Divine Mercy Marathon

Posted on January 8, 2017 by veilofveronica

Kathleen Carr Divine Mercy

Original Oil on Canvas Divine Mercy by Kathleen Carr – http://www.carrfineart.com

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. Matthew 16:25

I hope everyone has had a very Happy New Year and Christmas Season.  As the new year starts, I see a lot of people trying to get in shape again after the holidays, and I will tell you, I am no different.  But I may have a different motivation.  I will begin by taking you back a few years in my life.

I used to be really athletic.  I played basketball, softball, field hockey, swimming and diving, when I was growing up.  If it was outside, I especially loved it.  I played softball in high school and college.  I was fit physically, but my spiritual life was an ebb and tide, sometimes I was faithful, and many times I wasn’t.

susan-softball

As I have grown older, gotten married, and had children, I have had my ups and owns with keeping fit, just like any of us.  But I used to consistently try to at least run or jog to keep in shape.  When my friend was murdered I began to get my spiritual life in shape.  I was no longer a luke warm Catholic, I was and remain on fire for Christ, despite my many failings.  I know He is the Living God and his mercy is boundless.   For a time both my body and soul were on a trajectory of fitness aimed at the Lord.

In October of 2012 I went on a retreat with the Dominican Sisters of St. Cecilia Congregation.  I was in adoration for quite a while and I heard the Lord clearly say to me, “Divine Mercy Marathon.”  It was clear and loud.  I fought with the Lord a bit because I had  only ever run a half marathon, and not a full one.  I told one of the sisters about it and she and I both thought I was supposed to run a marathon for the Lord.   Someone on the retreat even asked me if  I was a runner, and I took that as my sign that I should run a Marathon for Divine Mercy.   But because I had never run a full marathon I told the Lord I would do the half marathon for him.  (This makes me laugh now because even then I was always trying to get out of what God asks me to do as I have talked about here).   But I did think God’s request of me was totally appropriate because the path to Sainthood is not typically a sprint, it is a marathon.  Most Saints work over their lifetime to achieve the state of perfection that gains immediate entrance to heaven.  I even wrote to Fr. Michael Gaitley about it and received a response back from him wishing me blessings in my half marathon.

I began training immediately.  But I was thwarted at every turn.  I got extreme plantar fasciitis.  I could not run.  I could barely walk.  I experienced knee issues too.  I complained to the Lord that I was trying to do what he asked (or at least half of it), and I didn’t understand what was going on.

And then, the Boston Marathon Bombing happened.  I was stunned.  It was probably the first time I had an inkling of a charism of prophecy.  I abandoned my training so my body could heal, and I prayed for all the souls involved in the bombing and began my serious search for a Spiritual Director.  I was also hired to work a lot more in ministry with adults this time instead of just children.

Fast Forward to this year and so many things in my life have changed.  I love my work in ministry and I have my Spiritual Director.  He has trained me, as a coach would train a marathon runner, to reach new heights in my spiritual life.  I have experienced God in my soul like never before.  But my body has fallen by the wayside.  I put on weight, as many of us do, and I knew I was not treating my body as a temple.  I had severe arthritis in my knee, and so walking could be an issue some days, much less working out.  I have not been taking care of body and soul together.  I have decided that has to change.  I had plasma replacement therapy in my knee, and my plantar fasciitis has long since healed, and for the first time in a long time, I can run again.  Not far mind you, but I can do it without pain.

Which brings me to today.  Constantly in my prayer I hear, “everything is connected”.  I mean, all the time I hear it.  So I was on the treadmill today, just trying to run a mile, mind you, and I hear “Divine Mercy Marathon.”  And I think, now is the time, although it could mean something else.  I was meant to pray for mercy for the Boston Marathon Bombing, but I am also meant to run in reparation for Divine Mercy.  I want to run a Divine Mercy Marathon in reparation for the sins against the Sacred and Immaculate Hearts.  Or at least a half marathon (lol, I know, doing half of what God asks.)  God always tells me to get outside myself.  I want to do this for others.  But I feel unable, unfit, and just generally afraid.  I figure if it is meant to happen, it will, and I will succeed, because like everything, if God wants it, it will happen.  It’s not about me.  God has had me just BE with him these past few years, and now I am ready to BE and DO. (I hope I have been doing in other ways, but this will be a huge sacrifice).

So for now, I begin training.  If this is not God’s plan, he will let me know, he will block it like he did before.  Say a little prayer for me that my knees hold up, and my ankles, and my feet.  And if you want to run one too, I encourage you to do it.  It doesn’t have to be an actual marathon, like I want to do, but there’s probably some task that takes some work that God has been calling you to do.  As always, pray, discern, and do.  Do it in love.

In the end, whether I complete a marathon (or half marathon) or not, I just want to be able to say to the Lord;

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7

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Mercy and Truth, Love and Law – Take the Road to Emmaus

Posted on January 4, 2017 by veilofveronica

I have recently been asked to write for Catholic Stand.  I had an article published today.  You may recognize some of my writing from my blog.

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Run Toward the Suffering

Posted on December 24, 2016 by veilofveronica

mother-teresa

“It is Christmas every time you let God love others through you.”
-Saint Teresa of Calcutta

I wasn’t going to post this meditation today because it is the joy filled season of Christmas, but the more I thought about it, the more I thought it is appropriate, especially because many find themselves lonely at Christmas time.  I wrote this while in adoration yesterday;

A meditation;

Lord,

I hear you whisper to me, “run toward the suffering.”  Every human inclination in me says, “no, I must run away from it.”  But the God mark on my soul pulls stronger.  “Run towards the suffering.  Embrace the lonely and broken people, lift them up.  Don’t let them be alone.  We are made for Communion.”  And in those moments I want to throw myself on the cross.  I say, “yes, Lord, I will run toward the suffering.  I will embrace my fellow man in these darkest of nights; Because I can see the light of the cross.”  And I hear you whisper, “hope.” And I know that heaven is real and it awaits and I have nothing to fear.

– your servant Lord, Susan

During this Christmas Season;

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13

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Fiat!

Posted on December 20, 2016 by veilofveronica

our-lady-of-perpetual

Our Lady of Perpetual Help

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph of the house of David. The Virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus.” And Mary said to the angel, “How can this be since I have no husband?” And the angel said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore, the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God for with God, nothing is impossible.” Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be done to me according to your word.  Luke 1:26-38

Throughout the past several years I have developed a deep devotion to Mary.  She gave the Fiat, the total Yes.  She is in communion with the Divine Will.  I believe this is what the Holy Trinity wants from all of us.  I have stated before that when I invited her into my life, my relationship with Christ became much deeper.  Communion with his Will.  Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.  This is not just some empty prayer we pray.  Servant of God Luisa Piccarreta had this revealed to her.

I pray this prayer everyday.  “Make my will one with yours Lord.”  Imagine the whole earth praying this, to make your will one with Love Himself!  My Spiritual Director once told me the difference between the Saints in heaven and those of us on earth is that when God asks the Saints in heaven to do something they do it immediately, fully and joyfully, but this is not so with us.  I thought about how often God has asked me to do something only to have me fight with Him to find a way out of it, or to only do part of what He asked, and feeling so anxious about doing it.  But when you are in a relationship with God, you can only fight so much before a whale swallows you and spits you up on a shore.

And so as we enter into the Holy time of the Christmas Season, and the start of a New Year, I have vowed to do my best to make my Fiat immediate, full and joyful.  I look to Our Lady of Perpetual Help – to, well, HELP me because I have failed so miserably in the past.  She is the example.  I  know that God is asking for absolute trust and abandonment.  And as I look back on the times when I have said yes, I can see how the blessings have abounded.  It’s as if I can see an intricate tapestry of connections woven with the Divine Hand.  He constantly tells me all things are connected and when I look back, I can see that they are.  I can also see how, even in suffering, there was beauty, and that He works all things for the good of those who love him.  So as I look forward, I cannot help but say, “Mother Mary, grab my hand as I step into the unknown with you, knowing we are guided by the Divine Hand, and I have nothing to fear.”

May you all have a very Blessed Christmas and Happy New Year.

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Duc Et Altum

Posted on December 10, 2016 by veilofveronica

peter-casting-net

 And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little way from the land. And He sat down and began teaching the people from the boat.  When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” Simon answered and said, “Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I will do as You say and let down the nets.”  When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish, and their nets began to break;  so they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus’ feet, saying, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man!” Luke 5:3-8

Lately I have been hearing God whisper to me, “Duc Et Altum”– “Cast into the Deep.”  That was a favorite of St. John Paul II.   It is a call to a much deeper trust.  A call to cast your net into the unknown, not knowing exactly what will happen.  When the Lord told Peter to do it, Peter still didn’t know Jesus well (it was his brother Andrew who believed), but Peter trusted and cast his net into the deep, and his net became full.  And Peter KNEW him, and said, “Go away from me Lord, for I am a sinful man.”   In the verses that follow Jesus tells him not to be afraid he will be catching men.

I had been pondering this story, because, you see, I know my purpose.  I know I am called to love God more than anything and that I am called to share His love for us with other people.  And so it seemed God kept whispering to me, Duc Et Altum.  Not knowing exactly what I was supposed to do with that, I went about my day.  Low and behold I came across a conference called, “Into the Deep,” led by Dan Burke (Executive Director of the National Catholic Register.) I don’t believe in coincidences, so I knew I was supposed to go.

The conference was at the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Hanceville, AL.  Since I don’t much like travelling by myself, I really did have to trust and I drove myself there.

 

The Conference was wonderful.  Mr. Burke gave us excellent tips on how to pray.  I would highly recommend his book Into the Deep.   Prayer really can change your life.  I know it has changed mine.

After the conference was over, I went into the Shrine.  All I can say is I was overwhelmed and overcome.  This place is stunning.  This is beauty.  It transcends time and takes you to the heavens.  I almost lost my breath.

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Then I attended Mass in the crypt church.  This is probably the most reverent Mass I had been to in a long while.  During the consecration the altar boys laid prostrate on the floor (it was celebrated ad orientem).  This place was holy.  I felt safe and loved and I didn’t want to leave.  There is a place for beauty in architecture, and in the liturgy.  It definitely drew me deeper, and I didn’t want to come back to “reality.”  I would actually argue that what is going on there is more real than any place else.

And I felt something.  I felt I am no longer afraid of death.  I know after being in this place that is a little slice of heaven on earth, that heaven is what is real, and that heaven is where I long to be.  I actually felt sad to leave.

For to me life is Christ, and death is gain.  If I go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose.  I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with Christ, [for] that is far better. Phillipians 1:21-23

So I have been Cast into the Deep, trusting in the Lord, knowing that He is real, and that He overcame death, so I have nothing to fear.  May God Bless all of you, may you no longer have anxious hearts, and may you know the love that surpasses all understanding.

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Dreams, Suicide, and Gregorian Masses

Posted on November 27, 2016 by veilofveronica

e047_purgatory

“I am the Mother of all the Poor Souls, for my prayers serve to mitigate their sufferings every single hour that they remain there (purgatory).”
-Our Blessed Lady to Saint Bridget

I had another very bizarre dream last night.  It was about my same friend that committed suicide when we were 17, that I have dreamed about before.

In this dream his was grown.  It was strange to see what he looked like as a man, to see what could have been.  He was handsome, but also sad.  We talked about our lives.  I told him about my husband and 3 children.  That’s when his face got really sad.  He told me he had 4 children but he was divorced and never saw them.  I asked him what happened.  He told me that they divorced after the election because he voted for Al Gore and she voted for George Bush and it just really made them fight.  He also mentioned having an alcohol problem, stating that he didn’t drink everyday, but when he did drink he couldn’t seem to stop without getting drunk.  He told me they had tried weekend couples counseling, but in the end it didn’t work.  He showed me pictures of his 4 beautiful children and his ex-wife.

During this whole conversation we were sitting on the side of a grassy hill.  It was weird because a groundhog kept showing up.  He seemed to be friends with the groundhog, like it was his pet.  I was afraid of it because of it’s two protruding teeth, I was afraid of being bitten.

Upon awakening I pondered my dream.  I found it sad to see this boy who had committed suicide at 17 as a man who had children.  It was a stark reminder for me how purposeful death, whether it be by suicide, or abortion, can lead to generations being lost.  I also found it odd that he listed an election as one of the reasons for divorce, and in particular, that election.  That is where I really remember the hatred and vitriol we see so commonly now start to come out in people, as our country was shown to be so divided. His other reason for his divorce was addiction, another thing so common in our day and age.  I honestly have no idea what the groundhog was about.

My mother used to tell me when we were growing up that if you dreamt about a dead loved one, it meant they were in purgatory and needed prayer.  I believe that’s true.  I have dreamt about this young boy several times over the years and I have always prayed for him afterwards.  But it had occurred to me that the greatest prayer offered for those in purgatory is the Mass.  Because of this, my cousin had introduced me to Gregorian Masses.  This is a series of 30 Masses that is said for a soul in purgatory.  Tradition tells us that Pope St. Gregory the Great offered these Masses for the soul of one of his monks that visited him from purgatory.  When Pope Gregory had finished the Masses the monk appeared to thank him for releasing him.   The Masses are offered for one deceased soul (not multiple people) for 30 consecutive days.  Now, please understand, we offer a stipend for a Mass.  These stipends are to take care of the Priest who says the Mass, and in poorer countries in particular this mean a lot.  Plus the stipend is also a sacrificial offering made by us.  Canon 946 tells us how the stipend is for the good of the Church.  Typically in today’s day and age, a Mass stipend is about $10.  This would mean that for a series of 30 Gregorian Masses a stipend could be $300.  Though I have found them for $5 a Mass.  When I had this discussion with Mr. Finance Pants (my husband) he jokingly told me I could take care of those priests and spend $20,000 if it gets him out of purgatory!  I laughed out loud.

All that said, I think I need to have Masses said for my friend.  Particularly when it comes to suicide, I think these are needed.  We have much to pray for these days, let us remember the power of the Mass.  If a Gregorian Mass is out of the question for you for your loved one, just have one Mass said.  The Mass is heaven on earth.

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Christ the King

Posted on November 21, 2016 by veilofveronica

 

cross-on-a-mountain

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking fine pearls, and upon finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.”  Matthew 13:45-46

Today is the Feast of Christ the King.  It’s where we contemplate the paradox of a King who humbled Himself more than any other King, even offering His life for us.  We say, as St. Dismas did,

“Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom.” Luke 23:42

As I received communion today I came back to the pew and knelt down and closed my eyes. I prayed, “ Lord, make my will one with yours,” and I contemplated Christ the King on the cross.

Suddenly, an image appeared in my head.  It was of a large cross up on a mountain high. But instead of seeing Christ on the Cross, I saw a pearl in the middle of it.  A large shiny beautiful pearl.  The pearl and the cross had a light emanating so brightly from them.  It was beautiful.

I continued to contemplate this when I came home.  Why had this image popped in my head?  What about a pearl?  Then I remembered the verse from Matthew about the merchant and the pearl.  The pearl represented salvation, the kingdom of heaven.  And it was married to the cross, which reached the highest of mountains.

Christ truly is King.  When we pick up our cross and follow Him, when we unite our suffering with Him, we are rewarded with more than the greatest pearls or riches in the world.  We are rewarded with heavenly salvation.  We will come face to face with the love of God, where every tear will be wiped away and joy reigns.

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Prayers for a friend

Posted on November 16, 2016 by veilofveronica

Please pray for a friend of mine who has a child at the same school my son was kicked out of.  Pray they don’t receive the same fate as we did, as it is so hard on the children.  You can read his story here.

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The Dark night of my soul

Posted on October 26, 2016 by veilofveronica

san-damiano-cross-assisi-italy1c

“Francis, rebuild my church.”

Most High glorious God, enlighten the darkness of my heart and give me true faith, certain hope and perfect charity, sense and knowledge, Lord that I may carry out your holy and true command. Amen

The past few months have been extremely difficult for my family.  I won’t go into all the details because it has been written about here, here, and here.  What I will talk about is the spiritual aspect of it, and the aftermath.

It was after months of prayer and adoration that I followed the path I felt the Lord called me to.  We can never be certain that we know the mind of God, but I can, as Thomas Merton says, know that God finds it pleasing when I am trying to do His will.

merton-prayer

I never felt as though I was battling people, but principalities and powers that want to separate families from their proper role in Natural Law.  I pray for all of the people involved.  We ended up with a different trajectory for our lives, something I accepted because I felt the Lord call me on this path.  I can only hope that it was His will, and that He can make straight any mistakes I made along the way.

My biggest heartache was feeling like those in power did not hear my voice (and other parents as well), and did not look at my son as an individual soul.  But I have always known that the church, regardless of the mistakes people inside of it make, is guided by the Holy Spirit, and that the Mass with the Eucharist is the greatest possible gift we could ever receive on this earth.

What I did not expect was what happened to me afterwards for a period of about three days.  I felt hopeless.  I felt despair.  I felt forsaken — a complete absence of love from those in power in my community.  I felt silence from God and I felt like I wanted to leave the church.

“I cry to you, O God, but you don’t answer. I stand before you, but you don’t even look.”  Job 30:20

I never imagined myself there.  I was angry, even raging.  But I knew intellectually, aside from my emotion, that our God is a good God.  That He is the most high sovereign king, and that I knew saying yes to Him would cause suffering.  But the despair was suffocating.

“Even when I cry out and call for help, He shuts out my prayer.”  Lamentations 3:8

Hope became an act of the will for me for these few days.  I have to say, I have talked about that, but I didn’t realize I would experience it so soon.

Nothing I tried worked to lift the despair – adoration, the Rosary, Mass.  I was in an abyss.

“My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, but I find no rest.”  Psalm 22:2

Finally, in an act of pure desperation, I went out to the woods, to have it out with God.  I knew I should be uniting my suffering to His cross, and that great grace can come from that, but instead I raged at Him.

Must you persecute me just as God does, and give my body no peace? Job 19:22

And then I sat quiet, I cried and I listened.  And He spoke to me.  He told me He was showing me the despair of many of His people.  Many inside the church and outside the church.  They have been hurt by others, in His name — sometimes they have been hurt as well.  He showed me that I am to remember this feeling in the months and years to come.  Because we are weak, we are human and  we all killed Christ.   He told me to be a light in the darkness, to help rebuild His church.  He told me to call on the intercession of the Saints, especially the Blessed Mother.  And most of all He told me to pray everyday for my will to be one with His.  When my will is one with His, I can love like He does.  I can forgive like He does.  I can show people the kingdom of God right here.  May God Bless you all.

“I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.  This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.  No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.  You are my friends if you do what I command you.”  John 15:11:14

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The Walking Dead

Posted on October 25, 2016 by veilofveronica

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Crucifixion by Mantegna

One of the criminals who were hanged there was hurling abuse at Him, saying, “Are You not the Christ? Save Yourself and us!” Luke 23:39

Though I do not watch a lot of TV, I did happen to catch a glimpse of the Walking Dead the other night, the season opener.  This was not something I chose to watch, but happened to walk in on.  I try to be very careful what I watch because graphic images are hard to get out of your head.

I do not know the characters.  I just know that the show is about zombies that eat people and the people trying to survive.

So imagine my shock when the scene I walked in on was not about zombies, but showed a man, a leader of a group, brutally murdering another man.  It was so gruesome I had to leave the room from shock.

It got me thinking, aside from the utter brutality the media portrays, which now seems to have a no holds barred assault on decency, and is an article for another day… the Walking Dead are not zombies.  They are people without God.  They are people who remain defiant in their sin as if God should fit their needs, and not the other way around.

Recently I read an article about a Baptist Minister who said God helped her make the best decision to abort her baby.  And another article about how Kermit Gosnell read the bible and concluded he did nothing wrong.

I am not here to judge the souls of these people, but I am here to tell you that each and every human being is dignified and is loved by our awesome God.  When we distort the truth to fit our agenda, we are no better than the bad thief on the cross.  We recognize God and essentially spit in his face, asking him to conform to our agenda instead of the other way around.  There is no surer way to end up separated from the love of God, than to reject human dignity and dehumanize other people.

This lack of understanding of sin, makes people dead inside.  I know, I have felt it when I was mired in sin.  It is not zombies who are walking dead.  It is us, unless we repent and believe in the Gospel.   Peace comes with the light of Christ.

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