Be Resilient! Advice for the New Year....Happy New Year!!

Never give up...keep trying...be resilient....everyone who has ever achieved their goals were all resilient, they all persevered.....In the spiritual life, perseverance is very important. NJA

"I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I've been trusted to take the game winning shot.....and missed. I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

 Michael Jordan- considered one of the greatest Basketball Players of all time-Born in Brooklyn, NY

St. Teresa of Calcutta's Quote on Being Bold

"I am very sure of God. I trust God's love. I hope many things or rather everything from God. That is what has made me dare so far." St. Teresa of Calcutta

We have to be more bold and daring for God. Like St. Paul, like so many of the saints, we have to dare to go above and beyond and be guided each day by the Spirit. The modern world demands boldness from the disciples of Christ!

Importance of Light

I know not a single word fine enough for light........holy, beamless, bodiless, inaudible floods of light."
John Muir

Sunlight streaming across the bay, light that gives life. Jesus said, I am the Light of the World.
NJA

Be Creative for Christ!

"Find your voice, shout it from the rooftops, and keep doing it until the people that are looking for you find you."
Dan Harmon

The Church and all Christians need to be more creative, think outside the box and start showing others all the good and depth that is a part of who we are. NJA

John Muir Quote on Walking in Nature

"In every walk with nature one receives far more than they seek."
John Muir  (also known as "John of the Mountains." Muir was a Scottish-American environmentalist, naturalist, author and early advocate for protecting the wilderness in America.)

According to studies I've read walking in nature is good for the soul, mind and body......walking in nature in sunshine lessens depression and lifts one's spirits and improves overall mental health.
NJA

St. Alphonsus Liguori On Speaking With God In All Circumstances

"Acquire the habit of speaking to God with familiarity and confidence, as to your dearest and most loving friend. Speak of your life, your plans, your troubles, your joys, your fears. In return, God will speak to you--not that you will hear audible words in your ears, but words that you will clearly understand in your heart."

St. Alphonsus Liguori (Bishop, founder of the Redemptorists, spiritual writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, philosopher, and theologian)

Lord, give us the courage to follow your will and be guided by your Holy Spirit as St. Alphonsus was. May we have fruitful lives too!

St. Faustina On Pleasing God

"Pure love is capable of great deeds and it is not broken by difficulty or adversity. It knows that only one thing is needed to please God: to do even the smallest thing out of great love."
St. Faustina

Many saints have spoken of doing small things with great love such as St. Therese of Lisieux and in our own time, Mother Teresa.

Jesus Blesses the Earth

Jesus to St. Faustina:

"For your sake I will withhold the hand that punishes, for your sake I bless the Earth..."

(Diary of St. Faustina -431)

Bernie Sanders Impressed With Pope Francis

"He is a beautiful man. I am not a Catholic but there is a radiance that comes from him."

Bernie Sanders referring to his brief meeting with Pope Francis.

What Difference Does Easter Make in the Life of A Christian?

Fr. James Martin summed it up perfectly in his recent article for the Wall Street Journal ......

"What difference does Easter make in the life of the Christian? The message of Easter is, all at once, easy to understand, radical, subversive and life-changing. Easter means that nothing is impossible with God. Moreover, that life triumphs over death, Love triumphs over hatred. Hope triumphs over despair. And that suffering is not the last word." (WSJ article, Fr. James Martin, Easter 2016)

I say AMEN to all of that!!
NJA

Importance of Stories

"To Survive You Must Tell Stories"
(Umberto Eco)

Jesus told stories and parables and related to the people of his time with earthiness, truth and compassion.

Mysticism-One Definition Among Many

"Mysticism does not create distance with others; it does not create an abstract life, but brings one closer to others because one begins to see and act with the eyes, with the heart of God."

Pope Benedict XVI

There are many definitions and explanations of mysticism. I also like this definition, "The direct experience of the presence of God."