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Welcome to the homepage web site of The Doctors of the Catholic
Church.
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Thursday, September 2nd 2010.
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Hope, trust and confidence are vital for growth in the spiritual life and Peter placed his trust in Jesus in today’s gospel although he may have done it reluctantly.
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Gospel updates and readings are daily taken from the liturgical calendar below.
Today’s
Readings
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Hymn I
Lord of All Hopefulness 560 N
Lord of all hopefulness, Lord of all joy,
Whose trust, ever childlike, no care can destroy,
Be there at our waking, and give us, we pray,
Your bliss in our hearts, Lord, at the break of day.
Lord of all eagerness, Lord of all faith,
Whose strong hands were skilled at the plane and lathe,
Be there at our labors, and give us we pray,
Your strength in our hearts, Lord, at the noon of day.
Text and Tune: Jan Struther, 1901-1953; Oxford Univ Press
Slane, etc Gaelic; harm. by Erik Routley, 1917-1982; 1975 Hope Pub.,Co
Gather GIA Pub., Inc., Chicago, 2004.
Reflection
We can never underestimate the precious gift of Hope as evidence from the below information.
Hope gives us unfailing support; hope imparts confidence. To understand the practical importance of the virtue of hope, let us note the most common and most dangerous obstacle in the way of perfection. This is discouragement resulting from the faults, the temptations, the aridities, found in every spiritual life. It reduces fervor and generosity, and impedes progress to perfection. While we have confidence, any obstacles can be overcome, any sacrifice is easily made, and our struggles are crowned with victory. But when discouragement invades the soul it is without energy or support, and thus easily deterred, misguided, and confused.
The more we advance in the spiritual life, the stronger must be our hope, for the struggles become more terrible, the sacrifices greater, and the intimate operations of graced more profound and more difficult to understand.
Let us now analyze the relationship between the Holy Spirit and the virtue of hope. The Spirit is not only light and fire. He is also strength; He is the spiritual unction that invigorates those who struggle on earth, the strength of the Most High, the Gift of the omnipotent right hand of the Father. If we wish to consecrate ourselves to Him, it is not enough that we never take our eyes off His light and that our heart be always open to the holy effusions of His love: It is necessary also that our arm received the support of His most strong arm, that, like the spouse of the Canticles we come out of the desert of our need by the luminous path of faith, enraptured by the delights of charity and supported on the arm of the Beloved, the arm of hope. Hope puts us in communion with the strength of the Most high and open our soul to all the supernatural aids of which the Spirit is the living and inexhaustible source.
Hope is a supernatural capacity for receiving the Holy Spirit, who aids and sanctifies, with all the divine streams that spring from this fountain. When He Himself has satisfied the thirst of our soul, our hope is fulfilled, for He is the Spirit of the promise and the pledge of our inheritance as we have heard from the lips of St. Paul. - Taken from The Doctors and Holy Spirit.
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1st Reading: 1 Cor 3:18-23
Brothers and sisters:
Let no one deceive himself.
If anyone among you considers himself wise in this age,
let him become a fool, so as to become wise.
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness in the eyes of God,
for it is written:
God catches the wise in their own ruses,
and again:
The Lord knows the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain.
So let no one boast about human beings, for everything belongs to you,
Paul or Apollos or Cephas,
or the world or life or death,
or the present or the future:
all belong to you, and you to Christ, and Christ to God.
Reflection
After some of the saints received supernatural light from God on some of their writings, that many considered masterpieces, they realized that anything that they wrote was insignificant when compared to the old and new testaments especially the words of Jesus writing in the gospels by the four evangelists.
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Psalm 24
R. (1) To the Lord belongs the earth and all that fills it.
The LORD's are the earth and its fullness;
the world and those who dwell in it.
For he founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the rivers. R
Who can ascend the mountain of the LORD?
or who may stand in his holy place?
He whose hands are sinless, whose heart is clean,
who desires not what is vain. R
He shall receive a blessing from the LORD,
a reward from God his savior.
Such is the race that seeks for him,
that seeks the face of the God of Jacob. R
Reflection
In our spiritual journey, we are asked to ascend. God is asking us to come up higher. Look ahead, and never down or back. We are asked not only to climb a mountain, but “the” mountain of the Lord. This is a spiritual mountain that is steep, high, rugged and fraught with spiritual dangers, traps, detours and even ambushes and surprises from the unexpectant. Jesus’ personal friend, St John the Baptist, tells us that Christ must become more and more and we must become less and less. We need to trust in him as we develop in the spiritual life. Christ told Peter to “Put out into deep water” because we must be prepared for the unknown and that can connote a dimension of mystery. Our whole life is often confusing at times and our ups and downs, with many challenges that are not only hidden but often unknown. Confidence and hope will certainly help us to reach our final destination when God guides us with his grace, strength and assurance. “He provides a reward for his servants. Such is the race that seeks for him” .
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Luke 5:11
While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God,
he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret.
He saw two boats there alongside the lake;
the fishermen had disembarked and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."
Simon said in reply,
"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets."
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
They came and filled both boats
so that the boats were in danger of sinking.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."
For astonishment at the catch of fish they had made seized him
and all those with him,
and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee,
who were partners of Simon.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.
Reflection
Hope, expectation and anticipation all lead to achievement and are important to reach our goals and aims in life. But, of the three, hope is the most precious gift of God and inspires us with great confidence in reaching our spiritual aims and is most pleasing to God.
Peter obeyed Jesus in what seemed like an impossible situation because he was the most experienced and expert fisherman and by all logic knew more than the carpenter from Nazareth about how to catch fish. But he trusted in Jesus’ words and had confidence in Christ and was not disappointed.
We too have to listen carefully to what God is speaking in our hearts as well as our minds. We can never have too much confidence in God. Communication with God is a two way conversation, a heart to heart exchange and requires time and silence not because we are going to hear the voice of God but God often communicate in a spiritual, holy darkness and often a spiritual night. The below hymn sums it up quiet aptly.
Rx Holy darkness, blessed night,
Heaven’s answer hidden from our sight.
As we await you, O God of silence,
We embrace your holy night.
I have tried you in fires of affliction;
I have taught your soul to grieve.
In the barren soil of your loneliness,
there I will plant my seed. Rx
In your deepest hour of darkness
I will give you wealth untold.
When the silence stills your spirit,
will my riches fill your soul.Rx
Source: http://www.musiklus.com/anthology-catalog/joyful-is-the-dark
Peter and the Apostles were chosen to complete God’s holy will and whatever we are called to do, we need to listen, pray, and obey Jesus, and have confidence in what he communicates to us. The more we turn to God in determining our calling in life, that is always changing or being altered to some degee daily, the more God will communicate to us and give us our “daily bread” to supply both physical strength and spiritual energy.
The more serious we are to know and understand God’s plan for us, whether we are eight or eighty, the more God will see to it that you possess all the necessary means and wisdom to reach that destination. Hope is the relying, and trusting in God’s infinite goodness and promise and is more than we can ever imagine for our good and happiness.
Expectations and anticipations are valuable means for personal development but hope is more pure, requires more confidence, and will “lift our hearts and spirits to the top” to meet any spiritual challenges that are often intermingled with our human and divine goals. Our Faith will lay the foundation and love will give us the intimacy that our heart crave from our God but hope is a sure, confident, and spiritual treasure when the going gets rough.
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The Calendar contains the daily liturgical readings, the lives of the saints, audio inclusions, and many other devotions. Praying and spiritual reading can motivate and inspire us to experience Christ and be aware of his Spirit that will help us to imitate Christ all the more.
Calendar includes: Agricola of Avignon, Antoninus of Pamiers, Antoninus of Syria, The 191 Martyr’s of September, Brocard, Castor of Apt, Elpidius the Cappadocian, Ingrid of Sweden, Justus of Lyon, Margaret of Louvain, Maxima, B Solomon le Clerq, and William of Roskilde
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Calendar of Saints
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Hymn II
Lord of all kindliness, Lord of all grace,
Your hands swift to welcome, your arms to embrace,
Be there at our homing, and give us we pray,
Your love in our hearts, Lord, at the eve of the day.
Lord of all gentleness, Lord of all calm,
Whose voice is content, whose presence is balm,
Be there at our sleeping, and give us, we pray,
Your peace in our hearts, Lord, the end of the day.
Text and Tune: Jan Struther, 1901-1953; Oxford Univ Press,
Slane, etc Gaelic; harm. by Erik Routley, 1917-1982; 1975 Hope Pub.,Co Gather GIA Pub., Inc., Chicago, 2004.
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Lord Jesus Christ told Sister Pierina, a nun that fostered the Holy Face devotion.
"Whoever gazes upon my face already consoles Me." See link
below. The holy face of Jesus from the Shroud of Turin is considered an
esteemed and sacred relic and can be viewed in the link below.
THE
HOLY FACE OF JESUS
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Separate websites below
VATICAN
APOSTLES OF THE LORD
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The below web site information is taken from the book (322 pages) entitled The Sanctifier by the late Archbishop Luis Martinez of Mexico.
Father wrote and spoke about what happened to him personally, in the style of St Teresa – or better, of St. John of the Cross, from whom he quoted both, among many other doctors
and biblical text extensively.
THE DOCTORS AND HOLY SPIRIT
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Scores of books including:
THE IMITATION OF CHRIST
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ROMAN
CATHOLIC SACRED MUSIC
Email tommyferris1@yahoo.com
The
background music is Andrea Bocelli's "Ave Maria".
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The Stations of the Cross, a devotion that the Church encourages especially during the Lenten Season, is offered below through a wide variety.<br><br>
<a href=http://www.doctorsofthecatholicchurch.com/TDATSOTC.html><font color=red>The Stations of the Cross</font></a><br><br>
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