January 1
Solemnity of Mary, The Holy Mother of God
In the encyclical Marialis Cultus (1974) Pope Paul VI states: "This celebration, assigned to January 1 in conformity with the ancient liturgy of the city of Rome, is meant to commemorate the part played by Mary in this mystery of salvation. It is meant also to exalt the singular dignity which this mystery brings to the 'holy Mother . . . through whom we were found worthy . . . to receive the Author of life.' It is likewise a fitting occasion for renewed adoration of the newborn Prince of Peace, for listening once more to the glad tidings of the angels, and for imploring from God, through the Queen of Peace, the supreme gift of peace. For this reason . . . we have instituted the World Day of Peace, an observance that is gaining increasing support and is already bringing forth fruits of peace in the hearts of many"
Mary our Call our Model
Humble Mary
Full of grace
The Lord is surely with you.
Your fiat
A blessing for us
Lowly, hungry, disadvantaged.
Your mantle of
Celestial bodies in the firmament
All encompassing.
Your compassionate
Down gaze
Our connection.
Our prayer
To be ever servant
Realizing you Mary
Have found us
Needing, faithful, hopeful.
Amen
6 June 2010
January 2
Saint Basil the Great
“As thou takest thy seat at table, pray. As thou liftest the loaf, offer thanks to the Giver. When thou sustainest thy bodily weakness with wine, remember Him Who supplies thee with this gift, to make thy heart glad and to comfort thy infirmity. Has thy need for taking food passed away? Let not the thought of thy Benefactor pass away too. As thou art putting on thy tunic, thank the Giver of it. As thou wrappest thy cloak about thee, feel yet greater love to God, Who alike in summer and in winter has given us coverings convenient for us, at once to preserve our life, and to cover what is unseemly. Is the day done? Give thanks to Him Who has given us the sun for our daily work, and has provided for us a fire to light up the night, and to serve the rest of the needs of life. Let night give the other occasion of prayer. When thou lookest up to heaven and gazest at the beauty of the stars, pray to the Lord of the visible world; pray to God the Arch-artificer of the universe, Who in wisdom hath made them all. When thou seest all nature sunk in sleep, then again worship Him Who gives us even against our wills release from the continuous strain of toil, and by a short refreshment restores us once again to the vigour of our strength. Let not night herself be all, as it were, the special and peculiar property of sleep. Let not half thy life be useless through the senselessness of slumber. Divide the time of night between sleep and prayer. Nay, let thy slumbers be themselves experiences in piety; for it is only natural that our sleeping dreams should be for the most part echoes of the anxieties of the day. As have been our conduct and pursuits, so will inevitably be our dreams. Thus wilt thought pray without ceasing; if thought prayest not only in words, but unitest thyself to God through all the course of life and so thy life be made one ceaseless and uninterrupted prayer.”
Advent Stress
I visit the jail
With joy on my heart
Prepared with a lesson
Of dynamite flow and starts.
Juveniles are missing
Combatants and victims
Acting on some pent-up grievance
Failing to meet their needs.
The vicious cycle of toy train
Routine, constrained, pent up
Running without a safety valve
Doing the same thing
Expecting a different result
Yielding to chaos and the dark side
Realizing I am observing
Myself in the squirrel cage.
Petitions are offered up
The first Christmas away from family
Letters from home and friends
Have dried up
My letters
With no returned voices
My visits
Reduced to a dribble
Blandness extends
To the counting of days.
The seasons
The holidays
The church as on hiatus.
Cross my path
Invade my space
I will reach out
With all the testosterone
Stored up for my
Strike back at any phantom…
The great opponent
Who is well known to me
Who never shows up
Save on the poor substitute.
Hurt compounded
With interest rate of loneliness.
A missionary
Can only go so far
In substituting for loss
Especially in a group setting.
General intercessory prayer
A celebration of release
With all heads bowed down
Reverently saying the Our Father.
Eventually they will seek out
Other Christians
Forming small groups
Accountable to each other
Praying, sharing,
Shunting the will of
Strike out energy
Studying the bible
For group think, talk.
My prayer of joy
This suffering,
To lesson,
To reach out beyond
The reach of their fists
To brothers of likeminded understanding
Where violated spaces
Become opportunities
To be the face of Christ
To my neighbor.
13 November 2007