In his book, The School of Jesus Crucified, Father Ignatius of the Side of Jesus, Passionist, outlines 25 points as a “Practical Rule of Christian Life for Daily Observance”. We will publish one a day: “Nothing can be begun well unless begun in God, the sole Fountain of all real good; begin, therefore, each day by raising your mind and heart to God. On awaking in the morning, let your first thoughts be devoted to this great truth: God is here present; and make an act of lively faith in His Divine Presence. Let your first action be the Sign of the Cross, according to the custom of the early Christians; your first words the holy Names of Jesus and Mary; and the first impulse of your heart an offering of yourself to God, by saying with the deepest feelings of respect: I adore Thee, O my God; I love Thee with my whole heart; I thank Thee for all the blessings Thou hast bestowed upon me, and especially for dying for me on the Cross, shedding all Thy blood for the salvation of my soul, and preserving me in life up to the present moment; to Thee I consecrate my heart and my whole self.”
Lent Preparation: Compunction
Excerpted from My Daily Bread, a book recommended by Fr. Geckle. CHRIST: My Child, how can any man abandon himself to the pleasures of this earthly life? Such people do not appreciate the miserable condition of their souls, nor the rapid passing away of this brief experience. They do not stop to think and to look beneath the surface of their daily activities. They laugh when they have many reasons to weep. Happy is he who can overcome the distractions which hinder him from straight thinking.
2. As for you, strive to develop within yourself a genuine compunction of heart. Compunction is a deep and lasting sorrow for your sins. It is not a gloomy nor depressing sorrow, but an intelligent admission of your sins and a sincere determination to do something about them. Since compunction comes from a realization of how you have failed so good a God, it brings with it a readiness to accept anything from My Hand.
3. Compunction opens the way to many blessings and precious graces. When compunction fills your soul, the world will lose its magic attraction and will become more distasteful to you. Compunction will help you realize how quickly earthly joys pass away, while eternity goes on forever. You will see clearly that your sins have offended Me. One who has genuine compunction, is honest enough to admit his sins, and is truly sorry for them. His sorrow is proved by his sincere efforts to be rid of his faults.
THINK: Compunction is a great grace by which God helps me to face the truth about my sins. It also helps me to prove my sorrow for my faults. By compunction a man begins to attack his faults and to practice the opposite virtues. I can be sure of my sincere sorrow only when I have begun to do something about my faults. Compunction is a lasting sorrow because it is not an emotion, but rather an intelligent admission of facts. It shows me my faults, God’s goodness, and my own need to change for the better. Then it helps me undertake the daily task of abandoning my faults and acquiring the opposite virtues.
PRAY: Lord, I want to live a cheerful life, but I do not want that kind of cheerfulness which refuses to admit the truth. I can admit my sins and still be cheerful, as long as I am doing my best to overcome and make up for these sins. I do not want any gift or talent which might make me proud, or worse in any way. Not everything that is high is holy; nor is every pleasant thing good. Good desires are not always unselfish. You, my Lord, are not always pleased with the things that we prize. It is far better to have compunction than to be able to talk about it. Grant me genuine compunction, so that I may hate my sins and daily fight against them. Amen.
Something Beautiful for Meditating on the Dormition and Assumption
The idea of Mary as the Tabernacle of our Lord is vividly brought to mind as we also contemplate her Dormition and Assumption while studying the details of this actual tabernacle. Read more
A Meditation on The Assumption
In Fr. Geckle’s announcements yesterday he reminded us that Wednesday is a holy day of obligation and that even though he will not be able to say Mass for us that day, we are bound to keep it holy, just as if it were a Sunday.
One idea that you might like to try for this great feast is to add a 15-minute Rosary meditation to your devotions. Father recommended a meditation booklet recently that may be found online. It’s called “Rosary Meditations for Fatima Saturdays” by Lester Dooley, S.V.D., published in 1950. Here is the archive.org link to it with many download options. And here is a large text version that you can read on the Catholic Harbor website. Fr. Dooley’s meditation for the mystery of the Assumption is copied from Catholic Harbor and pasted below: Read more
Our Lady of Fatima Mission Chapel 