Grace: Sorrow, compassion, and shame because the Lord is undergoing His passion for my sins. Text for Prayer: John 18:12-40 Reflection: What do we hope will vindicate us? When all is said and done, what do we wish to be the justification for our thoughts, words, deeds, and omissions? One often hears people use phrases… Read more »
Posts By: Mr. David Paternostro, S.J.
Miserable, and Yet Chosen
| XXVI.Grace: An intimate knowledge of our Lord, Who has called me, that I might love Him more and follow Him more closely. Text for Prayer: John 1: 31-51 Reflection: The Apostles who were called to follow Jesus are well described by the motto of Pope Francis: miserando atque eligendo (“miserable yet chosen”). None of the… Read more »
Habemus Papam!
From the time of St. Ignatius, there has always been a special relationship between the Holy Father and the Society of Jesus. In one of our founding documents, St. Ignatius invites to be a Jesuit “whosoever desires to serve as a soldier of God beneath the banner of the Cross [...] and to serve the… Read more »
The Small, Quiet Kingdom
| XIV.Grace: An intimate knowledge of our Lord, Who has become man for me, that I may love Him more and follow Him more closely Text for Prayer: Spiritual Exercises nos. 101-109 Reflection: In Jesus of Nazareth, Pope Benedict, following Origen, describes Jesus as the Kingdom of God personified. Christ Himself is the place where the will… Read more »
Courage Under Fire
At the start of the Spiritual Exercises, St. Ignatius provides a series of Annotations—instructions for the director and retreatant on how to give and make this retreat. In his Fifth Annotation, St. Ignatius advises the retreatant “to enter into [the Exercises] with great courage and generosity.” At the end of this week, the reason for… Read more »
Unselfishness and Discernment
The first half of the week has been dedicated to praying over scenes not found in the gospels. A major focus of these prayers has been allowing us to take a good look at ourselves. Such an activity is not always thought of when one things of the Christian life (or the virtuous life in… Read more »
Human, All Too Human
The week began with Christ in a feeding trough. Subsequent meditations defied expectation and presented the life of Christ in an even less glamorous light. Mary is told of the sufferings she will undergo. The Holy Family flees to Egypt to escape the persecution of Herod. Jesus becomes separated from Mary and Joseph in order… Read more »
Lead, Kindly Light
The prayers this week are a study in contrasts. We began by meditating on Hell, meditated on our losses, and by the end heard the call of Christ the King. Through the mire of sin, we still have a recognition that the life that we are leading is not the life we were made for…. Read more »
Understanding in Sinfulness
The posts this week have been dedicated to meditating on our sinfulness. By and large, it is not a subject that we like to think about too often. The Jesuit philosopher Bernard Lonergan wrote of the concept of a “flight from understanding.” With certain subjects, we simply overlook them because they are uncomfortable. We would… Read more »
Strange Beginnings
The start of this Lenten blog does not seem like the start of a Lenten blog. When we think of Lent, we think of purifying ourselves of our sins, doing penances, denying ourselves the fruits of creation. Essentially, when we think of Lent, we think of almost anything but what the blog has covered thus… Read more »