Called to Imitate God's Mercy

The apostles faced some probing questions, just like we all do. Peter and Paul grapple with the question: what must we believe? The apostles grapple with how they were to pray. We know that God loved the world enough to sacrifice His beloved Son. We also know that in the Son, we have been made sons and daughters of the Eternal Father. There seems to be an on-going tension between faith content and devotional expression. I am reminded of a statement attributed to Saint Augustine: “In essentials, unity; in non-essentials, liberty; in all things, charity.” The immediacy of these words were underscored by Pope Francis during his meeting with Patriarch Ilia II in Georgia: “Notwithstanding our limitations, we are called to be “one in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:28) and to avoid putting first disharmony and divisions between the baptized”. It is impossible to proclaim the mercy of God if we cannot show mercy to one another.

We need to stop justifying the great divide keeping the members of the Body of Christ separated one from another. God is not glorified by our rejection of one another. It is sad to say, but true, that we give lip service to the Lord of Mercy and the Mercy of the Lord, but we keep beating-up and condemning others. I was brought to tears as I read a comment made by Pope Francis: “Ah! Brothers and Sisters, God's face is the face of a merciful father who is always patient. Have you thought about God's patience, the patience He has with each one of us? That is His mercy. He always has patience, patience with us, He understands us, He waits for us, He does not tire of forgiving us if we are willing to return to Him with a contrite heart" (Angelus on March 17, 2013).

The challenge of Christianity is to present and defend the Truth in love, or perhaps mercy is a better word, for our purposes. It is mercy that allows us to look beyond division and disharmony. It is mercy that can change the world. Cardinal Kasper, in his book of mercy wrote: “[Mercy] is the best thing we can feel: it changes the world. A little mercy makes the world less cold and more just” (The Essence of the Gospel and the Key to Christian Life). Mercy means that we do not have to remain in exile. We can come home again and share the banquet of life. Mercy is the infinite love of God revealed to us in concrete deeds – the death and resurrection of the Son. So mercy becomes not only the central attribute of God, but also the central attribute of Christian life. We are called to imitate God’s mercy towards us.

I will close with a few words from Pope Francis: “Let us be renewed by God's mercy, let us be loved by Jesus, let us enable the power of his love to transform our lives too; and let us become agents of this mercy, channels through which God can water the earth, protect all creation and make justice and peace flourish” (Easter Urbi et Orbi message on March 31, 2013).

--Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Keep Praying!

Prayer is a powerful antidote to evil. Saint James proposes it as the occupation of the person of faith, no matter what the circumstances. He seems to be echoing the sentiments that the apostle to the Gentiles wrote the church at Thessalonica, “Never stop praying” (1 Thes. 5:17). If you are suffering – keep praying. If you are in good spirits – keep praying. If you are sick -- keep praying. If you have sinned – keep praying. If you know someone who has strayed from the truth – keep praying. The believer is to pray with the tenacity of a child who knows his Father’s love for him. When we pray, we do not look to our worthiness or merit. No, we trust in God’s gracious kindness and mercy that has made us His own. Recall these words spoke through the Prophet Isaiah, “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine: (Is. 43:1).

God’s favor and mercy are extended to all those He has made His own in the blood of His Son. Because He has redeemed us, we are precious in his sight. Because we are His children, He calls us to come to Him in faith and confidence. We believe that we have been baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire. When we pray, we are to remember the fascination we had as children when we played with fire. Jesus said as much : “Let the children [within you] come to me; do not prevent them” (Mk. 10:14). Jesus told us that we need to change our attitude: “I assure you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enjoy the blessings of the kingdom of heaven” (Mat. 18:3).

Despite the fact that we often forget we are God’s Children, God never forgets that He is out Father.
We have to rediscover the joy of our youth when we were teachable and willing to depend on our heavenly Father. We need to be renewed in spirit so that we might entrust ourselves with child-like abandonment into the love and care of God and so discover the Father’s deepest mercy. Let us live in the joy of the children of God and manifest the Spirit that transforms the world.

--Father Jerome Machar, OSCO

Letter from a Confraternity of Penitents Sister in Christ

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

 

My name is Rhea Schoettner. I have been a pledged and privately vowed member of the CFP, since April 2, 2011. The name I chose when I pledged and vowed is sr. Benedict Mary Francis. I have always loved St. Benedict for some very special reasons and Mary is my mother! St. Francis ... well, there are no words to express my love for him! 

 

I serve as a Regional Minister for the United Kingdom, Europe, and Florida. I am also a formator, helping others in their journey towards becoming a penitent.

 

 

 

I began a group called the Francis and Clare Guild. Some of us make handmade greeting cards, others use purchased cards, and we send them to people we know who are alone, shut in, addicted, sick, etc. Someone who is in need of knowing someone cares for them. We choose people from our own lives and mail to them once a month. I began this because there are so many lonely people out there. I take care of my grandchildren for my son while he works so I can't get out and about like other people do. This was my way of being able to touch someone's life and let them know they are loved. The Guild is on Facebook if you would like to join us.

 

Living the CFP Rule of Life has changed me in so many ways. I have gained so much from the prayer life and the sacrifices we make as penitents. I live the rule in all ways except for the diet and fasting (because of unforeseen health problems). I actually have found that after adjusting to the diet part of the rule and then having to go off of it has been just as much of a sacrifice as it was when I was on it. Maybe even more so because I wanted to follow the rule completely and I can't. We don't always choose our sacrifices or even know that something is going to be a sacrifice. It is all up to God! I never imagined that having to eat the way everyday people do would be a sacrifice but it is!

 

In October of 2014 my husband and I went on vacation to Pennsylvania. It was the first time in 6 years since I had been home to see my family and friends. We managed to save enough money and set out for a fun escape for a few weeks! The day we left (after we left) a hose going to toilet in the bathroom broke. My son went to check on the house the next morning and found it full of water. He opened the front door and the water came gushing out. We notified the Landlord's agent and had to trust that she would do a good job. I will not go into detail because it is too long, but I will get straight to the point ... The rental agent did NOT do her job. She never entered our home until the day after we returned from vacation and we found mold everywhere. We lost nearly all of our furniture, all of our linens, our clothing, books that were on the bottom shelves to mold. We also lost some very sentimental items. It didn't have to happen that way. Everything could have been saved had the agent done her job!

 

 

 

I am sharing this because I learned some very valuable lessons over the last 3 months. I would like to share them because they just might help others if they ever come face to face with this kind of disaster.

 

First I learned that my CFP brothers and sisters are really my brothers and sisters. They are the only ones who helped us when we were in need. I learned that God has led me to the best place I could ever be. I will be forever grateful for the kindness and compassion the members of the Confraternity of Penitents had for us.

 

Second I learned that I am human! I think over time knowing that I had come so far in my faith journey, had placed me in a nice little nest of security. I have over the last 8 years detached from things and people who had too much control over my emotions. I learned that love is an action ... Not an emotion. And I thought I was doing very well and that I would never fall. How wrong I was. Because of the behaviour of the people responsible for the loss of our things, I became depressed. I also felt hopeless and angry and alone. I missed my THINGS! Me, who thought herself detached from the worldly things and people found myself in that dark place I had not been to in 28 years! I fell backwards in my prayer ... In my spiritual life in general. I did NOT lose my faith but I came close.

 

It was the actions of the people that depressed me the most. I could not believe that people could be so uncaring and hurtful. I forgot to trust in God. I forgot that He always has a reason for allowing things to happen. He knows best!

 

 

I woke up one day and realized that I was failing miserably ... I began to pick up my breviary again and to focus on my faith, family and home again instead of my misery. I began to focus on how to get back to the way of life I had worked so hard to build with the Confraternity of Penitents ... The life God had led me to and given me the grace to follow through with. Bottom line it isn't so easy to just get it back. It took a very long time to build it ... A few weeks to knock it down and ... A difficult time to rebuild! I didn't lose it all ... As I said I did not lose faith and I did pray ... I still kept up with the clothing rule ... It was praying of the Hours and the psalms and the meditation and reading that I failed to do. I became so engrossed in fixing everything and feeling depressed that I forgot to do those things that keep me going everyday!

 

There is a saying that if the devil can't get you to sin in everyday ways he makes you busy ... THIS IS TRUE ... I am just now pulling myself up and out of the hole I was in. I hope I never become so sure of myself again (in regards to faith) that I don't see I am already falling. It is the prayer together with the sacrifice that aids us everyday. It makes the hard things less difficult. It makes us strong and able to withstand the trials in life. I almost let that go. I am so thankful for the Confraternity because at all times it remained on my mind and I know it was God's way of nagging me ... Telling me to get back to the right way of life ... His way of life.

 

I guess the main message is that it is easy to think we are growing in holiness and can't fall like we used to. That is a great lie ... One we all need to keep in mind! I will end here and I hope each and everyone of my brothers and sisters in the Confraternity are filled with the love of God and are given all of the graces needed to face every trial with hope and trust in God!

 

God Bless you all ... Pax et bonum,

Rhea (sr. Benedict Mary Francis)

Letter to a Dying Woman Who Needs to Make Peace with God

The Confraternity of Penitents received this urgent prayer request for a woman who was dying. We reproduce the request here but have changed the name for privacy sake:

Please pray for Janine who is dying because of liver failure, that she would have the grace of true
repentance for her sins and complete trust in Jesus, our savior and friend. May God bless you for your faithful devotion and prayers.
In His service,
Jill

One woman who received this prayer request took the time to write back her thoughts and encouragement to Janine. Her letter is reproduced just as it was written.

Dear Janine,

I heard about your terrible suffering and wanted to communicate this message to you. God created your soul to live with Him eternally in the happiness of Heaven and He Loves you completely and entirely! All people are created in God's image and likeness - we are all made for Heaven!! We all know this Truth when we are conceived in the womb and reminded of it in the sacrament of Baptism, but this world is far from being heaven and makes many of us forget our Divine Creator and Heavenly Home. God understands this tragedy and extends us His Divine Mercy and Grace to Help save our souls - but we must accept it and turn to Him in humility in order to Receive It.

Please ask to speak with a Catholic Priest and do a confession and attend Catholic Holy Mass ASAP - it's best to do this in person but there are daily masses online if you can't go in person. Turning to God during your life - before your death - does more to save your soul and assure your eternal happiness than all the prayers said for you after your death. If you want to go to heaven then you must ask for God's Help, seek His Mercy and Grace and be humble, loving and kind before Him Who created you - and Who created the entire universe. 

Hating others who have hurt or wronged you is like trying to throw them off of a cliff - the problem is that when you throw them off you automatically go over yourself... Life is like a mirror in that way - "you get what you give". So Shift attention to God and His Divine Love which is a Reward in Itself - and thereby you will no longer suffer eternally. If it helps, you can feel sorry for those who are so hurt themselves that they have hurt you in your life. It's very important to shift your focus to the love of God if you want to go to Heaven. 

There's another good side effect to doing this - you may recover if it is God's Will and completely regain your health after turning to God with love and confessing your sins and truly repenting of them and asking for God's Help - and in fact many, many people have! Sin leads to suffering and death - hatred purchases suffering and death whereas Loving God and Loving others brings Life in this life and the next. 

You can read about the miracles brought about by conversions to the Catholic or Christian faith associated with any of the Saints including St. Brother Andre of Montreal. One man was bed ridden for years and was near death and finally did a confession with a Catholic priest and received other Catholic sacraments (the 7 Sacraments are Gifts from God for our health and happiness) and he went on to completely recover and live many years longer in good health! 

You will always be happy for lovingly asking God for His Help at this time and repenting of your sins and offering up your suffering in atonement for your sins and also to save the souls of poor sinners. Your anxiety will disappear once you are reconciled with God! Once you confess your sins, the Priest will give you some penance to do in atonement for your sins which may be to say a few short prayers to God. You will never regret doing this during your life whereas you may regret it eternally if you don't or it will significantly lengthen and intensify your purgatory which will not be fun. You may recover completely if it is God's Will so that you may glorify the Lord and your testimony will help others to save their souls - and that is what I am praying for Janine but either way you will be happy if you do this!

May God bless you Janine and may you embrace the Love and Mercy of God and find eternal salvation and hopefully recover too!!!

 Blessings in Christ,

Suzanne

No Stranger to Evil

When he has brought out all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger, but they will run from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.’ (John 10: 4-5)

Good Shepherd Sunday and Mothers' Day fell on the same day this year. There is a special meaning to these holidays coming together. Colleges are also ending for this year, and young people are coming home from their freshman year in college. I remember my first weekend home from college. Mother wanted all of us to go to Mass together and to sit together in the same pew. Now at college, I was used to going to Mass at 5 PM or maybe 6 PM or maybe 10 PM, but I dragged myself out of bed and went to Mass with Mom in the morning to make it happen for her. And the Mass for the day was Good Shepherd Sunday. I had heard these readings before, but it was as if I were hearing them for the first time. I was supposed to be a sheep and be a follower of Christ. The readings convicted me. 

I went to the priest and asked him if he could hear my confession. Father looked at me like., "You're home from your first year in college and I'm going to hear your confession? Hmmm." Father hears confessions and he gets an earful about what happened in the first year of college. And after I got done with my very long confession, I said to Father, “But Father, I am confused. I believe in Jesus. I thought I was following Him. But if I am one of the sheep, why do I stray?” The Scripture reading says that the sheep do not follow the voice of strangers. I had been telling Father for 15, 20, 30 minutes how I had strayed. Was not I a sheep? Why was I straying?

Father said something that was filled with wisdom. He said, “The problem is not that you do not know the voice of Jesus. The problem is that you have been a friend to evil and sin. You do not know evil and sin as strangers, and, unless evil and sin are strangers to you, you cannot recognize the voice of Christ.”

Mother was trying to tell me this in her own way. Mother wanted me to come to Mass and be with her. This was the voice of Christ that I did not understand. I should have listened to Mother more often. I realized that when I was at school, I was not listening to Christ. I will had immersed myself in the world, not in Christ, and the world was no longer a stranger to me. I had to look at my friends. What was I like when I was with them? I was not conformed to Christ. I had to change who I was with and what I did. So I decided to get new friends and so I joined a fraternity! If joining a fraternity is a step up, that shows you how far I had fallen. What our friends to speak about and do will enhance or impede our faith.

My parents had a change of heart, a conversion, when I was in high school. They had to change their friends, too. When I went to the seminary I was immersed in Christ and in friends who knew Jesus. When I left the seminary for my summer vacation, my worldly friends were happy to see me again and asked me to go out with them, and I said, "Sure! Let's go!" But when I was with them, I was miserable. I realized that I did not want to go where they wanted to go. I had changed. I could not be happy and follow their voice any more. As a priest, I am happy that I follow the voice of the Lord.

Can you distinguish the voice of the Lord from the voice of evil? Have you become friends with evil and sin so they are no longer strangers to you? It is never too late to get new friends, to listen to the voice of the Lord, and to make evil and sin strangers again. My Mother’s prayers were what brought me back to the Lord. She prayed for me. She was an example by her very life. It was not that she spent a lot of time catechizing me, but she lived the life of the Good Shepherd through her prayers and example. It is she who brought me back into the fold of Christ. My Mother started to pray for our spouses when we were children. So that means that she has been praying for the Church and all of you, the Body of Christ, because you are my spouse! Let us come into the fold in response to our Mothers' prayers or anyone else’s and be part of the Good Shepherd’s flock.

Father Jacob Meyer, CFP Visitor

God Cannot Be Outdone in Generosity

God’s Covenant with David

Now when the king was settled in his house, and the Lord had given him rest from all his enemies around him, the king said to the prophet Nathan, ‘See now, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God stays in a tent.’ Nathan said to the king, ‘Go, do all that you have in mind; for the Lord is with you.’

 But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan: Go and tell my servant David: Thus says the Lord: Are you the one to build me a house to live in? I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent and a tabernacle. Wherever I have moved about among all the people of Israel, did I ever speak a word with any of the tribal leaders of Israel, whom I commanded to shepherd my people Israel, saying, ‘Why have you not built me a house of cedar?’ Now therefore thus you shall say to my servant David: Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep to be prince over my people Israel; and I have been with you wherever you went, and have cut off all your enemies from before you; and I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. And I will appoint a place for my people Israel and will plant them, so that they may live in their own place, and be disturbed no more; and evildoers shall afflict them no more, as formerly, from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel; and I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that the Lord will make you a house. When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come forth from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me. When he commits iniquity, I will punish him with a rod such as mortals use, with blows inflicted by human beings. But I will not take my steadfast love from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before me; your throne shall be established for ever. In accordance with all these words and with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.

David’s Prayer

 Then King David went in and sat before the Lord, and said, ‘Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord God; you have spoken also of your servant’s house for a great while to come. May this be instruction for the people, O Lord God! And what more can David say to you? For you know your servant, O Lord God! Because of your promise, and according to your own heart, you have wrought all this greatness, so that your servant may know it. Therefore you are great, O Lord God; for there is no one like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have heard with our ears. Who is like your people, like Israel? Is there another nation on earth whose God went to redeem it as a people, and to make a name for himself, doing great and awesome things for them, by driving out before his people nations and their gods? And you established your people Israel for yourself to be your people for ever; and you, O Lord, became their God. And now, O Lord God, as for the word that you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house, confirm it for ever; do as you have promised. Thus your name will be magnified for ever in the saying, “The Lord of hosts is God over Israel”; and the house of your servant David will be established before you. For you, O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have made this revelation to your servant, saying, “I will build you a house”; therefore your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. And now, O Lord God, you are God, and your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant; now therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, so that it may continue for ever before you; for you, O Lord God, have spoken, and with your blessing shall the house of your servant be blessed for ever.’

David wanted to build God a house. He tells the prophet Nathan about this, and Nathan basically says, “Go ahead and do what you want.” But then God speaks to Nathan and says, “Tell David not to do this.”

God’s response contains an element of surprise. God is saying I never asked for a house. I’ve been moving about in a tent all this time, and never needed a house.” But God recognized that David wanted to do him good and to give God glory. So God is more generous than David. He says to David, “You are not going to build a house for me; I will build a house for you. Your son shall be my son.” God and David are going to share fatherhood in one of David’s sons. This prophecy would take 1000 years before it was fulfilled in Jesus.

David’s son Solomon built God a temple, as God had predicted. But God built his own temple in David’s son Jesus.

What incredible love existed between David and his household and God! God introduced a new way to approach God, to search for God, to become a closer friend of God. God taught us a great lesson, to lean on God’s mercy. God built his own temple on Jesus, and that new temple is the Church. The temple of Solomon was destroyed and rebuilt until it was finally destroyed and never rebuilt. But the temple of the Catholic Church built on Jesus will last forever. It has endured sufferings, blows, and beatings, but it has endured. We see in the Church God’s love for us. To those who give, Scripture tells us, more will be given. We give to God, and he gives far more generously back to us. God cannot be outdone in generosity. The more we realize that God is building something beautiful in our lives, the more we will trust God, the more we will understand the beauty of the relationship with God and how awesome we are to him.

Jesus told his disciples that he would not ask the Father for them, because they could ask the Father themselves. The Father loves you, Jesus said. Take courage and approach the heavenly Father. Our Lord and God is so good, so near, so merciful. He cannot be outdone in generosity. Give something, and God will give you more back. Trust in God who so loves us and who gave Jesus to us. What more can we ask for than that?

--Transcribed in general from a homily by Father David Engo, FBM

Examining Our Motives

Examining Our Motives

⁴ Jonathan spoke well of David to Saul his father and said to him, “Let not the king do wrongto his servant David; he has not wronged you, and what he has done has benefited you greatly. ⁵ He took his life in his hands when he killed the Philistine. The Lord won a great victory for all Israel, and you saw it and were glad. Why then would you do wrong to an innocent man like David by killing him for no reason?” ⁶ Saul listened to Jonathan and took this oath: “As surely as the Lord lives, David will not be put to death.” (1 Samuel 19: 4-6)

Saul and Jonathan

Where do we take counsel? Do we take counsel singly or as a group? Do we give a thought to what is the right or wrong thing to do?

Saul wanted to do away with David. That was not a good idea. Jonathan went and told him, “Don’t do that.” Do we have a Jonathan our lives? Do we listen to our Jonathan? Or do we follow our own will without seeing if it’s God’s will?

Am I doing the right thing, do I ask what you want me to do Lord? Do we ever do what is the right thing and wonder why Jesus doesn’t seem to be in it?

People came to Jesus to see miracles, to be healed, to be close to the one they love. These are good things. They are good motives. But are these good motives? We need to examine our motives and see why we do what we do. We should not act without recollection.

Why do we do the things we do? Do we spend time in prayer and reflection? When I want to make a decision, do I consult only my will but not God’s will? Do we think about if our actions and our decisions are in conformity with what God wants?

We need to be recollected people and discern where we get our marching orders. We can seek people who think like we do and who will tell us what we want to hear. But we should be seeking people who are God centered who will tess us what God wants us to hear. We need to rely more on God than on ourselves.

--Transcribed as best as possible from a homily by Father Jacob Meyer

Repentance and Prayer: The Way to Holiness

12 When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he left Judea and returned to Galilee. 13 But instead of going to Nazareth, he went to Capernaum, beside the Sea of Galilee, in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali. 14 This fulfilled Isaiah's prophecy: 15 "In the land of Zebulun and of Naphtali, beside the sea, beyond the Jordan River -- in Galilee where so many Gentiles live -- 16the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light. And for those who lived in the land where death casts its shadow, a light has shined." 17 From then on, Jesus began to preach, "Turn from your sins and turn to God, because the Kingdom of Heaven is near. " 18 One day as Jesus was walking along the shore beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers -- Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew -- fishing with a net, for they were commercial fishermen. 19 Jesus called out to them,"Come, be my disciples, and I will show you how to fish for people!" 20 And they left their nets at once and went with him. 21 A little farther up the shore he saw two other brothers, James and John, sitting in a boat with their father, Zebedee, mending their nets. And he called them to come, too. 22 They immediately followed him, leaving the boat and their father behind. 23 Jesus traveled throughout Galilee teaching in the synagogues, preaching everywhere the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed people who had every kind of sickness and disease.(Matthew 4: 12-23)

When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he went to live in Capernaum. John had been sent to preach the baptism of repentance and to prepare the way for Jesus to come. John told the people, “I have only come to prepare the way for the Messiah, but you do not recognize him. I am not fit to untie his sandal strap. I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit. Look for him. Wait for him.”  

Wait for the LORD, take courage;

be stouthearted, wait for the LORD! (Psalm 27:14)

The Light has come. He is in our midst. Baptism gives us the grace of adoption as the sons and daughters of God. The grace of baptism never leaves us once it comes upon us. We never stop being a beloved son or daughter of the Father. We may make poor choices. We may place our self-will in opposition to God’s Holy Will. Our vision may be clouded and our will weakened due to sin. Sometimes we choose for the good, sometimes for evil. Even if we choose to sin, we will never cease to be the son or daughter of our Father. We will never cease to be his child. He will never stop loving us.

The Father embraces the Prodigal Son

John and Jesus preached the baptism of repentance. In order for the Holy Spirit to be vibrant in our lives, in order for Jesus to shine forth, we need to repent. Everyone needs to repent. All have sinned and fall short of God’s glory. Pope John Paul II used to go to confession every day. Mother Teresa of Calcutta went every week. The constitutions of her Order say that the sisters must confess weekly. It is embarrassing to go to confession. We have to humble ourselves and confess our sins. But the fruit of this is a tremendous joy. The prophets tell us that there is great joy, abundant joy, when we do God’s will.

I have an older brother who called me up with great joy because he had been to a retreat with  his wife who had forced him to go. And his life had been changed. This was the first retreat he’d ever made in his whole life and he is 70 years old. God entered his life on this retreat, probably through his going to confession. He had so much joy and hope that he had to share them with the family.

What happens when I go to the Lord and admit that I am a sinner? How do I begin a confession? I should say, “Christ, Son of the living God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” This is a good thing to say when we can’t sleep. Say it over and over and you will soon sleep in peace. This is called the Pilgrim’s prayer. It helps us know who we are and who God is.

Sin can wreak havoc in a soul and can also affect our bodies. Our bodies show the effects of sin by making us tense and guilty. We take our sin and go to Jesus who took all our sins upon himself and therefore conquered sin. He is the one who smashed the yoke that burdens us. He took the heavy rod of the taskmaster from our shoulders.

John the Baptist preached baptism for the repentance of sins, and he told us to repent for the kingdom of God is at hand. But Jesus told us that the kingdom of God is already here. If I don’t experience the peace, love, joy, patience, fortitude, and so forth of the Holy Spirit, that means that I need to repent of my sin. I need to give my sins to Jesus, to surrender to God. The Lord told King St. Louis of France that he, Louis, wanted to pray as a saint, but God wanted him to come to the Lord as a poor, humble soul.

Jesus told us that blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. A soul that acknowledges that she needs God is poor in spirit. Go to God poor in spirit. Be humble and repent. That is the first step to holiness.

The second is this. Pray perseveringly. Pray when prayer is beautiful and uplifting, and pray on the days when prayer is not so beautiful. Many people get discouraged when prayer becomes boring and they drop it. God did not ask us to pray well but to pray always, to persevere in prayer. Jesus told us the parable about praying always and not losing heart.

Prayer and repentance are the way holiness.

--Transcribed as best as possible from a homily by Father James Kumbakkeel, O.S.B.,

Pray Always and Never Lose Heart, Even in Your Brokenness

Then Jesus told them a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. He said, ‘In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, “Grant me justice against my opponent.” For a while he refused; but later he said to himself, “Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.” ’ And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God grant justice to his chosen ones who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long in helping them? I tell you, he will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?’ (Luke 18: 1-8)

Father David Engo gave a homily about the necessity of praying always and never losing heart. He noted that this parable had three things to say about prayer.

One. Prayer is necessary.

Two. Prayer must be continuous.

Three. We must never give up praying.

Prayer is as necessary to the spiritual life as breathing is to the physical life. Just as we must breathe continually to live, so must we pray continually in order to live spiritually. Prayer can be deep contemplative prayer, verbal prayer, the Mass, the Liturgy of the Hours, quiet time with God, or even quick pleas of help or praise. No matter how bad things become, and whether or not our prayers are being answered, we are never to give up praying. Why? Because God will answer.

Father David gave an example of how, when he was a boy, he was able to fix toys, so the children of the neighborhood would bring him their broken dolls and trucks to repair. Sometimes the repair was easy. Sometimes it was a little more difficult but could be done. But other times the toy was beyond repair, and so the children had to play with it broken. Father David noted that cars without wheels became boats or jet planes in the children’s minds.

In the same way, we go to God the Healer with all of our brokenness. Sometimes repairs are easy. Sometimes they take a little time. And other times God leaves us with the brokenness, and we must learn to play while broken. We can do this only if we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and if we remember to pray always and not lose heart.

Life in the Fast Lane or How One CFP Penitent Fits in ALL the Prayers and More

You've asked me to share, with a dear CFP brother, time management regarding prayer and how I, as a life pledged and privately vowed member, live the Confraternity of Penitents Rule and Constitutions.

 

Time management --.when I learn how to do that it will be a miracle.  To this dear brother in Christ I will say this.  First of all I only do ONE hour of silent prayer a day as my prayer option which on many days leaves me thinking I'm digging a hole of emptiness, and one day God will cover me over with my many distractions.

 

I go to Mass daily when I am working nights or am off, but I'm not able to go when working day shift as I have to be at work before any Masses are said.  When I leave work after a night shift, I go directly to Mass, and the truth is that I'm so exhausted that much of the time is spent trying to stay awake, and I don't get much out of it but my spiritual director has insisted that I must attend so I do.  Perhaps there are graces being given to souls for my sacrifice. I'd like to think so.

 

Much of the time, my CFP prayers are started in the shower or are said in the car going and coming from work.  One of my CFP sisters said that I was saying not praying, and that might be true, but God knows I do my best and I do feel a lifting of my heart to God in the car which might be another grace from His mercy.

 

I don't pray the full Liturgy of the Hours -- only Morning, Evening and Night Prayer as required by the Rule as I do have that hour of mental prayer daily to complete the CFP prayer schedule. Praying the full Liturgy of the Hours is difficult for me because I don't get any breaks at work and meals have to be eaten at my desk as I work my twelve hour rotating shift.  But I also have some flexibility, and, when working day shift, I take out my Office book and pray Morning Prayer at work first thing after I get there if I haven't had time to do it at home.  Most of the time I try to pray Evening Prayer just before my shift ends.  It's after normal work hours, and all management and eight  hour workers have gone by then.  Night prayer I pray just before bed.  

When I'm working night shift, I've found it best to keep the normal prayer schedule.  I say Evening Prayer before I get to work or soon after arriving.  I say Night Prayer before 11 p.m. Then before I leave in the morning after 5:00 am I say Morning Prayer or as soon as I get home if that wasn't possible.  In an effort to be more in tune with the rhythm of the Church, I've gotten out my copy of The Divine Office for Dodo's and am trying to learn how to do the "little hours" in the hope that I can try to incorporate them on the weekends.  I try to say other devotional prayers like the Rosary and Chaplet of Divine Mercy daily when I can.  Also I find it helpful to listen to devotional CDs in the car sometimes, although then I miss the quiet.

 

On days that I'm not working, I'm most happy because I attend morning Mass and have permission to be locked in to the church after everyone else leaves. Then I do my hour of silent prayer followed by Morning Prayer.  When I'm working nights, I try to go to the Dominican Monastery near work for my hour of prayer before going into work or to a church that has Adoration.  When I work days, I have to do my silent hour in the evening at home after I eat, but I admit to falling asleep many times followed by Night Prayer then bed.  

 

It sounds hectic and at times it is, but I also live alone and don't have to spend daily time with a spouse.  I've found TV has to have a minimal place in my life, and I don't have much time to read the newspaper; facebook, etc are out of the question.  I do have family (children and grandchildren, brother and sister, and a mother) that I have to interact with, but somehow God makes it possible because I ask Him for so much help.  The CFP way of life has been part of my life for so long now that it "IS" my way of life.  I need quiet time, I need prayer time as much as I need to eat and breathe. 

 

All this said, I don't feel I have the quality of prayer others may have, but I give God all that I can.  I struggle greatly with our 15 minutes of quiet meditation and Scripture reading and offering of the Psalms for the CFP members which are said sometimes in large clumps because I can't do them daily.  Ongoing formation reading is the hardest thing for me, and the first to be left out of any given day.

 

I have prayed the Liturgy of the Hours in the car, in the laundromat, in the doctor's office...whatever it takes. 

 

In the end, I would tell our CFP brother to ask God for help to make spaces where needed and trust that it will happen.  Be patient with yourself because this kind of a schedule is not the ideal, but don't let satan discourage you from making a commitment to God through prayer and living the Rule.  In the end, what you have to give up to grow closer to God will be a blessing.  

And be prepared for warfare!  Everything can and will try to come against your prayer time - do it anyway!  If the evil one tries to convict you that you are only giving lip service to prayer and make you feel bad, tell the Lord that it's true.  You don't pray as well as you should,  but admit that you give God all that you can, even your failures-- the fact that your prayer is sometimes rushed, even missed at times, that you're falling asleep at times. You know it could be better, and God knows that even better than you, but remember God can take anything and make something beautiful of it.  Accept the limitations you have now, and realize you won't have them forever.

 

Is this what you were looking for?

 

God bless,

R (lay sister M R in the CFP)