Happy are those
who hear the word of God
and keep it. LK 11:28
My Soul's Beloved,
While a whole host of Christians make the mistake of believing that present-day Israel is interchangeable with the New Israel referred to in the New Testament, the fact of the matter is that it is the Catholic Church that is the spiritual fulfillment of God's people, succeeding Old Testament Israel. The rejection of the Jews of the Messiah has placed them outside the New Covenant promises and the saving power of the Blood of the Lamb. Their religious leaders, along with the Roman authorities of the day, were responsible for crucifying the Savior of the world, and since then, the Jewish religious authorities have deliberately and systematically ensured that the Jews remain ignorant of the Suffering Servant who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. There is no other Messiah, no other Redeemer, than the One who pierced time and space and entered into the world to establish the Kingdom of God on earth. By the power of Your passion, death, and glorious resurrection and ascension into heaven, Beloved, You threw open the gates of heaven, and only those who believe in You may enter. It is not for us to speculate how God will deal with them for rejecting You, His well-beloved Son, but we can pray for them and trust them to His mercy.
Israel was crushed and became rubble when the Romans almost annihilated it, and the Jews became a minority in their own land. Those who lived went into exile and became wanderers and strangers in other lands. Whatever is happening now in Israel is being done by human endeavour. Only when they confess You are Lord, will they know lasting peace, which will be Your gift to them as the Prince of Peace.
As for the Church You founded, Beloved, it will be held safe in the hollow of Your Hand and in Your Sacred Heart. You will remain with her all her days and guide Your Bride to safe harbor. Until that day, O Lord, when You will return in glory, You will watch over her, nourish her, and keep her safe in Your love.
The Lord says this:
‘Let the nations rouse themselves, let them march
to the Valley of Jehoshaphat,
for I am going to sit in judgement there
on all the nations round.
Put the sickle in:
the harvest is ripe;
come and tread:
the winepress is full,
the vats are overflowing,
so great is their wickedness!’
Host on host
in the Valley of Decision!
For the day of the Lord is near
in the Valley of Decision!
Sun and moon grow dark,
the stars lose their brilliance.
The Lord roars from Zion,
makes his voice heard from Jerusalem;
heaven and earth tremble.
The Lord is king, let earth rejoice,
let all the coastlands be glad.
Cloud and darkness are his raiment;
his throne, justice and right.
The mountains melt like wax
before the Lord of all the earth.
The skies proclaim his justice;
all peoples see his glory.
Light shines forth for the just
and joy for the upright of heart.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord;
give glory to his holy name.
The Lord says this:
‘Let the nations rouse themselves, let them march
to the Valley of Jehoshaphat,
for I am going to sit in judgement there
on all the nations round.
Put the sickle in:
the harvest is ripe;
come and tread:
the winepress is full,
the vats are overflowing,
so great is their wickedness!’
Host on host
in the Valley of Decision!
For the day of the Lord is near
in the Valley of Decision!
Sun and moon grow dark,
the stars lose their brilliance.
The Lord roars from Zion,
makes his voice heard from Jerusalem;
heaven and earth tremble.
But the Lord will be a shelter for his people,
a stronghold for the sons of Israel.
‘You will learn then that I am the Lord your God,
dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain.
Jerusalem will be a holy place,
no alien will ever pass through it again.’
When that day comes,
the mountains will run with new wine
and the hills flow with milk,
and all the river beds of Judah
will run with water.
A fountain will spring from the house of the Lord
to water the wadi of Acacias.
Egypt will become a desolation,
Edom a desert waste
on account of the violence done to the sons of Judah
whose innocent blood they shed in their country.
But Judah will be inhabited for ever,
Jerusalem from age to age.
‘I will avenge their blood and let none go unpunished’,
and the Lord shall make his home in Zion.
PSALM 96(97):1-2,5-6,11-12
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.
a stronghold for the sons of Israel.
‘You will learn then that I am the Lord your God,
dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain.
Jerusalem will be a holy place,
no alien will ever pass through it again.’
When that day comes,
the mountains will run with new wine
and the hills flow with milk,
and all the river beds of Judah
will run with water.
A fountain will spring from the house of the Lord
to water the wadi of Acacias.
Egypt will become a desolation,
Edom a desert waste
on account of the violence done to the sons of Judah
whose innocent blood they shed in their country.
But Judah will be inhabited for ever,
Jerusalem from age to age.
‘I will avenge their blood and let none go unpunished’,
and the Lord shall make his home in Zion.
PSALM 96(97):1-2,5-6,11-12
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.
The Lord is king, let earth rejoice,
let all the coastlands be glad.
Cloud and darkness are his raiment;
his throne, justice and right.
The mountains melt like wax
before the Lord of all the earth.
The skies proclaim his justice;
all peoples see his glory.
Light shines forth for the just
and joy for the upright of heart.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord;
give glory to his holy name.
Rejoice, you just, in the Lord.
LUKE 11:27-28
My Soul's Beloved,
My Soul's Beloved,
You spoke no truer words when You responded to the woman in the crowd who cried out, 'Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!' by saying, ‘Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!’
No person who ever lived can compare to the Woman clothed with the Sun of Justice. No person ever lived who can match Your Mother for breathtaking virtue. After the Triune God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit comes Your Blessed Mother, the handmaid of the Lord, who said, "May it be done to me according to your will." Her entire life, from the moment of her conception, was overshadowed by God. Purest and most fair of all God's creation, she is adored and revered by all the angels and saints, and by the Church. She is our Mother, and through her most powerful intercession, she will ensure that all her children make it safely home to the Kingdom of God. Her fiat made it possible for God the Holy Spirit to come upon her, the power of God the Father to overshadow her, and the Son of God, the Eternal Word of the Father, to become incarnate in her. Anyone who dares to dishonor her will be dishonored by God.
As Jesus was speaking, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, ‘Happy the womb that bore you and the breasts you sucked!’ But he replied, ‘Still happier those who hear the word of God and keep it!’
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