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Homily by F. Aelred
Moses was a key figure in the history of Salvation, mentioned over 80 times in the New Testament. His entire life was shaped by and given over to God who, through the Burning Bush, called him to liberate his people from slavery and to bring them to the Promised Land.
The stay of Moses shed light on his relationship with God and gives us some insight into the mystery of who God is.
In today’s First Reading we are presented with a God who is right in the midst his people’s lives.
Not a remote figure unaware of the cruel reality that afflicts them and certainly not content to let things rest as they are. God says: ‘I have seen’, ‘I have heard’, ‘I am well aware, ‘I have come down’. Through Moses we come to realise that God is a God who acts in the lives of his people and intervenes to help them in their needs.
What was it that God saw in Moses that made him the right man to lead his people from slavery to freedom? Prior to the revelation in the Burning Bush we are given three episodes in his life. He saw an Egyptian attacking an Israelite, and he intervened. He saw an Israelite attacking an Israelite, and he intervened. He saw Midianite shepherds preventing Jethro’s daughters from watering their flocks, and he intervened.
All these incidents show us that Moses was the kind of man who couldn’t stand idly when he saw as injustice or a crime happening. We can understand then why God chose him to lead his people from slavery to freedom.
As Moses approached the Burning Bush he was told: ‘the place on which you stand is holy ground’. What was it that made that particular piece of scrubland holy? It was the presence of God. But let us not forget that God is everywhere, and we could say the holiest ground of all is within us.
First of all the body is holy. Our body is the work of God.
But the holiest ground of all is that of the heart. It’s from the heart all our thoughts, words, and deeds flow like water from a hidden spring.
If the spring is clean, then all that flows from it will be clean. So we must try above all to keep the heart clean and pure. It is especially on this holy ground that we will see and meet God. In the words of Jesus: ‘Blessed are the pure of heart, they will see God’.
Today’s parable, from St. Luke, has been called ‘the parable of the second chance’ because it teaches that God offers people a second chance, as the apostles Peter and Paul could testify. The gardener tells the owner of the vineyard that it is necessary to give the fig tree another chance to bear fruit. With nourishment and care something may come from the life of the tree.
When Jesus tells us to repent he doesn’t mean that we should be walking around beating ourselves in public. In the NT the word translated as repentance is the Greek word metanoia. The word means a change of mind and change on conduct. Lent is an opportunity to new beginnings for ourselves, and perhaps we should take the opportunity to give one a second chance.
St John Ogilvie, Priest and Martyr, SJ (Memorial)
John Ogilvie, the son of a wealthy laird, Walter Ogilvie, was born into a respected Calvinist family at Drum-na-Keith in Banffshire, Scotland, in 1579. As a youth he studied on the continent at a number of Catholic institutions – under the Benedictines at Regensburg, Germany, and with the Jesuits at Olomouc and Brno (in the present-day Czech Republic). Perhaps under the influence of his teachers, he decided to become a Catholic and was received into the Church at the Scots College in Louvain, Belgium, in 1596 at the age of 17 by Fr Cornelius a Lapide. In 1599 he joined the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) and was ordained priest in Paris in 1610.
Following his ordination he begged to be sent back to his native Scotland in order to minister to the small number of remaining Catholics in the Glasgow area. After the Scottish reformation in 1560, it had become illegal to preach or, in any way, support the Catholic faith. In the meantime, John went to work in Rouen, France. Earlier, wholesale massacres of Catholics had taken place in Scotland, but by this time the hunters concentrated more on priests than on those who secretly attended Mass. Among others, the Jesuits were determined to minister to the oppressed Catholic laity. They knew that, when captured, they would be tortured for information, then hanged, drawn, and quartered.
In November 1613 John was able to return secretly to Scotland, disguised as a soldier. He began to preach secretly to the Catholics and celebrate the Eucharist in private homes in Edinburgh and Glasgow. He evaded the priest hunters disguised as a soldier called Watson. But his ministry was only to last 11 months. On 4 October 1614, he was betrayed by a false friend, arrested in Glasgow and imprisoned in Paisley. He was subjected to interrogations and dreadful tortures, including being kept awake for eight consecutive days and nights in an effort to make him reveal the identities of other Catholics. He was brought to trial on 10 March 1615, accused of denying the king’s supremacy in religious matters and convicted on the same day of high treason. He was paraded through the streets of Glasgow and hanged at Glasgow Cross. He was 36 years of age.
His last words were, “If there be here any hidden Catholics, let them pray for me but the prayers of heretics I will not have.” After being pushed from the ladder, he threw his hidden rosary beads into the crowd. It is said that they were caught by someone supporting his execution who, as a result, was converted to the Catholic faith. After his execution, Ogilvie’s followers were rounded up and put in prison. They were given heavy fines but none of them was executed. John was buried in a felon’s grave to the north of Glasgow Cathedral.
John Ogilvie was beatified as a martyr of the Counter-Reformation by Pope Pius XI in 1929 and canonised by Pope Paul VI in 1976.
He is the Church’s only post-Reformation saint and the only officially recorded martyr from Scotland.
See Post:
10 Mar 2009john ogilvie (1579-1615) performed ministry in his native scotland for only 11 months after he returned to his homeland following 22 years abroad. he is the only canonized scottish martyr from the time of the reformation, ...
He recalled that as the Pilgrims from Edinburgh (2006) arrived at the top of the Mount of Tabor they were amused to see a large group of young soldiers sprawled on the ground. They were exhausted from the military exercise of walking/running the height of the Mountain.
SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT Gospel: Luke 9:28b-36 Year C
Jesus took with him Peter and John and James and went up the mountain to pray. As he prayed, the aspect of his face was changed and his clothing became brilliant as lightning. Suddenly there were two men there talking to him; they were Moses and Elijah appearing in glory, and they were speaking of his passing which he was to accomplish in Jerusalem .
Peter and his companions were heavy with sleep, but they kept awake and saw his glory and the two men standing with him. As these were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is wonderful for us to be here; so let us make three tents, one for you, one for Moses and one for Elijah." - He did not know what he was saying. As he spoke, a cloud came and covered them with shadow; and when they went into the cloud the disciples were afraid. And a voice came from the cloud saying, "This is my Son, the Chosen One. Listen to him." And after the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. The disciples kept silence and, at that time, told no one what they had seen.
From a homily by Saint Cyril of Alexandria This sermon is one of a series of homilies on Saint Luke's gospel. Of the original Greek only three sermons and some fragments remain. In this extract Cyril develops Luke's teaching that suffering is the way to glory. Moses and Elijah are witnesses to the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy concerning Jesus. With three chosen disciples Jesus went up the mountain. Then he was transfigured by a wonderful light that made even his clothes seem to shine. Moses and Elijah stood by him and spoke with him of how he was going to complete his task on earth by dying in Jerusalem . In other words, they spoke of the mystery of his incarnation, and of his saving passion upon the cross. For the law of Moses and the teaching of the holy prophets clearly foreshadowed the mystery of Christ. The law portrayed it by types and symbols inscribed on tablets. The prophets in many ways foretold that in his own time he would appear, clothed in human nature, and that for the salvation of all our race he would not refuse to suffer death upon the cross. The presence of Moses and Elijah, and their speaking together, was meant to show unmistakably that the law and the prophets were the attendants of our Lord Jesus Christ. He was their master, whom they had themselves pointed out in advance in prophetic words that proved their perfect harmony with one another. The message of the prophets was in no way at variance with the precepts of the law. Moses and Elijah did not simply appear in silence; they spoke of how Jesus was to complete his task by dying in Jerusalem , they spoke of his passion and cross, and of the resurrection that would follow. Thinking no doubt that the time for the kingdom of God had already come; Peter would gladly have remained on the mountain. He suggested putting up three tents, hardly knowing what he was saying. But it was not yet time for the end of the world; nor was it in this present time that the hopes of the saints would be fulfilled-those hopes founded on Paul's promise that Christ would transform our lowly bodies into the likeness of his glorious body. Only the initial stage of the divine plan had as yet been accomplished. Until its completion was it likely that Christ, who came on earth for love of the world, would give up his wish to die for it? For his submitting to death was the world's salvation, and his resurrection was death's destruction. As well as the vision of Christ's glory, wonderful beyond all description, something else occurred which was to serve as a vital confirmation, not only of the disciple’s faith, but of ours as well. From a cloud on high came the voice of God the Father saying: This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Listen to him.
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| Meister Eckhart, On the Lord's Prayer | ||
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International Association of Lay Cistercian Communities COMMENT About us Cistercian Oblate The „Weggemeinschaft St. Benedikt“ is an open Christian community: |
Meditation: February / March 2010 And as they led him away, they seized one Simon of Cyrene , who was coming in from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it behind Jesus. (Luke 23:26)
How do I cope with situations like that in everyday life, when the usual routine is „crossed“ and when my plans are being thwarted? A sudden illness makes it impossible to go on holiday. Or, the partner has changed so much that everyday life can hardly go on because of his or her psychological problems? - But we also have to look at the small things in everyday life: someone is looking for help while you are having your break. How often do we think that whatever has just been put in our way, we want to get rid of it.
The forty days of Lent can be a fruitful time, when we look at ourselves, our everyday lives, and when we accept, in places where we may be challenged, to go with this Jesus and bear his cross however short the distance may be.
The piece of art shown above also brings into mind the words of the Holy Scriptures: „If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.“ (Matthew 5,41) That makes the matter even more radical: it means, not only to keep walking when you are convinced, it is doing you some good; much more, you are asked to keep going when it seems absurd and hardly bearable to share the next step with a certain person or to proceed in a particular matter, when you cannot expect anything or even have to fear scorn and derision.
The love Jesus is talking about is radical, indeed. What do I do with my colleague who is an alcoholic and gets on my nerves and leaves the work to me? What do I do with a student who is acting up all the time disturbing the schedule? What do I do with a good friend who has disappointed me because I know he acted in a very unethical way? You know someone has acted against you, you know it was defamation, yet, you are asked to stay polite, forgive, love, even bless?
Often it may hurt to walk the second mile; yet, this second mile is often the place where evangelization takes place, without words, „just“ acting. It is the chance to let the love of Christ become alive among people. Walking the way of patience transforms.
This Simon was a plain man, who was on his way back from the field. Thus he can be an image of how holiness can be achieved in everyday life. Following Jesus, helping him bear the cross, begins in the simple things and in moments, when we, although it may hurt, do not give up hope.
As long as we are living on earth we are again and again invited to join Jesus on his path, the path we joined through baptism. Lent is also the time to fasten our steps on the path of communio with our fellow men, to firmly orientate our tasks and decisions in this world towards Jesus, to strive for deeper decisiveness, for a stronger Christian orientation and to find strength.
Photo: Sancta Maria Abbey, Nunraw / Scotland , Stations of the Cross
http://www.weggemeinschaft-st-benedikt.de/
| Tues 23 Feb 2009
Opening Comment was on the 7 petitions in the Lord’s Prayer, as in the Gospel and as in the Mass pre-Communion.
. . . Mat 6:12-13 And forgive us our debts, As we also have forgiven our debtors; And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil.
The following prayer answers closely to the Petitions, “Deliver us, Lord, from ever evil, and grant us peace. . .”
It strikes the chord expressing the Eucharistic significance of the Lord’s Prayer. The words from St. Benedicta of the Cross, (EdithStein), reflects the sensitivity of a priest preparing the Communion. |
DAILY GOSPELdailygospel org
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| The RSB Lenten Book for the One of the favourite Maybe there can be a Hobson Choice on Dom Eugene Boylan’s “Partnership with Christ – Cistercian Retreat or NOT Cistercian Retreat”. There are in fact two versions of Dom Eugene’s Book. The original was published by Mercier, In 2009 Cistercian Publications has published the same title with the sub-title ‘Cistercian Retreat’. If a monk would like to select Dom Eugene made his first visit to Nunraw Abbey 1940’s to conduct the Annual Retreat of the monks. Part of the myths of He was to return to Nunraw in 1961 for the encore of his Retreat, i.e., after a number years conducting Retreats in countless monasteries in Europe, Very soon he was elected as Abbot at Roscrea 1962. Tragically, within seventeen months, he died following a severe car accident. Partnership with Christ
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| Partnership with Christ (Boylan 1964)
The one great sacrifice - that of which all others are but faint and imperfect shadows - is the sacrifice of Christ on the Cross. It was by this sacrifice that Christ redeemed the world. By it He gave His Father perfect worship, perfect praise, perfect thanksgiving, perfect reparation for all sins and obtained for all of us all necessary graces. That same sacrifice is made available for us at each Mass. St. Thomas summed up the essential nature of the Mass when he described it as the perfect sacrament of the Lord's Passion. To understand this, we must first consider the meaning of the word 'sacrament.' A sacrament is a sign which not only signifies something, but in some way produces or effects what it signifies. It owes its power to do so to its institution by Our Lord. In the sacrament of Baptism, the sign includes both the act of washing and the saying of the words which define the meaning of the washing. The whole rite signifies washing from original sin, and actually does liberate the person baptized from all sin. It has other effects which we pass over here. Christ offers Himself to God His Father on every altar where Mass is said.
This adds a new significance to our assistance at Mass, for the sacrifice we therein offer now means what Christ meant by it. And what Christ meant to say to His Father is to be found in the message of His whole life. Therefore, our assistance at Mass commits us to an imitation of Christ, into living by the same principles and for the same purpose as He did. The fact is underlined by the teaching of Pius XII when he tells us in his encyclical on the Mystical Body that on the Cross Christ not only offered Himself, but also each one of us, His members, whom He carries most lovingly in His Heart: If this is true of the Cross, it is also true of the Mass. At each Mass Our Lord is offering up to His Father each one of us with every single one of our good deeds. It only remains for us to confirm His offering.
Here is found the whole program for the spiritual life of the Catholic. To carry out this program without Christ's help would be impossible. But the very transubstantiation by which He presents us with His Sacrifice is also used by Him to give Himself to us to be our permanent Partner in carrying out our joint offering of ourselves to God. We have already suggested that one part of this program consists in the complete acceptance of ourselves as we are. This becomes easier to accept when we remember that Our Lord's share in the partnership is specifically designed to fill in all our shortcomings. |
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Published Date February 8, 2010
Hong Kong’s “Our Lady of Joy” monastery has doubled the number of its monks following the perpetual vows of two new Trappists on January 30.
There was immense joy at the ceremony, not only because after so many years the monastery which had only two elderly monks has two new vocations, but also because their religious profession was held during the Diocesan Year for Priestly Vocations, Fides reports.
As Abbot Anastasius Li Sun affirmed, before hundreds of participants in the ritual: “I hope that everyone will especially remember vocations for the diocese, religious institutes, and the monastery.”
According to reports from the Hong Kong diocese Chinese bulletin, the two monks, who visibly moved, took their vows before the congregation, firmly reiterating their commitment to devote themselves to the contemplative life “by observing silence, prayer, work, and a life of holiness.”
The Abbey of Our Lady of Joy in Hong Kong is highly regarded and respected on the island and also on the continent.
The 16 original monks built their own beautiful monastery on the mountain that was once the most remote desert island, a gift from the Hong Kong government to the monks when they fled from the mainland in 1950, taking with them no more than the tunics they were wearing.
The Trappist-Cistercians, founded at Citeaux in 1098, arrived in China’s He Bei Province in 1883 and founded the “Our Lady of Consolation Abbey,” who was the first Cistercian monastery in Asia. In 1928 they founded another, “Our Lady of Joy Abbey,” also in He Bei.
The order was dissolved by force in July 1947 and the monastery was destroyed in August of that year. But the monks did not give up, and in 1947 they moved to the city of Cheng Du, in the Province of Si Chuan, and then to Hong Kong in 1950, with the 16 remaining monks who rebuilt the Our Lady of Joy Abbey.
In 1986, they opened the monastery of “The Holy Mother of God in Nan Tou, Taiwan. Today, living in the monastery in Hong Kong are 17 monks: 9 priests and 8 brothers.
SOURCE
Trappists in Hong Kong celebrate long-awaited perpetual vows of two monks (Fides)
LINKS
Trappist Haven Monastery (Wikipedia)
