Love of Neighbor: Feast of the Visitation and Memorial Day

Today we celebrate both Memorial Day and the feast of The Visitation, the Second Joyful Mystery.  They are beautifully tied together through the fruit, or virtue, of this mystery which is Love of Neighbor. 

The Blessed Mother embodies love of neighbor in her perfect charity. After Mary accepted her role as Mother of  the Redeemer, the Angel Gabriel informed her that her aging and previously barren cousin Elizabeth was six months pregnant.  Mary went "in haste" to visit her cousin and offer assistance.  Imagine that!  Mary was told that she was to be the mother of the Savior, and she thinks nothing of herself.  She doesn't run out and tell everyone she knows, "Hey!  Guess what?"  Instead, she quickly prepares for a rather difficult journey to the hill country because she knows that her cousin is elderly and will need lots of help.  Mary doesn't need to tell Elizabeth her secret.  The Holy Spirit does this for her and even informs the developing infant in her womb, John the Baptist, who jumps for joy as he recognizes the Divine Presence of the Son of Man.  Elizabeth declares that Mary is "blessed among women." (Luke 1:42)  She is God's masterpiece of human creation, and her soul magnifies His presence through her perfect humility and charity.

On this Memorial Day, we recall Jesus' words, "No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends." (John 15:13) As we remember and honor those who died for our nation today, think of how they died not only for their friends, but for millions of strangers. Please pray for their souls and for the families who mourn them.

Short Blogging Break

I'm taking a short break from blogging this week as we have family in town.  Also, my husband is in charge of dedicating a veterans' memorial on Friday, and he needs all the help he can get.

Please pray that all the little details necessary for such a big event get done (and done well).  Please especially pray that the weather is perfect as the forecast is not good for Friday.  The ceremony is outdoors and includes military paratroopers and an Air Force jet flyover, so good weather is critical.  I have been constantly badgering St. Martin of Tours for divine intercession for my husband's project.

During this Memorial Day weekend, please keep our soldiers and veterans, as well as their families, in your prayers.  (While you're at it, why not pray for those who pretend to be veterans too.)   This link has several prayers for the military.

I'll be back next week with more reflections on the Rosary.

Pentecost and the Tower of Babel

"Christ's whole life is a mystery of recapitulation. All Jesus did, said and suffered had for its aim restoring fallen man to his original vocation."
-Catechism of the Catholic Church, Section 518

Sometimes recapitulation can be a type of reversal of Old Testament events by those in the New Testament.  Pentecost is one example.  Do you remember the story of the Tower of Babel?  At one time, "The whole world spoke the same language, using the same words." (Gen 11:1)  Yet man, once again, became arrogant and thought he could be like God.  The people built a giant tower, with a goal of reaching heaven to make a name for themselves.  God thwarted their plans by confusing their language, hence the name Babel. (Gen 11:9) 

Does this mean that people literally started speaking Greek, Spanish, Italian and French?  Possibly not.  I like one interpretation that I heard a few years ago:  In modern times we talk of "speaking the same language" as sort of "being on the same page".  That is, we agree and want to work together.  At Babel, the people stopped agreeing.  Perhaps one worker wanted to use a certain type of stone and another thought that was a bad idea.  Or perhaps they disagreed about how high each level should be or when they should take breaks to eat.  Fights began to break out, and the project was abandoned due to all the hostility.  People drifted away to other parts of the world and slowly developed their own unique languages.  An interesting theory, I think.

Now what does that have to do with Pentecost?  Recall that after the Apostles received the Holy Spirit, they went outside and proclaimed the Gospel to the thousands of Jews from all over the region who had gathered for the Pentecost feast (see yesterday's post for more info). 

"They were astounded, and in amazement they asked, 'Are not all these people who are speaking Galileans? Then how does each of us hear them in his own native language?  We are Parthians, Medes, and Elamites, inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya near Cyrene, as well as travelers from Rome, both Jews and converts to Judaism, Cretans and Arabs, yet we hear them speaking in our own tongues of the mighty acts of God.'" (Acts 2: 7-11)

The Holy Spirit, through the Apostles, reverses the confused language of the Tower of Babel.  The people are once more united through the proclamation of the Good News of Christ.  Peter's words were so compelling that about 3,000 people were baptized that day.  The disunity of the Tower of Babel has become the unity of the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church-- the "four marks" that identify the Church that Christ founded.

We modern-day Christians need to re-learn the lesson of "speaking the same language".  Too often these days, political correctness causes us to hold our tongues when we should say something, whether it be words of encouragement or gentle warnings that a person is on the wrong path.  We have oxymorons such as "Pro-Choice Catholic" and "Rad Trad Catholic" that drive a wedge of disunity into our Church.  The Holy Spirit is still alive and well in the Catholic Church today.   Like the Mary and the Apostles at Pentecost, we must spend much time in prayer to receive His grace.

Pentecost and the Ten Commandments

In other posts, I've mentioned the connection between the Old Testament and the New in regard to the mysteries of the Rosary. The Third Glorious Mystery, The Descent of the Holy Spirit, is no exception.  With the celebration of Pentecost fresh in our minds, this is a good time to delve a little deeper into the mystery.

We think of Pentecost as a Christian celebration, but it actually goes all the way back to the days of Moses.  Pentecost means "fiftieth" or "50 days," and Moses received the Law, or Ten Commandments, on Mount Sinai fifty days after the Israelites fled Egypt on the night of the Passover. (Exodus Chapters 12-13 and Exodus Chapter 34)  After that year, the Israelites celebrated Pentecost every year, giving thanks to God for the first fruits of the harvest.

It is no coincidence, then, that the Descent of the Holy Spirit occurred on the day of the annual Pentecost feast in Jerusalem.  We celebrate this day as the "Birthday of the Church," because the New Law was proclaimed by Peter and the Apostles, who were literally on fire with the Spirit.  This New Law is the fulfillment of the Old Testament Law given to Moses on that first Pentecost thousands of years earlier.

Our Christian feast of Pentecost also ties in with the Jewish firstfruit concept of the ancient Pentecost feasts.  St. Paul states in 1 Cor 15:20-25),

"But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead came also through a human being. For just as in Adam all die, so too in Christ shall all be brought to life, but each one in proper order: Christ the firstfruits; then, at his coming, those who belong to Christ; then comes the end, when he hands over the kingdom to his God and Father, when he has destroyed every sovereignty and every authority and power.  For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet."

As we celebrate the "Birthday of the Church," we look, filled with hope, to the day when our resurrected bodies will rejoice in the Kingdom of Heaven.

Related links:
The Roots of Pentecost
About Pentecost Sunday
Pentecost: The Birthday of the Church

Rain in the Desert

My Novena to the Holy Spirit ends tomorrow, and I plan to wear red to Mass on Pentecost Sunday, but I still feel like pre-Pentecost Peter-- lost and not sure what I'm supposed to be doing.  I'm in the desert, spiritually, once again, and it's no fun. 

My prayers seem pointless.  I am easily distracted during Mass, and I have to force myself to pray.  I know that spiritual dryness is a good thing and that I'm being "purified" so that my faith can be more mature.  Unfortunately, that knowledge doesn't make it any easier.  What does make my time in the desert easier, is looking forward to the rain of grace that will eventually come if I persevere in prayer.

Since I am a veteran of the desert experience, I know that at some point I will feel God's grace come back into my life.  Sometimes it is a gentle rain, other times it's like a fire hose.  At those moments, I know without a shadow of a doubt that there is a God and that He loves me very much.  That knowledge keeps me on my knees during that "dark night of the soul".

Related links:

I have a copy of Dark Night of the Soul by St. John of the Cross, but I haven't read it yet.  I'm sure it will be enlightening when I can find the time.  In the meantime, I found the articles at the link above for "spiritual dryness" very helpful and informative.

Rosary Workouts

As soldiers of Christ, we are all called to spread the Good News of the Gospels.  One way we can do this is through our words and actions, by "[loving]  God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind... and [loving] your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:37-39)

Note that there are three requirements here:  Love of God, love of neighbor and love of self.  That last love is often forgotten, but we must love and care for our selves-- body and soul.  We are created in God‘s image, and we are masterpieces of God‘s creation.  Our human person, body and soul, is a gift from God-- it is of utmost importance to care for both.  We cannot love ourselves if we neglect our bodily and spiritual needs.  It's tough to love God and our neighbor if we don't love ourselves.  I'm not talking about a self-centered, "Me! Me! Me!" approach here but rather cultivating your self-worth and dignity as a child of God.

My apostolate (or lay "ministry") is to spread devotion to the Rosary as well as to motivate others to exercise regularly.  The Rosary is a relatively simple prayer, but its blessings and benefits are enormous.  If you simply pray the Rosary on a regular basis, the Blessed Mother will see to it that you improve your spiritual life in other ways.  As St. Louis de Montfort powerfully states in his book The Secret of the Rosary,

"If you say the Rosary faithfully until death, I do assure you that in spite of the gravity of your sins you shall receive a never fading crown of glory. For even if you are now on the brink of damnation, even if you have one foot in Hell, even if you have sold your soul to the devil, sooner or later you will be converted. Heaven will amend your life and save your soul if you say the Rosary devoutly every day of your life."

If the Rosary helps to "save your soul," then regular exercise helps to save your body.  Taking time to exercise is not selfish, unless it is taken to an extreme or becomes an obsession.  Our bodies were created to move.  Neglect of the body through inactivity can lead to disease, low energy, and a decreased sense of self-worth.  Many studies have shown that those who exercise have a better outlook on life and an increased self-esteem.  Exercise helps you love yourself so that you are better able to love God and your neighbor.  Through regular exercise and Rosary prayer, you can become a better vessel to do your part in spreading the Good News.

My book, The Rosary Workout, outlines a program to integrate Rosary prayer and exercise and helps you form a lifelong habit of both.  You can buy the softcover version on Amazon or the ebook version on my website.

I am honored that Catholic.net has invited me to be a regular contributor to their Fitness channel.  I just published my first article, A Sensible Solution for Regular Exercise.

Since I have a bit of free reign in choosing topics for articles, I would love to hear any thoughts and suggestions you might have.  Please leave a comment on this post or email me at peggy [at] rosaryworkout [dot] com  (My email address is written this way to reduce spam emails.)

Related links:

I  found a lot of wisdom and insight from a Catholic perspective of fitness in Robert Feeney's book, The Catholic Ideal: Exericise and Sports

Children and the Rosary

One of the terrific benefits of being a Catholic author and freelance writer is meeting so many wonderful people, either in real life or online.  One such person is a fellow military wife, mom, blogger and Rosary devotee named Maia.  A few weeks ago, she emailed me asking for ideas for the Rosary Field Day she was running for her CCD classes.  She wanted it to be outside, on the track at the base where her husband is stationed.  After some prayer and thought, I came up with a few ideas and sent them to her.  She was the genius behind the implementation, and it was so fun to read about the field day on her blog.  This would be a great activity for CCD classes, a homeschool group or even just to implement with your own family.  I loved how Maia stated that all the children remembered the mysteries after the event.

Another online friend is Lindy Meyer, who created a Catholic version of the popular lapbook concept used by homeschoolers.  She calls her projects "Faith Folders," and they're terrific!  You don't need to be a homeschooler to take advantage of her great products.  I ordered the Most Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary faith folder, and I am so impressed!  There are 114 pages for the project and it will keep your crafty child occupied for hours as she cuts and pastes the pockets to make the folder.  The content is fantastic and includes a brief history of the Rosary, Church teachings, and Bible quotes, summaries and beautiful artwork for all 20 mysteries.  Lindy has created a variety of faith folders and other products to help enrich your family's Domestic Church.

Children learn by doing and a faith folder or a field day will help them remember the Rosary prayers and mysteries.  They may even surprise you by asking, "Can you pray the Rosary with us?"

Since Memorial Day is coming soon, please pray a Rosary for all our military men and women, especially those in harm's way.  Do remember to include the families who love and support them.