Tag Archives: Meditation

Knowing how to love

Jesus blessing the children.

 

St Josemaria Escriva called himself a man who knew how to love. Indeed, his great love for God overflowed into love for his fellow man. We should all be people who know how to love. In this meditation we pray about how:

 

  • We are all called to love God because he loved us first
  • Only if we truly love God will we be able to love our fellow man
  • We can grow in love for God in the same way that St Josemaria did: by spending time with him in prayer in its various forms, in Mass and Holy Communion, reading of Scripture,  spiritual reading, etc.
  • We love God with the same heart with which we love others
  • Our love for others should include our effort to help them draw closer to God

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

Stained glass image of Holy Spirit

The Holy Spirit, also called the Paraclete, is the third person of the Holy Trinity. One of its more popular symbols is that of a dove.

 

 

 

When we were baptised we received along with sanctifying grace and the infused virtues the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Few people truly understand the important role of the Gifts in the spiritual life. In this meditation we consider:

  • The announcement of the gifts in the prophecy of Isaiah
  • The nature of the gifts and their relationship with the virtues
  • The role of the gifts
  • How we can use each of the Gifts to better advantage in our spiritual life

Messages from Fatima

Our Lady of Fatima appeared to three visionaries 100 years ago

Our Lady of Fatima

 

 

On 13 May 2017 the Church celebrated the centenary of the apparitions of Our Lady to three young children in Fatima, Portugal. In those apparitions Our Lady gave the world important messages, which are as relevant today as they were in 1917. In this meditation we consider some of these messages in order to see how we can put them into practice in our own lives:

 

  • Say the Rosary, everyday if possible
  • Pray for peace
  • Do penance
  • Pray for the conversion of sinners so that they don’t go to hell
  • Foster devotion to Mary’s Immaculate Heart
  • Strengthen faith in God

Mary our Mother

Mother Mary, St Mary is mother of God, as she is mother of Jesus Christ

Our Mother Mary is mother of God, through her giving birth to our Lord, Jesus Christ.

 

 

As he came to the end of his life on the cross, Jesus entrusted St John, and all of us, into the care of his Mother Mary. Our Lady looks after us and is truly our Mother. In this meditation we consider how:

  • In giving birth to Jesus in Bethlehem Mary became the mother of the whole Mystical Body of the Church
  • At Calvary Mary suffered unspeakably with Jesus for all mankind and this moves her to love us all the more
  • Mary draws sinners to Jesus
  • Mary exercises her motherly role with the apostles and with all of us
  • Mary intercedes for us before Jesus as “supplicating omnipotence”
  • We should take Mary into our own keeping, as St John did, through the various Marian prayers and customs, especially the rosary

The road to Emmaus

The Road to Emmaus is one of the more renowned stories of Jesus's appearing to his disciples after His resurrection.

Jesus walked with two disciples on the Road to Emmaus. The latter did not recognise him until later when he sat with them and broke bread.

 

On the first Easter Sunday, two disciples left Jerusalem discouraged because the one they hoped would redeem Israel had died. On their way to Emmaus, Jesus walked beside them and explained the Scriptures to them. These two in some way represent all of us. We too have our times of trial, of worry, of discouragement, and Jesus seeks us out, even though we do not recognise him. In this meditation we consider how:

 

  • We all have our crosses, our difficulties in life, which can make us discouraged or worried
  • Jesus does not leave us alone but seeks us out and walks beside us
  • We find Jesus in our prayer and in others who are there to help us
  • We too can be there for others who are going through difficult times

Holy Week close to Christ

Holy week starts with Palm Sunday.

    Jesus enters Jerusalem and is well received, a feast we celebrate on Palm Sunday–the start of Holy Week.

 

In Holy Week we follow Christ from his triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, through his institution of the Eucharist and the priesthood on Holy Thursday, to his passion and death on Good Friday and his resurrection on Easter Sunday. If we follow him closely throughout our life we will not abandon him as did the apostles and we will rise to eternal life with him when we die. In this meditation we consider how we should:

  • acknowledge our weakness and our possibility of denying Our Lord as did Peter
  • attend Mass often and receive Holy Communion well in order to strengthen our love for Jesus
  • stay awake in our prayer in order to draw ever closer to Christ
  • follow Christ closely, not at a distance, avoiding lukewarmness
  • avoid attachment to creature comforts and things in order to have our heart free to love God
  • take up our cross daily and follow our Lord in his passion
  • follow Christ closely throughout our life in order to rise with him to eternal life

 

Love one another

Christ washing the feet of his disciples

Our Lord, Jesus Christ, washing the feet of his disciples, the night before he suffered and died on the cross.

 

Before beginning his Passion, Christ washed the feet of his disciples and gave us the new commandment to love one another as he has loved us. In this meditation, using texts from Scripture and St Josemaria we consider how:

  • Christ poured himself out in love for others, loving them to the end by his death on the Cross
  • God has loved us first and so the more we love him the easier it will be to love others
  • Love begins in the family, with those closest to us
  • We should learn to spend time, to listen, to be kind, to forgive
  • Mother Teresa of Calcutta teaches us how to love
  • We should love even our enemies
  • We can change our world for the better by building a civilization of love