Monthly Archives: December 2009

Update – St. Juan Diego

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Enjoy!

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The Man and The Eagle

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The Story

St. Juan Diego – Model of Humility

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“Listen and let it penetrate your heart … do not be troubled or weighed down with grief. Do not fear any illness or vexation, anxiety or pain. Am I not here who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not your fountain of life? Are you not in the folds of my mantle? In the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else you need?“
(Words of Our Lady to Juan Diego)

Happy Juan Diego, true and faithful man! We entrust to you our lay brothers and sisters so that, feeling the call to holiness, they may imbue every area of social life with the spirit of the Gospel. Bless families, strengthen spouses in their marriage, sustain the efforts of parents to give their children a Christian upbringing. Look with favour upon the pain of those who are suffering in body or in spirit, on those afflicted by poverty, loneliness, marginalization or ignorance. May all people, civic leaders and ordinary citizens, always act in accordance with the demands of justice and with respect for the dignity of each person, so that in this way peace may be reinforced.

Beloved Juan Diego, “the talking eagle”! Show us the way that leads to the “Dark Virgin” of Tepeyac, that she may receive us in the depths of her heart, for she is the loving, compassionate Mother who guides us to the true God. Amen.

(Words of Pope John Paul II from the homily at the canonization of Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin)

“I thank you, Father … that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yea, Father, for such was your gracious will” (Mt 11:25-26).

Ordinary People – Extraordinary Love

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In life no one goes unchallenged.  Challenges rise before us like daunting mountains before the promised grace abounds that will carry us up and over.  Angels stand by still and mute til summoned to our side. The Church teaches, yet it is left for us to decide to trust and to obey.  From Christ we hear, “Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” (Matthew16:18)  When I hear that I must assume that “the gates of hell” will certainly try. Be Not Afraid.Net shares a story of trust amid extraordinary challenge.

From:L  A Donation of Spirit by Katrina J. Zeno:

“She was the first person I ever met who wore black leather and lipstick to match. It was 1983, and I was a freshman at the Franciscan University of Steubenville in Ohio. The young woman in black, Dawn Scanlan, was the University president’s niece. She had been “entrusted” to my small, faith-sharing group for the weekend with the hope that we would be a good influence on her. Much to my surprise, and to the delight of her uncle, Dawn enrolled at Franciscan University the next fall. Leaving behind the racy life of a Long Islander, she tried to give God and her Catholic faith a fair shake. She half succeeded. After a year of less than spectacular grades, the probation committee at the University informed Dawn she couldn’t continue. She got a job with British Airways, moved to Atlanta, Georgia, married a Lufthansa airline employee, and settled down to a mediocre Catholic life. “I continued to straddle the fence,” Dawn says. “I went to church on Sunday, taught my two daughters their prayers, but still compromised in many areas.” But in August of 1997 the fence began to crack. Five months into her third pregnancy, Dawn received some disturbing news: Her baby had a rare and fatal form of dwarfism (only 100 documented cases) in which his lungs would never develop. If he made it to term and was born, he would die within hours. Additionally, he had no arms or legs, just hands and feet, and he was hydrocephalic. “I was very confused and didn’t know what to do,” Dawn says. “Some of my friends suggested I have an abortion. I wanted the Catholic position, so I called Uncle Mike.” Uncle Mike, a.k.a. Fr. Michael Scanlan, TOR, president of Franciscan University, listened to his distressed niece and then gave his advice: wait and pray for 24 hours, and then he’d call back. “It was the best advice he could have given me,” Dawn says. “Within two hours, I knew what I would do. I would continue my pregnancy and shower my baby with love. I made the decision with God’s help. It was my decision. It wasn’t Uncle Mike’s decision.” …….  the rest here.

Things Visible and Invisible

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I tend to see Christ and Our Lady all around me:

in trees,

on trees.

Once I saw his name “Jesus” spelled out in the shadows on the ground in front of me as the sun shown through the leaves of my shefflera.  My husband who doubted me, soon found himself tracing out the letters with his foot.

This past summer, I set up a tent behind my trailer. It had mesh, see-through, sides.  The next day, a man from the next campsite came over to tell me that his whole family saw Our Lady of Guadalupe but her image was only visible through the sides of my tent.  I checked it out that evening and sure enough, I could see her too.

All this to say I understand when the Anchoress declares  Advent Pictures of Christ amid the snowflakes.  In an absolutely stirring post, she says, “When I first saw these pictures, all I could think of was: Look! Pictures of Christ!  Pictures of perfection, they remind us of the joyful Antiphon for a Monday’s vespers: ‘yours is more than mortal beauty; every word you speak is full of grace.’ “