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St. John Vianney, Pray For Us!

What a great day! I resolved to go to Holy Mass, because a relic of St. John Vianney would be there. I don't always get to go during the week these days, but today is special. I had in mind Confirmation Sponsor Lady, and one of my sisters, who has been sick. Truthfully, whenever I am at our parish, I think of them.

It strikes me as odd that the separated brethren of the Reformation are so convinced of the error of the cult of the saints. As one hymn puts it, "Yet she on Earth hath union/With God the Three in One/And mystic sweet communion/With those whose rest is won." As I was thinking about this, I realized that in the hearts of the saints, there are no strangers. Therefore, in the one Eucharist, we know each other, and are fully known. There is so much loss in death and suffering, but even this can be rendered sweet in redemption. John Vianney got my requests to heal some people--not usually his normal thing--and my thanks for my family, especially since we are partly French (on one side) like him. I heard a talk about Therese of Lisieux last night. I felt much closer to her since I heard that she struggled with prayer. In recent days, I find my sole anchor in repeated recitations of the Memorare.

I had my normal Lenten dinner at the neighborhood restaurant, and as I walked home in the bright sunshine, I said to a dear departed friend, "Man, Raff, you'd have loved a day like today!" I caught myself, and added, "Then again, in Heaven, every day is like this." I hope she gets to meet my Grandma Loretta, who died this week (if they haven't already). Maybe we cry on this side of the vale, but the joy of Heaven utterly swallows up every sadness. The exercise of hope is to invite God to give us a foretaste of it while we are here.

There is so much fellowship denied or delayed by the trials of this life. In any case, beloved brethren, I'll see you in the Eucharist, by the mercy of God.
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Nathan said…
It's interesting that you post this today. It is Sunday of Orthodoxy in Orthodoxy (if that makes sense) and I've been reading about Nicea II and veneration of the Saints. The disagreement leading to iconoclasm seems to have centered on what Incarnation and salvation actually are. Fascinating, but too much to ask you to expand on in a blog comment. Wish I could join you for one of those Lenten dinners!
2:55 PM
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