Stretch upward to the sun

By Heidi

The Ascension by West (Wikimedia Commons)

"The truth is that the Son of Man was revealed as Son of God in a more perfect and transcendent way once he had entered into his Father’s glory; he now began to be indescribably more present in his divinity to those from whom he was further removed in his humanity. A more mature faith enabled their minds to stretch upward to the Son in his equality with the Father; it no longer needed contact with Christ’s tangible body, in which as man he is inferior to the Father. For while his glorified body retained the same nature, the faith of those who believed in him was now summoned to heights where, as the Father’s equal, the only-begotten Son is reached not by physical handling but by spiritual discernment." From a sermon by Saint Leo the Great, pope

Time to begin the Pentecost Novena!  Spiritual discernment is something that I pray for always, and it is a good intention for this Novena.  This is the discernment to follow the direction of the Spirit, and not my own -- or the worlds.  The disordered desires that we all have very often convince us that our comfort and our personal honor are enough to guide us to make decisions that are right for us.  These decisions cannot draw out of us great love for others, but imprison us to lesser loves.

Let the words of Saint Leo inspire us all to stretch our minds upward, and order our desires on what will draw each one of us into the heights of the Father's love.

Peace and many graces to all of you!


Heidi originally posted this on her blog Journey to Wisdom.

God's promise to me and to all

By Colleen Spiro

Ascension of the Lord by Lanchares (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons).

Connie Rossini wrote in an earlier post, "Everyone has an idiolect - a collection of personal speech habits that is different from anyone else's. Have you ever thought about your spiritual idiolect?  Since your soul is unique, you have a personal way of speaking to God that no one else completely shares."

I pondered this question for weeks. How do I speak to God? How do I communicate with him? How do I relate to God? What feeds my spiritual life?

My first thought was the word "Listen."

Listen is the first word of the Rule of St. Benedict. As a Benedictine oblate, I try to listen to God's voice. I listen to God's voice within my heart. I listen to God's voice in others' voices. I listen to God's voice in the events of my daily life.

What is more delightful than the voice of the Lord calling to us?
 St. Benedict

My second thought was the word "Look."

I look for God everywhere. I look expecting to find Him. I never ask the question  - where is God? I know He is present. And because I know He is present, it is just a matter of "how" He is present. How will I find God? Where will I find God?

When I was a child, one of my favorite movies was the Easter movie, "King of Kings." I loved that last line spoken by Jesus - "And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Mt 28:20)


Continue reading at Colleen's blog Thoughts on Grace.