Daily Thoughts: Last year at this time I
had just returned from a pilgrimage to Lourdes. Over the last two weeks I have
thought a lot about that journey last year and how it changed my relationship
with Mary. She was very present during my travels last year especially during
my time in Lourdes. While some might wonder why we pray through Mary to Jesus
or the Father, or the Holy Spirit, it became very evident to me while in
Lourdes that Mary has played and continues to play a very important role in my relationship
with God and in all our relationships with God. The richness of her life, her
presence and her place in the Body of Christ, in the Church and in the living
of everyday life is very important. She is a touch stone to the presence of God
in our life. I am glad to celebrate the gift of her love to us today on the
Feast of the Assumption of Mary.
As we celebrate today I turn to some
words by Benedict our Pope Emeritus in offering you some faith food for the
journey of life today…
“Mary is a woman who loves. How could it
be otherwise? As a believer who in faith thinks with God's thoughts and wills
with God's will, she cannot fail to be a woman who loves. We sense this in her
quiet gestures, as recounted by the infancy narratives in the Gospel. We see it
in the delicacy with which she recognizes the need of the spouses at Cana and
makes it known to Jesus. We see it in the humility with which she recedes into
the background during Jesus' public life, knowing that the Son must establish a
new family and that the Mother's hour will come only with the Cross, which will
be Jesus' true hour (cf. John 2:4; 13:1). When the disciples flee, Mary will
remain beneath the Cross (cf. John 19:25-27); later, at the hour of Pentecost,
it will be they who gather around her as they wait for the Holy Spirit (cf.
Acts 1:14).” (Pope Benedict XVI)
Happy Feast of the Assumption of Mary
everyone and may the spirit of Mary enliven your journey of faith!
Daily Prayer:
Friends as we pause for prayer today let
us turn to Mary and ask for the gift of her spirit to guide our journey through
life…
Dearest Mary who carried Christ in her
womb and accompanied the first steps of the Church, may you help us to place
Christ and his community called church always at the center of our life and our
ministry. O Mary, who was the first and
the most perfect disciple of your Son, may your spirit help us to let ourselves
be loved by Christ and to follow and serve Him in every situation. Loving Mary
who responded to the announcement of the Angel with the most profound humility,
may your spirit help us to recognize our own inadequateness within the treasure
that has been entrusted to us and to always live humbly in the presence of God.
Amen!
A Runner’s Thoughts: Remember – “Last is
just the slowest winner.” (C. Hunter Boyd) “Runners just do it – they run for the
finish line even if someone else has reached it first.” (Anonymous) “The body does not want you to do this.
As you run, it tells you to stop but the mind must be strong. You always go too
far for your body. You must handle the pain with strategy… It is not age; it is
not diet. It is the will to succeed.” (Jacqueline Gareau) And so too in the spiritual life…
Daily Blessing: Saturday blessings and
greetings to all! I find myself this morning in Long Beach, New York and it was
interesting waking up this morning to the sound of the ocean. It looks like it
is going to be another beautiful day, the sun is out, the humidity is low and
there is a lot of energy in the air. It is the kind of day that calls to you,
“Get up there is much to do and see and learn today!” I hope that same is true
where you are today and that you will get a little chance to go out and take a
little walk and smell the flowers. Just don’t stay inside all day because there
is much to see and do and learn wherever you are today.
I know that my life has been touched by Mary’s
presence often. So in the spirit of the Feast of the Assumption I pray that God
will bless you with the humble and loving spirit of Mary’s presence in your
life today. That you will be touched by the compassion, nurturing, loving and
joyful spirit of Mary as you journey through this day and always. May Mary the
Mother of Jesus, always bring your struggles, your needs to her loving Son
turning the ordinary water of life into the extraordinary wine of God’s love!
My prayer for all of you today is that
you too will find the gift of peace and joy through the intercession of Mary as
you journey through life today and always. Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul
No comments:
Post a Comment