Advent Reflection - 11/29/2009

A reflection on Advent for 2009.

Solemnity of Christ the King - 11/22/2009

Homily given on the Solemnity of Christ the King, November 22, 2009.

Homily 10/11/2009

Homily given at the SOLT community in Bosque, NM.

Caritas in Veritate

JMJ+OBT

Omnia Pro Iesu Per Mariam!

JESUS looked at the crowd and his heart was moved with pity! The Sacred Heart of Jesus is moved with compassion and love for each and every one of us. The Holy Spirit moves the heart to reach out to our brothers and sisters in need all around the world. WE ARE ONE FAMILY OF OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN. Our Blessed Mother asks all of us to live as one family of the True God, the Most Holy Trinity.

To this end, Our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, with the heart of the Good Shepherd in the anointing of the Holy Spirit has issued a new Encyclical "Caritas in veritate" (Charity in Truth) on integral human development in charity and truth. Given below is a summary, provided by the Vatican Information Service on July 9, 2009, of Benedict XVI's new Encyclical "Caritas in veritate" (Charity in Truth) on integral human development in charity and truth:

The Encyclical published today - which comprehends an introduction, six chapters and a conclusion - is dated 29 June 2009, Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, Apostles.

A summary of the Encyclical released by the Holy See Press Office explains that in his introduction the Pope recalls how "charity is at the heart of the Church's social doctrine". Yet, given the risk of its being "misinterpreted and detached from ethical living", he warns how "a Christianity of charity without truth would be more or less interchangeable with a pool of good sentiments, helpful for social cohesion, but of little relevance".

The Holy Father makes it clear that development has need of truth. In this context he dwells on two "criteria that govern moral action": justice and the common good. All Christians are called to charity, also by the "institutional path" which affects the life of the "polis", that is, of social coexistence.

The first chapter of the Encyclical focuses on the message of Paul VI's "Populorum Progressio" which "underlined the indispensable importance of the Gospel for building a society according to freedom and justice. ... The Christian faith does not rely on privilege or positions of power, ... but only on Christ". Paul VI "pointed out that the causes of underdevelopment are not primarily of the material order". They lie above all in the will, in the mind and, even more so, in "the lack of brotherhood among individuals and peoples".

"Human Development in Our Time" is the theme of the second chapter. If profit, the Pope writes, "becomes the exclusive goal, if it is produced by improper means and without the common good as its ultimate end, it risks destroying wealth and creating poverty". In this context he enumerates certain "malfunctions" of development: financial dealings that are "largely speculative", migratory flows "often provoked by some particular circumstance and then given insufficient attention", and "the unregulated exploitation of the earth's resources". In the face of these interconnected problems, the Pope calls for "a new humanistic synthesis", noting how "development today has many overlapping layers: ... The world's wealth is growing in absolute terms, but inequalities are on the increase", and new forms of poverty are coming into being.

At a cultural level, the Encyclical proceeds, the possibilities for interaction open new prospects for dialogue, but a twofold danger exists: a "cultural eclecticism" in which cultures are viewed as "substantially equivalent", and the opposing danger of "cultural levelling and indiscriminate acceptance of types of conduct and lifestyles". In this context Pope Benedict also mentions the scandal of hunger and express his hope for "equitable agrarian reform in developing countries".

The Pontiff also dwells on the question of respect for life, "which cannot in any way be detached from questions concerning the development of peoples", affirming that "when a society moves towards the denial or suppression of life, it ends up no longer finding the necessary motivation and energy to strive for man's true good".

Another question associated with development is that of the right to religious freedom. "Violence", writes the Pope, "puts the brakes on authentic development", and "this applies especially to terrorism motivated by fundamentalism".

Chapter three of the Encyclical - "Fraternity, Economic Development and Civil Society" - opens with a passage praising the "experience of gift", often insufficiently recognised "because of a purely consumerist and utilitarian view of life". Yet development, "if it is to be authentically human, needs to make room for the principle of gratuitousness". As for the logic of the market, it "needs to be directed towards the pursuit of the common good, for which the political community in particular must also take responsibility".

Referring to "Centesimus Annus", this Encyclical highlights the "need for a system with three subjects: the market, the State and civil society" and encourages a "civilising of the economy". It highlights the importance of "economic forms based on solidarity" and indicates how "both market and politics need individuals who are open to reciprocal gift".

The chapter closes with a fresh evaluation of the phenomenon of globalisation, which must not be seen just as a "socio-economic process". Globalisation needs "to promote a person-based and community-oriented cultural process of world-wide integration that is open to transcendence" and able to correct its own malfunctions.

The fourth chapter of the Encyclical focuses on the theme: "The Development of People. Rights and Duties. The Environment". Governments and international organisations, says the Pope, cannot "lose sight of the objectivity and 'inviolability' of rights". In this context he also dedicates attention to "the problems associated with population growth".

He reaffirms that sexuality "cannot be reduced merely to pleasure or entertainment". States, he says, "are called to enact policies promoting the centrality and the integrity of the family".

"The economy needs ethics in order to function correctly", the Holy Father goes on, and "not any ethics whatsoever, but an ethics which is people-centred". This centrality of the human person must also be the guiding principle in "development programmes" and in international co-operation. "International organisations", he suggests, "might question the actual effectiveness of their bureaucratic and administrative machinery, which is often excessively costly".

The Holy Father also turns his attention to the energy problem, noting how "the fact that some States, power groups and companies hoard non-renewable energy resources represents a grave obstacle to development in poor countries. ... Technologically advanced societies can and must lower their domestic energy consumption", he says, at the same time encouraging "research into alternative forms of energy".

"The Co-operation of the Human Family" is the title and focus of chapter five, in which Pope Benedict highlights how "the development of peoples depends, above all, on a recognition that the human race is a single family". Hence Christianity and other religions "can offer their contribution to development only if God has a place in the public realm".

The Pope also makes reference to the principle of subsidiarity, which assists the human person "via the autonomy of intermediate bodies". Subsidiarity, he explains, "is the most effective antidote against any form of all-encompassing welfare state" and is "particularly well-suited to managing globalisation and directing it towards authentic human development".

Benedict XVI calls upon rich States "to allocate larger portions of their gross domestic product to development aid", thus respecting their obligations. He also express a hope for wider access to education and, even more so, for "complete formation of the person", affirming that yielding to relativism makes everyone poorer. One example of this, he writes, is that of the perverse phenomenon of sexual tourism. "It is sad to note that this activity often takes place with the support of local governments", he says.

The Pope then goes on to consider the "epoch-making" question of migration. "Every migrant", he says, "is a human person who, as such, possesses fundamental, inalienable rights that must be respected by everyone and in every circumstance".

The Pontiff dedicates the final paragraph of this chapter to the "strongly felt need" for a reform of the United Nations and of "economic institutions and international finance. ... There is", he says, "urgent need of a true world political authority" with "effective power".

The sixth and final chapter is entitled "The Development of Peoples and Technology". In it the Holy Father warns against the "Promethean presumption" of humanity thinking "it can re-create itself through the 'wonders' of technology". Technology, he says, cannot have "absolute freedom".

"A particularly crucial battleground in today's cultural struggle between the supremacy of technology and human moral responsibility is the field of bioethics", says Benedict XVI, and he adds: "Reason without faith is doomed to flounder in an illusion of its own omnipotence". The social question has, he says, become an anthropological question. Research on embryos and cloning is "being promoted in today's highly disillusioned culture which believes it has mastered every mystery". The Pope likewise expresses his concern over a possible "systematic eugenic programming of births".

In the conclusion to his Encyclical Benedict XVI highlights how "development needs Christians with their arms raised towards God in prayer", just as it needs "love and forgiveness, self-denial, acceptance of others, justice and peace".

--
Through the intercession of Our Lady, St. Joseph, St. Michael, St. Peter, St. Paul, St. John, St. James, St. Therese, St. Rita, St. Philomena, St. Jude, St. Nicholas, St. Alphonsus, St. Peter Chrysologus, St. Zachary, St. Elizabeth, St. John the Baptist, St. Perpetua, St. Felicity, St. Francis, St. Faustina, St. Veronica Guiliani, St. Joan of Arc, St. Louis, St. Joseph Calasanz, St. Padre Pio, St. John Mary Vianney, St. Philomena, St. Patrick, St. Bridget, St. Columban and all the Holy Angels and Saints may you be abundantly blessed in the Covenant of Communion of the Most Holy Trinity, with my Priestly blessing,

Father Zachary of the Mother of God, SOLT

JMJ+OBT

O Beata Trinitas! Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity pray for us and teach us to contemplate, worship, adore, praise and thank the Triune God, Three Divine Persons, One God!

The One True God, the Most Holy Trinity is a Covenant of Communion of Three Divine Persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This Covenant of Communion is Perfection in Love, Happiness, Relationship, Beatitude and Everything that is Good. Furthermore, in the overflowing Goodness and Generosity of the Triune God, Who is Love, we are created out of nothing to know, love and serve God and be happy with Him forever.

Our destiny, if we are faithful to God and live in a state of grace, is to participate in the Covenant of Communion of the Most Holy Trinity. The human person who lived and lives most perfectly in Communion with God is Our Blessed Mother, Mary. Look to Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity to discover the wonder and awe of life in Communion with the Most Holy Trinity.

Ask Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity to teach you how to contemplate, worship, adore, praise and thank the Most Holy Trinity for your call to Communion with God. Ask Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity to share with you her relationships with the Most Holy Trinity as daughter of the Father, mother and disciple of the Son, and spouse and sanctuary of the Holy Spirit. Also ask Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity to take you to the inner room of your soul and behold the Most Holy Trinity.

Ask Our Lady to bring you to the throne of the Most Holy Trinity. In fact, ask Our Lady to bring you into the presence of the Most Holy Eucharist and then ask for the Light to contemplate, worship, adore, praise and thank the Most Holy Trinity and to love God above all things just for Himself. Then, in this Sacred Place OPEN YOUR HEART AND PRAISE GOD as you prayerfully reflect upon the following antiphons from the Divine Office for Trinity Sunday:

"Glory to you, O Trinity, one God in three equal Persons, as in the beginning, so now, and for ever." "Praise to the Holy Trinity and undivided Unity. Let us praise God for he has shown us his mercy." "Glory and honor to God in three Persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit; glory and praise to him for endless ages." "We give you thanks, O God; we give you thanks, Trinity one and true, Divinity one and most high, Unity one and holy." "Come, let us worship the true God: One in Trinity, Trinity in One." "Come and stay with us, O God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit." "The Father is Love, the Son is grace, the Holy Spirit is their bond of fellowship; O blessed Trinity." "The Father utters the Truth, the Son is the Truth he utters, and the Holy Spirit is Truth; O Blessed Trinity." "To you, O blessed Trinity, be worship and honor, glory and power, praise and joyful adoration through eternal ages." "May all your creatures give you fitting praise, adoration and glory, O blessed Trinity." "All things are from him, through him, and in him; to him be glory for ever." "O holy, undivided Trinity, Creator and Ruler of all that exists, may all praise be yours now, for ever, and for ages unending." "We call upon you, we praise you, we worship you, O blessed Trinity." "In you are our hope, our salvation, our dignity, O blessed Trinity." "O Holy Trinity, we profess that for you to be, to live, to understand are all one." "O Trinity most high, eternal and true: Father, Son and Holy Spirit." "Save us, set us free and give us life, O blessed Trinity." "Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, the God who is, who was, and who is to come." "With our whole heart and voice we acclaim you, O God; we offer you our praise and worship, unbegotten Father, only-begotten Son, Holy Spirit, constant friend and guide; most holy and undivided Trinity, to you be glory for ever."

Now sing with Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity, St. Joseph, and all the Holy Angels and Saints: "Praise the holy Trinity, Undivided Unity; Holy God, Mighty God, God Immortal, be adored." We pray: "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Alleluia!"

--
Through the intercession of Our Lady, St. Joseph, St. Michael, St. Peter, St. Paul, St. John, St. James, St. Therese, St. Rita, St. Philomena, St. Jude, St. Nicholas, St. Alphonsus, St. Peter Chrysologus, St. Zachary, St. Elizabeth, St. John the Baptist, St. Perpetua, St. Felicity, St. Francis, St. Veronica Guiliani, St. Joan of Arc, St. Louis, St. Joseph Calasanz, St. Padre Pio, St. Patrick, St. Bridget, St. Columban and all the Holy Angels and Saints may you be abundantly blessed in the Covenant of Communion of the Most Holy Trinity, with my Priestly blessing,

Father Zachary of the Mother of God, SOLT

The Holy Spirit Comes to Renew the Face of the Earth

JMJ+OBT

Veni, Creator Spiritus! Come, Holy Spirit, Come; Come by means of the powerful intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Your well Beloved Spouse! Thank You Holy Spirit! Praise You Holy Spirit!

We rejoice with Our Blessed Mother, the Apostles and all who have been in the Upper Room confidently awaiting a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit comes to renew the face of the earth principally by transforming hearts and minds. The Holy Spirit comes as a strong wind, which is the life giving breath of God. Jesus taught: "This is eternal life-to know the One True God and Jesus Christ Whom He has sent." Jesus fulfills His promise to send us the Holy Spirit Who will teach us the meaning of all that Jesus taught us and teaches us through the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church that Jesus established and sends the Holy Spirit upon. Thank You Holy Spirit! Praise You Holy Spirit!

The Holy Spirit comes as a consuming fire. The Holy Spirit comes to consume and transform us in the fires of Divine Love. Just as the Holy Spirit came as a fire to upon the salvific self-giving sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the Cross, and just as the Holy Spirit comes as a fire upon the offering in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the Holy Spirit comes as a fire upon those who offer themselves in union with Jesus. We urge you to renew the offering of yourself to the Most Holy Trinity through Our Blessed Mother, the Spouse of the Holy Spirit. Thank You Holy Spirit! Praise You Holy Spirit!

The Holy Spirit comes to empower us to continue the Mission of Jesus to proclaim the Truth of God's Love. We recognize that before we can be sent into Mission, we need to have a living relationship with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit empowers us to proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord of lords and King of kings. It is only in the Holy Spirit that we can proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord. It is only in the Holy Spirit that we can call God "Our Father," Abba. Thank You Holy Spirit! Praise You Holy Spirit!

Before going into Mission we need to realize that we are children of God, created in the image and likeness of God, to witness to the family life of the Most Holy Trinity. It is a metaphysical truth that we must be in order to do. We were baptized into the Trinitarian family life by water and the Holy Spirit. The same Holy Spirit that sends the Church into Mission, is the Holy One Who brought us to be children of God in our baptism. Thank You Holy Spirit! Praise You Holy Spirit!

The Holy Spirit is the Sanctifier! The Holy Spirit comes to make us holy. This means that the Holy Spirit consumes and transforms the WHOLE gift of one who offers himself or herself with the desire to be HOLY. The Holy Spirit opens the eyes to a faith vision that sees the majesty of God. The Holy Spirit opens the ears to hear the glory of the voice of God in Sacred Tradition, Sacred Scripture and the Magisterium of the Church. The Holy Spirit brings us Divine Wisdom which is Sapientia or a "Savory" science. Taste and see the Goodness of the Lord. The Holy Spirit comes with a beautiful fragrance which we enter into with prayer. The Holy Spirit prays deep within us with groanings and longings as He unites our innermost being with the deep things of God. The Holy Spirit touches us with the touch of Divine Love. The Holy Spirit is the finger of God Who touches our hearts to give us natural hearts that fulfill the commands of God. Thank You Holy Spirit! Praise You Holy Spirit!

The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth that reveals the Truth, Jesus Christ, that sets us free. Jesus says: "You shall know the Truth and the Truth shall set you free." The Holy Spirit enlightens our minds to recognize Divine Revelation AND to understand Divine Revelation. Revelation literally means to remove the veil that covers our minds. Jesus is the Revelation of the Father. The Holy Spirit is this Love and Union between the Father and the Son. This Love transforms our hearts in the Goodness of the Father which we see as we behold the face of Jesus Christ with unveiled faces so that we may live from grace to grace and glory to glory. Thank You Holy Spirit! Praise You Holy Spirit!

THANK YOU HOLY SPIRIT! PRAISE YOU HOLY SPIRIT! In fact, the ability to thank God and praise God is a gift that comes to us in the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is Person-Love and Person-Gift. Start your prayer and end your prayer with praise and thanksgiving and your life will change for the better. God willing, in Eternity, we will be praising and thanking God for all Eternity. Since this is your destiny, start now. Ask for the gift of the Holy Spirit through the intercession of Our Blessed Mother and live this relationship Our Lady has with the Divine Person of the Holy Spirit. Then you will live a life of praise and thanksgiving which is a taste of heaven.

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Through the intercession of Our Lady, St. Joseph, St. Michael, St. Peter, St. Paul, St. John, St. James, St. Therese, St. Rita, St. Philomena, St. Jude, St. Nicholas, St. Alphonsus, St. Peter Chrysologus, St. Zachary, St. Elizabeth, St. John the Baptist, St. Perpetua, St. Felicity, St. Francis, St. Veronica Guiliani, St. Joan of Arc, St. Louis, St. Joseph Calasanz, St. Padre Pio, St. Patrick, St. Bridget, St. Columban and all the Holy Angels and Saints may you be abundantly blessed in the Covenant of Communion of the Most Holy Trinity, with my Priestly blessing,

Father Zachary of the Mother of God, SOLT

50 Days in the Resurrection

JMJ+OBT
Omnia Pro Iesu Per Mariam!

THE LORD IS RISEN, ALLELUIA! HE IS RISEN INDEED, ALLELUIA!

Jesus, Our Great King and Victor has risen from the dead. Jesus comes forth from the tomb with the standard of the Holy Cross raised high and gifts us with new Life, new Light and a new Love. We are to RISE IN JESUS and embrace this new Life, new Light and new Love.

Jesus came to give us Life, abundant Life, and the eternal Life we received in our Baptism. We are to live our Baptism IN JESUS. In Baptism, the old man died and the new man has risen. Never go back to the old man of sin and death. Live in the new man and RISE IN JESUS!

Jesus came to give us Light. Jesus is the Light of the world. Jesus' Light leads us to the Father in Heaven. We embrace this Light and help the whole world see that they were created by God and are to live wholly for God. This Light empowers us to see that God has a wonderful plan for each of us and that we are to live as Church. We see everything by the Light of Faith.

Jesus came to give us Love. God is Love. Jesus is God. We enter into a new level of living in Love because we live in God. Jesus established the law of Grace and Love, and in the power of the Resurrection we receive the power to truly Love by living IN JESUS.

In the resurrection we are to RISE IN JESUS. Rise above the fears, doubts, worries and anxieties of this world. In the resurrection Jesus gifts us HIS VICTORIES over sin, satan, death, the flesh and the world. CLAIM HIS VICTORIES! We are to RISE IN JESUS!

Ask Our Lady to help you have a LIVING ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS CHRIST in the resurrection. We see Jesus appearing to the Disciples and others in the resurrection. One LIVING ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS CHRIST in the resurrection will change our life. We see this in the life of St. Paul who encountered Jesus in the resurrection.

Through this LIVING ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS CHRIST in the resurrection, St. Paul found the grace and strength to share the LIFE, LIGHT AND LOVE that Jesus won for us in His Paschal Mystery. Like St. Paul we ask two questions everyday: 1. Lord, what is it you wish to do with me? and 2. Lord, what is it you want me to do for you? We live our Baptism IN JESUS and share the Good News of Jesus with all of the world.

In the school of Mary, the first and perfect Disciple of Jesus Christ, we learn to contemplate the face of the risen Christ and draw strength to live in the Paschal Mystery of Christ. For 50 days we will have a special grace to "CLAIM" the VICTORIES of CHRIST by learning to RISE IN JESUS. Temptations and trials will still present themselves, but we manifest the VICTORIES OF CHRIST and RISE IN JESUS.

May you learn to live a live of Faith, Hope and Charity. May you live your Baptism and RISE IN JESUS. May Our Blessed Mother, Mary, teach you to contemplate the face of Christ and sing with all your heart and soul the song of the resurrection: "ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA, ALLELUIA!"

--
Through the intercession of Our Lady, St. Joseph, St. Michael, St. Peter, St. Paul, St. John, St. James, St. Therese, St. Rita, St. Philomena, St. Jude, St. Nicholas, St. Alphonsus, St. Peter Chrysologus, St. Zachary, St. Elizabeth, St. John the Baptist, St. Perpetua, St. Felicity, St. Francis, St. Veronica Guiliani, St. Joan of Arc, St. Louis, St. Joseph Calasanz, St. Padre Pio, St. Patrick, St. Bridget, St. Columban and all the Holy Angels and Saints may you be abundantly blessed in the Covenant of Communion of the Most Holy Trinity, with my Priestly blessing,

Father Zachary of the Mother of God, SOLT.