She who was called barren is in her sixth month….

Posted on June 25, 2012 by t garcia

While my husband was checking out at Sam’s this afternoon, I took a seat in the snack area nearby. And it was there that it captured me….a tiny, delicately sculpted foot with dimples and miniature toes….a perfect work of art. I always marvel at that fresh beauty of a baby’s little fingers and toes, appearing almost too perfect to be real…like a masterpiece of purest wax.

This tiny, kicking foot was kissed and cuddled by an adorable little girl of about four, no doubt sister to whom I later saw was a baby boy of a few months, peacefully nursing from his bottle. And, I didn’t cry. Those of you who know my story might have expected that…

But not this time. As I watched the husband and father of this trio gather his family together, I was lost in thought over the wondrous power they possessed.

Do they ever think about such things….these life- bearers entrusted with clothing in flesh the very children of God? I know that we, the infertile, the barren, probe this mystery in breathless and unending fascination, turning it round and round, in wondrous contemplation.

But what of us? Are we forgotten, somehow cursed by God, disgraced and covered in shame as once believed not so long ago…and surprisingly, somewhat in our own day.

I think not. I think not, on this day when we celebrate the Birth of John the Baptist, son of Zechariah and the once hopelessly barren Elizabeth.

And… there were so many others. So many women with “closed wombs” whom the Lord permitted to suffer the agony and disgrace of barrenness before blessing them with many of His most chosen servants.

Who can forget Sarah, who “laughed” because she was so old, but gave birth to Isaac a year later? And what of the beautiful Rebecca, wife of Isaac, who had to wait 45 years before conceiving Jacob and Esau?

“Give me children or I shall die,” wailed Rachel, wife of Jacob. And the Lord heard her cries and she brought forth Joseph and Benjamin.

Why were the wives of these great men of God, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, all afflicted with such long periods of barrenness, before the Lord blessed them with sons through whom He would in turn raise up His people, Israel?

And then there was Hannah, who is remembered for her tears as she cried before the Lord for a child, and was answered and brought forth the great prophet Samuel.

Another barren woman….another great man of God conceived.

There is mystery here. There is emptiness filled to overflowing. There is agony and shame brought to glory.

Elizabeth knew the glory, as her once barren womb was filled with the Holy Spirit rushing upon her child of whom Jesus later said, “Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has risen no one greater than John the Baptist.”

But what of us? What of those women who, unlike our sisters above, will never have fruitful wombs? Or those who have given birth, but who yearn for more children? Has God forgotten us?

God never changes. He is the same God Who heard the cries of Rachel and saw the tears of Hannah….and He has seen our tears, and heard our cries.

I do not pretend to know Why. But it is enough to know that He Hears.

God Who IS Life and is the Giver of all life must weep when He lays this particular Cross on His daughters, created to give life too. We must trust in His tenderness, His goodness, His Love.

We can be sure that there is nothing He will allow us to suffer that we won’t rejoice over one day… when we understand.

Meanwhile, let us pray for those struggling with infertility. Let us pray for the unborn. Let us pray for couples who stifle their life-giving gifts. Let us pray for those who have miscarried or lost children in other ways. Let us pray for those who suffer anguish over past abortions.

And let us rejoice with those who are fruitful, and praise God for every precious life, and for every tiny hand and foot and baby smile.

He expects no less of us…..we who are called to bear the mystery of our barrenness into the Glory of Eternal LIFE….where the mystery will be revealed at last… in His Presence!

LORD, I bow before Your Perfect Will. It is enough to know that Your Love could find no better path for me than the one I trod. I walk it willingly into Your Loving Embrace. Glory and Praise to You forever, Most Holy Trinity!

Some helpful resources for those suffering from infertility:

http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/catholic-fertility/
http://hannahstearsinfertilitysupport.blogspot.com/
http://www.popepaulvi.com/fcco_Home.htm
http://blessedarethebarren.wordpress.com/ (An inactive blog, but with some beautiful, insightful articles by a Christian blogger bearing the cross of infertility)

{Patricia also shares her writings over at her blog: I Want to See God }

Link

http://www.godsrevolutiontoday.com/

Prayer Revolution

You can listen online to any of the CD tracks.

The full stereo version is also available for download as an mp3.

PART ONE has teachings and
PART TWO has the music tracks,

(Note: Depending on your browser, you may need to right-click the .mp3 Download link and choose Save Link As or Save Target As. Also you may need to ensure Javascript is enabled to use the Player).

        PART TWO: INTERACTIVE SONGS OF PRAYER
10. One Thing is Necessary – 2:46   (right click this link to download the mp3
11. Praying with You. Holy Spirit –   (right click this link to download the mp3
(Examine me / I let go / Praise and thank you my God) – 7:42
12. Receiving your Life-Giving Word – 2:07   (right click this link to download the mp3
13. Seek First the Kingdom – 4:49   (right click this link to download the mp3)
14. Abiding with You Jesus – 2:23   (right click this link to download the mp3)
15. Clothing Myself in You – 2:23  (right click this link to download the mp3)
16. I Believe – 1:03   (right click this link to download the mp3
17. Every Breath – 2:12   (right click this link to download the mp3
18. Praying Your Name (Pachabel’s Canon) – 2:38   (right click this link to download the mp3
19. Yielding Father to Your Plan – 2:45   (right click this link to download the mp3
20. Our Father – 7:02   (right click this link to download the mp3

        BONUS SONGS
21. The Blessing Song – 1:13   (right click this link to download the mp3
22. At Your Feet – 4:04   (right click this link to download the mp3

Empy womb, empty tomb

Posted on June 7, 2012 by t garcia

These words have been coming to me each time I begin the first Glorious Mystery: The Resurrection. At first I thought my neurotic mind was making up some weird rhyme but after it repetitively kept going through my mind, I decided to reflect on it a bit.

The Spirit is certainly leading me to do a lot of that these last few months…mostly regarding my trial of leaving my childbearing years and the last two children I lost. No doubt, there have been many graces since becoming involved with Hannah’s Tears and this has impelled me to write on this subject.

My focus was on Mary Madgalene as she approached the tomb Easter morning.

In my reflection, I realized that the empty tomb was, at first, a source of sorrow for her. She was overcome with loss and confusion. No one could console her in her grief. Except…for Jesus Himself. When Jesus spoke her name, she immediately recognized Him and was filled with inexpressible JOY! The empty tomb was now a source of joy and hope.

The empty womb…can be a cause of great sorrow for many women whether due to infertility, miscarriage, stillbirth and those entering the premenopause years. I wrote especially of my own sorrow.

How can this be a source of joy or hope?

As Mary Magdalene did, we need to listen to Jesus calling out name in the midst of our grief and turn to Him. In Isaiah 51:12 we find God speaking, “I, I am your Consoler…”. He is the One, the first, we should to turn to in our sorrow. And, as Mary uttered his title, “Rabboni”, we are to utter and cry out in prayer, “My Lord and my God!” as we cling to Him.

It will no doubt be a prayer of lamentation and a plea for divine assistance, but it also has to be a prayer of hope, love, and trust in the Divine Plan for our life. Regardless of the outcome, God will bring great fruits from out trials and losses. We need to be open to where God is leading us and to be aware of how He is filling us in our emptiness. Through this, God is calling us to an ever deepening relationship with Him.

Even though the saints suffered greatly, they were able to experience joy within their souls even in the midst of suffering. They possessed the knowledge that Jesus is already victorious over loss and death. They experienced the joy of eternity right here on earth. They did not merely *bear* with their crosses, but embraced them willingly…joyous to be following the same path of their Beloved Crucified.

Are we not all called to be saints?

Let our eyes of faith stay ever focused on the joy that is ours NOW to possess…the joy of the empty tomb…and eternal life with the risen Jesus. In your emptiness…be filled!

{Theresa lives out her vocation as wife, mother to four (and two in Heaven), Classical homeschooler, Secular Carmelite, and part-time ultrasonographer in Pennsylvania. She shares her fumbling writings at my desert heart when the Spirit nudges her.}

Eveything is a Grace

Posted on May 28, 2012 by t garcia

God always leads me to what I need to read during a certain period in my life. I have never doubted this. When He wants to speak to me, the right book or scripture passage will present itself.

These past few weeks I have frequently picked up Everything is a Grace by Fr. Anastatius of the Holy Rosary OCD. I read just what I needed to hear: “…to accept with faith our concrete life means to banish from it all envy which robs us of our tranquility and which is born of wasting time in uselessly comparing our life with that of our neighbor…”

“What we have just said of comparisons and envy is likewise applicable to nostalgic daydreams which sap our spirit of abandonment, and consequently our acceptance of Providence.”

Would I then turn away from God and desire something against His Divine Providence? If I place all my trust in our Heavenly Father and His plans for my sanctity, can I doubt that “within the rhythm of Providence, nothing that happens to us can help be but an occasion of grace lovingly offered and ordered to eternal life.”

Instead of accepting trials and sufferings as the “weight of the cross” we can accept them as the “burden of love” and learn to accompany the act of acceptance with a “smile of recognition.”

“Everything is a grace,” states St. Therese.

If everything is a grace on God’s part, then everything has to be faithfulness on ours. We have to accept unconditionally every offer of grace with all the love of which we are capable.

Do You Believe in the Impossible?

Posted on May 22, 2012 by t garcia

My meditation today brings forth the quote “God is the God of the impossible”. This is probably something that rings in my soul since Sunday’s homily, as Father mentioned our faith within the Church is for us to expect the impossible and to have this kind of FAITH. What more can we ever ask for if God the Father is always taking care of our needs? My question that seems to shout out today is “Do YOU believe that He can change the things that are not to what can be?” St. Rita would find that God would show her His glory through the many challenges she would face. Do we love God enough to meet these challenges that He is asking of us for the sanctification of our very souls? Prayer is the answer, taking time to be with Jesus as Saint Rita learned to do in her own life journey. We are all called to walk with the Lord in this life; we are all called to be saints. We all have a cross that God has given each of us individually as a gift and this will never be seen as a gift until you decide to hand it over to the one that has set you free on the day of His crucifixion. All of us need to recognize this part in our lives.

Saint Rita was one person that recognized this gift, as she always wanted to be a religious sister but God had other plans for her and that was to marry Paolo Mancini, an ill-tempered, abusive individual. Rita’s heart would be broken due to the bitterness and hatred that was part of the Mancini family. “She put up with Paolo’s abuses for eighteen years before he was ambushed and stabbed to death. Her sons swore vengeance on the killers of their father, but through the prayers and interventions of Rita, they forgave the offenders.”

Rita endured the trials of many dark nights and through these trials God the Father would strengthen her soul and faith in HIM. For it is not in man that we find faith and hope but in Our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the fulfillment of all our trials and tribulations that we will ever endure in this life. Christ would mend Rita’s broken heart of sorrow and loneliness and He would bring her to a place of great peace in HIM alone. Rita’s future trials would be a suffering sent from HEAVEN that would be so united to Our Lord Jesus Christ that souls would be healed!

“Rita lived 40 years in the convent, spending her time in prayer and charity, and working for peace in the region. She was devoted to the Passion, and in response to a prayer to suffer as Christ, she received a chronic head wound that appeared to have been caused by a crown of thorns, and which bled for 15 years. Confined to her bed the last four years of her life, eating little more than the Eucharist, teaching and directing the younger sisters. Near the end she had a visitor from her home town who asked if she’d like anything; Rita’s only request was a rose from her family’s estate. The visitor went to the home, but it being January, knew there was no hope of finding a flower; there, sprouted on an otherwise bare bush, was a single rose blossom.

Among the other areas, Rita is well-known as a patron of desperate, seemingly impossible causes and situations. This is because she has been involved in so many stages of life – wife, mother, widow, and nun, she buried her family, helped bring peace to her city, saw her dreams denied and fulfilled – and never lost her faith in God, or her desire to be with Him.”

Let St. Rita be an example to you today and never let anyone or anything cause you to lose your faith in GOD or take your desire to be with HIM. God loves you so very much and HE wants to flourish you with His LOVE. Take time to be with HIM today and seek out the nearest Catholic Church and visit with Jesus or rest with Him in the quiet of your own home, He is with you always no matter what you are struggling with today, know that HE is with you and that HE can take care of the issues that are troubling you.

The music is in Arabic, but the words are in English and they are truly a beautiful tribute to St. Rita.

I believe in the impossible, do YOU?

Resources: Quoted

Easter blessings from the Poor Clare Colettines TMD

Image

Dear Little hearts,

There is now an expectancy in the air, we are waiting with the whole Church for the day of Resurrection.

The Easter Vigil is one of the most beautiful of all the Churches celebrations. The readings in our Missals are food for a lifetime….

A new Easter fire opens the celebrations, and a new spiritual fire for Christ should awake and ignite within our souls… for Christ has redeemed us, he has brought us out of slavery into freedom, we have all known an experience of being called out of the ‘ Egypt’ of this world into a new life.

Christ is our Light!!!!!

The blessing of the Fire and the preparation of the Candle are awesome moments…. the truths embodied within them stir our very souls to leap up…

Christ Yesterday and Today.

The Beginning and the End.

The Alpha.

The Omega.

All time belongs to Him and all ages. To Him be glory and power through every age and forever- Amen

By these Holy and glorious wounds,

My Christ the Lord guard and protect us- Amen….

Such words, such reflections are balm upon the soul if we dwell upon them.

Lumen Christi… May the light of Christ rising in glory dispel the darkness of our hearts and minds !!!

And let us respond with total love… Yes, Alleluia !!!

And while we yet wait…. this precious reading ever new from the Breviary for Holy Saturday

Reading

From an ancient homily for Holy Saturday

The Lord’s descent into the underworld

Something strange is happening – there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. God has died in the flesh and hell trembles with fear.

He has gone to search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, he has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve, he who is both God and the son of Eve. The Lord approached them bearing the cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror and cried out to everyone: “My Lord be with you all.” Christ answered him: “And with your spirit.” He took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: “Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.”

I am your God, who for your sake have become your son. Out of love for you and for your descendants I now by my own authority command all who are held in bondage to come forth, all who are in darkness to be enlightened, all who are sleeping to arise. I order you, O sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise from the dead, for I am the life of the dead. Rise up, work of my hands, you who were created in my image. Rise, let us leave this place, for you are in me and I am in you; together we form only one person and we cannot be separated. For your sake I, your God, became your son; I, the Lord, took the form of a slave; I, whose home is above the heavens, descended to the earth and beneath the earth. For your sake, for the sake of man, I became like a man without help, free among the dead. For the sake of you, who left a garden, I was betrayed to the Jews in a garden, and I was crucified in a garden.

See on my face the spittle I received in order to restore to you the life I once breathed into you. See there the marks of the blows I received in order to refashion your warped nature in my image. On my back see the marks of the scourging I endured to remove the burden of sin that weighs upon your back. See my hands, nailed firmly to a tree, for you who once wickedly stretched out your hand to a tree.

I slept on the cross and a sword pierced my side for you who slept in paradise and brought forth Eve from your side. My side has healed the pain in yours. My sleep will rouse you from your sleep in hell. The sword that pierced me has sheathed the sword that was turned against you.

Rise, let us leave this place. The enemy led you out of the earthly paradise. I will not restore you to that paradise, but I will enthrone you in heaven. I forbade you the tree that was only a symbol of life, but see, I who am life itself am now one with you. I appointed cherubim to guard you as slaves are guarded, but now I make them worship you as God. The throne formed by cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.

Responsory

Our shepherd, the source of living water, has departed. At his passing the sun was darkened, for he who held the first man captive is now taken captive himself. Today the Saviour has shattered the bars and burst the gates of death.

He has torn down the barricades of hell and overthrown the power of Satan. Today the Saviour has shattered the bars and burst the gates of death.

Poor Clare Colettines TMD
community@poorclarestmd.org

NO Pill for a Broken Heart

Posted on April 2, 2012 by t garcia

There is no Pill for a broken heart: The dangers of premarital sexual activity and exposing a BIG LIE.

By Fr. Thomas J. Blau, OP

[Columbus, OH, 2 April 2012]

The HHS Mandate has offered the Catholic Church a wonderful opportunity to explain why we oppose contraception, abortifacients, and sterilizing procedures. We’ll call all of these “The Pill” for brevity sake.

But I get the sense from some talking heads of the pop culture that if a single woman does not get pregnant and doesn’t catch HIV then everything must be okay. That is the most that “safer sex” can offer. But this is a huge lie – there are other dangers. That is why the “r” was added to “safe sex” – its not “safe” but only “safer”! [R stands for ‘Risks-still-here!’] The lie says that those two problems [babies and disease] are the only ones.

We are being lied to by the gurus of our culture. There are more. Why and what are these effects? The human person is not just material physicality – we are made body and soul. We have that spiritual aspect to us. And with that comes emotions, memories, psychology and personalities, vulnerable areas, and potential to help or hurt another, relationships and an entire unseen world in the interiority of every person.

The Pill does not protect the heart. That is it pure and simple. It doesn’t do a good job at what it proports to do – just look at the “contraindication insert”. [That is that nasty list of the side effects. By providing that you cannot sue the company if “it goes wrong.”] But there is no protection for the heart: no condom, no pill, no shots.

Another way to say this is: “You didn’t get pregnant, you didn’t get AIDS, so why do you feel so bad?” Here is why.

1. People that use sex for a dating activity [v. saving themselves for a permanent marriage] end up with huge segments of their life wrapped in anxiety and worry. “Did he/she lie when talking about their freedom from sexual diseases?” “Did I just get used?” “Will that help or hurt the relationship?” “Did I go too fast and maybe ruin a good friendship?” There is no “pill” to prevent this mental anguish.

2. Regrets and Recriminations. Once we have spoken the “lie with the body” – saying in our body language what we have not said in our soul – there are terrible moments of regret, of wishing that we could go back in time and change it, and of casting blame. There are no shots, patches or pills to stop this. You see, contrary to the “only 2 problems” mentality – sex is a binder, a “superglue” for the hearts. Imagine 2 paper hearts glued together. If they are pulled apart there are tears, beauty is lost, and often chards of each remain on the other. That happens in our heart. And the Pill does nothing to stop it.

3. If you think of the level of self respect a person has for herself as a scale of “0 to 10”, after a single person acts out sexually they can think that they “let my self down” – that they caved into whatever and went against their better judgment or base principles or conscience. This produces a lowering of one’s self esteem and respect. Our “self-respect-O-meter” can go to zero. The lower it goes the more drastic a person can act against one’s self. We lose respect for ourselves when we do what we know in our heart is wrong. No pill can protect us from that.

4. Guilt feelings. We can live a life of guilt – knowing that we have done wrong, that we treated someone terribly or used someone, and wondering what it will mean and how it will affect the future. Great guilt feelings happen with premarital sex.

5. Then there is the rage. When someone feels that they have been betrayed – either by someone’s “kissing and telling” [bragging about the sexual encounter] or that what should have been a friendly time together turned into pressure to have sex, etc., the feelings of hatred and rage are incredible. It can consume one’s life: recalling any betrayal, any “use”, and any mistreatment in the relationship. This rage hits both men and women. Why would anyone seek out the kind of relationship that produces this? And premarital sexual encounters do. There is no Pill or “health care” for this natural response to being used.

6. The reality of a failed relationship that went sexual can cause such strong feelings of self-loathing, or lack of respect and even a feeling of now being “trapped” such that there is a sad fact. It can happen that a internal psychological movements toward self harm and self-inflicted “punishment” can grow. The loss of a relationship – especially after sharing the most precious things – can cause a crash of one’s life – even if there are no babies or diseases present.

7. Using sexual activity as a dating activity leads to a string of ruined relationships. And why would anyone want to walk through life knowing they have a list of people that they have serious issues against? What is more, many friendships – that COULD HAVE been wonderful and awesome in the future are ruined because they got sexual – told the lie of “I do” in body language before they actually said it – at the altar. Choosing to engage is sexual activity before marriage puts the relationship out of context – of a loving, life-committed, spiritual covenant. And that can ruin a good friendship. This just leads to long sad hours of “what ifs”. There is no government-backed pill to stop this.

8. It is often found that the moral stance a person takes to “wait until marriage” – once rejected, gives way to growth in many vices. The person no longer sees a need to strive to be a good person overall – the knowledge of their wrongdoing can make them say “that is me.” “Oh who cares now!” becomes the beginning of a slide. And so they grow in all sorts of vice. The 7 Deadly Sins – pride, envy, wrath, sloth, greed, gluttony and lust – can gain new strength by “throwing in the towel” in one area: the sexual relationship. Fornication [sexual activity outside of marriage] has that power. No pharmacy has drugs to prevent this.

9. This next one if true of both men and women. Once you have been burned, once you have been hurt in relationships – especially if there is rejection or betrayal – there can grow a fear of commitment. Who wants to get hurt? Who seeks out “I want to get my heart broken” [except in fairytale Hollywood]. No, people stay away from that which causes pain and some people stay away from relationships because a sexualized relationship brought them great pain. They fear and avoid commitment. No vaccinations for this either.

10. There can grow an immaturity and stunted emotional and psychological growth. This happens in a number of ways. One way is when we begin to think that the sexual relationship actually teaches what good relationships are all about. “Use” can become the norm. Also, the interior strength needed for “waiting” can be lacking. That interior strength is going to be needed in other areas of life, but the person practices “giving in to the emotion/desire”. THAT becomes their habit. And that leads to immaturity in approaching the struggles of life. This is seen even after marriage when a man, who has practiced giving in to his sexual desire at all opportunities, all of a sudden has to practice self-restraint for circumstances or the health of his wife. He never practiced self-restraint in his single life – he fools himself to think he can miraculously be a Super Virtuous Man later. Lastly, some people will think that the sexual relationship is the only important thing in the relationship because they have focused all their dating life on such experiences. They become incapable in growing a real relationship. Immature character development is a bitter pill to swallow.

12. Lastly, and we have not mentioned disease or babies once! is another effect of being used or rejected: a general distrust of others. Who wants to get close to a good person when it has led [with choosing sexual activity] to being hurt. People avoid painful situations and distrust others who might be a source of pain. That is baggage – and a lot of people carry it. It is a great burden to live this way. And NO Pill will cure the distrust.

I would be remiss in my analysis here if I did not say that there IS a cure for all of this but you’ll never see it sponsored by the government. First, get right with God. Mercy and forgiveness is possible with turning to the Lord no matter how often we have failed. If you have fallen to the lie of our society [that only babies and diseases are the dangers, that the Pill in all its forms is a “prevent all”, if you have thought there was a “Condom or Pill for the Heart and Mind” and did wrong, etc] – turn to God who is rich in mercy. You can be forgiven and begin to have a truthful vision of yourself and your life. Get to the sacrament of confession if you are a Catholic Christian: hear, not just imagine, the words of forgiveness. God is waiting. Second, break off all relationships that have steered into sexual activity – do it today – before you crash. Life is too good to carry around the baggage that I have discussed above. Third, if you suffer from any of these ailments of the Heart, talk to someone. Unlike a victim mentality which says “You will always be like this” – reject that, and in faith begin to live as God made us to live. Wait until marriage, reject the lies, try to help others reject the lies. And you will find rest for your heart.

– frThomas Blau, OP

contact for permission and use of this article frthomasblauop@gmail.com

Feast of the Annunciation

Posted on March 26, 2012 by t garcia

Dear Little hearts,

Today is the transferred feast of the Annunciation. A Happy Feast to you all.

The readings for the feast of the Annunciation, known in England in times past as the, “Salutation” are in our Sunday Missal, so today we will look , with Mary at the WORD.

Mary lived ‘Lectio Divine‘ she pondered on God’s Word as no other has ever done, He was her total love, her total focus… her will was in perfect harmony with Gods, her will merged into His, and so there by making her life fruitful in abundance.

In today’s readings we can see how much God desires the gift, the offering, the surrender of our will , our free will to Him, thus choosing HIM above all other things.

God does not want, external worship without the involving of the heart, he’s not interested in sacrifices that are to placate Him or merely trying to win his approval, he wants our hearts, our wills to be HIS.

And in today’s readings we see this shining through all the readings.

Choose a line from todays readings and really ponder upon it, dwell upon it, absorb it for the essence of our Christian life is here… to respond to His Sweet will and surrender ours to HIS, this in itself is an act of supreme trust in our Beloved.

The entrance antiphon sets the whole tone , it is taken from the letter to the Hebrews.

“The Lord said as he entered the world: Behold O Lord I come to do your will“ ….. IN HIS WILL IS OUR PEACE!.

(Below are the readings from Our Sunday Missal)

First reading

Isaiah 7:10-14,8:10 ©

The Lord spoke to Ahaz and said, ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above.’ ‘No,’ Ahaz answered ‘I will not put the Lord to the test.’

Then he said:

Listen now, House of David:

are you not satisfied with trying the patience of men

without trying the patience of my God, too?

The Lord himself, therefore,

will give you a sign.

It is this: the maiden is with child

and will soon give birth to a son

whom she will call Immanuel,

a name which means ‘God is with us.’

Psalm

Psalm 39:7-11 ©