Lucille Galleli

About Lucille Galleli

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Something simple spiritual

A Possible Interview with God

What would you say if you could sit down with God for a conversation? If you were to interview God, what questions would you have for Him? There are many many questions of why? Why did you do this God? Why did you do that God?

A Conversation with God

“Come in,” God said. “So, you would like to interview Me?”

“If you have the time,” I said.

God smiled and said: “My time is eternity and is enough to do everything; what questions do you have in mind to ask me?”

“What surprises you most about mankind?”

God answered:

“That they get bored of being children, are in a rush to grow up, and then long to be children again.”

“That they lose their health to make money and then lose their money to restore their health.”

“That by thinking anxiously about the future, they forget the present, such that they live neither for the present nor the future.”

“That they live as if they will never die, and they die as if they had never lived.”

God’s hands took mine and we were silent for a while and then I asked:

“As a parent, what are some of life’s lessons you want your children to learn?”

God replied with a smile:

“To learn that they cannot make anyone love them.”

“What they can do is to let themselves be loved.”

“To learn that what is most valuable is not what they have in their lives, but who they have in their lives.”

“To learn that it is not good to compare themselves to others. All will be judged individually on their own merits, not as a group on a comparison basis!”

God continued:

“To learn that a rich person is not the one who has the most, but is one who needs the least.”

“To learn that it only takes a few seconds to open profound wounds in persons we love, and that it takes many years to heal them.”

“To learn to forgive by practicing forgiveness.”

“To learn that there are persons that love them dearly, but simply do not know how to express or show their feelings.”

As I listened intently, God said:

“To learn that money can buy everything but happiness.”

“To learn that two people can look at the same thing and see it totally different.”

“To learn that a true friend is someone who knows everything about them and likes them anyway.”

“To learn that it is not always enough that they be forgiven by others, but that they have to forgive themselves.”

I sat there for a while enjoying the moment. I thanked Him for His time and for all that He has done for me and my family

He replied:

“Anytime.”

“I’m here 24 hours a day.”

“All you have to do is ask for me, and I’ll answer.”

Many helps and my own 2 cents

Hello again,How are you holding up? I am fine. I want to send you some links to help you with your spiritual enrichment during this time of confinement.First, Elke sends the Sunday Playlist: (thanks Elke)https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLkzaCrU7PUC90BQKnR83a10iWOBRHIxiCYou can sing along and worship as you would have at OLM! You can also donate to help struggling OLM families by going to: http://www.ourladyofmercy.info/the-good-neighbour-fund/Please remember that daylight savings time goes into effect this Saturday evening. Put your clocks one hour ahead Saturday night before going to bed. I don’t think it will be as difficult losing an hour of sleep this year! :)I know I have not been inundating you with emails and spiritual links. I have always been in favor of encouraging Catholics to have an adult faith and to trust in their own spirituality. The clergy does not have a monopoly on spirituality. Please don’t rely on us too much, you can access God just as easily as we can. One group of nuns have been asking us priests to celebrate 20 Masses a day so that God will end this crisis. I know they have good intentions, but let us never forget that Jesus had to wait 3 days after his death to rise from the dead. If the Son of God had to wait the appointed time, so must we.Yes, we need to pray, but we need to accept God’s will. It’s right there is the Lord’s prayer. THY WILL BE DONE. God did NOT cause this crisis, Man did. Although God can help us sanctify the situation.It would be a tragedy if we did not get to know God better during this time. One of the biggest challenges for us to grow in spirituality is that we have no time. Right? So, now we have the time. Are we using it well or are we running from the silence? Are we moving from device to device, TV to telephone, WhatsApp to Facebook? Why not STOP and listen to His voice. I promise you, a peace that you did not know before will enter you. Silence is good for the soul. Besides, you are never really alone.There was a story of a man who was so BUSY, so busy with so much to do. He had work, he was focused on advancing in his career, there was exercising, time with friends, hobbies, TV, emails, text messages, meetings, and so much going on. He was so busy that he did not have time to go to church, no time to help his neighbor in need, no time to even notice the suffering and pain of others. He was REALLY BUSY. When he died, and was before St. Peter, there was a review of his life. And St. Peter said, Wow! according to this review, you did nothing for others. You were going non-stop all the time but did not use any time for God or your neighbor. I am sorry, but you can’t get into heaven. The man protested: But God is a good God, please, go plead on my behalf, you must do that for me. And St. Peter said: I am so sorry, normally I would do that, but I am too busy. You might say I am bad, but the rule here is that I must treat you in the same way you decided to live your life. It was your decision, not mine.My advice, for what it is worth, is don’t try and fill up your time so that it passes by more quickly. Use it to better your heart and soul. Cherish every moment. Pray for those who are truly suffering. This time of crisis will end one day. It would be a shame if we went back to our former way of life without having taking advantage of the many graces God bestows upon us, in good times, and in bad.Be blessed and trust in God! (Joke at bottom),Fr. Ron

Now I am going to copy many links to many resources provided by our friends at Redemptorist publications:

Reflections, news and prayers to lift your spirit

PRAYER

Pope Francis

Pope Francis called for all Christians to respond to the coronavirus pandemic “with the universality of prayer, of compassion, of tenderness”, adding, “Let us remain united. Let us make our closeness felt toward those persons who are the most lonely and tried”.

Speaking after the traditional recitation of the Angelus, the Holy Father called on all Christians to join together in prayer. “In these trying days, while humanity trembles due to the threat of the pandemic, I would like to propose to all Christians that together we lift our voices towards Heaven.”

Urbi et Orbi Blessing Friday 27 March 5pm

Pope Francis invites all the Christian faithful to participate in a special time of prayer led by him at Saint Peter Square on Friday, 27 March 2020. The ceremony will include readings from the Scriptures and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. It will conclude with the Pope imparting the Urbi et Orbi blessing which is usually held only twice per year, at Christmas and Easter, from the balcony over the entrance of Saint Peter Basilica. The prayer and blessing will be live-streamed on the Vatican News website (www.vaticannews.va) at 5:00 pm.

Spiritual Exercise

We encourage you to sit in stillness for ten to fifteen minutes and open your heart to receive God’s gift of the Holy Spirit.

This spiritual exercise will deepen your awareness of the presence of the Holy Spirit in your heart and give you confidence that the Spirit will be with you in everything you do to make Christ known.

Centre yourself; sit upright, two feet firmly on the floor; breathe rhythmically with deep breaths, in and out, from the abdomen; clear your mind of all preoccupations.
Bring yourself to bodily stillness.
Now welcome in your heart this gift that Jesus has for you: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid” (John 14:27).
Quietly repeat those words of Jesus and hand over to him all worries or trouble.
You may find it helpful if you name to God a specific area where you need healing or forgiveness.
Now be still for some time in the presence of God as you welcome the Holy Spirit into your heart.
As you are about to finish your time of prayer, focus again on your breathing while you relax in God’s presence.
Bring yourself gently back to your daily concerns.

May you receive that peace of Christ each day.

Good News From Around The World

Prior to many US states going into lockdown a priest in Maryland was offering drive-thru confessions during the coronavirus pandemic.

Father Scott Holmer administered the confession every day in the parking lot of St. Edward Church in Bowie. He sat on a chair while cars pulled up to him. Fr Scott kept a distance of 6-feet between himself and those wishing to confess.

Every cloud has a silver lining

In the battle against global warming, scientists say that the number of people staying in their homes has caused levels of air pollutants and warming gases to fall. In fact, it’s down almost 50 percent on this point in time last year.

Air Conditioning BrokeThe Catholic Church’s air conditioning broke down, so they had to hire a man to crawl around in the ducts and figure out what was wrong. As the man peeked down through one of the vents in the sanctuary, he saw little old Mrs. Murphy kneeling by the altar, apparently saying her rosary.

Since the man was a fundamental Baptist, he thought it’d be funny to try and mess with the lady’s mind. In his best authoritative voice, he said, “This is Jesus. Your prayers will be answered.”

The little old lady didn’t even blink, just kept on saying her prayers. The man decided maybe she didn’t hear him, and tried again.

“This is Jesus, the Son of God! Your prayers will be answered!”

Again, she didn’t react at all. Mustering up a big breath of air, the man decided to try again. “THIS IS JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF GOD! YOUR PRAYERS WILL BE ANSWERED!”

The lady looks up and says, “QUIET DOWN! I’M TALKING TO YOUR MOTHER!”

Happy Feast of the Annunciation

thank you Leandro for reminding me of the importance of the feast of the Annunciation in England. The Pope made some very pertinent reflection in his mornings homily which I want to reprint here. Also, I want to attach the Sunday reading reflection guides. There is always time for spiritual enrichment.

Be blessed and safe,

Fr. Ron

‘For Nothing Will Be Impossible for God’–Pope Francis Reminds on Feast of Annunciation (Full Text of Morning Homily)

Despite Being Afraid & Troubled, Mary Puts All Her Trust in the Lord

March 25, 2020 12:36Deborah Castellano LubovPope’s Morning Homily

‘For nothing will be impossible for God.’

Pope Francis gave this reminder today, March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation, as he offered his private daily Mass at his residence Casa Santa Marta for the victims of Coronavirus, which so far has claimed over 7000 lives in Italy, and spoke about Mary’s complete trust in God when the Angel Gabriel told her what would be in her future, reported Vatican News.

In today’s homily, the Holy Father commented on today’s important Gospel passage from St. Luke and Mary’s Magnificat.

“The evangelist Luke could know this only from Our Lady’s account,” Francis said, noting that in listening to Luke, we have listened to Our Lady who recounts this mystery.

“The best thing we can do now,” Francis reflected, “is to reread this passage, thinking that it was Our Lady who recounted it.”

Mary, the Holy Father acknowledged, was perplexed by the news, and especially since she had no relations with a man, but trusted and consented to the Lord’s will for her and her life.

When “she was greatly troubled,” Francis recalled, the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.”

Gabriel stressed that her baby would be great and be called the Son of the Most High, and how since the power of the Most High would overshadow her, “the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”

Moreover, the angel told her, that Elizabeth in her old age, “has also conceived a son, and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren.”

“For with God,” he said, “nothing will be impossible.”

Mary–the Pope reminded–responds to this, saying: “’Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word.’ And the angel departed from her.”

“This is the mystery,” Pope Francis said.

Before concluding the Mass, the Pope exhorted faithful to partake in Spiritual Communion in this difficult time, and ended the celebration with Eucharistic Adoration and Benediction.

Here are the Holy Father’s words, followed by the prayer for Spiritual Communion:

I prostrate myself at your feet, O my Jesus, and I offer you the repentance of my contrite heart, which abases itself in its nothingness in Your Holy Presence. I adore you in the Sacrament of Your Love; I desire to receive You in the poor abode that my heart offers You. While waiting for the happiness of a Sacramental Communion, I want to possess You in spirit. Come to me, O my Jesus, that I may come to You. May Your Love inflame my whole being, in life and in death. I believe in You, I hope in You, I love You. Amen.

The Masses in Francis’ chapel normally welcome a small group of faithful, but due to recent measures’ taken by the Vatican, are now being kept private, without their participation.

It was announced in recent days that the Pope would have these Masses, in this period, be available to all the world’s faithful, via streaming on Vatican Media, on weekdays, at 7 am Rome time.

This comes at a time too when the Italian bishops’ conference has canceled public Masses throughout the nation, until at least April 3rd, following guidelines put out by Italian authorities.

In addition to Santa Marta, the Vatican has taken other steps to keep people safe and to stay close to the Pope, even if from a distance. They are televising the Pope giving privately, from the papal library, his weekly Angelus and General Audience addresses.

The Vatican Museums are now closed, along with the Vatican’s other similar museums. There have also been various guidelines implemented throughout the Vatican, to prevent the spread of the virus.

To date, four people have been tested positive for Coronavirus in the Vatican, and those who were in close contact with them are all being quarantined at home.

By this evening in Rome, Italy’s civil protection agency will confirm that more than 7,000 Italians have died from the virus.

And you gotta smile, OK?

The Psychiatrist’s Test

A mother was worried that her three-year-old son was unusually precocious, and took him to a psychiatrist.

“Right,” said the shrink, “We’ll just try a few simple tests.” To the boy, he said “Say a few words – anything that comes into your mind.”

The boy turned to his mother and asked, “Does he want logically constructed sentences or just a few random and purely isolated words?”

SB 29 Mar 2020

SP 29 Mar 2020

sunday-message-march-april-may-2020 (pr Correction) 5

Possible activity you could do

Hello,

How are you holding up? I am doing fine. I received a beautiful email from a doctor and I wanted to send it on to you. It may be something that will help you help others during this trying time.

Here is the email:

Good morning,
I’m Carmen, we all met during the marriage preparation course given at OLM. I´m a doctor at Hospital 12 de Octubre in Madrid and the residents here are doing an initiative to print out letters and distribute them to patients that are hospitalized and are unable to receive visits due to the special circumstances of this virus. It is an initiative that started at La Princesa hospital and has rapidly grown and expanded to other hospitals. If any of you want to write a letter for these patients to cheer them up during their stay at the hospital, I am able to translate them to Spanish so they can be distributed to the patients (to the best of my ability). If you do decide to write, the email we use for our hospital is esperoquetemejores@gmail.com. Please write ENGLISH as the subject of the email if the letter is in English. Drawing may be attached to the email. If you know of anyone who wants to write and cheer up the patients please forward them this email.

Thank you and hope you are all doing well and surviving the confinement,

Carmen

Prayer for the Times

/* Not so much funny as applicable to the times… God bless all of you!! */

One Sunday morning the new pastor called on one of the older deacons to lead in the opening prayer. The deacon stood up, bowed his head and said, “Lord, I hate buttermilk.”

The pastor opened one eye and wondered where this was going. The deacon continued, “Lord, I hate lard.” Now the pastor was totally perplexed.

The deacon continued, “Lord, I ain’t too crazy about plain flour either. But after you mix ’em all together and bake ’em in a hot oven…. I just love biscuits!

The deacon didn’t stop there. “Lord,” he said, help us realize when things come up that we don’t like, whenever we don’t understand what You are doing, that we need to wait and see what You are making. After you get through mixing and baking, it’ll probably be something even better than biscuits. Amen.”

Sunday prayer helps

I know that many of you enjoy the Sunday Plus articles, so I am going to attach them to this email. I will also attach another version of the Sunday bulletin for those who wish to read a bit more. Finally, there is also an activity page for the children. All based on this Sunday’s Mass.

Today is the feast of St. Joseph. It is also Father’s Day in Spain. This year will be one for the history books.

I hope you are holding up well. I have not heard anyone from OLM or San Dámaso who has been infected but as the numbers grow, I realize that there will certainly be some cases. Let us pray for those who are ill, especially the elderly and at-risk persons.

This is a very unique time in our lives, if we use it wisely and spiritually, we will become better souls. All we need do is open our hearts to God.

Please know that anyone who says that God sent this virus does not know God. It is a result of human frailty and sin. It is up to us to transform this tragedy by our love and prayers.

Here is a funny showing how stubborn we can be at times. We must never forget to smile.

You are in my prayers,

Fr. Ron

Theological Argument

Four members of the clergy had a theological argument, with the three male ministers siding against the female minister. The woman prayed, “Lord, I know I’m right. Please send us a divine sign to prove it.” A big storm cloud materialized and there was a clap of thunder. “See,” said the woman. “It’s a sign from above.” The three clergymen disagreed, saying thunder is a common phenomenon.

“Dear Lord,” the woman prayed, “I need a bigger sign.” This time, a bolt of lightning slammed into a tree. “See! I told you I was right,” the woman said. But the men insisted nothing had happened that couldn’t be explained by natural causes.

“Help me, Lord,” the woman implored. And a deep voice came from the heavens: “SSSHHHEEE’S RRRIIIGGGHHHTTT!”

The woman turned to the three clergymen and asked, “Well?”

“So, okay,” they said. “Now it’s three against two.”

Click here to view/download the attachments

sunday message (22 march 20)

Look22Mar2020

SP Mar 22

OLM and the Coronavirus

Given the fact that the World Health Organization has declared the COVID19 a pandemic, and people are feeling fearful, OLM will take the following measures so as to hopefully bring more clam during these uncertain times.

1) CCD (Catechism classes are cancelled this Sunday and next Sunday). Adult Faith exploration is also cancelled, RCIA is also cancelled, and finally, the language program classes are also cancelled for two weeks.

2) Mass is not cancelled (unless the Bishop tells us otherwise). We will continue with the following steps:

a) No sign of peace at Mass

b) No hand holding during Our Father

c) Ushers will not allow people to pass baskets in each pew, they will reach over.

d) No Holy Communion cup

e) Hand Sanitizer is available in the chapel and in the main church for Ministers of Holy Communion and anyone who wishes to use it.

f) Fellowship after Mass will be available for those who wish (unless things worsen even more)

I have heard that a couple of parishioners have decided to stay at home 14 days because they know of someone who has been infected (and have been in the same room with them) and even though they are fine now, they don’t want to run the risk of infecting anyone. That is the right attitude!

I know that there will be less people at church, which reduces the risk, but your peace of mind is the most important thing. There is Mass on television.

OK, this will pass too. Hang in there. Wash your hands often. And Peace be with you!

Fr. Ron

Visit the local government COVID-19 website for updated information. Consult the CDC website for the most up-to-date information.

New Teacher

It was the first day at school. The students were all in their seats, waiting for the new teacher to start.

The teacher stands up, and says, “Whoever in here thinks they are stupid, please stand up.”

The students all looked at each other, and finally, one boy stood up.

“Do you think you’re stupid?” asked the teacher.

“No, said the little boy, “but I didn’t want you standing there alone.”

Lent has begun

It was very nice to have seen so many English-speaking parishioners at the Ash Wednesday bilingual Mass yesterday. We had nearly 500 people in attendance! It is nice to see both parishes together as one harmonious family of faith! Thanks Judy for singing so pretty at the offertory!

The Mardi Gras was a huge success. Sorry I didn’t join the crowd, I wanted to keep my cold germs to myself. I asked Janet to write up something and I will reprint it here:

Thank you to everyone to participated in the Mardi Gras Potluck last Sunday especially the volunteers who cooked, brought food and helped serve the meal. Thanks to you the event was a big success! It was a beautiful gathering celebrating the diversity of OLM with food from all over the world and we look forward to continuing this tradition for years to come.

(Photos attached)

This Sunday is the First Sunday of Lent. We now invite you to bring donations of food for the struggling families of our parish at offertory time on any Sunday during Lent. Always appreciated: Juices, milk, sunflower oil, canned meats, fish, and vegetables, and parboiled rice (like Brillante). Fresh vegetables are also welcome.

Although it is the first Sunday of the month, it is not children’s Mass. that has been postponed until the following Sunday, March 8th.

YAM meeting has also peen postponed until March 8th. They are planning some Stations of the Cross and Adoration in English during Lent. More to come.

The Manos Unidas collection a few weeks ago was 495 Euros. Thank you for your generosity.

have a blessed Lent,

FR. Ron

Quickest Way to the Lake

A tourist stopped a local in a village he was visiting and asked, “What is the quickest way to the lake?”

The local thought for a while. “Are you walking or driving?” he asked the tourist.

“I’m driving.”

“That’s the quickest way.”

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Lucille Galleli

About Lucille Galleli

Posts by Lucille Galleli:

A Possible Interview with God

A Conversation with God

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