Monday, February 11, 2013

Blue Monday

I'm really tired and my late-onset dyslexia seems to be working full-throttle, so I can't promise you much of a post here, but here goes.

I turned on the television at 5:30 AM  to see what kind of commute I was in for and got the shock of my life: Pope Benedict XVI, a German shepherd if ever there was one, resigned.   Then I learned this evening that Roz (Shadowlands) apparently passed away in September.  Then I visited a blog I drop in on from time to time and learned that the author has been in a severe bout of depression, barely hanging on but for the Grace of Almighty God.

I have been approached nearly every single day by yet another person with an urgent prayer request, and there seems to be no let-up in sight of the trials and tribulations that shake our families and our faith.  Lord knows I have a few of my own and I thank all of you for your prayers and am always touched and honored when you ask me to pray for you.

In the meantime, we have first-graders being gunned down by the classroom-full, abortionists writing about the most effective way to keep those pesky babies from surviving a murder attempt, and weather unlike anything  I've ever seen in my lifetime tossing houses about like pieces on a Monopoly board.

What is going on?

It certainly feels as if the plates hidden deep beneath the world's surface have made a seismic shift.  However, that is not for me to speculate on, tempting as it may be.  I wish I had a dollar for every St Malachy prediction sent to me via email today.  Yet another person contacted me about an Irish visionary who claims to have revelations from Our Lord Himself that Pope Benedict XVI was not long for his papacy.

I have no control over any of this, nor any foresight.   All I know is that I am a sinful person who was incredibly blessed to have undergone a profound conversion and despite my attempts at holiness, I fail miserably on a daily basis.  I am also reminded that I am "dealing with the God of Mercy" and that "as often as (I) shall beg for it", God will be pleased to bestow His Mercy on me.

Every Saturday, I go to Mass and Adoration at the same place, and every week, I see the same gentleman in line for confession.   I thought I went to confession often but I don't go weekly as this fellow does.  I was just thinking the other day that if the sacrament is available to us, we should take advantage of it.  If nuns can find something to confess every week, surely I can.  If we knew that a certain fruit or vitamin would stave off cancer, we would indulge in it often, would we not?  So why the aversion to confession?  God already knows all, and the remote chance for less-than-smooth treatment from the priest is inconsequential, isn't it?

Every day in the Morning Offering I pray "Dear God, I do not know what will happen to me today, I only know that it will not have been unforeseen by You and will be directed toward my greater good for all eternity."

One way or another, the end comes for us all.  This brings me so much sadness when I think that some members of my own family may not be headed in the same direction that I pray I am.  I liken it to waking up in the middle of the night with the house on fire and having to watch one of my own children  left behind,  pounding on a window, pleading for help.   Once I'm on the other side of the divide, there will be little to nothing I can do.

Pray unceasingly.  And please remember to pray for the repose of the soul of  Roz.  I believe she suffered in ways unknown to most of us but I also believe she trusted completely in  Jesus.  May her soul and all the souls of the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

On a slightly lighter note, I picked this up over at Ars orandi.  You might find it interesting.

As for Pope Benedict, I don't believe he would have taken this step if he wasn't certain it was better for the Church that he did.  I am grateful that he was Pope at all and pray his replacement will be someone who will stay the course on which Benedict embarked.  Please God that it might be Cardinal Burke.

Whatever is in store for us Catholics, it won't be anywhere near as bad as what we deserve.  In the meantime, on the eve of the Feast of the Holy Face, think of Therese.

When St. Therese was in the throes of her worst agony, one of her sisters asked her what she did to pass the time at night.    "Mother, how I was tempted last night, but I made acts of faith and looked at the Holy Face the whole time. "   During her long days of confinement to her bed, Therese passed the hours by adoring the Holy Face and wiping the image she loved so much with rose petals, "in imitation of Veronica".

What treatment have I accorded the Holy Face?  I'm afraid to say, but God-willing, there will be time enough to rectify that.




12 comments:

  1. Joyce, what an amazing post...so rich with food for thought. It is such a sad day for all of us, but you seem to have been hit with several things all at once. I didn't know Roz, but will definitely pray for her tonight.

    I am heartbroken over losing our beloved Pope Benedict, but I know that Our Lord Jesus is ever at the helm of His Church. I had not even thought of Cardinal Burke...oh how wonderful that would be!

    I almost wept reading what you wrote about Therese and the Holy Face. Joyce, truly the Holy Spirit was speaking through you as you wrote this post. Every word went straight to my heart. Such wisdom about confession as well..

    And your image of the house on fire with some of our loved ones still inside is one I will not soon forget.

    Sending you a big hug to help soothe your sorrow..although in this world, much more than that is needed. But so glad all of us in our little circle here at least have one another.

    Thanks Joyce, you are such a blessing. xoxo

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    1. Patricia, you and all my friends here are a blessing to me in our little circle of hope and faith. I'm glad you found something useful in my rambling. Tonight, I went to the closing of 40 Hours Devotion at a nearby parish where hardly anyone bothered to show up. I thought the priest was going to cry. As St Therese lamented, the good God is not loved very much, but I'm so grateful that He has you and the other faithful men and women I call friends.
      Love and prayers and a big hug back xoxo
      Joyce

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  2. I have been wondering about Ros, I hadn't heard from her in so long. She was a good person. Thank you.

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    1. yes, Kathy, she was a very good person and endured some ridicule at the hands of other "catholics" but I pray she is in a better place.

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  3. OMG, Roz passed away!?? It's true. I just did a Google search and found her sister's blog that mentions her passing:
    http://tribute-to-fireoftheirlove.blogspot.com/2012/09/who-passed-away-recently-1961-to-2012.html

    I loved Roz. She was such a good soul. Shadowlands was the first Catholic blog I found or at least followed. It was through her that I found others and all the Catholic friend's I've made on the internet. Oh now I'm really heartbroken.

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    1. Wow, Manny, I will have to take a look at the blog you linked to. Roz always had an encouraging word for me and I still cringe at the time she pleaded with me for help because she was being ridiculed in a most immature way by another blogger. I urged her to ignore the behavior and it would stop, as it often does with bullies. I don't know what the cause of death was but I suspect from what she posted that Roz had her share of demons to fight. She once asked me if my daughter would pray for her sons, that they might convert. In Roz's memory, let's continue to pray for her boys and for the repose of her soul. Blessings. Joyce

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    2. Correction, it was her brother who put that blog together, not her sister. It sounded like a woman but then I noticed the name Steve at the bottom. Roz's demons were her alcoholism if you didn't know. And I think she had a son die on her. She never mentioned marriage or a husband, so I suspect she had marital issues too. I noticed on her brother's post that she was born the same year I was.

      Next Tuesday, for my regular Music Tuesday blog I'm going to have a little memorial for her. Roz loved Christian music and she introduced me to quite a few songs. There's one particular I remember she really loved, and I'm going to feature it.

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    3. Darn, I just noticed that my comment on that blog her brother set up didn't go through. It must have gone to spam. Why does that happen to me so often?

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    4. Not sure why Manny. Sometimes, your comments appear in my regular queue of comments awaiting moderation but most of the time they get caught in the spam filter. What do you use to get on the internet i.e. Internet Explorer, Google Chrome, etc?

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    5. Usually Internet Explorer. You just reminded me. There's a blogger where my comments only take using Firefox. Let me try that, but unfortuantely I forgot what I wrote.

      I just wrote something for your next blog, "Smoke and Ash," and unless you haven't approved it yet it doesn't seem to have taken.

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  4. Maybe something is in the water here in our town. I have been more down than I've been in a long time. Of course, it's child-related. sigh. And then the pope! Oh my. I trusted him so much. I pray we are blessed with another like him. I was praying the Divine Mercy on Monday at my parish at 3:00 in front of the Blessed Sacrament, as they always do--and the man leading it (you may well know him, his initials are RV)--threw into the preliminary prayer a prayer for the pope, and for the one to come, "not a liberal!"--lol I couldn't help but wonder what the priest waiting in the sacristy to repose the sacrament thought about that...anyway, it made me laugh inside.
    I pray this Lent is actually a balm to us all personally and to the Church.
    God Bless~

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    1. I think it was the Lent before last when the Archbp announced the removal of a slew of priests from their assignments in our archdiocese until investigations regarding the child-abuse scandal were complete. It was a helluva way to begin Lent. While this news was shocking and a bit of a blow, it could have been worse. I pray we have another Pope like Benedict XVI but the truth is that even if we don't, the Church will go on, because Christ told us that the gates of Hell would never prevail against His Mystical Body. I think the road is going to be pretty rocky from here on out. If not a balm, Lent can surely be an exercise in getting us ready for what is to come. Keeping you and the kids in my prayers.
      Joyce

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Comments which reflect true Christian charity are always welcome. Comments which attack the Pope, the Church, priests or other bloggers will go in the dustbin, especially if they are anonymous. Thank you and God Bless you!