St John Of The Cross:Mystic And Doctor Of The Church

"Going everywhere, my God, with you, everywhere things will happen as I desire for you."

                                                                                                                      ~St John of the Cross

St John of the Cross, whose feast day we celebrate today, is co~founder along with St Teresa of Avila, of the Order of Carmelites Discalced.
St John of the Cross is probably best known for his writings on the Dark Night of the Soul, as well as his many maxims on the soul and her union with God. The Carmelite order has given us many saints and Doctors of the Church, along with Sts John and Teresa of Avila is also St Therese of Liseux.
Much of St John's poetry was written while he spent 9 months imprisoned for not returning to the house of his profession in Medina.
The writings of St John of the Cross are not always easy to read, but are a rich source of spiritual reading and meditation. I find his Maxims aiding  my own spiritual life.

Jesus Christ, God's Final Word is one of St John's Advent readings. It is usually used in the Roman Office of readings on Monday during the second week of Advent. I've included an excerpt here.
While we are on the topic of saints, I posted on my other blog that I have some saints left over from my parish prayer meeting. If you would like me to prayerfully choose a saint for you for 2010, leave a comment and I will gladly do so. Some interesting things have happened for those who asked for saints. The saints are really the ones who choose us.

Jesus Christ, God's Final Word

The principal reason why the Old Law permitted us to ask questions of God, and why prophets and priests had to seek visions and revelations of God, was because at that time faith had no firm foundation and the law of the Gospel was not yet established; and thus it was necessary that men should enquire of God and that he should speak, whether by words or by visions and revelations or whether by figures and images or by many other ways of expressing His meaning. For all that he answered and revealed belonged to the mysteries of our faith and things touching it or leading to it.

But now that the faith is founded in Christ, now that in this era of grace the law of the Gospel has been made manifest, there is no reason to enquire of God in that manner nor for him to speak to us or answer us as he did then. For, in giving us, as he did, his Son, who is his one and only Word, he spoke to us once and for all, in this single Word, and he has no occasion to speak further.

And this is the meaning of that passage with which the Letter to the Hebrews begins, trying to persuade the Hebrews that they should abandon those first ways of dealing and communicating with God which are in the law of Moses, and should set their eyes on Christ alone: At various times in the past and in various different ways, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets; but in our own time, in the last days, he has spoken to us through his Son. That is, God has said so much about so many things through his Word that nothing more is needed, since that which he revealed partially in the past through the prophets, he has now revealed completely by giving us the All, which is his Son.

Therefore if someone were now to ask questions of God or seek any vision or revelation, he would not only be acting foolishly but would be committing an offence against God – for he should set his eyes altogether upon Christ and seek nothing beyond Christ.

God might answer him after this manner, saying: This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; listen to him. I have spoken all things to you in my Word. Set your eyes on him alone, for in him I have spoken and revealed to thee all things, and in him you shall find more than you ask for, even more than you want.

I descended upon him with my Spirit on Mount Tabor and said This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; listen to him. You have no reason to ask for new teaching or new answers from me because if I spoke to you in the past then it was to promise Christ. If people asked questions of me in the past then their questions were really a desire of Christ and a hope for his coming. For in him they were to find all good things, as has now been revealed in the teaching of the Evangelists and the Apostles.

Fr. Robert Barron Making Sense of Things

In this clip, Fr. Barron tells about his recent trip to England. In the Cathedral at Leeds, the bishop of this diocese shows him the preserved skulls of two Blesseds who were executed during the Elizabethan era.. Bl. Peter Snow and Bl. Ralph Grimston. Peter Snow was a young priest and Ralph Grimston was a laymen who accompanied him to the places where the priest would clandestinely say Mass.
Father Barron uses the example of these two men to show how Catholic anthropology explains and makes sense of the light and dark sides of this life.
I found this to be one of Father's most interesting commentaries. I will let Father Barron explain the rest.
Be sure to visit Word On Fire(link on my sidebar under Catholic Links) to view the new trailer for Father Barron's Catholicism Project.

TSO Rocked The Meadowlands

This a "just for fun" post.
The Trans~Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is one of my favorite bands. I especially enjoy listening to them around Christmastime. I had the great pleasure of seeing them live in concert yesterday. They rocked the Meadowlands here in NJ!
The tickets were a birthday gift for my sister. My gifts to her for the last several years has been to treat her a play and dinner. She always leaves me to surprise her with the choice of show. This year I decided to treat her to something a little different. When I saw that TSO was in our area, I asked her if she was up for something different~my sister always is!
For those of you who have never seen them live, their show is two plus hours of amazing laser light effects, pyrotechnics and great music. Both their Christmas and non-Christmas music incorporates their spin on classical favorites.
At yesterday's concert we even got a bonus~Joe Walsh (of 70's & 80's supergroup, The Eagles) came out to treat us to a little blast from our past.
My sister thoroughly enjoyed the show, as did I.
I wanted to incude a concert clip to give you a taste of one of their concerts, but the ones I found on You Tube are not of great quality. So instead, enjoy this one with winter scenery set to their Christmas Canon Rock. It is TSO's version of classical composer, Pachabel's Canon.
To sample their latest work, Night Castle, just click the link.
Enjoy!

What Should We Do?

It seems like such a simple question. The people following John the Baptist sought from him an answer to this question. John had an answer for them, although I am not sure it was one they were expecting because it was very simple and perhaps should have seemed obvious. His message on that particular day was to share what you have with those around you who are in need. Then he pointed them toward the One who would have all the answers.
We too can take this question to Jesus, and ask Him collectively as His Church, "What should we do?" And He certainly has answers for us. However, today I find myself making that question a bit more personal: "What should I do?" It is a question I seem to be asking God all the time. The specific for a given situation are not always clear, but in general He seems to be telling me, "Here are the circumstances of your life; live them each day along side of Me and they will be lived, no matter what they may be, according to my will. Bring Me to those I place in your life for some of them may not see Me in any other way. Find Me and bring Me into the ordinary of your everyday life."
So go ahead~ask Him.

Have a Blessed Sunday!

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

Today we celebrate another Marian feast day, this one under the title of Our Lady of Guadalupe. In 1531 our lady appeared to Juan Diego in Mexico and shortly after, miracles began to happen. The roses in his tilma to prove to the bishop that what Juan was reporting was real, his uncle being cured of a deadly disease and nearly six million Native Mexicans being baptized Christians!
Our Lady of Guadalupe is patroness of the Americas and of the unborn.
We here in the United States need her intercession now more than ever. Our unborn children and their parents need her intercession.
The Franciscan Friars of the renewal of Our Lady of the Angels Friary in the South Bronx, NY decided to pay our Lady homage in a big way last Spring. A 40 ft. x 23 ft. mural divided into 600 12"x18" spaces was painted on the side of the friary. In order to help with the cost of the project, a space could be "adopted" for a donation of $35. The dress of our Lady was reserved for those who had lost children to abortion or miscarriage. There is also a prayerbook with the intentions of the mothers who memorialized their children.
The mural can me seen for miles! It is a beautiful reminder to pray to our Blessed Mother and ask her intercession as well as a beautiful memorial to our children in heaven.
This picture doesn't do it justice, but I haven't made it out to the Bronx to see it in person yet.
I am grateful to the friars for undertaking this project and for all their work in the pro~life movement and post~abortion healing ministries. Above all I am eternally grateful for our Blessed Mother's intercession in my own healing and in bringing me back to her Son.

Prayer of Pope John Paul II To Our Lady of Guadalupe

O Immaculate Virgin, Mother of the true God and Mother of the Church!, who from this place reveal your clemency and your pity to all those who ask for your protection, hear the prayer that we address to you with filial trust, and present it to your Son Jesus, our sole Redeemer.

Mother of Mercy, Teacher of hidden and silent sacrifice, to you, who come to meet us sinners, we dedicate on this day all our being and all our love. We also dedicate to you our life, our work, our joys, our infirmities and our sorrows. Grant peace, justice and prosperity to our peoples; for we entrust to your care all that we have and all that we are, our Lady and Mother. We wish to be entirely yours and to walk with you along the way of complete faithfulness to Jesus Christ in His Church; hold us always with your loving hand.

Virgin of Guadalupe, Mother of the Americas, we pray to you for all the Bishops, that they may lead the faithful along paths of intense Christian life, of love and humble service of God and souls. Contemplate this immense harvest, and intercede with the Lord that He may instill a hunger for holiness in the whole people of God, and grant abundant vocations of priests and religious, strong in the faith and zealous dispensers of God’s mysteries.

Grant to our homes the grace of loving and respecting life in its beginnings, with the same love with which you conceived in your womb the life of the Son of God. Blessed Virgin Mary, protect our families, so that they may always be united, and bless the upbringing of our children.

Our hope, look upon us with compassion, teach us to go continually to Jesus and, if we fall, help us to rise again, to return to Him, by means of the confession of our faults and sins in the Sacrament of Penance, which gives peace to the soul.

We beg you to grant us a great love for all the holy Sacraments, which are, as it were, the signs that your Son left us on earth.

Thus, Most Holy Mother, with the peace of God in our conscience, with our hearts free from evil and hatred, we will be able to bring to all true joy and true peace, which come to us from your son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who with God the Father and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns for ever and ever.

Amen.

His Holiness John Paul II
Mexico, January 1979. Visiting Her Basilica during his first foreign trip as Pope

The Annunciation: A Meditation

I wrote the following meditation for a prayer meeting. I thought I would share it here. The meditation is based on the Annunciation in Luke 1:26~38.

An Intimate and Insightful Moment With Mary
A young Jewish girl named Mary is asleep in her room. She is awakened by a bright light. This light she finds out is from one of God's angels. This angel's name is Gabriel and he has a message for this young girl. Gabriel addresses Mary as "full of grace". He sees that she is startled and a bit frightened, but tells her not to be afraid for God has found favor with her, hence the reason for his strange greeting. Yes, God has found favor with Mary, so much so that He has chosen her to be the mother of His only Son!
Now Mary is confused because she has never been with a man; how could it be that she will become a mother? Well, Gabriel explains all of that to her as well.
Now this angel must await Mary's reply. It was probably only the briefest of moments, but one in which all of heaven and earth held its breath!
Once Mary understood this was all from God, she immediately gave her consent, "Let it be done to me according to your word." She said yes!
These 15 or so years of Mary's young life have led to this one incredible moment. A moment and a "yes" that would change Mary's life. This baby, Jesus, the Son of God, would not only change Mary's life, but ours as well.

Prayer

Dear Jesus,
Your Mother had the courage to say yes to God's will putting aside her own. How often You ask me to bear You to my little part of the world and how often to I shrink away in fear and lack of trust.
Give me the heart of Mary, a heart that surrenders to Your every prompting. Help me to remember always, that I am Your handmaid, Your lowly servant, so that I may give my consent for You to be conceived in my heart and soul and be born into my little part of the world.
Let me heed the angel's voice and not be afraid knowing that You will send Your Holy Spirit and Your power will overshadow me in all You call me to do.
Amen.

The Face Of Heaven

This is Steven Curtis Chapman's latest single, Heaven Is The Face I haven't read the full story on it yet, but judging from the lyrics, he wrote it for his daughter who was killed in an accident about a year ago.
I thought I would borrow it today for the sentiments are mine as well especially today.
For my own little girl who would have, should have turned 21 today and for all those who have lost a child.
In loving memory.

Feast Of The Immaculate Conception

In the Constitution Ineffabilis Deus of 8 December, 1854, Pius IX pronounced and defined that the Blessed Virgin Mary "in the first instance of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace granted by God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved exempt from all stain of original sin."

Prayer of the Immaculate Conception

O God, who by the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, didst prepare a worthy dwelling place for thy Son, we beseech thee that, as by the foreseen death of this, thy Son, thou didst preserve her from all stain, so too thou wouldst permit us, purified through her intercession, to come unto thee. Through the same Lord Jesus Christ, thy Son, who livest and reignest with thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, world without end.
Amen.

Feast Of St Nicholas~More Than Santa Claus

I knew today's date rang a bell (no Christmas pun intended) for some reason. It is the feast day of St Nicholas. Unfortunately he gets "bumped" so to speak, on the Latin Rite calendar, because it is Sunday. This is not the case with our Eastern Rite brethren.
Thanks to Abbot Joseph at Word Incarnate, I was pleasantly and beautifully reminded of this great saint's feast day and his role as intercessor and overseer of our souls.
So instead of my usual saint feast day type of post, I am going to direct you to Abbot Joseph's post for today; just click the Word Incarnate link above to read his post.

Second Sunday of Advent~The Voice In The Wilderness

St John the Baptist Bearing Witness by Francesco Granacci

John the Baptist was the voice crying in the wilderness, "Prepare the way of the Lord; make straight His paths." As this Advent season continues, his voice can still be heard. It cries out to each one of us, but we must listen for it and then act on it.
St Paul tells us in today's second reading (Philippians 1:4~6, 8~11) , "...that the one who has begun a great work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus." That great work was started in us at our baptism. The voice began its whisperings then, and it continues. God began the work, but He will not complete it without our consent and cooperation with His grace.
We can ask ourselves during this second week of Advent as we continue to prepare the way for our Lord's second coming, "Have I heard the voice crying out in the wilderness of my heart and soul and acted on it by receiving the sacraments and drawing on their graces in living my faith each day? Or have I begun to ignore the voice, letting things slip a bit?"
Our Lady heard the voice; in her case it came from the Angel Gabriel, but through Gabriel, God was asking Mary's consent to bring the great work He had begun in her to completion in the birth of His Son. The Son, our Lord Jesus Christ in whom we are all baptized and brought in to share in His life.
Let us prayerfully continue this Advent season making straight His paths in our hearts.

Continued Advent Blessings!

My Review Of How To Pray Well

My latest review for Catholic Company is the book How to Pray Well by Raoul Plus, S.J.

How To Pray Well by Raoul Plus, S.J. is wonderful book to add to your library of books on prayer.
In this book, Father Plus discusses in great detail the four major types of prayer: Adoration, Thanksgiving, Repentance and Petition.
I especially liked the section on the prayer of Adoration because as the author states, it is "the most perfect prayer." In this type of prayer, "we forget ourselves entirely and think of God alone."
He also illustrates how the prayer of adoration and the prayer of thanksgiving are related when we thank God, not so much for the things He has done for us (which is important), but when we thank Him for "the riches with which He Himself is infinitely endowed." In other words, we thank God for His being God!
When Father Plus discusses the prayer of Repentance, he talks about the "sense of sin"; that knowledge of having done something wrong that comes with a well~formed conscience. He says that remorse is a great grace and remains even after a soul is pardoned as an incentive to further prayer.
In one of the chapters on the prayer of Petition, the author quotes the words of our Lord to Ven. Balthasar Alvarez. Our Lord says to him, "Why are you so moderate in your requests, when God is so free with His gifts?" This quote brings into perspective the importance and the power in praying for spiritual and temporal favors for others as well as for ourselves.
This book is a treasure trove of advice and instuction on prayer. In reading it, I have found ways to add more meaning and depth to my own prayerlife.
While the book is a mere 174 pages, it is not a quick or easy read. I found it necessary to give some time between chapters and I even took some notes. This book is really 4 separate mini books within one larger one; each type of prayer is its own book subdivided into separate chapters. Having said that, it is well worth the time and effort and I highly recommend it. We all need ways to deepen our prayer life; this book will certainly help the reader to do so.

*Note: Nothing but a copy of the book reviewed here was exchanged for this review.

Let God Tickle You

One of the devotionals I am using as part of my Advent reading is Daybreaks put out by Liguori Press. My parish is kind enough to distribute these little booklets each Advent and Lent. The short meditations in this year's issue are by Kenneth G. Davis, O.F.M Conv.
Today's meditation really made me think about my sense of joy in recognizing the source of that joy. It also made me think about those times I fail to recognize it.
Have you ever tried to tickle yourself? Go ahead; I will give you a minute to try. Can't do it can you? In fact it is impossible for some reason. However, someone else can cause the uncontrollable laughter that results from being tickled.
After reading Fr. Davis' meditation today, I thought about all he was saying about how joyous we should always be because we know that God is always with us. That thought alone should put a perpetual grin on our faces. But as he points out, how often do we have the scowls of the Pharisees on our faces. They did not, would not, recognize God in their midst. No wonder they never smiled!
When I am really honest with myself and think about those times that I loose my cool, become impatient, or just walk around looking like I have the weight of the entire world on my shoulders, it is because I forget and lose the Presence of God that I know is within me.
Like being tickled, we can not create our own joy; our joy comes from Another. Advent is a good time to reflect on this so that we can rejoice and rejoice heartily in the Lord.
So go on, let our awesome God tickle you to the point of uncontrollable joy and laughter that you can't help but spread to everyone with whom you come in contact.

Advent Blessings!

St Andrew~The First Called

St Andrew was first a disciple of John the Baptist, but at John's words: "Behold the Lamb of God", Andrew knew that there was one greater than John that he should follow. When Jesus realized Andrew was following behind him, Jesus asked him: "Whom do you seek?" Andrew inquired of Jesus about where he lived; Jesus simply replied, "Come and see." In a relatively short time this disciple would come to recognize Jesus as Messiah. So it is that St Andrew became the first of Jesus' disciples. He would then tell his brother Peter.
Andrew and Peter would eventually give up their fishing business to follow Christ at all times.
It is believed that Andrew went to Greece after the Ascension of Our Lord. He would be given the crown of martyrdom by being put to death on a cross to which he was tied, not nailed. He would suffer for two days before dying, but continued to preach to those who gathered around him in those two days.

Prayer To St Andrew
O glorious St. Andrew, you were the first to recognize and follow the Lamb of God. With your friend, St. John, you remained with Jesus for that first day, for your entire life, and now throughout eternity. As you led your brother, St. Peter, to Christ and many others after him, draw us also to Him. Teach us to lead others to Christ solely out of love for Him and dedication in His service. Help us to learn the lesson of the Cross and to carry our daily crosses without complaint so that they may carry us to Jesus. Amen.

St Andrew Christmas Novena
Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold. In that hour, vouchsafe, O my God! to hear my prayer and grant my desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His Blessed Mother. Amen.

(It is piously believed that whoever recites the above prayer fifteen times a day from the feast of St. Andrew (30th November) until Christmas will obtain what is asked.)

Imprimatur
+MICHAEL AUGUSTINE, Archbishop of New York
New York, February 6, 1897

How Can I Prepare The Way For The Lord?

The Annunciation by Caravaggio

As another Advent begins today, this is the question I find myself pondering. The Church teaches us that in the first half of this holy season we are to prepare for Christ's coming at the end of time. Today's readings, especially the Gospel certainly illustrate this. No one knows the hour or the day of our Lord's second coming (despite what the Mayan calendar says), so all the more reason to be prepared~not in anxious worry, but in quiet, prayerful preparation and in hopeful anticipation.
I often think of our Blessed Mother during these four weeks. I guess you could say her Advent lasted nine months! Maybe it was even longer because in reality her whole life led to this moment. When the Angel Gabriel appeared to her to ask her if she would be the Mother of God, she gave her fiat and then began to prepare.
This is what Advent is for; to prepare our hearts and minds for our Lord's coming, not just at Christmas, for in the fullness of time that has already occurred, but also for when He comes again in all His glory at the end of time.
So as this season of preparation, anticipation and hope begins, ask yourself this same question, "How can I prepare the way for the Lord in my own heart?" Ask Our Lady to help you, for it is always her greatest desire to bring us to her Son. The three kings followed the star in Bethlehem, may we find the Christ child by following the light of the Virgin Mary, for the light she reflects is that of Jesus, the Light of the World.

Dear Blessed Mother,
As we begin this holy season, help us to prepare our hearts and minds for the coming of your Beloved Son, Jesus. May we give our "yes" to God as you did so that we may give birth to Christ in our own day and time.
We ask this through the same Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Have a Blessed Advent!

Daughter Turns One!

Daughter of the King is celebrating its first birthday this weekend! I really can't believe I have been doing this for a whole year already. Then again, I know better; none of this is me. Since very little thought went into starting this blog, I have to believe it is something God wanted me to do. My blog description says this is a place for my Catholic musings, and it is and will continue to be, but I know it has also gone beyond that. The comments, you my readers and followers have left me over this last year have shown me that some of what gets written actually helps and edifies you in your faith. Again, I take very little, if any credit for that. As I have said before I don't consider myself a writer.
The Catholic blogging community is an amazing place, and I am glad to be a part of it. Our good God has rewarded and blessed me with loyal followers and readers who with their own blogs help me on my walk of faith. The Enemy uses this form of technology for his evil ends, it is so good to see that so many use it for the good of glorifying God and furthering His kingdom here on earth. I am sure if St Paul were around today he would have a laptop and a blog!
As you can see, I have made a few changes. The new background is for the Advent and Christmas season we are about to enter. I also made a slight change in my template. I thought I'd move things around a bit. I have also designed a new blog button. You can copy it from the sidebar and paste it to your own blogs if you would like. The picture is a wood carving of Mary Magdalen; the artist is unknown.
As for content, it will remain pretty much the same. However, one change for this season of Advent and Christmastide will be that while I will continue to keep my Sundays as blog~free as possible, I will open my Sunday posts for comments during this sacred season so that we can share our thoughts and prayers as a Catholic and Christian community. I've been thinking of doing a series of meditations or reflections for each of the Sundays. We'll see what the Holy Spirit has in mind for this.
One thing I will not do on this blog is stray from its Catholic content. Anything you read here will always be in line with Magesterial teaching. If it is not, I will rely on those of you among my Catholic readers to correct me (charitably :) I have always welcomed anyone who wishes to read and comment to do so as long as the comments remain charitable. You don't have to agree with what I say, just play nicely in the combox.
Finally, I would like to thank all of you who read and comment on a regular basis. It is only because of you and God's grace that Daughter of the King continues. I am looking forward to another year of posting and sharing thoughts and comments wth you, and maybe a few new readers as well.
May God continue to bless each of you and may we all have a blessed Advent season!

*Here is where it all began, my first post~New Explorations