Tag Archives: St. Peter

Apostle, Faith, Feast Days, Spirituality

Prayers, Quips and Quotes: The Transfiguration, Feast Day August 6

August 6, 2016 Vicki Scheenstra Leave a comment

The Transfigurateion by Rubens

Has your faith in Jesus Christ transformed you? The Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord is celebrated on August 6.

On this feast day we remember the event which took place shortly after St Peter proclaimed his faith in the Lord, saying… “You are the Messiah!”

Three Apostles accompanied Jesus into the mountains believed to be Mount Tabor. They were the Apostles John, James and Peter

And he was transfigured before them and His face shone like the sun and his clothes became dazzling white. Appearing with Jesus were Moses and Elijah, talking with him. (Matthew 17.2-4).

The Apostles heard a voice saying:

This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased listen to him!”” (Matthew 17:5)

The Apostles fell to the ground overcome by fear. But Jesus came and said,

“Get up and do not be afraid”

How does your faith in Jesus change your life? Does it take away your fear? What is different in your life because of your faith?

Hopefully, our faith is alive and growing stronger. It is only through a strong prayer life that we can develop a relationship with Jesus which is visible to other people. When we let Jesus lead us through the dark times of our life, our trust in Him gives us strength. Our joy becomes evident when our faith is real and we have let Jesus touch our hearts. It is a joy we have a need to share with others!

The types of prayer styles are many. Basically, prayer is turning to God. It is a conversation we have with Him. Learning which prayer style fits us can be difficult. Meditation can help us come to know God better. Another word for meditation is reflection. Reflecting on scripture, art or music is a wonderful way to spend time with God.

Don’t forget to listen! After you tell God your troubles and count your blessings, sit quietly and let him speak to you in the silence. Light a candle to help center yourself. The light of a candle represents the Light of Christ. Remember, Jesus himself said:

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of Life.” John 8:12

In order to let the light of Jesus shine in our life we must let him into our hearts. With an open heart reflect on the following quote.

Faith in action is love, and love in action is service.

By transforming that faith into living acts of love,

we put ourselves in contact with God Himself, with Jesus our Lord.

Quote of Bl. Teresa of Calcutta; Feast Day September 5

Transfiguration by David Gerard

The Transfiguration by Raphael

The Transfiguration by Giovanni Salvaldo

The Transfiguration by Rubens

The Transfiguration by Perugino

The Transfiguration by James Tissot

August is the Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Martyr, Saint of the Day

Prayers, Quips and Quotes: The First Martyrs, Feast Day June 30

June 28, 2016 Vicki Scheenstra Leave a comment

The First Martyrs of the Church of Rome are honored on June 30. The feast day has been celebrated beginning in 1969.

More than half of Rome was destroyed by fire in July of 64. The unpopular Emperor Nero was blamed for the fire but he accused the Christians to cover his own crimes. The martyrs were executed in many different ways. Some were burned alive at night to be used as living torches. Others were crucified and still others were fed to wild animals. The crime they were charged with was “their hatred of the human race”.

There was a large Jewish population in Rome at the time of the persecution. Paul had not yet visited Rome, however there were Christians living there.

St. Peter and St. Paul were probably among the victims of this persecution.

Emperor Nero committed suicide at the age of 31 when he was facing an army revolt and condemned to death by the Senate.

They are the ones who truly live, they who merit to be slain for Christ.

Quote of St. Peter Chrysologus;

Feast day July 30June is the Month of the Sacred Heart

Apostle, Martyr, patron saints, Pope, Saint of the Day

Prayers, Quips and Quotes: St. Peter and St. Paul, Feast Day June 29

June 27, 2016 Vicki Scheenstra Leave a comment

The Apostles St. Peter and St. Paul Public Domain Image — The Apostles St. Peter and St. Paul

The Catholic Church celebrates the Solemnity of St. Paul and St. Peter on June 29.

Both saints were martyred for their faith during the persecution of Nero. St. Peter was crucified upside down by his own request. He did not consider himself worthy to be crucified in the same manner as Our Lord. St. Paul was beheaded. It is possible they were both martyred on the same day.

St. Peter was one of the original Apostles. He was a fisherman before he was called to follow Jesus. He was the brother to the Apostle Andrew. St. Peter was clearly the leader of the apostles. With James and John he witnessed the Transfiguration and the Agony in the Garden. His mother-in-law was cured by Jesus. Originally, Peter’s name was Simon. Jesus asked the apostles, “Who do you say that I am?” Simon said, “You are the Messiah, the son of the living God.” Jesus then said:

“Blessed are you Simon, Son of Jonah, for flesh and blood have not revealed this to you but my heavenly Father. And so I say to you, you are Peter and upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

During the crucifixion of Jesus, Peter denied Jesus three times. Jesus also told Peter three times…

“Feed my sheep”.

St. Peter is the patron saint of fishermen.

St. Paul was not one of the original apostles. While persecuting Christians after the death of Jesus, he was thrown to the ground by a bright light. He heard a voice asking him,

“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

He responded with “Who are you, Lord?” Jesus answered him:

“I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But get up and enter the city and you will be told what you are to do.”

Paul was blinded by the light for three days after which scales fell from his eyes. He then joined the apostles, becoming known as “The Apostle of the Gentiles”. He wrote many of the epistles in the Bible. He is the patron saint of writers, the press, and missionaries.

Prayer to St. Peter and St. Paul

Grant, we pray, O Lord our God, that we may be sustained by the intercession of the blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, that as through them you gave your Church the foundations of her heavenly office, so through them you may help her to eternal salvation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ Your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God forever and ever. Amen

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Quote of St. Paul

Lord, you know that I love you.

Quote of St. Peter

June is the Month of the Sacred Heart

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Apostle, Faith, Feast Days, featired

Prayers, Quips and Quotes: The Chair of Peter, Feast Day Feb. 22

February 20, 2016 Vicki Scheenstra Leave a comment

The Feast day of the Chair of Peter is celebrated on February 22. On this day we are reminded of the importance of unity in the church. The Lord himself entrusted the church to the authority of St. Peter.

The word Chair comes from the word “Cathedra” which also is the origin of the word Cathedral. A Cathedral is the church of the Bishop of a diocese. The Pope is also known as the “Vicar of Christ”. It is his duty to defend the faith from errors and teach the truth of the faith.

Because of the teaching authority of the Bishop of Rome, the followers of Jesus in the Catholic Church are united in their beliefs. We trust in the Holy Spirit to guide the Holy Father in directing the church. The beliefs of the Catholic Church are Apostolic. They can be traced back to Jesus and the Apostles.

St. Peter served as the leader of the Church from 33-64 A.D. He was crucified upside down in Rome. The Basilica of St. Peter is built over his grave site. When we accept the authority of the Bishop of Rome to teach the faith, we accept the words of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew 16: 18-19.

“And so I tell you, “You are Peter, and upon this rock, I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”

“Ten thousand difficulties
do not make one doubt.”

Quote of Bl. John Henry Newman

February is the Month of the Passion of the Lord.