A Big Heart Open to God

AMERICA ^ | Sept 2013 | Antonio Spadaro, SJ

[Arthur McGowan]

I pray the breviary every morning. I like to pray with the psalms. Then, later, I celebrate Mass. I pray the Rosary. What I really prefer is adoration in the evening, even when I get distracted and think of other things, or even fall asleep praying. In the evening then, between seven and eight o’clock, I stay in front of the Blessed Sacrament for an hour in adoration. But I pray mentally even when I am waiting at the dentist or at other times of the day.

[narses]

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[markomalley]

A Big Heart Open to God
	09/29/2013 1:56:25 AM PDT · by Arthur McGowan · 1 reply AMERICA ^ | Sept 2013 | Antonio Spadaro, SJ I pray the breviary every morning. I like to pray with the psalms. Then, later, I celebrate Mass. I pray the Rosary. What I really prefer is adoration in the evening, even when I get distracted and think of other things, or even fall asleep praying. In the evening then, between seven and eight o’clock, I stay in front of the Blessed Sacrament for an hour in adoration. But I pray mentally even when I am waiting at the dentist or at other times of the day.
A Big Heart Open to God (Papal interview - full text))
	09/20/2013 9:39:06 AM PDT · by Kennard · 6 replies America Magazine - The National Catholic Review (Jesuit) ^ | September 30, 2013 | Antonio Spadaro, S.J. I mention to Pope Francis that there are Christians who live in situations that are irregular for the church or in complex situations that represent open wounds. I mention the divorced and remarried, same-sex couples and other difficult situations. What kind of pastoral work can we do in these cases? What kinds of tools can we use? “We need to proclaim the Gospel on every street corner,” the pope says, “preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing, even with our preaching, every kind of disease and wound. In Buenos Aires I used to receive letters from homosexual persons...
A Big Heart Open to God [Original Pope Interview...You Decide if the Media is Being Accurate]
	09/19/2013 4:34:30 PM PDT · by SoFloFreeper · 11 replies ThinkingFaith.org ^ Editor’s Note: This interview with Pope Francis took place over the course of three meetings during August 2013 in Rome. The interview was conducted in person by Antonio Spadaro, S.J., editor in chief of La Civiltà Cattolica, the Italian Jesuit journal...
A Big Heart Open to God (America interview with Holy Father)
	09/19/2013 8:24:01 AM PDT · by markomalley · 2 replies America ^ | 9-19-2013 Editor’s Note: This interview with Pope Francis took place over the course of three meetings during August 2013 in Rome. The interview was conducted in person by Antonio Spadaro, S.J., editor in chief of La Civiltà Cattolica, the Italian Jesuit journal. Father Spadaro conducted the interview on behalf of La Civiltà Cattolica, America and several other major Jesuit journals around the world. The editorial teams at each of the journals prepared questions and sent them to Father Spadaro, who then consolidated and organized them. The interview was conducted in Italian. After the Italian text was officially approved, America commissioned a...

[jodyel]

http://www.ronrhodes.addr.com/articles/the-eye-of-faith.html

This is true godly faith in action.

[narses]

[jodyel]

http://www.ronrhodes.addr.com/articles/the-eye-of-faith.html

This is true godly faith in action.

[astratt7]

Brother, you don’t have to go through all those steps....just talk to Jesus and the Father, and trust Him! It is all by faith my brother. If you want to adore....adore Jesus....He is the one who laid down His life for you.

[Arthur McGowan]

It is Jesus who is present in the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist, which He gave to us at the Last Supper. So, the Pope prays for an hour each evening just feet away from Jesus.

[Arthur McGowan]

So?

[Arthur McGowan]

I see your point. Nobody has posted this item in the past NINE DAYS.

A clever way to thank me for posting it, since it is still timely.

[Arthur McGowan]

The Catholic Church draws its teaching from Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.

Result?

One Church, spread throughout the world, with about a billion members.

Protestants believe in Scripture Alone, and Personal Interpretation of Scripture.

Result?

41,000 little churches.

Where in Scripture does Jesus refer to “my churches” rather than “my church” (singular)?

Where in Scripture does it suggest that Jesus wanted 41,000 little churches when He prayed “that they may be one,” and when He said to His apostles: “Go out into the WHOLE WORLD, teaching and baptizing in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”?

Where in Scripture is it suggested that anyone other than Jesus has the authority to found a church? Yet 41,000 people have taken it upon themselves to do so!

[jodyel]

In other words, faith is very simple and all the rigmarole of organized religion is not necessary at all.

Exactly what I have been saying all along.

So????

[Arthur McGowan]

Organized religion is unnecessary.

That explains why God didn’t have Moses build a tent for the Ark of the Covenant. That explains why God didn’t create the Levites as priests to offer sacrifice. That explains why God never directed Moses to make laws to govern the Chosen People.

That explains why Jesus never went to the Temple to pray. It explains why, when Jesus saw the Temple being used as a marketplace, it didn’t bother Him. That explains why, when He was about to die, Jesus didn’t bother with all the rigamarole of eating the Passover meal with the apostles.

[jodyel]

Oh, Arthur, until the Spirit opens your eyes to the true meaning of “the church” you will persist in this statement.

I gave you that article so that you could see how very simple faith in God is...how very personal....how much a relationship it is.

I know it must be incredibly difficult for someone in Catholicism to think outside of it but that is exactly what I am asking you to do.

Step outside your religion, in prayer ask the Lord to come and place His Spirit in you, believe that He has, and step forward in faith just as Muller did.

I related an instance of answered prayer from the Lord when I was was a brand new believer and, over time, I have trusted God for bigger things and He has always answered.

I am not advocating any religion be it Catholicism or whatever. I want you to have a personal relationship with the Living God and see Him work in your life just as He did in Muller’s and mine and all the other believers in this world.

This is what is lacking in Catholicism...this wonderful personal relationship with our Creator.

Read the entire thread....watch the youtube video on Muller...and see how truly simple faith is...ask, believe, trust, and then see His response.

Try Him....He loves you so much and only wants your faith....just as expressed by Muller, by myself, by believers down thru the ages.

God bless,
jodyel

[jodyel]

Your heart and mind and spirit are closed to the truth now, but one day I pray He will reveal Himself to you.

[Arthur McGowan]

No, thanks.

I have to go now. It’s time for me to worship my statue of Our Lady of Fatima.

Then I’ll be going to the hospital to visit some lonely people, in order to earn my way into heaven.

Since it’s Saturday, I’ll also be going to confess my sins to a mere man.

[jodyel]

Oh dear.....open your eyes please before it is too late.

Take care,
jodyel

[mlizzy]

In the evening then, between seven and eight o’clock, I stay in front of the Blessed Sacrament for an hour in adoration.

There is a cardinal that mentioned to us many years ago that he had no time for Adoration during the day (or night), but if Pope Francis can do this (who is busier than the pope?!) and hopefully he'll keep speaking about it time and time again, then we can all be lifted toward that direction.

Back when Santorum was running, we created a Facebook page called Adoration for Santorum, and a fair amount of people joined, prayed, and adored. One of the women who joined mentioned to me that she had previously spent 40 days in Adoration [for Life] attending one hour each day. She told me it was "life-changing." That knocked around in my head every day, and when Lent came, I decided to try it, knowing full and well, it would be difficult; we have only one car in our family. But, through the grace of God, I was successful. Was it life-changing? I can only say it was the most beautiful time I have ever spent 40+ days in a row, and come the next Lent, through the Love of Christ (and the prayers of His mother), I did it again.

The home we just moved from (only there nine months) was across the street from a Catholic Church that had Adoration on the first Monday of every month. One hundred paces to "see" Our Sweet Jesus; so beautiful!

"Nowhere on earth are you more welcomed, nowhere on earth are you more loved, than by Jesus, living and truly present in the Most Blessed Sacrament. The time you spend with Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament is the best time that you will spend on earth. Each moment that you spend with Jesus will deepen your union with Him and make your soul everlastingly more glorious and beautiful in heaven, and will help bring about an everlasting peace on earth." --Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration Chapels

Thank you Pope Francis. ♥

[CatherineofAragon]

"It is Jesus who is present in the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist, which He gave to us at the Last Supper. So, the Pope prays for an hour each evening just feet away from Jesus."

“Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” (Matthew 18:19-20)

So can you; so can we all. Just join hands with another person to pray, and Jesus is right there beside you.

[mlizzy]

Since Arthur may still be worshiping his Our Lady of Fatima statue (do you think he was using sarcasm?), I'll put in my two cents. While Christ is surely present when you pray, He is not present in body. In the Eucharist, he is living, present in His Body. That's why fervent Catholics get so excited about Eucharistic Adoration (and, of course, Communion). Have you read of the Eucharistic Miracle at Lanciano? Here's a snippet (with a link to more of the story):

The analyses were conducted with absolute and unquestionable scientific precision and they were documented with a series of microscopic photographs.

These analyses sustained the following conclusions:

• The Flesh is real Flesh. The Blood is real Blood.
• The Flesh and the Blood belong to the human species.
• The Flesh consists of the muscular tissue of the heart.

[Other approved] Eucharistic Miracles