The blog of a group of Filipino Catholics and their frank commentary on anything that affects their lives as a citizen of the Philippines and as a Roman Catholics.
The practice of striving to put into practice in one's own life the virtues that the saints practiced in theirs. This is one of the reasons why the Church canonizes saints, to give the faithful secure patterns of holiness in every period of Christian history and on every level of human society.
Fr. John Hardon, SJ, Moden Catholic Dictionary
And if this be not enough to keep a man alive, in good faith I long not to live.
— Letter to his daughter, Margaret, 1535.
We may not look at our pleasures to go to heaven in featherbeds; it is not the way, for our Lord Himself went thither with great pain, and by many tribulations, which was the path wherein He walked thither, and the servant may not look to be in better case than his Master.
— To his wife and children, according to William Roper.
Where there is no malice there can be no offense.
— Speech in his Defence, to the Lords of the Council, 1535.
Quoted by William Roper
I die the King's good servant, but God's first.
— Last words on the scaffold, 1535,
according to Paris Newsletter, August 4, 1535:
"qu'il mouroit son bon serviteur et de Dieu premierement."
"If we but paused for a moment to consider attentively what takes place in this Sacrament, I am sure that the thought of Christ's love for us would transform the coldness of our hearts into a fire of love and gratitude."
- St. Angela of Foligno
"Christ held Himself in His hands when He gave His Body to His disciples saying: 'This is My Body.' No one partakes of this Flesh before he has adored it."
- St. Augustine
"Recognize in this bread what hung on the cross, and in this chalice what flowed from His side... whatever was in many and varied ways announced beforehand in the sacrifices of the Old Testament pertains to this one sacrifice which is revealed in the New Testament."
- from the writings of St. Augustine, Sermon 3, 2; circa A.D. 410 {original translation}
"O Lord, we cannot go to the pool of Siloe to which you sent the blind man. But we have the chalice of Your Precious Blood, filled with life and light. The purer we are, the more we receive."
- St. Ephraem
"When the bee has gathered the dew of heaven and the earth's sweetest nectar from the flowers, it turns it into honey, then hastens to its hive. In the same way, the priest, having taken from the altar the Son of God (who is as the dew from heaven, and true son of Mary, flower of our humanity), gives him to you as delicious food."
- St. Francis de Sales
"When you have received Him, stir up your heart to do Him homage; speak to Him about your spiritual life, gazing upon Him in your soul where He is present for your happiness; welcome Him as warmly as possible, and behave outwardly in such a way that your actions may give proof to all of His Presence."
- St. Francis de Sales
"What wonderful majesty! What stupendous condescension! O sublime humility! That the Lord of the whole universe, God and the Son of God, should humble Himself like this under the form of a little bread, for our salvation"
"...In this world I cannot see the Most High Son of God with my own eyes, except for His Most Holy Body and Blood."
- St. Francis of Assisi
'One morning, while I was doing my thanksgiving after Holy Communion, I was taken by a strong distraction. It seemed that I was on a very vast flat land surface, full of people surrounded by thick darkness. They were walking, but did so as though they had lost their way and could not see where they set their feet. Someone beside me said, "This region is England."
'Then I saw the Supreme Pontiff, Pius IX. He was dressed in a majestic fashion, carrying in his hands a splendorous light, and advancing amidst the multitude of people. As He advanced, the darkness gradually disappeared and the people were bathed with so much light that it seemed noon time.
'The friend said, "This light is the Catholic Religion, which must illuminate England." 'Pius IX said to Don Bosco: "This narration confirms in me my determination to work without rest in favor of England, which is already the object of all my solicitudes."
(From the Biographical Memiors of St. John Bosco)
"Every judgement of conscience, be it right or wrong, be it about things evil in themselves or morally indifferent, is obligatory, in such wise that he who acts against his conscience always sins."
"Clearly the person who accepts the Church as an infallible guide will believe whatever the Church teaches."
LAGMAN, GARIN,DEFENSOR-SANTIAGO, PIA CAYETANO:***
If we PASS THE RH BILL, will you renounce your faith?
PINOY CATHOLICS: That I will never do, because I am a Christian, and I shall die for God, and for him I will give many thousands of lives if I had them. And so, do with me as you please.
The tradition of the Passionists holds that before St. Paul of the Cross founded the Congregation of the Passionists he had a Marian apparition during which he received the black habit of the order with the badge on chest. Thereafer, the Passionist Fathers gave the faithful who wished to associate themselves more closely with their order a black scapular in honor of the Passion of Christ. This small scapular has a replica of the badge of the Passion, namely a heart with three nails above a cross, on which is written "Jesu XPI Passio" and below "sit semper in cordibus nostris". The other portion of the scapular hanging at the back, may consist simply of a small segment of black cloth, but at times has an image of the Crucifixion of Christ.
The indulgences for the scapular were extended to all the faithful who wear it by Pope Pius IX in 1861. Various other indulgences for the faithful who wear this scapular, were then approved by the Congregation of Indulgences in 1877
Members of the Confraternity of Our Lady of the Seven Dolours honour the Seven Dolours of Mary, and wear the black scapular of the Order of Servites, sanctioned in 1255 by Alexander IV. The scapular is in black cloth like the habit of the Order, bearing an image on the front of it of the Mother of Sorrows. It bears the indulgences of the Confraternity if worn constantly, and one must go back to 9th March, 1888, for a summary of these indulgences approved by the Congregation of Indulgences.
“All our perfection, consists in being conformed, united and consecrated to Jesus Christ; and therefore, the most perfect of all devotions is, without any doubt, that which most perfectly conforms, unites and consecrates us to Jesus Christ. Now, Mary being the most conformed of all creatures to Jesus Christ, it follows that, of all devotions, that which most consecrates and conforms the soul to Our Lord is devotion to His holy Mother, and that the more a soul is consecrated to Mary, the more it is consecrated to Jesus” (Treatise on True Devotion, n. 120).
The most evident mark of God's anger, and the most terrible castigation He can inflict upon the world, is manifest when He permits His people to fall into the hands of a clergy who are more in name than in deed, priests who practice the cruelty of ravening wolves rather than the charity and affection of devoted shepherds. They abandon the things of God to devote themselves to the things of the world and, in their saintly calling of holiness, they spend their time in profane and worldly pursuits. When God permits such things, it is a very positive proof that He is thoroughly angry with His people and is visiting His most dreadful wrath upon them.
