Mary TV Daily Reflection 7/1/2014

 

(c)Mary TV 2014   

 

J.M.J

July 1, 2014

St Junipero Serra

 

Dear Family of Mary!

"Dear children! The Most High is giving me the grace that I can still be with you and to lead you in prayer towards the way of peace. Your heart and soul thirst for peace and love, for God and His joy. Therefore, little children, pray, pray, pray and in prayer you will discover the wisdom of living. I bless you all and intercede for each of you before my Son Jesus. Thank you for having responded to my call." (June 25, 2014)

Our Lady has been allowed to stay with us, as she shared in this message. This seems to be an unexpected grace for her. She is as happy about it as we are! And it signals to me that this is indeed a great time of grace. At the English Mass for June 30, Fr. Tom from Ireland shared an interesting way to understand this time of grace. He was talking about martyrdom, and the fruit of the martyr's sacrifice. Here is what he said:

"Like our brothers and sisters in the Roman Empire of the first century, we live once again in an age of martyrdom. Perhaps even greater than the first age. According to "Aid to the Church in Need" there were more martyrs in the 20th Century than in all the previous centuries combined. Today we see the face of the martyred Christ in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, Egypt, Palestine, Sudan, Nigeria. We see Him martyred in the homes and the streets of our towns and cities, wherever dignity is denied and humanity is disfigured. We must do all that we can to combat this suffering with the only true weapon in our possession, the weapon of God's greatest commandment, "Love God and love your neighbor as yourself."

And so as we face into this loving combat each day to work together to renew the face of the earth, we do so in the sure and certain knowledge that sustained the first martyrs, and every martyr since, we are never alone. Because we are united together as one in Christ, whose Body and Blood we share every time we come together in the Eucharist. So let us have courage and hope always to follow the path through suffering, to glory with Jesus our Leader and our Guide.

I want to leave you with this thought. If the faith-filled sacrifice of the first martyrs in the first century, AD, led to such a flowering of culture and faith in the centuries that followed, can you imagine what God is preparing for us to enjoy now? It is not all doom and gloom. In my three years as principal, I have learned that with Jesus in our midst great things are possible, great hurt can be overcome, and great love can be shown. So... Grant us faith, O Lord, and the courage to trust that Your promises to us will be fulfilled. Amen (Fr. Tom from Sligo, Ireland - June 30, 2014 English Mass in Medjugorje)

The 20th Century produced more martyrs than the rest of history combined. This thought has caused me a lot of struggle and sadness. How can we escape a terrible punishment for having so many martyrs in our day? But as always, with Christ there is an upside down meaning to everything. Though the world deserves punishment for creating so many martyrs, the seed of the Martyrs brings a flowering of grace for the world instead. This is the glory of martyrdom. Martyrs die so that life may abound, life in God. This is the incredible mystery of Mercy! And so think of the life that has been seeded in the past century! We may indeed be headed into a time of unparalleled grace. Our Lady is here to lead us into that peace, into that grace, into that life with God. Maybe the future will be a huge surprise of joy, thanks to the work of our brothers and sisters who have gone before us.

Our Lady's presence and the ever new and irrepressible power of God's love and mercy are available to us in these days as never before. With Our Lady's help let's grasp them through faith, cherish them in hope, and live them with love!

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!

Cathy Nolan

Mary TV 2014

"Medjugorje is the spiritual center of the world."
Saint John Paul II
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