Pope Francis: Pray in good times and bad
24 June 2020
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Every level of sin we let ourselves fall into, we are abusing God's mercy.
How foolish of us to be deceived by the devil - who was defeated forever and for all by the suffering, crucifixion, death and the resurrection of Jesus-God, who humbled Himself so - to become human, experience the bombardment of evil ; teaching the Truth and uncovering the deceitful tactics of the devil: Jesus fills us with the grace of His omnipotent power over our weakness of lack of self-control.
The devil's 'pleasure' lasts momentarily and fades like vapour into emptiness and the consequences of guilt remain in front of our eyes, tormenting us, till the last breath of our life ...
Between the Worlds of human nature and Divinity ... in humility, even humiliation ...
TO KEEP IN MIND --- especially in circumstances of ingratitude, misjudgement, mockery, ridicule, provocation, abuse, intimidation, insult, persecution; AND also in the temptation to answer back to any such situations --- that Jesus who is God, went all through this...and so, so much more ... IN SILENCE ... AND IN PRAYER
U.S. Bishops approve third-party hotline for sexual abuse complaints
While it is important to seek support and assistance from professional services, God teaches us how to live in true peace and harmony together, trusting in His omnipotence and yet merciful love - open-armed, welcoming each person who is feeling that there is something missing in his life ...
Changing Tracks: Sally Read
Change your lifestyle now - Do not let peer pressure and immoral cultures steal you from the real Beauty of the true love that Jesus has for you, whatever you were deceived into - because His mercy is unfathomable and His personal attention for you is amazing !
Homily on the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time, in Year B.
Readings: http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/081918.cfm
--- ... "OUR BATTLE IS SPIRITUAL AND IT IS AGAINST THE DEVIL, THE WORLD AND THE FLESH. WE ARE BOMBARDED BY THE WORLD THAT PROMOTES AND ENCOURAGES PARTICULARLY THE VICE OF IMPURITY, INFIDELITY & PROMISCUITY" ... ---
Full text: Letter by Pope Francis to the People of God
“If one member suffers, all suffer together with it” (1 Cor 12:26). These words of Saint Paul forcefully echo in my heart as I acknowledge once more the suffering endured by many minors due to sexual abuse, the abuse of power and the abuse of conscience perpetrated by a significant number of clerics and consecrated persons. Crimes that inflict deep wounds of pain and powerlessness, primarily among the victims, but also in their family members and in the larger community of believers and nonbelievers alike. Looking back to the past, no effort to beg pardon and to seek to repair the harm done will ever be sufficient. Looking ahead to the future, no effort must be spared to create a culture able to prevent such situations from happening, but also to prevent the possibility of their being covered up and perpetuated. The pain of the victims and their families is also our pain, and so it is urgent that we once more reaffirm our commitment to ensure the protection of minors and of vulnerable adults.
1. If one member suffers…
In recent days, a report was made public which detailed the experiences of at least a thousand survivors, victims of sexual abuse, the abuse of power and of conscience at the hands of priests over a period of approximately seventy years. Even though it can be said that most of these cases belong to the past, nonetheless as time goes on we have come to know the pain of many of the victims. We have realized that these wounds never disappear and that they require us forcefully to condemn these atrocities and join forces in uprooting this culture of death; these wounds never go away. The heart-wrenching pain of these victims, which cries out to heaven, was long ignored, kept quiet or silenced. But their outcry was more powerful than all the measures meant to silence it, or sought even to resolve it by decisions that increased its gravity by falling into complicity. The Lord heard that cry and once again showed us on which side he stands. Mary’s song is not mistaken and continues quietly to echo throughout history. For the Lord remembers the promise he made to our fathers: “he has scattered the proud in their conceit; he has cast down the mighty from their thrones and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he has sent away empty” (Lk 1:51-53). We feel shame when we realize that our style of life has denied, and continues to deny, the words we recite.
With shame and repentance, we acknowledge as an ecclesial community that we were not where we should have been, that we did not act in a timely manner, realizing the magnitude and the gravity of the damage done to so many lives. We showed no care for the little ones; we abandoned them. I make my own the words of the then Cardinal Ratzinger when, during the Way of the Cross composed for Good Friday 2005, he identified with the cry of pain of so many victims and exclaimed: “How much filth there is in the Church, and even among those who, in the priesthood, ought to belong entirely to [Christ]! How much pride, how much self-complacency! Christ’s betrayal by his disciples, their unworthy reception of his body and blood, is certainly the greatest suffering endured by the Redeemer; it pierces his heart. We can only call to him from the depths of our hearts: Kyrie eleison – Lord, save us! (cf. Mt 8:25)” (Ninth Station).
2. … all suffer together with it
The extent and the gravity of all that has happened requires coming to grips with this reality in a comprehensive and communal way. While it is important and necessary on every journey of conversion to acknowledge the truth of what has happened, in itself this is not enough. Today we are challenged as the People of God to take on the pain of our brothers and sisters wounded in their flesh and in their spirit. If, in the past, the response was one of omission, today we want solidarity, in the deepest and most challenging sense, to become our way of forging present and future history. And this in an environment where conflicts, tensions and above all the victims of every type of abuse can encounter an outstretched hand to protect them and rescue them from their pain (cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 228). Such solidarity demands that we in turn condemn whatever endangers the integrity of any person. A solidarity that summons us to fight all forms of corruption, especially spiritual corruption. The latter is “a comfortable and self-satisfied form of blindness. Everything then appears acceptable: deception, slander, egotism and other subtle forms of self-centeredness, for ‘even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light’ (2 Cor 11:14)” (Gaudete et Exsultate, 165). Saint Paul’s exhortation to suffer with those who suffer is the best antidote against all our attempts to repeat the words of Cain: “Am I my brother's keeper?” (Gen 4:9).
I am conscious of the effort and work being carried out in various parts of the world to come up with the necessary means to ensure the safety and protection of the integrity of children and of vulnerable adults, as well as implementing zero tolerance and ways of making all those who perpetrate or cover up these crimes accountable. We have delayed in applying these actions and sanctions that are so necessary, yet I am confident that they will help to guarantee a greater culture of care in the present and future.
Together with those efforts, every one of the baptized should feel involved in the ecclesial and social change that we so greatly need. This change calls for a personal and communal conversion that makes us see things as the Lord does. For as Saint John Paul II liked to say: “If we have truly started out anew from the contemplation of Christ, we must learn to see him especially in the faces of those with whom he wished to be identified” (Novo Millennio Ineunte, 49). To see things as the Lord does, to be where the Lord wants us to be, to experience a conversion of heart in his presence. To do so, prayer and penance will help. I invite the entire holy faithful People of God to a penitential exercise of prayer and fasting, following the Lord’s command.[1] This can awaken our conscience and arouse our solidarity and commitment to a culture of care that says “never again” to every form of abuse.
It is impossible to think of a conversion of our activity as a Church that does not include the active participation of all the members of God’s People. Indeed, whenever we have tried to replace, or silence, or ignore, or reduce the People of God to small elites, we end up creating communities, projects, theological approaches, spiritualities and structures without roots, without memory, without faces, without bodies and ultimately, without lives.[2] This is clearly seen in a peculiar way of understanding the Church’s authority, one common in many communities where sexual abuse and the abuse of power and conscience have occurred. Such is the case with clericalism, an approach that “not only nullifies the character of Christians, but also tends to diminish and undervalue the baptismal grace that the Holy Spirit has placed in the heart of our people”.[3] Clericalism, whether fostered by priests themselves or by lay persons, leads to an excision in the ecclesial body that supports and helps to perpetuate many of the evils that we are condemning today. To say “no” to abuse is to say an emphatic “no” to all forms of clericalism.
It is always helpful to remember that “in salvation history, the Lord saved one people. We are never completely ourselves unless we belong to a people. That is why no one is saved alone, as an isolated individual. Rather, God draws us to himself, taking into account the complex fabric of interpersonal relationships present in the human community. God wanted to enter into the life and history of a people” (Gaudete et Exsultate, 6). Consequently, the only way that we have to respond to this evil that has darkened so many lives is to experience it as a task regarding all of us as the People of God. This awareness of being part of a people and a shared history will enable us to acknowledge our past sins and mistakes with a penitential openness that can allow us to be renewed from within. Without the active participation of all the Church’s members, everything being done to uproot the culture of abuse in our communities will not be successful in generating the necessary dynamics for sound and realistic change. The penitential dimension of fasting and prayer will help us as God’s People to come before the Lord and our wounded brothers and sisters as sinners imploring forgiveness and the grace of shame and conversion. In this way, we will come up with actions that can generate resources attuned to the Gospel. For “whenever we make the effort to return to the source and to recover the original freshness of the Gospel, new avenues arise, new paths of creativity open up, with different forms of expression, more eloquent signs and words with new meaning for today’s world” (Evangelii Gaudium, 11).
It is essential that we, as a Church, be able to acknowledge and condemn, with sorrow and shame, the atrocities perpetrated by consecrated persons, clerics, and all those entrusted with the mission of watching over and caring for those most vulnerable. Let us beg forgiveness for our own sins and the sins of others. An awareness of sin helps us to acknowledge the errors, the crimes and the wounds caused in the past and allows us, in the present, to be more open and committed along a journey of renewed conversion.
Likewise, penance and prayer will help us to open our eyes and our hearts to other people’s sufferings and to overcome the thirst for power and possessions that are so often the root of those evils. May fasting and prayer open our ears to the hushed pain felt by children, young people and the disabled. A fasting that can make us hunger and thirst for justice and impel us to walk in the truth, supporting all the judicial measures that may be necessary. A fasting that shakes us up and leads us to be committed in truth and charity with all men and women of good will, and with society in general, to combatting all forms of the abuse of power, sexual abuse and the abuse of conscience.
In this way, we can show clearly our calling to be “a sign and instrument of communion with God and of the unity of the entire human race” (Lumen Gentium, 1).
“If one member suffers, all suffer together with it”, said Saint Paul. By an attitude of prayer and penance, we will become attuned as individuals and as a community to this exhortation, so that we may grow in the gift of compassion, in justice, prevention and reparation. Mary chose to stand at the foot of her Son’s cross. She did so unhesitatingly, standing firmly by Jesus’ side. In this way, she reveals the way she lived her entire life. When we experience the desolation caused by these ecclesial wounds, we will do well, with Mary, “to insist more upon prayer”, seeking to grow all the more in love and fidelity to the Church (SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA, Spiritual Exercises, 319). She, the first of the disciples, teaches all of us as disciples how we are to halt before the sufferings of the innocent, without excuses or cowardice. To look to Mary is to discover the model of a true follower of Christ.
May the Holy Spirit grant us the grace of conversion and the interior anointing needed to express before these crimes of abuse our compunction and our resolve courageously to combat them.
FRANCIS
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Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors ‘feel supported’ by Pope’s letter
The Vatican Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors issues a statement on Tuesday, saying they are encouraged by Pope Francis’ letter to all the People of God regarding clerical abuse.
By Sr Bernadette Mary Reis, fsp
Members of the Vatican Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors (PCPM) issued a statement on Tuesday, just one day after Pope Francis’ letter to all the People of God.
The Commission begins by saying it is encouraged by Pope Francis’ letter and thanked him for “his strong words recognizing the pain and suffering endured by people who have suffered sexual abuse, the abuse of power and the abuse of conscience perpetrated by some members of the church”.
Zero tolerance and accountability
In addition, they state that “members of the Commission feel supported by the Holy Father’s call…to ‘implement zero tolerance’ ” and to make accountable “ ‘those who perpetrate or cover up’ ” crime. The PCPM said that they heard reinforced in Pope Francis' letter their own message that “zero tolerance and accountability are a pre-requisite in safeguarding vulnerable people from abuse”.
Abuse of power
Commission member and canon lawyer Prof. Myriam Wijlens summarized Pope Francis’ letter into three points. The first is the clearly expressed “connection between sexual abuse, abuse of power and abuse of conscience” which, Prof Wijlens says, “many do not want to see connected". Second, is that the abuse of power has two levels: “There are those who use their position to sexually abuse minors and vulnerable adults and…those in leadership positions” who cover the abuse up.
Children's safety comes first
The third point Prof. Wijlens write of is that a looking backward approach consisting of “asking for pardon and seeking repair” is not sufficient. The approach that looks forward “implies asking for a radical change of culture where the safety of children enjoys top priority”. She says that the Church’s reputation requires “putting the safety of children first”, a task requiring “radical change” which “the clergy alone will not be able to bring about”. Thus the need for “humility” and of asking for and receiving “help from the whole community”, Prof. Wijlens concludes.
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Different
STATIONS OF THE CROSS - Meditations from Saint Faustina's Way of The Cross
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EqSpKHUnpo
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How to go to confession when you haven’t gone in years
A practical guide for those hesitant about returning to the sacraments.
Going to confession for the first time in 5, 10, 20, 30 (or more) years can be daunting. We know we should do it, but there is part of us that is still reluctant or even afraid of going back to the sacraments.Besides feelings of shame, we may simply have forgotten how to go to confession.
For those who are hesitant to receive the mercy of God, here is a practical guide to the various steps of going to confession.
Step 1: Examine your conscience
This is the most necessary part of confession. Before you can confess your sins you need to know them. Typically a person goes to confession and tells the priest the sins they can remember since their last confession. If their last confession was 20 years ago, it might be rather difficult. The key is to tell the priest all mortal sins that you remember (to the best of your ability).
We typically remember those “big” sins, but if you need some help, here is a handy examination of conscience provided by the USCCB. When telling them to the priest, say the sin itself and the number of times you committed it (or at least a general estimation, like, “I didn’t go to Mass for 20 years”).
Also, think about confession as going to a doctor. If you don’t tell the doctor your arm hurts, he won’t be able to diagnose it and offer a cure. Similarly, if you don’t tell the priest a sin, he won’t be able to offer absolution for it and help heal that spiritual wound.
Step 2: Look up the local confession times or schedule a time with the priest
Sometimes if it has been a while, it is best to schedule a separate time with the local priest. However, if you don’t know the priest it might be daunting to think about it. Instead, find the nearest parish and inquire about their confession times.
It is also important to go early and try to be near the front of the line.
Step 3: Go into the confessional or Reconciliation room and start your confession
If you haven’t been to confession in many years, you might not know that many parishes no longer use the old-style confessional booths, or may offer them as an option along with one or more Reconciliation rooms. In a room, you still have the option of confessing anonymously behind a movable screen, but you will usually sit in a chair rather than kneel. You may also choose to confess face-to-face. Penitents line up outside the closed door to a Reconciliation room just as they do outside a confessional booth, entering when the person ahead of them leaves.
Wherever confession takes place, the priest typically will start first, saying, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.” Then it will be your turn to talk. Since it is your first time in a while, it is best to let the priest know that, and say something like, “Father, this is my first confession in x amount of years. These are my sins.”
Then you go ahead and start telling the priest your sins. Do your best to remember them. If you need to, write them on a piece of paper ahead of time.
Step 4: Listen to the priest’s consoling words and say your act of contrition
The priest will respond with words meant to encourage you on your journey of faith. He will then give you a specific “penance,” which could be a number of prayers (like saying 5 Our Fathers), or something related to your sins. After that he will invite you to make an act of contrition, a prayer expressing your sorrow for your sins. If you are worried about that, most confessionals have the act of contrition printed and visible to see. If they don’t, then let the priest know and he will guide you through it.
Alternatively you can print your own copy of the following prayer.
My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good, I have sinned against you whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with your help, to do penance, to sin no more, and to avoid whatever leads me to sin. Our Savior Jesus Christ suffered and died for us. In his name, my God, have mercy.
Step 5: Bask in the mercy of God and say your penance.
Take a while in the church to thank God for what just happened. God just wiped your sins away! They’re gone. Praise him and allow God’s peace to flood your soul. Then do whatever penance the priest gave you.
Re-commit your life to Jesus Christ, and as you leave the church, start a new chapter in your life. God is always there whenever we fall. Trust in his mercy and allow his grace to permeate every aspect of your life. Plan to head to confession again soon
https://aleteia.org/2017/08/12/how-to-go-to-confession-when-you-havent-gone-in-years/
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Pope Francis warns priests against living a double life
Pope on cover-up and abuse scandals
Pope Francis asks to pray against the division sown by the devil - October 1st, 2018
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Ex Opere Operato --- from the Catechism of the Catholic Church - CCC 1128
A little sacramental theology this week on 3MT!
This Latin phrase reminds us that the sacraments don't depend on the worthiness of their minister.
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Mill-Katekiżmu tal-Knisja Kattolika
KKK 1128
KKK 1128
1128 Dan ifisser dak li tgħid il-Knisja: li s-sagramenti jaħdmu ex opere operato (letteralment “mill-fatt stess li qiegħed isir għemil”), jiġifieri bis-saħħa tal-ħidma għas-salvazzjoni ta’ Kristu, ħidma li saret darba għal dejjem. Minn dan jiġi li “s-sagrament ma jseħħx permezz tal-ġustizzja tal-bniedem li jagħti s-sagrament jew jirċevih, iżda bil-qawwa ta’ Alla”. Sakemm sagrament hu ċċelebrat skond il-fehma tal-Knisja, is-setgħa ta’ Kristu u ta’ l-Ispirtu tiegħu jaħdmu fih u permezz tiegħu, tkun xi tkun il-qdusija personali tal-ministru. Iżda l-frott tas-sagramenti jiddependi ukoll mid-diżposizzjonijiet ta’ min jirċevihom.
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Omelia di Papa Francesco a Santa Marta del 10 ottobre 2017
L-Omnipotenza ta’ Alla tidher fil-ħniena tiegħu
It-Tlieta 10 ta’ Ottubru 2017. Omelija tal-Papa Franġisku fid-Dar Santa Marta.
Il-Papa Franġisku fakkar lill-fidili kollha li l-ħniena bla tarf t’Alla tiżboq kollox, imma wissiena li m’għandniex inkunu riġidi u għandna nkunu dejjem qlubna miftuħin.
Franġisku kien qed jitkellem waqt il-quddiesa fil-kappella tad-Dar Santa Marta fejn għamel riflessjoni, għat-tieni jum wara l-ieħor, dwar qari mill-Ktieb tal-Profeta Ġona. Il-Papa qal li hi biss il-ħniena t’Alla li tiftħilna qlubna u tirbaħ kollox.
Ġona, qal Franġisku, kien bniedem rasu iebsa, kien marid bir-riġidità, ruħ imġewħa. Fl-istorja tal-Bibbja, Alla jitlob lil Ġona biex jikkonverti l-belt ta’ Ninwè. Għall-ewwel il-Profeta rrifjuta u ħarab, imbagħad wettaq l-amar ta’ Alla u qeda dmiru sew. Madankollu, osserva l-Papa, Ġona hu mgħaddab u nkurlat għax Alla ħafer lill-poplu li b’qalb miftuħa wera sogħba.
Dawk li qalbhom hi stinata ma jifhmux x’inhi l-ħniena t’Alla. Huma bħal Ġona, qal il-Papa, ma jafux jiftħu qalbhom għall-Mulej. Dawn il-bnedmin huma ta’ qalb dgħajfa: qlub ċkejknin, magħluqin għall-ħniena u marbutin biss mar-rettitudni stretta. Jinsew li l-ġustizzja t’Alla saret laħam f’Ibnu, saret ħniena u maħfra. Jinsew li l-qalb t’Alla hi dejjem miftuħa għall-maħfra.
Jinsew xi ħaġ’oħra, issokta l-Papa. Jinsew li l-omnipotenza ta’ Alla turi
ruħha primarjament fil-ħniena u l-maħfra tiegħu.
ruħha primarjament fil-ħniena u l-maħfra tiegħu.
Mhux faċli nifhmu l-ħniena t’Alla. Jeħtieġ li nitolbu ħafna għax din hi grazzja. U aħna mdorrijin bl-attitudni ta’ tpattija li tfisser li għalina l-ġustizzja hi li tħallas għal dak li tkun għamilt. Madankollu rridu niftakru li Ġesù ħallas għalina u għadu jħallas.
Lil Ġona Alla seta’ abbandunah u ħallieh mar-ras iebsa u r-riġidità tiegħu. Minflok, mar ikellmu u kkonvinċieh; salvah bħalma salva lill-poplu ta’ Ninwè. Alla hu Alla tal-paċenzja, li jaf imelles, li jaf kif għandu jiftaħ il-qlub.
Il-qofol tal-messaġġ tal-ktieb tal-Profeta, kompla jgħid il-Papa, insibuh fid-djalogu bejn il-profezija, il-penitenza, il-ħniena u l-qalb dgħajfa jew ir-ras iebsa. U minn dan naraw li l-ħniena t’Alla dejjem toħroġ minn fuq għax l-omnipotenza tiegħu tidher fil-ħniena tiegħu.
Intikom parir, temm il-Papa, li llum taqraw il-Ktieb ta’ Ġona. Hu ktieb żgħir ħafna, tliet faċċati biss, u taraw kif jaħdem il-Mulej, kif il-ħniena tiegħu tittrasforma qlubna, u niżżu ħajr ‘l Alla talli hu tant ħanin.
Ħajr lill-Kamra tal-Aħbarijiet ta’ Radju Marija
https://laikosblog.org/2017/10/10/l-omnipotenza-talla-tidher-fil-hniena-tieghu/.
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