When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples, Gather the fragments left over, so that nothing will be wasted. So they collected them, and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves that had been more than they could eat. you will not have life in you. Whoever eats me will draw life from me. It is a very natural way of prayer and was developed and practised by the early monks and thus came to the first Carmelite hermits. The shepherd calls out to each of us individually, by name. Yet, according to Luke in the reading we have just heard, in the immediate aftermath of his meeting with the Lord, Paul was first struck blind and had to be led by the hand into the city of Damascus. What do we expect from him? He immediately went off to Tarsus to look for Saul, or Paul, who had recently come to faith in Christ and Barnabas encouraged him to go to Antioch and support this new development there. Even though we may have turned away from him in the past, he does not turn away from us. In group prayer, much will depend on the type of group. Thomas, called the Twin, who was one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. Indeed, he will pour that love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, just as he breathed the Holy Spirit on his failed and fearful disciples on that first Easter Sunday. There is a sense in which we are always trying to get to the other side, like the disciples in the boat who were trying to reach the other side of the Sea of Galilee. # Indicates reflections from the most recent year which are available on the active calendar page It is a statement that reveals the welcoming nature of the Lords presence. We cannot manage the Holy Spirit. The gospel reading says that they were talking together about all that had happened. Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood remains in me and I in him. All who seek the truth are already standing in the light of Christ, even though they may not be aware of it. The question What must we do? is as valid a question for us today, as it was for the people of Jerusalem two thousand years ago. However, the Spirit can enter a human life and we know what a Spirit-filled life looks life. We live our lives in response to calls of various kinds. We recognize him in the Eucharist as the bread of life, in the language of todays gospel reading. He who comes to me will never be hungry; And it happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. What Jesus can offer us, more than anything else, is eternal life, a sharing in Gods own life. That ministry of mutual encouragement was very important in the early church and is just as important today. Lectio Divina with the Carmelites - CatholicMom.com Lectio Divina - The Carmelites Our reflections on the daily reading - Carmelites Ireland - Facebook The gospels indicatethat Joseph was a skilled labourer. Here indeed is a light that darkness cannot overcome, a love that human sin cannot extinguish. It includes access to the writings of and about some of our most influential saints, videos, quizes to test your knowledge of Carmel and the faith, prayers, newsletters and links to websites for further study. He empowers us to live out his teaching. There are places to which Christians have been going on pilgrimage for a very long time. We meet every Friday at 10am (Australian Eastern Daylight Time) [You are welcome to join from other time zones, eg. bears witness to the things he has seen and heard, John was very aware that none of those things could be said about himself. He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. It is probably true to say that we are all searching for something. They were supporting each other. The hired man, since he is not the shepherd God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. But, as I have told you, you can see me and still you do not believe. A little later in this same gospel, Jesus will say to his disciples, those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Sunday, October 30 Monday, October 31 Tuesday, November 1 Wednesday, November 2 Thursday, November 3 Friday, November 4 Saturday, November 5 When something traumatic happens to us, we feel the need to talk about it to someone we trust, whom we know will listen to us with care and attention. In walking with the two disciples, the Lord transformed them from being downcast to having their hearts burn within them; he rekindled their hope. Our calling is to allow the Lords vision and purpose for our lives to become more of a reality. Accept cookies within the '%CC%' category to view this content. what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Jesus will do all in his power to keep us united with himself and to prevent us from being taken away from him or falling away from him. In reality, Jesus was not just Nicodemus fellow teacher. In the gospel reading, Jesus declares that all who come to him have been drawn to him by the Father, No one can come to me unless drawn by the Father who sent me. Every day we try to discern what we need to do to give expression to our desire to take Jesus as our gate. We each need to say to the Lord the equivalent of Stay with us Lord. and the story of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus in Lukes first volume, his gospel. He first of all breathed on them, saying, Receive the Holy Spirit. This being born of the Spirit will take more than nine months, the period of human birth. There is indeed much to ponder here and much to give thanks for. He was a Pharisee, a member of that group who are consistently hostile to Jesus in Johns gospel. He will breathe new life into us; he will give us strength in our weakness. The first words of the risen Lord to his disciples in todays gospel reading are, Peace be with you. Each of us has some responsibility for some little flock of our own, whether we are married or ordained or a religious or a single person. The wind blows wherever it pleases; and to hear the teaching of the Father, Now, Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. Practical Carmelite spirituality for your daily life. The church in Jerusalem needed to check out this new and unforeseen development, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. In both cases, the hearing of the Word led to a deeper encounter with the Lord in the Sacrament. When he seeks to give an understanding of the kingdom of God, he tells parables, stories that are deeply rooted in everyday life. It is said of Barnabas in that reading that he was filled with the Holy Spirit. However, there will always be a reserve in our receiving. In time, Mark came to be appreciated on its own terms, and not just as a poorer version of Matthew. There are two ways of looking at gates. Christ is always working to create us anew. God the Father has entrusted everything to his Son. The Lord continues to offer the gospel even to those who have rejected it. Saturday. Click on the "Save cookie settings" button to apply your choice. It is notable that the text says that Philip heard him reading Isaiah the prophet. It is only those who deliberately reject Gods offer of merciful love whose sins will be retained. His first approach to Jesus is tentative, coming to Jesus under cover of darkness. We understand the Sacrament of Confirmation as the moment when we confirm our baptism. Through the practice of Lectio Divina, as individuals and as community, we leave space for God's Word to transform us so that we may begin to look upon our world as it were with the eyes of God and to love what we see with the heart of God. What looked very unpromising from a human point of view was the instrument of Gods work in the world. If you are the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus replied: I have told you, but you do not believe. Yet, the gospel reading this morning assures us that in trying to answer the question, What must we do?, we are not thrown back on our own resources alone. Even when we have turned against the Lord, he continues to call us to draw life from him. Any passage of Scripture can be used for this way of prayer but the passage should not be too long. We can all be a little bit like the disciples before the challenges that life throws up. and the Son of Man must be lifted up and whoever comes to me I shall not turn him away; the anger of God stays on him.. The stories we tell each other can often be like that. We are called to love others for themselves rather than for what we can get from them. Barnabas immediately recognized that God was at work here. men have shown they prefer darkness to the light A common security measure in many homes and businesses are strong lights that come on at night when somebody comes within a certain radius and breaks the beam. The movement was from God and no human authority could destroy it. He had been on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. She was such a light because of her deeply personal and mystical relationship with Jesus. His last appearance in Johns gospel is much less tentative; along with Joseph of Arimathea, he sees to it that Jesus is given a dignified burial. The opening of our lives more fully to the Spirit of God is the journey of a lifetime, a journey we are asked to be faithful to until the end of our earthly lives. The photograph of the Pope with a lamb draped across his shoulders went around the world in seconds. In the words of todays gospel reading, everybody who does wrong hates the light and avoids it, for fear his actions should be exposed. The Lord calls us to a fullness of life now, and hereafter. As I, who am sent by the living Father, Catholic Daily Reflections - Readings and Meditations for Mass and Prayer Daily Homilies. Unlike the pilgrims who walk with a sense of joyful anticipation, they walk in a despondent state, their faces downcast. Yet, Nicodemus did not give up on Jesus and the last we see of him in Johns gospel is at Golgotha where, after the death of Jesus, he and Joseph of Arimathea ensure that Jesus has a dignified burial. His wounds were not just the marks of human cruelty but signs of his enduring love. except the one who comes from God: Our story, the way we talk about it or write about it, is only one way of putting it. Their Easter faith left him cold; he could not be shifted from his Good Friday mood. He calls on us, as he called on Nicodemus, to allow ourselves to be born of the Spirit, to surrender more fully to the movement and working of the Spirit within us. Mark reminds us that living the gospel, following in the way of Jesus, is not easy; it makes demands on us; it stretches us. He said that the first stage is lectio (reading) where we read the Word of God, slowly and reflectively so that it sinks into us. When we pray, we open ourselves to the coming of the Holy Spirit upon us and to the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Gods giving continued as Jesus was lifted up to die, and Gods giving found further expression when God lifted up his Son in glory and gave him to us as risen Lord. My hosanna has come forth from the crucible of doubt. Jesus told them this parable but they failed to understand what he meant by telling it to them. We simply rest in the Word of God. The story we tell is far from the full story. Having been feed with bread in the wilderness, they wanted more of the same. The messages that we are constantly receiving from the culture in which we live are not ones that have been strongly shaped by the values that Jesus embodied in his life, death and resurrection. In the gospel reading, Jesus, speaking as the good shepherd, says the sheep that belong to me listen to my voice. The gate gave access to both security and feeding for the sheep. We take hope and wisdom from St. Therese of Lisieux's sayings and reflections from her Story of a Soul and other writings. The way the risen Lord related to tthem is how he relates to us all. The Acts of the Apostles suggests that as soon as the gospel began to be preached after Pentecost efforts were made by people in authority to suppress it. Paul went on to make an important contribution to the life of the church in Antioch, and the church there, in turn, was a great support to Paul in his future missionary work. Catherines mysticism did not withdraw her from the world; she was deeply involved in what was happening in Europe and in the church in her time. He can be speaking to us through new and unforeseen situations, such as the one in which we find ourselves at the moment. God sent his Son into the world so that everyone may have eternal life. Now I mean that in the best possible way. Daily Life of a Secular Carmelite The foundation and essence of our vocation is prayer. He respected where they were on their journey. We might even struggle to get out of bed some mornings. In todays gospel reading, Jesus says, whoever comes to me I shall not turn away. After a profound mystical experience she had a sense of Christ calling her to serve the wider world and universal church. This conflict in the church required the Twelve to clarify for themselves and for the other members of the church what their priorities were to be, We will continue to devote ourselves to prayer and to the service of the word. They can be distressed at the degree of doubt that they experience within themselves, a degree of doubt that, as they get older, can become more pronounced. Our fundamental vocation is to be a loving and caring people, with a mind through which the good Shepherd thinks, a heart through which he loves, a voice through which he speaks and hands through which he works. In the gospel reading this morning Jesus makes a distinction between food that cannot last and food that endures to eternal life. The gospel reminds us that, while the physical and material is vital because we are physical and material beings, our searching must not stop at the physical and the material. They recognized Jesus in the breaking of bread. unless he is drawn by the Father who sent me, Gates are just there to be passed through; they dont as a rule call out to us; if we pass through a gate it is because we have decided to do so. He is speaking here as the good Shepherd who is prepared to lay down his life so that the members of his flock can have life and have it to the full. Toggle Submenu for Novenas & Celebrations, National Shrine and Museum of St. Therese. However, such stormy moments can be times of grace, opportunities for the Spirit in work in new ways in the church. I tell you most solemnly, anyone who does not enter the sheepfold through the gate, but gets in some other way is a thief and a brigand. Jesus exclaimed, I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yet, the light of Jesus is not primarily a condemnatory light whose primary purpose is to expose evil. When the Lord speaks about life to the full, we might be inclined to think only in terms of eternal life, life beyond this earthly life. Anyone who enters through me will be safe: The Lord works in life-giving ways in what can seem to be desolate places. Give me your hand; put it into my side. What are we looking to him for? Nicodemus was a Pharisee; he lived by the Jewish Law. That dialogue shows us how the perspective of Jesus differs greatly from that of his two disciples. It is a very reassuring promise for all of us. In the evening the disciples went down to the shore of the lake and got into a boat to make for Capernaum on the other side of the lake.
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