Catholic Maronite Readings

We cannot find God in noise or agitation…. In silence He listens to us; in silence He speaks to our souls. In silence we are granted the privilege of listening to His voice:
Silence of our eyes. Silence of our ears. Silence of our mouths. Silence of our minds. In the silence of the heart God will speak. Silence of the heart is necessary so you can hear God everywhere – in the closing of the door, in the person who needs you, in the birds that sing, in the flowers, in the animals. If we are careful of silence it will be easy to pray. There is so much talk, so much repetition, so much carrying on of tales in words and in writing. Our prayer life suffers so much because our hearts are not silent. I shall keep the silence of my heart with greater care, so that in the silence of my heart I hear His words of comfort and from the fullness of my heart I comfort Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor.
maronite readings – rosary,team

The Lord said to the apostles, who were already adult and mature: “Unless you turn and become like this little child, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 18:3&4)… He urges them to rediscover their childhood… in order that they might be born again to innocence of heart: “No one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and spirit” (Jn 3:5). “Unless you turn and become like this little child”: he does not say “these children” but “this child”, he only chooses one, only suggests one. And who is this child whom he puts forward as an example to his disciples? I don’t think it was a child of one of the people, one of the crowd, who offers an example of holiness to the apostles on behalf of the whole world. No, I don’t think this child comes from the people but from heaven. This is a question of that child from heaven of whom the prophet Isaiah speaks: “A child is born to us, a son is given us” (9:5). This is the innocent child, incapable of meeting insult with insult or blows with blows and who – better still – prays for his enemies even during his agony: “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do” (Lk 23:34)., The Lord overflows in this way, in his unfathomable grace, out of the innocence of heart that nature gives to children. He is that child who asks little ones to imitate and follow him.

maronite readings – rosary,team

The fullness of Christian faith: “Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day; he saw it and was glad” (Jn 8:56). According to these words of Jesus, Abraham’s faith pointed to him; in some sense it foresaw his mystery. So Saint Augustine understood it when he stated that the patriarchs were saved by faith, not faith in Christ who had come but in Christ who was yet to come, a faith pressing towards the future of Jesus. Christian faith is centred on Christ; it is the confession that Jesus is Lord and that God has raised him from the dead (Rm 10,9). All the threads of the Old Testament converge on Christ; he becomes the definitive “Yes” to all the promises, the ultimate basis of our “Amen” to God (2 Cor 1,20). The history of Jesus is the complete manifestation of God’s reliability. If Israel continued to recall God’s great acts of love, which formed the core of its confession of faith and broadened its gaze in faith, the life of Jesus now appears as the locus of God’s definitive intervention, the supreme manifestation of his love for us. The word which God speaks to us in Jesus is not simply one word among many, but his eternal Word (Heb 1,1-2). God can give no greater guarantee of his love, as Saint Paul reminds us (Rm 8,31f.). Christian faith is thus faith in a perfect love, in its decisive power, in its ability to transform the world and to unfold its history. “We know and believe the love that God has for us” (1 Jn 4,16). In the love of God revealed in Jesus, faith perceives the foundation on which all reality and its final destiny rest.
maronite readings – rosary,team

Works of love are always works of peace. Whenever you share love with others, you’ll notice the peace that comes to you and to them. When there is peace, there is God – that is how God touches our lives and shows His love for us by pouring peace and joy into our hearts. Lead me from death to life, From falsehood to truth. Lead me from despair to hope, From fear to truth. Lead me from hate to love, From war to peace. Let peace fill our hearts, Our world our universe Peace peace peace.

maronite readings – rosary,team

Every time I speak about prayer, it seems to me that I hear in your heart certain human reflections that I have often heard, even in my own heart. Since we never stop praying, how come we so rarely seem to experience the fruit of prayer? We have the impression that we come out of prayer like we entered into it; no one answers us with even one word, gives us anything at all; we have the impression that we have labored in vain. But what does the Lord say in the gospel? “Stop judging by appearances and make a just judgment.” (Jn 7 :24) What is a just judgment other than a judgment of faith? For “the just man shall live by faith.” (Gal 3:11) So follow the judgment of faith rather than your experience, for faith does not deceive, whereas experience can lead into error. And what is the truth of faith other than that the Son of God himself promised: “If you are ready to believe that you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer, it shall be done for you.” (Mk 11:24) Thus, may no one among you, Brothers, consider prayer to be a small thing. For I assure you, the one to whom it is addressed does not consider it a small thing; even before it has left our mouth, he has had it written down in his book. Without the slightest doubt, we can be sure that God will either give us what we are asking him or he will give us something that he knows to be better. For “we do not know how to pray as we ought” (Rom 8:26), but God has compassion on our ignorance and he receives our prayer with kindness… So “take delight in the Lord, and he will grant you your heart’s requests.” (Ps 37:4)
maronite readings – rosary,team