Scraps From A Spiritual Diary

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Friday, April 9, 2004

The "Heart" As We Know It

You made us for yourself, O God; and our hearts remain restless until they rest in You (St. Augustine) The Catechism of the Catholic Church gives a prominent place to the biblical image of the "heart" as the "I" of the human being. All the numbered references below are on the Catechism of the... Sign in to see full entry.

Thursday, April 8, 2004

Pray Without Ceasing

Your prayer is your desire. If your desire grows faint so does your prayer (St. Augustine) "Pray without ceasing." This is what Paul recommended to the early Christians, exhorting them to do so as he does for them. But how do we pray "without ceasing?" St. Augustine interprets the passage in a way... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, April 6, 2004

Inwardness as Spirituality

How spirituality came to be understood with the connotation of "inwardness" as opposed to "outwardness", "interior life" as against "exterior life" is traceable to the Christian scriptures, especially to that of Paul, in those pages where he speaks of a distinction between the "outward man" and the... Sign in to see full entry.

Saturday, April 3, 2004

What Is Spirituality?

"Spirituality" is a Christian term that has found its way into contemporary language and has come to mean -- if we use as basis some of the articles here at Blogit -- some vague sense of the Transcendent and a lifestyle that is characterized by "doing good." Spirituality is more than just a "vague... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, April 2, 2004

Prayer is Useless

Prayer is useless. It is as useless as watching the sun set on Manila bay, or an embrace between a husband and his wife. Prayer is not talking; it is listening. Prayer is opening up to the Father and allowing ourselves to be immersed in His love. To turn prayer into something useful is to turn a... Sign in to see full entry.

Thursday, April 1, 2004

Death

There is only one thing sure about the future, and that is death. Maturity demands its acceptance as a part of my life. Christian faith does not explain it away, but rather points to it as an important passage into that life which is life with the Trinity. Indeed, the whole of one's life is but a... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, March 30, 2004

From Holy Leisure To The Quiet Moment

Otium Sanctum. Holy Leisure. This is to the monk what later on non-Catholic Christians would call "Quiet Time". It was synonymous with the phrase " vacare Deo ", "take a break for God." To take a break does not mean to cease from any activity. Rather, it means to change activity. In olden times,... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, March 26, 2004

Lamp For My Feet

"Is a lamp brought in to be placed under a bushel basket or under a bed, and not to be placed on a lampstand? For there is nothing hidden except to be made visible; nothing is secret except to come to light." (The Gospel of Mark) St. Paul once wrote to the budding Christian community in Rome that... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, March 23, 2004

Get Behind Me Satan

In Matthew 16:21-27 we hear the Lord rebuking Peter because of his inability to understand the ways of God. Peter understood who Jesus was; he however failed to understand his mission. Hence, when he tries to discourage the Lord from going to Jerusalem and suffering from the hands of the elders, the... Sign in to see full entry.

Sunday, March 21, 2004

Earthen Vessels

June 13, 2003 During this morning's liturgy at the Priests' Assembly, the first reading for the daily mass was changed, and in its place was read one of Paul's most poignant descriptions of the apostle in the field of evangelization, 2 Cor. 4:7-18. Heard from within the context of the Priests'... Sign in to see full entry.

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