"They all ate and were satisfied"

There are some, who rather than accepting The "Miracle" of the Loaves and Fishes, insist that the story is really about personal greed, that there was always enough food, and that Jesus does no more that prick thier conscience, in order to open up thier hearts to be generous with one another.

This erroneous and dangerous teaching, reduces Christianity to nothing more than an Activist Church, founded exclusively on a Social Construct, rather that a Belief in A Loving and Affectionate Father, Who Provides for His Children, not just Material "Things," but, more Importantly, Supernatural Sustinence as well.

Our Lord, by working this Miracle, shows that Divine Providence is Continuously at work all around us, and that there is a Deeper meaning behind everything. Here, He prefigures The Holy Eucharist, where He will give infinitely More than just a "Meal," but rather He will Give of His Very Self.

There is always the danger of turning the Spiritual into the Mundane, by focusing on "Mission" and "Apostolate" over Personal Sanctification. Such a form of "Activism" has been Condemned by the Church, for such activity, rather than have the Foundation of True Holiness, makes of The Christian, nothing more than a "Social Worker."

We Must Be More, Much More, for if our Apostolic and Charitable endeavors are to bear Fruit and Give Glory to God, they Have to be "Grace Filled." Therefore, there is an Absolute Need that Everything that one does, be founded First and Foremost upon a Profound Spiritual Union with God. And once that "Divine Intimacy" has been Established within The Heart, All Will Work for The Good.

We must understand that although Good, Charitable, and Apostolic Works, may seem in themselves to be the actions of a "Saint," Without The Sustinence of an Interior Life of Prayer and Pennance, thier external acts of Piety may be nothing more than a beating drum.

Therefore, it is Imperative that We Who Glory in The Title of "Christian," must move Beyond just "Being" Externally a Follower of Christ, and Actually BECOME His Very Presence upon this Earth by Entering INTO The Sacred Mysteries of His Life, Passion, Death and Resurrection Through The Worthy Reception of The Sacraments as well as seeking always to foster a Vibrant and Active life of Prayer.

My Beloved Lord Jesus, Grant me The Grace to enter so deeply Into The Sacred Mysteries of my Faith, that all I do will be an EFFECT of my Love for Thee, and that the world may never see me, but Rather, Only Thy Goodness, Thy Patience, Thy Courage, The Mercy, and Thy Love.

God Bless You

"Freedom is always one Generation away from Extinction"

These Prophetic words, spoken by one of our Greatest Presidents, must make each and every one of us shudder at the current events taking place, before our very eyes.

Since the "Satanic" Forces that, in recent times, have revealed thier true intentions to Demolish our Republic, under the Guize of so many false Promises of of a Society where everything is guaranteed by the state, We as Roman Catholic Christians, as are All Christians called, by our very Baptism, to Rise up and Defend, with our very Lives, The Truth that, The Freedoms which have been given to us by "God," and that have been Guaranteed by our "Constitution," will continue to survive into The Future for our Children and our Children's Children.

The Freedoms that we Enjoy are quite fragile, especially when we look at those, who throughout history have Lost thier very Freedoms through acquiescence to the radical demands of "the few," in the hope, that by "getting along" those who seek the "Reconstruction of Society" will show Merciful restraint.

But the opposite will Always be true, if you give an inch, they will take a mile, for in thier eyes, by Good people showing Patience and acceptance, in a Spirit of Charity, the Enemies of Christianity and The Freedom to practice our Faith and Live our way of life, see us as Weak and even Unworthy of thier "Protection," since thier Endgame is Our eventual Erradication.

We Must First, call upon The Holy Angels, for the Battle that we are in, is so much more than merely Socio-economic, it is a Struggle between Good and Evil, between Right and Wrong, Between Heaven and Hell. By invoking the Assistance of The Angels, we admit that our engagement is one that is both Physical and Spiritual.

Once we have Enlisted The Help of So Great a Spiritual Army, we must then, with The Courage afforded us by Divinely Revealed Truth, Rise up and take our place alongside of our Bretheren to Fulfill The Sacred Promises of our Baptism,

Do you renounce Satan?

And all his works?

And all his Empty Promises?

Do you Believe in God The Father?

In His Son, Jesus Christ?

Do you believe in The Holy Spirit, The Catholic Church, The Communion of Saints, The Forgiveness of Sins, and Life Everlasting?

In This Formal Statement, is found the Reason for our Active Participation in the Salvific Action of Christ, and our Obligation to pursue The Good for all of Humanity. Therefore, we cannot, nor should we remain silent or Indifferent, both Spiritually as well as with regard to our Civic Responsibility.

God Bless You

"Saint Ignatius of Loyola"

We Celebrate today the Feast of one of the Great Masters of Spirituality. The Entire Thirty Day Retreat that He Formulated, is Complely Dedicated to Growth in Divine Love.

The path is simple, there are Four Stages, that if applied in our Daily Examination of Conscience and Prayer, will most certainly be a positive influence in our progression on our Pilgrimage toward our Eternal Home.

The First Week, is Dedicated to the Recognition that I AM A SINNER, and that I NEED REDEMPTION. This Must be The Foundation of what follows, for without an Honest reflection as to Who and What I am before God, there is no hope for True Progress in the Spiritual Life.

This can be quite Difficult, only because The Truth of one's own wickedness can seem to be a burden too heavy to bear, and it is the time during the Exercizes that, faced with the evil one may find within themselves, some run away, but if they would only gather the Courage to go on, they will find that the Second week instills within the Soul a more Profound Gratitude and Love for what Our Saviour Offers to each and every one us, for,

The Second Week, focuses on The Life of Christ and His Message of Forgiveness and Mercy, as well as His Call to The Attainment of Perfect Love. By studying His Incarnation in The Womb of His Mother Mary, all the way to His Last Supper, we begin to Really Know This GOD MADE MAN, and thus are able to Fall more Deeply in Love with Him.

The Third Week Centers on Our Lord's Passion and Death, and the Key is that He did not Embrace His Passion for "The Collective," but for "ME," Not Humanity as a whole, but for each Individual Soul, as if You were the ONLY Person He Ever Created. This Week therefore, Makes clear to the Heart and Mind that Salvation is PERSONAL, and Requires a Personal Response.

And Finally, The Fourth week is Dedicated to The Resurrection. This is the Week of Hope and Preparation in order to return to the outside world. It is during this time that usually the Gift of Tears is given, tears of Sorrow, mingled with Gratitude and Joy. The shortest of the Weeks, for Ignatius knows, that if one has Applied themselves faithfully to what has gone before, the Retreatant should, by this time, be Soaring to the Heights of Contemplative Love.

God Bless You

"The Virtue of Eutrapelia"

This Virtue, if practiced properly, keeps us from either taking ourselves too seriously, thus becoming Boorish, or the opposite vice of Buffonery.

Most Certainly, "Joy" is The Halmark of True Holiness, therefore it is Imperative that it be regulated by Virtue. And since "Communication" with others is external, the Internal Virtue of Eutrapelia is what gives "Wit" it's ability to manifest itself with refined and Pleasant Conversation, lest it become, what so often can digress into a vicious retort, that, rather than be an Informative Discourse, will do nothing more than Agitate the sensibilities of others.

In today's Society, so many think that Yelling at, and dispariging the thoughts of others, protects them from being "Hurt" by the words of those with whom they dissagree. But in reality such behavior is usually motivated by a Specific Hatred for that with which they disagree, and can eventually be transferred to the persons themselves, thus the one Infected can do nothing but wallow in thier Ignorance, unable and even Unwilling to learn from others, thus making of themselves both the Teacher and the pupil.

This becomes Dangerous when they alone choose the Information that they "Want" to imbibe, thus Eliminating any sort of "Fair and Balanced" Comprehension of Reality. They tend to Believe that such a Protective cocoon will spare them any undue stress that knowledge might inflict upon thier narrow beliefs.

If only those argumentative souls would embrace The Virtue of Eutrapelia, perhaps such Graciousness would allow them, not only to make thier point with "Reason and Common Sense," but open thier minds to the "Possibility" that being a "Self Taught" person might not be the best path to follow if they seek True and Lasting Peace, both within themselves and with others.

God Bless You

"Martha and Mary"

Both are Essential in The Life of Those Consecrated by Baptism INTO Christ.

Although Mary had Chosen, "The Better Part," Martha was also Essential, but she had to Reign in, not only her actions, "One thing is Enough," but also Comparing herself to Mary, "Tell her to help me."

It will Always be a Mistake both in the Spiritual Life, as well as the Apostolate, to compare one's self with Others. For by doing so, we can fall into one of two errors.

First, it can cause feelings of Envy, and even jealousy, if the person seems to "Show us up" so to speak, feeling that thier activity becomes, in thier mind, a "Rebuke" of thier "Inactivity" and rather than increasing thier efforts in the persuit of Perfection, they become resentful.

Second, by Contemplating the seeming "Inactivity" of thier Neighbors, one can easily fall into the false assumption that they themselves are somehow "Better," even "Holier" than others. This false sense of Pride will destroy any chance of thier efforts in bearing any sort of Lasting Fruit.

Those who seek recognition for thier "Piety," have already recieved thier reward, it is for this reason that Our Beloved Lord tells us to go in Secret, where Only our Heavenly Father sees us, and there, Foster a true Spirit of Piety.

Some can easily fall into an Inordinate Desire for the Praise of others, by bragging about thier charitable activity, thus, in a way, stealing from God the Credit that is due Only to Him, for in reality, all we do for His Honor and Glory, is "His" Work, even though He Chooses the weak and Imperfect to Achieve His Holy Will.

In other words, without True Humility, the drum, though Loud, is still empty. Therefore, the Key to any sort of Progression in The Spiritual Life, is That I Recognize The Truth, not as I stand before others, but as I Stand before my Lord and God. For Only then, will I have a Clear and Honest Awareness of who and what I am;

A Sinner, Chosen from Among Sinners, to help Sinners.

God Bless You