MEDITATIONS FOR LENT: “The shield of faith and the sword of the Word”

“Besides all these, taking the shield of faith, with which you can quench all the flaming darts of the evil one.” (Eph 6:16).

The Lord’s training of His faithful to be able to resist in battle continues today with the allusion to the shield of faith. It is important that we immediately and swiftly repel the darts of the Evil One, even when they want to penetrate us through our thoughts. The more vigilant we are, the less evil or wrong thoughts will be able to pierce and hurt us. The same applies to useless words, whether spoken or written. Read More

MEDITATIONS FOR LENT: “Proclaiming the Gospel fearlessly”

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Before entering into the theme, let us briefly review the Lenten meditations: the spirit of discernment (discretio) urges us to enter consciously into a spiritual battle. Those who follow Christ know this struggle well. There are, however, two particular circumstances that we must always keep in mind, so that we “do not box as one beating the air” (cf. 1 Cor 9:26):

  1. The enemy is not only attacking from outside the Church, but also from within, and he has wide areas under his influence.
  2. He has penetrated right into the hierarchy, and from the very top he is trying to impose his pernicious course on the whole Church.

With this in mind, let us continue to listen to St Paul’s instructions to be prepared for battle:

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YOU ARE MINE

‘In my love, I have taken possession of you. You are mine!’ (Inner word).

This is the depth of our Father’s love for us! For His love it is not enough to shower us with blessings and let us know in every possible way how much He cares for us and protects us. No, His love goes far beyond that. Our Father wants to unite with us forever and establish His dwelling place within us. The mystics have described this unification with God in sublime terms, and sometimes they could not even find words for how intoxicated they were with His love.

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TRUE STRENGTH

“Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might” (Eph 6:10).

These are the opening words of a series of spiritual counsels given by the Apostle Paul for perseverance in the battle entrusted to all who follow the Lord. It is an invitation to rely entirely on God and to leave behind the false security that comes from trusting in one’s own strength and abilities. We must understand and accept that God’s strength is above all in His love. It saves us from all dangers that we could never overcome on our own.

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MEDITATIONS FOR LENT: “The Armour of God”

Let us recall the central theme of our Lenten meditations: to become better disciples of the Lord.

In the light of the discernment of spirits (discretio), we have analysed the existential crisis of the Church and pointed out the serious aberrations of the world. Consequently, we have noted that in this “emergency situation” the faithful must assume in a special way their responsibility to follow the Lord and thus to serve the Bride of Christ and her mission. This inevitably leads us into a spiritual battle which does not only concern our personal sphere, but is our contribution to the “battle of the Lamb” in which we are called to take our place in His army under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

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MEDITATIONS FOR LENT: “Be strong in the Lord”

The aim of our Lenten meditations is to become better disciples of the Lord, especially as we contemplate His infinite love, manifested in a unique way in His Passion and Death on the cross for our salvation.  May our hearts yearn ardently for each person to encounter the love of our heavenly Father and thus find the sure path to eternity, where he or she will live forever in union with God and His own, filled with inexpressible joys.

To be better disciples means to adhere more closely to the will of our Lord, to fulfil with fervour the task He has given us and to understand it more deeply in the light of God. Above all, it means growing in love, which is the supreme good and which, as we will come to understand more and more, is capable of conquering everything.

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MEDITATIONS FOR LENT: “There is no desperate situation for God!”

 

‘Discretion’ has led us to recognise the present crisis in the Church as a danger to the faithful, to perceive how her witness to the world has been obscured, and to see, beyond the human realm, the “principalities and powers” who plot evil against “the Lord and His anointed”, and who often pull the strings of all that usurps glory from God and harms men.

To get a more comprehensive picture in the sense of discernment of spirits, it is also worthwhile to take a look at the present situation in the world. It is not difficult to see that whole nations are under the dominion of darkness. Even formerly Christian countries have opened the door to great evils by introducing abstruse policies such as abortion, gender ideology and others. As a result, the powers of evil have made these states, with a few exceptions, part of the kingdoms over which Satan rules. If we add to this the wars and the injustices associated with them, we are faced with a sea of horror, full of corruption and impurity.

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TOWARDS GREATER FRUITFULNESS

“O my Jesus, I know that in order to be useful to souls I must long for the most intimate union with You, Who are eternal Love” (St. Faustina Kowalska).

Our fruitfulness for the salvation of souls depends on the intimacy of our union with God. Every day we are invited to deepen our love for the Lord and thus to be ever more united with our heavenly Father.  In fact, Jesus introduced us to this love, as He makes clear in His priestly prayer in the Gospel of John: “I made known to them thy name, and I will make it known, that the love with which thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them” (Jn 17:26).

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