More from Deacon Jim on Marriage and Family

What do Catherine of Sienna, Thersa of Avila, and Therese of Lisieux have in common? Not when they lived (500 years apart). Not the economic status of their families. Not formal education. All three were saints, and are Doctors of the Church. These three are the only women who have been elevated to such status. A Doctor of the Church is first recognized as having lead a life of great sanctity and is declared to be a Saint in heaven. Second, a Doctor is recognized as having produced writings through which the entire Church gains great advantage. All three women had only limited formal education, and never considered themselves theologians or scholars. Each of these three imparted a unique understanding of the revelation of God to man that is recognized throughout history. All three came to such profound understandings through the impact of their family life and their personal openess to to the inner teaching of our Lord. It is important to recognize that through the lives and teachings of the family members, they were each schooled in ways of spiritual life that surpasses that of the most important of Universities.

CELEBRATION - Growth in love- 4th stage
MEDITATION- SACRAMENTS-79-MATRIMONY 9
The Church has through the ages of the Old and New Testaments, up to the present age emphasized the need for family in the formation of its children in the ways of the world and in the ways of God. The Hebrew family of the Old Testament was a close knit group, who learned the ways of the world by working with the father and the mother within the household and most daughters became mothers and fulfilled the role taught by their mothers and sons learned their trade from their fathers. In the transmission of spiritual knowledge, the entire family followed the rule of their faith and expressed their devotion through communal, family and personal prayer. As the first Christians, including Jesus, were Hebrew, these traditions passed into the Christian discipline of life.

The importance of family life is well expressed in the Book of Genesis, where, “in the beginning” when God created Eve from the flesh and blood of Adam while he was in an ecstatic state. The ecstatic conjugal union of husband and wife assuring the begetting of children at the same time provides a source of joy and happiness passed on to the children.
This teaching is expressed by the Bishops of the world in the Second Vatican Council document Gaudium et spes (Joy and peace) in 1965. In this document article 50 states; “While not making the other purposes of matrimony of less account, the true practice of conjugal love, and the whole meaning of the family life which results from it, have this aim: that the couple be ready with stout hearts to cooperate with the love of the Creator and the Savior. Who through them will enlarge and enrich His own family day by day.”

In 1981, Pope John Paul II in article 28 of his Apostolic Exhortation; “The Role of the Christian Family in the Modern World.” Writes the following. “The fruitfulness of conjugal love is not restricted solely to the procreation of children, even understood in its specifically human dimension: it is enlarged and enriched by all those fruits of moral, spiritual and supernatural life which the father and mother are called to hand on to their children and through the children to the Church and to the world.”

It is important that during preparation for celebration of the Sacrament of Matrimony that both members of the couple clearly understand that this sacrament is not a matter of their personal fulfillment. Although it is important that each partners are fulfilled through marital union is most importantly about a total giving of self to the spouse throughout life and when children are born, a total giving of both “selves” to each of the children. When this is done with intention and care, not only will children be successful in the world of industry, but they will also be successful in the spiritual world. It is from such determination that saints are made.

Want to enter the tent?

Who shall be admitted to your tent and dwell on your holy mountain?
He who walks without fault;
who acts with justice and speaks the truth from his heart;
who does not slander with his tongue;
who does no wrong to his brother, casts no slur on his neighbor;
who holds the godless in disdain, but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps his pledge, come what may - PS 15

Set an example in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity. Be diligent and absorbed in these matters, so that your progress may be evident to everyone. 1 Tim

Seek the Lord in integrity of heart - Wis. 1

Coming towards a sinless life is like a journey. All along the road we are faced with decisions. Make the right ones, based on a closeness at heart to God, and have faith that you will arrive. Once you decide that you want to go the way instructed by your "good shepherd", you will be constantly tempted to deviate, and must make the right choices when the decision comes. The pattern of consistently making choices in line with God's word is called "attaining sanctification" by the church. It is the road to salvation and the reason the church in both the institution and in the family spends so much time on education.

Pure of Heart

Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God. Mt.
They are happy whose life is blameless. Psalms
If you forgive others their transgressions, your heavenly father will forgive yours. Mt.

Strive to keep the commandments, to keep a soft heart, and to forgive those who have wronged you. But don't go overboard with offering the other cheek. Remember that your life is precious, too.

Do Right and Fear No Man

Guard me as the apple of your eye. Hide me in the shadow of your wings. Ps17:8
From Deut. 32: Our God is faithful, without deceit. Yet basely he has been treated by his children. Is this how you repay your father who created you and established you?

This morning's prayers from the Magnificat: You, God, are the rock on which we stand; uphold those who seek to live justly in places of injustice. You, God, are without deceit. Free those who conceal their hearts in falsehood and betray other's trust.

When we leave our parents and go out into the "real world", we are confronted with the fruits of sin in the form of lies and deception. Many are the sins of humanity. How common it is for modern men to lust after easy money, or undeserved power. Hidden agendas abound. Stay right with God, keep his commandments. He is alive. He is your father. He is saving you. Pray for those who succumb to deception, that they also will be saved.

29+ inches since the drought ended in April. The National weather service will say that "normal" rainfall here is 23 inches a year. What they don't tell you is that there has never been a normal year. The TV will tell you it is global warming. Maybe so. It is still God's creation, and he will do what he will. The old timers around here knew that there never was a "normal" year. Today's title was a favorite saying of my grandfather.

Unless you become like little children, you shall not enter the kingdom of God. Matt.

Children have a gift for wonder. In wondering, we forget ourselves, and praise from the heart comes easy. It is amazing that we, in spite of our faults and weaknesses, are made in God's image and as such are his children; given dominion over the other creatures.

Let it Shine

From Matthew: Jesus says "You are the light of the world. [no one] lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Your light must shine before others, so that they can see your good deeds and glorify God."

Louis Lavelle, a 1950's Christian philosopher and professor from France, suggests a gentle approach to shining. He notes that "The will stiffens when another would bend or break it, but relaxes in the presence of gentleness. Only gentleness wins battles without fighting them, and transforms foes into friends." Remember this when you face opposition. Try to silence the tumult of your own passions, and get your emotional reaction under control. Approach the disagreement in a docile and sensitive way so that you can "follow the subtle and sensitive contours of reality".

On the ranch the cowboys must get the cattle to go into the pens, get on a truck or go through the chute. This is best accomplished not by brutality, which often results in injury, but by keeping the cattle calm and moving at an easy gait.

Due Season

"If you live in accordance with my precepts and are careful to observe my commandments, I will give you rain in due season, so that the land will bear its crops...so that you may dwell securely in your land" Lv 26

20.53 inches of rain since the drought!

Facing Difficulty

Draw your strength from the Lord and from his mighty power. Ephesians.
Rescue me, God, from my foes; protect me from those who attack me. I will sing of your strength and acclaim your love. Psalm 59.
No trial has come to you but what is human. God is faithful and will not let you be tried beyond your strength; but with trial he will also provide a way out, so that you may be able to bear it. 1 Cor.
I have strength for everything from him who empowers me Phil.

I have what the doctors believe to be Multiple Sclerosis. I first noticed something was wrong with my memory because I could not remember how to play classical music on my guitar that I had memorized. This bothered me, but was not overbearing. Then I went completely blind. This was overwhelming. I was totally reliant on others to see for me. Losing your sight is a terrifying and humbling experience. I had to call on my family and friends, and quickly found out who were my true friends. Special thanks to my son Paul, my neighbor Joe, and my brother John. My spirit cried out to God to deliver me. Through the efforts of my brothers the Lord led me to a man who correctly diagnosed the problem and started me on the road to recovery. Although I still couldn't see what I looked directly at, my peripheral vision improved to the point that I could function. To onlookers I was fine, because I could walk around without bumping into things and I learned how to rely upon peripheral vision to tell what I was about. I was still not seeing in color, but I was not able to tell what I was missing directly in front of me. I began praying to Mary, asking her to join me in praying to God for recovery. I started some non-traditional medicine. I went on pilgrimage to Europe to obtain medicine and to bathe at Lourdes. I was truly humble, repentant for my own sinfulness. Slowly the sores on my optic chiasm healed themselves. My vision had returned in full and in color within 6 months of my baths at Lourdes. I really am thankful that God provided a way out of this overpowering trial. I still have difficulty playing my classical repertoire from memory, but I can bear that. I still have lesions on my brain, but they are not getting worse, and some are very slowly healing. MS means sores on the brain, and modern medicine has not figured out yet how they get there or how to heal nerve damage. They are making progress.

The real power and strength lies in God our maker. There is nothing more important in this life than staying close to God, except for being with him after the end of our mortal existence. This is what the church is all about. This is what the sacraments bring us to when they are practiced from the heart.

Doing Good

These heifers are doing it all, thanks to the rain and the good Lord.

The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if only we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him. (Romans)

Death is absolutely certain for every living thing. Getting old is not all it is cracked up to be, since for most of us it involves suffering. In spite of the suffering, we usually prefer it to the alternative. We cry out to our spiritual father in our suffering, and he lovingly points us to the example of his son. If you are suffering, ask yourself if you are doing so with Christ. Examine your conscience to see if it is the result of your sin or the result of someone else's. If it is someone else's, pray for them. Then you will be with Christ. If it is yours, repent. A humble heart devoted to good is the key to enduring the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.

Our spirits live on past this mortal existence, and can live on glorified with Christ. It is up to us.

Trinity Sunday

Worth dying for?

From today's Magnificat reading:
The Catechism teaches that "by sending his only Son and the Spirit of Love in the fullness of time, God has revealed his innermost secret: God himelf is an eternal exchange of love, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and he has destined us to share in that exchange" (221). "The complete Trinity dwells in us" R.P. Philippon). "In the communion of grace with the Trinity, man's 'living area' is broadened and raised up to the supernatural level of divine life. Man lives in and by God" (Pope John Paul II)

Three persons, one God. Hard to understand. Newsflash: even the concept of one God is hard for many people to understand. Much about God is hard to understand. After all, He is God, and we are mere creatures. The sheep in the herd don't really understand the sheperd, it is enough to know he is there and that he takes care of them. Being made in God's image, we keep trying to expand our understanding beyond our reason. We do trust in the wisdom of the ages, and the instructions left by our loving ancestors. We inherit the faith of our fathers when it comes to matters beyong our comprehension. I suppose the islamic jihadists do as well. I wonder what Athanasius and Arius would say if they had foreseen all the trouble that came from their exchange?

Saints Marcellinus and Peter

Today the Church celebrates the martyrdom of these two men who were killed about the year 303. At that time the Church was being persecuted by the Roman emperor Diocletian. It was the period just before Constantine made the Church legal, and the Catholics were hiding in the catacombs. They kept a written record of their martyrs (available at Amazon.com). The Holy Spirit was very active among the Catholics of the period, and Peter (while imprisoned) had exorcised an evil spirit from the daughter of his jailer. It was so impressive an exorcism that the jailer converted, released Peter, and Peter took him and his daughter to Marcellinus, a priest who baptized the jailer, all his family, and his neighbors. The jailer's boss (a judge) was not happy at this conversion story, and had Marcellinus and Peter tortured and murdered for their faith. Just a few years later the Holy Spirit converted Constantine and the martyrs have been publicly venerated by the Church ever since. What an amazing group of believers this Church must have been! Facing torture and death, and performing miracles some 300 years after Christ and the apostles. The Holy Spirit was alive and active within this group so convincingly that even the emperor Constantine eventually became a believer, and had to acknowledge the true power of the Christian God in spite of "political correctness". This is the same Holy Spirit and powerful God that protects and guides the Church through all the ages in spite of the human weaknesses and demonic attacks against its individual members. Too bad that the exorcism of the jailer's daughter isn't available on You Tube!

Read the story at http://www.catholicculture.org/lit/calendar/day.cfm?date=2007-06-02

Deacon Jim on Family

Below is an excerpt from Deacon Jim Breazile's e-mail newsletter. The Deacon is a brilliant man with a sincere vocation and worth listening to.
SPIRITUALITY 101
SPIRITUAL REFLECTION- 232
Rev. Dcn. Jim Breazile OCDS

According to an oriental legend, on the site where Jerusalem was built lived two brothers, one with many children and the other was single and lived alone. Once they gathered their harvest and put the wheat in two piles. One night the single brother thought, “My brother has a large family and needs more wheat than I do; I will put some of my sheaves on his pile.” About an hour later the married brother woke up and thought, “My brother lives alone and doesn’t have anyone to help him in his life. I must do something for him. Taking some of the sheaves from his pile he carried them to that of his brother. Next morning they were both surprised to see that each of the piles remained the same as when they left them the night before.

Family unity is not a relationship that is planned by its members. It is however a seeming necessity of duty of importance to our lives. Family unity is a special bond between members that comes from without. It is a special grace of the Sacrament of matrimony. Because of its recognized importance to unity in society, disunity among family members is considered a seriously sinful state. Family disunity, like all sin, induces a disturbance within family members that reverberates to the world in which we live.

CELEBRATION - Growth in love- 4th stage
MEDITATION- SACRAMENTS-77-MATRIMONY 7

Unity between members of families is a worldly expression of the unity Christ wishes in his Church. In its teachings regarding family unity the Church does not refer to the fulfillment of a commandment or a civil law. The law that each family member recognizes in their hearts is similar to that of the Communist Manifesto which states; “From each in accord with their means to each in accord with their needs.” It is a law that comes from God ordained to the nature of the human family. It is easily recognized that within a family of 5, there are 5 individual personalities with different aims in life and differing requirements for their personal well being. Yet in this family of five there is a unity of heart that each person recognizes as calling them to the obedience of love.

Familial love provides the means by which the dignity of each member can be elevated simply by assisting them to find the true treasure of familial love as sons and daughters of the Lord. Parents represent a visible sign of Gods love. As this love becomes an integral part of family life, it becomes familiar to each child. In this way every family receives its name (Eph 3:15), which is ordained by God. This family name, which scripture indicates extends to families both in heaven and on earth, represents a relationship with God Himself, the source of life and love. Family unity represents a cooperation in God’s salvific mission on earth. Through this cooperation the family unity in love becomes a special form of incarnation within the family members as the central purpose of the Church.

The role of the family in the Church was outlined by Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic Exhortation on the family. In article 17, he writes, “The family finds in the plan of God the Creator and Redeemer not only its identity, what it is, but also its mission, what it can and should do. In this expression he calls all families to ‘become what you are’.” It is necessary therefore to establish as best we can, a clear basic definition of family. It is clear that God establishes the family as a small community of love and unity for a special purpose in his establishment of his Kingdom on earth. The Pope emphasizes that “the essential identity of what the family is can best described as love.”

This definition extends beyond a concept that is limited to unity and mutual love between family members, but must incorporate these characteristics into a larger context. The definition of family as love leads us to the first encyclical letter of Pope Benedict XVI entitled “God is Love.” It is clear that if God is love and family is love that the definition of family takes on more than just a similarity to God, but a means by which God is present on earth. The definition of family as love stretches our imagination and for this reason Paul gives us an indication of how the unity and love within family reveals the mystery of the relationship of Christ to his Church. (Eph. 5:32)

A Sad Day

I buried my beloved Cuckleburr yesterday. My legs for 16 years, an animal who understood what I was thinking by how I held his reins. Never equalled as a cow pony and companion, he was always ready to go and he will be sorely missed.

Why do bad things happen to good horses? I wonder. I do thank God for bringing this wonderful creature into my life and blessing me through him for so many years.