Living My Encounter with Christ
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Friday of the
Thirty-Second Week in Ordinary Time
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Father Edward Hopkins, LC
Luke 17:26-37
Jesus said to his
disciples: "As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of
the Son of Man; they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in
marriage up to the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed
them all. Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating,
drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; on the day when Lot left
Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all. So it will
be on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, a person who is on the
housetop and whose belongings are in the house must not go down to get them,
and likewise a person in the field must not return to what was left behind.
Remember the wife of Lot. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it,
but whoever loses it will save it. I tell you, on that night there will be
two people in one bed; one will be taken, the other left. And there will be
two women grinding meal together; one will be taken, the other left."
They said to him in reply, "Where, Lord?" He said to them,
"Where the body is, there also the vultures will gather."
Introductory Prayer: I believe in you, Lord, my companion and strength. I believe
that You come out to meet me each day, asking me to depend more on You and
less on creatures. I hope in You, Lord, as the one who fills my longing to
love and be loved. I love You here and now with my prayer and with my desire
to be faithful and generous in the little things You ask of me.
Petition: Lord, help me to put You first in my life.
1. They Were Eating
and Drinking: In the time of Noah
and of Lot, God’s judgment was said to come down upon man. Yet the real
moment of judgment for each one of us comes immediately upon our own death.
It is then that the kingdom will be fully revealed to us, and it will be
decided whether we will be part of it or not. But it is in the course of my
own life that my option for being received into the kingdom is decided. God
comes to me today. How will I respond? My response now and each day
determines my eternal place in the kingdom.
2. Do Not Return to
What Was Left Behind:
In most disasters people have little chance to collect belongings; those who
try are often lost as a result. The same will be true of the Final Judgment –
or at our own death; when Jesus comes, will I be ready? What do I most
cherish? What I must hold on to is my relationship with Christ. And this
implies in so many ways losing “my life” here. Do I live with the attitude of
losing my life a little more each day, detaching myself from things,
activities and people, so as to be freer to love, serve and be with Christ?
3. Where the Body
Is? “Where Lord?” the
disciples ask; where will the day of the Son of man take place? It will take
place, says Jesus, wherever you are. Whether we die and encounter Christ in a
personal judgment or are alive to encounter the Lord at his Second Coming and
the Final Judgment, the reality is the same. Standing next to a saint or a
sinner will not alter our fate. Who we know or what contacts we have will do
little. Where we are in our relationship with Christ will be the only real
determining factor. Where am I, Lord, today, in relationship with you? May
this be my only concern!
Conversation with
Christ: Lord Jesus, increase my desire to live my life
in close relation with You. Order all my activities according to Your will,
and my relationships according to Your heart. “I want whatever You want,
because You want it, the way You want it, as long as You want it” (Prayer of
Pope Clement XI).
Resolution: I will give priority to my relationship with Christ. I will
make prayer my first act today before every meal.
Excerpts from the DIARY of Saint Faustina Kowalska
153 One day, I saw two roads.
One was broad, covered with sand and flowers, full of joy, music and all
sorts of pleasures. People walked along it, dancing and enjoying themselves.
They reached the end without realizing it. And at the end of the road there
was a horrible precipice; that is, the abyss of hell. The souls fell blindly into
it; as they walked, so they fell. And their number was so great that it was
impossible to count them. And I saw the other road, or rather, a path, for it
was narrow and strewn with thorns and rocks; and the people who walked along
it had tears in their eyes, and all kinds of suffering befell them. Some fell
down upon the rocks, but stood up immediately and went on. At the end of the
road there was a magnificent garden filled with all sorts of happiness, and
all these souls entered there. At the very first instant they forgot all
their sufferings.
154 Once, when there was
adoration at the convent of the Sisters of the Holy Family,[50] I went there in the evening with one of
our sisters. As soon as I entered the chapel, the presence of God filled my
soul. I prayed as I do at certain times, without saying a word. Suddenly, I
saw the Lord, who said to me, Know that if you neglect the matter of the
painting of the image and the whole work of mercy, you will have to answer
for a multitude of souls on the day of judgment. After these words of Our
Lord, a certain fear filled my soul, and alarm took hold of me. Try as 1
would, 1 could not calm myself. These words kept resounding in my ears: So, 1
will not only have to answer for myself on the day of judgment, but also for
the souls of others. These words cut deep into my heart. When I returned
home, I went to the little Jesus,[51] fell on my face before the Blessed
Sacrament and said to the Lord, "I will do everything in my power, but I
beg You to be always with me and to give me strength to do Your holy will; for
You can do everything, while I can do nothing of myself."
186 +Today Jesus said to me,
I desire that you know more profoundly the love that burns in My Heart for
souls, and you will understand this when you meditate upon My Passion. Call
upon My mercy on behalf of sinners; I desire their salvation. When you say
this prayer, with a contrite heart and with faith on behalf of some sinner, I
will give him the grace of conversion. This is the prayer:
187 "O Blood and Water,
which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus as a fount of Mercy for us, I
trust in You."
188 During the last days of the
carnival, when I was making a Holy Hour, I saw how the Lord Jesus suffered as
He was being scourged. Oh, such an inconceivable agony! How terribly Jesus
suffered during the scourging! O poor sinners, on the day of judgment how
will you face the Jesus whom you are now torturing so cruelly? His blood
flowed to the ground, and in some places His flesh started to fall off. I saw
a few bare bones on His back. The meek Jesus moaned softly and sighed.
198 On one occasion the Lord
said to me, My daughter, your confidence and love restrain My justice, and
I cannot inflict punishment because you hinder Me from doing so. Oh, how
great is the power of a soul filled with confidence!
274 Jesus gave me the grace of
knowing myself. In this divine light I see my principal fault; it is pride
which takes the form of my closing up within myself and of a lack of
simplicity in my relations with Mother Superior [Irene].
The second light concerns speaking. I sometimes talk too much. A thing could be settled in one or two words, and as for me, I take too much time about it. But Jesus wants me to use that time to say some short indulgenced prayers for the souls in purgatory. And the Lord says that every word will be weighed on the day of judgment.
718 After Holy Communion, I
heard these words:- You see what you are of yourself, but do not be
frightened at this. If I were to reveal to you the whole misery that you are,
you would die of terror. However, be aware of what you are. Because you are
such great misery, I have revealed to you the whole ocean of My mercy. I seek
and desire souls like yours, but they are few. Your great trust in Me forces
Me to continuously grant you graces. You have great and incomprehensible
rights over My Heart, for you are a daughter of complete trust. You would not
have been able to bear the magnitude of the love which I have for you if I
had revealed it to you fully here on earth. I often give you a glimpse of it,
but know that this is only an exceptional grace from Me. My love and mercy
knows no bounds.
719 Today, I heard these words:
Know, my child, that for your sake I grant blessings to this whole
vicinity. But you ought to thank Me on their behalf, as they do not thank Me
for the kindnesses I extend to them. For the sake of your gratitude, I will
continue to bless them.
720 O my Jesus, You know how
difficult community life is, how many misunderstandings and misconceptions,
despite at times the most sincere good will on both sides. But that is Your
mystery, O Lord. We shall know it in eternity; however, our judgments should
always be mild.
723 + Today, I heard these
words: The graces I grant you are not for you alone, but for a great number
of other souls as well... And your heart is My constant dwelling place,
despite the misery that you are. I unite Myself with you, take away your
misery and give you My mercy. I perform works of mercy in every soul. The
greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy. My mercy is
confirmed in every work of My hands. He who trusts in My mercy will not
perish, for all his affairs are Mine, and his enemies will be shattered at
the base of My footstool.
742 My daughter, if I demand
through you that people revere My mercy, you should be the first to
distinguish yourself by this confidence in My mercy. I demand from you deeds
of mercy, which are to arise out of love for Me. You are to show mercy to
your neighbors always and everywhere. You must not shrink from this or try to
excuse or absolve yourself from it.
I am giving you three ways of exercising mercy toward your neighbor: the first-by deed, the second-by word, the third-by prayer. In these three degrees is contained the fullness of mercy, and it is an unquestionable proof of love for Me. By this means a soul glorifies and pays reverence to My mercy. Yes, the first Sunday after Easter is the Feast of Mercy, but there must also be acts of mercy, and I demand the worship of My mercy through the solemn celebration of the Feast and through the veneration of the image which is painted. By means of this image I shall grant many graces to souls. It is to be a reminder of the demands of My mercy, because even the strongest faith is of no avail without works. O my Jesus, You yourself must help me in everything, because You see how very little I am, and so I depend solely on Your goodness, O God.
1074 When I went for adoration, I heard these words: My
beloved daughter, write down these words, that today My Heart has rested in
this convent [the Cracow house]. Tell the world about My mercy and My
love.
The flames of mercy are burning me. I desire to pour them out upon human souls. Oh, what pain they cause Me when they do not want to accept them! My daughter, do whatever is within your power to spread devotion to My mercy. I will make up for what you lack. Tell aching mankind to snuggle close to My merciful Heart, and I will fill it -with peace. Tell [all people], My daughter, that I am Love and Mercy itself. When a soul approaches Me with trust, I fill it with such an abundance of graces that it cannot contain them within itself, but radiates them to other souls.
1075 Souls who spread the honor of My mercy I shield
through their entire lives as a tender mother her infant, and at the hour of
death I will not be a Judge for them, but the Merciful Savior. At that last
hour, a soul has nothing with which to defend itself except My mercy. Happy
is the soul that during its lifetime immersed itself in the Fountain of
Mercy, because justice will have no hold on it.
1076 Write this: Everything that exists is enclosed in
the bowels of My mercy, more deeply than an infant in its mother's womb. How
painfully distrust of My goodness wounds Me! Sins of distrust wound Me most
painfully.
1317 I understand Your words,
Lord, and the magnitude of the mercy that ought to shine in my soul. Jesus:
I know, My daughter, that you understand it and that you do everything within
your power. But write this for the many souls who are often worried because
they do not have the material means with which to carry out an act of mercy.
Yet spiritual mercy, which requires neither permissions nor storehouses, is
much more meritorious and is within the grasp of every soul. If a soul does
not exercise mercy somehow or other, it will not obtain My mercy on the day
of judgment. Oh, if only souls knew how to gather eternal treasure for
themselves, they would not be judged, for they would forestall My judgment
with their mercy.
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-153-154, 186-188, 198, 274
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-718-720, 723, 742)
(Diary
of Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-III-1074-1076, 1317)
http://www.saint-faustina.com/Diary/DMIMS10.shtml
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