When we pray we need to patiently wait on the Lord. He is a great King and communicates as He decides is best. - 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time - LSM sponsored by CAM - October 31st, 2021 - OLF Parish

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During the homily, I referred to the crisis experienced by the prophet Elijah as related in the First Book of Kings, chapter 19; when Elijah went seeking the Lord for rescue.

Elijah Flees from Jezebel

19 Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, “So may the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life like the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” 3 Then he was afraid; he got up and fled for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongs to Judah; he left his servant there.

4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die: “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked, and there at his head was a cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. He ate and drank, and lay down again. 7 The angel of the Lord came a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.” 8 He got up, and ate and drank; then he went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God. 9 At that place he came to a cave, and spent the night there.

Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.”

Elijah Meets God at Horeb

11 He said, “Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.” Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. 13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 14 He answered, “I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.” 15 Then the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. 16 Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place. 17 Whoever escapes from the sword of Hazael, Jehu shall kill; and whoever escapes from the sword of Jehu, Elisha shall kill. 18 Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Baal, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

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© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal  QC
© 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC 

God allows us to endure waiting for his answers to our prayers so we can amplify our desire and so He can purify the intentions of our heart. 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time - MQP Church in JLW Parish - October 24th, 2021

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“What do you want me to do for you?”

When you pray to God, what thoughts are you thinking in your mind? What emotions are you feeling in your heart? What is happening in your body? What are the movements in your soul? In your mind, are you thinking that you need to inform God about what you need, about what it is that you are asking of God?

A thought like this is misguided, because God is our Creator, and the Most Holy Trinity knows everything about you… what is happening to you, what you think you need, and what you want God to do for you, but more than this, God knows what you really need the most, and it may not be what it is that you are asking of Him. You may not even be aware or understand.

Perhaps you may be thinking a different thought, that God is not interested or that for some reason you need to convince God about what you think you need. It is not true that God is not interested. It is not true that God needs us to persuade Him to give us good things. However, it is true that often God waits for us to ask for good things. There are many reasons for this.

“What do you want me to do for you?”

In his “Letter to Proba”, Saint Augustine taught that God wants us to exercise our desire. It is hunger that brings us to look for food and to prepare it. It is thirst that brings us to get and to take a drink of water. Bartimaeus called out to Jesus even after “many sternly ordered him to be quiet” and then he cried out even more loudly. The blind man was very motivated to ask for what he wanted from Jesus. He was exercising his desire to see again.

When we pray and ask God for something, we may not be ready to receive it. Our hands may be too full of many things, or we may be too attached to other things, making it difficult or even impossible for us to be able to receive what it is that we are asking of God. It may be that our heart is too narrow and our desire too small to be able to make room for what it is that we ask of God. We may not be willing to forgive someone, or our heart may be full of anger or a desire for vengeance, or our heart may be tied up with many bonds of jealousy. There are so many weeds that can prevent us from being able to receive good things from God.

“What do you want me to do for you?”

We are human and our heart is damaged by evil desires or bad things we have said or done. Our heart can be choked and overgrown by the weeds of sinful desires. For these reasons the intentions of our heart need to be purified. Jesus has given us ways and means to let Him purify our heart. We can go to the priest and confess our sins with the firm intention of turning away from these evils from now on. When Jesus lets us wait, He lets us exercise our desire; so that a desire for the best thing may push out bad desires or desires for good things that are too small.

“What do you want me to do for you?”

So, you see how many thoughts can distract our mind from the one thing that is necessary, and many emotions might be boiling in our heart and preventing us from trusting in Jesus, but we see how kind and tender Jesus is with the blind man. In the same way, Jesus looks at us with great love and compassion – He feels with us what we are suffering – and He waits patiently for us to exercise our desire by asking again and again for what is good, what is most necessary.

“What do you want me to do for you?”

When you are praying to God, what is going on in your body? Are you doing the dishes? Are you driving your car or in public transit? Are you busy at your work place or your work station? It is very good to send to God short prayers all day long during our many activities. It is also necessary at least once or a few times each day to put aside all other activity, to relax our body and be still inside and outside, and to give our full and complete attention to God. It is a relationship with a living being that unites us with God, and we need to practice reverence and respect for God. This is what the Bible calls the “fear of the Lord”. When we love someone and we want to show them our love, we give them our complete and undivided attention.

“The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.”

As we pray to God, the Father and Jesus and the Holy Spirit are listening to us with great love, and They ask us to put all our trust in Them. One excellent way to put our trust in God is to be willing to endure the waiting. God knows what we really need, but often we don’t know what we really need. As we accept to endure the suffering of waiting for what we seek and for what God knows that we really need, in the very fire which burns within us while we suffer the waiting; God is purifying the intentions of our heart and cultivating within us the very best treasure. The very best treasure is our relationship of communion with the Most Holy Trinity.

“The Lord has done great things for us; we are filled with joy.”

This is the very best treasure: the grace and the gift of communion with God: the Father, and + the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us take a few moments to let the Holy Spirit renew and deepen our love and trust in God.

 

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com

 

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

We are preoccupied with ourselves, but Jesus calls us to be considerate of others, listen to them, love them, and serve them. 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time - MQP Church in JLW Parish - October 17th, 2021

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“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” “Let your love be upon us, Lord, even as we hope in you.”

We hear Jesus. What Jesus declares remains true today. “Among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them.” We see how those who exploit the resources of the Earth destroy the landscape, deprive all the creatures of their natural habitat, and pollute the soils, the waters, and the air. In their frantic pursuit of ever greater profits, the wealthy and their companies don’t care about the survival or the well-being of humanity, and they engage in their destructive practices with impunity. They live for today without caring practically about the consequences for tomorrow. For our part, we are so obsessed with our comfort that we justify murder by participating in the extermination of unborn children, mostly because we men do not support our women.

In the face of the destruction of Creation and the death of innumerable people, God our Creator does not impose Himself as almighty King or God to put an end to every evil. No, but rather, the Son of God continues to come among us humbly and as the One who comes to serve. He went so far as to give his life as a ransom for our sins. Jesus accepted to endure the pain of all the evil consequences of all our sins and the sins of all of humanity. He did this to obey the will of his Father; because God wants to show all of humanity for all time how He has chosen to act in order to correct the errors of humanity and the defects of Creation.

“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” “Let your love be upon us, Lord, even as we hope in you.”

Jesus loves his apostles and teases the brothers James and John by calling them “sons of thunder”. Like all of us, they are preoccupied with their situation in life here and in eternal life, and they want to assure for themselves a “good position” for their future. Jesus teaches them a lesson, and He teaches us the same lesson, that God – almighty that He is – chooses to walk humbly among us. He has no need to impose his power; instead, God enters into solidarity with us in our weakness and in our sin. Why does He act this way? It is because He loves us and comes to show us the way; in order to save us. What exactly is salvation?

“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” “Let your love be upon us, Lord, even as we hope in you.”

What is salvation, exactly? Jesus defined salvation as eternal life, and more specifically, He declared: “This is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” In other words, God offers us to participate in his own divine life, the divine life within the Most Holy Trinity. It is a life of authentic and practical love.

“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” “Let your love be upon us, Lord, even as we hope in you.”

How can we adopt within ourselves the attitude of a servant? How can we recognize eternal life as communion with God? The Good God gives us lots of time to convert ourselves and to improve our behaviours. When we are responsible for others, rather than demand to be always right, we might show them patience and understanding, and offer them mercy and kindness in the face of all the challenges of life.

In our family relations, instead of always grabbing the first places, we might put ourselves at the service of the other members of our families; instead of wanting to be loved, we might put all our efforts in recognizing, affirming, loving, and serving others like they were Jesus Himself.

In our intimate relationships, let us not seek our own pleasure and comfort; let us rather try to please others and to offer them comfort and encouragement. With others and with strangers, rather than try to show ourselves as superior, let us simply be present to them, accompanying them with attentive listening in all sympathy and with encouragement.

“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” “Let your love be upon us, Lord, even as we hope in you.”

For our own needs, let us take in hand our responsibilities, and for the rest, let us put all our trust in God by practicing to wait patiently for the unfolding of divine providence. Let us keep our spirits free to notice the needs of others and then to put ourselves at their service.

Every day, life offers us endless opportunities to practice putting our whole trust in God; for God alone is deserving to fully enjoy having all of our trust. From moment to moment, let us pray intensively to the Good God for ourselves but also for all the others in the world.

“The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” “Let your love be upon us, Lord, even as we hope in you.”

Thankfully for us the Good God never tires of forgiving us, He who is God: the Father, and + the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us take a few moments to let the Holy Spirit renew and deepen our trust in God.

 

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com

 

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

God wants to fill us with his Holy Spirit to make us prophets. God permits the troubles of life to purify and strengthen us and teach us to trust in Him. 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time - MQP Church in JLW Parish - September 26th, 2021

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“Would that all the Lord’s people were Prophets; that the Lord would put his spirit on them.”

Our Creator God is great and glorious! He exists from all eternity, and He lives in a Trinity of Divine Persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. In his declaration Moses justly expressed God’s own desire; for the Good God desires that every human being be filled with the Holy Spirit to prophesy, in other words, that his whole people would tell the truth everywhere and at all times. 

God our Father wants to make of us his children in the very image and likeness of Jesus. So, if there is a blockage, it is not on God’s part, but rather on our part. As life happens, we are at times sick or wounded, lame or weak, and at other times we are straying or lost, fearful or doubtful. Every day we have a great need of the Master, the Good Shepherd.

“Would that all the Lord’s people were Prophets; that the Lord would put his spirit on them.”

Joshua did not want others to prophesy like Moses, so that only Moses would be special and filled with the Spirit of God. Here the Lord warns us not to make differences among us and to avoid all competition before God. We are all his children, and our Father gives in accord with his own will; for He knows us and He knows what we most need in order to live as his children in this world after the example of Jesus.

“Would that all the Lord’s people were Prophets; that the Lord would put his spirit on them.”

St. James warns the rich and those who takes excessive delight “in luxury and pleasures”; for this life passes too quickly and we risk losing eternal life. When we set too much the desires of our heart on the pleasures of this world or on unhealthy pleasures; then we are sick. God alone can heal us in allowing us to discover that He is good and loves us. “Taste and see that the Lord is good!”

Sin wounds us. In doing evil or avoiding to do good, our choices wound us. Jesus treats our wounds by warning us not to sin anymore and by mercifully offering us his forgiveness. If we think we are without sin, it is because we are blind. If we declare ourselves to be without sin, we make God out to be a liar.

“Would that all the Lord’s people were Prophets; that the Lord would put his spirit on them.”

Our bad habits make us lame, but Jesus repairs what is broken and restores our mobility by warning us to prepare ourselves to resist temptations. Our fears and our false hopes weaken us, but Jesus teaches us to want to do good.

When we become fearful in the face of life’s challenges, Jesus encourages us by granting us to taste his divine mercy. Jesus is our Good Shepherd and his Sacred Heart is good and tender. He understands us and sympathizes with us in our distress.

Like sheep we stray by looking too greedily at the things of this world and by becoming jealous of others. When we turn away from God, we become lost. Jesus never abandons us, but through our family, our friends, and our pastors He helps us find our way and brings us back into the love of God.

“Would that all the Lord’s people were Prophets; that the Lord would put his spirit on them.”

When we suffer doubts, Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit to enlighten us and build us up. With his many spiritual gifts, the Holy Spirit brings the power of God to heal the sick, restore the wounded, strengthen the weak, repair the lame, give courage to the fearful, find the lost, bring back the stray, and reassure the doubtful.

On this World Refugee Day, this Word of God is news that is particularly good. When the world in which we live becomes entirely hostile, there remains only God who is there to encourage us and give us the strength to go through it all.

“Would that all the Lord’s people were Prophets; that the Lord would put his spirit on them.”

If God permits everything that happens to us, it is to purify the intentions of our heart, to enlighten our spirit, to form our character and bless us, and to prepare us for eternal life in an intimate relation of friendship with the Most Holy Trinity.

From moment to moment, life offers us endless opportunities to practice putting our whole trust in God; for God alone is fully deserving of all our trust.

Our Eternal Father uses all our troubles as opportunities for us to practice putting our trust in Him through Jesus, trusting in God: the Father, + the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“Would that all the Lord’s people were Prophets; that the Lord would put his spirit on them.”

Let us take a few moments to let the Holy Spirit renew and deepen our trust in Jesus.

 

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com

 

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

God has no favorites, but loves everyone perfectly and invites us to trust in Him - 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time - MQP Church in JLW Parish - September 5th, 2021

   Homily MP3 version 

In the face of trouble, Jesus calls us to pray, trust in Him, and wait in joyful anticipation - 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time - MQP Church in JLW Parish - July 25th, 2021

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“With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bear with one another in love, 

making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Mrs. Marguerite d’Youville, venerated now as Saint Marguerite d’Youville, founded the Sisters of Charity also known as the “Grey Nuns”. She had a particular devotion to the Eternal Father and his magnanimous Divine Providence. She saw that the Eternal Father of Jesus is the Divine Source of all good things and of life itself, and she understood that God the Father does not seek glory but prefers to “hide behind” his Divine Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Marguerite started out as an ordinary woman who, when moved by the misery of others, rolled up her sleeves to do something to alleviate their misery. Other women looking for their own purpose in life were attracted to her and fairly quickly a circle of joyful women gathered around her. In fact, they were so joyful that some malicious tongues called them “the tipsy sisters”, which in French is a play on the word grey; hence “the grey nuns”. Rather than be offended, Marguerite was delighted and adopted the nickname for her new congregation.

Every day of our lives, we find ourselves facing an important choice, a crucial fork in the road of our lives. Will I let the troubles of life beat me up and discourage me, or will I choose to lift up my eyes to the Lord, cry out to Him, and live in patient and joyful anticipation that He will answer my prayers and manifest his power and unfold his inexhaustible blessings?

“With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bear with one another in love, 
making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

We heard how almost three thousand years ago the prophet Elisha, moved by the hunger of the people of God, put aside any consideration of his own needs and instructed his servant to give to the people the food that had just been donated to Elisha by a man. Elisha’s servant, however, could only see that the food donation was insufficient for the number of people. He could only see his human point of view; whereas Elisha exhorted his servant to join him and to lift up his eyes to the Lord and know that with God all things are possible.

Years earlier, Elisha’s master the prophet Elijah had done the same when he was fleeing for his life and was sent by the Lord to stay with a poor widow. There was a drought and she had only enough flour and olive oil left to bake enough bread for a single meal for herself and her son. Elijah asked her for some bread and told her not to worry; as long as she gave him her hospitality, the jar of flour and the jug of oil would not run out. That is exactly what happened.

“With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bear with one another in love, 
making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

In Medjugorje, a village in Bosnia-Herzegovina of the former Yugoslavia, during the war in the early 1990’s which broke up the former communist country, food miraculously multiplied when it was given away to the droves of refugees who flocked to the village because there were signs that, by the will of God, it was being protected by Mary, Our Lady of Peace.

So, how do we react in the face of all kinds of trouble that life brings to us day by day? At first, it is only human to be impressed by the trouble, to feel overwhelmed and fearful, and even to feel frustrated or angry. This is what happens to us in the first moments when trouble strikes. As long as we are alive, we will have all kinds of emotions throughout our days and nights.

“With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bear with one another in love, 

making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

After the initial shock of being stopped in our tracks by a particular trouble, it is also very human and quite normal for there to be a lull when the emotions diminish briefly. That is when we can take a step back and examine the situation from a distance; to see the “big picture”. It is during this lull in the storm of emotions that we receive a grace from God to look up to the Eternal Father, tell Him our need, and choose to put all our trust in his Divine Providence.  

According to John in his Gospel, this is what happened when Jesus, like Elisha, was moved by the hunger of the huge crowd of people following and listening to Him. The apostles, like Elisha’s servant, could only see from their human point of view. Jesus then opened their eyes to see how different reality is in the Kingdom of God. They were still on Earth but they saw that what seems impossible to us is possible for God. Our part is to pray and ask, and then to trust and patiently wait in anticipation of the ways in which God will manifest his will.

Our Eternal Father uses all our troubles as opportunities for us to practice putting our trust in Him through Jesus, trusting in God: the Father, + the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bear with one another in love, 
making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

Let us take a few moments to let the Holy Spirit renew and deepen our trust in Jesus.

 

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com

 

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

God continues to replace the shepherds who do not take care of his sheep - 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time - MQP Church in JLW Parish - July 18th, 2021

 Homily MP3 version      Homily PDF version 

“My shepherd is the Lord; nothing indeed shall I want.”

From God’s point of view, we are all his sheep, and He sends shepherds into the world to take care of us. Among these shepherds there are first of all pastors – bishops, priests, and deacons – but there are also doctors, nurses, and all the personnel of the health and social services system. There are also judges, lawyers, notaries, counsellors, and therapists. We can also count those who govern us and all those who serve the population in the public service, including teachers. There are also plenty of entrepreneurs who offer all kinds of services aimed at health and well being.

According to God’s judgement, many of these shepherds are not taking care of those who are entrusted to them with competence, nor with honesty, nor with openness; some even clergy, have abused the innocents. The result: sheep are scattered by poor care; many of them even perish. For his part, God never stops caring for his sheep, and sends other shepherds who will care for his sheep according to the desire of our Creator’s heart.

“My shepherd is the Lord; nothing indeed shall I want.”

We could examine several domains of life where shepherds are not protecting the sheep. We will limit ourselves to examining their management of only three life domains: material goods, human sexuality, and human fertility.

Too many people who have access to material goods and to the resources of the Earth, to wealth, and to power let themselves be swept away by selfish attitudes and passions and then accumulate far more than they need. The first consequence is that plenty of people are deprived of access to even the basic essentials of life for themselves and their families. As well, too many businesses are so obsessed with maximizing their profits that they eliminate jobs and show no concern for ordinary people who need to work in order to provide for their families, to keep a roof over their heads, to clothe themselves, and to maintain good health.

“My shepherd is the Lord; nothing indeed shall I want.”

At every level of society, we see that many people, services, and offices reject the plan of our Creator God for our happiness. They recommend and encourage everyone to ignore God’s plan and instead to engage in all sorts of sexual practices which have nothing to do with a man and a woman together welcoming children and building their family. The indisputable results of all these diverse sexual practices are everywhere evident: infectious diseases, the loss of dignity and joy of living, vanishing concern for others, all kinds of psychological troubles – including depression – and suicide.

“My shepherd is the Lord; nothing indeed shall I want.”

When our Creator created us, He created us man and woman, and He endowed us with our fertility. When we embrace our fertility, it translates into generativity, our capacity to give life. Giving life to others opens us to the wellbeing of others and takes the center of attention off of ourselves. The first result of living for others is interior peace and joy.

Unfortunately, there are plenty of agents, shepherds at all levels of society, who see our fertility not as the blessing intended by God, but on the contrary as a curse, an illness. So, they invented medications to stifle our fertility and extinguish it. The most dramatic and troubling result of this “culture of sterility” is abortion which, in turn, has made us a “culture of death”.

In Québec there are some 23,000 abortions a year or 64 a day. In Canada, it’s 85,000 a year or 233 a day. In the U.S.A. it’s 862,000 a year or 2,400 a day. Worldwide, there are 73 million abortions a year or 200,000 a day. That’s more than Covid-19. The majority of people who offer abortion as a service don’t inform women – who are rarely accompanied by the man – about the disastrous risks from these procedures. Go see for yourselves on YouTube the documentary “Hush” which displays the data accumulated from years of scientific research.

Every woman – especially if she hasn’t had any children yet – who has one or more abortions greatly increases her risk of breast cancer, and of all kinds of psychiatric troubles: depression, sexual dysfunction, inability to carry a pregnancy to term, trouble sleeping, trauma, eating disorders, addictions, and suicide. Society creates a polemic around women’s right to choose, but they use this polemic to camouflage and hide all this crucial information that would allow women to really make a well-informed choice.

When I was a child growing up I remember hearing my grandparents, my aunts and uncles, my parents talk about how they were distressed by priests often preaching "hell and damnation" you know, "You're going to hell!", you know, pointing fingers and pounding the pulpit, you know, it was pretty dramatic, and they were probably a little bit traumatized by that. It could be one reason why many of that older generation no longer go to church. Anyway, when I became a priest 38 years ago, I was so impressed by all of those stories, that I was very reluctant to talk about these things. But I recently watched this documentary... I felt outraged... a lot of people involved in the abortion industry conceal from women the risks! Whenever we go to see a doctor, you know, planning a surgery of some kind, they always tell us the risks, but for this, no. And when women ask: "Are there any risks?", they lie, they say "No, there's no danger, no risk." It's intolerable. I could not keep from saying something about this. So, I'm sorry if anyone finds this upsetting, but the reality often is upsetting.

(Elsewhere I have already reflected on and written that if there are any women at all having an abortion, all too often it is a failure of our manhood, we men; for God designed us human beings male and female for us to make such important decisions together. God never intended for women to have to make such life and death decisions all by themselves, without any loving support. You can see for yourself what I have written here: 

https://fathergilles.blogspot.com/2020/06/abortion-is-failure-of-manhood-more.html

Thankfully for all of us our God is a loving Father, merciful and never gets tired of forgiving; for those who refuse to face the facts, the reality, the truth, eventually they will come face to face with God and they will find Him severe, but loving. For those of us who accept to admit our poverty, we find God tender and compassionate, for He is the Good Shepherd, God: the Father, + the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“My shepherd is the Lord; nothing indeed shall I want.”

Let us take a few moments to let the Holy Spirit renew and deepen our trust in Jesus.

 

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com

  

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

         

God is gentle and merciful and He trusts us so that we might trust in Him - Saturday in 15th Week in Ordinary Time - July 17th, 2021 - MQP Church in JLW Parish

 Gospel & Homily MP3 version 

A few related reflections....

Passing on God's Tenderness and Mercy -  Catherine Doherty, Madonna House Ap

Struggling for Joy - by Catherine Doherty, Madonna House Apostolate 

A Pathway to Peace - by Paulette Curran, Madonna House Apostolate 

Do You Want Fire? - by Fr. David May, Madonna House Apostolate 

Who Is Christ in My Life? - by Catherine Doherty, Madonna House Apostolate

+ + + + + + + + + + + +  

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com 

 

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal  QC
© 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

The Lord invites us to reflect on all the times He has personally touched our lives - 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time - LSM sponsored by CAM - July 11th, 2021 - OLF Parish

  Homily MP3 version        

Prayer Exercise #2 – Letting God Show You His Presence and Care throughout Your Whole Life

A good, holy, elderly priest – Fr. Walter Lallemand, a war veteran who as a recovering alcoholic was a man familiar with suffering – in February 1977 gave us young adults a prayer exercise to see our life like that of the people of Israel in the Bible. Like theirs, each journey is a sacred history of God’s grace. This is an invitation to reflect in God’s presence with your memory. Ask God to help you remember – whether you realized it at the time or not – when God was there for you and with you. Sharper memories may present themselves first – times when you were loved and cared for – or moments of pain, illness, discomfort, or sadness. God can impress his Love on us powerfully in times of trial. As this relies on our ability to remember, it is an exercise that you can return to and add onto several times over the years. Each experience we remember becomes a treasure enriching and enlightening our life and relationship with God and others. Each box helps organize thoughts / memories and reflect on them. You can use more paper. May the Holy Trinity reveal to you and bless your sacred history.

God’s Sacred History with Me

(You can print this out as a spiritual exercise and fill in the blanks... use a separate sheet....)

COME HOLY SPIRIT, ENLIGHTEN MY SPIRIT. HELP ME REMEMBER THE GRACES I HAVE RECEIVED. THANK YOU, FATHER, FOR YOUR LOVE, IN JESUS YOUR SON OUR LORD.

AGE / OR YEAR / DATE

WHAT HAPPENED

CORE OF THE MEMORY

HOW I FELT

ROLE ANOTHER PERSON PLAYED

HOW I WAS AFFECTED

HOW GOD WAS / IS WITH ME

HOW I FEEL NOW

WHAT'S NEXT?

Saint Joseph, pray for us. 

 

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com 

 

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal  QC
© 2006-2021 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

There is no greater joy than to suffer humiliation for the sake of Christ, by speaking of God's love to others - 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time - MQP Church in JLW Parish - July 4th, 2021

        Homily MP3 version                                 Homily PDF version      

“I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardship, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.” “To You, I lift up my eyes, O Lord!”

Brothers and sisters, you are baptized and confirmed. Do you know you are also prophets? The prophet is not a person who foretells the future, no; the true prophet is a person whom God sends to tell the truth: the truth about God, the truth about us, human beings, the truth about the world, and the truth about life here on Earth which then continues into eternity.

Samuel, Elijah, Elisha, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Jonah, and all the prophets of the Old Covenant had a lot of trouble in trying to declare the Word of God to the people. St. John the Baptist was the last of these great prophets, and according to Jesus, John was the greatest among all the prophets who preceded him. John the Baptist was the greatest because he was closest to Jesus, sent by God to prepare the way for Jesus, Saviour of the world.

We are all prophets in the image of John the Baptist, because like him we are called and sent by God the Father to prepare the way for Jesus in the hearts of the people of our time. It isn’t the eloquence of our words that matters, but the reality of our life of faith. Our Good God doesn’t need our strength or our success; for his divine power, his divine mercy, and his love are more than enough to give life to every person who opens their thought, their heart, and their soul to the advances of our loving Creator God.

“I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardship, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.” “To You, I lift up my eyes, O Lord!”

The perfect joy and the great freedom of the Good News is precisely that our Good God is sufficient in Himself to save the whole world. The Holy Trinity – Father, Son Jesus, and Holy Spirit – the Holy Trinity suffices in itself to save us. God desires to forgive our faults, to give vigor to our weaknesses, and to make us capable of loving even our enemies; for it is with the participation of us all, his children, that God wants to save the whole world.

Salvation comes from the sacrifice which Jesus made of his whole life from his infancy to the end on the Cross. In complete confidence, Jesus offered his life to the will of his Father. He calls us now to follow Him and to make of our own life the same sacrifice with the same confidence in God the Father by the grace of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes God delivers us from distress, but whether we are delivered or not, God needs our confidence in offering Him every day our illnesses, our faults, our sufferings, and even our sins. God uses the offering of our poverty to manifest to all his power and his mercy to save.

“I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardship, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.” “To You, I lift up my eyes, O Lord!”

It is difficult to speak of God to others, to share with them why we trust in God, why we love God. The Holy Spirit gives us the strength and the love of Jesus draws us on to do it. It is also for love of our neighbour that we can dare to open our mouth and let the Holy Spirit give us the words. In that moment, maybe people will be glad to hear us talk about God, but maybe not. They may even get angry. That’s the unavoidable risk we take.

Like Jesus, we cannot avoid suffering rejection and maybe even persecution at the hands of those who are closest to us: our own family, our friends, our neighbors, and our colleagues at work or at school. It is a wonderful thing for Christians to suffer opposition, persecution, and humiliation for the glory of God and out of love for our neighbor. Jesus said it Himself: “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” John 15:13

“I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardship, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.” “To You, I lift up my eyes, O Lord!”

“God, our Father, fill us anew with your Holy Spirit; that we may trust in You wholeheartedly and from day to day freely choose to live as your children, and to testify before others to your love and your mercy; so that the world may turn to Jesus, our Saviour.”

Brothers and sisters, let us ask every day the help of Mary, Mother of Jesus, Saint Joseph, and all the saints of God – the Father, + the Son, the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Let us take a few moments to let the Holy Spirit renew and deepen our trust in Jesus.  

 

https://frgilleshomilies.blogspot.com         https://homeliesabbegilles.blogspot.com 

 

© 2006-2021 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC