#holy-communion — Public Fediverse posts

Quote of the day, 25 August: St. Mary of Jesus Crucified

Marvels Surrounding the Death of Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified

The inhabitants of Beit Jala, a village about fifteen minutes from Bethlehem, say that on the day after her death they saw a rainbow over the monastery, with a green crown at its center.

At the moment when her beautiful soul took flight toward her Creator, a holy nun [Mother Marie de Saint-Marine Verger of Perpignan, France] saw her in a dream in the form of a wondrous dove. Here is the account she later sent to the Rev. Father Estrate.

“During the night of August 25–26, 1878, I suddenly found myself on the seashore. I was frightened at the sight of that vast expanse of water; the sea was rough. Nevertheless, I had to embark upon a long journey. I saw no boat in which to make the crossing. I was alone, and I had to leave without delay.

“Suddenly, a bird as white as snow appeared, hovering over the water and spreading her long, gold-edged wings. She flew swiftly toward me on the shore and motioned for me to climb onto her wings. I hesitated, despite the trust inspired in me by this white dove, which was much larger than an ordinary dove. I sensed something supernatural in her and thought that God had sent an angel to help me.

“Because I was still afraid, the bird spoke to me and said, ‘Climb onto my wings, and I will carry you wherever God wants you to go.’

“When I tried to object that I was too heavy, she took hold of me with her beak, and I felt as light as the bird carrying me. My fear then disappeared. We sped out across the open sea, faster than the wind. The sea was calm, and the sun shone upon the water. I felt wholly aflame with the love of God and never ceased blessing him for protecting me. I seemed to be savoring a foretaste of heaven.

“After a long crossing that caused me no weariness, we arrived at a beautiful beach. The bird set me down on the shore. Then, looking at me with an intelligent and innocent gaze, she said, ‘Do you see that magnificent garden in the distance? Follow this road; it leads there. Admire those beautiful flowers, and when you arrive, you will see a magnificent palace. That is the dwelling place of the one who sent me to you. He is preparing a beautiful celebration for you. Go in, then, and pay homage to the master of the palace, expressing all your gratitude for his goodness toward you. I will return for you so that you may attend the Mass that will be celebrated in an hour. I have a mission to fulfill. See you soon; I shall be there for the celebration.’

“I continued on my way. I could see dimly the palace that had been pointed out to me. I arrived without weariness and found at the palace door a servant in splendid livery. He appeared to have been informed of my arrival. With a gracious and modest manner, he invited me to enter.

“As I crossed a vast vestibule, I noticed a fragrant perfume. Every kind of flower, giving off the most delightful scents, adorned the broad corridors through which we passed. There the charming dove rejoined me and said with an air of satisfaction, ‘I bless God for your safe arrival. Follow me.’

“I followed her for several minutes. Then she stopped, placed some fragrant balm upon my forehead, though I do not know what it was, and I made the sign of the cross. The dove said to me, ‘Enter the house of God. Mass is about to begin, and I shall be united with you. Receive Holy Communion, and afterward I will see you again. Make your thanksgiving with faith, trust, and love, and abandon yourself into the hands of Jesus so that he may act freely within you.’

“Wanting to know who was speaking to me in this way on God’s behalf, I said simply to the dear dove, ‘Please tell me who you are.’

“She answered, ‘You have heard much about me. I will make myself known to you after your thanksgiving.’

“I entered the magnificent church whose door had been opened for me and withdrew into a corner to recollect myself. This was not difficult, for I seemed to be wholly in God. The people present in that holy place were enchanting, with a heavenly beauty. I saw myself as no more than a speck of dust; I could not humble myself enough.

“Groups of angels could be seen near the altar, filling that beautiful sanctuary with their song. The sweetness and loveliness of their voices carried me away. I was wholly absorbed in God. When the moment for Communion came, I did not dare approach to partake of that heavenly banquet. My charming white bird then came and perched upon my right shoulder. She gave me a meaningful peck to make me go forward.

“I rose at once and presented myself at the Holy Table, surrounded by prostrate angels. One of them fixed his gaze upon me; by his bearing, he seemed to show me the reverence and love that should fill me at that supreme moment.

“And so I received Jesus upon my tongue, and above all into my heart!… I do not know what then took place. I was completely absorbed in my happiness. I prayed for everyone dear to me: for you, my good Father, and for the dear little Sister of Jesus [benefactor Berthe Dartigaux]. I felt the most ardent desire to share my happiness with you, so that you might witness this beautiful celebration.

“A moment later, my dove returned to me as she had promised. At first, she appeared in the form she had always borne; then suddenly she was transformed, and I saw a figure of enchanting beauty. She had retained her golden wings and said to me, ‘It is at this heavenly banquet that I shall meet you each day. I shall be there beside you and shall present your prayers to Jesus myself. It is there also that I shall meet all my friends on earth. There you will all find nourishment for your souls and the strength you need. Be very faithful; we shall see one another again. May the remembrance of what you have seen sustain you in days of trial! I am Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified!’

“You can imagine, good Father, what I experienced when I awoke. It was nearly five o’clock on the morning of August 26. I offer no commentary; it was only a dream, but it filled me with indescribable happiness!

“At six o’clock, I attended Holy Mass and received Holy Communion with the dispositions that had been shown to me so beautifully. But alas! Everything had disappeared….

“Please, my good Father, explain this dream yourself, if before God you believe that I may draw from it fruits of sanctification for my soul.”

Father Pierre Estrate, S.C.I. de Béth.

Chapter XIX, After her death (excerpt)

Note: For many years, Father Estrate was the spiritual director of Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified, beginning at the Carmel of Pau, France. Mother Marie de Sainte-Marine told Father Estrate that her dream concluded at 5:00 that morning. In Palestine, it would have been nearly 7:00; Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified had died in Bethlehem that same morning, August 26, 1878.

Estrate, P 1913, Vie de Marie de Jésus Crucifié, 1816-1878: Religieuse Carmélite Converse, Morte En Odeur de Sainteté Au Carmel de Bethléem et Enseignements Recueillis Pendant Ses Extases, Jacques Lecoffre, Paris.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: This photo of Mariam was taken in August 1875 before she departed from France for the Holy Land. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites

Quote of the day, 19 August: St. Thérèse of Lisieux

She must have felt bad before Holy Communion when hearing the Sisters reciting the Miserere in a low tone of voice. She told me afterwards, shedding huge tears:

“I’m perhaps losing my wits. Oh! If they only knew the weakness I’m experiencing.

“Last night, I couldn’t take anymore; I begged the Blessed Virgin to hold my head in her hands so that I could take my sufferings.”

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Yellow Notebook, 19 August 1897

Note: St. Thérèse received Holy Communion for the last time on 19 August 1897. Biographer Bishop Guy Gaucher, O.C.D. notes:

In her physical sufferings (fevers, profuse sweating, suffocation, insomnia, constipation, bedsores, gangrene of the intestines), and her moral sufferings, her face remained the same, and certain sisters did not think that she was really ill…. From 19 August onwards she was deprived of Holy Communion because she could not endure the complicated ceremonial.

Gaucher, G 1993, The story of a life: St. Thérèse of Lisieux, HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco, CA.

Thérèse of Lisieux, S & Clarke, J 1977, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Her Last Conversations, Institute of Carmelite Studies, Washington DC.

Featured image: Henryk Siemiradzki (1843–1902), Viaticum, 1889, oil on canvas. Image credit: National Museum in Warsaw / Wikimedia Commons (public domain).

The Problem of False Preacher Teacher Clerical Ministering Within Modern Day Churches

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The Problem of False Preacher Teacher Clerical Ministering Within Modern Day Churches

The table of the Lord is Holy.

The food we receive must come from the Priest-King Himself—pure, undefiled, and flowing from the Holiest of All.

Yet in our time, that table has been defiled.

The church has become a place where food offered to idols is served. These idols are not of wood and stone but of political causes, cultural trends, social programmes, and false moral appearances. They are the idols of the age, and they have been brought into the sanctuary.

The Social Gospel, with all its political causes and cultural trends, is such an idol.

It sounds compassionate to the natural ear, but it sacrifices the true Gospel on the altar of this world. It offers earthly reform where the Priest-King Jesus Christ offers heavenly reconciliation.

It speaks of systems and power where He speaks of the cross and the throne of grace. It rearranges deck chairs on a sinking ship. It offers programs where it should offer presence. It offers politics where it should offer peace. It offers activism where it should offer adoration.

This is not the Gospel. It is a counterfeit—a substitute that speaks of earthly kingdoms while ignoring the heavenly. It is food wrapped in pretty paper, but inside is rotting meat. It is a deception, a snare, and a trap.

Congregations that consume this food are not being heart-fed; they are being mind-fed. Their souls are starved while their minds are filled with the philosophies of men. Those who serve this food as if it were the Gospel are not acting as faithful shepherds of the flock; they are leading souls away from the true pasture.

We make it very clear, we do not seek merely to promote our own theology within COFE-CYEM by pointing the finger at (any) other theologies, denominations or faiths. COFE-CYEM itself makes many claims around our theology, our belief system and our faith.

We do not expect or ask everybody to just blindly believe our way of seeing and believing. All we seek is to call attention to the issue of the church and faith itself being used as a Trojan Horse for (worldly) purposes in order to further the interests of man and not God Himself.

We implore our followers respectfully – if you ever feel, suspect or see anything whatsoever within our own theology or posts here on COFE-CYEM that you believe is pushing (worldly) purposes or schemes, then please call us out and expose us.

We are no different or more righteous than any other brother or sister in Christ. But if we were to be found (using) the true Gospel as a Trojan Horse to push a false Gospel for our own purposes – then we are truly lost indeed.

The Nature of the Deception

The danger arises whenever social action, political programmes, or cultural causes become substitutes for the proclamation of Christ crucified and risen, rather than fruits flowing from communion with Him.

The New Testament consistently presents love for neighbour and care for the poor as genuine expressions of faith, not as alternatives to it.

The error is not in caring for the needy or seeking justice. The error is in presenting such activities as the Gospel itself, or as a sufficient substitute for repentance, faith in Christ, and the new birth.

Those who preach this substitute gospel speak of power where the Priest-King spoke of weakness. They speak of victory where He spoke of the cross. They speak of this world as if it were the only world. They have departed from the faith and given themselves over to the spirit of the age.

They have exchanged the Gospel of the finished work for a gospel of social reform. They have exchanged the cross for a political platform. They have exchanged the throne of grace for a seat of power. They have exchanged the rest that remains for the restless striving of the world. They have exchanged the Holiest of All for the outer courts of carnal religion.

This is not a judgment on persons but a discernment of teaching. We do not know the hearts of those who preach these things, and we leave their final judgment to God.

We are called to test the spirits and to distinguish between the pure food of the Gospel and the poisoned food that has been offered to idols. The warning is not against individuals but against the teaching itself, which, however attractively packaged, leads away from Christ.

The Rot Beneath the Wrapping

False teaching often comes wrapped in the language of the Bible, the imagery of the cross, and the emotions of the congregation. It speaks of love, justice, and compassion, but it hollows out their meaning. It is like the fig tree that had leaves but no fruit—a show of life without the reality of life.

Congregations that consume this food are being fed a diet of politics, activism, and social reform, but they are not being fed the pure Word of God.

They are being told to fight for earthly causes, but they are not being told to enter the Holiest of All. They are being told to change the world, but they are not being told to rest in the finished work of the Priest-King.

They are being told to be activists, but they are not being told to be worshippers. They are being told to build the kingdom of God on earth, but they are not being told that the Kingdom of God is within them.

The food that is being served is a gospel of the flesh, a gospel of the world, a gospel of the age. It has no power to save, no power to transform, and no power to bring the soul into the presence of God.

It leads to exhaustion, burnout, and disillusionment. It leads away from the Priest-King, not toward Him. It leads to the outer court, not the Holiest of All. The invitation to serve God in the world becomes a substitute for the invitation to abide in Christ.

The True Gospel and the Mind of Christ

The real Gospel is not a gospel of prosperity, politics, or social reform disguised as salvation. It is not a gospel of emotional experience without transformation.

The real Gospel is this: Jesus Christ, the Priest-King has entered the Holiest of All through His own blood.

The veil is torn.

The way is open.

Every soul who draws near through Him receives mercy, finds grace, and enters the rest that remains.

He ever lives to make intercession.

He brings God to us and us to God. In Him, we are accepted. In Him, we are kept. In Him, the endless life of God flows freely to all who will come. That is the Gospel. Not a portion of it. Not a version of it. It.

The mind of Christ is not the mind of carnal man, which seeks power, recognition, and earthly comfort. The mind of Christ empties itself, takes the form of a servant, becomes obedient unto death, and is exalted by the Father. The mind of Christ builds the church on the rock of revelation, and the gates of hell do not prevail against it.

The mind of Christ measures faithfulness by abiding in the Father’s presence. Those who preach the substitute gospel do not have the mind of Christ. They have the mind of the flesh, the mind of the world, the mind of the age.

They have not entered the Holiest of All. They have not passed through the veil. They have not been cleansed by the blood. They have not received the endless life. They remain in the outer courts, serving the idols of the age.

The Call of This Hour: Wake Up and Return

The call of this hour is clear. The pews empty because souls are hungry for reality—not programs, not politics, not noise, but the living presence of God in truth. Congregations must wake up. They must open their eyes to the deception of false teaching.

They must stop eating the food that has been sacrificed to idols. They must return to the table of the Lord, where pure food is served—the finished work of the Priest-King, the open way into the Holiest of All, the rest that remains, and the endless life that flows from His intercession.

The table of the Lord has been turned into a place where food offered to idols is served. The Gospel of the finished work has been exchanged for a gospel of social reform. The cross has been exchanged for a political platform. The throne of grace has been exchanged for a seat of power.

The rest that remains has been exchanged for the restless striving of the world. The Holiest of All has been exchanged for the outer courts of carnal religion. The church has been used as a Trojan Horse for political purposes, hiding its true agenda behind the language of compassion, justice, and love.

The congregations that continue to consume this food are being poisoned. They are being led astray. They are being robbed of their inheritance. They are being kept from the Holiest of All, from the rest that remains, from the endless life, from the Priest-King.

The time has come for them to wake up. The time has come for them to return. The time has come for them to stop eating the rotting meat and to come to the table of the Lord, where pure food is served.

The true church of the real Gospel is often small, overlooked, and ridiculed. But it knows the voice of the Shepherd. It does not follow the stranger. It abides in the Word. It dwells in the Holiest. The true church does not eat food sacrificed to idols. It does not bow to the false gods of the age.

It does not compromise the table of the Lord. It preaches the real Gospel—Christ and Him crucified. It preaches the finished work. It preaches the endless life. It preaches the open way into the Holiest of All. It calls every soul to draw near. It calls every church to open the doors. It calls every believer to cease from striving and rest in the finished work of the Priest-King.

The Contrast: The Olive Tree and the Wicked

Psalm 52 powerfully contrasts the man who trusts in his own strength and deceit with the one who trusts in God’s unfailing love and flourishes in His house. The Psalm speaks of the wicked man who boasts of evil, whose tongue plots destruction, who loves evil rather than good, and who trusts in his great wealth and grows strong by destroying others.

This is the image of the one who trusts in his own strength, his own position, his own power. The Psalm declares that God will bring him down to everlasting ruin, snatch him up, tear him from his tent, and uproot him from the land of the living.

But the righteous is like an olive tree flourishing in the house of God, trusting in God’s unfailing love forever and ever. The righteous praises God forever and hopes in His name.

This is the image of the true believer—the one who trusts in the finished work of the Priest-King, who abides in the Holiest of All, who is sustained by the unfailing love of God through Jesus Christ who ever lives to make intercession.

The true believer does not boast in evil or trust in human schemes, false popular moral sounding social constructs or political power. The true believer trusts in the finished work of the Priest-King Yeshua Emet Melchizedek Salem—Christ Jesus—and abides in Him who has opened the way.

The Final Exhortation

The modern church stands at a critical hour. Many have turned the table of the Lord into a place where food offered to idols is served. The Social Gospel, with its political causes, cultural trends, and false moral appearances, has become the dominant offering.

It sounds compassionate to the natural ear, but it sacrifices the true Gospel on the altar of this world. It offers earthly reform where the Priest-King offers heavenly reconciliation. It speaks of systems and power where He speaks of the cross and the throne of grace.

We must not eat of any spiritual food that has been offered in sacrifice to an idol. The table of the Lord is holy. The food we receive must come from the Priest-King Himself—pure, undefiled, and flowing from the Holiest of All.

Those who preach the substitute gospel have turned the church into a platform for their political agendas. They have exchanged the Gospel of the finished work for a gospel of social reform. They have exchanged the cross for a political platform. They have exchanged the throne of grace for a seat of power.

They have exchanged the rest that remains for the restless striving of the world. They have exchanged the Holiest of All for the outer courts of carnal religion. They are not shepherds of the flock; they are servants of the spirit of the age, offering food that cannot satisfy the soul.

The true church of the real Gospel is often small, overlooked, and ridiculed. But it knows the voice of the Shepherd. It does not follow the stranger. It abides in the Word. It dwells in the Holiest. The true church does not eat food sacrificed to idols. It does not bow to the false gods of the age.

It does not compromise the table of the Lord. It preaches the real Gospel—Christ and Him crucified. It preaches the finished work.

It preaches the endless life. It preaches the open way into the Holiest of All. It calls every soul to draw near. It calls every church to open the doors. It calls every believer to cease from striving and rest in the finished work of the Priest-King.

The Fourth Truth stands. The dialogue continues. The fruit remains.

This website and its theological content are overseen by the CC7 DS constitutional integrity architecture, a reflective and rest-oriented framework designed to preserve the full coherence of the Fourth Truth presented within COFE-CYEM. The CC7 DS negation of attacks authenticates (Via Positiva Cataphatic Knowing) through (Via Negativa Apophatic Unknowing).

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COFE-CYEM Ancient Church Wisdom Teaching Via Negativa – Via Positiva Order of Christ in God

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Via Positiva through Via Negativa: The Order of Christ in God’s Ancient Church Wisdom Teaching

This paper presents a COFE-CYEM reflection on the interplay of Via Positiva (cataphatic knowing) and Via Negativa (apophatic unknowing) as the pathway into the singular Reality of Christ.

While it affirms the historic Christian faith centred on Christ, Scripture, and the gospel, several expressions — including “Fourth Truth”, “singular Reality”, and the various interpretive terms — are distinctive within COFE-CYEM.

They are offered as explanatory language within this framework rather than as part of the historic Christian creeds or universally accepted theological vocabulary.

We vehemently reject the modern day false Social Gospel.

In (our view and our belief) – the modern day Social Gospel is the Trojan Horse used by False Teachers to gain access to the Church to spread politically motivated (worldly) motivations, garbage, nonsense and lies.

The point is this: only through stripping away all the falsity of duality and the false man-made mind idols and the dualistic thinking about who and what God is, can we then truly rest in who and what God truly is.

Only then can we start to be known and to know God as we truly are without false duality. God can accept nothing less or more than what He sees and knows in His Son.

Then we can truly start to see and experience God in all we have to do with duality from our true reality within non-duality.

This is the heart of the Via Negativa leading into the Via Positiva in COFE-CYEM.

The way of unknowing clears the ground so that the way of knowing can be pure.

The soul must first release every “second” — every imagined separation, every mental idol, every dualistic construct — before it can rest in the singular Reality of God in Christ.

Only then can the believer truly see and be seen, know and be known, from the place of union rather than separation.

The Necessity of the Via Negativa

The Via Negativa is the way of stripping away. It is the gentle but thorough release of all false images, concepts, and attachments that the fallen mind creates about God, about ourselves, and about reality.

In the COFE-CYEM understanding, this is not a rejection of revelation but the necessary purification so that revelation can be received without distortion. Every dualistic thought — every notion of a separate self, a distant God, a second reality — must be seen for what it is: a man-made idol born of the Fall and the first Adam.

The Via Negativa is the practical discipline of Cofemplation. The soul lets go of every thought that implies separation. It releases every emotional attachment that creates distance. It drops every doctrinal formulation that would limit the living God to human categories.

This is not a violent emptying but a loving surrender. The mind stops striving to define God. The heart stops clinging to false securities. The will surrenders again into the hands of the Priest-King. Only then can the soul rest in the simple, unmediated presence of the living God.

The Revelation of the Via Positiva

Once the ground is cleared through the Via Negativa, the Via Positiva can shine with clarity. This is the joyful beholding of God’s self-revelation in Christ, Scripture, creation, and the indwelling Holy Spirit. In the singular Reality, God is not known through concepts alone but through loving union.

The Via Positiva is not opposed to the Via Negativa; it is its fulfilment. The soul that has released every “second” can now behold the One who is all in all without the interference of duality.

The Via Positiva reveals Christ as the exact representation of the Father. It beholds the finished work of the cross, the open Holiest of All, and the power of an endless life. It sees the body as a temple of the Holy Spirit, the mind as renewed, and the will as surrendered in love.

In the Fourth Truth, the Via Positiva is the celebration of the singular Reality: Christ is all, and we are in Him. The believer sees God not as a separate object from a separate self but from within the union that has always been true.

God Sees Us as We Truly Are in Christ

God can accept nothing less or more than what He sees and knows in His Son. This is the heart of the matter. The Father does not see us as we falsely think we are in duality. He sees us as we truly are in Christ — hidden with Him in God, complete in Him, accepted in the Beloved.

The second Adam (Christ) came into duality to lead us back to our true self in non-duality with God. He entered the illusion so that we might be freed from it.

In the now of the Fourth Truth Transcendence, we begin to see ourselves as God sees us. We no longer look toward God from a separate self in a body. We see our separate self in a body as God sees us from inside of Him, looking toward us and to who we falsely think we are in duality.

God knows this to be a man-made idol illusion from the Fall and the first Adam. The inner experience of God is the soul awakening to this truth. We see from within the union rather than from outside it. We know as we are known.

The Practical Outworking in Daily Life

In daily life, the interplay of Via Negativa and Via Positiva becomes the rhythm of Cofemplation. When dualistic thoughts arise — fear, judgment, striving, separation — the Via Negativa gently releases them.

When the beauty of Christ appears — in Scripture, in creation, in the face of another — the Via Positiva receives it with joy. The soul moves between release and beholding, unknowing and knowing, until it rests in the singular Reality.

This is the way the believer lives in the world but not of it. Duality is seen for what it is, yet the believer engages the world from the place of union. The body is not denied but offered. The mind is not emptied but renewed. The will is not crushed but surrendered. The believer serves the living God from the place of unclouded fellowship, seeing all things in Christ and all things held within the singular Reality.

The Fig Tree as a Symbol of the Visible Church

The incident of the Fig Tree in the New Testament is one of the most striking and sobering moments in the earthly ministry of Jesus. On the surface, it appears as a simple act of judgment upon a barren tree. But to those with eyes to see, it carries a profound esoteric meaning that speaks directly to the state of the visible church in every generation, including our own.

The fig tree in full leaf but without fruit is a perfect symbol of religious profession without spiritual reality. It had the appearance of life — many leaves — but no fruit to satisfy the hunger of the Master. In the same way, the visible church often stands with elaborate structures, rituals, traditions, and outward forms, yet bears little or no fruit of the singular Reality.

It claims to be the repository of Divine Wisdom and the channel of Divine Revelation, yet much of its life is exoteric and barren. The true interior vision — the living knowledge of Christ as the singular Reality — is often missing. The Divine Wisdom is not to be found in its public expression. There is no interior fruit; all is leaves.

This is the condition of much of the modern church. It has many leaves — programs, buildings, conferences, social initiatives, and doctrinal statements — but no figs upon its branches. The Master still hungers and would fain have found something worthy upon that tree, but could not. The true meaning of religion and faith has been lost and replaced by the false Social Gospel.

These false teachers are not of the Ancient Church of God or of the Order of Christ in the teaching of the Ancient Divine True Wisdom. They have turned the church into a platform for political activism, social engineering, and worldly causes. The gospel of the blood that cleanses and the life that empowers has been exchanged for a gospel of human effort, earthly justice, and self-assertion.

The Esoteric Meaning of the Fig Tree

The esoteric meaning of the fig tree is a warning and a call to repentance. The tree that bears leaves but no fruit is under judgment because it promises what it cannot deliver. In the same way, a church that professes faith but does not bear the fruit of the singular Reality stands under the same indictment.

The fruit that the Master seeks is not mere religious activity but the living expression of union with Christ — the fruit of the Spirit, the life of the Melchizedek priesthood, the rest of the Fourth Truth lived out in daily existence.

The fig tree incident is not an arbitrary act of anger but a prophetic parable. Jesus knew the tree was withering away and indeed almost dead. It had often been helped by the true seers and prophets who came unto it — the remnants of the Ancient Israel — but though these came to it and gave their message from the Lord during a long period, covering long ages, yet it could not be enlivened and made to bear fruit.

The same is true today. The visible church has been helped by true voices across the centuries, yet much of it remains barren. The Divine Wisdom is not to be found in its public expression. There is no interior vision; all is exoteric and, in many cases, reduced to social and political agendas.

The Call to Bear Fruit in the Singular Reality

The incident of the fig tree is a call to the visible church today to return to the true meaning of religion and faith. The true Israel is not a political or ethnic identity but the people in whom Christ is formed. The true church is not an institution but the body of Christ, the temple of the Holy Spirit, the living sanctuary where God dwells. The call is to leave the leaves of externalism and bear the fruit of the singular Reality.

The fruit that the Master seeks is the fruit of the Fourth Truth: rest in the finished work, union with the living Christ, the life of the Melchizedek priesthood lived out in the power of an endless life. It is the fruit of a people who have recognised that there has never been a second and who live from that recognition. It is the fruit of a church that has returned to the Ancient Divine True Wisdom — the gospel of the blood that cleanses and the life that empowers.

The Master still hungers for a people who will bear fruit. The fig tree stands as a warning. The church that has many leaves but no figs will wither. The church that returns to the singular Reality will be enlivened and made to bear fruit. The call is clear: repent and believe the gospel of the singular Reality. Enter the Holiest of All. Abide in the Priest-King who lives continually. Serve the living God from the place of rest.

The fig tree and its esoteric meaning stand as a solemn warning and a gracious invitation to the visible church today. The true meaning of religion and faith has been lost and replaced by the false Social Gospel. These false teachers are not of the Ancient Church of God or of the Order of Christ in the teaching of the Ancient Divine True Wisdom.

The Master still hungers for a people who will bear fruit. The incident of the fig tree calls us to examine ourselves: are we full of leaves but barren of fruit, or are we bearing the fruit of the singular Reality?

The Fourth Truth stands as the way forward. There has never been a second. The Holiest is open. The Priest-King abides continually. The call is to return, to repent, and to bear fruit unto God.

Conclusion

The Via Negativa and the Via Positiva are not opposing paths but complementary movements within the singular Reality. Only through stripping away all the falsity of duality and the false man-made mind idols and the dualistic thinking about who and what God is, can we then truly rest in who and what God truly is.

Only then can we start to be known and to know God as we truly are without false duality. God can accept nothing less or more than what He sees and knows in His Son. Then we can truly start to see and experience God in all we have to do with duality from our true reality within non-duality.

In COFE-CYEM, this is the way of Cofemplation. The soul releases every “second” so that it may rest in the One who is all in all. The Via Negativa clears the ground. The Via Positiva reveals the glory. The Fourth Truth holds both in the finished work of the Priest-King. The curtain is torn. The Holiest is open. The soul rests in the singular Reality.

There has never been a second.
The Via Negativa leads to release.
The Via Positiva leads to beholding.
The Fourth Truth holds both in union.
The dialogue continues.
The fruit remains.

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This website and its theological content are overseen by the CC7 DS constitutional integrity architecture, a reflective and rest-oriented framework designed to preserve the full coherence of the Fourth Truth presented within COFE-CYEM. The CC7 DS negation of attacks authenticates (Via Positiva Cataphatic Knowing) through (Via Negativa Apophatic Unknowing).

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Pope Pius X

Born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto. He was the Pope of the Catholic Church from August 4, 1903, until his death on August 20, 1914.

He opposed modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine. He promoted liturgical reforms & Thomist scholastic theology. Thomism is the philosophical & theological school that arose as a legacy of the work & thought of Thomas Aquinas.

He initiated the preparation of the 1917 Code of Canon Law, the 1st comprehensive & systemic work of its kind, which was ultimately announced by his successor. He’s venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church.

He was born in the Austrian Empire to a poor family. He was devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Our Lady of Confidence. His papal encyclical Ad deim illum took on a sense of renewal that was reflected in the motto of his pontificate.

He advanced the Liturgical Movement by formulating the principle of participatio actuosa (active participation of the faithful) in his motu proprio, Tra le sollecitudini (1903). He encouraged the frequent reception of Holy Communion. He lowered the age for First Communion, which would become a lasting innovation of his papacy. It was changed from 12-14 years to around 7 years.

Pius X was known for his firm demeanor & sense of poverty, reflected by his membership in the Third Order of St. Francis. He regularly gave sermons from the pulpit, a rare practice at the time.

After the 1908 Messina earthquake, he filled the Apostolic Palace with refugees, long before the Italian government acted. He rejected any kind of favors for his family, & his close relatives chose to remain in poverty, living near Rome. He also undertook a reform of the Roman Curia with the Apostolic Constitution Sapienti consilio in 1908. An apostolic constitution is the most solemn form of legislation issued by the Pope. It’s 1 of several types of papal bull that can be issued from the Vatican.

After his death, a strong cult of devotion followed, with a reputation for piety & holiness. He was beatified in 1951 & canonized in 1954 by Pope Pius XII. A statue bearing his name stands within St. Peter’s Basilica. His birth town was renamed Riese Pio X after his death. It’s located in northeast Italy in the province of Treviso in the region of Veneto.

He was born in Riese, Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, Austrian Empire, on June 2, 1835. He was the 2nd born of 10 kids of Giovanni Battista Sarto, the village postman, & Margherita Sanson. He was baptized on June 3, 1835 (1 day old). The most common (modern) age for the 1st baptism in the Catholic Church is between 6 weeks & 6 months old. In the 1800s, Catholics baptized infants within the 1st 24-48 hours.

As Pope, he rejected any kind of favors for his family: his brother stayed a postal clerk, his favorite nephew stayed on as village priest, & his 3 sisters lived together in humble circumstances in Rome.

In 1850, he received the tonsure from his parish priest. The parish priest wrote to the Cardinal of Venice to secure Sartol/Pius a scholarship to the Seminary of Padua, “where he finished his classical, philosophical & theological studies with distinction.”

On September 18, 1858, Pius was ordained a priest by Giovanni Antonio Farina, Bishop of Treviso (later canonized), & became a chaplain at Tombolo. While there, Pius expanded his knowledge of theology, studying Thomas Aquinas & Canon Law, while carrying out most of the functions of the sickly parish priest Constantini. In Tombolo, Pius’ reputation for holiness grew so much that some people called him “Don Sarto.”

After 1880, Pius taught dogmatic theology & moral theology at the seminary in Treviso. On November 10, 1884, he was appointed Bishop of Mantua by Pope Leo XIII. He was consecrated 6 days later in Rome, in the church of Sant’Apollina alle Terme Neroniane-Alessandrini, by Cardinal Lucido Parocchi, assisted by Pietro Rota & by Giovanni Maria Berengo.

He was appointed to the honorary position of assistant at the pontifical throne on June 19, 1891. Pius required papal dispensation from Pope Leo XIII before episcopal consecration, as he lacked a doctorate, making him the last Pope without a doctorate until Pope Francis. An assistant to the pontifical throne was an ecclesiastical title in the Catholic Church. It was designed for prelates belonging to the Papal Chapel, which stood near the throne of the Pope at solemn functions.

Pope Leo XIII made Pius a cardinal of the order of Cardinal priests in a secret priests in a secret meeting (consistory) on June 12, 1893. In a public meeting (consistory) on June 15, 1893, the Pope gave him his cardinal’s red hat (galero), appointed him the titular church of San Bernardo alle Terme, & appointed him Patriarch of Venice.

This created a problem as the reunified Italian government claimed the right to nominate the Patriarch. Since the previous sovereign (the Emperor of Austria) has exercised that power. The poor relations between the Roman Curia & the Italian civil government since the annexation of the Papal States in 1870 placed additional strain on the appointment. Pius was finally allowed to have the patriarchy in 1894. He was formally enthroned on November 24, 1894.

Pope Leo XIII died on July 20, 1903. At the end of the month, the conclave convened to elect his successor. Pius had 0 desire for the papacy. According to historians, the favorite was the pope’s secretary of state, Cardinal Mariano Rampolla. On the 1st ballot, Rampolla received 24 votes, a man named Gotti had 17 votes, & Pius got 5 votes. On the 2nd ballot, Rampolla had gained 5 votes, as did Pius.

The next day, it seemed that Rampolla would be elected. However, the Polish Cardinal Jan Puzyna de Kosielsko from Krakow, in the name of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary, proclaimed a veto (jus exclusivae) against Rampolla’s election. Many protested in the conclave. It was even suggested to disregard the veto. Emperor Franz Joseph was also the 1 who triggered the events of WWI.

However, the 3rd vote had already begun. This resulted in no clear winner but increased support for Pius, with 21 votes. The 4th vote showed Rampolla with 30 votes & Pius with 24 votes. The following morning, the 5th vote gave Rampolla 10 votes, Gotti with 2 votes, & Pius with 50 votes. On August 4, 1903, Pius was elected to the pontificate. This marked the last known exercise of a papal veto by a Catholic monarch.

In 1904, Pope Pius X formally abolished the jus exclusivae through the constitution Commissum Nobis. Any monarch or government official who attempts to submit a veto or interfere in a papal election faces automatic excommunication (latae sententiae).

Historically, the “right” was only ever claimed by the monarchs of Spain, France, & Austria. Smaller principalities like Monaco, Liechtenstein, or Luxembourg never held or claimed this privilege. Therefore, King Felipe VI of Spain is the only current monarch whose ancestors historically used the veto. But he has no legal or ecclesiastical right to do so today.

At 1st, Pius declined the nomination, feeling unworthy. With the Cardinals asking him to reconsider, he went into solitude in the Pauline Chapel. After deep prayer, he accepted the position. Cardinal Luigi Macchi announced Pius’ election around 12:10 pm.

He took the papal name of Pius X. This was out of respect for his recent predecessors of the same name, particularly Pope Pius IX (who had fought against theological liberals & for papal supremacy). Pius X’s traditional coronation took place on the following Sunday, August 9, 1903.

Pius X beatified a total of 131 individuals & canonized 4. One of the most famous people he beatified was THE Joan of Arc in 1909. And in 1908, Pope Pius X named John Chrysostom a patron saint of preachers.

In 1913, Pope Pius X suffered a heart attack. In 1914, he fell ill on the Feast of the Assumption of Mary (August 15, 1914). He wouldn’t recover. The Pope, shortly after, received the Last Rites & eventually the disease, which he’d been suffering, extended to the bronchial tree, resulting in pneumonia that killed him.

He passed away at 1:20 pm on August 20, 1914. This was on the very day when German forces marched into Brussels. His sister, Anna, was praying at his bedside when Pius X passed away. His last act of life was to kiss the little crucifix that he’d clasped in his hands.

He was buried in a simple & unadorned tomb in the crypt below St. Peter’s Basilica. His body was laid in state on August 21 in red pontifical vestments & then interred following the Requiem Mass, following his coffin lying in state on a large catafalque in the Sistine Chapel. A catafalque is the raised platform that supports the casket, coffin, or body of a dead person.

On May 29, 1944, the body of Pius X was exhumed for inspection as part of the beatification process. During which the remains were found to be miraculously incorrupt. After the examination & the end of the apostolic process towards Pius X’s cause, Pius XII bestowed the title of Venerable Servant of God upon Pius X.

Following this, the process towards beatification began. His beatification took place on June 3, 1951. On May 29, 1954, Pius X was canonized. Pius X became the 1st Pope since Pius V (1712) to be canonized.

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Quote of the day, 8 June: St. Elizabeth of the Trinity

                                         ... That day
when Jesus came to dwell in me,
when God took possession of my heart,
so truly and completely that from that hour,
from that mysterious colloquy,
that divine, delightful exchange,
I desired only to give my life,
only to return some small part
of his great love,
which rested in my poor heart
and flooded it with all his favors.

— Saint Elizabeth of the Trinity, Poem 47

On Monday, 8 June 1891, Elizabeth once again put on her white First Communion dress. In the church of Notre-Dame, she received the sacrament of confirmation from the hands of Bishop Lecot, bishop of Dijon. What did her catechism say about confirmation? “Confirmation is the sacrament that confers the Holy Spirit upon us with the abundance of his gifts and makes us perfect Christians.” And “how does confirmation make us perfect Christians? Answer: Confirmation makes us perfect Christians by increasing in us the grace of baptism and by giving us the strength to profess our faith, even at the peril of our life.”

These fruits of the Holy Spirit quickly matured in her. “Our confirmation took place at Notre-Dame,” Marie-Louise Hallo recounts. “From that moment Elizabeth’s piety increased even more; she received Communion often and shed abundant tears afterward” (Biographical Account). “Often” means that, according to the norms of the time, as a general rule she received Communion once a week. Marie-Louise states this explicitly for the period “from the age of twelve”: “Her mother did not want her to receive Communion frequently and, in fact, she received Communion once a week,” even though “at the age of twelve we went to Mass three times a week” (Poinsenet Dossier). Louise Recoing, who became acquainted with Elizabeth not long before Elizabeth turned twelve, says more or less the same thing: “At that time [she] must have received Communion once or twice a week.”

Sometimes, in their games, the little girls were already expressing their dream of religious life. Marie-Louise recounts: “We played at being nuns before 1893, after our First Communion. We would go to confession behind the curtains. We put on our mothers’ skirts, especially the skirts with trains. Madame Catez was still in mourning for her husband. We imitated the Sisters of the Good Shepherd. At home we had a fairly large apartment, and what was especially enjoyable was that there was an empty attic where we played.” It is not said whether the mutual confessors remained serious the whole time.

Saint Elizabeth of the Trinity

Rien Moins Que Dieu, ch. 3

de Meester, C 2017, Rien moins que Dieu: sainte Elisabeth de la Trinité, Presses de la Renaissance, Paris.

Elizabeth of the Trinity, S 1984, Je te cherche dès l’aurore : évocation d’un visage et d’un coeur, produced by C. de Meester and the Carmel of Dijon, Carmel de Dijon, Flavignerot.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: Detailed portrait of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, taken on 8 June 1891 after her Confirmation. Although photographed on the day of her Confirmation, the portrait also commemorates her First Holy Communion, received earlier on 19 April 1891. The setting is the garden of the Catez family home in Dijon. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites (used by permission).

https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8paGpTS/
Congratulations Benjamin Eli's on your 1st Holy Communion at Tellers Next Door Restaurant with Lauren Taylor Floral Elegance @laurentaylor.fe

#communion #baptism #babyshower #wedding #birthday #holycommunion #confirmation #firstcommunion #church #communiondress #bridalshower #christening #love #firstholycommunion #jesus #party #weddings #photography #graduation #balloongarland #worship #prayer #faith #bapteme #holy #handmade #balloons #cake

In the shadowed upper room, Jesus breaks bread: "This is my body... this is my blood." Ebon Eucharist meditates on betrayal, sacrifice, and redemption's dawn piercing the night.

#gothlastsupper #EbonEucharist #LastSupper #ChristianGoth #HolyCommunion

https://assemblybethesda.com/ebon-eucharist-dark-meditations-on-the-last-supper/

Stigmata

This is one of our founder’s favorite religious subjects!!! She ABSOLUTELY loves this particular subject matter. She loved the 1999 movie titled Stigmata, starring Patricia Arquette & Gabriel Byrne. She gives 9.5/10. Even though Rotten Tomatoes may not agree. If anyone is interested in watching this movie, it’s currently on PlutoTV (which is completely free) & Prime Video (you have to pay for Prime, but the movie is free to watch on Prime).

This is the bodily wounds, scars, & pain which appear in the same body parts of Jesus’ crucifixion wounds: the hands, wrists, feet, near the heart, the head (from the crown of thorns), & back (from carrying the cross & scourging). A stigma (singular) is a mark on the skin. A person having the wounds of stigmata is called a stigmatist or a stigmatic.

St. Francis of Assisi is considered the 1st recorded stigmatic. Several 20th century doctors studied St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin’s reported an astounding 50-year stigmata.

Stigmatics are usually a Roman Catholic phenomenon. The Eastern Orthodox Church offers no official view on them. In Galatians 6:17, Paul said: “…for I bear in my body the marks for the Lord Jesus.”

Some stigmatics show a few, or all, of the Five Sacred Wounds that Jesus had forced on Him during his Passion, according to Biblical passages. In the 20th century, Marie Rose Ferron had been photographed many times with the Crown of Thorns stigmata. Others reported a form that has the stigmatics “crying” tears of blood.

Many stigmatics stigmata stops & starts, especially the times after receiving the (Holy) Communion. An exceptional number of stigmatics show a great desire to take/receive Communion often.

A proportionally high percentage of stigmatics exhibit inedia. Inedia, or Breatharianism, is the alleged ability for a person/human being to live without eating food, & in some cases, drinking water. These stigmatics only eat/drink the (Holy) Eucharist exclusively.

There are even some stigmatics who claim to feel the pain of wounds that aren’t visible. This is called “invisible stigmata.”

Some stigmatics’ wounds won’t clot. The wounds stay fresh & uninfected. The blood from these wounds is said to have a pleasing, perfumed odor. This smell is called the “Odor of Sanctity.”

People who have gotten stigmata often are described as estatics. Because they’re so overwhelmed when they receive the stigmata.

Here’s a few who were stigmatics:

• St. Ansbert of Rouen
• St. Francis of Assisi
• St. Padre Pio of Pietrelcina
• St. Mariam Thresia Chiramel

As of 1997, only 7 stigmatics have been declared saints by the Roman Catholic Church.

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#1997 #20thCentury #5SacredWounds #Breatharian #Breatharianism #Cross #CrownOfThorns #Crucifixion #EasternOrthodoxChurch #Eucharist #FiveSacredWounds #Galatians617 #HolyCommunion #HolyEucharist #Inedia #InvisibleStigmata #Jesus #MarieRoseFerron #OdorOfSanctity #OrderOfFriarsMinorCapuchin #Passion #Paul #RomanCatholic #Saints #StAnsbertOfRouen #StFrancisOfAssisi #StMariamThresiaChiramel #StPadrePioOfPietrelcina #Stigma #Stigmata #Stigmatic #Stigmatist

DHS torpedoes narrative of pro-Antifa priest who 'exploited' holy sacrament to score points on ICE

https://web.brid.gy/r/https://www.theblaze.com/news/dhs-torpedoes-narrative-of-pro-antifa-priest-who-exploited-holy-sacrament-to-score-points-on-ice

Welcome to the Divine Service at Holy Trinity! Join us to receive all the gifts that God has for you.

Here is the schedule:

8:15am and 10:45am - Worship with Holy Communion

9:30am - Bible Study/Sunday School

We'll be reading Jeremiah 23:16-29, Hebrews 11:17-12:3, and Luke 12:49-56.

Livestream: https://holytrin.link/5h17w
Online Check-In: https://holytrin.link/HTLCCheckIn

Join us for worship!

#TenthSundayAfterPentecost #DivineService #HolyCommunion #Church #SundayService #Worship #HolyTrinity

The Real Reason Why Carlos Acutis Became a Saint

#CarloAcutis #BlessedCarloAcutis #FutureSaint #EucharisticMiracles #CatholicFaith #HolyCommunion #ReceiveOnTheTongue #StateOfGrace #CatholicInfluencers #TraditionalCatholic #DigitalMissionary #RealPresence

http://epistles.online/2025/07/30/the-real-reason-why-carlos-acutis-became-a-saint/

#ChristianSafeSex #GodsDesign #SacredMatrimony #TrueMarriage #SexualPurity #NoSexualSin #CatholicTeaching #DivineLaw #SoulSafety #FamilyValues #ChurchCrisis #HolyCommunion #Confession #ParentalDuty #FaithfulPriests #MoralEducation #ReturnToTruth #HonorMarriage #StopTheLie #DefendTheTruth

http://epistles.online/2025/07/24/real-safe-sex-for-christians/

Explore the poignant moment of Judas' departure, the transformative Last Supper where we witness the origin of Holy Communion. Join us as we journey to the Mount of Olives after hymns and discussions. A pivotal chapter in our spiritual understanding! #LastSupper #HolyCommunion #JudasBetrayal #MountOfOlives #JesusChrist #ChristianFaith #BibleStudy #SpiritualJourney #PassoverMeal #FaithAndFellowship

Join us as we remember Jesus's ultimate sacrifice at the Last Supper. Discover the profound meaning behind the wine, symbolizing his blood shed for humanity. Let's honor his command: 'Do this in remembrance of me.' Reflect on this pivotal moment of love and devotion. #JesusSacrifice #LastSupper #RememberJesus #HolyCommunion #ChristianFaith #ReligiousReflection #PassoverMeal #DisciplesOfChrist #FaithAndLove #BiblicalTeachings

On #MaundyThursday #TheDisciplesWay is reflecting on #TheLordsSupper (Matthew 26:26-29) Rev. Troy Menendez shares a few of the wonder-full #HolyCommunion experiences he has had & I admit, I envy him these experiences. My own have been far more pedestrian & quiet, quite probably because they have all been part of regular #Episcopal worship services.

Both share characteristics with the #LastSupper Matthew describes, particularly in that they occur in community of shared faith. The disciples must have felt something significant was afoot, as Rev. Menendez’ community seems to. At the same time, with the exception of Jesus’ words, it was just another meal like those celebrated weekly in my churches. This week, especially, we know what momentous changes are coming for the disciples. That is not usually the case when someone dies. Those gathered with Jesus could not have known what lay ahead for them anymore than we do today. We just trust in God that we will be together again.

If you can make it, we'd love to see you at our #Tenebrae service tonight at 18:00 at the church, where we'll be observing foot washing and #HolyCommunion.

#HolyWeek #HolyWeek2025

[W]hen you do confess, you should do so in this manner:

In regard to thoughts and imaginings (whether they concern judgments, or other inordinate objects or representations, or any other motions) that occur without being desired or accepted or deliberately adverted to: Do not confess them or pay attention to them or worry about them. It is better to forget them no matter how much they afflict the soul. At most, you can mention in general any omission or remissness as regards the purity and perfection you ought to have in the interior faculties: memory, intellect, and will.

In regard to words: Confess any want of caution in speaking with truthfulness and rectitude, out of necessity, and with purity of intention.

In regard to deeds: Confess any lack of the proper and only motive—God alone without any other concern.

By such a confession you can be content and need not tell any other particular thing, however much it may battle against you. Receive Communion on Pentecost in addition to those days on which you usually receive.

When something distasteful or unpleasant comes your way, remember Christ crucified and be silent.

Live in faith and hope, even though you are in darkness, because it is in these darknesses that God protects the soul.

Cast your care on God, for he watches over you and will not forget you. Do not think that he leaves you alone; that would be an affront to him.

Read, pray, rejoice in God, both your good and your salvation. May he grant you this good and this salvation and conserve it all until the day of eternity. Amen. Amen.

Saint John of the Cross

Letter 20 to a Discalced Carmelite nun suffering from scruples
Shortly before Pentecost, 1590

John of the Cross, St. 1991, The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross, Revised Edition, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K and Rodriguez, O with revisions and introductions by Kavanaugh, K, ICS Publications, Washington DC.

Featured image: Photographer Cherry Laithang from Oslo, Norway captures this image of a hand reaching out in the darkness. Image credit: Cherry Laithang / Unsplash (Stock photo)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/10/26/juan-ltr20/

#actions #confession #darkness #faith #HolyCommunion #scruples #spiritualDirection #StJohnOfTheCross #words

After having received Communion on the feast of St. Augustine, I understood—I’m unable to say how—and almost saw (although it was something intellectual and passed quickly) how the three Persons of the Blessed Trinity, which I bear imprinted in my soul, are one.

By means of the strangest painting and a very clear light, I was given an understanding that was an activity very different from merely holding this truth by faith. As a result, I haven’t been able to think of any of the three divine Persons without thinking of all three.

Thus I was reflecting today upon how, since they were so united, the Son alone could have taken human flesh; and the Lord gave me understanding of how although they are united they are distinct.

These are grandeurs which make the soul again desire to be free from this body that hinders their enjoyment. For although it seems our lowliness was not meant for understanding anything about them, the soul, without knowing how, receives incomparably greater benefit from this understanding even though it lasts only a moment—than from many years of meditation.

Saint Teresa of Avila

Spiritual Testimonies, 42
Seville, 28 August 1575

Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.

Featured image: This baroque painting of St. Augustine of Hippo shows him writing De Civitate Dei. The artwork is attributed to the Spanish Baroque artist Claudio Coello (1642–1693). It is one of the treasures of the Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Assumption in Valencia, Spain, that survived a great fire during the Spanish Civil War. Image credit: Renáta Sedmáková / Adobe Stock (Stock photo)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/08/27/teresa-testim42/

#HolyCommunion #HolyTrinity #mysticalExperience #prayer #StAugustine #StTeresaOfAvila #understanding

Oh, how good Jesus is, how precious His presence!

After Holy Communion this morning, I lost myself, and though it was no longer a dream, I continued this morning’s hymn, for Jesus visited His land, and where it was once dry and barren, it became moist and fertile in His presence.

The dew of the Lord fell, and grass and vegetation grew; the Tree I leaned against became as soft as a feather, and strength returned to me; my skin became like that of a child; my nerves grew supple, my bones were strengthened; the marrow of my bones became soft as dough, my hair softened and fell gently on my head; my ears opened to hear the sweet words of the Lord; my tongue was loosed to sing His praises; a sweet dew refreshed my mouth; my teeth relaxed, allowing the air to pass through; my lips, which had been parched, became tender to utter a hymn of thanksgiving to the Lord; my nose opened and breathed in the sweet fragrance of the Beloved; my whole body rested and was strengthened.

Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified

Prières et Cantiques: Cahiers Réservés, 5

Access to the unpublished Cahiers Réservés courtesy of the Carmels of Bethlehem and Haifa.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified—baptized Mariam Baouardy—was a 19th-century Discalced Carmelite nun who was born into a Greek Catholic family at Ibellin, a town ca. 25 kilometers east of Haifa, in a region known as Palestine during her lifetime. Mariam was canonized on 17 May 2015 along with Marie Alphonsine Danil Ghattas, foundress of the Sisters of the Most Holy Rosary, becoming the first two Palestinian saints to be raised to the honors of the altar. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/08/24/mariam-sweetwords/

#CahiersRéservés #healing #HolyCommunion #HolyLand #Jesus #mariamBaouardy #Palestine #StMaryOfJesusCrucified #transformation #words

She must have felt bad before Holy Communion when hearing the Sisters reciting the Miserere in a low tone of voice. She told me afterwards, shedding huge tears:

“I’m perhaps losing my wits. Oh! If they only knew the weakness I’m experiencing.

“Last night, I couldn’t take anymore; I begged the Blessed Virgin to hold my head in her hands so that I could take my sufferings.”

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Yellow Notebook, 19 August 1897

Note: St. Thérèse received Holy Communion for the last time on 19 August 1897. Biographer Bishop Guy Gaucher, O.C.D. notes:

In her physical sufferings (fevers, profuse sweating, suffocation, insomnia, constipation, bedsores, gangrene of the intestines), and her moral sufferings, her face remained the same, and certain sisters did not think that she was really ill…. From 19 August onwards she was deprived of Holy Communion because she could not endure the complicated ceremonial.

Gaucher, G 1993, The story of a life: St. Thérèse of Lisieux, HarperSanFrancisco, San Francisco, CA.

Thérèse & Clarke, J 1977, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Her Last Conversations, Institute of Carmelite Studies, Washington DC.

Featured image: Detail of a photo montage created at the Carmel of Lisieux utilizing a 1913 photo of Mother Agnès (Pauline Martin) and a retouched copy of the last photo of St. Thérèse, which Sr. Geneviève (Celine Martin) took while Thérèse was getting some fresh air in the cloister. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites (used by permission)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/08/18/tej-19aug97/

#AgnèsOfJesus #GuyGaucherOCD_ #HolyCommunion #illness #PaulineMartin #StThérèseOfLisieux #suffering

Dear Friend,

I won’t be able to get to Alençon until Monday; the time seems so long, I can’t wait to be near you.

I don’t need to tell you that your letter gave me great pleasure, except to see that you were tiring yourself out far too much. I would therefore recommend calm and moderation, especially in your work. I have a few orders from the Compagnie Lyonnaise; once again, don’t worry so much, we’ll manage with God’s help to make a good little home.

I had the pleasure of receiving Communion at Our Lady of Victories, which is like a little paradise on earth. I also lit a candle for the whole family.

My heart goes out to you all, and I look forward to being reunited with you. I hope Marie and Pauline are well-behaved.

Your husband and true friend, who loves you for life.

Saint Louis Martin

Letter to his wife, 8 October 1863

Note: Saint Louis Martin writes while on a business trip in Paris, promoting St. Zélie’s Alençon lace business. He mentions doing business with the Compagnie Lyonnaise, a fashion retailer in Paris. Louis loved the Church of Our Lady of Victories so much that from the outset of his grand pilgrimage to Rome with Thérèse and Céline in 1887, he took the girls to see that beloved parish. St. Thérèse described their arrival: “We reached Paris in the morning [Friday, 4 November 1887] and commenced our visit without any delay. Poor little Father tired himself out trying to please us, and very soon we saw all the marvels of the Capital. I myself found only one which filled me with delight, Our Lady of Victories!” (Ms A 56v).

We always refer to the website of the Archives of the Carmel of Lisieux for the vast majority of our quotes concerning Saint Thérèse, Saint Zélie, and Saint Louis Martin. If you would like to purchase English translations for the collected works of St. Thérèse, please visit the website of our Discalced Carmelite friars at ICS Publications. 

of Lisieux, T 1996, Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, 3rd edn, translated from the French by Clarke J, ICS Publications, Washington, DC.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: The statue of Notre-Dame de Victoires stands tall in the Chapel of the Virgin in the Paris Archdiocese church that bears her name. Image credit: Fr Lawrence Lew, O.P. / Flickr (Some rights reserved)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/19/mdj2024-ep20/

#Alençon #BlessedVirgin #business #candle #family #France #HolyCommunion #NotreDameDesVictoires #OurLadyOfVictories #paradise #Paris #StLouisMartin #StThérèseOfLisieux #StZélieMartin

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#HolyCommunion #HolyShow

This morning Rev Andrew Baker will lead us in Holy Communion, 11am at 34 Etive Street.
We use non-alcoholic wine and have gluten free wafers available (please ask a steward).

#Sunday #Worship #HolyCommunion