Association Of Catholic Bloggers

Easter is almost here, Alleluia! How has your Holy Week been? Have you been walking with Jesus this week? Come over to Veils and Vocations to learn how to live Holy Week with Jesus!

Reflection by Louise Crossley When I gave  birth for the first time, I felt that it was more than I could bear.  I vividly remember fearing I could literally break in half. The other births, while still painful, where less overwhelming as my body was strengthened by past experience. When I first  experienced a broken heart, I thought I could not live on.  The pain seeped through my body as though my heart was leaking venom that was poisoning my will to go on. While heartbreak is never easy, it gets a little less intense as a result of knowing what to expect or from bracing ourselves somewhat. Jesus carrying the  cross at this Station represents the impact of first times...read on:  https://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au/

Then Pilate took Jesus and had him scourged. And the soldiers wove a crown out of thorns and placed it on his head, and clothed him in a purple cloak, and they came to him and said,"Hail, King of the Jews!" And they struck him repeatedly.  John 19:1-3 By Margaret Kirchener The bathroom seems  so far away. My arthritis has flared up and every step is torture. I crawl through  the house using a broom as a crutch. I desperately need my medication. Everything else in  my life fades. All that exists is me and the throbbing pain... Read on: https://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au/

Being judged and  wrongly declared guilty is a horrible experience. I had a taste of this once when a valuable item went missing in my share household and everything pointed to me. It's equally as devastating when you are judged and victimised for standing up for something you believe in. A sense of our own powerlessness can make us feel incredibly vulnerable and rejected. What kind of  God is willingly vulnerable to the opinions and judgements of humans? Standing before Pilate, was Jesus thinking about the divine power He could invoke to escape from the fate of death? Read on:  https://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au/

Then Peter remembered the word that Jesus had spoken: "Before the cock crows you will deny me three times." He went out and began to weep bitterly.  Matthew 26: 69-75     When Jesus first  met Peter, He fixed his gaze upon him and said, 'You are Simon, son of John; you will be called Peter'. ( John 1:42 )That was an experience of the grace of God in giving the fisherman a new vocation to proclaim the love and mercy of God. Later on, Peter  had a unique experience of grace with James and John when they witnessed the Transfiguration whereby the body of Jesus was transformed by Light.  Matthew 17:1-13 Despite experiencing miracles , healings and the Transfiguration, Peter was still full of fear of death and therefore denied knowing Jesus in the courtyard. Read on:  https://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au/

When day came, the assembly of the elders of the people, both chief priests and scribes, gathered together, and they brought him to their council.  They said, “If you are the Messiah, tell us.” He replied, “If I tell you, you will not believe; and if I question you, you will not answer. But from now on the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God.” All of them asked, “Are you, then, the Son of God?”  He said to them, “You say that I am.”  Then they said, “What further testimony do we need? We have heard it ourselves from his own lips!”  Luke 22: 66-71 By the time Jesus  got to the Sanhedrin, he had been deserted by his closest friends and betrayed by one of his disciples. Now he is standing before the Sanhedrin –the leaders of the people of God; priests of the Temple; God’s representatives on earth; defenders of the faith; shepherds of God's people. Of all, these should have recognised Him for who He was ...

The 10 Minute Daily Retreat will focus on the Scriptural Stations of the Cross during Lent, posting on Sundays and Fridays, and each day during Holy Week.  Let us stay  awake together because we all know that "that our spirit is willing, but our flesh is weak.” Matthew 26: 41 Jesus chose to  leave Peter and the two sons of Zebedee while He advanced into the garden to pray. He clearly felt the need to be alone with His Father in His final hour.  When He returned to find his disciples asleep, why did He challenge them?  Did He really need their support to manage His sorrow and distress? Read on:  https://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au /

...“You don’t know what you are asking,” Jesus said to them. “Can you drink the cup I am going to drink?”   “We can,” they answered .  Matthew 20:22 I’m a nurse;  I’ve seen people suffer . I’ve helped calm women as they experience the agony of childbirth.  I’ve administered morphine when the pain of cancer becomes too much to bare. I’ve held a mother as she wailed after the death of her child. James and John  want  prestige, position and favouritism from Jesus. Instead he offers them suffering! And they accepted it. They went on to experience terrible suffering, and they persevered and endured. Do we dare  to sit before Jesus and allow Him to ask us,  'can you drink of this cup?' During this season  of Lent...read on: https://susannetimpani.blogspot.com.au/