The Cross our Badge
by VP
Posted on Tuesday September 14, 2021 at 12:48AM in Meditations
We Catholics have a great share in this Exaltation of the Cross. It is our special trust, our badge, our glory. Like the first Christians, it is ours to honor, to use, to be known by. Those who have fallen from the true faith have laid it aside as childish and not fit for the mature. But the Gospel was preached to the childlike, and the Kingdom of Heaven reserved for them. So we will keep our childlike ways, and loyally use the sacred sing. We will make it with reverence, with confidence, with joy. And the day will come when we who are signed with the Sign of the Cross upon our foreheads will go forth to meet our Redeemer, and He will acknowledge us to be His own. Like Constantine, by that sign we shall conquer.
Source: The Manual of the Holy Catholic Church, McGovern, James J. (James Joseph), 1906
33 ways to salvation
by VP
Posted on Sunday September 05, 2021 at 12:00AM in Meditations
1. The key to Heaven - Prayer
2. The path to Heaven - The Cross
3. The only true good - The Grace of God
4. The only true evil - Sin
5. Effective bulwark against sin - Remembering one's last end
6. Mirror image of a Christian - The Crucifix
7. Ultimate refuge for the most hopeless cases - The Holy Virgin Mary
8. A faithful friend - Guardian Angel
9. A powerful advocate - Saint Joseph
10. The source of Grace - The Holy Mass
11. Food for the soul - The Word of God and Holy Communion
12. An indispensable guide - A good confessor/spiritual director
13. One way the soul is lost - Bad confessions
14. A sin committed without scruple - Slander
15. A powerful spur to evil - A bad example
16. Root of all sin - Pride
17. Remedy for all ills - Patience, abandonment to God
18. Two portals by which sin enters - Eyes and ears
19. A powerful aid for doing good - Daily meditation
20. Principle road to Hell - Impurity
21. The language of the Devil - Blasphemy
22. Chain leading to Hell - Habitual sin
23. A means to reduce sin - Fleeing from disputes and quarrels
24. What prevents spiritual advancement - The fear of weariness
25. The queen of virtues - Charity: loving God and neighbor
26. To maintain virtue - Avoid near occasions of sin
27. A dangerous snare for the soul - Reading anti-catholic publications
28. False hope and true temerity - To willfully sin with the hope of pardon
29. A vice to be particularly checked - Gluttony
30. Reward for a Good Life - a Happy Death
31. The surest way - Holy Obedience
32. To repeat every morning - I may die today
33. A Christian's most frequent thought - Jesus in the Tabernacle
