Preparing for Christmas
Second Sunday of
Advent (December 9, 2012).
Father Frank Formolo, LC
Luke
3:1-6
In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius
Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of
Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and
Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of
Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the
wilderness. And he went into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming a
baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. As it is written in the book
of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness:‘
Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Every valley shall be
filled, and every mountain and hill shall be made low, and the crooked shall
become straight, and the rough places shall become level ways, and all flesh
shall see the salvation of God.’”
Introductory Prayer: Lord, You have given me a new day. You have
given me a new opportunity to prepare myself for Your coming. I believe that
You will be with me as I continue my preparation for Your coming. My heart is
too often divided and pulled in many directions, but I wish to set my heart
totally on You so that I may love You above all else. Here I am, Lord, to know
You and love You more.
Petition: Lord, help me to embrace the proper means to
prepare myself for your birth.
1. John’s Preparation: John the Baptist ate locusts and wild honey.
He wore a camel’s skin and lived in the desert. In this manner he prepared
himself for Christ’s coming. He had removed himself from the world and all its
temptations. He had forfeited his home, family, friends, money, food—anything
that would take him from fulfilling his call to prepare the way of the Lord.
Compared with John, how deep is my commitment? What price am I prepared to pay
to be his messenger?
2. John’s Preaching: John invites sinners to repentance. Thousands
flock to hear him. His words move the people to listen. Probably more so does
his example: the people see him living in the desert without the comforts of
the world. By his actions they see he is truly a prophet. He has come before
them so he can rightly call them to conversion. His life has strength and
meaning that is not found in others. If we could be authentic and lead by our
example, how many more people would be moved to follow Christ!
3. John’s Repentance: Those who recognize their sins go to John to
be baptized. For John, baptism is a symbol of repentance: the people recognize
their sins and ask God for forgiveness. John knows that he cannot forgive sins,
but he realizes that it is important for everyone to take the step of being
sorry and asking God to forgive them. John tells us clearly that it is Jesus
Christ, the Lamb of God, who will forgive sins. He doesn’t try to obtain
forgiveness in another way. He doesn’t try to circumvent God’s plan. God has
given us the sacrament of confession for the forgiveness of our sins. How often
do I take advantage of it? Am I faithful to frequent confession, or perhaps do
I look elsewhere for the grace that only comes from confession?
Conversation with
Christ: Lord, often I fall into the ways of the world,
letting myself get caught up in its comforts and vanities. Teach me that only
one thing matters: You and the life You promised us. Help me to use this Advent
to prepare for Your coming by detaching myself from the ways of the world and
by being an example of Christian living for those whom I encounter. Help me to
be always faithful to my frequent confession.
Resolution: Today I will make a sacrifice, foregoing a
comfort or something I really like, and offer it up to God in reparation for
sins––especially my own.
Excerpts from the DIARY of Saint Faustina
Kowalska
117 I will mention here that those who live with such a
person should not add external sufferings; for indeed, when the soul's cup is
full, the little drop we may add to it may be the one drop too much, and the
cup of bitterness will overflow. And who will answer for such a soul? Let us
beware of adding to the suffering of others, because that is displeasing to the
Lord. If the sisters or the superiors knew or even suspected that a soul was
suffering such trials, and they nevertheless added still other sufferings, they
would be sinning gravely, and God himself would demand an account of them on
behalf of such a soul. I am not speaking here of instances which of their very
nature are sinful, but of things which in other circumstances would not be
sinful. Let us be on our guard against having the weight of such a soul on our
conscience. This is a grave and common defect in religious life; namely, that
when one sees a suffering soul, one always wants to add even more suffering. I
do not say that everyone acts like this, but there are some. We take the
liberty of passing all sorts of judgments, and we repeat them when we would do
better to remain silent.
146 Prayer.-A soul arms itself by prayer for all kinds of combat.
In whatever state the soul may be, it ought to pray. A soul which is pure and
beautiful must pray, or else it will lose its beauty; a soul which is striving
after this purity must pray, or else it will never attain it; a soul which is
newly converted must pray, or else it will fall again; a sinful soul, plunged
in sins, must pray so that it might rise again. There is no soul which is not
bound to pray, for every single grace comes to the soul through prayer.
180 +During Advent, a great yearning for God arose in my
soul. My spirit rushed toward God with all its might. During that time, the
Lord gave me much light to know His attributes.
The first attribute which the Lord gave me to know is His
holiness. His holiness is so great that all the Powers and Virtues tremble
before Him. The pure spirits veil their faces and lose themselves in unending
adoration, and with one single word they express the highest form of adoration;
that is-Holy... The holiness of God is poured out upon the Church of God and upon
every living soul in it, but not in the same degree. There are souls who are
completely penetrated by God, and there are those who are barely alive.
The second kind of knowledge which the Lord granted me
concerns His justice. His justice is so great and penetrating that it reaches
deep into the heart of things, and all things stand before Him in naked truth, and nothing can
withstand Him.
The third attribute is love and mercy. And I understood that
the greatest attribute is love and mercy. It unites the creature with the
Creator. This immense love and abyss of mercy are made known in the Incarnation
of the Word and in the Redemption [of humanity], and it is here that I saw this
as the greatest of all God's attributes.
282 Once the Lord said to me, My
Heart was moved by great mercy towards you, My dearest child, when I saw you
torn to shreds because of the great pain you suffered in repenting for your
sins. I see your love, so pure and true that I give you first place among the
virgins. You are the honor and glory of My Passion. I see every abasement of
your soul, and nothing escapes my attention. I lift up the humble even to my
very throne, because I want it so.
God, One in the Holy Trinity.
362
+One day, during the morning meditation, I heard this voice: I myself am
your director; I was, I am, and I will be. And since you asked for visible
help, I chose and gave you a director even before you had asked, for My work
required this. Know that the faults you commit against him wound My Heart. Be
especially on your guard against self-willfulness; even the smallest thing
should bear the seal of obedience.
With
a crushed and humbled heart I begged forgiveness of Jesus for these faults. I
also
begged
pardon of my spiritual director and resolved to do nothing rather than to do
many things wrongly.
388 See what grace and reflection made
out of the greatest criminal. He who is dying has much love: "Remember me
when You are in paradise." Heartfelt repentance immediately transforms the
soul. The spiritual life is to be lived earnestly and sincerely.
423 Praise the Lord, my soul, for
everything, and glorify His mercy, for His goodness is without end. Everything
will pass, but His mercy is without limit or end. And although evil will attain
its measure, in mercy there is no measure.
O my God, even in the punishments You
send down upon the earth I see the abyss of Your mercy, for by punishing us
here on earth You free us from eternal punishment. Rejoice, all you creatures,
for you are closer to God in His infinite mercy than a baby to its mother's heart.
O God, You are compassion itself for the greatest sinners who sincerely repent.
The greater the sinner, the greater his right to God's mercy.
717 All night long, I was preparing to
receive Holy Communion, since I could not sleep because of physical suffering.
My soul was flooded with love and repentance.
793 I am reliving these moments with
Our Lady. With great longing, I am waiting for the Lord's coming. Great are my
desires. I desire that all humankind come to know the Lord. I would like to
prepare all nations for the coming of the Word Incarnate. O Jesus, make the
fount of Your mercy gush forth more abundantly, for humankind is seriously ill
and thus has more need than ever of Your compassion. You are a bottomless sea
of mercy for us sinners; and the greater the misery, the more right we have to
Your mercy. You are a fount which makes all creatures happy by Your infinite
mercy.
852 Today the Lord's gaze shot through
me suddenly, like lightning. At once, I came to know the tiniest specks in my
soul, and knowing the depths of my misery, I fell to my knees and begged the
Lord's pardon, and with great trust I immersed myself in His infinite mercy. Such
knowledge does not depress me nor keep me away from the Lord, but rather it arouses
in my soul greater love and boundless trust. The repentance of my heart is
linked to love. These extraordinary flashes from the Lord educate my soul. O
sweet rays of God, enlighten me to the most secret depth, for I want to arrive
at the greatest possible purity of heart and soul.
908 + O Jesus, how sorry I feel for
poor sinners. Jesus, grant them contrition and repentance. Remember Your own
sorrowful Passion. I know Your infinite mercy and cannot bear it that a soul
that has cost You so much should perish. Jesus, give me the souls of sinners;
let Your mercy rest upon them. Take everything away from me, but give me souls.
I want to become a sacrificial host for sinners. Let the shell of my body
conceal my offering, for Your Most Sacred Heart is also hidden in a Host, and
certainly You are a living sacrifice.
Transform me into Yourself, O Jesus,
that I may be a living sacrifice and pleasing to You. I desire to atone at each
moment for poor sinners. The sacrifice of my spirit is hidden under the veil of
the body; the human eye does not perceive it, and for that reason it is pure
and pleasing to You. O my Creator and Father of great mercy, I trust in You,
for You are Goodness Itself. Souls, do not be afraid of God, but trust in Him,
for He is good, and His mercy is everlasting.
934 Small practices for Lent. Although
I wish and desire to do so, I cannot practice big
mortification's as before, because I am
under the strict surveillance of the doctor. But I can practice little things:
first-sleep without a pillow; keep myself a little hungry; every day, with my
arms outstretched, say the chaplet which the Lord taught me; occasionally, with
arms outstretched, for an indefinite period of time pray informally. Intention:
to beg divine mercy for poor sinners, and for priests, the power to bring
sinful hearts to repentance.
1052 O my Jesus, I beg You on behalf
of the whole Church: Grant it love and the light of Your Spirit, and give power
to the words of priests so that hardened hearts might be brought to repentance
and return to You, O Lord. Lord, give us holy priests; You yourself maintain them
in holiness. O Divine and Great High Priest, may the power of Your mercy
accompany them everywhere and protect them from the devil's traps and snares
which are continually being set for the souls of priests. May the power of Your
mercy, O Lord, shatter and bring to naught all that might tarnish the sanctity
of priests, for You can do all things.
1248 I experience a desire to make
reparation to the Lord Jesus in a way which corresponds [to the offense]. Today
I wore a chain belt for seven hours in order to obtain the grace of repentance
for that soul. In the seventh hour I felt relief as the soul experienced
interiorly the remission of its sin, although it had not yet gone to
confession. For sins of the flesh, I mortify the body and fast to the degree
that I am permitted. For sins of pride, I pray with my forehead touching the
floor. For sins of hatred, I pray and do some good deed for a person whom I
find difficult. And thus I make amends according to the nature of the sin of which
I am aware.
1521 The Lord said to me, My
daughter, do not tire of proclaiming My mercy. In this way you will refresh
this Heart of Mine, which burns with a flame of pity for sinners. Tell My
priests that hardened sinners will repent on hearing their words when they speak
about My unfathomable mercy, about the compassion I have for them in My Heart.
To priests who proclaim and extol My mercy, I will give wondrous power; I will
anoint their words and touch the hearts of those to whom they will speak.
1698 l often attend upon the dying and
through entreaties obtain for them trust in God's mercy, and I implore God for
an abundance of divine grace, which is always victorious. God's mercy sometimes
touches the sinner at the last moment in a wondrous and mysterious way. Outwardly,
it seems as if everything were lost, but it is not so. The soul, illumined by a
ray of God's powerful final grace, turns to God in the last moment with such a
power of love that, in an instant, it receives from God forgiveness of sin and
punishment, while outwardly it shows no sign either of repentance or of
contrition, because souls [at that stage] no longer react to external things.
Oh, how beyond comprehension is God's mercy! But-horror!- there are also souls
who voluntarily and consciously reject and scorn this grace! Although a person
is at the point of death, the merciful God gives the soul that interior vivid
moment, so that if the soul is willing, it has the possibility of returning to
God. But sometimes, the obduracy in souls is so great that consciously they
choose hell; they [thus] make useless all the prayers that other souls offer to
God for them and even the efforts of God Himself...
1702 Towards the end of the Way of the
Cross which I was making, the Lord Jesus began to complain about the souls of
religious and priests, about the lack of love in chosen souls. I will
allow convents and churches to be destroyed. I answered, "Jesus, but
there are so many souls praising You in convents." The Lord answered, That
praise wounds My Heart, because love has been banished from convents.
Souls without love and without devotion, souls full of egoism and
self-love, souls full of pride and arrogance, souls full of deceit and
hypocrisy, lukewarm souls who have just enough warmth to keep them
alive: My Heart cannot bear this. All the graces that I pour out upon
them flow off them as off the face of a rock. I cannot stand them, because
they are neither good or bad. I called convents into being to sanctify the world
through them. It is from them that a powerful flame of love and sacrifice should
burst forth. And if they do not repent and become enkindled by their first love,
I will deliver them over to the fate of this world...
How can they sit on
the promised throne of judgment to judge the world, when
their guilt is
greater than the guilt of the world? There is neither penance nor
atonement. O heart,
which received Me in the morning and at noon are all ablaze
with hatred against
Me, hatred of all sorts! O heart specially chosen by Me, were
you chosen for this,
to give Me more pain? The great sins of the world are
superficial wounds on
My Heart, but the sins of a chosen soul pierce My Heart
through and
through...
1728 Write: I am Thrice Holy, and I
detest the smallest sin. I cannot love a soul which is stained with sin; but
when it repents, there is no limit to My generosity toward it. My mercy
embraces and justifies it. With My mercy, I pursue sinners along all their
paths, and My Heart rejoices when they return to Me. I forget the bitterness with
which they fed My Heart and rejoice at their return.
Tell sinners that no
one shall escape My Hand; if they run away from My Merciful
Heart, they will fall
into My Just Hands. Tell sinners that I am always waiting for
them, that I listen
intently to the beating of their heart... when will it beat for Me?
Write, that I am
speaking to them through their remorse of conscience, through
their failures and
sufferings, through thunderstorms, through the voice of the
Church. And if they
bring all My graces to naught, I begin to be angry with them,
leaving them alone
and giving them what they want.
1766 During this reading, my soul was
filled with deep repentance. I saw all the ingratitude of creatures toward
their Creator and Lord; I asked God to protect me from spiritual blindness.
Conference on Sacrifice and Prayer.
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-I-117, 146, 180, 282, 362, 388, 423)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-II-717, 793, 852, 908, 934)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-III-1052)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-IV-1248)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-V-1521)
(Diary of
Sister Faustina Kowalska Notebook-VI-1698, 1702, 1728, 1766)
http://www.saint-faustina.com/Diary/DMIMS10.shtml
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