Pope Francis

Tuesday 30 June 2015

Friends of God, 230

If we must also love our enemies (here I mean those who regard us as such, for I do not consider myself an enemy of anyone or of anything) we have all the more reason for loving those who are simply distant from us, those whom we find less attractive, those who seem the opposite of you or me on account of their language, culture or upbringing.
(Saint Josemaría)


Monday 29 June 2015

Misericordiae Vultus en - GRACE, MERCY, AND PEACE (23)

I trust that this Jubilee year celebrating the mercy of God will foster an encounter with these religions and with other noble religious traditions; may it open us to even more fervent dialogue so that we might know and understand one another better; may it eliminate every form of closed-mindedness and disrespect, and drive out every form of violence and discrimination.
 
Pope Francis

http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_letters/documents/papa-francesco_bolla_20150411_misericordiae-vultus.html 

Saturday 27 June 2015

27/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): The Church is a mother

The Church is a mother with an open heart, ready to help all people, especially those who try the hardest.

Pope Francis ()

Thursday 25 June 2015

Each day, fulfil your duty right through to the end

Each day be conscious of your duty to be a saint. A saint! And that doesn't mean doing strange things. It means a daily struggle in the interior life and in heroically fulfilling your duty right through to the end. (Saint Josemaría) 


Tuesday 23 June 2015

23/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): God’s love is free

God’s love is free. He asks for nothing in return; all he wants is for his love to be accepted.

Pope Francis ()

Sunday 21 June 2015

The Best Indian Catholic Posts - World Day of Yoga

The 21st of June has been declared the World Day of Yoga while the 26th June is also World Anti Drug Abuse Day declared by the United Nations Office of Drug and Crime.

Since Kripa Foundation has been using Iyengar yoga as an essential component for recovery from Addiction, the 23rd June will be celebrated as “Iyengar Yoga - a Gift to Addiction Recovery”.

The Kripa Model of Recovery is based on the self-help programme of the AA.

This programme has two dimensions of healing the addict. The first is psycho-spiritual and the second psycho-social.

These dimensions make the person find the common golden thread  of faith and love in all the twelve steps.

However as St. Paul Said, “I know what is good and know what is bad; yet I end up by doing the bad that I hate”. Merely the study or understanding of recovery makes many get into a relapse-syndrome.

This is mostly because the  the body often does not respond to the sublime teachings of the Programme.

As Jesus said. “ the Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak”.

Hence in Kripa we introduced this element  called the “Wisdom of the Body” as acknowledged by the Physician Dr. Walter Canon. This latent wisdom in the body can be explored in a manner that gives the person in recovery an experience of what in Yoga is called “cellular consciousness”.

We all know that the body never tells lies.

So often we claim to have faith and profess our faith with our lips and voice however our bodies are expressing fear, anxiety depression and lack of Trust in God.

For an addict this path to recovery through the Body becomes an experience of authentic sense of well-being. While it is well known that a runner gets what is called a “runner’s high”, in Yoga the creation of Nitric Oxide in the brain helps activate positive neurotransmitters such as endorphins, dopamine and seretonin. 

The Harvard Medical School along with Dr. Herbert Benson has said in the Medical jounal Lancet, “Yoga and Meditation can change a type A personality into a type B personality.”

This is the goal of recovery from Addiction; not just staying away from the chemical of one’s choice but to have a change of life-style.

The Eleventh step of the AA states, “ sought through prayer and meditation to improve my conscious contact with God, praying only for the knowledge of His will and the power to carry that out.”

This method of mediation is the very contemplative prayer that WCCM (world community for Christian meditation) practices as per the teaching of Dom John  Main.

All the centres of Kripa have this method of prayer along with the practice of Iyengar Yoga which helps to prepare the body for an authentic experience of healing.

Addiction is a frustrated thirst for God. Satan tricks the addict by a false sense of Love and Joy.

Hence Dr. Jung said that addiction can only be healed by the formula, “Spiritus contra spiritum”.
In Iyengar Yoga we reverse the urge of self-gratification with the practice of self-denial.

In and through the body the addict is made to live the teaching of Jesus that true discipleship is a matter of “denying one’s self”, taking up the cross of Reality and being faithful in following the programme one day at a time.

However the reactions of many fundamentalist Christians call for a clarification.They speak only of the unorthodox types of Yoga that have used this ancient science to promote Hinduism. There are various kinds of Yoga that do dabble with the occult and hence the caution to use this method is necessary.

However in the field of health and especially in the context of Healing Addiction the specific kind of scientific study and research on Iyengar Yoga has brought the Kripa Model of Recovery to be the most effective in the world. This method is being practiced in over 40 countries and through the practice of Christian Meditation, the special book and DVD of Yoga for the practice of Christian Meditation is now in over 120 countries. The Catholic Church in India has always used this ancient science for prayer and Meditation. Just as while adopting the Pentecostal renewal the Catholic Church maintains certain cautions, in a similar way we must use our discretion in not identifying the therapeutic use of yoga with a whole lot of misguided use of this ancient practice.

Fr. Joe Pereira,
Managing Trustee , Kripa Foundation

(http://kripafoundation.blogspot.be/2015/06/our-work-in-field-of-addiction-says-it.html)

Cristo coloca-nos perante o dilema definitivo

Diz o Senhor: "Dou-vos um mandamento novo: que vos ameis uns aos outros. Nisto se conhecerá que sois meus discípulos". – E São Paulo: "Levai a carga uns dos outros, e assim cumprireis a lei de Cristo". – Eu não te digo nada. (Caminho, 385)
O amor procura a união e, ao unirmo-nos com Cristo, atrair-nos-á a ânsia de secundar a sua vida de entrega, de amor sem medida, de sacrifício até à morte. Cristo coloca-nos perante o dilema definitivo: ou consumirmos a existência de uma forma egoísta e solitária ou dedicarmo-nos com todas as forças a uma tarefa de serviço. (Amigos de Deus, 236)

Novena for families

Day 1: Peace and Joy
Day 2: Prudence
Day 3: Understanding
Day 4: Patience
Day 5: Love
Day 6: Friendship
Day 7: Freedom
Day 8: Forgiveness
Day 9: Holiness


(http://www.stjosemaria.org/)

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Lord, help us to protect all life

Lord, seize us with your power and light, help us to protect all life, to prepare for a better future.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): May our struggles and our concern for this planet never take away the joy of our hope

Let us sing as we go. May our struggles and our concern for this planet never take away the joy of our hope.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): An integral ecology

An integral ecology includes taking time to reflect on our lifestyle and our ideals.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): an alternative understanding of the quality of life

Christian spirituality proposes an alternative understanding of the quality of life.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): be protectors of God’s handiwork

Living our vocation to be protectors of God’s handiwork is not a secondary aspect of our Christian experience.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the Gospel have direct consequences for our way of thinking, feeling and living

The teachings of the Gospel have direct consequences for our way of thinking, feeling and living.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): The emptier a person’s heart is, the more he or she needs to buy, own and consume

The emptier a person’s heart is, the more he or she needs to buy, own and consume.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): it is we human beings above all who need to change

Many things have to change course, but it is we human beings above all who need to change.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Believers

Believers must feel challenged to live in a way consonant with their faith.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): how unsustainable is the behaviour of those who constantly consume and destroy

We know how unsustainable is the behaviour of those who constantly consume and destroy.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): another form of progress and development

A decrease in the pace of production and consumption can at times give rise to another form of progress and development.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): honesty, courage and responsibility

Reducing greenhouse gases requires honesty, courage and responsibility.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): a common plan

Interdependence obliges us to think of one world with a common plan.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Leaving an inhabitable planet to future generations

Leaving an inhabitable planet to future generations is, first and foremost, up to us.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): dignity

What is at stake is our own dignity.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): What kind of world do we want to leave?

What kind of world do we want to leave to those who come after us, to children who are now growing up?

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): The world we have received also belongs to who will follow us

The world we have received also belongs to who will follow us.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): a sense of personal dignity

Having a home has much to do with a sense of personal dignity and the growth of families.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): a sacred space

For indigenous communities, land is not a commodity, but a gift from God, a sacred space.

Pope Francis ()

19/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): an integrated approach to combating poverty and protecting nature

We need an integrated approach to combating poverty and protecting nature.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): The culture of relativism drives one person to take advantage of another, to treat others as mere objects

The culture of relativism drives one person to take advantage of another, to treat others as mere objects.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Christian thought sees human beings as possessing a particular dignity

Christian thought sees human beings as possessing a particular dignity above other creatures.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): an urgent need for us to move forward in a bold cultural revolution

There is an urgent need for us to move forward in a bold cultural revolution.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the progress of humanity

Scientific and technological progress cannot be equated with the progress of humanity and history.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the market cannot guarantee integral human development and social inclusion

By itself the market cannot guarantee integral human development and social inclusion.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): environmental deterioration

We are learning all too slowly the lessons of environmental deterioration.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): we don’t grasp the gravity of the challenges before us

It is possible that we don’t grasp the gravity of the challenges before us.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Each age tends to have only a meagre awareness of its own limitations

Each age tends to have only a meagre awareness of its own limitations.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Never has humanity had such power over itself, yet nothing ensures that it will be used wisely

Never has humanity had such power over itself, yet nothing ensures that it will be used wisely.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): a question of fidelity

For believers, this becomes a question of fidelity to the Creator.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Earth is essentially a shared inheritance

Earth is essentially a shared inheritance, whose fruits are meant to benefit everyone.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): We continue to sin when we tolerate some considering themselves more worthy than others

We continue to tolerate some considering themselves more worthy than others.

Pope Francis ()

Saturday 20 June 2015

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): enormous inequalities

We should be particularly indignant at the enormous inequalities in our midst.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): At times more zeal is shown in protecting other species than in defending the equal dignity of human beings

At times more zeal is shown in protecting other species than in defending the equal dignity of human beings.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): A fragile world

A fragile world challenges us to devise intelligent ways of directing, developing and limiting our power.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): Every creature is the object of the Father’s tenderness

Every creature is the object of the Father’s tenderness, who gives it its place in the world.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): God’s loving plan

“Creation” has a broader meaning than “nature”; it has to do with God’s loving plan.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): protect the earth

Each community has the duty to protect the earth and to ensure its fruitfulness for coming generations.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): The present world system

The present world system is certainly unsustainable from a number of points of view.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): our common home is falling into serious disrepair

We need only to take a frank look at the facts to see that our common home is falling into serious disrepair.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): a deified market

Whatever is fragile, like the environment, is defenceless before the interests of a deified market.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): The alliance between economy and technology

The alliance between economy and technology ends up sidelining anything unrelated to its immediate interests.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the common good

Economic interests easily end up trumping the common good.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): no room for the globalization of indifference

There is no room for the globalization of indifference.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the role of developed countries

Developed countries ought to help pay this debt by limiting their consumption of nonrenewable energy.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): ecological debt

A true “ecological debt” exists, particularly between the global north and south.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): an extreme consumerism on the part of some

To blame population growth, and not an extreme consumerism on the part of some, is one way of refusing to face the issues.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor

We have to hear both the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the most vulnerable people

The deterioration of the environment and of society affect the most vulnerable people on the planet.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): The human environment and the natural environment

The human environment and the natural environment deteriorate together.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): the quality of water available to the poor

One particularly serious problem is the quality of water available to the poor.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): no to a throwaway culture

These problems are closely linked to a throwaway culture.

Pope Francis ()

18/6/2015 Pope Francis (@Pontifex): an immense pile of filth

The earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth.  
Pope Francis ()