Christmas at the Monastery December 25,2021

"Ave Maria" sung in an INCREDIBLE sounding stairwell…

Why Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity Are Not Absolute Values

The Immaculate Conception Explained

First Week of Advent

1st Sunday of Advent: Hope “Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.” -Desmond Tutu As we light the 1st Candle, “The Candle of Hope” help me Lord to remember that it symbolizes Your promises delivered by the prophets as direct messages from You. Throughout the Biblical narrative, You weave the promise and appearance of a Savior. One example…. Prophecy: "Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel" (Isaiah 7:14). Fulfillment: "The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God" (Luke 1:35). Paul describes Jesus Christ as “our hope” (1 Timothy 1:1) and “the blessed hope” (Titus 2:13). Jesus came not only to bring hope, He became, He is our Hope. 43 Comments

Jordan Peterson | Cambridge Union

CCWauk Prayer Service November 22, 2021 for those who died and injured

November 13, Bro. Bill Short, OFM - Part 5

November 11, Bro Bill Short, OFM - Part 3

November 10, Br. Bill Short OFM - Part 2

November 9 - Br. Bill Short, OFM - 1

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Jordan Peterson's Warning To The World ("a wing and a prayer")

November 9 - Br. Bill Short, OFM - 1

Powerful Veterans Day Video

Today, November 8, 2021, the Holy Name Federation held their meeting by Zoom

November 2 -Remembering the Dead

Pictures of our deceased parents and included as well pictures of the Saints. The Sisters who died at our Chesterfield Monastery are displayed as well. The Sisters buried in our Bordentown Monastery are remembered by a monument in our Chesterfield Cemetery.

The Spirit of Assisi

«THE SPIRIT OF ASSISI» The spirit of Assisi: it was Pope John Paul II who coined the expression. Since October 27th 1986, this "spirit" has been felt a little everywhere, losing none of the power of its first flowering. I have no intention of playing the old gardener, but, having been a fascinated witness of its germination in the Pope's thought and the privileged artisan of its blooming, I feel I can affirm: on that day I heard the world's heart-beat. A brief meeting on a hill, a word or two, a gesture, sufficed for fragmented humanity to joyfully rediscover its original unity. When, at the end of a grey morning, a rainbow appeared in the sky over Assisi, those leaders of religions, called together by the audacious prophet of one of them, Pope John Paul II, saw in it a pressing call to brotherhood: no one could doubt that it was prayer which had won this visible sign of concord between God and the descendants of Noah. At San Rufino Cathedral, when the heads of Christian Churches exchanged a sign of peace, I saw tears on the faces of some, and not of the least important ones. In front of St Francis' Basilica where, perished by the cold, each one seemed to draw closer in that elbow-to-elbow finale (John Paul II was beside the Dalai Lama), when some young Jews leaped up on to the platform to offer olive branches to us, and to Muslims first of all, I found myself wiping the tears from my own face. If I evoke that Day of Assisi with emotion, it is because I had obstinately led its laborious preparation between Charybde and Scylla, with the assistance of the Pontifical Council for the Unity of Christians and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. We had behind us no historical reference, before us no beacons. As the exegetes say, the meeting was a sort of "hapax" and it will certainly remain thus, unique, original and exemplary. The longing for peace between men and between peoples urged us " to come together to pray but not to pray together" as it was explained by the Pope, whose initiative, despite his concern to avoid even the appearance of syncretism, was at that time misunderstood by some who feared their Christian specificity might be diluted. Assisi caused the Church make a great leap forward towards non-Christian religions, which until then appeared to us to live on another planet, despite the teachings of Pope Paul VI (his first encyclical Ecclesiam Suam) and the Second Vatican Council (Declaration Nostra Aetate ). The encounter, or better collision of religions, is undoubtedly one of the greatest challenges of our era, even greater than the meeting with atheism. I never return from certain Muslim, Buddhist or Hindu countries without asking myself, keenly: what has God done with Jesus Christ when I see Christianity so reduced or reducing itself even more, proportionally speaking, on a continent in full demographic explosion such as Asia? Such a question is most salutary, since it concerns the fundamental question of salvation; it is the spear-head which purifies and fortifies our reasons for being Christians. Assisi was the symbol, the staging of what the Church must do by virtue of her proper vocation before a world in a state of flagrant religious pluralism: to profess the unity of the mystery of salvation in Jesus Christ. When John Paul II tried to report to the cardinals and members of the Curia what happened in Assisi, he gave an address which appears to me to be the most explanatory for the theology of religions ( 22nd December 1986). Insisting on the mystery of the unity of the human family founded both on creation and on redemption in Jesus Christ, he said: "The differences are a lesser important element in relation to the unity which, on the contrary, is radical, fundamental and determining". So Assisi permitted a number of men and women to bear witness to an authentic experience of God in the heart of their respective religions. "All authentic prayer, the Pope added, is fostered by the Holy Spirit who is mysteriously present in the heart of every human being". Assisi, happened ten years ago. Today, believers of various religions and communities, after the example of Elisha who receives Elijah's cloak, are putting on the "spirit of Assisi". The spirit of Assisi is gliding over the bubbling waters of the religions and is already creating marvels of fraternal dialogue. What will it lead to in the Year 2000? Pope John Paul II in his Letter Tertio Millennio adveniente traces precise milestones for the Great Jubilee; not forgetting followers of non-Christian religions, especially the Jews and the Muslims who, like Christians, claim descent from Abraham. He hopes for "joint meetings in places of significance for the great monotheistic religions" (n. 53). What for? Simply to allow all believers to participate "in the joy shared by all the disciples of Christ" (n. 55). A Jubilee is made for jubilation! The Church rejoices for salvation which she never ceases to welcome and she invites the whole of humanity to join the dance. It is folly - the folly of God - that which the spirit of Assisi may invent as a sequel to the Angels who sang on Christmas night: Glory to God in the highest and peace on earth to mankind whom He loves"! "Spirit of Assisi", come upon us all! Card. Roger Etchegaray top

Feast Day of Saint John Paul II October 22

Previous Calendar: St. Mary Salome (Hist) The Vatican Congregation for Divine Worship has approved the insertion of the Optional Memorial of Pope St. John Paul II in the proper calendar of the dioceses of the United States for today. Karol Jozef Wojtyla was born in 1920 in Wadowice, Poland. After his ordination to the priesthood and theological studies in Rome, he returned to his homeland and resumed various pastoral and academic tasks. He became first auxiliary bishop and, in 1964, Archbishop of Krakow and took part in the Second Vatican Council. On 16 October 1978 he was elected pope and took the name John Paul II. His exceptional apostolic zeal, particularly for families, young people and the sick, led him to numerous pastoral visits throughout the world. Among the many fruits which he has left as a heritage to the Church are above all his rich Magisterium and the promulgation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church as well as the Code of Canon Law for the Latin Church and for the Eastern Churches. In Rome on April 2, 2005, the eve of the Second Sunday of Easter (or of Divine Mercy), he departed peacefully in the Lord. Historically today is the feast of St. Mary Salome, the mother of James the Greater and John the Evangelist, the "sons of Zebedee." She was among the women who stayed by while Jesus was on the cross, according to Gospels she is among the women who discovered the empty tomb. St. John Paul II Karol Jozef Wojtyla, elected Pope on 16 October 1978, was born in Wadowice, Poland, on 18 May 1920. He was the third of three children born to Karol Wojtyla and Emilia Kaczorowska, who died in 1929. His elder brother Edmund, a physician, died in 1932, and his father, Karol, a non-commissioned officer in the army, died in 1941. He was nine years old when he received his First Communion and eighteen when he received the Sacrament of Confirmation. After completing high school in Wadowice, he enrolled in the Jagellonian University of Krakow in 1938. When the occupying Nazi forces closed the University in 1939, Karol worked (1940-1944) in a quarry and then in the Solvay chemical factory to earn a living and to avoid deportation to Germany. Feeling called to the priesthood, he began his studies in 1942 in the clandestine major seminary of Krakow, directed by the Archbishop Adam Stefan Sapieha. During that time, he was one of the organizers of the "Rhapsodic Theatre", which was also clandestine. After the war, Karol continued his studies in the major seminary, newly reopened, and in the school of theology at the Jagellonian University, until his priestly ordination in Krakow on 1 November 1946. Father Wojtyla was then sent by Cardinal Sapieha to Rome, where he attained a doctorate in theology (1948). He wrote his dissertation on faith as understood in the works of Saint John of the Cross. While a student in Rome, he spent his vacations exercising pastoral ministry among Polish emigrants in France, Belgium and Holland. In 1948, Father Wojtyla returned to Poland and was appointed a curate in the parish church of Niegowi?, near Krakow, and later at Saint Florian in the city. He was a university chaplain until 1951, when he again undertook studies in philosophy and theology. In 1953, Father Wojtyla presented a dissertation at the Jagellonian University of Krakow on the possibility of grounding a Christian ethic on the ethical system developed by Max Scheler. Later he became professor of moral theology and ethics in the major seminary of Krakow and in the theology faculty of Lublin. On 4 July 1958, Pope Pius XII appointed Father Wojtyla auxiliary bishop of Krakow, with the titular see of Ombi. Archbishop Eugeniusz Baziak ordained him in Wawel Cathedral (Krakow) on 28 September 1958. On 13 January 1964, Pope Paul VI appointed Bishop Wojtyla as Archbishop of Krakow and subsequently, on 26 June 1967, created him a Cardinal. Bishop Wojtyla took part in the Second Vatican Council (1962- 1965) and made a significant contribution to the drafting of the Constitution Gaudium et Spes. He also took part in the five assemblies of the Synod of Bishops prior to the start of his Pontificate. On 16 October 1978, Cardinal Wojtyla was elected Pope and on 22 October he began his ministry as universal Pastor of the Church. Pope John Paul II made 146 pastoral visits in Italy and, as the Bishop of Rome, he visited 317 of the current 322 Roman parishes. His international apostolic journeys numbered 104 and were expressions of the constant pastoral solicitude of the Successor of Peter for all the Churches. His principal documents include 14 Encyclicals, 15 Apostolic Exhortations, 11 Apostolic Constitutions and 45 Apostolic Letters. He also wrote five books: Crossing the Threshold of Hope (October 1994); Gift and Mystery: On the Fiftieth Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination (November 1996); Roman Triptych, meditations in poetry (March 2003); Rise, Let Us Be on Our Way (May 2004) and Memory and Identity (February 2005). Pope John Paul II celebrated 147 beatifications, during which he proclaimed 1,338 blesseds, and 51 canonizations, for a total of 482 saints. He called 9 consistories, in which he created 231 Cardinals (plus one in pectore). He also presided at 6 plenary meetings of the College of Cardinals. From 1978, Pope John Paul II convoked 15 assemblies of the Synod of Bishops: 6 ordinary general sessions (1980, 1983, 1987, 1990, 1994 and 2001), 1 extraordinary general session (1985) and 8 special sessions (1980, 1991,1994,1995,1997,1998 (2) and 1999). On 13 May 1981, an attempt was made on Pope John Paul II's life in Saint Peter's Square. Saved by the maternal hand of the Mother of God, following a lengthy stay in the hospital, he forgave the attempted assassin and, aware of having received a great gift, intensified his pastoral commitments with heroic generosity. Pope John Paul II also demonstrated his pastoral concern by erecting numerous dioceses and ecclesiastical circumscriptions, and by promulgating Codes of Canon Law for the Latin and the Oriental Churches, as well as the Catechism of the Catholic Church. He proclaimed the Year of Redemption, the Marian Year and the Year of the Eucharist as well as the Great Jubilee Year of 2000, in order to provide the People of God with particularly intense spiritual experiences. He also attracted young people by beginning the celebration of World Youth Day. No other Pope met as many people as Pope John Paul II. More than 17.6 million pilgrims attended his Wednesday General Audiences (which numbered over 1,160). This does not include any of the other special audiences and religious ceremonies (more than 8 million pilgrims in the Great Jubilee Year of 2000 alone). He met millions of the faithful in the course of his pastoral visits in Italy and throughout the world. He also received numerous government officials in audience, including 38 official visits and 738 audiences and meetings with Heads of State, as well as 246 audiences and meetings with Prime Ministers. Pope John Paul II died in the Apostolic Palace at 9:37 p.m. on Saturday, 2 April 2005, the vigil of Sunday in albis or Divine Mercy Sunday, which he had instituted. On 8 April, his solemn funeral was celebrated in Saint Peter's Square and he was buried in the crypt of Saint Peter's Basilica. John Paul II was beatified in Saint Peter's Square on 1 May 2011 by Pope Benedict XVI, his immediate successor and for many years his valued collaborator as Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. --Excerpted from the Vatican Website

New York City, N.Y., Oct 19, 2021 / 17:09 pm In an effort to explain Pope Francis’ vision for the Synod on Synodality for his flock, Cardinal Timothy Dolan's homily Sunday offered seven “non-negotiables” that Jesus intended for the Church. The Synod on Synodality, initiated by Pope Francis earlier this month, is a two-year, worldwide undertaking during which Catholics will be encouraged to submit feedback to their local dioceses. A synod is a meeting of bishops gathered to discuss a topic of theological or pastoral significance, in order to prepare a document of advice or counsel to the pope. “[Pope Francis] wants us to join him in praying, listening, discerning, examining ourselves personally, and the Church communally, to see if we’re truly on the path Jesus has set for His beloved bride, His mystical body, the Church,” Dolan said. “He has reminded us of certain clear essentials intended by Jesus, constant, although, at times, we admit, clouded and dimmed, in the Church’s amazing 2,000-year drama. Here are some of those non-negotiables.” Dolan went on to outline the following points: Dolan said that “the energy and direction driving the Church comes from the Holy Spirit, not ourselves.” "While in the world, we are not of the world, and thus our guiding principles come from the Gospel, revelation, and the patrimony of the Church’s settled teaching," he said. Dolan said “that the principles of the innate dignity of every human person and the inherent sacredness of all human life are the towering moral lighthouses on our path.” Dolan said that "our journey through this life back to our true and eternal home of heaven is most effectively accomplished precisely as a journey as we walk with and accompany each other, with Jesus as our guide, His Mother and the saints, and we sinners at each other’s side.” "On this journey we pay special attention to those at the side of the road, especially those who are sick, weak, poor, or unable to keep up with us,” he said. "Our wealth only comes from faith, trust, prayer, the sacraments, and His grace," he said. Finally, Dolan said that "mercy, love, invitation, humility, joy, selfless generous service, and good example are our only tools, never harshness, condemnation, or pride.” Dolan said he sees these seven “non-negotiables” as “synodality in a nutshell.” He said that throughout its history, the Church has “expanded and developed its style of organization and authority.” After comparing and contrasting the different sufferings and triumphs the Church has experienced throughout its history, Dolan said that “now the successor of Saint Peter as bishop of Rome and pastor of the Church Universal, Pope Francis, has asked us all to commence an examination of conscience on how we as a Church are living up to the model of the Church given us by Jesus.” “We are loyal Catholics,” Dolan added. “The Holy Father has asked us to help him keep the Church always under the direction Jesus, our good shepherd, intends.” The concept of "synodality" has been a topic of frequent discussion by Pope Francis, particularly during the previous ordinary Synod of Bishops on young people, the faith, and vocational discernment in October 2018. Synodality, as defined by the International Theological Commission in 2018, is "the action of the Spirit in the communion of the Body of Christ and in the missionary journey of the People of God." The term is generally understood to represent a process of discernment, with the aid of the Holy Spirit, involving bishops, priests, religious, and lay Catholics, each according to the gifts and charisms of their vocation. Latest Catholic News Pope Francis told the Vatican Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's theological commission in November 2019 that synodality will be key for the Church in the future. The Vatican announced in May that the Synod on Synodality would open with a diocesan phase lasting from October 2021 to April 2022. A second, continental phase will take place from September 2022 to March 2023. The third, universal phase will begin with the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, dedicated to the theme “For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, and Mission,” at the Vatican in October 2023. Dolan shared his homily on Monday after noting that "many have asked about the “'synod process’ initiated by Pope Francis.” MORE IN US Haiti Christian aid group requests prayers for kidnapped missionaries in Haiti Read article The Cardinal acknowledged in his homily that he himself has questions. “I don’t know if I completely understand [Synodality]," Dolan said, adding that "the Holy Father is honest in admitting that neither does he have the full comprehension, which is precisely why he has summoned us to this endeavor.” Tags: Cardinal Dolan, Archdiocese of New York, 2023 synod on synodality Joe Bukuras Joseph Bukuras is a staff writer at the Catholic News Agency. Joe holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from The Catholic University of America. He has interned in the U.S. House of Representatives, on a U.S. Senate campaign, in the Massachusetts State House of Representatives, and at the Susan B. Anthony List. He is based out of the Boston area.

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Feast of the Portiuncula August 2

On August 2, the Franciscan family celebrates the dedication of the chapel of St. Mary of the Angels in Assisi. Located down in the valley several miles below the city of Assisi, this beloved Portiuncula or "Little Portion" was restored by Francis in the first years of his conversion and became the place where he and the early brothers made their home base about 1210. It is also where Francis received Clare into his movement a few years later and where he died in 1226. It remains the spiritual “motherhouse” of the Order of Friars Minor. Francis desired that everyone experience the overwhelming love and mercy of God in this place just as he had, and so, according to tradition, in 1216 he persuaded Pope Honorius III to grant a plenary indulgence to all persons who visit this chapel, prayerful and repentant, on the feast of its dedication. So on August 2, thousands of pilgrims converge here to receive the "Pardon of Assisi," as this indulgence is commonly called in Italy. You may wish to catch a live glimpse of the basilica at: https://www.skylinewebcams.com/.../assisi-santa-maria.... You may also see Monday's events (including a video of the feast day Mass) at the Frati Minori Assisi Facebook group at https://www.facebook.com/fratiminoriassisi. St. John Paul II once said the message of the Portiuncula Indulgence is one of “pardon and reconciliation, that is, of grace, which divine goodness pours out on us if we are well disposed because God is truly rich in mercy.” (Today this plenary indulgence may be gained in any Franciscan church or chapel and in all parish churches throughout the world.) Let us pray with Francis: "Hail, O Lady, holy Queen, Mary, holy Mother of God, you are the virgin made Church, and the one chosen by the most Holy Father in heaven. . . in whom there was and is all the fullness of grace and every good.

New Name annoucement!

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Dr. Krijn Pansters gives workshop to Poor Clares

The Poor Clare Enrichment Program was zoomed to us July 19-23. We watched it and shared in short discussions with other monasteries in the USA, those that wanted to attend. The Presenter was Dr. Krijn Pansters of the Franciscan Studies Center at Tilburg University, Netherlands. The Tropic was Contemplate and Care. Dr. Pansters has three Ph.D. but his outstanding quality was his humility and his ability to hear all of us. We thank him and we pray for him, his wife, and his new baby Anastasia 0 Comments Write a comment… Active Florence Jane Vales

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Feast of the Sacred Heart June 11, 2021

Feast of the Sacred Heart. A feast of Jesus' love for us, the fullness of love. Can we imagine this? If this is so true all this love is out there, a cup overflowing, yet why is the World so full of hatred? Help us, O Lord to know we are loved. Prayer of Saint Ignatius of Loyola Soul of Christ, sanctify me. Body of Christ, save me. Blood of Christ, inebriate me. Water from the side of Christ, wash me. Passion of Christ, strengthen me. O Good Jesus, hear me. Within your wounds hide me. Permit me not to be separated from you. From the wicked foe, defend me. At the hour of my death, call me and bid me come to you That with your saints I may praise you For ever and ever. Amen. 2 Comments Connie Kramer Walker beautiful and holy. Thank you Sisters

A Great Book

Joyful in the Silence : The Making of a Casual American Contemplative Author- Marsha Sinetar The book, Joyful in the Silence-The Making of a Casual American Contemplative, the autobiography of Sinetar, is a very good read. I took away from the book three major points for reflection: 1. Our early years are formative for future events in our life. They cast their shadows. As one reads the story of Sinetar one can see life unfolding for her and we find ourselves circling back to our own life. 2. Sinetar says in the book “we deal with the hand we are dealt.” And she does. Her life seems, in the beginning, one of rich influence, of travel, support of parents and mentors but dwindles to one left to fend for herself. In many ways, this story reminds me of “The boys in the Boat” by Daniel James Brown. Both Sinetar and Joe Rantz had to stand on their own two feet and to make choices that proved successful. 3. The big question in anyone’s life is how do we find God. for Sinetar that question was with her from the very beginning of her early years and never left her. It seemed to me she continued to ask that question throughout the book,” how does God get in through the cracks of our life. “ I pondered her life and my own. It is worth all the time I spent reading this book. I give the book a 12.

Adoration in the Big Apple

Perpetual adoration chapel will be a 'spiritual gamechanger' for New York City, priest says more_horiz An artist's rendering of the planned adoration chapel in Greenwich Village. Courtesy photo. An artist's rendering of the planned adoration chapel in Greenwich Village. Courtesy photo. By Jonah McKeown New York City, N.Y., Jun 5, 2021 / 06:01 am A perpetual adoration chapel slated to open next spring will bring spiritual healing and revitalization to Manhattan, according to a Dominican priest overseeing the project. "This is really a project of the Holy Spirit. There's so many times when it's seemed like we're running into snags and they just work themselves out," Fr. Boniface Endorf, a Dominican friar and pastor of St. Joseph's parish in Greenwich Village, Manhattan, told CNA. "It's clear the Holy Spirit is a driving force, and I think this will be a spiritual gamechanger for Greenwich Village and the city of New York, to have a place where you can encounter Jesus Christ." Manhattan, one of the most densely populated and influential areas of the entire U.S., currently lacks a perpetual adoration chapel. Last year, Timothy Cardinal Dolan of New York asked Fr. Endorf if his parish would be willing to take on the challenge of opening one. The new chapel will be constructed in a basement space that the parish is currently using for storage. At present the project is in its last stage of fundraising, with construction set to begin in early fall. The goal is to have the chapel open by Easter 2022. Fr. Endorf's catchphrase for the project is "The city that never sleeps deserves a chapel that never closes." The location is ideal, Fr. Endorf said, because the area is well-served by public transit. He said St. Joseph parishioners and students from the nearby universities are very excited about the project. The neighborhood needs the graces that will come from the chapel, Fr. Endorf said. Greenwich Village is a quieter, more residential neighborhood of Manhattan, but also is known for being artistic and bohemian, and also as a haven for LGBT culture. ADVERTISEMENT Fr. Endorf said he fully expects the adoration chapel to be a source of grace for vocations among those to visit; to help ordinary Catholics to grow in holiness; to aid in the strengthening of marriages in the neighborhood; and to provide spiritual healing in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, which hit New York City early, and especially hard. In terms of aesthetics, the parish church itself is neoclassical, and the design of the chapel is somewhat romanesque. The theme for the chapel is Divine Mercy, and it will feature a mosaic of the Divine Mercy image above the monstrance. The main design element is a large wooden rood screen, a feature born partly out of necessity— the screen protects the monstrance from theft— but which will also serve as a large, visible surface on which to place additional artistry and symbolism. The chapel will also have choir stalls to allow the faithful to join in with the Dominicans as they pray the liturgy of the hours throughout the day. To keep worshippers safe, the chapel will be secured through a PIN-based or biometric security system, according to the project website. Fr. Endorf said that when the chapel opens they plan to pursue locals who can sign up for an adoration slot. But he also hopes that people from across New York, as well as tourists, will take advantage of the chapel as well. ADVERTISEMENT

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Pope Francis celebrates Pentecost Sunday Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, May 23, 2021/ Vatican Media. By Pope Francis Vatican City, May 23, 2021 / 05:00 am Here is the full text of Pope Francis’ Pentecost Sunday homily, delivered May 23, 2021, at the Basilica of St. Peter: “When the Paraclete comes, whom I will send to you from the Father…” (Jn 15:26). With these words, Jesus promises to send his disciples the Holy Spirit, the ultimate gift, the gift of gifts. He uses an unusual and mysterious word to describe the Spirit: Paraclete. Today let us reflect on this word, which is not easy to translate, for it has a number of meanings. Essentially, it means two things: Comforter and Advocate. The Paraclete is the Comforter. All of us, particularly at times of difficulty like those we are presently experiencing due to the pandemic, look for consolation. Often, though, we turn only to earthly comforts, ephemeral comforts that quickly fade. Today, Jesus offers us heavenly comfort, the Holy Spirit, who is “of comforters the best” (Sequence). What is the difference? The comforts of the world are like a pain reliever: they can give momentary relief, but not cure the illness we carry deep within. They can soothe us, but not heal us at the core. They work on the surface, on the level of the senses, but hardly touch our hearts. Only someone who makes us feel loved for who we are can give peace to our hearts. The Holy Spirit, the love of God, does precisely that. He comes down within us; as the Spirit, he acts in our spirit. He comes down “within the heart”, as “the soul’s most welcome guest” (ibid). He is the very love of God, who does not abandon us; for being present to those who are alone is itself a source of comfort. / EWTN News/Daniel Ibáñez/Vatican Pool. / EWTN News/Daniel Ibáñez/Vatican Pool. Dear sister, dear brother, if you feel the darkness of solitude, if you feel that an obstacle within you blocks the way to hope, if your heart has a festering wound, if you can see no way out, then open your heart to the Holy Spirit. Saint Bonaventure tells us that, “where the trials are greater, he brings greater comfort, not like the world, which comforts and flatters us when things go well, but derides and condemns us when they do not” (Homily in the Octave of the Ascension). That is what the world does, that is especially what the hostile spirit, the devil, does. First, he flatters us and makes us feel invincible (for the blandishments of the devil feed our vanity); then he flings us down and makes us feel that we are failures. He toys with us. He does everything to cast us down, whereas the Spirit of the risen Lord wants to raise us up. Look at the apostles: they were alone that morning, alone and bewildered, cowering behind closed doors, living in fear and overwhelmed by their weaknesses, failings and their sins, for they had denied Christ. The years they had spent with Jesus had not changed them: they were no different than they had been. Then, they received the Spirit and everything changed: the problems and failings remained, yet they were no longer afraid of those them, nor of any who would be hostile to them. They sensed comfort within and they wanted to overflow with the comfort of God. Before, they were fearful; now their only fear was that of not testifying to the love they had received. Jesus had foretold this: “[The Spirit] will testify on my behalf; you also are to testify” (Jn 15:26-27). / EWTN News/Daniel Ibáñez/Vatican Pool / EWTN News/Daniel Ibáñez/Vatican Pool Let us go another step. We too are called to testify in the Holy Spirit, to become paracletes, comforters. The Spirit is asking us to embody the comfort he brings. How can we do this? Not by making great speeches, but by drawing near to others. Not with trite words, but with prayer and closeness. Let us remember that closeness, compassion and tenderness are God’s “trademark”, always. The Paraclete is telling the Church that today is the time for comforting. It is more the time for joyfully proclaiming the Gospel than for combatting paganism. It is the time for bringing the joy of the Risen Lord, not for lamenting the drama of secularization. It is the time for pouring out love upon the world, yet not embracing worldliness. It is more the time for testifying to mercy, than for inculcating rules and regulations. It is the time of the Paraclete! It is the time of freedom of heart, in the Paraclete. The Paraclete is also the Advocate. In Jesus’ day, advocates did not do what they do today: rather than speaking in the place of defendants, they simply stood next to them and suggested arguments they could use in their own defence. That is what the Paraclete does, for he is “the spirit of truth” (v. 26). He does not take our place, but defends us from the deceits of evil by inspiring thoughts and feelings. He does so discreetly, without forcing us: he proposes but does not impose. The spirit of deceit, the evil one, does the opposite: he tries to force us; he wants to make us think that we must always yield to the allure and the promptings of vice. Let us try to accept three suggestions that are typical of the Paraclete, our Advocate. They are three fundamental antidotes to three temptations that today are so widespread. ADVERTISEMENT The first advice offered by the Holy Spirit is, “Live in the present”. The present, not the past or the future. The Paraclete affirms the primacy of today, against the temptation to let ourselves be paralyzed by rancour or memories of the past, or by uncertainty or fear about the future. The Spirit reminds us of the grace of the present moment. There is no better time for us: now, here and now, is the one and only time to do good, to make our life a gift. Let us live in the present! The Spirit also tells us, “Look to the whole”. The whole, not the part. The Spirit does not mould isolated individuals, but shapes us into a Church in the wide variety of our charisms, into a unity that is never uniformity. The Paraclete affirms the primacy of the whole. There, in the whole, in the community, the Spirit prefers to work and to bring newness. Let us look at the apostles. They were all quite different. They included, for example, Matthew, a tax collector who collaborated with the Romans, and Simon called the zealot, who fought them. They had contrary political ideas, different visions of the world. Yet once they received the Spirit, they learned to give primacy not to their human viewpoints but to the “whole” that is God’s plan. Today, if we listen to the Spirit, we will not be concerned with conservatives and progressives, traditionalists and innovators, right and left. When those become our criteria, then the Church has forgotten the Spirit. The Paraclete impels us to unity, to concord, to the harmony of diversity. He makes us see ourselves as parts of the same body, brothers and sisters of one another. Let us look to the whole! The enemy wants diversity to become opposition and so he makes them become ideologies. Say no to ideologies, yes to the whole. / EWTN News/Daniel Ibáñez/Vatican Pool / EWTN News/Daniel Ibáñez/Vatican Pool The third advice of the Spirit is, “Put God before yourself”. This is the decisive step in the spiritual life, which is not the sum of our own merits and achievements, but a humble openness to God. The Spirit affirms the primacy of grace. Only by emptying ourselves, do we leave room for the Lord; only by giving ourselves to him, do we find ourselves; only by becoming poor in spirit, do we become rich in the Holy Spirit. This is also true of the Church. We save no one, not even ourselves, by our own efforts. If we give priority to our own projects, our structures, our plans for reform, we will be concerned only about effectiveness, efficiency, we will think only in horizontal terms and, as a result, we will bear no fruit. An “-ism” is an ideology that divides and separates. The Church is human, but it is not merely a human organization, it is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Jesus brought the fire of the Spirit to the earth and the Church is reformed by the anointing of grace, the gratuity of the anointing of grace, the power of prayer, the joy of mission and the disarming beauty of poverty. Let us put God in first place! ADVERTISEMENT Holy Spirit, Paraclete Spirit, comfort our hearts. Make us missionaries of your comfort, paracletes of your mercy before the world. Our Advocate, sweet counsellor of the soul, make us witnesses of the “today” of God, prophets of unity for the Church and humanity, and apostles grounded in your grace, which creates and renews all things. Amen. Tags: Catholic News, Pope Francis, Pentecost, Holy Spirit, Catholic Church, Vatican news TRENDING 1 As S.C. Catholics challenge state’s Blaine Amendment, scholars argue it was ‘born of bigotry’ 2 A cannonball that changed the world: Pope Francis marks 500 years since St. Ignatius’ conversion 3 Bishops offer prayers for 14 victims of cable car accident in Italy 4 Pope Francis prays that the Dominicans' jubilee year will ‘usher in a new springtime of the Gospel’ more_horiz Subscribe to our daily newsletter At Catholic News Agency, our team is committed to reporting the truth with courage, integrity, and fidelity to our faith. 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A wonderful Book

Marsha Sinetar, Best Selling Author of "Do What You Love and the Money Will Follow" has written an autobiography of her life moving from early childhood and always with the sense of her longing for the presence of God. Marsha is a laywoman of no particular institutional religious affiliation but nonetheless a contemplative hermit. I learn much from her for my own contemplative life. Worth looking into it. Amazon .com

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