Monday, August 31, 2009

Imagine

Imagine being there in the place and the moment described by today's Gospel (Luke 4:16-30).

How wonderful it would have been to be sitting there in the synagogue as our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ stepped up and read that great prophecy.


He came to Nazareth,
where he had grown up,
and went according to his custom
into the synagogue on the sabbath day.


He stood up to read
and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah.

He unrolled the scroll
and found the passage where it was written:

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim

a year acceptable to the Lord.

Rolling up the scroll,

he handed it back to the attendant
and sat down,
and the eyes of all in the synagogue

looked intently at him.

He said to them,
“Today

this Scripture passage
is fulfilled in your hearing.”

(adapted from an earlier post)

Friday, August 28, 2009

Late have I loved thee

O Beauty so ancient and so new,
late have I loved thee.

Behold, thou wast within
and I was without,
and I sought thee out there;

And among the lovely things

that thou hast made,
unlovely that I am, I heedlessly rushed .

Thou wast with me,

but I was not with thee.

These things kept me far from thee
(they that would not be, were they not in thee).

Thou didst call and cry aloud,
and didst force open my deafness.

Thou didst gleam and shine,
and didst chase away my blindness.

Thou didst breathe fragrant odors
and I drew in my breath;
and now I pant for thee.

I tasted,
and now I hunger and thirst.

Thou didst touch me,
and I burned for thy peace.

Sero te amavi,
pulchritudo tam antiqua et tam nova,
sero te amavi!

et ecce intus eras
et ego foris,
et ibi te quaerebam,
et in ista formosa,
quae fecisti,
deformis inruebam.

mecum eras,
et tecum non eram.

ea me tenebant longe a te,
quae si in te non essent, non essent.

vocasti et clamasti
et rupisti surditatem meam:

coruscasti,
splenduisti et fugasti caecitatem meam:

fragrasti, et duxi spiritum,
et anhelo tibi,

gustavi
et esurio et sitio,

tetigisti me,
et exarsi in pacem tuam.

(Confessions of St. Augustine, X.xxvii[38])

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Magnificat

Et Maria dixit,
Magnificat anima mea Dominum,
et exultavit spiritus meus in Deo salvatore meo,
quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae.
And Mary said,
Great does my soul declare the Lord
and my spirit exults in God my Savior
for he has regarded the humility of his handmaid.



Ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnes generationes,
quia fecit mihi magna, qui potens est,
et sanctum nomen eius,

Behold, from now on all generations shall call me blessed,
for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name;



et misericordia eius in progenies et progenies
timentibus eum.

and His mercy is from generation to generation
to those who fear Him.



Fecit potentiam in brachio suo,
dispersit superbos mente cordi sui;
deposuit potentes de sede
et exaltavit humiles;

He has shown the strength of his arm;
He has scattered the superior in their own minds;
He has unseated the mighty
And has lifted up the humble;



esurientes implevit bonis
et divites dimisit inanes.

The hungry he has filled with good things
and the rich He has sent away empty.



Suscepit Israel puerum suum,
recordatus misericordiae,
sicut locutus est ad patres nostros,
Abraham et semini eius in saecula.

He has received Israel His servant,
remembering His mercy,
just as he said to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.


Luke 1:46-55
from today's Gospel

Thursday, August 06, 2009

Transfiguration

Detail from 'The Transfiguration' by Raphael - Vatican Museum Jesus took Peter, James, and his brother, John,
and led them up a high mountain by themselves.
And he was transfigured before them;
his face shone like the sun
and his clothes became white as light.

And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them,
conversing with him.

Then Peter said to Jesus in reply,
"Lord, it is good that we are here.

Matthew 17:1-4a



Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Transfiguration

(originally posted on A Penitent Blogger)

Tuesday, August 04, 2009

"Lord, save me!"

But when (Peter) saw how strong the wind was
he became frightened;
and, beginning to sink, he cried out,
"Lord, save me!"


A 19th century woodcut illustration by Julius Schnoor von Carolsfeld

Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand
and caught him,
and said to him,
"O you of little faith,
why did you doubt?"


(Matthew 14:30-31 - from today's Gospel)