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 ~~~