Spes Unica

fathershane: “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and...

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 17:33:36 -0500

“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!”
— Isaiah 49:15

Truth is… prophetic words.

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 15:14:38 -0500

Truth is… prophetic words.

Note to My Godson on the Day of his first Reconciliation

Wed, 09 Jan 2013 14:55:00 -0500

My dear Ben,

I know it has been a very long time since I have been able to see you, but I hope that you know you are in my thoughts and prayers. And I hope that you still remember me. :)

Ben, do you hate taking baths? I know I did when I was your age. Taking a bath meant that I had to give up fun play time, in order to scrub and get clean. I don’t know about you but I would much rather spend my time playing games, or watching tv. But taking a bath and getting our body clean is very important, because when we don’t clean our bodies we get sick. Not to mention we smell really bad… PEEEEEUUUUUUUU! Kinda like your Dad or Uncle Rich! And if we continue to not clean we can get a more severe (ask your dad to explain this word) sickness.

I don’t know if you have been taught yet what a soul is but you and I are made up of our bodies, which we can see. And our souls which you cannot see. Both are completely unique, meaning that there is no other person in the entire world that has the same soul or body as you. Just as we have to take baths to keep our bodies clean, Our souls also need a way to be cleansed. It is important clean our souls for a couple of different reasons. The most important reason is that we don’t want our souls to get sick. If our souls get sick and we don’t clean them back up, it is much harder for us to go to Heaven and be with Jesus. Also, if we have neglected to give our souls a good scrubbing, it makes it harder for Jesus to come and be apart of our everyday lives. Jesus does not like to go to dirty places (Not sure if that is theologically accurate but for this analogy it will suffice). So how do we clean something that we cannot see? Jesus loves you so much Ben and so He gave you special way to clean your soul so you can hang out with him more often. So He has shown us through His Church the way in which we must clean our souls, and it is through this wonderful sacrament that you are about to experience.

Remember that even though taking a bath can be hard or not fun, that it is still very important that we do so in order that our souls do not become sick and we can be with Jesus everyday and forever. Do not be afraid.

I am so very excited for you that you will be receiving the gifts that Jesus wishes to give during this most Holy Sacrament. I love you and you are in my prayers!

Love your Godfather,

Uncle Matt

P.S. Down with the Sooners! (just wanted to make your Dad say that)

"Run so as to win. Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable..."

Wed, 29 Aug 2012 16:19:51 -0400

“Run so as to win. Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one. Thus I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight as if I were shadowboxing. No, I drive my body and train it, for fear that, after having preached to others, I myself should be disqualified.”

- 1 Cor 9:24-27

"The Lord said: ‘He who endures patiently to the end will be saved’ (Mt 10:22). Patient..."

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 09:33:51 -0400

““The Lord said: ‘He who endures patiently to the end will be saved’ (Mt 10:22). Patient endurance is the consolidation of all the virtues, because without it not one of them can subsist. For whoever turns back is not ‘fit for the kingdom of heaven’ (Lk 9:62). Indeed, even though someone thinks that he is in possession of all the virtues, he is still not fit for the kingdom until he has first endured to the end and escaped from the snares of the devil; for only thus can he attain it.””

- St. Peter of Damaskos

"When God says that ‘it is not good that man should be alone’ (Gen 2:18), he affirms that ‘alone’,..."

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 21:36:42 -0400

“When God says that ‘it is not good that man should be alone’ (Gen 2:18), he affirms that ‘alone’, man does not completely realize his existence. He realizes it by existing ‘with someone’—and even more deeply and completely: existing ‘for someone’.”

- John Paul II, General Audience, Jan 9, 1980. (via heroicvirtue)

"Because you are made in the image and likeness of God, Who is Love, you will never find fulfillment..."

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 21:33:38 -0400

“Because you are made in the image and likeness of God, Who is Love, you will never find fulfillment in a relationship that does not reflect His love for you.”

- Jason Evert (via rhymemyname)

Photo

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 21:30:06 -0400

Cinderella walked on broken glass, Belle loved a beast, Snow White barely escaped a knife because love means facing your biggest fears. there is no fear in love [1 John 4:18]

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 21:29:29 -0400

“Do not listen to those who tell you that chastity is...

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 14:09:00 -0400

“Do not listen to those who tell you that chastity is passe. In your hearts you know that true love is a gift from God and respects his plan for the union of man and woman in marriage.”

~ Blessed John Paul the Great, Saint Missouri

Blessed John Paul, please pray for the state of Maine and the upcoming vote this fall.

Running for the Kingdom For a little over a month now I have...

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 14:31:00 -0400

Running for the Kingdom

For a little over a month now I have been running, so far I have logged 72 miles. During these runs I always find myself praying, without fail it always happens. I also can’t help but to contemplate the similarities between running and the spiritual journey that we are all on.

During all of this I have also been drawn to the philosophy of one particular runner, Steve Prefontaine or just “Pre.” Steve was not a theologian, he surely wasn’t a saint, I don’t know if he even believed in God. But surprisingly, something else Pre didn’t believe in was natural “talent.” Steve believed that every person who had a body, also had the potential to become a great athlete. He believed that to fulfill this potential that body had to go hard all the time. From the begging of a race to the end. I think Steve would agree that it would be dishonorable to hold back during the beginning of a race so that one could finish strong. I think that this philosophy is the foundation of Saintly Theology.

I believe that every person who has a Soul, has the potential to be a Saint. Just to be clear when I say Saint I am speaking of holiness. This is the race that every human is on, whether or not they recognize it. And the temptation that is laid before us in this race is to try and pace ourselves so we reach the goal even if it is just by a small margin. It is easy to say “Well I will follow Christ tomorrow”, or “I will give a little to Christ today but I can’t give him everything.” “I will live a ‘good’ life and most likely I will be with God for eternity, but I don’t need to be a Saint, right?” Wrong! We have to set a suicide pace, from begining to end. This forces us to die to ourselves and to rely solely on Christ. This is the only way to become a Saint, right? To become truly pure and Holy we have to give everything we have to Christ, holding nothing back, as soon as the choice is made to be His disciple.

I have started running this race towards the Kingdom, and I have always held something back. This must change! I am training myself and learning how to give my all to Him. I desire nothing more than to become one of His beloved Saints. I know He will carry me to the finishline, but I have to give him my best with every step.

One last thought. What Steve’s opponents hated most about him was that by setting an extremely fast pace at the beginning of a race all the other runners were literally forced to increase their own pace if they wanted any chance at winning. When each of us makes that commitment not only to run the spiritual race towards God, but also to run it at that “suicide pace” from beginning to end, it is inevitable that other runners will begin to run with us and more Saints will undoubtedly be born.

God, please give us the grace needed to become Saints. Amen.

“The best pace is a suicide pace, and today seems like a good day to die.” ~ Steve Prefontaine

Our Desert Place As you read this please don’t be to...

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 14:17:00 -0400

Our Desert Place

As you read this please don’t be to critical; my soul is still immature but striving to grow in His light.

While running today I looked down and saw that I was about to run through a pile of sand and dirt, and that lead me back to “Our Desert Place”

Desert Run; Part 1 the Past

In Our Desert Place, Our Lord said to me “See that mountain top in the distance?”

“Yes.”

“That is where you need to run too. As long as you stay focused on me I will make sure you reach the summit, and We will be there, and you will be perfected.”

Then He proceeded to give me communion, and told me to “Go now.” and He was no longer in front of me. But His Spirit was with me and I knew that he was at the top of the mountain and I could hear Him calling me and urging me on.

As I began to run I looked back and could see the path in which I had traveled. I could see those spots where I strayed off of the path, and the run became difficult. Also, at regular intervals along the path were stations like at a marathons where people are handing water and energy bars to runners, but instead I recognized my friends the Saints at the stations and they were calling to me and encouraging me to take and eat of the Eucharist and drink from the Chalice. More often then not I realized that I had ignored the Saints urging and would run past multiple of these same stations before I would finally allow myself to eat and drink of His Body and Blood so that I could be nourished and refreshed. When looking at the path which I have already taken to get to this part of my run, there is also another constant, my mother Mary. She was always cheering me on and trying to get my attention. So enthusiastic is she that she is jumping up and down and screaming at times. LOL, I was so embarrassed at times to be associated with her, but now I can see her love and devotion, and I am honored to have her as my Mother.

As I finished my run today and I reflected on this imagery that I had received. I feel like God the Father, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, the Angels and Saints, and Mary are all encouraging me to take part in the Eucharist more frequently. It is through the nourishment of His Body and Blood, that I will reach that summit, and it is the only way! I am committed to reaching the summit, and thus I must be committed to finding a way to receive Holy Communion more frequently.

In sin I have been limited, In Jesus I have been liberated… In Him, through Him, and with Him, anything is possible… I am without limits.

"There is no other virtue that is either higher or more necessary than sacred Prayer, because all the..."

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 17:06:50 -0400

““There is no other virtue that is either higher or more necessary than sacred Prayer, because all the other virtues—I mean fasting, vigils, sleeping on the ground, ascesis, chastity, almsgiving, and all the rest—even though they are ways of imitating God, even though they cannot be taken away from us and constitute the immortal ornaments of the soul—do not united man with God, but only render man fit to be united. Sacred Prayer, and it alone, unites. It alone joins man with God and God with man, and makes the two one spirit.””

-
~ Nikodemos (Nicodemus) the Hagiorite (of the Holy Mountain)

“The way Jesus shows you is not easy. Rather, it is like...

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 17:03:25 -0400

“The way Jesus shows you is not easy. Rather, it is like a path winding up a mountain. Do not lose heart! The steeper the road, the faster it raises towards ever-wider horizons.”

~ Pope John Paul II, World Youth Day XI

How easy it is to get discouraged because the road gets to difficult. Having a real relationship with Jesus is the only way to reach the heights. It is by His grace that we are given the strength to keep striving for perfection. But we have to know Him, we have to Love Him, and most importantly we always must be walking with Him. Otherwise, our legs will give out and we won’t be able to progress towards the Father.

"Just beg for me the courage and endurance not only to speak but also to will what is right, so that..."

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 16:26:08 -0400

“Just beg for me the courage and endurance not only to speak but also to will what is right,
so that I may not only be called a Christian, but prove to be one.”

- St. Ignatius of Antioch

“Love our Lady. And she will obtain abundant grace to...

Mon, 16 Jul 2012 13:04:04 -0400

“Love our Lady. And she will obtain abundant grace to help you conquer in your daily struggle. And the enemy will gain nothing by those perversities that seem to boil up continually within you, trying to engulf in their fragrant corruption the high ideals, those sublime commands that Christ Himself has placed in your hear.”

“Serviam!” — “I will serve!”

~ Josemaria Escriva

Our Desert Place My Lord said to me, “Today and everyday...

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:28:00 -0400

Our Desert Place

My Lord said to me, “Today and everyday you must let yourself die.”

He continued to explain to me and show me that, moving forward in our spiritual journey isn’t so much an active pursuit, but rather a lack of animation. It is not “I” who must act, but rather, I must let myself be acted upon. I must die to myself, and let Him breath new life into me. In this way I have the potential to be perfected.

“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the...

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 15:35:00 -0400

“To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.” ~ Steve Prefontaine

snaps4hollywood: emsantidade: JPII ♥ HOW DOES THIS NOT HAVE...

Fri, 29 Jun 2012 09:57:01 -0400

snaps4hollywood:

emsantidade:

JPII ♥

HOW DOES THIS NOT HAVE MORE NOTES

Our Desert Place In our desert place, His words are like cool...

Fri, 29 Jun 2012 09:47:00 -0400

Our Desert Place

In our desert place, His words are like cool water, refreshing a dry and parched throat, while also bringing new life into an exhausted soul. His Love and Mercy provide the shade that protects from the brutal sun. It is only Jesus who can give me eternal life.