Daily Thoughts and a Blessing - 08/09/2014

Daily Thoughts: Good morning everyone! I trust at this moment you are in the midst of a nice restful night but I am up and getting ready for another full day in France. 

We had a wonderful day yesterday beginning with mass in the Chapel of St. Bernadette in the Convent of St. Gildard of the Sisters of Charity of Nevers. St. Bernadette's body is in repose in the chapel. It is a beautiful little chapel and it was a moving celebration of the Eucharist. There is also a little Grotto outside the chapel where I lit four candles, one for my sister, Bernadette, one for my grand niece, Emilia Bernadette, and one each for my mother and father. There is also a little museum about St. Bernadette. It was just a nice way to begin our day. 

Next we walked down into the middle of Nevers to the Cathedral of St. Cyr and Ste. Judith. These two saints were mother and son martyred in the 3rd Century during the Roman persecutions. After visiting the cathedral we had time to walk around and see the city and get lunch. After lunch we journey some 300 km to the town of Tours which is where we will begin our journey today.

We will be visiting two rather famous castles today, the Chateau De Chenonceau and the Chateau D'Amboise. We will be having mass this afternoon the Church of Notre Dame La Ricche back in Tours where we will spent our second night.

So a wonderful day yesterday. In our free time I made my way back the St. Bernadette's Chapel for a little more time of prayer. It is a very peaceful place. There is a retreat house on the grounds and I have the though of returning to make a retreat some day!

Daily Blessing: Well friends as you rise this morning I hope you will be having a great day! In my journeys I pray that God will bless your Saturday with much grace, much rest and relaxation and much peace. May your day be blessed with the richness of family, friends and life. From on the Road in France - Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul  

Daily Thoughts from France - 08/08/2014

Daily Thoughts: Good morning everyone! While most of you are fast asleep we are beginning a new day of pilgrimage. Yesterday was a long bus ride from Lourdes to Nevers. We first celebrated mass in Lourdes and then boarded to bus about 9 am and arrived in Nevers at about 6:30 pm with a few stops to stretch our legs and get nourishment along the way. 

Today is the last part of our journey that touches on the gift of Lourdes as we trace the final footsteps of St. Bernadette. I don't know if my father passed through Nevers during the war but I think I will sense his spirit today as he was so proud of his daughter, Bernadette. It will truly be a morning in the spirit of God, Mary, Bernadette and my Dad in Nevers.

Now Nevers, France is the town where St. Bernadette spent the last 13 years of her life with the Sisters of Charity of Nevers. She is buried in Nevers, in fact this morning we will be celebrating mass in the Chapel of St. Bernadette where her uncorrupted body is buried. It will be a special morning as I will remember in a special way my sister Bernadette and my grand niece Emilia Bernadette in a special way at mass. I will remember all those named Bernadette or who look to St, Bernadette in a special way.

After mass will be get a walking tour of the convent where St. Bernadette lived the last years of her life, the town of Nevers and then get a little lunch. After  a little nourishment it will be back on the bus for a three hour trip to Tours, France where we will spend the next two nights.  

Daily Blessing: My prayers remain with all of you as I make this wonderful journey. I pray today for blessings upon your day, wherever you might find yourself. May God bless your day with much grace and many opportunities to encounter God's presence in the things you do, in the people you meet and in yourself! May your day be rich in faith, hope, joy and much love! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul 

Daily Thoughts - 08/07/2014

Daily Thoughts and Blessing: Good morning all! It has been a wonderful two days here in Lourdes. It will be very sad to leave in a few hours. I could stay here a week but we have to get on with our journey. There are new places to see, new people to meet, new stories to live!

Yesterday, we had mass in the Chapel of St. Anne which is in the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception  and we celebrated the Feast of the Transfiguration. From there we got a three hour walking tour of Lourdes, visiting the home of St, Bernadette, all the churches that make up the holy ground here in Lourdes and we got a very good telling of Bernadette's story. Our tour end at the local parish in Lourdes which houses the baptismal font in which St. Bernadette was baptized.

The rest of the day we had for our own story and I spent most of my time on the grounds of the Grotto. Again I was overcome by my father's presence. I attended the Eucharistic procession at 5:00 pm and the Candle Light Rosary procession at 9:00 pm as I had done the night before. Once again my day ended with a trip to the Grotto at midnight! I pictured my Dad standing quietly in prayer as I was...enough said!

Today we leave Lourdes and head to Nevers where St. Bernadette is buried. It is an 800 km trip so we will be spending most of our time on the bus. But first we have mass in the St. Joan of Arc chapel in the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception before we board our bus for the days journey. We will celebrate a mass in honor of Mary giving thanks for this special time in Lourdes.

As always you continue to be in my prayers. For all of you in the US have a restful and peaceful night and I pray your day tomorrow will be blessed with the gifts of God's grace, hope, joy, and love!

Blessings to all...Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul  

Daily Thoughts - 08/05/2014

Daily Thought: It was a long day yesterday but well worth it. I felt my father's presence as I walked through Lourdes yesterday afternoon and evening. I could not help but picture him some seventy plus years ago standing perhaps in the same place I was. He too was making a pilgrimage of sorts at the time. It was the middle of World War II. His thoughts were of getting home safely and starting a family. He asked Mary for her help. He made it home and I was standing here yesterday because of his prayer and his faith.

It was very moving to walk through the streets of Lourdes, to stop and pray near the Grotto. I found myself wandering into the Sacrament of Reconciliation,. I found myself standing amongst many other pilgrimages with tears in my eyes, just feeling very thankful and in the presence of Mary and God!

It was profoundly moving to walk and pray in the candle light procession last night. I ended my long day by making my way back to the Grotto last night around midnight a beautiful and faith filled conclusion to a long day!

We have mass in the Chapel of St. Ann which is located in the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception this morning and we tour Lourdes and once again have the afternoon free. 

All of you continue to be in my prayers especially in this holy place. Have a great day everyone and may you be blessed with the richness of God's grace and love as you journey through our day today! Peace in Christ's Passion...Fr. Paul 

Daily Thoughts - 08/04/2014

Daily Thoughts: Some thoughts on faith…

“Faith is about doing. You are how you act, not just how you believe.” (Mitch Albom)

“There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever.” And “Faith is not something to grasp, it is a state to grow into.” (Mahatma Gandhi)

“Those who have courage and faith shall never perish in misery” (Anne Frank)

“Faith is taking the first step even when you can't see the whole staircase.” (Martin Luther King Jr.)

For the last few years I have always defined faith as staking your life on the promises of God!

Perhaps these are but different words to say what Jesus says on our Gospel today! Have a great day everyone!

Daily Prayer: Lord God, we have no idea where we are going. We do not see the road ahead of us. We cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do we really know ourselves, and the fact that we think that we are following your will does not mean that we are actually doing so. But we believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And we hope we have that desire in all that we are doing. We hope that we will never do anything apart from that desire. And we know that if we do this you will lead us by the right road though we may know nothing about it. Therefore will we trust you always though we may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. We will not fear, for you are ever with us, and you will never leave us to face our perils alone. (Adapted from a prayer by Thomas Merton)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “There is something magical about running; after a certain distance, it transcends the body. Then a bit further, it transcends the mind. A bit further yet, and what you have before you, laid bare, is the soul.” (Kristin Armstrong)

Daily Blessing: Monday blessings to all wherever this day finds you! I hope you had a good weekend and that you dedicate a little time to God.

It is a beautiful day here in Pelham and I hope the same is true where you are. I will be headed to the airport in just a couple of hours because the day has finally arrived. If all goes well at 5:05 pm this afternoon it will be wheels up at JFK and our little group will begin our journey to Lourdes and other place throughout the French countryside. Please pray for a little group of 15, pray that we have a safe and grace filled journey. Once again if there are any intentions that I can take for you to Lourdes please pass them along to me. I have received some those who sent them can be assured that I will place them before Mary during my prayer time at Lourdes.

I will try to post each day of the trip but I don’t know whether wifi will be available, but whenever I can I will let you in on our journey! Please know that you will be in my prayers!

Well, friends have a great Monday whether you are at work, home, on vacation or some place in between. May God bless your day hope, joy, faith and much love! Au revoir! or Adieu, jusqu'à ce que nous réunir à nouveau! .Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 08/02/2014

Daily Thoughts: Something to think about from Thomas Merton as you journey through the day. It is certainly something that Herod did not think about in our Gospel (Matt. 14:1-12) today!

“To be grateful is to recognize the Love of God in everything He has given us - and He has given us everything. Every breath we draw is a gift of His love, every moment of existence is a grace, for it brings with it immense graces from Him.

Gratitude therefore takes nothing for granted, is never unresponsive, and is constantly awakening to new wonder and to praise of the goodness of God. For the grateful person knows that God is good, not by hearsay but by experience. And that is what makes all the difference.” (Thomas Merton)

Daily Prayer:

Lord, teach us to be generous;

Teach us to serve you as you deserve;

To give and not to count the cost;

To fight and not to heed the wounds;

To toil, and not to seek for rest;

To labor, and not to ask for reward - except to know that we are doing your will.

(Adapted from a prayer by St. Ignatius of Loyola)

A Runner’s Thoughts: You might say that John Bingham is also talking about the spiritual life when he talks about running – “It was being a runner that mattered, not how fast or how far I could run. The joy was in the act of running and in the journey, not in the destination. We have a better chance of seeing where we are when we stop trying to get somewhere else. We can enjoy every moment of movement, as long as where we are is as good as where we'd like to be. That's not to say that you need to be satisfied forever with where you are today. But you need to honor what you've accomplished, rather than thinking of what's left to be done.” (John Bingham)

Daily Blessing: Happy Saturday everyone! I hope your Saturday has gotten off to a good start. We have a rainy morning here in Pelham, I think it is to get a little better as the day goes on. It will probably be a good day to stay in and continue my preparations for my pilgrimage beginning Monday afternoon. May your day be what you need it to be!

Let us offer a prayer today for both sides in the Israel/Gaza Conflict. Let us pray that amid the hate, vengeance, single-mindedness and violence peace will be found! May God turn shells, bombs, guns and other tools of violence in plowshares, pruning hooks and tools of peace.

May God bless you day with peace. May God’s blessings upon your day and your weekend, may it be filled with family, friends, laughter, fun, rest and relaxation! If you need a little quiet time may that be there too! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul

Daily Thoughts - 08/01/2014

Daily Thoughts: Both of our readings today focus on the same human struggle, lack of faith. Often times we think we know what is right. We think we know what is best for ourselves and those around us. We think we know what God wants. Then someone comes along, like a Rosa Parks, a St. John XXIII, a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a Thomas Merton, a Blessed Mother Teresa, an Archbishop Oscar Romero, a Pope Francis and they point us in a different direction, sometimes telling us we are headed down the wrong path, but always showing us just where God can be found.

We don’t like to be wrong and we are not always excited to have someone ruin our plans after all what do they know about us, about our life, about our faith. We might not put them to death like the Israelites did to some of their prophets but we almost always reject their way of thinking, their insights, their spirits, the gift of their faith, hope and love. We call to mind tradition, dogma, or doctrine. We point to order, cost and what makes us comfortable. We at times dismiss them as misguided and unimportant or we point to their faults and failings.

When we do this like the people of Nazareth we make it almost impossible to God to work in our lives. We make it impossible for the ordinary things in life to become extraordinary.

O God, in your great love keep us always open to the voices of your Word and strengthen our faith so we will always recognize your presence amongst us!

Have a great day everyone!

Daily Prayer:

God be in our head, God be in our heart,

God be in our mind, God be in our soul,

God be in our eyes, so that we may see your face;

God be on our lips, God be in our life.

God be in our work, God be in our play,

God be in our home, God be in our prayer,

God be in our songs, so that we may sing your praise;

God be in our night, God be in our day. Amen

(Adapted from a song “God Be In My Head” by Grayson Warren Brown)

A Runner’s Thoughts: “Running cleared the day's cobwebs from my mind and focused my thinking, and gave me time and space to sort out anything that was bothering me, or to detach and think of nothing at all.” (Jeff Horowitz) Running also helps us to focus on God, to pray and to recognize the gift of God all around us!

Daily Blessing: TGIF everyone! I hope your Friday has started off well and that it will lead you into a wonderful weekend blessed with rest, relaxation and a little bit of time offered to God!

I am continuing my preparation for my pilgrimage to Lourdes and the shrines of France which begins Monday evening. I have a few things to get done before leaving that will allow me to relax and enjoy the journey. The excitement is building and I am so looking forward to the experience. If there are any intentions you would like me to take along and offer to God through the intercession of Mary and Bernadette while I am in Lourdes please send them to me. Remember Lourdes has been known as a place of healing ever since Mary appeared to Bernadette many years ago! What healing do you need in your life?

For my prayer of blessing today I will work off my daily prayer – As you journey through this day may you be blessed with Christ within you, with Christ behind you, with Christ before you, with Christ beside you, with Christ to comfort and restore you, with Christ beneath you, with Christ above you, with Christ in your quiet moments, with Christ in your moments of struggle, with Christ in the hearts of all who love you, with Christ within of all your friends and every person you meet. May the presence of Christ’s bless your day, Amen! Peace in Christ’s Passion…Fr. Paul