The hermit as a rabid dog

As hermits in solitude, we can easily think we are making progress in the spiritual life. Then the Lord will humble us, allowing us to encounter a family member or someone who triggers us so that we realise that we are no better than a rabid dog. 

Lord have mercy on me 

Evangelisation through the beauty of holiness

This is what all of us should aim for. 

People will automatically be attracted to Christ through seeing him present in your life. Living a life of holiness is a form of evangelism - you don’t need to scream off the rooftops, just live your life following Christ and people will be attracted to this. 

When we authentically live as Christians striving for holiness, then people will see the difference Jesus makes and ask us about him. 

Being a saint is about redirecting the light of Christ to others - the saints draw us to Christ through their example, and we too need to bring people to Jesus through the beauty of holiness in our life. This is the best way to evangelise others according to Pope Benedict XVI and reaffirmed by Pope Francis. 

The Queen of Heaven Assumed into heaven

This is a collection of the antiphons from Morning prayer in the Divine Office 

Blessed are you, O Mary, for the world’s salvation came forth through you; now in glory you rejoice for ever with the Lord.
The Virgin Mary is exalted above the choirs of angels; let all believers rejoice and bless the Lord
The Lord has made you so glorious that your praise will never cease to resound among men.
This daughter of Jerusalem is lovely and beautiful as she ascends to heaven like the rising sun at daybreak.
Today the Virgin Mary was taken up to heaven.
For all eternity she shares the victory of Christ.
Alleluia Alleluia 

The Transfiguration- feast of uncreated light

Today we celebrate one of my favourite feats - the Transfiguration. I highly recommend spending some time today meditating on the last paragraph from the homily below 

Magnificat antiphon Evening Prayer I :

Christ Jesus, you are the splendor of the Father and the perfect image of his being; you sustain all creation with your powerful word and cleanse us of all our sins. On this day, you were exalted in glory upon the high mountain. 

From the Office of Readings, a sermon by Anastasius of Sinai : 

These are the divine wonders we celebrate today; this is the saving revelation given us upon the mountain; this is the festival of Christ that has drawn us here. Let us listen, then, to the sacred voice of God so compellingly calling us from on high, from the summit of the mountain, so that with the Lord’s chosen disciples we may penetrate the deep meaning of these holy mysteries, so far beyond our capacity to express. Jesus goes before us to show us the way, both up the mountain and into heaven, and–I speak boldly–it is for us now to follow him with all speed, yearning for the heavenly vision that will give us a share in his radiance, renew our spiritual nature and transform us into his own likeness, making us for ever sharers in his Godhead and raising us to heights as yet undreamed of.
Let us run with confidence and joy to enter into the cloud like Moses and Elijah, or like James and John. Let us be caught up like Peter to behold the divine vision and to be transfigured by that glorious transfiguration. Let us retire from the world, stand aloof from the earth, rise above the body, detach ourselves from creatures and turn to the creator, to whom Peter in ecstasy exclaimed: Lord, it is good for us to be here.
It is indeed good to be here, as you have said, Peter. It is good to be with Jesus and to remain here for ever. What greater happiness or higher honor could we have than to be with God, to be made like him and to live in his light?
Therefore, since each of us possesses God in his heart and is being transformed into his divine image, we also should cry out with joy: It is good for us to be here — here where all things shine with divine radiance, where there is joy and gladness and exultation; where there is nothing in our hearts but peace, serenity and stillness; where God is seen. For here, in our hearts, Christ takes up his abode together with the Father, saying as he enters: Today salvation has come to this house. With Christ, our hearts receive all the wealth of his eternal blessings, and there where they are stored up for us in him, we see reflected as in a mirror both the first fruits and the whole of the world to come.

Despair over your sins is actually a form of pride

I really love this - not sure if it’s a genuine story, but something I’ve found to be true in my own spiritual journey. 

Often when we sin, we get so frustrated and angry with ourselves and have a pity party. What we don’t realise is that it’s actually pride! 

The devil wants us to grow discouraged, fall into shame and to give up. Instead we need to be humble, repent, say “Jesus I’m sorry, I love you, please have mercy on me and forgive me, help me” and then keep moving forward without dwelling on our sins. 

The only difference between Judas and anyone of us is that Judas didn’t repent, but fell into despair. All of us, while we are alive can repent at any moment. Just turn to Jesus, get back up and with his grace keep walking forward as you carry your cross. It’s human to fall and be weak - but Jesus is always next to us offering us his hand, all we need to do is accept it