Category Archives: Spiritual Reflections

Spiritual Reflections

Advent to do List

Advent Carols . VID

Of the Father’s heart begotten,
Ere the world from chaos rose,
He is Alpha, from that Fountain
All that is and hath been flows;
He is Omega, of all things,
Yet to come the mystic Close,
Evermore and evermore.

By His Word was all created
He commanded and ’twas done;
Earth and sky and boundless ocean,
Universe of three in one,
All that sees the moon’s soft radiance,
All that breathes beneath the sun,
Evermore and evermore.

He assumed this mortal body,
Frail and feeble, doomed to die,
That the race from dust created,
Might not perish utterly,
Which the dreadful Law had sentenced
In the depths of hell to lie,
Evermore and evermore.

O how blest that wondrous birthday,
When the Maid the curse retrieved,
Brought to birth mankind’s salvation
By the Holy Ghost conceived,
And the Babe, the world’s Redeemer
In her loving arms received,
Evermore and evermore.

Sing, ye heights of heaven, his praises;
Angels and Archangels, sing!
Wheresoe’er ye be, ye faithful,
Let your joyous anthems ring,
Every tongue his name confessing,
Countless voices answering,
Evermore and evermore.

Fourth Week of Advent

Fourth Week of Advent

Yes one is coming who will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea, who will heal all our ills, who will carry us back to the source of our original worth. Great is the might but more wonderful is the mercy in that the One who could help us willed to come to our assistance! Today Scripture says you shall know that the Lord will come.

Well then, I know how great is the tribulation you endure for Christ. If only your consolation through him may be great. To offer you worldly consolation I neither wish nor am I allowed. ( 2 Cor 1 5-6 ) Consolation of that kind is cheap and does no good and we must fear even more that it is a hindrance to true and salutary consolation. So then the One who is the delight and glory of the angels has himself become our salvation and consolation.

As we are about to celebrate the ineffable mystery of the Lord’s birth we are rightly bidden to be prepared in all holiness. The Holy of holies is present; Present is the one who said, Be holy for I the Lord your God am holy.

This is the right time then for perfect holiness to be pointed out to you – an inner washing is enjoined on us, a spiritual purifying is required. As the Lord says. Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. For this we live to this have we been called, for this day has today dawned upon us. Once it was night when no one could work. It was night throughout the whole world before the rising of the true light before the birth of Christ.

The herald of the day then is also the one who cries out, be sober, be vigilant. ( John 12:32 ) The night is far gone the day is near. Let us cast off the world of darkness and put on the armor of light !

Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this word which the Lord has brought to pass and revealed to us. It is the house of bread and it is good for us to be there. We live in Christ and Christ lives in us. He is drawing all things to himself , he who is over all, God Blessed forever. Amen.

St Bernard of Clairvaux
the Advent Sermons

St John of the Cross

“In tribulation immediately draw near to God with confidence and you will receive strength, enlightenment, and instruction.”

“It is great wisdom to know how to be silent and to look at
neither the remarks, nor the deeds, nor the lives of others.”

From a Spiritual Canticle of St John of the Cross

We must then dig deeply in Christ. He is like a rich mine with many pockets containing treasures: however deep we dig we will never find their end or their limit. Indeed, in every pocket new seams of fresh riches are discovered on all sides. 

For this reason the apostle Paul said of Christ: In him are hidden all the treasures of the wisdom and knowledge of God. The soul cannot enter into these treasures, nor attain them, unless it first crosses into and enters the thicket of suffering .. and has undergone long spiritual training. 

Saint Paul therefore urges the Ephesians not to grow weary in the midst of tribulations, but to be steadfast and rooted and grounded in love, so that they may know with all the saints the breadth, the length, the height and the depth – to know what is beyond knowledge, the love of Christ .. The gate that gives entry into these riches of his wisdom is the cross

St John of the Cross

People look East

Cathedral Choir . VID

  1. People, look east. The time is near
    Of the crowning of the year.
    Make your house fair as you are able,
    Trim the hearth and set the table.
    People, look east and sing today:
    Love, the guest, is on the way.
  2. Furrows, be glad. Though earth is bare,
    One more seed is planted there:
    Give up your strength the seed to nourish,
    That in course the flower may flourish.
    People, look east and sing today:
    Love, the rose, is on the way.
  3. Birds, though you long have ceased to build,
    Guard the nest that must be filled.
    Even the hour when wings are frozen
    God for fledging time has chosen.
    People, look east and sing today:
    Love, the bird, is on the way.
  4. Stars, keep the watch. When night is dim
    One more light the bowl shall brim,
    Shining beyond the frosty weather,
    Bright as sun and moon together.
    People, look east and sing today:
    Love, the star, is on the way.
  5. Angels, announce with shouts of mirth
    Christ who brings new life to earth.
    Set every peak and valley humming
    With the word, the Lord is coming.
    People, look east and sing today:
    Love, the Lord, is on the way.