Today, i am grateful for the Love of God, not only for me but for the whole world.
When i joined the Catholic Church at 18 yrs. some 50 years ago this past May, i learned about this devotion and fell in love with it and with Jesus Christ. So on this day i am starting my post about my Conversion Story as some have asked me to do, by answering the question posed to me recently in a chat. "Why did you leave your church?" "Why did you join the Catholic Church? This story started a long time ago, i will try to weave some clear, true and factual episodes. I make 'no apology' for some terms, it is the way i tell it.
I was born into a family with parents & 2 older brothers. We were close, my paternal background is French-Canadian with a real French name but grew up in English-speaking part of my ancestral country. My Ancestors came from the area of Bordeaux, France and settled in Quebec, and some settled in Michigan area in the early 1700's.
My maternal side is from the eastern side of England and were farm laborers. I have had the privilege to visit the rural area of my ancestors, visit the Anglican churches where my great-great-great parents worshipped. I like to think that there was some Catholic connection back into the late 1600's. A friar of the Carthusians
bears my family surname. He was made Blessedy Pope Leo the 13th in the late 1880's when the Pope honored the English Martyrs. He died in the foul jail of the reformers under King Henry. He was staked to the ground, wore an iron neck collar. He was fed and cleansed by the daughter of St. Thomas More. She fed some prisoners from the roof but when further visits were declined, he was left to die, the last of the captured priests and brothers of the Carthusian Order ((will be continued))
Friday, June 19, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Solemnity : The Body and Blood of Christ (Word Among Us Magazine)
June 14, 2009
The Body and Blood of Christ
I will raise up the cup of salvation. (Psalm 116:13)
The word “blood” appears in more than 350 different verses in the Bible, and more than 400 times over all. What was it about blood that so captured the imaginations of the Israelites? Blood reapresented two basic premises in their Jewish faith: sacrifice and life. These two premises came together in the Jewish tradition of offering the blood of sacrificed animals as a way to atone for sins. With the benefit of hindsight, we can see how this ancient method of atonement pointed the way to the divine sacrifice that Jesus would make for the salvation of the world.
So when we celebrate Mass and receive Jesus’ precious blood at Communion, we are actually celebrating the covenant that God made with us through the blood that Jesus shed on the cross. We are drinking his own blood, even as we celebrate the blessed fact that this blood has washed away our sins.
The Old Testament tells us: “The life of a living body is in its blood” (Leviticus 17:11). Physically speaking, we would die without blood. And spiritually speaking, we would die without the grace of Jesus’ blood. His precious blood does more than just wash away our sin. It continues the flow of divine life in us as well, keeping us connected to our heavenly Father. Without Jesus’ blood, we would have no spiritual health or vitality.
As we celebrate the body and blood of the Lord today, let’s think about Jesus and his gift of divine life. Let’s remind ourselves that the church itself was brought into being by this blood. And let’s remember that the “cup of blessing” which we bless is nothing less than our participation in the blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:16).
“Lord, let your blood, offered without blemish to God, purify our minds so that we might serve our heavenly Father.”
Exodus 24:3-8; Psalm 116:12-13,15-18; Mark 14:12-16,22-26
The Body and Blood of Christ
I will raise up the cup of salvation. (Psalm 116:13)
The word “blood” appears in more than 350 different verses in the Bible, and more than 400 times over all. What was it about blood that so captured the imaginations of the Israelites? Blood reapresented two basic premises in their Jewish faith: sacrifice and life. These two premises came together in the Jewish tradition of offering the blood of sacrificed animals as a way to atone for sins. With the benefit of hindsight, we can see how this ancient method of atonement pointed the way to the divine sacrifice that Jesus would make for the salvation of the world.
So when we celebrate Mass and receive Jesus’ precious blood at Communion, we are actually celebrating the covenant that God made with us through the blood that Jesus shed on the cross. We are drinking his own blood, even as we celebrate the blessed fact that this blood has washed away our sins.
The Old Testament tells us: “The life of a living body is in its blood” (Leviticus 17:11). Physically speaking, we would die without blood. And spiritually speaking, we would die without the grace of Jesus’ blood. His precious blood does more than just wash away our sin. It continues the flow of divine life in us as well, keeping us connected to our heavenly Father. Without Jesus’ blood, we would have no spiritual health or vitality.
As we celebrate the body and blood of the Lord today, let’s think about Jesus and his gift of divine life. Let’s remind ourselves that the church itself was brought into being by this blood. And let’s remember that the “cup of blessing” which we bless is nothing less than our participation in the blood of Christ (1 Corinthians 10:16).
“Lord, let your blood, offered without blemish to God, purify our minds so that we might serve our heavenly Father.”
Exodus 24:3-8; Psalm 116:12-13,15-18; Mark 14:12-16,22-26
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