February 21
“Suffering does not redeem simply because it is suffering… Suffering does not necessarily help at all; it does not necessarily unite us to God, in fact it can separate from Him. Suffering can make us bitter, cynical, cruel; it can drive us to despair. What matters to us is not that we suffer, or that we suffer a little or a lot, but that Christ suffers in us. Not that our lives are small or are lived on a heroic scale, but that they are lived by Christ in us…”
-Caryll Houselander
February 20
“His presence in [difficult people] may save us from some particular sin. They may be, to us, Christ forgiving, Christ in his patience, Christ teaching. They may be Christ in His weariness, or Christ in His fear of Gethsemane, Christ facing His death… They may come as Christ in that particular need of His…”
-Caryll Houselander
We have had numerous questions over the years from people wondering if they should continue to visit a doctor who offers New Age healing methods in his/her practice, even if the patient specifically requests that the doctor not use these methods when treating them. In this case, is there any harm in continuing to see these doctors?
February 19
“How often we think that but for this or that person in our lives we should be saints! That troublesome person in the office; that exasperating fellow lodger; that spiteful old relative… Why is it that we cannot get away from them? It is because Christ wishes to be with them and has chosen us to take Him to them. He loves them, He sees the depths of their loneliness. He has plumbed it with His love. Moreover He approaches us in them.” -Caryll Houselander
The grieving mother of a 26-year-old Canadian man with diabetes who was suffering from mental illness is speaking out about the country’s medical assistance in dying law – or MAiD – which her son used to end his life.
February 18
“Yes, let every meal be a prayer, every hour of sleep, every denial of an impulse to overdo things you feel a compulsion to and believe me, you will at one and the same time cure yourself and cure the sufferings of the world.”
-Caryll Houselander
Perhaps because of the intense symbolism associated with Lent, such as ashes, fasting, suffering, and death imagery, this season is ripe for the proliferation of superstitions ranging from the ridiculous to the downright frightening.
February 17
“He did not say: You will not be troubled – you will not be tempted – you will not be distressed. But He said: You will not be overcome.”
-Julian of Norwich
February 16
“The perfection of a Christian consists in mortifying himself for the love of Christ. Where there is no mortification, there is no great sanctity.”
-St. Philip Neri
February 15
“When the Lord knows that good health is necessary for our welfare, He sends it to us; and when we need sickness, He sends that too.”
-St. Teresa of Avila
