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In his Holy Thursday homily, Pope Benedict commented on Jesus' words, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you.”
“In this eager desire of Jesus we can recognize the desire of God himself – his expectant love for mankind, for his creation. A love which awaits the moment of union, a love which wants to draw mankind to itself and thereby fulfil the desire of all creation, for creation eagerly awaits the revelation of the children of God. Jesus desires us, he awaits us. But what about ourselves? Do we really desire him? Are we anxious to meet him? Do we desire to encounter him, to become one with him, to receive the gifts he offers us in the Holy Eucharist?

Click here for the full homily

From St. Augustine: "God in His omnipotence could not give more, in His wisdom He knew not how to give more, in His riches He had not more to give, than the Eucharist."

 
 
Taken from "Christ: the Life of the Soul" by Blessed Columba Marmion talking about receiving Holy Communion.

"The coming of Christ into us tends, of its nature, to establish between His thoughts and our thoughts, between His feelings and our feelings, between His will and our will, such an exchange, such a correspondence, such a likeness, that we have no other thoughts, no other feelings, no other wishes, than those of Christ..."

To have so much offered each and every time we go to communion...amazing!  May the Lord grant us the grace to prepare our hearts for so holy and sacred a mystery.
 
 
On Monday, the first reading at Mass really struck me.  That is the beauty of the lectionary, though I've read the Scriptures and encountered the same readings every two years, each encounter with the Word of God has its own graces.  This time I was thinking, not only is it an encouragement to me as Lent approaches, but would be a good chapter to give as a penance for confession.  So here is the reading.

Sirach 17:20-24
To the penitent God provides a way back, he encourages those who are losing hope and has chosen for them the lot of truth. Return to him and give up sin, pray to the LORD and make your offenses few. Turn again to the Most High and away from your sin, hate intensely what he loathes, and know the justice and judgments of God, Stand firm in the way set before you, in prayer to the Most High God.

Who in the nether world can glorify the Most High in place of the living who offer their praise? Dwell no longer in the error of the ungodly, but offer your praise before death. No more can the dead give praise than those who have never lived; You who are alive and well  shall praise and glorify God in his mercies. How great the mercy of the LORD, his forgiveness of those who return to him!

Click here for the full reading from the day.
 
 
Here is a quote from "Evangelii Nuntiandi" by Pope Paul VI on Evangelization that I think is inspiring for Pentecost:

#21 - "Above all the Gospel must be proclaimed by witness. Take a Christian or a handful of Christians who, in the midst of their own community, show their capacity for understanding and acceptance, their sharing of life and destiny with other people, their solidarity with the efforts of all for whatever is noble and good. Let us suppose that, in addition, they radiate in an altogether simple and unaffected way their faith in values that go beyond current values, and their hope in something that is not seen and that one would not dare to imagine. Through this wordless witness these Christians stir up irresistible questions in the hearts of those who see how they live: Why are they like this? Why do they live in this way? What or who is it that inspires them? Why are they in our midst? Such a witness is already a silent proclamation of the Good News and a very powerful and effective one. Here we have an initial act of evangelization."

22.  "Nevertheless this always remains insufficient, because even the finest witness will prove ineffective in the long run if it is not explained, justified - what Peter called always having "your answer ready for people who ask you the reason for the hope that you all have" - and made explicit by a clear and unequivocal proclamation of the Lord Jesus. The Good News proclaimed by the witness of life sooner or later has to be proclaimed by the word of life. There is no true evangelization if the name, the teaching, the life, the promises, the kingdom and the mystery of Jesus of Nazareth, the Son of God are not proclaimed. The history of the Church, from the discourse of Peter on the morning of Pentecost onwards, has been intermingled and identified with the history of this proclamation. At every new phase of human history, the Church, constantly gripped by the desire to evangelize, has but one preoccupation: whom to send to proclaim the mystery of Jesus? In what way is this mystery to be proclaimed? How can one ensure that it will resound and reach all those who should hear it? This proclamation - kerygma, preaching or catechesis - occupies such an important place in evangelization that it has often become synonymous with it; and yet it is only one aspect of evangelization.

23. In fact the proclamation only reaches full development when it is listened to, accepted and assimilated, and when it arouses a genuine adherence in the one who has thus received it. An adherence to the truths which the Lord in His mercy has revealed; still more, an adherence to a program of life - a life henceforth transformed - which He proposes. In a word, adherence to the kingdom, that is to say, to the "new world," to the new state of things, to the new manner of being, of living, of living in community, which the Gospel inaugurates. Such an adherence, which cannot remain abstract and unincarnated, reveals itself concretely by a visible entry into a community of believers. Thus those whose life has been transformed enter a community which is itself a sign of transformation, a sign of newness of life: it is the Church, the visible sacrament of salvation.
 
 
The best skit I have ever seen...very powerful
Another well done skit...
 
 
There was a news article today on a new video on the priesthood called, "Alter Christus."  It was made by HM Television, together with the Holy See's Congregation for the Clergy, and discusses the life of St. John Vianney and the many aspects of the priesthood.  It's 30 minutes and you can watch the whole thing online. 

http://www.eukmamie.org/en/alter
 
 
Here are two more of my favorite songs...
"Everything Falls" by Fee
"Heartbeat" by Remedy Drive

After Elijah was discouraged because the queen was trying to have him killed, he fled and hid in a cave.  He wanted God to end his life, but the Lord had different plans.  He call him out of the cave to encounter the Lord who "is passing by" and hear His voice.  When we are discouraged we need two things: 1) to have a real encounter with God and 2) to hear His voice.  Whether we are discouraged because of our own failures, the failures of others, or things just not working out the way we wanted the answer is the same....to encounter the Lord and hear His voice.  For Catholics, this offer is given at every Mass with the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist.
 
Inspirational 02/04/2010
 
Here are some of my favorite Christian songs:
"I'm Not Alright" by SanctusReal
"Hold My Heart" by Tenth Avenue North
"Satisfy" by Tenth Avenue North
"Times" by Tenth Avenue North
"Forgiven" by Sanctus Real
"Your Love Never Fails" by Chris Quilala
"How He Loves" by David Crowder Band
"By Your Side" by Tenth Avenue North
"Beloved" by Tenth Avenue North
"You Are" by Tenth Avenue North
"All Along" by Remedy Drive
"Alive Again" by Matt Maher
"Even Now" by Foolish Things
 
Inspirational 01/31/2010
 
Here are some videos that I think are inspirational and foster a love for Christ and His Catholic Church.

Catholics Come Home Video (click on Epic Commercial)

World Youth Day Sydney - This Is Home

Steubenville Youth Conference (Click on Promotional Video)

The Butterfly Circus (20 minute movie on hope)

The Rift (20 minute video on hope)

"One Touch" by Nicole C. Mullen (music video - make sure you click on the H to make it high resolution)