Pope Benedict preparing to hear Confessions in St Peter's Basilica I, too, used long ago to hate Confession, for no reason whatever, till as a priest I began to realize the fact that it is the biggest help and quickest means to holiness, since a Sacrament pours grace into the soul. COMMENTS: Fr Doyle is of course correct in stating that there is no reason whatever for fearing Confession. But …
Reparation
July 26, 2010
St Thomas More. "We cannot go to Heaven in feather beds" I do not want, in fact I forbid you, to be imprudent in the matter of corporal penances. But, my dear child, if you let a whole fortnight go by without any self-inflicted pain, can you honestly look Jesus in the face and say, “I am like to Him”? COMMENT: Self-inflicted pain?? It sounds so…medieval, so exaggerated! It’s 2010, …
July 23, 2010
Believe me, I feel intensely for you, my child, for I know what you have suffered in the past and how violent the attacks of the tempter have been. But this very thing ought to be a big joy to you, since it shows how much the evil one fears what you are going to do for our Blessed Lord and poor perishing souls. If you were not a dangerous …
July 19, 2010
Fr Doyle was a prolific letter writer If an aspiration, on the authority of the Blessed (now Saint) Cure d’Ars, often saved a soul, what must you not do each day you suffer so bravely! This thought certainly will help you and make the pain almost nothing, and will add to its merit, since the motive for bearing it will be all the higher. COMMENT: Today’s quotation comes from a …
June 28, 2010
St Josemaria Escriva June 26: The feast of St Josemaria Escriva, founder of Opus Dei Today the Church celebrates the feast of St Josemaria Escriva. Instead of a message from Fr Doyle, we have a message from a saint, ABOUT Fr Doyle. From point 205 of St Josemaria’s The Way: We were reading — you and I — the heroically ordinary life of that man of God. And we saw …
June 25, 2010
Icon of Christ as the Suffering Servant You need not fear whatever He may send you to bear, since His grace will come with it ; but you should always try to keep in mind your offering, living up to the spirit of it. Hence endeavour to see the hand of God in everything that happens to you now; e.g. if you rise in the morning with a headache, thank …
June 20, 2010
The widow's mite – James C. Christensen “It is such a helpless feeling to be tossed about as it were on the waves of love, to feel the ardent, burning love of His Heart, to know He asks for love, and then to realise one human heart is so tiny”. COMMENT: One human heart may be too small to repay God for for His infinite love, but, like the widow’s …
June 7, 2010
Feast of Mary, Mother of God A New Year! What visions of almost boundless good, hidden in the fair bosom of the new-born year, rise up before me. What treasures of grace, what innumerable opportunities of merit are within my grasp if only I seize them. COMMENT: Fr Doyle believed in using his time well. One very definite aspect of his personality was his efficiency and work ethic – he …
January 1, 2010