The Beauty of God's Creation

FR. BONAVENTURE, OFM -2ND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST VIDEO SERMON
HERE IS FR. BONAVENTURE, OFM AT THE NEW PARISH IN FILLMORE, NY 


FR. JOSEPH, OFM AUDIO SERMON FOR 2ND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST

HOLY MASS -2ND SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST-FR. BERNARD, OFM 

Blessed Andrew of Spello

 

Blessed Andrew of Spello
(Beato Andrea di Spello)Feast Day – June 3

Andrew was a parish priest in his native city of Spello, not far from Assisi, and administered his duties with the utmost zeal of a true shepherd of souls. He admired St Francis and his first companions, and reflected on how they went about preaching and doing good in the cities and towns of Italy, just as Christ our Lord and His apostles once traveled about in Judea.

In 1223, when his mother and sister had died, the forty-four-year-old parish priest came to St Francis and asked to be received among the brethren o his order. The holy founder gladly granted his request, personally invested him with the holy habit, and soon sent him out to preach.

In the year 1226 Andrew was present with other brethren around the deathbed of their Seraphic Father. In giving him his blessing, St Francis foretold that much fruit would be derived from his preaching of the divine word. The results soon verified the prophecy.

When Andrew was called to Spain to attend the general chapter of the order, a prolonged drought had dried up all the fields of Soria, where the chapter was being held. Andrew told the inhabitants that this was a punishment for their sins, and warned them forcefully to do penance. They were all moved to such deep contrition that they burst into tears. Then he entreated God to ward off the punishment, and behold, at once a plentiful rain fell which restored everything to life. In other places, too, God supported his words with the most unusual miracles; he even restored dead persons to life.

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Blessed Andrew of Spello rejoiced at the blessings which resulted everywhere from his sermons. But at the same time his reputation spread everywhere, and his humility urged him to evade the honors. With the consent of his superiors he retired to the secluded convent of the Carceri, where, engaged in quiet prayer and severe mortification, he led a more heavenly than earthy life.

One day the Lord of heaven visited him. In the grotto in which Andrew lived, Christ appeared to him in the form of a beautiful boy. But just then the little bell rang out for Vespers. At the first signal Andrew left the grotto in order to heed the call of obedience. When he returned from Vespers, he found the Divine Child still there, who said to him:

“It was well that you heeded the call of obedience; I will be merciful to you.”

Not long afterwards Andrew was granted the greatest of all graces here on earth, the grace of a holy death. Rich in virtues and merits, he died on June 3, 1254. Numerous miracles occurred at his grave in the church of the Apostle St Andrew at Spello. The public veneration accorded Blessed Andrew of Spello was approved by Popes Clement XII and Benedict XIV.

From: Franciscan Book of Saints by Marion Habig, OFM

THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH Her Doctrine and Morals Second Sunday after Pentecost 10 June 2012

The Sunday Sermon

Dear Friends,

How strange it is that God must invite us to come to Him! It seems that we should naturally run to Him. Our very nature should compel us to seek Him and follow Him even before an invitation is ever sent.

It is the effects of sin that has darkened our eyes so as not to see or desire our greatest good – God. Sin has left us wandering in darkness. We are as the blind leading the blind. We form false ideas of what the light might be and search for it in all the wrong places. Many even mistake the darkness they are in for light because they can see or know nothing of the true light.

The Son of God has come, sent by the Father, to invite us to the supper of light and truth. Many have refused to come because they have grown comfortable in the darkness of sin. Each gave a superficial worldly reason for his unwillingness to go to the supper guised as an inability to attend. There is customarily the proviso at the end of each inexcusable excuse to please “hold them excused.”

Sin comes in many forms – though all sin is turning away from God. There is the concupiscence of the eyes, the concupiscence of the flesh, and the pride of life. Each of these categories present themselves to us today in the excuses given by those in the Gospel.

“I have bought a farm” represents all those who are eager with curiosity to see and know the things of this earth and are content to remain blind to the things of God. The farm is not going anywhere. We can see it at any time. We must seek first the Kingdom of Heaven. The farm itself is a gift from God and it was given to us so that we might draw closer to God, not so that it might become an obstacle to Him. How perversely we now use God’s own gifts against Him!

“I have bought five yoke of oxen” represent the pride we take in ruling or controlling the things of this earth. This foolish pride makes us think of ourselves as rulers. A vanity ensues that is very hard to ever remove. Today it might be the pride in our automobiles, technology, etc.

“I have married a wife” shows us all those consumed with the concupiscence of the flesh. The passions and lusts of our bodies blind us to the light and overpower and consume us so that we lose all self-control. These sins become all consuming and relentlessly bear us down. Our intellects become soiled and dull, as we look for light and happiness in darkness and filth.

These are the broad categories that encompass all the sins or excuses of mankind which keep us from heeding the invitation and thus ever seeing the true light and tasting the true joys of heaven.

Christ’s parables are given to us not to entertain us, or even to just instruct us. Rather, we should become motivated to change our lives. They are designed to move our wills to that which is true, right and good. Profound truths are presented in a simple manner so that we can grasp them even in the darkness of our sins. With glimpses into the truth we make use of the opportunity to see ourselves and turn away from darkness and seek out the light.

We have reached the opposite extreme as was present in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. They knew the Light and Goodness but did not know darkness and sin. Men today, on the other hand, know darkness and sin, but do not know Light and Goodness. Adam and Eve came to know darkness and sin through doubt and disobedience; we must come to know Light and Goodness through faith, and obedience. We must believe Jesus who speaks the truth to us and we must obey or hear and follow His invitation to the Supper of Light, Truth, and Goodness. Through Faith and obedience we can turn away from the ignorance and darkness of sin and enter into the wisdom and Light of Grace.

Men will never know the true pleasures and joys that God offers them unless they renounce the only joys they now imagine that they know. This requires Faith and obedience to God. Let us make that loving act of Faith and obedience to God and renounce the false pleasures of sin that we have grown attached to so that through Faith we may obtain the eternal joys of the Heavenly Banquet.

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VIDEO: Planned Parenthood’s ‘Margaret Sanger’ clinic in NY welcomes sex-selection abortion

Kathleen Gilbert

Thu May 31 08:22 EST

Abortion

“I can tell you that here at Planned Parenthood we believe that it’s not up to us to decide what is a good or a bad reason for somebody to decide to terminate a pregnancy,” said the New York employee.

Full Story

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 Thanks to Kurt for working so hard to get the sermon for us from this Sunday.  We had been having some technical difficulties but he has finally after a lot of work, thought and sweat solved them!


HERE IS THE LINK TO THE SERMON FOR THE 4TH SUNDAY AFTER EASTER - OUR LADYOF THE ROSARY - FR. BERNARD OFM