Message of 6-16-08
Published: Tue, 06/10/08
- resources for prayer and spiritual growth
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MESSAGE OF THE DAY
"I screamed at God for all the starving children, and then I
realized that all of the starving children were God screaming at me."
- Anonymous
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SCRIPTURE READINGS
http://www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
1 Kgs 21:1-16; Ps. 5:2-3ab, 4b-6a, 6b-7; Mt 5:38-42
R. (2b) Lord, listen to my groaning.
Hearken to my words, O LORD,
attend to my sighing.
Heed my call for help,
my king and my God!
At dawn I bring my plea expectantly before you.
For you, O God, delight not in wickedness;
no evil man remains with you;
the arrogant may not stand in your sight.
You hate all evildoers.
You destroy all who speak falsehood;
The bloodthirsty and the deceitful
the LORD abhors.
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REFLECTION ON THE SCRIPTURES
- from "Daily Bread"
http://www.preacherexchange.com/daily_bread.htm
"When someone strikes you on [your] right cheek, turn the other one
to him as well."
For many of us, this is among the hardest of Jesus' sayings. We
recoil at the thought of "doing nothing" in response to an assault;
and, when it comes to acts of terrorism, some even champion the
polar opposite of Jesus' teaching -- "pre-empting" possible attacks
by striking first and striking fiercely. But Christian pacifism is
not passivism. While Jesus exhorts us to offer no resistance, he
also instructs us to be active and untiring in generous service to
others. Let us devote ourselves to building the kingdom that we may
see our world transformed from a place of terror to one of peace
and goodwill among all peoples.
"For the grace to follow Jesus in all things, we pray."
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LECTIO DIVINA PROCESS
- http://heartlandspirituality.org/vocations/prayer.html
First, you choose a passage of Scripture that you will pray with.
It might be the Gospel reading used in the liturgy of the day, or
anything else you want. The process then follows these steps:
* Reading (lectio) After settling in and quieting yourself,
read the passage slowly, prayerfully. Just let it sink in for a
minute or two, then read it a second time, paying closer attention
to the words or phrases that speak to you.
* Reflecting (meditatio) What do you hear God saying to you in
this passage? What words or phrases caught your attention?
* Responding (oratio) What do you want to say to God in
response to what you've heard? Here you can also voice your prayers
of petition, remorse, thanksgiving, praise, and so forth. If you
sense God speaking to you in your thoughts, feelings or
imagination, you respond as you would in any conversation.
* Resting (contemplatio) If, at any time, you feel drawn to
simply rest in the awareness of God's loving presence, you let
yourself do so. Remain in loving silence as long as you feel
comfortable, perhaps using a simple word or phrase from the
Scripture passage to help deepen your openness to rest in God.
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THEOLOGICAL GEMS FROM EMIL MERCH'S "THEOLOGY OF THE MYSTICAL BODY"
from http://www.innerexplorations.com/chtheomortext/theolgems.htm
390. There is a single or a twofold "I" in Christ: there is one
subject who is this "I," yet He, because of His two distinct
natures, expresses this subject in two different ways.
391. We have to hold that there is only one consciousness in God,
because He has but one nature. But since there are three persons in
God, we have to say there are three ultimate and distinct subjects
who know themselves and are conscious; in this sense the divine
consciousness is threefold.
We may say there are three conscious relations, or a triple
consciousness of the relations, in this one absolute consciousness.
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