"On Heaven"

"Saints in Paradise,"  Fra Angelico

We've adopted St. Alphonsus Liguori, Doctor of the Church, as our guide through this Lent.  The following is taken from a sermon of St. Alphonsus for the Second Sunday of Lent:

"[H]ow . .  . beautiful shall be the city of Paradise.  . . . [W]hat it must be to behold the beauty of Jesus Christ!  St. Teresa once saw one of the hands of Jesus Christ, and was struck with astonishment at the sight of such beauty.  . . . The hearing shall be satiated with the harmony of the celestial choirs.  St. Francis once heard for a moment an angel playing on a violin, and he almost died through joy. . . .But the delights of which we have spoken are the least of the blessings of Paradise.  The glory of Heaven consists in seeing and loving God face to face. . . . God himself, whom the saints are allowed to behold, is, according to the promise made to Abraham, the principal reward of the just in Heaven.  "I am thy reward exceeding great" - Gen. xv. 1.  St. Augustine asserts, that, were God to show his face to the damned, "Hell would be instantly changed into a Paradise of delights."

St. Alphonsus Liguori, pray for us. 

And when the number of babies reaches zero the savings become infinite

The lesson: don't let her get the idea you're a cost

That's the reductio ad absurdum of Kathleen Sebelius's argument before Congress that the contraception mandate will save the country money because “[t]he reduction in the number of pregnancies compensates for the cost of contraception.”   Thus, in Sebelius's view, and presumably the view of the Obama administration which she serves, pregnancy is purely a cost.  

"On the number of sins beyond which God pardons no more" (conclusion)

"Sinners in Hell"

The following is taken from a sermon for the First Sunday of Lent by St. Alphonsus Liguori, Doctor of the Church:

"God has promised pardon to all who repent; but he has not promised to wait till to-morrow for those who insult him.  Perhaps God will give you time for repentance, perhaps he will not.  But, should he not give it, what shall become of your soul?  In the meantime, for the sake of a miserable pleasure, you lose the grace of God, and expose yourself to the danger of being lost for ever. . . . You have sinned, trusting rashly in the divine mercy: the punishment of your guilt shall fall suddenly upon you, and you shall not know from whence it comes.  What do you say?  What resolution do you make?  If, after this sermon, you do not firmly resolve to give yourself to God, I weep over you, and regard you as lost."


St. Alphonsus Liguori, pray for us.

Plenary Indulgence Alert (Number 2)

 "The Crucifixion"  Georges Rouault

A plenary indulgence is available to the faithful who, on Fridays during Lent, piously recite the prayer En ego, o bone et dulcissime Iesu, before an image of the Crucified Jesus Christ after communion.  Rorate Caeli has more here

"On the number of sins beyond which God pardons no more" (Part 2)

"Sinners in Hell," Cathedral of the Assumption, Torcello, Italy. (12th Century)

The following is taken from a sermon for the First Sunday of Lent by St. Alphonsus Liguori, Doctor of the Church:

  
"Son, add not sins to those which you have already committed, but be careful to pray for the pardon of your past transgressions; otherwise, if you commit another mortal sin, the gates of the divine mercy may be closed against you, and your soul may be lost for ever.  When, then, beloved brethren, the Devil tempts you again to yield to sin, say to yourself: If God pardons me no more, what shall become of me for all eternity?  Should the Devil, in reply, say: Fear not, God is merciful; answer him by saying: What certainty or what probability have I, that, if I return again to sin, God will show me mercy or grant me pardon?  Behold the threat of the Lord against all who despise his calls: "Because I have called and you refused, .....I also will laugh in your destruction, and will mock when that shall come to you which you feared" Prov,. i, 24, 26.

St. Alphonsus Liguori, pray for us.

New Inigo Hicks short story

The latest Inigo Hicks short story, "Ponies" is now available through Amazon for those of you who have a Kindle.  It's named for small beer bottles like the one above, not the small horses.

March is St. Joseph's Month

St. Joseph's Zeppola (getting harder to find every year)

 
For centuries, the Church has devoted the month of March to St. Joseph, the foster father of Christ, whose feast is celebrated on March 19.   Many saints and popes have recommended this devotion, including St. Teresa of Avila, who wrote of St. Joseph:

“Would that I could persuade all men to be devoted to this glorious Saint [St. Joseph], for I know by long experience what blessings he can obtain for us from God. I have never known anyone who was truly devoted to him and honored him by particular services who did not advance greatly in virtue: for he helps in a special way those souls who commend themselves to him. It is now very many years since I began asking him for something on his feast, and I have always received it."

Here is a short intecessory prayer to St. Joseph:

 O Joseph, virgin-father of Jesus, most pure spouse of the Virgin Mary, pray every day for us to the same Jesus, the Son of God, that we, being defended by the power of His grace and striving dutifully in life, may be crowned by Him at the hour of death.

St. Joseph, pray for us.