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Blog Topic: PASTORAL LETTER FROM THE BISHOP PEOPLE OF LIFE

My dear People of God, People of Life, Happy Easter!

Today, as you leave church, I have a small Easter Gift for you: a booklet of prayers and reflections that I hope you will like and treasure. More, by God’s grace, I hope it will inspire you, your parish and all our Framework and Evangelisation Teams, to prayer, commitment and strategic action.

Humanae Vitae 2

However, here I want to explore again what it means to be a human person, created by God, fallen through sin, yet redeemed in Christ. There is now in society great confusion and conflict about what it means to be human, about relationships, sexuality and love, but also, most seriously, about the actual value and dignity of human life itself from conception to natural death. As Catholics, the Gospel is always a sure guide. Jesus Christ is God, Deum de Deo, but as the Creed also affirms, the New Adam, from the earth the Perfect Human.1 He is our Model. It is thrilling that we humans, body and soul, live at the intersection between the two realms of creation, the material and the spiritual! This should make us a people of life, a people of joy and good will, people who promote the sanctity of life in all its beautiful diversity.

Consider this. It’s over fifty years since the 1967 Abortion Act, one of the most liberal in the world, came into effect. Since then, ten million babies in the UK have been aborted, one in five pregnancies. As a people of life, our efforts to defend the unborn child, to care for pregnant mothers and to reverse or blunt this Act have had mixed results and it now looks as if, unjustly, our secularist government will no longer allow us even to pray outside hospitals and clinics. Consequently, I’m discussing with pro- life groups and with our Justice, Peace and Social Responsibility Team some new forms of witness. We need to change tack. As a start, from this year on, I would like us to keep every 23rd October, the day the Act was passed, as a diocesan Day of Prayer and Reparation for Life. On that day, as we celebrate being people of life with various initiatives, I ask our priests to offer a Mass for the Progress of Peoples, but wearing the purple vestments of penitence.

Humanae Vitae Pope Paul VI

This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the saintly Pope Paul VI ’s prophetic Encyclical Letter Humanae Vitae It restates the Church’s doctrine on the integrity of sexual intercourse, reserved to a husband and wife in marriage, as an act of love open to life and that these two aspects, openness to life and love, must not be split or artificially separated. Otherwise, the Pope warned, there would be catastrophic consequences for persons, families and society. Years on, we can now see exactly what he meant in broken family relationships, the reduction of sex to a casual activity, the trafficking of people for prostitution and pornography, the sexualisation of the young and the explosion of addictive behaviours leading to despair, shame and guilt. I invite everyone to revisit this teaching and to reflect on the alternative ‘spiritual ecology’ that the Gospel proposes for family life, when natural methods of fertility and family planning are used. Our diocesan Marriage and Family Life Team are keen to help and to give advice.

As a people of life, who celebrate life as a Divine gift, full of meaning, purpose and value, we cannot idly stand by before evil, injustice, suffering and violence in our world, including the abuse of the Earth and its resources. We must act. Next month is the anniversary of Pope Francis’s brilliant Encyclical Letter Laudato Si, in which he begs people to live an authentically human ecology, a more balanced, simple life-style, a life that respects the environment, helps end poverty and espouses justice. It would be good to re-read Laudato S alongside Humanae Vitae. As Catholics, we should live an integrally ‘green’ and natural way of life. To do this, of course, given our fallen nature, we need the love of Christ and the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit.

Laudate SIOurs is an era of amazing advances in knowledge and technology, from science and medicine to the arts and humanities. Yet the demise of faith and religion, the demise even of people praying, is rapidly undermining in Britain the foundations of ethics. This dilution of our Christian patrimony threatens to usher in a frightening new Dark Age. No wonder a death-wish is arising for assisted suicide and euthanasia. As Catholics, as people of life, we cannot ignore these challenges. We must act. We must ask Jesus to help us reach out in love to those around, to assist people develop a personal relationship with God. This is fundamental to the mission of our schools and parishes. But more than this, we must enable the Catholic Tradition to engage positively and constructively with culture and society in a mutually enriching conversation. Indeed, in November this year, our Dialogue with Cultural Sectors Team is organising an exciting Symposium called “Science – or – Religion?” It will tackle positively some of the issues that current advances raise: What does it mean to be human? How can we be happy? What does the Gospel say about life? There will be more details soon in ENews.

“Peace be with you!” says the risen Jesus to His apostles in today’s Gospel. Living a Christian life is demanding, but living life without Christ is intolerable. As we sang in the Easter Exsultet, He came to bring us life, joyful life, life to the full. Even if at times history seems ambiguous, His victory on Calvary guarantees that good will triumph.

So I ask you now: Be people of life! Love Jesus; keep close to Him and adore Him in the Eucharist. Read the Gospels; study the Church’s social teaching and be open to the questions people raise. This will help us to become positive, confident, ‘can-do’ Catholics. May Mary Immaculate, St. Edmund of Abingdon, and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati inspire us and pray for us. May they help us share our Christian faith and Christian values, Bringing People Closer to Jesus Christ through His Church.

Thank you for listening.

In Cord2e Iesu
+ Philip Bishop of Portsmouth

Read Father Marcin’s Blog on 40 Years on from Humane Vitae here:

 

Filed Under: Daily Thought, Father Marcin's Blog, Home Top Slider, Resources, Resources Blogs Tagged With: 1967 Abortion Act, Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, Humanae vitae, Laudato Si, Pope Francis, St. Edmund of Abingdon

Blog Topic: Christ’s image of Mercy painted by Sister Faustina

Divine Mercy Sunday 2018 4

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Dear Friends

In her diary, St. Faustina describes in detail the image of Mercy that Christ instructed her to have painted.

“The two rays denote Blood and Water. The pale ray stands for the Water which makes souls righteous. The red ray stands for the Blood which is the life of souls. These two rays issued forth from the very depths of My tender mercy when My agonized heart was opened by a lance on the Cross. These rays shield souls from the wrath of My Father. Happy is the one who dwells in their shelter, for the just hand of God shall not lay hold of him.” (Diary 299) In 1934St. Faustina and her spiritual advisor sought out Eugeniusz Kazimirowski to paint the image.

Jesus insisted when the work was completed that it be placed in chapels and venerated throughout the world. He promised that many graces would come for those who meditated on this beautiful image.

Pope St John Paul II was very passionate about the mission of revealing the mercy of Jesus to the world. In the year 2000, at the canonization Mass forSt. Faustina, he announced that the Second Sunday of Easter would now be known as Divine Mercy Sunday. It must be made clear that this was not done in order to establish a way of honouringSt. Faustina, but to emphasize the meaning of the Resurrection and the depths of God’s great mercy and love that is made available to all of His creation. Divine Mercy Sunday is not a new feast day because the Second Sunday of Easter has always been a solemnity known as the Octave Day of Easter. The richness of the mercy of God comes to us not only through St. Faustinas revelations, but also through Scripture and the history & Tradition of the Catholic Church.

What happens on Divine Mercy Sunday?

Saint Faustina tells us in her Diary,

“On one occasion, I heard these words: My daughter, tell the whole world about My Inconceivable mercy. I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially for poor sinners. On that day the very depths of My tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of My mercy. The soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. On that day all the divine floodgates through which grace flow are opened. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet. My mercy is so great that no mind, be it of man or of angel, will be able to fathom it throughout all eternity. Everything that exists has come forth from the very depths of My most tender mercy. Every soul in its relation to Me will contemplate My love and mercy throughout eternity. The Feast of Mercy emerged from My very depths of tenderness. It is My desire that it be solemnly celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. Mankind will not have peace until it turns to the Fount of My Mercy.” (Diary 699)

In short, Jesus has promised to pour out extraordinary graces to those who come to Him on this day focused on His Mercy. He has promised complete forgiveness of sins and punishment for those who take part by doing what He has instructed. To further encourage us to participate in this tradition, in 2002 a plenary indulgence was also granted for those who observe the necessary conditions.

How do I prepare for Divine Mercy Sunday in order to receive these graces?

Celebrate the Feast on the Sunday after Easter –

1. Sincerely repent of all our sins;
2. Place our complete trust in Jesus;
3. Be sure that we are in state of grace if not, go to Confession, preferably before that Sunday;
4. Receive Holy Communion on the day of the Feast;
5. Venerate the Image of The Divine Mercy (To venerate a sacred image or statue simply means to perform some act or make some gesture of deep religious respect toward it because of the person whom it represents — in this case, our Most Merciful Saviour)
6. Be merciful to others, through our actions, words, and prayers on their behalf.

How can I live out the message of Divine Mercy throughout the year?

This message of Divine Mercy is not just intended for one Sunday. We should live this and embrace it daily. Our understanding of the mercy of Christ is key to our relationship with Him. It is also essential that we show mercy to others. In our culture, the idea of mercy has been lost. We demand that others pay the price for their wrongs. Rarely, do we forgive those who do not “deserve” or ask for forgiveness. Mercy will be a form of evangelization. Others will surely notice when we show mercy with the love of Christ. We can do this by studying the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy and making their practice a habit in our lives. Pope Francis encouraged this practice when he recently announced that this coming year will be a Jubilee of Mercy.

“It is my burning desire that, during this Jubilee, the Christian people may reflect on the corporal and spiritual works of mercy. It will be a way to reawaken our conscience, too often grown dull in the face of poverty. And let us enter more deeply into the heart of the Gospel where the poor have a special experience of God’s mercy.”

We may also choose to recite The Chaplet of Divine Mercy daily or whenever possible. Finally, learn more about Divine Mercy through many resources which are available for us. There are so many wonderful resources to help you grow in your understanding of the mercy Christ wants to reveal to us.

Don’t just keep the good news of this mercy to yourself. Be the encouragement that someone else may need to enter into the doors of our Churches and receive the graces God wants to bestow. When we take the initiative to educate others about Divine Mercy Sunday and actively draw them into the celebration of the Eucharist, we will know that our own hearts are truly beginning to understand the message of mercy and love of the risen Lord. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.

With love, friendship and prayers – Fr Marcin

Divine Mercy Sunday 2018 3

Come and join us THIS Sunday 8th April 2018 at 3 o’clock at St Swithun’s Church, to celebrate Mercy Sunday. There will be ‘HOUR of MERCY’ with Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, singing, Reflections on St Faustina’s Diary, Three o’clock prayers and Benediction.

Filed Under: Daily Thought, Father Marcin's Blog, Resources Blogs Tagged With: Divine Mercy Sunday, Eugeniusz Kazimirowski, Pope St John Paul I, Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska

Blog Topic: ‘God’s Infinite Patience – He is Risen’

The Patience of God

My Dear Brother and Sister in Christ, my Friends

This week it is time to come back to our meditations about the mysteries of our Faith. On this special, most beautiful day of our faith in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross and rose from death for us, I would like to ask that we complement our reflection of God who is full of mercy, who is constantly ready to wash our feet in his forgiveness. This reflection on this mystery of God will complement the cause of God’s patience. God is patient. True love is always patient. Already in the Old Testament the prophets very authoritatively stated, “Say to them, as I live,declares the Lord Yahweh, I do not take pleasure in the death of the wicked but in the conversion of the wicked who changes his ways and saves his life” [Ezekiel 33, 11].

We know that a loving mother can wait years for her child’s conversion. She waits until he/she returns from his/her bad way, for example of drunkenness. Already everyone doubts that he will convert, but his mother is waiting for his return to the honest way of life. She can tolerate his weakness, sometimes she even supports him materially because her love is patient. At times, her very surroundings seem to have a grudge against her, but the one who loves can understand the illogical thinking and behaviour of a mother. Authentic love wins by waiting, by patience. The most beautiful examples of the victory of patient love take place in broken marriages, where one side is faithful to the end, faithful to love. In how many cases it is only after many years, the other side begins to discover the extent of the betrayed spouse’s attitude. Often only at the death bed he/she can bow before the power of this faithful and patient love. Only Heaven will reveal the full power and victory of the great love that will decide the salvation of many.

God’s patience with us is limited by time. We live in time and we can use God’s patience as long as we are on earth. In this sense we can talk about the limits of God’s patience. God is always patient and waiting for our conversion. But the one who thinks he can choose the time of his conversion, because God is still waiting, can be negatively surprised. Because none of us knows the day or the hour of our death. Abuse of God’s patience can turn into a great disaster.

God is patient not only in anticipation of the conversion of the sinner. He is patient as a pedagogue. God’s patient love creates the atmosphere in which we all develop, in which we live. This is a long thoughtful patience. This patience awaits our maturity. Similarly, the pedagogue thinks and he knows that the efforts he is undertaking today will only yield fruit in ten or twenty years (or even later). Yes, God waits patiently for our maturity. This patience must be taught by God. The greatest weakness of modern man is his lack of patience with everything: our neighbours, our study, our work. We lack first and foremost patience with ourselves. We ourselves cannot wait patiently. This approach shows our weakness. Let us look at the approach to learning, for example. Many put it this way: if I understand it I accept it, and if I do not understand it, then I reject it.

But then there is no development. To great truths we have to grow slowly and gradually. We need patience ourselves, because only in the path of patience can we achieve spiritual maturity. If we lack patience that is our mistake, often to tragic effect. Patience has power. The patient man is really strong. In the Old Testament, in the Book of Wisdom several times it is pointed out that much larger works can be performed by a patient man than an athlete. Patience has power. We ourselves know that our impatience is a sign of our weakness.

Patient man is strong with the ability to find solutions even in very difficult situations. Patience is his power. The patience of God, on the other hand, is manifest not only in His love, waiting for the maturity of man, or for his conversion, but as a manifestation of His omnipotence. Almighty God is patient. God wins through patience in anticipation of our maturity. If I mention God’s patience, I do it first of all because it is to call upon you to learn from our patient Father the extremely necessary skills of daily life.

Love is patient [1 Cor 13, 4]. If I can love, I can be patient; If I do not know how to love, I can work on patience for decades, and still I cannot win this virtue. Love is patient and work on improving love is much more beautiful and effective than trying to achieve patience. When it comes to improving patience alone, we can break down because we do not see the fruits of our efforts. On the other hand, if one perfects his love of his father, mother, wife, husband, then the patience will be the fruit of this love. God is love and love is patient. God is revealed to us as the Father infinitely patient. For His patience today we thank Him because we need it every day, and at the same time we ask that we be able to learn from Him patient love.

With love, friendship and prayers – Fr Marcin

I stand upon the solid rock
Of faith in Christ
This steadfast hope shall not
Break apart within the trial
I am assured
His promises will never fail
As long as life remains
He is faithful

God is patient
God is kind
He does not envy
He does not boast
His ways are higher than my own
His thoughts consume the great unknown
Of this alone I am sure
My God is love

I draw my breath under His
Created windswept sky
I know my hope shall last
Long after my flesh retires
From dusk until the dawn
He calls His children home
His righteous love outlasts generations

God is patient
God is kind
He does not envy
He does not boast
His ways are higher than my own
His thoughts consume the great unknown
Of this alone I am sure
My God is love

He is Almighty God
Elohim
Maker of the earth
He is the Lord of hosts
Heaven’s King
God of endless worth
His kingdom stands above
Every power
Every living soul
His love is like the sun
Ever true
Shining over all

Filed Under: Daily Thought, Father Marcin's Blog, Resources, Resources Blogs Tagged With: 1 Corithians 13 4, Book of Wisdom, Ezekiel 33:11

Blog Topic: The Theology of the Body – A Master Plan for Life

Theology of the Body Master Plan

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Dear Friends

Today, my last reflection on the theology of the body, so helpful to understand our sexuality, our body as a gift from God and the Temple of the Holy Spirit. Thank You for all your comments and kind words how much You needed this and hom much You appreciate it.

Sexual morality boils down to the question of whether the sexual act shows the free, passionate, generous, faithful, life-giving love of God? If not, there are only substitutes. Sexuality divorced from love, from life, from God – just destroys.

One of you, after reading previous episodes – wrote, that what is written about the sexual sphere in the catechisms (think – also John Paul II), is very far from reality for the ordinary person. “Why think of all these theological deductions and morally intricate lines of arguments about life in purity? Why can it not be a simple, understandable and descriptive determination that it is a grave sin … or it is not …”. Well, it is not so simple. If someone is stubborn or wilful, then Catholic teaching on this issue brings to the directory of the acts “prohibited” and “permitted” in the bedroom. But then we get a caricature. Pope John Paul II in his theology of the body avoids such simple answers. He wants to show how it all works. The theology of the body is more the science of man than moral theology. The moral principles regarding sexuality cannot be offered without the full vision of man, above all, without his relationship with God. The intimate sphere has a very deep relationship with God. By its very nature it is to serve love, not only the human but also the divine. This space is sacred, delicate, beautiful, and divine. And therefore constantly threatened by attacks by the evil one. Many of us have our own story of sin or injury in this sphere, (indeed is there anyone who has not?).

But the theology of the body is not a story about an unattainable ideal, it is the story of the salvation of sexuality. Contemporary culture imposes on us a vision of sexuality detached from love, from fertility, from marriage, from God. Everything is brought down to the physiological, the selfish pursuit of maximum pleasure. Therefore the theology of the body has a counter-cultural dimension to it. It is a complete denial of “modern“, “liberated” sex education. As George Weigel once remarked, “To the advocates of the sexual revolution, John Paul’s dramatic combination of body language and God-talk offered a bold challenge: Who takes human sexuality more seriously? Those who imagine sexual love as another contact sport? Or those who think of it as revelatory of the interior life of God?”

The tragedy is when Catholics themselves decide that God is wrong. Then we do not need to set the bar so high. We agree to mediocrity, and decide that purity of heart and the associated beautiful love is an illusion. The fact that we fall in this area, is one thing. But it is not the worst. The most dangerous temptation is that which comes after a fall. This is the temptation to decide that a sin is the norm, giving up the struggle, abandoning the ideal, because “this is today’s world”. Purity is not the aim in itself. It’s about love. There is no more important thing in life. Courage!

Love put to the test or love as an attempt

Let us move on to things which I mentioned in the previous meditation on the Song of Songs, celebrating the sensual, yet pure human love. It is like a description of Adam and Eve in Eden before the fall. John Paul II points out that this ideal image should be complemented with the more prosaic story of another biblical couple of heroes of the Book of Tobit: Sarah and Tobias. Sarah has a history of trauma. Seven times married, and each time her bridegroom died before they had a sexual relationship. Tobias also had difficult experiences with a sick father. They fell in love. Tobias took Sarah to be his wife, risking his life, and she ran the risk of further pain. On the wedding night Sarah’s father orders a grave to be dug for Tobias. Before the newly weds go to bed for the first time, they pray together. And God saves them. Love turns out to be stronger than death.

The Pope considers the words of this prayer as a marriage creed, he sees it as a short-cut to the theology of the body. “You are blessed, O God of our fathers; blessed too is your name for ever and ever. Let the heavens bless you and all things you have made for evermore. You it was who created Adam, you who created Eve his wife to be his help and support; and from these two the human race was born. You it was who said, ‘It is not right that man should be alone; let us make him a helper like him.’ And so I take my sister not for any lustful motive, but I do it in singleness of heart. Be kind enough to have pity on her and on me and bring us to old age together. And together they said, ‘Amen, Amen,’” (Tb 8:5-8).

John Paul II draws attention to the word “sister“, already known from the Song of Songs. Through the marriage of husband and wife they become “brother and sister”. Eros (corporal love, passionate, coveting) must be completed by agape (love of sacrifice, self-giving, selfless). It drew the attention of Pope Benedict XVI in his encyclical “Deus Caritas Est“. This figure sisterly-brotherly love can be called agape love. Without harmony of these two kinds of love marriage fails. Those who build only on the ‘eros’ or only on the ‘agape’ itself, build on sand. Tobias “fell so deeply in love with her that he could no longer call his heart his own”(Tb 6:19).

That is all there is in this book about love which is ‘eros’. Where it is agape? That decision in marriage, which is inscribed in the willingness to share their fate, adhering to the “good and bad fate” and even ready to die! John Paul II writes that love is not only ‘eros’, but also the ethos, that is a decision, a choice of values. Tobit shows that marriage is not a constant Song of Songs. Love is not without risks. Every person entering into marriage, brings with him all his burdens, from the family home, from other relationships. He brings the history of his sins and wounds. These “suitcases” from the past are unpacked after the wedding, sooner or later. Such freed demons can kill love. Perhaps it is so, that the “marriage bed” reveals these various” packages” and instead of connecting the couple more deeply, they tend to part, to move away from each other.

Can it survive?

 

Yes, it can, if there will be a common voice. And it will not even be primarily a marriage dialogue, but first a joint turning to God for help – prayer. The common prayer of Tobias and Sarah ends with “Amen” spoken by each of them. This is the “moment of purification“, in which they will need to ‘give up’ and persevere in their test. This should not be understood as banal. When we have a crisis, are we just to pray together and that’s it? Everything can be trivialized. The thing is, that marriage is a sacrament in which God gives power. Humanly, when the couple body) discover the full truth about themselves, they can experience deep disappointment.

To get through this, you have to rely on the love of God, this LOVE is “the beginning”, the “source of grace”. Of course, the key is that both of them – together – know that they want it. That both will say “Amen” to God and to each other. “The spouses in the Song of Songs in their hot words confess to each other their human love. Newly weds from the Book of Tobit ask God about it so they can meet the love” (John Paul II ).

John Paul II did not hesitate to declare that “body language” of spouses is the liturgy, it is the language of the ministers of the sacrament of marriage. This sacrament is not happening just in front of the altar. He continues – it is celebrated through life together, and in a unique way by tenderness, caressing, loving union. Christopher West observes: “We can even look at the marriage bed as the altar”. Exaggeration? John Paul II does not use nearly as strong a term, but he is sure that the marriage “body language” is sacred to reaching God.

So where is the sin?

Theology of the Body for all

From this vision of love follows certain rules of morality. Ultimately boiling down to the question of whether the sexual act truly shows the free, passionate and generous, faithful, creative (fertile) love of God? If not, then we have a substitute, a fake love, probably with sin. Can masturbation be an image of God’s love? Pornography? Adultery? Premarital sex? Homosexual acts? The answer is inherently obvious. The issue is whether intentionally obscure sexual intercourse of spouses may be an image of full, creative love of God? It cannot! For centuries, people combined to practice in this area, but they knew they were doing something wrong. They understood that respect for the procreative function of sex is an important element of morality. Even Sigmund Freud believed that “a common feature of all perversions is that they have abandoned the goal of breeding“. When sex is deprived of its consequences, inevitably we lose the moral compass.

Gandhi wrote that contraception is “a reward for debauchery. It makes men and women reckless. The man sufficiently to humiliate the woman of his desire, and in contraception promoted as a matter of faith will humiliate her even more. “ I recall in this, two non-Christian authorities, to show that it is not a ‘Catholic obsession’. John Paul II indicates that the theology of the body is justification for the teaching of Paul VI‘s encyclical “Humanae Vitae“. We cannot mark its content only as a moral opposition to artificial contraception. The use of the natural regulation of conception, that is, respect for the natural rhythms of fertility, is not just a matter of “technical” (choose one or another effective method), it is about a vision of love, a certain philosophy, and actually spirituality of marriage. The marriage act only on certain day’s leads to the emergence of life.

If the spouses for various reasons do not want more children, they live together in days of “sterility”. This requires self-control. As pointed out by John Paul II, that self-control is necessary for the development of love in marriage. Periodic abstinence serves to excite (connected with the body) it does not overshadow emotions (the reaction of person to person on a deeper level than physiology). In this way one can sometimes “trip up”.

According to the Pope, of great help are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, especially the gift of worship (devotion). Purity will never be the result only of our efforts. It must be the fruit of grace. We must mentally and spiritually “let God” in our bodies, and believe that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. This results in purity of heart, a love that gives more satisfaction than … refrain from comparisons. These four lessons certainly leave us hungry.

I hope that my words will encourage further personal research. It was of the prayer composed by spouses who inspired me to discover the theology of the body. I know that they themselves are trying to live like that, in love. I believe that this is possible. Amen.

Conjugal prayer inspired by the theology of the body

“Lord, let me experience You in the love of my spouse, let me to hear You in his words, let me feel Your gentleness in his gentle gesture, touch, caress. I want to feel your closeness, Your presence, to worship You our Lord, in my spouse. Lord, let my spouse also experience Your love, help me to show him my love for him, so that he can feel that You love him. Let our married life become a fulfilment of Your holy will. We ask You to help us make present in our love Your boundless love, teach us how to contribute for the sake of a loved one, how to become fully open for love’s gift and to accept that gift. Take our hearts of stone and give us hearts of flesh, the hearts that listen and feel together, which accept their weaknesses and defects, which forgive and show mercy. Amen”

With love, friendship and prayers – Fr Marcin

Filed Under: Daily Thought, Father Marcin's Blog, Resources Blogs Tagged With: Adam and Eve, Blessed Paul VI, Deus Caritas Est, George Weigel, Humanae vitae, Original Unity of Man and Woman, Pope John Paul II, Sigmund Freud, Song of Songs

Blog Topic: The Theology of the Body

 

Theology of the Body

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Dear Friends

Today, please look at the fourth part of my thoughts based on the theology of the body – one of the most amazing look at the sensuality, marriage, sexuality, close relationships. Please, pray for me and all those who read this.

“Wives should be subject to their husbands as to the Lord” [Ef 5, 22]. This sentence taken out of context is teasing us. St. Paul teaches that husband and wife are to be subjected to Christ, and through him also to each other. It is a great ideal. John Paul II believes marriage to be a “primordial” sacrament.

To be subject to each other

The theology of the body is a catechetical project of John Paul II, whose aim is to show the beauty of human love, sexuality, marriage. The Pope has repeatedly returned to several biblical texts. In the Word of God, he is looking for the light. The theology of the body, in fact, is the most comprehensive, so far; the response of the Church to the sexual revolution. The main thrust of papal teaching: “body language” of man and woman can and should be a place of communication, of the revelation of God’s love. We have had just three lessons. Short recall: In the first part we went back as suggested by the Lord Jesus to “the beginning”. It was an attempt to read God’s idea of masculinity / femininity. Our biblical parents, Adam and Eve before the fall, were free from shame, rejoicing together in a reciprocal gift – a symbolic image of “God’s programme”, which was to give human happiness. However, things turned out differently. The weakest link in God’s original plan was freedom. It is because of freedom that sin entered.

The man rejected the logic of the gift and replaced it with the logic of demands, of fighting for himself and what he wanted. The endowment system turned into a system of appropriation. The consequence of that sin of rejection is lust, which strongly interferes with gender relations, destroys the harmony of the body and spirit. The sacramental and spousal meaning of the body has been obscured, weakened. Since then, the human heart is in a constant struggle between lust and love. This is our story so far. This week’s meditation will be devoted to the extraordinary biblical analogy: love between man and woman as compared to God’s love for His people and love of Christ for the Church. This is what is said in the famous text of St. Paul on marriage in his Letter to the Ephesians (5, 21-33).

It is intended to be read during the wedding, but quite rarely chosen. This piece requires a living faith, sometimes misunderstood, irritating the modern mentality. St. Paul, comparing the relationship of husband to wife with the love between Christ and the Church is not an innovation. It is a continuation of the beautiful biblical tradition, which equates love of God for His people to the love of bridegroom for his bride. Since God is love (communion, unity of people), we cannot separate the truth from the experience of human love, the relationship between man and woman. In many catechesis Pope John Paul II shows us the full depth of this relationship to the truth. It is not just about verbal analogy, a metaphor. Love, any love, but especially between married couples, must have a relationship with God, with Christ. The love of God is the source and the highest ideal of human love.

If this association runs out, human love runs out of “fuel” in the burning fire of desire. Sooner or later it becomes an empty shell, a caricature of the love that we desire. And we indeed are not looking for miserable fakes, but something authentic, original.

United MotherThe primordial sacrament

To understand the text of St. Paul to the Ephesians, one must recall the “nuptial” threads of the Old Testament. The words “bridegroom” / “bride” today sound archaic, but what to replace them with? “Lover” / “paramour” are associated with extramarital relationship. “Husband” / “wife” sounds too formal. So what? “Mate” and “partner”? This fatally reminds us of the denial of the sacred dimension of marriage. What happened to our world that even in our language we lack words that can express authentic, original love – hot, passionate, sensual, and yet pure, divine, beautiful? We have no choice but to stick to the words “bridegroom” and “bride”. The Old Testament prophets repeatedly reached for the image of conjugal love. God is the bridegroom in love with His bride, which is Israel, the chosen people. The bride often turns out to be unfaithful. Sin, especially the sin of idolatry (worship of other gods) is compared to adultery, infidelity. The Bridegroom (God), never ceases to love his “women”. Two examples: “For your Creator is your husband, the Lord of Hosts is his name, the Holy One of Israel is your redeemer, and he is called God of the whole world. Yes, Yahweh has called you back like a forsaken, grief-stricken wife, like the repudiated wife of his youth, says your God.”(Isaiah 54, 5-7). “Like a young man marrying a virgin, your Maker will wed you, and as the bridegroom rejoices in his bride, so will your God rejoice in you.” (Isaiah 62.5). The core here is the truth about how much God loves us. This love is not just something formal, cold and official. Every sin is not only a violation of the provision. It is the breaking of the covenant, of that close relationship; it is the rejection, trampling, and injury of love. This can be understood only by someone who knows how much rejected love hurts. The thing is to discover and believe that love between a man and a woman (in all its dimensions: emotions, senses, mind and body) has a deep relationship with the essence of God, who is love. That’s why John Paul II does not hesitate to call marriage a “primordial” sacrament. Primordial, because it was built before the Church. Before any baptism, and before the Eucharist (the largest, most holy sacrament), there was Adam and Eve. Their love was from the beginning! Human love is inscribed in the order of creation, from the first moment of human existence. Human love is the first, oldest “sacrament” (trademark, image) of God’s love. This truth changes our thinking both about God and about human love (and the body!). God is not “just” the Father, the Great Parent.

He is “The” Beloved One who loves passionately, with the heat of passion. To live, all of us want to be loved not only by our father and mother, but also by our groom / bride. Is this not what almost all poetry, art, music is saying? There is a yearning for perfect love enabling people to achieve the greatest, noblest acts, and to make things worse, sometimes even to crime. But ultimately at the centre of the heart is a hunger, a longing for God, who is Authentic Love.

Theology of the Body 2

Song of Songs

This is an amazing Book. It is in the Bible, but there is almost no mention of God. This is a poem, a ballad which is celebrating love. Passionate, sensual, erotic. In the Jewish and Christian tradition it accentuates its allegorical meaning, which is seen as one big metaphor for the love of God or Christ.

John Paul II emphasizes that allegory can never impose power over the literal sense. The Song of Songs is like God’s praise (after all, the Word of God!) The beauty of human love. Someone advised me recently that priests should not refer married couples to this, particularly those whose married life is in crisis. It will only irritate them. The Song of Songs seems to be too idealistic an image. That’s correct, it is a downright idyll. But can we blame God that He sees the things in His way, which means: perfectly? John Paul II believes that the Song of Songs is a poetic description of the link between Adam and Eve. It’s a description of their first love still uncontaminated by sin. In other words, the Song of Songs is a poetic record of this “initial programme” which we were talking about two weeks ago. This is erotica undamaged by sin. This is a showing of perfect “body language” that is free from falsehood, pretence, or deception. The relationship of the bridegroom and of the bride should be based on mutual giving and not scrambling something from each other. That’s how it should be! But it is not, and we too often realize it in very painful ways. But we have to have an ideal, for which we long, and for which we are looking. With the comprehensive reflection of the Pope on this extraordinary biblical book I choose one theme, in my opinion, extravagant. Bridegroom says at one point to his beloved: “You ravish my heart, my sister, my promised bride” (Song of Songs 4, 9). John Paul II reflects on the meaning of the word “sister” in the context of sexual love, which implies, after all, a different kind of relationship.

The Pope again returns to the “beginning”, that is, to Adam and Eve. And he says they were “brother” and “sister” in the unity of humanity itself. He does not hesitate to declare that “through marriage man and woman are in a special way brother and sister to each other.” It sounds surprising. But if we delve into this idea, we find here an important hint, especially for men. If a husband will not see in his wife the “sister” in humanity, or someone very close, with the proximity free of sexual tension, then the spousal love will always be vulnerable to contamination of desire. The ‘brotherly-sisterly’ relationship is the foundation of normal spousal relationship. It’s a bit shocking, but admittedly – revealing. Something to think about.

Wife subject to her husband?

In the New Testament St. Paul, who knew the Jewish tradition well, refers to the topic of spousal love for Christ and the Church. I have to quote a long passage of St Paul’s argument. It’s a beautiful text, unfortunately, often interpreted only as the fact that wives are to obey their husbands.

Some emphasize this, others try to explain that St Paul lived in different times and so on. This is a misunderstanding. Let us try to quietly read the words of the Apostle of Nations, paying particular attention to the first sentence. “Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives should be subject to their husbands as to the Lord, since, as Christ is head of the Church and saves the whole body, so is a husband the head of his wife; and as the Church is subject to Christ, so should wives be to their husbands, in everything. Husbands should love their wives, just as Christ loved the Church and sacrificed himself for her to make her holy by washing her in cleansing water with a form of words, so that when he took the Church to himself she would be glorious, with no speck or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and faultless. In the same way, husbands must love their wives as they love their own bodies; for a man to love his wife is for him to love himself. A man never hates his own body, but he feeds it and looks after it; and that is the way Christ treats the Church, because we are parts of that Body. This is why a man leaves his father and mother and becomes attached to his wife, and the two become one flesh. This mystery has great significance, but I am applying it to Christ and the Church.”[Ef 5, 21-32]. St. Paul comes from the fact that both spouses are to be submissive to one another. What’s more, “out of reverence for Christ”! For Paul, the basic formula of Christian life is the phrase “in Christ”. Also conjugal love has to be lived “in Christ”. Note that the husband is to love his wife as Christ loved the Church. So a husband must be ready to die for love of his beloved one, or to be crucified. A wife has to submit to her husband but, of course, not to her husband’s violence, domination or lust, but a wife should “give” to his love and reciprocate the gift of self. Love of the husband for his wife and the wife for her husband has the power of mutual sanctification. This is the essence of the sacrament of marriage. Too high? Too hard? Impossible? “This mystery has great significance…” – responds St. Paul, aware that the bar is set very high. The Greek word “mysterion” means not just something mysterious, incomprehensible. Greek mysteries were pagan rituals that lead participants to unity with the deity. “Mysterion” is translated also as a sacrament. Marriage is a mega-mystery and mega-sacrament. It is probably impossible to fully understand, and we probably do not need to. The idea is to follow this route. To know that this conjugal love, with its beauty and fulfilment, but also with the pain of failing, disappointment, crises … is always related to Christ and the Church. To see in one’s spouse a sister / a brother in humanity and in faith, is to see Christ himself. (To be continued…)

With love, friendship and prayers – Fr Marcin

Filed Under: Daily Thought, Father Marcin's Blog, Resources Blogs, Uncategorised Tagged With: Adam and Eve, Genesis 3:10, Genesis 3.7, Manichaeism, Mary Healy, Matthew 5: 27-28, Original Unity of Man and Woman, Pope John Paul II

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His Holiness Pope Francis endorses Rosary on the Coast of the British Isles | rosaryonthecoast

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Papal Blessing: His Holiness Pope Francis presents His greetings to all those persons participating in the Rosary on the Coast for Faith, Life and Peace in Scotland, England and Wales, due to take place on Sunday 29th April 2018, assuring them of His spiritual closeness to them in their prayers. Pope Francis, recalling the words of Pope Saint John Paul II, reminds us that the liberating message of the Gospel of Life has been placed in our hands. Invoking the intercession of the Blessed Mother, the Holy Father prays that those who believe in her Son may feel the urgency of making that Gospel known to our world by their words and by their lives. His Holiness imparts to all those who participate in the Rosary on the Coast his Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of abundant graces from heaven while placing them under the protection of Our Blessed Lady, Mary, Mother of the Church.Rosary on the Coast of the British IslesFor Life, Faith and Peace Sunday 29 April 2018Programme:2.00-2.30pm Gather at Rosary on the Coast location - Before the entrance of SOUTHSEA CASTLE (nearby the fountain) 2.45pm Invocation of the Holy Spirit Prayers of Protection 2.50pm Act of Contrition Scripture Readings 3.00pm Glorious Mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary 3.30pm Litany of Our Lady 3.40pm Prayer invoking St. Joseph 3.50pm Litany invoking Saints of the British Isles ... See MoreSee Less

13 hours ago

Papal Blessing:  His Holiness Pope Francis presents His greetings to all those persons participating in the Rosary on the Coast for Faith, Life and Peace in Scotland, England and Wales, due to take place on Sunday 29th April 2018, assuring them of His spiritual closeness to them in their prayers. 
  Pope Francis, recalling the words of Pope Saint John Paul II, reminds us that the liberating message of the Gospel of Life has been placed in our hands. Invoking the intercession of the Blessed Mother, the Holy Father prays that those who believe in her Son may feel the urgency of making that Gospel known to our world by their words and by their lives. 
  His Holiness imparts to all those who participate in the Rosary on the Coast his Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of abundant graces from heaven while placing them under the protection of Our Blessed Lady, Mary, Mother of the Church.

Rosary on the Coast of the British Isles
For Life, Faith and Peace Sunday 29 April 2018

Programme:
2.00-2.30pm Gather at Rosary on the Coast location - 
Before the entrance of SOUTHSEA CASTLE (nearby the fountain)
 2.45pm Invocation of the Holy Spirit Prayers of Protection 
2.50pm Act of Contrition Scripture Readings 
3.00pm Glorious Mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary 
3.30pm Litany of Our Lady 
3.40pm Prayer invoking St. Joseph 
3.50pm Litany invoking Saints of the British Isles
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DAILY MEDITATION:Wednesday of the 5th Week of EasterFeast of St. Mark, EvangelistApril 25, 2018Today's Saint Quote: Saint Pedro BetancourtAt a sick man's side, you can pray as much as you want, and God will hear you as well as in Church.Today’s Prayer:Beloved Jesus: I want to be the disciple who believes in You, does good works thanks to You and bears fruit that testifies of Your glorious presence among us. Amen.Today's Readings:1 Peter 5:5b-14Ps 89:2-3, 6-7, 16-17Mark 16:15-20Going into the whole world with the Good NewsMark 16:15-20 contains the reason for the name "Good News Ministries." Jesus said: "Go into the whole world and proclaim the Good News." In 1995, when my husband Ralph and I were commissioned to start this Catholic evangelization ministry in our local diocese, we had no idea we would be reaching out to "the whole world".The Feast of St. Mark is a good opportunity to share some of our experiences in ministry with you, to inspire you in whatever the Holy Spirit is calling you to do for spreading the Gospel of salvation.Over the years, beginning early on, there have been temptations and attacks to stall or stop the ministries. The first reading shows why I have always felt an urgency to keep this ministry and these daily reflections going despite every hardship. Everywhere, people are suffering and struggling in daily battles against Satan and trials and other sufferings. I want to be God's proclaimer of the Good News about victory over evil, healing from our wounds, encouragement in holiness, and restoration from weariness.By turning to the Holy Spirit for help, we've grown stronger in faith and persistence.In every trial, God has restored us, confirmed us, and used the hardships to make us more compassionate, more humble, and more able to do his work well. When one ministry door gets slammed shut in our faces, God opens a new door and blesses us as we walk into unexpected opportunities. This is how our Internet ministry has grown so huge. We've been sharing the Good News in many ways that we had not foreseen or imagined.Satan prowls around like a roaring lion, trying to interfere, especially when God is about to do something important and life-changing. Christians in ministry are tempted most when the devil wants us to stop what we're doing. If you're being harassed by unusual problems that keep popping up, praise the Lord! God is about to take you to the next level of service and growth.If you're suffering and are willing to turn it into a ministry for others who are likewise suffering, praise God like in Psalm 89! You are already victorious; you will be a powerful and effective instrument for God's kingdom.#dailymeditations www.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-25042018 ... See MoreSee Less

13 hours ago

DAILY MEDITATION:

Wednesday of the 5th Week of Easter
Feast of St. Mark, Evangelist
April 25, 2018

Todays Saint Quote: Saint Pedro Betancourt
At a sick mans side, you can pray as much as you want, and God will hear you as well as in Church.

Today’s Prayer:
Beloved Jesus: I want to be the disciple who believes in You, does good works thanks to You and bears fruit that testifies of Your glorious presence among us. Amen.

Todays Readings:
1 Peter 5:5b-14
Ps 89:2-3, 6-7, 16-17
Mark 16:15-20

Going into the whole world with the Good News

Mark 16:15-20 contains the reason for the name Good News Ministries. Jesus said: Go into the whole world and proclaim the Good News. In 1995, when my husband Ralph and I were commissioned to start this Catholic evangelization ministry in our local diocese, we had no idea we would be reaching out to the whole world.

The Feast of St. Mark is a good opportunity to share some of our experiences in ministry with you, to inspire you in whatever the Holy Spirit is calling you to do for spreading the Gospel of salvation.

Over the years, beginning early on, there have been temptations and attacks to stall or stop the ministries. The first reading shows why I have always felt an urgency to keep this ministry and these daily reflections going despite every hardship. Everywhere, people are suffering and struggling in daily battles against Satan and trials and other sufferings. I want to be Gods proclaimer of the Good News about victory over evil, healing from our wounds, encouragement in holiness, and restoration from weariness.

By turning to the Holy Spirit for help, weve grown stronger in faith and persistence.

In every trial, God has restored us, confirmed us, and used the hardships to make us more compassionate, more humble, and more able to do his work well. When one ministry door gets slammed shut in our faces, God opens a new door and blesses us as we walk into unexpected opportunities. This is how our Internet ministry has grown so huge. Weve been sharing the Good News in many ways that we had not foreseen or imagined.

Satan prowls around like a roaring lion, trying to interfere, especially when God is about to do something important and life-changing. Christians in ministry are tempted most when the devil wants us to stop what were doing. If youre being harassed by unusual problems that keep popping up, praise the Lord! God is about to take you to the next level of service and growth.

If youre suffering and are willing to turn it into a ministry for others who are likewise suffering, praise God like in Psalm 89! You are already victorious; you will be a powerful and effective instrument for Gods kingdom.

#dailymeditations http://www.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-25042018
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DAILY MEDITATION:Tuesday of the 4th Week of EasterApril 24, 2018Today's Saint Quote: Saint Mary Euphrasia Pelletier:If you always love one another, if you always uphold one another, you will be capable of...Today’s Prayer:Lord, may I always recognize You and discover You in every sign You give me all the days of my life. Thank You for opening my spiritual ears to Your voice. Amen.Today's Readings:Acts 11:19-26Ps 87:1b-7 (with Ps 117:1a)John 10:22-30The sound of the Shepherd's voiceIn today's Gospel reading, there's a distinct difference between those who are the sheep of Christ and those who are not. By nature, we all want to follow the Good Shepherd. We were created in the image of God, and we instinctively want to be with the one whom we're most like. More than that, everyone wants a savior who will love them no matter what and who will rescue them from evil when no one else can. But many don't recognize his voice."If you are the Christ, tell us plainly," these people say.Jesus answers, "I told you and you do not believe."Why don't they believe? Well, why don't we always believe? Our sins are evidence that sometimes we don't really believe that we should follow Jesus. If we always recognized his voice -- and the love behind everything he says, teaches, and commands -- we'd always follow him and never stray into sin. But when we don't understand what Jesus tells us, we doubt it's really him. When we don't like a moral teaching of the Church, we doubt it's really Jesus speaking through the Church Magisterium. And then we listen to false shepherds who give us the words we want to hear, and we follow them.However, we are the sheep of God's flock. We do know how to recognize the voice of Jesus. We know he is the Good Shepherd and we do want to follow him.The problem is: We all have imperfect voice-recognition programs running in our ears. Unconsciously, we've been affected by the way humans have modeled (or rather, failed to model) Christ among us. No human person is perfect except Jesus; therefore, every person we've known has imperfectly loved us, imperfectly forgiven us, imperfectly shepherded us -- and we project onto God what we've experienced from others.The Jesus we think we know is very limited. Has a friend ever let you down? The result is that you probably see (unconsciously) Jesus as a shepherd who can mislead you. Did you grow up in a home where a parent was abusive or short-tempered or too quick to punish? Were you ever treated unfairly by a teacher or priest or policeman or other authority figure? To the extent that these representatives of God failed to convey to you what God is really like, that's the extent to which you believe in a god who is not God.To discern the difference between false shepherds and the true Shepherd, we need to spend time consciously separating the imperfect image from the Divine Image.#dailymeditations www.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-24042018 ... See MoreSee Less

2 days ago

DAILY MEDITATION:

Tuesday of the 4th Week of Easter
April 24, 2018

Todays Saint Quote: Saint Mary Euphrasia Pelletier:

If you always love one another, if you always uphold one another, you will be capable of...

Today’s Prayer:
Lord, may I always recognize You and discover You in every sign You give me all the days of my life. Thank You for opening my spiritual ears to Your voice. Amen.

Todays Readings:
Acts 11:19-26
Ps 87:1b-7 (with Ps 117:1a)
John 10:22-30

The sound of the Shepherds voice
In todays Gospel reading, theres a distinct difference between those who are the sheep of Christ and those who are not. By nature, we all want to follow the Good Shepherd. We were created in the image of God, and we instinctively want to be with the one whom were most like. More than that, everyone wants a savior who will love them no matter what and who will rescue them from evil when no one else can. But many dont recognize his voice.

If you are the Christ, tell us plainly, these people say.
Jesus answers, I told you and you do not believe.

Why dont they believe? Well, why dont we always believe? Our sins are evidence that sometimes we dont really believe that we should follow Jesus. If we always recognized his voice -- and the love behind everything he says, teaches, and commands -- wed always follow him and never stray into sin. But when we dont understand what Jesus tells us, we doubt its really him. When we dont like a moral teaching of the Church, we doubt its really Jesus speaking through the Church Magisterium. And then we listen to false shepherds who give us the words we want to hear, and we follow them.

However, we are the sheep of Gods flock. We do know how to recognize the voice of Jesus. We know he is the Good Shepherd and we do want to follow him.

The problem is: We all have imperfect voice-recognition programs running in our ears. Unconsciously, weve been affected by the way humans have modeled (or rather, failed to model) Christ among us. No human person is perfect except Jesus; therefore, every person weve known has imperfectly loved us, imperfectly forgiven us, imperfectly shepherded us -- and we project onto God what weve experienced from others.

The Jesus we think we know is very limited. Has a friend ever let you down? The result is that you probably see (unconsciously) Jesus as a shepherd who can mislead you. Did you grow up in a home where a parent was abusive or short-tempered or too quick to punish? Were you ever treated unfairly by a teacher or priest or policeman or other authority figure? To the extent that these representatives of God failed to convey to you what God is really like, thats the extent to which you believe in a god who is not God.

To discern the difference between false shepherds and the true Shepherd, we need to spend time consciously separating the imperfect image from the Divine Image.

#dailymeditations http://www.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-24042018
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2 days ago

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  • The month of April is dedicated to the Holy Spirit
    Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy.
    Act in me, O Holy Spirit, that my work, too, may be holy.
    Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I love but what is holy.
    Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy.
    Guard me, then, O Holy Spirit, that I always may be holy.
    Amen.
    (St. Augustine)


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