Passion of Mary (2)

COMMENT
----- Forwarded Message ----

From: Sr Maria . . .
To: Donald . . .
Sent: Tue, March 16, 2010 6:00:37 PM
Subject: Passion of Mary

• Thanks for this – It is so moving.
• Our Lady suffered in the strong bonds of Mother and Son
• and we will never plumb the depths of such love,
• but we can ponder
• and touch some of this beautiful passion.

God Bless.

Maria..

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Brother Lawrence

MASS Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Lent

Sickness considered as coming from the hand of GOD,
as the effects of His mercy.

The John 5: 1-16 account of the curing of the 38 year ill in the five porticoes of Bethesda is puzzling. Maybe one of the different views of Jesus is how he took in his strode the strange programmed ‘miracle’ in “the pool when the water is stirred”. Jesus does not question the other cures or other aspects of the sick man, of the custom, of the Jews.

The story embodies the living response of Jesus, embracing his understanding of the lives of all and seeing it all in the Father’s will.

The “stirring” reaches to the welcoming acceptance of sick or health.

“Do you want to be well?” says Jesus and his question prompts the opening of heart and deeper sense God’s presence.

Jesus does not analyse the chronic cripple or the long life hypochondriac. He casts the characters of the play of the divine presence.

Saints and holy people read the script as lovingly as the Heart of Jesus.

The Gospel queue may well be taken from a Letter of Brother Lawrence, the French monk (Carmelite) who lived from 1611 to 1691. Prior to becoming a monk he was known as Nicholas Herman of Lorraine.

Brother Lawrence The Practice of the Presence of God being Conversations and Letters of Brother Lawrence Good when He gives, supremely good; Nor less when He denies: Afflictions, from His sovereign hand, Are blessings in disguise. Eleventh Letter To one who is in great pain. God is the Physician of body and of soul. Feels that he would gladly suffer at His wish. I DO not pray that you may be delivered from your pains; but I pray GOD earnestly that He would give you strength and patience to bear them as long as He pleases. Comfort yourself with Him who holds you fastened to the cross: He will loose you when He thinks fit. Happy those who suffer with Him: accustom yourself to suffer in that manner, and seek from Him the strength to endure as much, and as long, as He shall judge to be necessary for you. The men of the world do not comprehend these truths, nor is it to be wondered at, since they suffer like what they are, and not like Christians: they consider sickness as a pain to nature, and not as a favour from GOD; and seeing it only in that light, they find nothing in it but grief and distress. But those who consider sickness as coming from the hand of GOD, as the effects of His mercy, and the means which He employs for their salvation, commonly find in it great sweetness and sensible consolation. I wish you could convince yourself that GOD is often (in some sense) nearer to us and more effectually present with us, in sickness than in health. Rely upon no other Physician, for, according to my apprehension, He reserves your cure to Himself. Put then all your trust in Him, and you will soon find the effects of it in your recovery, which we often retard, by putting greater confidence in physic than in GOD. Whatever remedies you make use of, they will succeed only so far as He permits. When pains come from GOD, He only can cure them. He often sends diseases of the body, to cure those of the soul. Comfort yourself with the sovereign Physician both of soul and body. I foresee that you will tell me that I am very much at my ease, that I eat and drink at the table of the LORD. YOU have reason: but think you that it would be a small pain to the greatest criminal in the world, to eat at the king's table, and be served by him, and notwithstanding such favours to be without assurance of pardon? I believe he would feel exceeding great uneasiness, and such as nothing could moderate, but only his trust in the goodness of his sovereign. So I assure you, that whatever pleasures I taste at the table of my King, yet my sins, ever present before my eyes, as well as the uncertainty of my pardon, torment me, though in truth that torment itself is pleasing. Be satisfied with the condition in which GOD places you: however happy you may think me, I envy you. Pains and suffering would be a paradise to me, while I should suffer with my GOD; and the greatest pleasure would be hell to me, if I could relish them without Him; all my consolation would be to suffer something for His sake. I must, in a little time, go to GOD. What comforts me in this life is, that I now see Him by faith; and I see Him in such a manner as might make me say sometimes, I believe no more, but I see. I feel what faith teaches us, and, in that assurance and that practice of faith, I will live and die with Him. Continue then always with GOD: 'tis the only support and comfort for your affliction. I shall beseech Him to be with you. I present my service. Online: Br. Lawrence http://www.ccel.org/ccel/lawrence/practice.txt

Comment - Intriguing

COMMENT

----- Forwarded Message ----
From: William J . . .
To: Donald . . .
Sent: Mon, March 15, 2010 8:13:25 PM
Subject: Reply: Ps. 84 - intriguing!

Dear Donald,

Please thank Andy - I have followed his web link and seen the exact words that I love - from the 'Book of Common Prayer'.

• I have (strangely enough) a copy of the "Prayer of Christians - American Interim Breviary" published in 1971, but the wording holds close to the NAB.
• I will endeavour to find out the country of origin of the publication, England or American (an excuse to visit the 2nd hand book shop!).
• May there be further devotional treasures hidden within this translation,
• I wonder.
• I have turned open once again Thomas Merton's book "Bread in the wilderness" which introduced me to the psalms and the Opus Dei, hoping to find his quote regarding the psalms being like a garden of flowers...

Thank you
from

William

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Caryll Houselander

Monday 15th. March 2010 MEDITATION OF THE DAY John 4:43-54. The royal official said to him, "Sir, come down before my child dies." We are not alone in the hour of death; we have nothing to fear in the hour of death: because when the time comes Christ identifies himself with us so closely that fear gives way to trust and anguish to peace. He has lived all of our lives, died all of our deaths; to all of us he has given his peace. It is in the hour of death that our fear, our anxiety, our loneliness, will end ... Death is too big a thing for anyone of us to face alone. It separates us, for a time, from those we love on earth. It is difficult for us earthbound, rooted crea­tures to want heaven; it is impossible for us to realize what the glory of God will be to us. It is loving God, and that only, that can make heaven, heaven. Here imagination does not help us: we cannot really imagine ourselves loving the "Supreme Spirit" - we even want to cling to our human frailties and comforts, to our human weakness. It is now that Christ takes over. He has died all our deaths on the cross; now we are going to die his; it is Christ in us who surrenders to God. It is not with our own heart and our own will that we can long for God, but with Christ's. And Christ has given his heart and will to us. In this is the supreme mercy that comes to us in the hour of death ... Now I love God with Christ's will, with Christ's heart, with Christ's trust; and because he has taken whole possession of me, in the hour of my death I shall at last love my friends too with his love. Caryll Houselander (+ 1954) was a British mystic, poet, and spiritual teacher. Magnificat Missalete

Passion of Mary

Fourth Week of Lent -

our morning Communion Hymn is

Francis Thompson's "O Lady Mary".
The Passion of Mary
Verses in Passion Tide

O Lady Mary, thy bright crown
Is no mere crown of majesty;
For with the reflex of His own
Resplendent thorns Christ circled thee.

* * *

The red rose of this Passion-tide
Doth take a deeper hue from thee,
In the five wounds of Jesus dyed,
And in thy bleeding thoughts, Mary!

* * *

The soldier struck a triple stroke,
That smote thy Jesus on the tree:
He broke the Heart of Hearts, and broke
The Saint's and Mother's hearts in thee.

* * *

Thy Son went up the angels' ways,
His passion ended; but, ah me!
Thou found'st the road of further days
A longer way of Calvary:

* * *

On the hard cross of hope deferred
Thou hung'st in loving agony,
Until the mortal-dreaded word
Which chills our mirth, spake mirth to thee.

* * *

The angel Death from this cold tomb
Of life did roll the stone away;
And He thou barest in thy womb
Caught thee at last into the day,
Before the living throne of Whom
The Lights of Heaven burning pray.

Francis Thompson:

(author of 'The Hound of Heaven')

In February 1887, Wilfrid Meynell, the editor of Merry England a Catholic literary monthly magazine, received some untidy manuscripts, accompanied by the following covering letter: "In enclosing the accompanying article for your inspection, I must ask pardon for the soiled state of the manuscript. It is due, not to slovenliness, but to the strange places and circumstances under which it has been written".

Meynell must have wondered what sort of a man wrote the enclosed contents, including the moving poem, "The Passion of Mary". What were the "strange places and circumstances" under which these were written? All attempts to trace the author failed, until Thompson noticed one of his poems had been published in Merry England. Meynell's hope that the author would, in response to the publication, reveal himself, proved successful. One day in the spring of 1888, a man in his early 30s in ragged clothes and broken shoes and looking aged and ill - largely due to his drug addiction - presented himself at Meynell's office and introduced himself as Francis Thompson. (ad2000.com)

Comment Ps 84

COMMENT - from Andy Hi Donald I found your comments on Ps 84, and William's reply very thought provoking and interesting. I started doing some searching through the internet and found many reference to your quote of "How dear to me your dwelling" - which does sound very personal and intimate - but none of them show any reference to the source. A cantata was written by Bruce Neswick for SATB in 2007 using the wording, but no reference to source. A my final search led me to http://www.io.com/~kellywp/YearB_RCL/Pentecost/BProp16_RCL.html which indicated that the phrase was a translation used in the "Book of Common Prayer" 1979. Hope this is of benefit you to and William in your search for splitting 'hares'. Regards Andy See:BCP - Book of Common Prayer Psalm 84 or 84:1-6 Page 707, BCP Quam dilecta! 1 How dear to me is your dwelling, O LORD of hosts! * My soul has a desire and longing for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh rejoice in the living God. 2 The sparrow has found her a house and the swallow a nest where she may lay her young; * by the side of your altars, O LORD of hosts, my King and my God.

Thank you, Andy,

We are hot on the trail.

The Book of Common Prayer gives publication to the 1989 Edition of NRSV but again not "How dear to me is your dwelling".

"How dear to me your dwelling"

COMMENT William writes: The posting from Friday's Night Office reading, 3rd week of Lent, has really fascinated me! The translation of Ps 84 (83).. "How dear to me your dwelling" set me examining all my available translations, and none could come near to that exquisite personal phrase. I should love to know from which translation you were quoting! Psalm 84 - Dom Donald's Blog : How dear to me your dwelling place, Lord God of hosts! My soul is yearning for the courts of the Lord. Ps 84 – NAB : How lovely your dwelling, O Lord of hosts! My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the Lord. Ps 84 – AMP : How lovely are Your tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! My soul yearns, yes, even pines and is homesick for the courts of the Lord. Ps 84 – NJB : How lovely are your dwelling-places, Yahweh Sabaoth. My whole being yearns and pines for Yahweh’s courts. Ps 84 – NRSV : How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! My soul longs, indeed it faints for the courts of the Lord. Ps 84 – CCB : How lovely are your rooms, O Lord of hosts! My soul yearns, pines, for the courts of the Lord. Ps 84 – TEV : How I love your Temple, Lord Almighty! How I want to be there! I long to be in the Lord’s Temple. Ps 84 - NIV : How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty! My soul yearns , even faints, for the courts of the LORD. Ps 84 – NLT : How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty. I long, yes, I faint with longing to enter the courts of the Lord. Ps 83 – Knox : Lord of hosts, how I love thy dwelling-place! For the courts of the Lord’s house, my soul faints with longing. Ps 83 – Grail (Divine Office) : How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord, God of hosts. My soul is longing and yearning, is yearning for the courts of the Lord. [You can see where the housekeeping has gone... I managed to purchase the OT Knox translation 2 vols for £8, and NT Knox £8, from off the very top shelf in the attic of the local 2nd hand book shop!]. But your posting was of much more than the opening words of the psalm: the filial relation of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The clarity of the explanation by Cyril of Alexandria is wonderful! Placing the words in my own order, starting from the conclusion, this is what I found myself transcribing into my pocket book for further, and lasting reflection: We have been justified...by our faith in Christ, who was delivered up for our sins and raised for our justification... there [is] nothing to hinder us from having access to him and adhering to him in close communion through participation in the Holy Spirit, who restores to us our original righteousness and holiness... Our return to God is not accomplished by Christ our Saviour except through the Spirit in which he causes us to share and by which we are sanctified, for it is the Spirit that binds us to God and in a real way makes us one with him. By receiving the Spirit through the Son we become sharers in the divine nature and, in the Son, we receive the Father also. That really was a treat - thank you! William ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Thank you, William. Your COMMENT raises even livelier hares. After the snow prolonging into March I have been looking for the proverbial March Hare. And I have only seen one so far. But about your “hare”, I have been stumped by your noticing of the Ps 84(83) “exquisite personal phrase”, "How dear to me your dwelling" You searched and I am searching . . . until we find the Bible Version!

St Cyril of Alexandria

THIRD WEEK OF LENT - Year II - Friday

Night Office Reading. So early it can be difficult to listen. Nothing is wrong with my hearing, the acoustics can be fuzzy, the reader may be unclear, my attention may falter. In spite of all, in some morning, the Holy Spirit penetrates through the fog and illuminates the message. This morning it was the case of the words of the brilliant theologian Cyril of Alexandria (d. 444). It makes me want to share more of Cyril’s love in expounding the filial relation of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. First Reading From the book of Exodus (35:30 - 36:1; 37:1-9) Responsory Psalm 84:2-3; 132:7 How dear to me your dwelling place, Lord God of hosts! My soul is yearning for the courts of the Lord. - My heart and my flesh exult in the living God. Let us go to the place where he dwells; let us worship at his footstool - My heart and ... Second Reading From the commentary on Saint John's gospel by Saint Cyril of Alexandria (Lib. 11, 10: PG 74, 544-545) In this work, written before the outbreak of the Nestorian controversy in 429, Cyril seeks to bring out the dogmatic meaning of the gospel and to refute heresy. He teaches in this passage that by offering himself as a sacrificial victim, Christ reconciled the world with the Father and so made it possible for us to receive the Holy Spirit, through whom we are sanctified and given a share in the divine nature. Christ said: For their sake I sanctify myself. In terms of the law, any offering made to God was said to be sanctified. Such for example was the offering the Israelites made of all their firstborn children. Sanctify to me all the firstborn, God commanded his saintly Moses. In other words, consecrate and offer them, set them apart as sacred. Since sanctification, then. was regarded as the equivalent of consecration and setting apart, we may say that in this sense the Son of God sanctified himself for our sake; for he offered himself as a victim, a holy sacrifice to God the Father, and by so doing he reconciled the world with the Father and restored the fallen human race to his friendship. For he, Scripture says, is our peace. We must realize, however, that our return to God is not accomplished by Christ our Saviour except through the Spirit in which he causes us to share and by which we are sanctified, for it is the Spirit that binds us to God and in a real way makes us one with him. By receiving the Spirit through the Son we become sharers in the divine nature and, in the Son. we receive the Father also. Concerning Christ John in his wisdom wrote to us: We know that we are in him and he is in us because he allows us to share his own Spirit. And what does Paul say? The proof that you are his children is that God has sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, the Spirit that cries out, "Abba, Father." If we had remained without a share in the Spirit, we should have had no experience of God's presence within us; nor could we ever have become the children of God had we not been enriched by the Spirit to whom we owe that title. How indeed could we have been adopted as children and enabled to share in the divine nature if God did not dwell within us, and if we had not been united to him by being called to receive a share in the Spirit? Now, however, we are sharers in the supreme Being and have become temples of God. For God's only Son sanctified himself on account of our sins; in other words, he consecrated and offered himself as a holy and fragrant sacrifice to God the Father, thus removing the barrier of sin that separated us from God. Henceforward there was nothing to hinder us from having access to him and adhering to him in close communion through participation in the Holy Spirit, who restores to us our original righteousness and holiness. If sin separates us from God, righteousness will surely be a bond of union with him and a means of setting us at his side with no division between us. We have been justified, Scripture declares, by our faith in Christ, who was delivered up for our sins and raised for our justification. In him, as the first fruits of the human race, our whole nature was restored to newness of life, and returning as it were to its beginning, was formed anew in order to be sanctified. Responsory 1 Corinihians 3: 17; 6:19-20 Do you not know that you are God's temple, and that God's spirit lives in you? - God's temple is holy, and you are that temple. You do not belong to yourselves; you were brought for a price. So use your body for the glory of God. - God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.

Roscrea Abbey Region Meeting

REGIONAL MEETING OF THE REGION OF THE ISLES 1-8 March, 2010 Mount St Joseph Abbey Roscrea, Ireland Participants Monastery Superior Delegate Whitland M Christine Wood Sr Jean Byrne Mount Melleray Dom Michael Ahern Fr Denis Luke O’Hanlon Mount St Bernard Dom Joseph Delargy Br David Howells Mount St Joseph Dom Richard Purcell Fr Liam O’Connor Caldey Dom Daniel Van Santvoort Br Luca Cestaro Glencairn M Marie Fahy Sr Michelle Miller Mellifont Dom Augustine McGregor Br Joseph Ryan Nunraw Dom Mark Caira Br Philip Bell Bethlehem Dom Celsus Kelly Br Columba O’Neill Bolton Dom Peter Garvey Br Brian O’Dowd Tautra M Rosemary Durcan Sr Hanne-Maria Berentzen Invited Guests Diepenveen Dom Alberic Bruschke Munkeby Fr Joël Regnard Generalate M. Regina Nebo Bernardines d’Esquermes Hyning Sr Josephine-Mary Miller Brownshill Sr Elizabeth Mary Mann Secretary Sr Sheryl Frances Chen (Tautra)

COMMENT

----- Forwarded Message ----
From: William J . . .
To: Fr Donald . . .
Sent: Wed, March 10, 2010 7:05:41 PM
Subject: Re: [Blog] homily / photos / petition 21,500+ !

Dear Donald,

I am enjoying your Blog updates, thank you! Fr. Aelred delivers a good homily indeed... "second chance".

Goodness, Fr. Nivard and yourself do look cold in that photo, and I can see the snow still lying. Whit Castle is very bleak!

The turret staircase (I wonder if your room was in the old tower?) recalls for me my silent tread as I rose for Vigils and tiptoed down to the hall, before setting out into the darkness for the Night Office.

Snowdrops - the spirit of Lent, white, pure, strong - a lovely corner to greet one on the drive!

I hope you have recovered from the 'flu germ, and that the Community are all now well.

What a long winter you are experiencing.

William

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Thank you, William.

It seems that Spring is round the corner.

D.

Photo COMMENT

----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Anne Marie
To: Donald
Sent: Tue, March 9, 2010 11:50:35 PM
Subject: RE: 20,000 signatures

Very interesting angles on the architecture?
The family photo shows rather a mottley crew.

All in all I think your photos are taking on a much more artistic flavour.

I am going to an Outward Bound Centre in Loch Eil with the pupils for 3 days.

There is the opportunity for some fantastic photos- so no doubt I will bombard you
with some water, mountains and a few sunsets...........Happy Days.

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