December 30, 2008

The Lord is my light and my salvation
    of whom should I be afraid

---

Jesus: Come to Me —

I am Truly Present in the Eucharist

Adore Me

Love Me

Give Me thanks and

My generosity will never be outdone.

 

1 Corinthians 13: 1-13  

Though I command languages both human and angelic—if I speak without love, I am no more than a gong booming or a cymbal clashing. And though I have the power of prophecy, to penetrate all mysteries and knowledge, and though I have all the faith necessary to move mountains—if I am without love, I am nothing. Though I should give away to the poor all that I possess, and even give up my body to be burned—if I am without love, it will do me no good whatever. 

    Love is always patient and kind; love is never jealous; love is not boastful or conceited, it is never rude and never seeks its own advantage, it does not take offence or store up grievances. Love does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but finds its joy in the truth. It is always ready to make allowances, to trust, to hope and to endure whatever comes. 

    Love never comes to an end. But if there are prophecies, they will be done away with; if tongues, they will fall silent; and if knowledge, it will be done away with. For we know only imperfectly, and we prophesy imperfectly; but once perfection comes, all imperfect things will be done away with. When I was a child, I used to talk like a child, and see things as a child does, and think like a child; but now that I have become an adult, I have finished with all childish ways. Now we see only reflections in a mirror, mere riddles, but then we shall be seeing face to face. Now I can know only imperfectly; but then I shall know just as fully as I am myself known. 

    As it is, these remain: faith, hope and love, the three of them; and the greatest of them is love.

 

EUCHARIST

LOVE

       

Colossians 3: 1-4

Since you have been raised up to be with Christ, you must look for the things that are above, where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand. Let your thoughts be on things above, not on the things that are on the earth, because you have died, and now the life you have is hidden with Christ in God. But when Christ is revealed-and he is your life-you, too, will be revealed with him in glory.

  

Jesus: I call you to die to the ways that are not
        likened to God —

To live more the resurrected life

I call you to love

Love of God

Love of each other

R. We cannot ignore death

We know we will die —

But we are to die to those things not likened
    to God to be more perfected like Our
    Heavenly Father —

We must be prepared for our death
    Loving God
    Loving each other to get to heaven

   

Isaiah 18: 3-5

All you inhabitants of the world, and you dwellers on the earth, when an ensign is lifted up on the mountains, look; and when the trumpet is blown, listen. For thus has Yahweh said to me, I will be still, and I will see in my dwelling-place, like clear heat in sunshine, like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest. For before the harvest, when the blossom is over, and the flower becomes a ripening grape, he will cut off the sprigs with pruning-hooks, and the spreading branches will he take away and cut down.

 

Isaiah 55: 6-9

Seek you Yahweh while he may be found; call you on him while he is near: let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; and let him return to Yahweh, and he will have mercy on him; and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, says Yahweh. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

   

Going to heaven is wonderful —

We see clearly

 

John 12: 24

    In all truth I tell you,
    unless a wheat grain falls into the earth
       and dies,
    it remains only a single grain;
    but if it dies
    it yields a rich harvest.

 

Ultimately — we have to let go of things —

    The one thing that never fails is
        our relationship with God

    We have to let go of things —

    A little grain of wheat, must be
        put in ground —
        so shell comes off and
        it can feed us
        like the grain of wheat —

We let the parts of ourselves that are not
    like God to fall off —

So we can die to those things —
    to be like God

     

Puff and Toot (excerpt)

April 15, 1994

R. My daughter played the song Puff and Toot and we sang and laughed. "I've got to make it! I've got to make it! I've got to make it!" Sometimes when I do it myself, I try so hard. I try so hard to do everything right. Think of going up a big hill and huffing and puffing. Then the hand of God reaches down and lifts you. He carries you on your way.

end of excerpt

 

Our life is service —

    to love God and
    to love one another —
    to give to God and
    to give to one another

Jesus wept at the death of his
    friend Lazarus

In heaven we will see —

Think of the webs —
    the things we do not see now —

Sing: Ava Maria

Mary help us

Mary our Mother

Our life is short here —

We are babies —
    then we are toddlers — learning about obedience
    from imperfect parents
    from an imperfect world

Our truth is in the Church
Our truth is in the Scriptures
Our truth is in the Commandments —

We fool ourselves when we do not try to
    live by God's will

In the Mass — we unite to the sacrifice of
    Calvary, sacramentally made present —

We offer to the Father — this offering
    in the Mass —
    as members of the body of Christ —
    we offer our lives as an offering
    united to the Mass

We stand in unity with Mary at the
    foot of the cross —

We love God so much

This is an offering of our lives given
    in love to God

We want the world to be the way God wants
    We are so one with Jesus —
    begging for grace for the souls of the earth —

We want people to know how we
    bear the handprint of the Creator —

How important the Mass is —
How important is our role as members of
    the mystical body of Christ —

UNITY — oneness with God —
Our love for God and others

 

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.

  

We lay our lives down in love —
    united to the Mass

    Oh God, Your plan is so great

 

The Our Father

    Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

 

 

Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, Have mercy on us.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, Have mercy on us.
Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, Grant us peace.

     

   

Taste and See the Goodness of the
    Lord — SING

We pray  — Oh God — to the Father
    united with the sacrifice of Jesus
    in the Holy Spirit with all the angels and
    saints and souls in purgatory —

 

Excerpt from Response in Christ,
    by Father Edward J. Carter S.J.

       e) Relationship with Members of the Church
There is but one true Church of Christ. Yet this one Church has three different states of existence. There is the pilgrim Church, the Church of this world, composed of members who have received the grace of Christ and strive for its development. They have not yet obtained the goal of their efforts, as have the members of the heavenly Church, who enjoy God in eternal happiness. The Church suffering is an intermediate state of existence necessary for those who had not achieved the required purification as members of the pilgrim Church. Although there are these three phases of the Church's existence, there is a profound union existing between all the members. All these members possess the same basic life of grace in Christ, and this common life establishes the most intimate bonds of love. In our preceding chapter, we discussed the pilgrim Church. Let us now consider the Church suffering and the heavenly Church.

   The members of the Church suffering are those who have departed from this life in an incomplete state of Christian development. Their development is incomplete in the sense that grace has not fully taken possession of them, and, as a result, they are yet closed in upon themselves to a greater or lesser degree. They as yet cannot open themselves out in complete love to the Triune God in the beatific vision. They must undergo a further purification, a purification which could have been achieved upon earth with merit. Now the purification must be achieved with no merit attached. The pain of this purification is mixed with the certain expectation of achieving the vision of God. We can hasten the advent of this vision for this people by the offering of prayers and other good works. Scripture itself refers to our action on behalf of those in purgatory in Chapter 12 of the Second Book of Maccabees beginning with verse 38.

   The members of the heavenly Church are those in whom the life of grace has taken full possession and has reached its completion in the life of glory. Faith now is unnecessary, as the light of glory gives the human intellect a new strength and capacity for seeing God face-to-face. While the Christian was a wayfarer, he received the imprint of the indwelling Trinity as he shared in God's own life. Now in heaven that grace-life and possession of God reaches its completion—the absolute completion is not achieved, however, until the resurrection of the body. The divine persons give Themselves to the beatified in a profound union far surpassing that of the indwelling of the Trinity experienced here below.

   This life of heaven is still the Christ-life, for just as we possess a share in Trinitarian life here below as mediated by Christ, and exercise this grace-life as structured by Him, so also in heaven is the mediation of Christ present. In the words of Rahner, "One always sees the Father through Jesus. Just as immediately as this, for the directness of the vision of God is not a denial of the mediatorship of Christ as man."¹³ And not only does the humanity of Christ unite the blessed to God, but also, in some way, to the whole of creation. This is merely a completion of what is begun here below, namely, the union with Christ in His humanity establishing the Christian in a special relationship with God, with other men, and with the whole of creation. We have a glimpse, therefore, of the fullness of life which members of the heavenly Church possess.

   The heavenly Church, as St. Thomas says, is the true Church.¹⁴ The Church of this earth and the Church of purgatory are, each in its own way, reaching out in loving hope for the heavenly Jerusalem. Vatican II puts it very simply: "The Church, to which we are called in Christ Jesus, and in which we acquire sanctity through the grace of God, will attain her full perfection only in the glory of heaven."¹⁵

   The members of the heavenly Church can help us in living our life of grace until we too share its fullness with them. Their power of intercession on our behalf is but another ramification of the communal aspect of Christianity. We are meant to help others grow in Christ. We, in turn, are intended by God to receive aid from others—yes, from members of the heavenly Church, as well as from those with whom we dwell here below.

   Not only can we be aided by the saints' intercession, but the example of the canonized saints can also be of great value to us. They have concretely proved that full holiness is possible. Such an inspiration is of real worth when we are tempted to think that Christian sanctity in its higher degrees is impossible of attainment. Moreover, the canonized saints, in their diversity, teach us that there are many authentic versions of Christian holiness. They can be innovators in showing us that there are numerous possibilities in assimilating the mystery of Christ, although the basic assimilation remains the same for all Christians of all times. In the opinion of Rahner this is one of the chief roles the canonized saints exert in the life of the Church.¹⁶

_____
   ¹³Karl Rahner, Theological Investigations, Vol. III (Baltimore: Helicon, 1967), p. 44.
   ¹⁴Cf. St. Thomas Aquinas, In Ad Ephes., c. 3, Lect. 3.
   ¹⁵Second Vatican Council, Constitution on the Church, No. 48.
   ¹⁶Cf. Karl Rahner, Op. cit., pp. 100-101.

 

Oh God —

    open our eyes
    Oh God — my love is for Thee
    Oh God — Your message You gave to me
        in the Blue Books —

Oh God help us to live by these letters of love
    You have given to us

   

15 1/2 years ago

 

Cling to Me

May 13, 1993

Jesus: My dear child, if you stay close to Me, then I live in you and you live in Me. I am He Who created you and I love you with such an intensity that you will never know. My words are your truth. You must abide in My heart in all things. There is no room for doubt. My ways are steadfast, direct, and without error.

    You must stay rooted in Me to ward off the power of the evil one. His grip is paralyzing and crippling. His power is stronger every day.

    When you live in Me, I am in your heart and he has no power over Me. I am your God. I am your true lover. I want to protect you. I want to guard you from this force. Stay rooted firmly in Me and he will have no power.

    I am He Who comforts you. My hand is upon you. Hold tight to Me, My child. My eyes are fixed right on you. You are My most precious child. I love you as no other can. My arms are about you. My tenderness surrounds you. My love is in your heart. You go not alone. I walk with you.

    I share every aspect of your life with you. Cling to Me, feel My presence. It is warm and secure within your chest. There is no room for fear, for I cast out fear and bring you comfort and joy.

end of May 13, 1993 message

I want to be so united to You —

To offer my days here united to the Mass
    to help bring down grace for
    myself, my family, the Church and
    the souls of this earth

God — Hear my prayer

I cry to You

I offer You my life —

Servants and Handmaids of the Good Shepherd
    as the Spouse of Jesus

Married in a special way to Jesus —

Living in obedience —
    love
    dedication to their vocation

Living the life of prayer of
    the Servants and Handmaids of the Good Shepherd
            of the Shepherds of Christ

    Jesus: I called you by name — if religious
do not recognize they are My Spouse
they will see themselves as cheated, as
single and look for love somewhere else —
Religious are to teach the people
of God about bringing forth fruit for
the Kingdom. Religious are married
to Me — They are to be more and more
united in the deepest oneness with
God — giving so great a love to God —
I am all deserving of this love

Loving one another —

What can happen in a religious order
is the people who are religious —
can have tension with other religious
they are called to live with — not
recognizing God has called them to be
a strong unit — like the parts of the
body — working together for a happy
family in the Church — praying in love
as a unit — but always obedient to
authority and serving the head of the
Church, Jesus Christ —

    A family of love —

    Some religious will work to keep
deep family ties —

    Where a man and woman who marry
leave father and mother —

    The family of a religious may see
them as single and not married to
Me, Jesus, and really a strong part
of their new family — the community
they belong to —

    Religious are My Spouse

    Religious are to grow in their
        special marriage to Me

    Religious are to witness to others
        how special it is to be
        the Spouse of Jesus —

    that I am the bridegroom of their soul,
In a world of souls crying out to
know the love they are hungry for —
I give you the letters of love of God's
Blue Books — I give you this song — 

 

 

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

    

    The message of hope —

    You were created to love God

    You were created to love one another —

    A religious order cannot work as God wants with
people who are not united in kindness with the
community — A person entering a religious
order — not seeing themselves as one with
the others will many times seek union
with others outside the community —
they may seek strong ties with their family
    and see the order as depriving them of
    their personal freedom

---

After years of trying to live single lives and
    establish ties outside the community —
    many religious orders vanished and that
    support in love of communities
    united in prayer dwindled —

The world is suffering more and more from
    divorced families, children from divorced
    homes, the family meal being replaced
    by sports — the focus on fame, riches
    and power —

    Rather than permanent commitment
to the family not divorced —
the people in the order establishing a
working, kind relationship in union
doing a particular mission in serving
the Church and the world in prayer and mission —

The power is in being one with the Almighty,
    All Powerful loving God —

The message Mary gave at Fatima

   

Excerpt from The Spirituality of Fatima

by Fr. Edward J. Carter, S.J.

    ...Tell everybody that God gives graces through the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Tell them to ask grace from her, and that the Heart of Jesus wishes to be venerated together with the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Ask them to plead for peace from the Immaculate Heart of Mary, for the Lord has confided the peace of the world to her. ⁽¹⁹⁾

---

NOTES:

19. For background material on Fatima, I am particularly indebted to
        Our Lady of Fatima’s Peace Plan from Heaven (Rockford:
        TAN Books and Publishers, Inc., 1983). p.9.

  

And the messages given to Fr. Carter and to me
    about the Shepherds of Christ helping to bring to
    completion the mission Mary began
    at Fatima and
    the era of peace
    the Reign of Jesus' Heart and Triumph of
    Mary's heart gives us peace —

But God told us what to do
    God gave us the Shepherds of Christ Movement
    God told Fr. Carter to start the prayer chapters
        and myself 

  

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)

 

 

A message for the Earth from Jesus

January 22, 1998

  

    I am the Good Shepherd, these are My prayers, the prayers I give to help renew the Church and the world, all prayer chapters are asked to include these prayers (found in the Shepherds of Christ Prayer Manual). As My Apostles and Shepherds I ask you to encourage all existing Chapters to try to encourage all existing prayer groups to pray the Shepherds of Christ prayers. Encourage all Churches to pray these prayers. It is most urgent that the people of this earth concur with the Father's wishes to begin Prayer Chapters. This is an urgent request from the Good Shepherd. The flock will become one when they have given their hearts to Jesus and Mary. Encourage all priests to pray the Shepherds of Christ prayers. Your world will be lighted with great light as the people of this earth pray these prayers.

    My promise is this to you My beloved earth: When you give your heart to Me and spread the devotion to My Sacred Heart, I will write your name In My Heart. I promise to give the greatest graces when you pray these prayers for renewal of the Church and the world and take all who pray them deeply into My Heart. The prayers I give will bring about the reign of My Sacred Heart and the triumph of Mary's Immaculate Heart. I am Jesus Christ, this is My message of January 22, 1998, Please circulate this message to your world. I am the Good Shepherd, I know Mine and Mine know Me and they follow Me. Grace My Shepherds, I will give you the greatest graces for spreading these words to this earth and to your Church. I love you, I am Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, it is the Plan of the Father that Prayer Chapters are begun immediately and the Priestly Newsletter is given to all priests. The Voice of the Good Shepherd speaks through it.

end of January 22, 1998

 

Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus

My dear fellow Associate Members,

Jesus is calling special apostles to join a new division of the Shepherds of Christ Movement. Here is a message from Jesus given to Father Carter:

    My beloved priest-companion, I am requesting that a new prayer movement be started under the direction of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. I am asking for volunteers who are willing to pray before the Blessed Sacrament for one hour, twice-weekly. Members of the Shepherds of Christ prayer chapters, as well as others, are to be invited to join this movement.

    These apostles are to pray for the intentions I am giving you. For part of the hour they are to use the prayers of the Shepherds of Christ Associates Handbook. They may spend the rest of the hour as they so choose.

    I will use this new prayer movement within My Shepherds of Christ Ministries in a powerful way to help in the renewal of My Church and the world. I will give great graces to those who join this movement. The name, Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, is to be given to this movement.

    I am inviting My beloved Rita Ring to be coordinator for this activity.

    I pour out the great love of My Sacred Heart to all. I am Jesus, Chief Shepherd of the flock.

    This is indeed a special calling for us to unite in one heart with His Eucharistic Heart and pray for the following intentions:

1. For the spread of the devotion to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary culminating in the reign of the Sacred Heart and the triumph of the Immaculate Heart.

2. For the Pope.

3. For all bishops of the world.

4. For all priests.

5. For all sisters and brothers in the religious life.

6. For all members of the Shepherds of Christ Movement, and for the spread of this movement to the world.

7. For all members of the Catholic Church.

8. For all members of the human family.

9. For all souls in purgatory.

end of Apostles of the Eucharistic Heart message

                 

      

   

October 13, 1994

The Birth of the Full Ministries
of the Shepherds of Christ

    "I wish to share with you part of a message which Jesus gave us on October 13, 1994. The message tells us about the expansion of the Shepherds of Christ movement:

    'My beloved priest-companion, today I come to you with another mission. I am asking you to establish Shepherds of Christ Ministries. At My request you have already begun the priestly newsletter, "Shepherds of Christ", and the prayer chapters, Shepherds of Christ Associates...

    'I am giving you this message on this day, the 77th Anniversary of the Great Apparition at Fatima, because of the close connection between the Shepherds of Christ movement and the Fatima message. The Fatima message is centered in devotion to My Heart and My Mother's Heart, especially in consecration to Our Hearts. Shepherds of Christ Ministries is also centered in devotion to Our Hearts. I will use Shepherds of Christ Ministries as a great instrument in helping to bring about the triumph of the Immaculate Heart and the reign of My Sacred Heart. When this occurs, My Church and the world will be experiencing the great era of peace promised by My Mother at Fatima.

    'Today, then, October 13, 1994, the 77th Anniversary of the Great Apparition at Fatima, marks the birth of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. I pour forth the great love of My Sacred Heart to all. I am Jesus, Chief Shepherd of the flock.'

    "Jesus has told us that Shepherds of Christ Ministries includes: the priestly newsletter, Shepherds of Christ, Shepherds of Christ Associates prayer chapters, various publications, including books, whatever else Our Lord directs us to undertake.

    "As members of Shepherds of Christ Associates, you are an extremely important part of Shepherds of Christ Ministries. You have given great joy to the Heart of Jesus by responding to His invitation to become members of Shepherds of Christ Associates. As He draws you closer to His Heart and to His Mother's Heart as Associates members, He will fill you with an ever-increasing experience of His love, peace, and joy."

- From In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary, Newsletter of Shepherds of Christ Associates
by Fr. Edward J. Carter S.J., Volume 1, No. 1, 1995. p. 2.

 

   

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 speaks: (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

 

Problems —

Analyzing it as God wants —

Not reaching a solution

but — waiting for God's solution

God's timing —

 

---

 

Respect for human life

Respect for authority

ORDER

NOT DISORDER

Taking Responsibility for our
    errors —

Conversion

Reparation

Renewal —

Dying to ones - self and
    living a deeper life of
    resurrection in Him

Love — God is love
    to minimize love is to miss
        the boat —

The Age of the Two Hearts is
    the Era of Love —

To be more and more pure like
    the Hearts of Jesus and Mary —

Not to be attached inordinately
    to attachments

More and more pure motive — doing
    things because it is the
    will of God in love

Love of God

Love of others as one self —

To act purely — not
    impurely because of
    concupiscence — to dare to
    change because it is our
    calling to be more and more
    pure — in the image of God —

To take responsibility for our
    sins and tell God we have
    sinned and are sorry —

This is so we have a good relationship
    with God —
    Not based on lying to ourselves
    about our imperfections —

This is truth with God and
    others —

The Trinity
    3 Persons — one God
    Perfect LOVE —

Relationships become or are
    impure when the
    imperfections of lust,
    jealousy, envy, selfishness,
    sin is there

Love is having relationship as
    God intends to live more
    purely united as the members of
    a body — the hand and fingers, toe
    and heart, the blood — all work
    as one - together - to bring life
    to the body

    When one's heart is clogged the
physical body don't work so
good —

    We are empowered because we
are more deeply one in Him living
in the Spirit —

    We are to tell the world more and
more as living like the body of
Christ —

    We need to spread these letters in
the Blue Books so we will learn to
live deeply united to God —
in this lies our strength —