by Rita Ring

                Oneness of the body —

                The more people disobey God's laws the
                more they are scattered —

Ezekiel 34: 11-16

                Jesus is God — Jesus had no sin

                Mary was conceived sinless —

                The New Adam and the New Eve

                Consecrating our tainted hearts to the pure and
                    holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary can bring
                    unity for the children of Adam and Eve.

                Unity —

                There is perfect unity. The Persons of the Trinity are one.

                Unity among people is found when they
                    are living according to the Father's
                    will in love —
                    Living by the Laws of God

                Disorder — Disunity — because of sin — doing
                    one's will opposed to God's will.

Romans 8: 5-9

Those who are living by their natural inclinations have their minds on the things human nature desires; those who live in the Spirit have their minds on spiritual things. And human nature has nothing to look forward to but death, while the Spirit looks forward to life and peace, because the outlook of disordered human nature is opposed to God, since it does not submit to God's Law, and indeed it cannot, and those who live by their natural inclinations can never be pleasing to God. You, however, live not by your natural inclinations, but by the Spirit, since the Spirit of God has made a home in you. Indeed, anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

 

                When people under authority all want their
                    way against God's will there is utter
                    pandemonium.

                God gives us the Church.

                God calls us and (1) we can respond according
                    to God's will in love —
                    (2) We can not respond at all
                    (3) Do respond not doing it for God's honor
                        and glory, but respond impurely

                We look at the body — the physical body —
                    see how it is united — how all the parts are
                    necessary and work together — like the knee and
                    everything that makes the knee work —

                The eye and how everything has to work together to see —

                What about the body of Christ —

                Christ is the head

                We baptized Catholics the members of the mystical
                    body —

                Our job in the Shepherds of Christ is to lead people into deeper
                    union, greater perfection in the Hearts of
                    Jesus and Mary.

                We are united as members of the body of Christ to
                    all the Masses going on around the world —
                    when we offer our Morning Offering — we
                    offer our lives as a sacrifice united to the
                    Mass, to the Father, in the Holy Spirit
                    with all the angels and saints and the souls
                    in purgatory —

                The Mass is the sacrifice of Calvary sacramentally
                    made present —

China Church Altar

John 19: 25-27

Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. Seeing his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing near her, Jesus said to his mother, ‘Woman, this is your son.’ Then to the disciple he said, ‘This is your mother.’ And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.

 

Homily from Fr. Joe, my brother
21^st Sunday in Ordinary Time
August 27, 2006

Joshua 24: 1-2, 15-18

Ephesians 5: 21-32

Be subject to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives should be subject to their husbands as to the Lord, since, as Christ is head of the Church and saves the whole body, so is a husband the head of his wife; and as the Church is subject to Christ, so should wives be to their husbands, in everything. Husbands should love their wives, just as Christ loved the Church and sacrificed himself for her to make her holy by washing her in cleansing water with a form of words, so that when he took the Church to himself she would be glorious, with no speck or wrinkle or anything like that, but holy and faultless. In the same way, husbands must love their wives as they love their own bodies; for a man to love his wife is for him to love himself. A man never hates his own body, but he feeds it and looks after it; and that is the way Christ treats the Church, because we are parts of his Body. This is why a man leaves his father and mother and becomes attached to his wife, and the two become one flesh. This mystery has great significance, but I am applying it to Christ and the Church.

John 6: 60-69 

After hearing it, many of his followers said, ‘This is intolerable language. How could anyone accept it?’ Jesus was aware that his followers were complaining about it and said, ‘Does this disturb you? What if you should see the Son of man ascend to where he was before? ‘It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh has nothing to offer. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. ‘But there are some of you who do not believe.’ For Jesus knew from the outset who did not believe and who was to betray him. He went on, ‘This is why I told you that no one could come to me except by the gift of the Father.’ After this, many of his disciples went away and accompanied him no more.

Then Jesus said to the Twelve, ‘What about you, do you want to go away too?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the message of eternal life, and we believe; we have come to know that you are the Holy One of God.’

INTRODUCTION – (Jos 24, 1-2a. 15-17. 18b; Ephesians 5, 21-32; John 6, 60-69) Shortly after God’s people arrived in the Promised Land, Joshua, who became their leader after Moses died, gathered the people together to renew their covenant with Yahweh.  They enthusiastically chose to commit themselves to follow God faithfully.  Unfortunately, as we know, their descendants were seduced by the pagan practices of the Canaanites who previously inhabited the Land.  This first reading prepares us for the gospel where many of Jesus’ disciples, unlike the followers of Moses and Joshua, made the choice not to stay with Jesus because they couldn’t accept his teaching on the Eucharist. 

Often when men hear today’s second reading, they only hear part of it.  They hear the part where St. Paul says “wives should be subordinate to their husbands,” but miss the first sentence which says “Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ.”  In other words, married love involves commitment and mutuality.  In the end, it should resemble the love between Christ and the Church. 

HOMILY – Today’s gospel describes what must have been a very sad day for Jesus.  John tells us most of Jesus’ followers walked away from him.  The day before, they were ready to make him a king; for he had fed them (a great crowd) miraculously with five loaves of bread and two fish.  When he told them he was going to give them his flesh to eat and his blood to drink, they thought he was crazy.  As Jesus saw them leaving he asked his apostles if they wanted to leave too.  What Jesus had been saying was so serious and so important that he was willing to let everyone walk away from him if they chose. 

There was no way to compromise on what he said, no way to water it down.  The real bread he came to offer them was himself, he told them, and it was food that would give them eternal life.  When they questioned this, he only said it more emphatically and more clearly.  Their response was: “This saying is hard; who can accept it?”  What was hard was their own minds.  They wouldn’t open their minds to something they couldn’t understand.  In all of this we get an ideal picture of what we call “faith.”  Faith is accepting what we cannot understand, what we cannot prove, what we cannot figure out.  We just accept something as true because we trust Jesus who tells us it is so. 

Notice, Jesus didn’t call the people back who were walking away from him.  He didn’t say, “Wait people, I’m just talking figuratively.  I’m just talking symbolically.  I don’t mean you really have to eat my flesh and drink my blood!  You misunderstand me.”  He knew there was no misunderstanding; they understood him perfectly and he let them go. 

If you want proof from the bible for the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, you’ll find lots of proof, but I think this is the clearest proof you’ll find.  We might hear the words of Jesus at the last supper: “This is my body” and quibble over the definition of “is,” but there can be little doubt that Jesus is telling us in this event that the Eucharist is really his body and blood.  Those who cannot understand how it can be try to tell us the Eucharist is only a reminder of Jesus’ death for us, or it’s only a symbol, or some how Jesus comes to us along with the bread and wine but it’s not really changed.  They are in effect saying Jesus didn’t really mean what he said. 

We who believe in the Eucharist as the body and blood of Christ do not understand how it could be any better than any one else.  And theologians and philosophers have given it their best effort but we still don’t know “how” it can be.  So it still comes down to faith.  The apostles stayed with Jesus, not because they understood any better than the crowd, but because they trusted Jesus: “You have the words of eternal life.  We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.” 

Let me add just one quick thought.  Although we seldom think of it, we eat flesh all the time.  We eat the flesh of chickens, fish, pigs, cows, lambs.  That’s what keeps us alive.  We can’t see it but we know there is energy hidden in all this food and it sustains our life.  The flesh of Jesus that we receive is not dead flesh (like the flesh of a chicken or a cow), but it is his living and risen body and blood.  In Jesus’ flesh is hidden energy, divine energy that will nourish us with eternal life.  And the only way to approach it so that it is life giving is to approach the Eucharist with faith and trust and love.

Homily from Fr. Joe, my brother
22^nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

September 3, 2006 

Deuteronomy 4: 1-2, 6-8

And now, Israel, listen to the laws and customs which I am teaching you today, so that, by observing them, you may survive to enter and take possession of the country which Yahweh, God of your ancestors, is giving you. You must add nothing to what I command you, and take nothing from it, but keep the commandments of Yahweh your God just as I lay them down for you.

Keep them, put them into practice, and other peoples will admire your wisdom and prudence. Once they know what all these laws are, they will exclaim,  No other people is as wise and prudent as this great nation! And indeed, what great nation has its gods as near as Yahweh our God is to us whenever we call to him? And what great nation has laws and customs as upright as the entirety of this Law which I am laying down for you today?

James 1: 17-18, 21-22, 27

Mark 7: 1-8, 14-15, 21-23

The Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered round him, and they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with unclean hands, that is, without washing them. For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, keep the tradition of the elders and never eat without washing their arms as far as the elbow; and on returning from the market place they never eat without first sprinkling themselves. There are also many other observances which have been handed down to them to keep, concerning the washing of cups and pots and bronze dishes. So the Pharisees and scribes asked him, 'Why do your disciples not respect the tradition of the elders but eat their food with unclean hands?' He answered, 'How rightly Isaiah prophesied about you hypocrites in the passage of scripture: This people honours me only with lip-service, while their hearts are far from me. Their reverence of me is worthless; the lessons they teach are nothing but human commandments. You put aside the commandment of God to observe human traditions.'

He called the people to him again and said, 'Listen to me, all of you, and understand. Nothing that goes into someone from outside can make that person unclean; it is the things that come out of someone that make that person unclean.

For it is from within, from the heart, that evil intentions emerge: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come from within and make a person unclean.'

INTRODUCTION – (Dt. 4, 1-2. 6-8; James 1, 17-18. 21b-22. 27; Mark 7, 1-8. 14-15. 21-23) Today’s first reading takes us back about 13 centuries before Christ.  God’s people, after their escape from Egypt and their 40 year sojourn in the desert, are getting close to crossing the Jordan and entering the Promised Land.  Moses was still with them and he knew he would die before they crossed the Jordan.  So he had some last words instructing and encouraging God's people before his departure.  In essence he is telling God's people that God loves his people and he wants them to prosper.  They will do so only if they keep God's laws.

HOMILY – There is nothing subtle about today’s readings.  They are straightforward and blunt. In today’s gospel, the religious leaders of Jesus’ day were accusing him of ignoring their laws and traditions.  Jesus turned the tables on them and told them they’re missing the main point of what religion is all about.  Besides contradicting some of God’s laws, Jesus condemned them because they stressed only external observance.  Jesus reminds them (and us) that true religion is about a change of heart.

In our society we encounter an overwhelming amount of laws, some from God, some from our religious leaders and many from government and civil authority.  Law is important.  Without law, civilization cannot survive.  Without law there is chaos and anarchy.  At the same time freedom is important.  We live in a society where too many people think freedom means doing whatever they want without having to answer to any authority.  Without law there would be no freedom for we would be spending all our energy simply trying to avoid being annihilated.  Moses reminded God’s people in today’s first reading that if they kept God’s laws they would be admired by their contemporaries and they would prosper.  We have to balance the restrictions that laws place upon us with the freedom we want to enjoy.  This requires maturity to be able to keep that balance and most of us manage to do a fairly good job of that. 

Sometimes when we get tempted we might think: swell if no one is watching and I don’t get caught, maybe I can get by with doing something I shouldn’t be doing or avoiding something I should.  When we think that way, we’re becoming like the Pharisees and thinking only about the externals. 

Now, external observance is very important.  We might feel like hitting someone over the head with a club, but it is a better thing not to do it.  St. James tells us today “Be doers of the word and not hearers only.”  God’s ten commandments are mostly about external behavior: worship God, respect his name, honor our parents, do not kill, lie, steal, commit adultery.  Only the last two are about what goes on in our hearts: when we want to take possession of what belongs to someone else.  Our feelings are not always the purest or the best, but if we behave in a kindly and appropriate manner, that is good.  And it is often through doing the right thing that our hearts are changed.  For example, I may not always feel like praying, but by trying to pray anyway, I am more likely to develop an interior spirit of prayer.  Of course, Jesus wants us to do what is right, but he wants more.  He wants nothing less than for our hearts to be filled with his love and grace. 

Whether someone is watching or not, it’s when we have a right heart that we do the right thing,.  That’s a high level of moral maturity.  It’s a goal we try to teach our children, it’s a goal we strive for ourselves.  Until we get to that point, we stumble along with prayer and the sacraments to help us on the way.

                Help us publish these homilies and get them to
                    the priests and hierarchy —

                We become more one when we are
                    rooted in the Word —
                    in the Eucharist.

                The Word and the Eucharist is the bread of life.

Fr. Carter - China, Indiana

Fr. Carter

                ONE BODY IN HIM

                This fountain I photographed in front of
                    the Vatican.

John 19: 34

one of the soldiers pierced his side with a lance; and immediately there came out blood and water.

                Through His pierced Heart the
                    Church was born

                    Water for baptism; Blood for the Eucharist

Don Bosco vision

                Look at the Blessed Mother in his vision

                Look at the Eucharist

                ARK

                Mary is Mother of the Church.

                The Pope.

December 19, 1996 (excerpt)
Message given to Rita Ring

Jesus: My Beloved Ones,

And the light shown in the darkness and the darkness grasped it not, but to as many as responded, they became the children of the light and from them His life flowed into the hearts that were cold and dark and slowly, very slowly, the light began to steal across the darkened sky and the moon was covered with blood. The blood was the blood of the Lamb. The blood represented the blood He shed to give us life. But the blind just saw ordinary blood and were scared to death. They responded with the greatest fright and lacked peace, but those rooted in God, those whose hearts were consecrated to Mary and Jesus, knew the sign was from God--that the time of reckoning was at hand. Many were punished and suffered a great chastisement. Many were left to death, but the children of light prayed the rosary and trusted in God.

December 22, 1996 (excerpt)
Message given to Rita Ring

Jesus said: "And the moon will be covered with blood. It was the blood of the Lamb and it poured forth on a sinful world to cleanse them of their sin and I give you My Body and My Blood in the Mass and I am ignored." ...

end of excerpts from Apostles Manual

                Medicine of Immortality

Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus 

(For public or private use.)

Lord, have mercy on us.
   Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, hear us.
   Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven,
   Have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
   Have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit,
   Have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, One God,
   Have mercy on us.

Blood of Christ, only-begotten Son of the Eternal Father, save us.
Blood of Christ, Incarnate Word of God, save us.
Blood of Christ, of the New and Eternal Testament, save us.
Blood of Christ, falling upon the earth in the Agony, save us.
Blood of Christ, shed profusely in the Scourging, save us.
Blood of Christ, flowing forth in the Crowning with Thorns, save us.
Blood of Christ, poured out on the Cross, save us.
Blood of Christ, Price of our salvation, save us.
Blood of Christ, without which there is no forgiveness, save us.
Blood of Christ, Eucharistic drink and refreshment of souls, save us.
Blood of Christ, river of mercy, save us.
Blood of Christ, Victor over demons, save us.
Blood of Christ, Courage of martyrs, save us.
Blood of Christ, Strength of confessors, save us.
Blood of Christ, bringing forth virgins, save us.
Blood of Christ, Help of those in peril, save us.
Blood of Christ, Relief of the burdened, save us.
Blood of Christ, Solace in sorrow, save us.
Blood of Christ, Hope of the penitent, save us.
Blood of Christ, Consolation of the dying, save us.
Blood of Christ, Peace and Tenderness of hearts, save us.
Blood of Christ, Pledge of Eternal Life, save us.
Blood of Christ, freeing souls from Purgatory, save us.
Blood of Christ, most worthy of all glory and honor, save us.

Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
    Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
    Graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, Who takest away the sins of the world,
    Have mercy on us, O Lord.

V.  Thou hast redeemed us, O Lord, in Thy Blood,
R.  And made of us a kingdom for our God.

Let Us Pray

   Almighty and Eternal God, Thou hast appointed Thine only-begotten Son the Redeemer of the world, and willed to be appeased by His Blood. Grant, we beseech Thee, that we may worthily adore this Price of our salvation, and through its power be safeguarded from the evils of this present life, so that we may rejoice in its fruits forever in Heaven. Through the same Christ Our Lord. R.  Amen. 

                The Network of Prayer Chapters Jesus told Fr. Carter to
                    begin were to be where all of us would be
                    praying like a network of prayer —
                    praying in one mind and one heart in the
                    pure and holy Hearts of Jesus and Mary, praying for
                    the priests, the Church and the world —

                The peace of the world has been entrusted
                    to Our Lady, Mary said at Fatima —

                She said Bishops need to consecrate their
                    dioceses to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary

                In spreading these prayer chapters, as
                    baptized Catholics we are
                    deeply one praying for the priests,
                    the Church and the world —

                Fr. Carter got this message

July 31, 1994

Words of Jesus to Members of 
Shepherds of Christ Associates:

"My beloved priest-companion, I intend to use the priestly newsletter, Shepherds of Christ, and the movement, Shepherds of Christ Associates, in a powerful way for the renewal of My Church and the world.

"I will use the newsletter and the chapters of Shepherds of Christ Associates as a powerful instrument for spreading devotion to My Heart and My Mother's Heart.

"I am calling many to become members of Shepherds of Christ Associates. To all of them I will give great blessings. I will use them as instruments to help bring about the triumph of the Immaculate Heart and the reign of My Sacred Heart. I will give great graces to the members of Shepherds of Christ Associates. I will call them to be deeply united to My Heart and to Mary's Heart as I lead them ever closer to My Father in the Holy Spirit."

- Message from Jesus to Father Edward J. Carter, S.J., Founder, as given on July 31, 1994,
feast of Saint Ignatius Loyola, Founder of the Society of Jesus (The Jesuits)

                Our Lady appeared to me early the next
                    morning August 1, 1994 and gave me
                    this message.

August 1, 1994

Pray For The Success Of The Priestly Newsletter - Shepherds of Christ

Messenger: The following is the first official message I received before the statue of Mary at Our Lady of the Holy Spirit Center. It is a personal message for Father Carter.

Mary: (in front of the glowing statue of Our Lady of Sorrows) I am the Immaculate Heart. My Heart is glowing for love of all my beloved children. I am your most loving Mother. I am with you this day. Pray for the success of the priestly newsletter Shepherds of Christ. I am guarding your way. You will receive such graces to accomplish this task! Grace from God is so abundantly bestowed on you and will lead to the success of this endeavor! Pray for this cause at the Center. The priests will lead the people to the love of My beloved Son. This is no little task. It will take many prayers and graces. Pray hard, little one. Your prayers will change many hearts.

I am Mary, your Immaculate Mother. I bring this message to My beloved priest-son.

end of August 1, 1994 message

                I never knew of Fr. Carter's message yet.

Rita Ring and Fr. Carter

                We receive Jesus in the Eucharist —
                    we become more and more saturated with
                    His grace

                    We are ONE in Him.

                We are ONE with each other — the
                    more we are saturated with His
                    grace.

                I am more one in Him.

                You are more one in Him.

                We are one in Him when we are saturated
                    with His grace.

                His life is in us —

                We are a big help in our lives as
                    baptized Catholics —

                    living holy lives

                Offering our lives as a sacrifice united to the Mass

                A pleasing sacrifice

                Doing God's will - in love

                Being more pure in our offering as
                    we dwell in the pure and holy
                    Hearts of greatest love —
                    the Hearts of Jesus and Mary

                We are to model our lives after Jesus and Mary.

                God made us.

                God is the Creator.

                God has the Plan.

                God made all things.

                God keeps them in existence.

                God made us to show forth His goodness
                    and share everlasting happiness
                    with Him in heaven.

                God made us to know, love and serve Him.

                In the Garden of Eden —

                    man rebels against God

                Satan tempted Eve.

Apostles Creed

I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord; who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended into hell; the third day he arose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven; sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the living and the dead. * I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of Saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

                God is Supreme.

                That means He is above all creatures.

                God has all perfections without limits.

                God is eternal.

                God is all - good.

                God is all - knowing!

                God is all present!

                God is Almighty!

                God sees us!

                    God watches us with loving care!

                We must pray to God.

                God is in charge.

God has all the power.                         God has entrusted the peace of the world                     to Mary — she said at Fatima                 From Mary's Peace Plan at Fatima         Until a sufficient number of people             have consecrated their hearts             to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,             there will not be peace in the world.                   God has entrusted the peace of                     world to Mary.

Homily from Fr. Joe, my brother
15^th Sunday in Ordinary Time
July 16, 2006

Romans 7: 14-19

Ephesians 1: 3-14

HOMILY – ... Sometimes we forget that as we go through life we’re just tourists visiting this planet; we’re on a long trip but we’re not staying here forever.  As St. Paul tells us, our destination, our real home is heaven.  We’re not going to take anything with us there, except our good deeds. How about all the stuff we’re dragging with us through life; is it helping us move forward to our final goal or is it slowing us down, or even worse, is it a distraction that makes us forget where we’re going?  Sometimes it’s the quest for material things that loads us down on this journey, but it can be other things too.  Sports can hold such a priority in people’s lives that they never have time to pray or get to church on Sunday or to spend quality time with their family.  An excessive love for entertainment or always being too busy can do the same thing.  Maybe it’s a lot of anger and resentment that we keep holding on to, or addictions and bad habits.  St. Paul tells us that God chose us before the world began to be holy and blameless in his sight.  If we were created to be holy, what is getting in our way?  The stuff that slows us down in our journey to God can also keep us from finding true joy as we go through life. It will limit our experience of the Lord who is our ultimate peace and joy.  May I end with a simple example?  If we try to swim with too much weighing us down, we do not do well.  We may be so weighted down that we just sink.  It’s possible for a person to let so many things get in the way of their relationship with God that they sink spiritually too.

Homily from Fr. Joe, my brother
16^th Sunday in Ordinary Time
July 23, 2006 

Jeremiah 23: 1-6

‘Disaster for the shepherds who lose and scatter the sheep of my pasture, Yahweh declares. This, therefore, is what Yahweh, God of Israel, says about the shepherds who shepherd my people, “You have scattered my flock, you have driven them away and have not taken care of them. Right, I shall take care of you for your misdeeds, Yahweh declares! But the remnant of my flock I myself shall gather from all the countries where I have driven them, and bring them back to their folds; they will be fruitful and increase in numbers. For them I shall raise up shepherds to shepherd them and pasture them. No fear, no terror for them any more; not one shall be lost, Yahweh declares! 

    Look, the days are coming, 
        Yahweh declares, 
    when I shall raise an upright Branch 
        for David; 
    he will reign as king and be wise, 
    doing what is just and upright 
        in the country. 
    In his days Judah will triumph 
    and Israel live in safety. 
    And this is the name he will be called, 
    ‘Yahweh–is–our–Saving–Justice.’ ”

INTRODUCTION – (Jeremiah, 23, 1-6; Ephesians, 2, 13-18; Mk. 6, 30-34)  (I used the following as introduction to the penitential rite):   In the Scriptures, those who were leaders of God’s people: kings and priests, teachers and other spiritual leaders were often compared to shepherds.  Frequently these leaders were more interested in serving themselves than they were in providing good leadership for God’s people.  Jeremiah, today’s first reading, blames the kings of Judah for the destruction of the nation under the Babylonians.  In today’s gospel our Lord views the people of his day as sheep without a shepherd and has compassion on them.  He is a good shepherd.  He desires to lead his followers to glory and eternal happiness.  The way to follow him is through faith and love.  For the times we have failed, we ask his forgiveness and his help to do better.

John 10: 11-15

I am the good shepherd:
the good shepherd lays down his life
   for his sheep.
The hired man,
   since he is not the shepherd
and the sheep do not belong to him,
abandons the sheep
as soon as he sees a wolf coming,
   and runs away,
and then the wolf attacks
   and scatters the sheep;
he runs away
   because he is only a hired man
and has no concern for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd;
I know my own
and my own know me,
just as the Father knows me
and I know the Father;
and I lay down my life for my sheep.

Fr. Carter

  Priestly Newsletter 2001 - Issue 1

Writing to Rita Ring as directed by Fr. Carter at his death

I Lay Down My Life for My Sheep

Yes, the Good Shepherd laid down His life for us. And it is in this that we must lay down our lives daily in the Morning Offering, offering all we do as a sacrifice united to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass and great grace will be released for souls. We can identify with Him in this that we offer everything we do in trying to please Him and serve Him as a sacrifice united to the Mass. The more we tell others to pray the Morning Offering, the more people will lay down their lives for souls and the more grace will be released for the troubled hearts.

Jesus’ Heart is pure and holy, our hearts are tainted.

Mary’s Heart is pure and sinless. The more we unite our offering with Their pure and holy Hearts, the more pure our offering and the greatest grace will be released for the troubled souls.

Souls, it is souls He came to save. Do we want to identify with our beloved Savior? Then we must not miss an opportunity to lay down our lives as a sacrifice for His precious souls.

Oh, how His Heart burned with love for the souls when He mounted the cross, covered with Blood and gave Himself as a sacrifice for souls.

Yes, the Good Shepherd laid down His life for His flock and we as His faithful shepherds must lay down our lives for His flock today.

There are millions of elderly that cry out daily, "Oh, God why am I here today?" In giving them a small card as simple as the ones that follow, they can offer their lives for souls which can help bring down great grace for the souls of this earth.

Offering Our Lives to God
Writing to Rita Ring

Written May 29, 2000:

When we come to Mass we make an offering of ourselves, all our sorrows, wounds, joys, our complete selves. We see our lives and we put ourselves in Mary’s Heart, ask to make the offering in greatest purity. In His Heart we offer the sacrifice IN HIM and WITH HIM.

We become one with Him as deeply as possible. We dwell in His most perfect Heart offering sacrifice to God for our sins and the sins of men. Our whole being is very active in the Mass as we realize more the power of this Sacrifice most worthily offered. We want to give ourselves as completely as possible, our past, all of ourselves, now become so one in the moment of sacrifice as we become one in Him pleading and begging to our God for purification, for help, for love of Him and all others. We give thanksgiving, worship and honor to Him, our whole being given as a sacrifice on the altar IN His pure and holy Heart. Being in the Immaculate Heart of our Mother, we offer sacrifice for the Church and the world.

We offer every precious moment of our lives, united to the Masses around the world, being one in Jesus. Every moment is a moment of sacrifice united to God. This is what we do in the Morning Offering.

The pages of the book of our lives are being written. These moments of our lives are so dear to God, for we offer our lives as a sacrifice for souls.

Are we spending the precious moments of our lives offering sacrifice to God for His honor and glory and giving our lives as a sacrifice for souls?

Write a short page every day or the following day, similar to an examination of conscience, seeing the good (so much good we accomplish we overlook, so many precious moments of joy we forget) and the times we were troubled.

We should pray the prayer from Jesus before His bitter passion.

I pray not only for these but also for those who through their teaching will come to believe in me. May they all be one, just as, Father, you are in me and I am in you, so that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe it was you who sent me. I have given them the glory you gave to me, that they may be one as we are one. With me in them and you in me, may they be so perfected in unity that the world will recognise that it was you who sent me and that you have loved them as you have loved me.

Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, so that they may always see my glory which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. Father, Upright One, the world has not known you, but I have known you, and these have known that you have sent me. I have made your name known to them and will continue to make it known, so that the love with which you loved me may be in them, and so that I may be in them. (Jn 17: 20-26)

Jesus’ Heart is on fire for love of us.

God the Father loves us so much, give Him the moments of our lives as a sacrifice.

Peace, Love, Oneness – One Body In Him.

Our prayers are answered. We must pray from the depth of our hearts. Giving ourselves in consecration to Jesus, consecrating our hearts to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

Offer sacrifice.

Put the flowers as gifts beneath the throne of God.

Plead and beg for souls.

Offer sacrifice. Be united as a body.

And the bell tolls.

Do you hear the bells toll?

The moments of our lives we cannot live again.

We are here to love and honor God and to serve Him, to prepare ourselves for the life hereafter and to help others get there.

He is the Son of God.

He showed us how to be children of the Father.

He laid down His life for His flock.

He is the Good Shepherd.

We lay down our lives in our Morning Offering.

We lay down our lives and unite to the perfect Sacrifice of the Savior.

The moments go by with such swiftness and now here is the day, the kids are grown, the grandchildren have come, and we still say, "TOMORROW I will be about my union with God."

There are so many precious moments that could have been united as a sacrifice for special grace for ourselves and others.

When He was here on earth, He merited grace by His life and death.

We need to tap into this grace our Divine Savior came to earth to gain for us.

We must tap into this sacrifice.

The moments of our lives tick away. There are millions of souls in nursing homes that could be offering up their lives for souls. We have to unite ourselves and reach them, all the souls that will hear us and unite to this Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. He is the Head, we are the members of His body, the Church. We must be united in the Mass, praying every moment together, being one in Him in this Holy Sacrifice so that great grace will be released.

All our most difficult trials, when we endure them with love, can help to bring down great grace.

The moment is now.

The bell is tolling.

I can only live in this moment.

I must unite it to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, praying for souls.

Every moment, whether of joy or suffering, can be a moment of grace being released for our needs, for the salvation of souls, to make reparation to God, to honor and love Him and obey Him.

OUR LIVES ARE INDEED PRECIOUS, every moment, a moment that our Father gave us as a child of God for His honor and glory.

Alleluia – God, help us unite as a body.

Alleluia – God, help us to see ourselves all one as the family of the Father with Mary our loving Mother.

How will the page of our book look for the Father? Whether we write or not, we lived it as He willed or we lived it against His will.

Were our moments, moments to give Him honor and glory, to help promote the kingdom, to help save souls and lead others to God? Did the moments help us have a higher place in heaven? Did we mature more in our love relationship with God?

 

end of excerpt from Priestly Newsletter 2001 #1

Prayer for Union with Jesus   

Come to me, Lord, and possess my soul. Come into my heart and permeate my soul. Help me to sit in silence with You and let You work in my heart.

    I am Yours to possess. I am Yours to use. I want to be selfless and only exist in You. Help me to spoon out all that is me and be an empty vessel ready to be filled by You. Help me to die to myself and live only for You. Use me as You will. Let me never draw my attention back to myself. I only want to operate as You do, dwelling within me.

    I am Yours, Lord. I want to have my life in You. I want to do the will of the Father. Give me the strength to put aside the world and let You operate my very being. Help me to act as You desire. Strengthen me against the distractions of the devil to take me from Your work.

    When I worry, I have taken my focus off of You and placed it on myself. Help me not to give in to the promptings of others to change what in my heart You are making very clear to me. I worship You, I adore You and I love You. Come and dwell in me now.

-God's Blue Book, January 17, 1994

                    God can take a life that seems so ordinary,
                so prosaic, so uneventful, and achieve
                wonders with it as long as the person
                is striving to fulfill his or her role in
                life according to God's designs.

                    In praying the prayers -

                    spreading the Priestly Newsletter —
                    in being part of this network of prayer —

                We realize God intends each of us to press
                    on toward maturity in the spiritual
                        life through a proper encounter
                        with others.

                The Shepherds of Christ helps us see our
                    connection deeply

                As members of the body of Christ and helps
                    us to realize our prayer is helping
                    to strengthen the people of the world.

                    We are to love God and neighbors

                    We see the awareness of the 3 loves
                as Fr. Carter speaks of — love of God,
                love of self and love of neighbor.

                Our existence is profoundly interlinked
                with the existence of others.

                This union with others is not only
                limited to the people we encounter
                but is directed to all members of
                the human family.

                    We must strike the balance between independence
                from others and dependence on them. In the
                religious community God intends for
                people to live in this family together
                with a common goal of strengthening
                and serving the Church and the world.

                    Fr. Carter says people - many people who get
                married say they marry to get love —
                they in turn must offer love to the other —

                Fr. Carter says               

Whether we are married people, celibates in the priestly and religious life, or single persons in the world, all of us have to be aware lest we be more concerned with receiving love than in giving it. God wants us to receive love, and we have a need to receive love; however, we must not allow this legitimate desire to degenerate into a morbid preoccupation whereby we always enumerate all the different ways that others should be manifesting love toward us while, at the same time, we ourselves might be guilty of neglecting numerous opportunities for loving them. If our main concern is to love others rather than to be loved by them, I think we will more often than not be surprised at the love others show us over a lifetime. Nonetheless, even in the event that we might feel slighted in this regard, our vocation as Christians is eminently clear: we ourselves must continue to love even when it is extremely difficult to do so, thus following the example of Jesus who loved even those who nailed him to the cross.

As maturing Christians we should be assimilative individuals. In various ways, we must be able to absorb from others, not in an artificial way that does violence to our uniqueness, but in a manner that actually enhances our uniqueness. Our wonderful privilege is to assimilate ever more and more the truth, the goodness, the beauty of God himself by, among other ways, realizing that God is variously reflected through all the human persons he has created. Just as we are created in God's image—and thereby are reflective of his perfections—so also are all others. When all humans are true to God's designs, all do indeed provide various opportunities to one another for personality growth. All of us, I am sure, can recall more than one instance in which we felt especially inspired to become better persons because we have encountered certain individuals.

from Response to God's Love p. 93-94

Statues

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel	Our Lady of Lourdes	Our Lady of Grace
Sorrowful Mother	Immaculate Heart - Ivory	Immaculate Heart of Mary
Limpias	Sacred Heart of Jesus -Blessing	Sacred Heart of Jesus
Infant of Prague	Divine Mercy	Holy Family
St. Jude	Our Lady of Guadalupe	Holy Family
St. Therese	St. Francis	St. Anthony
St. Claire	St. Padre Pio	St. Joseph
Angel	St. Philomena	St. Rita - 18
Immaculate Heart of Mary - 18	Immaculate Heart - Ivory - 18	Sacred Heart of Jesus - 18
Our Lady of Lourdes - 18	Our Lady of Mt. Carmel - 18	Our Lady of Grace - 18
St. Francis - 18	St. Anthony - 18	St. Joseph - 18
St. Therese - 18	Our Lady of Guadalupe - 12	St. Clare - 12
St. Padre Pio - 12	St. Rita - 12	Divine Mercy - 12
Pieta - Color	Pieta - Marble	Limpias - 8
Fatima w/glass - 11	Pilgrim Virgin w/glass - 12	Pilgrim Virgin w/glass - 15
Fatima w/glass - 18	Pilgrim Virgin w/glass - 18	Pilgrim Virgin w/glass - 27

Available for $750.00