which was the "Revelation of Revelations" because no one ever dreamed before that God the Father would be looking down the road each day to see if His son (or daughter - all of us) were coming up the road ...coming home..or not...which reveals that the Father does the same right now..looking for us to come home when we have parted from him..have been away...in sin. God understands that "sin" is fundamentally our looking for happiness apart from Him. This is what happened to Lucifer and to Adam and Eve...and happens to all of us in varying degrees.
2) No one ever knew that the Father was so "respectful of the free will" of his "prodigal son" as to have let him go in the first place to use his talents and His Dad's resources to find happiness in "a far off country" [the true translation of the Hebrew words of Jesus for "far off country" is "the big emptiness."] away from the Father...to find happiness apart from the Father eventhough the Father knew his son would never find happiness apart from Him. The Father knew that if we look for happiness in the wrong places, we will not find it..and eventually, hopefully "come home." (But some of us do not come home to God and continue to live a life of unhappiness, which happened to Judas and Hitler. But we do not know yet how the Father's mercy has touched even them.) This story was meant by Jesus to invite ALL of us to not be afraid to "come home" to the open arms of our His and our Father.
3) No one ever heard that the Father would totally pardon such a prodigal sinner without a scolding or punishment as we see evidenced when our imagination sees the Father RUNNING to meet and embrace and kiss His son ....who had been lumbering up the road....as he rehearsed his act of contrition: "Father, I have sinned against heaven and earth. I do not deserved to be your son. Make me as one of your hired hands..." But the boy could hardly get these words out before the Father put a new robe and ring on his finger..and sandals on his feet and gave him a great and wonderful celebration. The Father pulled out all stops to have a "feasts of feasts!" because "My son was lost and now is found...was dead and has now come back to life."
BUT the elder "good son" who stayed home and never went off to spend his Dad's money on loose women - when he heard the singing and dancing and merriment asked one of the servants what was going on. "The servant answered, 'Your brother is home, and your father has killed the fatted calf because he has him back in good health.'"
"The (elder) son grew angry at this and would not go in; but his father came out and began to plead with him. He said to his father in reply: 'For years now I have slaved for you. I never disobeyed one of your orders, yet you never gave me so much as a kid goat to celebrate with my friends. Then, when this son of yours returns after having gone through your property with loose women, you kill the fatted calf for him.' ...'My son,' replied the father, 'you are with me always, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice! This brother of yours was dead, and has come back to life. He was lost, and is found.'" What is so wonderful about the Father's compassionate response to his uncompassionate elder son is this: The Father acts much like Jesus on the Cross: "Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing." This compassion that Jesus has for those who are killing Him is so much the Father's love and compassion for His elder son who does NOT have any compassion on his younger brother. The elder son says, "this son of yours" whereas the Father says, "this brother of yours." So, eventhough the elder son had no compassion on his younger son, the Father still had compassion for the elder son's who was so short sighted and selfish.
The sin of the non-prodigal son was greater than the prodigal son's sins because the elder son totally was so self-focused as to not see the GOOD in his brother's return home from a sinful life. The servants saw the good. The prodigal son saw the good. The Father saw the good. But the elder did not see ANY good in the prodigal son's return. That total lack of empathy and compassion was due to two things: a lack of real intimacy with the Father and the total lack of intimcy with his brother. Why is that? Love is all about other-centerness not self-centerness. Self absorbtion cause the soul to be isolated and uncompassionate. Let us not be like this. The elder son's sin was deliberate and chosen. The prodigal son's sins were predicated on human weakness and delusion of what happiness was. But the prodigal son came to his senses..and started for hom. The elder son was home and did not start to love his Father.
What is amazing in this story is the Father's RUNNING to meet, embrace and kiss his returning prodig-centerness. al son and this last above scene of deep love and sincerity shown by the Father as He explains to the good elder son that we must rejoice and celebrate the return of our brothers and sisters who come home to God the Father. Before this story told by Jesus in just 21 lines of holy, inspired Scripture, no one ever imagined the Father to be so personal, so affectionate, so totally forgiving and pardoning. This story is the greatest story ever told in the New Testament and in all of literature. The greatest story told in the Old Testament is the true story of a real historical person: the story of Job who also seemed as dead and came back to life again. The Story of Job and the Story of Joseph of Egypt and the Prodigal Son are all types of pre-figuring Christ who would be dead and come back to life again. Job in the end celebrated his new life with abundant rejoicing and blessings from God who more than doubled all Job had lost. Job's fidelity to God like Jesus' fidelity in great trial and sufferng merited him to come into the Kingdom of God's blessing and love. Joseph was presumed dead by his father, Isaac, but turned out to be very much alive and actually saved all of Israel from famine by giving them the grain (bread of life) and by forgiving all his brothers. Now in this prodigal son story, the prodigal son is a sinner..which sins Jesus takes on and reconciles everyone in His very own Person back to the Father by dying in the place of everyone. Eating the forbidden fruit brought death into the world; but Jesus' death brought life into the world. This prodigal son was thought to be dead but has now come back to life again - pre-figuring Jesus death and coming back to life again. The great celebration for the prodigal son's homecoming is a pre-figurment of Christ's bringing all of us to the great Reconciliation and Eucharist in Confession and the Mass. Christ can even be seen in the slain "fatted calf" to feed all the guests. Jesus gives His own Body and Blood for us. The merriment and wine and singing and dancing are all pre-figuring the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass - the greatest celebration that can take place on this earth because it really is the same Holy Sacrifice of the Body and Blood on the cross at Calvary re-presented and re-offered to the Father for us. The Mass actually make us mystically present on the Hill of Calvary with Jesus...who is not bound by space and time. Jesus presented all of us on the Cross and now we re-present Him to the Father in every Mass. Jesus is not re-crucified. His one sacrifice on the Cross is re-presented now to the Father as atonement for our daily sins. This is the greatest reconciliation and joyful celebration that can ever take place on this earth..and all Heavenly Hosts - angels and saints - attend each Mass here on earth.
In conclusion: Then what about the "Non-Prodigal good son" who stayed at home?
Is not Jesus also telling this story about this "good son" as well: this "Non-Prodigal" good son who stays home with his Father...but is not really happy...does his job only out of duty without any delight or joy? This son finds working for his Dad to be a "real chore." In fact, he uses these words to describe his job functions: "All these years I have slaved for you." Working out of duty is not the same as working out of love. "Ubi est amor, non est labor." "Where there is love, there is no labor."
Now we have all met people like this son. For example, I often go to our Post Office here in New Baltimore. There Donna and Beverly..are always joyful, helpful, accommodating, always going the extra mile for me. They even put stamps on my letters for me..do all the math in my purchases, give me suggestions...all with love and smiles! But there is one other woman/clerk: She only smiled once since I have been here these 14 years. She never does more than she has to ....gives me stamps but never would dream of putting them on my envelopes...never go the extra mile..does not enjoy her job..does not enjoy helping people or serving people. She just is "slaving" over her work. How sad that is. God does not want us to "slave" over anything; He wants us to enjoy work.
Adam and Eve were told to tend the garden way before they fell into sin. Work is not a punishment; it is a creative joy. So, they did tend the garden with joy...they worked creatively and happily....to bring about more Beauty in the garden than even the Father put there. God the Father -- in His Wisdom and Plan --purposely left room in His garden world for improvement! He is still doing that in our world today. That is what we are ALL called to do.
We are all called to make this world more beautiful by our music, by our work, by our writing, by our mothering and fathering, by our praying and minstering to others, by our cooking, by our gardening, by our caring for an loving others, by our art, by our loving dialogue with people of other faiths, and by our political courage to stand up for life and all that is right in the world.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Epilogue:
PRE-FIGUREMENTS in the Old and New Testaments seens to be the natural and supernatural way that God the Father works and prepares the world for Jesus' coming starting form Abraham onward...So, therefore, this Prodigal Son story is also Jesus' way of pre-figuring the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Just as when Jesus fed the 4,000 and 5,000 people with the multiplication of fish and bread -- just as He did in changing water into to wine to show He could also change wine into His own precious blood --so, too, here in this Prodigal Son story, Jesus is preparing all those down the centuries to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation joyfully and lovingly and with total abandonment into the arms of His Father and into His merciful Sacred Heart. Jesus's defense of His Prodigal Daughter - the woman caught in adultery - and loving embrace of her dignity as a woman shows all of us how He would be as our "Priest" in confession: "I do not condemn you either...from now on avoid this sin." Jesus was telling her to not leave home again..to return home totally frogiven and exonerated. Jesus did not even let her confess to Him...He -- like His Father -- forgave before a full confession could be made. Jesus IS the "Prodigal Father" for all of us in Confession. All priests must have this very same mind and heart of Christ in administering the Sacrament of Confession: non-condemning or jugmental, merciful, loving and encouraging and even joyfully celebrative! Jesus did call sin a sin; He did not minimize sin; but He did show great crative love in response to sin. He -- after Peter had denied Him three times -- gave Peter a very creative penance: Peter was asked to make three public confessions of his Love for Jesus to re-establish his relationship to Jesus in such a way that now the new relationship was closer than even before Peter fell into his sins of denial.
Thus once we confess to God, then God has to use those very sins creativley to make us holier! "Where sin abounds, grace abounds more." Now that is incredible creativity on God's part. Peter and Jesus were never as close as they were after this encounter with the Resurrected Jesus. Notice that Jesus did not say to Peter: "I told you so, Peter, that you would deny me three times and you did!" No! Jesus already had heard the confession of Peter and had seen his tears. Jesus was now just interested in repairing the damage. And Jesus being such a "texton" (construction worker), made something more lovely and beautiful and seaworthy out of Peter's shipwreck.. and made Peter's "ship" more beautiful that it was before it crashed on the rocks.
Jesus is a very creative lover!
In final conclusion, Jesus' Portrait of His Father in the Prodigal Son Story a picture of the Father's Love as Infinite, Compassionate and as "never running out". The Father says to His elder son and to us: "All that I have is yours" and "you are with Me always.." The Father never runs out of mercy, never runs out of love, never runs out of grace for us..because ALL is a grace from Him..."Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from the Father of Lights.."
Besides loving us and wanting us -- His children -- to share in His Divine life by/in His Spirit through Christ in us...for our perfect happiness for all eternity, still why does He do ALL this so generously for us?
The answer is simple: He does this to bring to fulfillment His very image and likeness is us..because "Gloria Dei homo vivens!" -- "The Glory of God is a man fully alive!"
Father, Please do this all for us each day...and each hour...and each moment...till we are safe and secure in Your arms forever. Father, "with You we shall always be!"
Gratitude and Love to love to You, Father, now and forever and ever..Amen..in Jesus' Name through Mary, Queen of All Creation.
Peace and Love, Pio
1) No one ever had heard this story before which was the "Revelation of Revelations" because no one ever dreamed before that God the Father would be looking down the road each day to see if His son (or daughter - all of us) were coming up the road ...coming home..or not...which reveals that the Father does the same right now..looking for us to come home when we have parted from him..have been away...in sin. God understands that "sin" is fundamentally our looking for happiness apart from Him. This is what happened to Lucifer and to Adam and Eve...and happens to all of us in varying degrees.
2) No one ever knew that the Father was so "respectful of the free will" of his "prodigal son" as to have let him go in the first place to use his talents and His Dad's resources to find happiness in "a far off country" [the true translation of the Hebrew words of Jesus for "far off country" is "the big emptiness."] away from the Father...to find happiness apart from the Father eventhough the Father knew his son would never find happiness apart from Him. The Father knew that if we look for happiness in the wrong places, we will not find it..and eventually, hopefully "come home." (But some of us do not come home to God and continue to live a life of unhappiness, which happened to Judas and Hitler. But we do not know yet how the Father's mercy has touched even them.) This story was meant by Jesus to invite ALL of us to not be afraid to "come home" to the open arms of our His and our Father.
3) No one ever heard that the Father would totally pardon such a prodigal sinner without a scolding or punishment as we see evidenced when our imagination sees the Father RUNNING to meet and embrace and kiss His son ....who had been lumbering up the road....as he rehearsed his act of contrition: "Father, I have sinned against heaven and earth. I do not deserved to be your son. Make me as one of your hired hands..." But the boy could hardly get these words out before the Father put a new robe and ring on his finger..and sandals on his feet and gave him a great and wonderful celebration. The Father pulled out all stops to have a "feasts of feasts!" because "My son was lost and now is found...was dead and has now come back to life."
BUT the elder "good son" who stayed home and never went off to spend his Dad's money on loose women - when he heard the singing and dancing and merriment asked one of the servants what was going on. "The servant answered, 'Your brother is home, and your father has killed the fatted calf because he has him back in good health.'"
"The (elder) son grew angry at this and would not go in; but his father came out and began to plead with him. He said to his father in reply: 'For years now I have slaved for you. I never disobeyed one of your orders, yet you never gave me so much as a kid goat to celebrate with my friends. Then, when this son of yours returns after having gone through your property with loose women, you kill the fatted calf for him.' ...'My son,' replied the father, 'you are with me always, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice! This brother of yours was dead, and has come back to life. He was lost, and is found.'" What is so wonderful about the Father's compassionate response to his uncompassionate elder son is this: The Father acts much like Jesus on the Cross: "Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing." This compassion that Jesus has for those who are killing Him is so much the Father's love and compassion for His elder son who does NOT have any compassion on his younger brother. The elder son says, "this son of yours" whereas the Father says, "this brother of yours." So, eventhough the elder son had no compassion on his younger son, the Father still had compassion for the elder son's who was so short sighted and selfish.
The sin of the non-prodigal son was greater than the prodigal son's sins because the elder son totally was so self-focused as to not see the GOOD in his brother's return home from a sinful life. The servants saw the good. The prodigal son saw the good. The Father saw the good. But the elder did not see ANY good in the prodigal son's return. That total lack of empathy and compassion was due to two things: a lack of real intimacy with the Father and the total lack of intimcy with his brother. Why is that? Love is all about other-centerness not self-centerness. Self absorbtion cause the soul to be isolated and uncompassionate. Let us not be like this. The elder son's sin was deliberate and chosen. The prodigal son's sins were predicated on human weakness and delusion of what happiness was. But the prodigal son came to his senses..and started for hom. The elder son was home and did not start to love his Father.
What is amazing in this story is the Father's RUNNING to meet, embrace and kiss his returning prodig-centerness. al son and this last above scene of deep love and sincerity shown by the Father as He explains to the good elder son that we must rejoice and celebrate the return of our brothers and sisters who come home to God the Father. Before this story told by Jesus in just 21 lines of holy, inspired Scripture, no one ever imagined the Father to be so personal, so affectionate, so totally forgiving and pardoning. This story is the greatest story ever told in the New Testament and in all of literature. The greatest story told in the Old Testament is the true story of a real historical person: the story of Job who also seemed as dead and came back to life again. The Story of Job and the Story of Joseph of Egypt and the Prodigal Son are all types of pre-figuring Christ who would be dead and come back to life again. Job in the end celebrated his new life with abundant rejoicing and blessings from God who more than doubled all Job had lost. Job's fidelity to God like Jesus' fidelity in great trial and sufferng merited him to come into the Kingdom of God's blessing and love. Joseph was presumed dead by his father, Isaac, but turned out to be very much alive and actually saved all of Israel from famine by giving them the grain (bread of life) and by forgiving all his brothers. Now in this prodigal son story, the prodigal son is a sinner..which sins Jesus takes on and reconciles everyone in His very own Person back to the Father by dying in the place of everyone. Eating the forbidden fruit brought death into the world; but Jesus' death brought life into the world. This prodigal son was thought to be dead but has now come back to life again - pre-figuring Jesus death and coming back to life again. The great celebration for the prodigal son's homecoming is a pre-figurment of Christ's bringing all of us to the great Reconciliation and Eucharist in Confession and the Mass. Christ can even be seen in the slain "fatted calf" to feed all the guests. Jesus gives His own Body and Blood for us. The merriment and wine and singing and dancing are all pre-figuring the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass - the greatest celebration that can take place on this earth because it really is the same Holy Sacrifice of the Body and Blood on the cross at Calvary re-presented and re-offered to the Father for us. The Mass actually make us mystically present on the Hill of Calvary with Jesus...who is not bound by space and time. Jesus presented all of us on the Cross and now we re-present Him to the Father in every Mass. Jesus is not re-crucified. His one sacrifice on the Cross is re-presented now to the Father as atonement for our daily sins. This is the greatest reconciliation and joyful celebration that can ever take place on this earth..and all Heavenly Hosts - angels and saints - attend each Mass here on earth.
In conclusion: Then what about the "Non-Prodigal good son" who stayed at home?
Is not Jesus also telling this story about this "good son" as well: this "Non-Prodigal" good son who stays home with his Father...but is not really happy...does his job only out of duty without any delight or joy? This son finds working for his Dad to be a "real chore." In fact, he uses these words to describe his job functions: "All these years I have slaved for you." Working out of duty is not the same as working out of love. "Ubi est amor, non est labor." "Where there is love, there is no labor."
Now we have all met people like this son. For example, I often go to our Post Office here in New Baltimore. There Donna and Beverly..are always joyful, helpful, accommodating, always going the extra mile for me. They even put stamps on my letters for me..do all the math in my purchases, give me suggestions...all with love and smiles! But there is one other woman/clerk: She only smiled once since I have been here these 14 years. She never does more than she has to ....gives me stamps but never would dream of putting them on my envelopes...never go the extra mile..does not enjoy her job..does not enjoy helping people or serving people. She just is "slaving" over her work. How sad that is. God does not want us to "slave" over anything; He wants us to enjoy work.
Adam and Eve were told to tend the garden way before they fell into sin. Work is not a punishment; it is a creative joy. So, they did tend the garden with joy...they worked creatively and happily....to bring about more Beauty in the garden than even the Father put there. God the Father -- in His Wisdom and Plan --purposely left room in His garden world for improvement! He is still doing that in our world today. That is what we are ALL called to do.
We are all called to make this world more beautiful by our music, by our work, by our writing, by our mothering and fathering, by our praying and minstering to others, by our cooking, by our gardening, by our caring for an loving others, by our art, by our loving dialogue with people of other faiths, and by our political courage to stand up for life and all that is right in the world.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Epilogue:
PRE-FIGUREMENTS in the Old and New Testaments seens to be the natural and supernatural way that God the Father works and prepares the world for Jesus' coming starting form Abraham onward...So, therefore, this Prodigal Son story is also Jesus' way of pre-figuring the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Just as when Jesus fed the 4,000 and 5,000 people with the multiplication of fish and bread -- just as He did in changing water into to wine to show He could also change wine into His own precious blood --so, too, here in this Prodigal Son story, Jesus is preparing all those down the centuries to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation joyfully and lovingly and with total abandonment into the arms of His Father and into His merciful Sacred Heart. Jesus's defense of His Prodigal Daughter - the woman caught in adultery - and loving embrace of her dignity as a woman shows all of us how He would be as our "Priest" in confession: "I do not condemn you either...from now on avoid this sin." Jesus was telling her to not leave home again..to return home totally frogiven and exonerated. Jesus did not even let her confess to Him...He -- like His Father -- forgave before a full confession could be made. Jesus IS the "Prodigal Father" for all of us in Confession. All priests must have this very same mind and heart of Christ in administering the Sacrament of Confession: non-condemning or jugmental, merciful, loving and encouraging and even joyfully celebrative! Jesus did call sin a sin; He did not minimize sin; but He did show great crative love in response to sin. He -- after Peter had denied Him three times -- gave Peter a very creative penance: Peter was asked to make three public confessions of his Love for Jesus to re-establish his relationship to Jesus in such a way that now the new relationship was closer than even before Peter fell into his sins of denial.
Thus once we confess to God, then God has to use those very sins creativley to make us holier! "Where sin abounds, grace abounds more." Now that is incredible creativity on God's part. Peter and Jesus were never as close as they were after this encounter with the Resurrected Jesus. Notice that Jesus did not say to Peter: "I told you so, Peter, that you would deny me three times and you did!" No! Jesus already had heard the confession of Peter and had seen his tears. Jesus was now just interested in repairing the damage. And Jesus being such a "texton" (construction worker), made something more lovely and beautiful and seaworthy out of Peter's shipwreck.. and made Peter's "ship" more beautiful that it was before it crashed on the rocks.
Jesus is a very creative lover!
In final conclusion, Jesus' Portrait of His Father in the Prodigal Son Story a picture of the Father's Love as Infinite, Compassionate and as "never running out". The Father says to His elder son and to us: "All that I have is yours" and "you are with Me always.." The Father never runs out of mercy, never runs out of love, never runs out of grace for us..because ALL is a grace from Him..."Every good gift and every perfect gift comes down from the Father of Lights.."
Besides loving us and wanting us -- His children -- to share in His Divine life by/in His Spirit through Christ in us...for our perfect happiness for all eternity, still why does He do ALL this so generously for us?
The answer is simple: He does this to bring to fulfillment His very image and likeness is us..because "Gloria Dei homo vivens!" -- "The Glory of God is a man fully alive!"
Father, Please do this all for us each day...and each hour...and each moment...till we are safe and secure in Your arms forever. Father, "with You we shall always be!"
Gratitude and Love to love to You, Father, now and forever and ever..Amen..in Jesus' Name through Mary, Queen of All Creation.
Peace and Love, Pio
Monday, March 5, 2012
Pio's Proverb 165: AN IMPERFECT WORLD: Why did God create it that way?
I have heard atheists tell me that if God who is all perfect exists, why did He create an imperfect world? Thus the imperfect world is a proof for God's non-existence. The total opposite is the reason that God now allows an imperfect world to exist. Only an imperfect world can perfect you! How does an imperfect world perfect you and me? An imperfect world causes us to become compassionate, caring and self-forgetful in the care of others. When our love for people comes to perfection by our love and compassion for others, then we will be perfect to enter a most loving community of love in heaven for all eternity. We were created to enjoy the Beauty and Love of God for all eternity; but we first must become loving to enter this heaven of love and bliss forever. That is why Jesus said: "I was thirty; and you gave me to drink. I was naken and you clothed me. I was hungry and you fed me. I was sick and in prison, and you came to visit me. I was homeless and you took me in. For whenever you did this for the least of my brethren, you did it for Me. Enter into My Father's Kingdom." It was our love for others that will allow us to get to heaven. How could we do all those things for Christ and to Christ, if it were a perfect world?
God's first intent was that we would just love each other naturally as did Adam and Even love each other and wanted to bring children into this world. But they messed up God's perfect plan: Before the fall of man, the world was quite perfect. God planned that we would grow in loving one another without death and disease. God made the world in Genesis' account quite perfect. It was Adam and Eve who chose to mess up god's perfect plan. So, the world became imperfect because Adam and Even chose to be independent of God and brought sin and death to the world. But then God has a new contingency plan: "God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son so that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life." John 3:16.
So, God's contingency plan to redeem the world is Jesus: the New Adam who sacrifices Himself for the Bride the Church to perfect her and cleanse her and bring her back into paradise. This happens on every level of human existence. God is perfecting us in our beauty, in the truth and in our love. For examples, there are felons in prison who have become contemplatives and have asked Fr. Dubay to do a lecture series on St. John of the Cross. These men are becoming more saintly than if they had not gone to prison.
Thus, what is so amazing about God is that he can bring good out of evil. Jesus dying for our sins happened on Good Friday. Why is it "Good" if dying was so bad? Jesus's dying undid the sin of Adam and Eve and all our sins since then till now and for all till the end of the world. That is "Good".
So if you suffer and then learn to have compassion for others, that is Good!
So if you are blind and learn to have compassion for those can't see, that is Good!
So if you have been hungry and learn to feed the hungry by a new compassion, that is Good!
So if you have chonic pain in your shoulders and legs and learn to have compassion for those in pain, that is very Good!
So if you have gone homeless in your life and have learned to love the homeless, that is Good!
So if you have needed to be forgiven by God and learn to be patient and forgiving to others, that is Good!
So if you have been rejected and unloved and have learned how Jesus felt on the cross, that is Good!
So if you have been close to death and lonely and have learned to sit with those who are dying, that is Good!
So if you see and pray for abortion doctors to be converted and come to the Lord and you learn to love those who "do not know what they are doing", that is Good!
So if there were no chidlren in the womb who needed your protection, you would not be fighting for their rights to life and pray the rosary outside clinics, and that is Good!
So if there were no frightened women who think that abortion is the answer to their problems, and you learn to counsel them to not abort, that is Good!
So if you have lost a child or a parent or a wife or a husband and have learned what sorrow really means and can have compassion for others who have had similar experiences of loss, that is Good!
So if you have had your career ruined by greed of others or the unconscionable ambitions of others and have learned how to love those who have hurt you, that is Good!
So if you have truly received unconditional love from your parents, spouse, children and have learned to love others unconditionally and to love God more purely, than that is VERY Good!
Strangely enough, none other those Good things would have happened to you in a perfect world without suffering. There would be no saints or martyrs in a perfect world. There would be no great stateman like Abraham Lincoln in a perfect world. There would be no Mother Teresas in a perfect world.
There would be no wonderful-beautiful-growing-in-love YOU in a perfect world!
------------------
"Father, thank you for giving us all the suffering inour lives so we can learn to love and have compassion on those who suffer...so that one day you will say to us: "Come my beloved and enter my kingdom.. forever."
Father, please bring us home to see You face to face in a most loving community so that we can share in Your own perfect Community: the Most Holy Trinity of mutual love and bliss and pefect joy. In Jesus' Name. Amen. ..through Mary Immaculate."
Love, Pio
Love, Pio
God's first intent was that we would just love each other naturally as did Adam and Even love each other and wanted to bring children into this world. But they messed up God's perfect plan: Before the fall of man, the world was quite perfect. God planned that we would grow in loving one another without death and disease. God made the world in Genesis' account quite perfect. It was Adam and Eve who chose to mess up god's perfect plan. So, the world became imperfect because Adam and Even chose to be independent of God and brought sin and death to the world. But then God has a new contingency plan: "God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son so that whoever believes in Him will have eternal life." John 3:16.
So, God's contingency plan to redeem the world is Jesus: the New Adam who sacrifices Himself for the Bride the Church to perfect her and cleanse her and bring her back into paradise. This happens on every level of human existence. God is perfecting us in our beauty, in the truth and in our love. For examples, there are felons in prison who have become contemplatives and have asked Fr. Dubay to do a lecture series on St. John of the Cross. These men are becoming more saintly than if they had not gone to prison.
Thus, what is so amazing about God is that he can bring good out of evil. Jesus dying for our sins happened on Good Friday. Why is it "Good" if dying was so bad? Jesus's dying undid the sin of Adam and Eve and all our sins since then till now and for all till the end of the world. That is "Good".
So if you suffer and then learn to have compassion for others, that is Good!
So if you are blind and learn to have compassion for those can't see, that is Good!
So if you have been hungry and learn to feed the hungry by a new compassion, that is Good!
So if you have chonic pain in your shoulders and legs and learn to have compassion for those in pain, that is very Good!
So if you have gone homeless in your life and have learned to love the homeless, that is Good!
So if you have needed to be forgiven by God and learn to be patient and forgiving to others, that is Good!
So if you have been rejected and unloved and have learned how Jesus felt on the cross, that is Good!
So if you have been close to death and lonely and have learned to sit with those who are dying, that is Good!
So if you see and pray for abortion doctors to be converted and come to the Lord and you learn to love those who "do not know what they are doing", that is Good!
So if there were no chidlren in the womb who needed your protection, you would not be fighting for their rights to life and pray the rosary outside clinics, and that is Good!
So if there were no frightened women who think that abortion is the answer to their problems, and you learn to counsel them to not abort, that is Good!
So if you have lost a child or a parent or a wife or a husband and have learned what sorrow really means and can have compassion for others who have had similar experiences of loss, that is Good!
So if you have had your career ruined by greed of others or the unconscionable ambitions of others and have learned how to love those who have hurt you, that is Good!
So if you have truly received unconditional love from your parents, spouse, children and have learned to love others unconditionally and to love God more purely, than that is VERY Good!
Strangely enough, none other those Good things would have happened to you in a perfect world without suffering. There would be no saints or martyrs in a perfect world. There would be no great stateman like Abraham Lincoln in a perfect world. There would be no Mother Teresas in a perfect world.
There would be no wonderful-beautiful-growing-in-love YOU in a perfect world!
------------------
"Father, thank you for giving us all the suffering inour lives so we can learn to love and have compassion on those who suffer...so that one day you will say to us: "Come my beloved and enter my kingdom.. forever."
Father, please bring us home to see You face to face in a most loving community so that we can share in Your own perfect Community: the Most Holy Trinity of mutual love and bliss and pefect joy. In Jesus' Name. Amen. ..through Mary Immaculate."
Love, Pio
Love, Pio
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Pio's Proverb 164: The Sacredness of the Present Moment.
This moment is the most precious moment of your life. Only in this moment can God be found. He lives in His present moment. If this moment is sacred for Him, it is also sacred for you.
Who exists in the PAST and the FUTURE? We all try to sometimes. Is this good? No -- Absolutely not.
It is good to recall the PAST into your present moment to see how those past moments effect this present one. For example, it is good for a husband and wife to recall their wedding day and bring that then present moment into their now present moment to impact this moment as we do remember our birthdays. We celebrate our past birthday always in the present moment of each new year. So, husband and wives should recall their vows and renew them in the present moment by the fidelity to each other in this present moment that is so sacred. Actually their celebration of the marriage birth day is on their anniversy but actually is renewed everytime they come together as husband and wife in the present moment that is enriched by their history of past "present moments" of marital union. Even if these past "present moments" are not recalled consciously, these past "present moments" are nontheless recalled in their bodies and subconscious memory that effects their present marital bliss. When we look at an adult, you do not see the child they once were...but those past moments are all collected in them. Otherwise, they would have to have been created as an adult and not born. We are now a collection of integrated past "present moments" into the whole of who we are in THIS present moment.
The FUTURE also cannot be lived in during this present moment. We can use this moment to plan for future moments. But this planning is in the now. There is absolutely no ontological living in the past or future. The past is left to God's mercy. The future is left to God's Providence.
If a person were to try to live in the past and future. that person steps out of the "present moment" into a delusion. Any person who has ever committed suicide, has done so because he or she has stepped out of the present moment into an imagined horrible past or horrible future where God does not exist in their lives. They are going to live in the past and future alone and isolated from time and reality. Of course, then, they cannot take the past and the future and step not only out of the present sacred moment where God lives but they step out into the space of the past and future where no one lives. They then step out of time emotionally and if carryout their suicide, they step out of time completely by ceasing to be alive. But then the next moment after suicide, they are confronted with the present eternal moment. God is in that present moment. "OUt of the Body; PRESENT to the Lord!" They wisll be in Godis Present Presence. God is a God of love and mercy...and only God knows the heart of the person who stands now before Him. He will be hurt that this person did not trust in God's Providence for his/her future. He will be disappointed that his person just gave up on God and God's providing for his/her future -- thus reducing God while on earth to stay out of his/her "present moments." So tragically sad because God had great plands for happiness and peace and joy for this person on this earth...as a preparation for heaven. We are placed here on this earth to learn to love one another: to clothe the naked, to feed to hungry, to visit the sick, to visit those in prison, to give shelter to the homeless so that Jesus will say to us: "I was naked, and you clothed Me; hungry and you fed Me; sick and your visted Me; in prison and you visited Me; homeless and you too Me in." And we will say, "When Lord did we do this for you?" And Jesus will answer: "As long as you did it for the least of my brethren, you did it for Me...Enter into my Father's Kingdom.." Notice when Jesus tells this to us, He will be using the Present tense of Enter! That will be quite a wondrous Present Eternal Moment!
How can this happened for us? Only one way: STAY in the PRESENT MOMENT and use it WELL.
How can we use this present moment well? Jesus said: "Love one another as I love you."
If our "present moment" is filled with love for one another, the we are now "entering into the Kingdom of God!"
"Father, thank You for this "present sacred moment" where You alone can be found. You only give us the oil of Your grace for only this present moment and not for any future maybe moments. Keep me, Father, in this present moment and never let me go into the past or future where you are not accessible or present to me.
"Keep all of us in the "Now of Your Now!" Keep us in Your "I AM" - safe in Your arms - now and for all eternity amen. ..so we can say with the Psalmist: "With You, Father, we are and shall always be!"
"You see us all now, Father, with You forever. You see our whole time here and all our etenity as one "present eternal moment with You. No wonder You love us so much! No wonder You took Enoch the way You did. In Your eyes he was only in one eternal present moment with You. You just could not help Yourself to just embrace him to Your bosom forever...which you will do for all of us: you who are reading this in your "present sacred moment" and for me who am writing to you in my present sacred moment. Our moments meet in each others' and in God's: all are one loving present sacred moment - now and eternally.
"Amen. In Jesus Name we pray...throught Mary..Amen".
Peace and Love,
Pio
Who exists in the PAST and the FUTURE? We all try to sometimes. Is this good? No -- Absolutely not.
It is good to recall the PAST into your present moment to see how those past moments effect this present one. For example, it is good for a husband and wife to recall their wedding day and bring that then present moment into their now present moment to impact this moment as we do remember our birthdays. We celebrate our past birthday always in the present moment of each new year. So, husband and wives should recall their vows and renew them in the present moment by the fidelity to each other in this present moment that is so sacred. Actually their celebration of the marriage birth day is on their anniversy but actually is renewed everytime they come together as husband and wife in the present moment that is enriched by their history of past "present moments" of marital union. Even if these past "present moments" are not recalled consciously, these past "present moments" are nontheless recalled in their bodies and subconscious memory that effects their present marital bliss. When we look at an adult, you do not see the child they once were...but those past moments are all collected in them. Otherwise, they would have to have been created as an adult and not born. We are now a collection of integrated past "present moments" into the whole of who we are in THIS present moment.
The FUTURE also cannot be lived in during this present moment. We can use this moment to plan for future moments. But this planning is in the now. There is absolutely no ontological living in the past or future. The past is left to God's mercy. The future is left to God's Providence.
If a person were to try to live in the past and future. that person steps out of the "present moment" into a delusion. Any person who has ever committed suicide, has done so because he or she has stepped out of the present moment into an imagined horrible past or horrible future where God does not exist in their lives. They are going to live in the past and future alone and isolated from time and reality. Of course, then, they cannot take the past and the future and step not only out of the present sacred moment where God lives but they step out into the space of the past and future where no one lives. They then step out of time emotionally and if carryout their suicide, they step out of time completely by ceasing to be alive. But then the next moment after suicide, they are confronted with the present eternal moment. God is in that present moment. "OUt of the Body; PRESENT to the Lord!" They wisll be in Godis Present Presence. God is a God of love and mercy...and only God knows the heart of the person who stands now before Him. He will be hurt that this person did not trust in God's Providence for his/her future. He will be disappointed that his person just gave up on God and God's providing for his/her future -- thus reducing God while on earth to stay out of his/her "present moments." So tragically sad because God had great plands for happiness and peace and joy for this person on this earth...as a preparation for heaven. We are placed here on this earth to learn to love one another: to clothe the naked, to feed to hungry, to visit the sick, to visit those in prison, to give shelter to the homeless so that Jesus will say to us: "I was naked, and you clothed Me; hungry and you fed Me; sick and your visted Me; in prison and you visited Me; homeless and you too Me in." And we will say, "When Lord did we do this for you?" And Jesus will answer: "As long as you did it for the least of my brethren, you did it for Me...Enter into my Father's Kingdom.." Notice when Jesus tells this to us, He will be using the Present tense of Enter! That will be quite a wondrous Present Eternal Moment!
How can this happened for us? Only one way: STAY in the PRESENT MOMENT and use it WELL.
How can we use this present moment well? Jesus said: "Love one another as I love you."
If our "present moment" is filled with love for one another, the we are now "entering into the Kingdom of God!"
"Father, thank You for this "present sacred moment" where You alone can be found. You only give us the oil of Your grace for only this present moment and not for any future maybe moments. Keep me, Father, in this present moment and never let me go into the past or future where you are not accessible or present to me.
"Keep all of us in the "Now of Your Now!" Keep us in Your "I AM" - safe in Your arms - now and for all eternity amen. ..so we can say with the Psalmist: "With You, Father, we are and shall always be!"
"You see us all now, Father, with You forever. You see our whole time here and all our etenity as one "present eternal moment with You. No wonder You love us so much! No wonder You took Enoch the way You did. In Your eyes he was only in one eternal present moment with You. You just could not help Yourself to just embrace him to Your bosom forever...which you will do for all of us: you who are reading this in your "present sacred moment" and for me who am writing to you in my present sacred moment. Our moments meet in each others' and in God's: all are one loving present sacred moment - now and eternally.
"Amen. In Jesus Name we pray...throught Mary..Amen".
Peace and Love,
Pio
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)