St Augustine , pray for us !

Today , August 28 , the church celebrates the feast of St Augustine of Hippo , bishop and doctor of the church . Many of us know him as the the son of St Monica whose feast day was celebrated yesterday , August 27 and who begged for God's mercy and strength for the conversion of her son Augustine . We also know him to be the rebellious lawyer who many a times in his life , faltered and fell into the horrendous web of sin by even fathering a child out of wedlock .

The turning point of his life was just after the death of his mother St Monica that St Augustine , at the age of 31 , Augustine had a supernatural experience " as if a light of relief from all anxiety flooded into my heart " . It was then that " all the shadows of doubt were dispelled " and he accepted God as part of his life .

Life of St Augustine

Although Augustine would become a great man of faith , he continued to struggle with the obvious pain , suffering and evil allowed by God . In his first book , On Order ( 386 AD ) , Augustine wrote : -

' There is nothing that even the most gifted people desire more than to finally understand how , taking into account the amount of evil in this world , one can still believe that God cares about human affairs ' .

For the next forty years , Augustine grappled with the reality of this paradox. He focused on God's nature in scripture and God's apparent desire for humanity . He determined that God created us for a relationship with Him and that authentic relationship is impossible with puppets. Apparently , God wanted us to have the capacity to freely choose love or hate - good or evil . After four decades of writing on the subject , Augustine concluded that " God judged it better to bring good out of evil than to suffer no evil at all " .

Famous quotes of St Augustine

" He who sings , prays twice " .

On his journey

" Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee (GOD) " - Confession 1.1

Prayer

O great Augustine , our father and teacher ,

who knows the shining paths of God ,

and also the crooked paths of men ,

we admire the marvels that divine Grace

has worked in you

making you a passionate witness

to truth and goodness ,

at the service of your neighbour.

AMEN

by John Paul II

A blessing !

Thanksgiving For Mary Our Mother

O Jesus , Divine Master , I thank and bless Your most merciful Heart for having given us Mary most holy our Mother , Teacher and Queen . From the cross , You placed us all in her hands . You gave her a great heart , much wisdom and immense power . May all mankind know her , pray or her ! May all permit themselves to be led by her to You , the Saviour of mankind ! I placed myself in her hands , as You placed Yourself . With this Mother I want to live now , in the hour of my death and for all eternity . AMEN.

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

" Thank you , Mary , for saying ' YES ' to God. I want to follow the path that you paved. Please pray for me , so that I will know the same heavenly triumph that you know now " .

Why JESUS ?

JESUS was born ,
that I might be born twice .
HE became poor,
that I might possess wealth.
HE became homeless ,
that I might have mansions.
HE was stripped ,
that I always should have clothes.
HE was forsaken ,
that I always should have friends.
HE was bound ,
that I might have perfect liberty.
HE was sad ,
that I might have full of joy.
HE descended ,
that I should be lifted up.
HE became a servant ,
that I might be a son forever.
HE was hungry ,
that I should always have food.
HE was made sin ,
that I should share HIS righteousness.
HE dies ,
that I should never taste eternal death.
HE will come down ,
that I might go up.
All of this - that HE might display in me the riches of HIS grace and be the companion of God in the heavenlies.


~~~Author Unknown ~~~

Faith issues

Does Prayer Change Things ?

They say that prayer change things , but does it REALLY change anything ? Oh yes ! It really does !
Does prayer change your present situation or sudden circumstances ?
No , not always , but it does change the way you look at those events .
Does prayer change your financial future ?
No , not always , but it does change who you look to for meeting your daily needs .
Does prayer change shattered hearts or broken bodies ?
No , not always , but it will change your source of strength and comfort .
Does prayer change your wants and desires ?
No , not always , but it will change your wants into what God desires !
Does prayer change how you view the world ?
No , not always , but it will change whose eyes you see the world through.
Does prayer change your regrets from the past ?
No , not always , but it will change your hopes for the future.
Does prayer change the people around you ?
No , not always , but it will change you - the problem isn't always in others.
Does prayer change your life in ways you can't explain ?
Oh yes , always ! And it will change you from the inside out !

So , does PRAYER REALLY change ANYTHING ?
YES ! It REALLY does change EVERYTHING !

~~~Author Unknown ~~~

FAITH

For Spiritual Health

Take :

the root of faith
the leaves of hope
the rose of charity
the violet of humility
the lily of purity
the wormwood of contrition
the myrrh of mortification
the wood of the Holy Cross

Tie them all together into a bouquet with the string of resignation. Put them on to boil over the fire of Divine Love in the vessel of prayer , together with the mystic wine of holy joy and the mineral water of temperance , all securely covered with the lid of silence ; put it on in the fresh air of meditation and then take a cup of it in the morning and in the evening and you will enjoy spiritual health !

A blessed weekend !

Let Go - Let God

Shortly before Jesus was crucified , He fortified His disciples with many teachings and assurances. His discourse gave us one of the greatest passages in the Bible ; John chapters 14-17 . And it began with one of the greatest exhortations , found in John 14:1 .

Oh , the hearts of so many people in this world , even Christians , are troubled ! They are full of anxiety , oppressed by depression and worry. But Jesus said , " Now stop it. Let go of all that anxiety . Trust in God ! Trust also in thyself !