God is love, always!!

September 1, 2016

Dear Family of Mary!

“For the sake of that love I am imploring my Son that none of you, my children, will return home the same as he came; that you may take with you all the more hope, mercy and love; that you may be my apostles of love who will witness with their lives that the Heavenly Father is the source of life and not of death…” (August 2, 2016)

Our Lady wants us to change. She wants us to become more and more like our heavenly Father. She wants us to understand that God loves us so very much that He will not stop trying to heal us, change us, and renew us. He will never tire of forgiving us! That is because He is “The source of life and not death!” He gives life!

Fr. Leon has been sharing what we call “Sanctuary Snippets” before each English Mass in Medjugorje. We are taping them, and archiving them on our home page atwww.marytv.tv so that his amazing catechesis will not be lost.

Today I want to share the “Snippet” for August 30, 2016, because it helps us understand what Our Lady is telling us in this excerpt from her August 2, 2016 message:

I want to talk to you today about forgiveness. You know we constantly say “God loves you.” And I don’t think people really believe us, or maybe we ourselves don’t really believe it very much. Because with us first of all, with our parents: when we are good they reward us, and when we are bad they punish us. Then we have this idea that God is somehow similar. We think we have to be neat and tidy enough before God would love us.

But God is love! Always!

This means that when you are at your most debauched, depraved – pushing grannies into the street and torturing kittens to death – when you are in that phase of your life, God loves you passionately. Because He does not change. Only we change with respect to Him.

So we can talk in the Bible about God’s anger and God’s justice, yes, but that is still His love. He doesn’t change. If we are not repentant, then out of love He gives us what we love…we choose hell. Life without Him. But He doesn’t change. He always loves us passionately.

Imagine when you were a child, when you were newly baptized, and you think you were this innocent or this holy. And then you grew up and you discovered all kinds of sins. Or you think you have fallen down in some way here. What happens when you go to confession? Do you think you then climb up to about here? And God thinks “Ok, I will tolerate you. I won’t destroy you yet. But I don’t really like you very much.” Is that what God does? No!! (Everyone is nodding.)

When God forgives us He has to reach with His grace to lift us up. He lifts us up to something higher than we were before. More than when we were newly baptized infants. We become something greater than a newly baptized infant. Because a newly baptized infant has received the Holy Spirit. But when God forgives us, he raises us up higher because we become something greater. We are a forgiven liar, a forgiven cheat, a forgiven murderer, a forgiven adulterer, and that is something greater, because God’s love has had to reach down and lift us up!

So when we say that God loves you, this is what we mean. That He loves us passionately. That we should not be afraid of Him.

Mercy of course only applies to those who want it. If you don’t want it, it doesn’t come to you. It is no use to you. You can’t receive it if you are not repentant. That is not mercy, that is just a joke. If you don’t repent, and you say God is mercy, the year of mercy…that is not mercy. That is a lie. Mercy needs repentance in order to be able to receive it. If we are unwilling to change our hearts, we can’t receive mercy.

So it is a horror to come to Medjugorje and say: I want to carry on hating. I want to carry on being a (witch). I want to carry on being a horrible person. No, this is a great opportunity. Open your hearts, open them to Our Lady, and let her change us!!

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit! Amen.
(Fr. Leon Periera.  August 30, 2016 Snippet. )

“For the sake of that love I am imploring my Son that none of you, my children, will return home the same as he came; that you may take with you all the more hope, mercy and love; that you may be my apostles of love who will witness with their lives that the Heavenly Father is the source of life and not of death…” (August 2, 2016)

In Jesus, Mary and Joseph!

Cathy Nolan

©Mary TV 2016

PS. The parish has changed to the fall/winter schedule as of September 1.
Our Live streaming will change with it:Monday through Saturday:
3:00 to 3:30 pm Medj (9:00 to 9:30 am EDT) – Hour of Mercy
4:00 to 5:00 pm Medj (10:00 to 11:00 am EDT)  – Daily Rosary
5:00 to 6:00 pm Medj (11:00am to 12:00 pm EDT)  – Parish evening Rosary
6:00 to 7:00 pm Medj (12:00 pm to 1:00 pm EDT)  –  International Mass

Sunday:
2:00 to 3:00 pm Medj  (8:00 to 9:00 am EDT) – Podbrdo Rosary Climb
3:00 to 3:30 pm Medj (9:00 to 9:30 am EDT) – Hour of Mercy
4:00 to 5:00 pm Medj (10:00 to 11:00 am EDT)  – Daily Rosary

PPS. Mike Nolan is leading a fall pilgirmage to Medjugorje (October 3 -14). Air fares are very low. He has room for more pilgrims. If you have been thinking about going to Medjugorje, this is the time to do it.

PPPS. We are approaching the canonization of Mother Teresa of Calcutta. I feel that Mother’s intercession will be very powerful for us on her canonization day. Let’s prepare our hearts for that day by asking for her intercession and thanking her for her great fidelity to God’s plan for her life. She is a true hero for us all!

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, you allowed the thirsting love of Jesus on the Cross to become a living flame within you, and so became the light of His love to all. Obtain from the Heart of Jesus (here make your request). Teach me to allow Jesus to penetrate and possess my whole being so completely that my life, too, may radiate His light and love to others. Amen.