Catholic Meditations

Meditation on the Second Sorrow of the Blessed Mother

Each creak of the wind
carried a threat,
the threat of soldiers' dust
following them
as they travelled down the road,
long wearying hours.

The road,
the road to Alexandria,
to Egypt,
a busy way,
away from the home they knew,
the language that spoke of familiar ways,
familiar prayers,
safety in the hands of God,
yet no longer safe
or familiar
nor home.

He looked at these two precious charges
on the donkey he walked along.
How small and tiny she seemed,
how trusting,
and the child,
the child,
the reason of it all.

Once again, he wondered at the wisdom of God
chosing to put this on his shoulders,
looked up to heaven,
and said,
"We're in your hands, Lord."
Looking up, Mary smiled.

Susan E Stone, 2004

But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect. Matthew 5:44-48

O Lord,
how hard it is
when hurt touches our hearts,
and anger fills our thoughts
to know that this is a sign from you
that it is time to love.

Teach us Lord
how to love those
who do not love us.
Teach us to be instruments of your peace
when we want conflict.
Teach us to be peacemakers
when we want to drive the infidels away
instead of convert them,
Teach us to pray
when we want to shout,
Teach us to love the unlovable,
the way you loved us,
so unlovable
and hatefilled
and sinful
and lost,
You, our teacher and example,
who loved us so much
you gave your life
so that we might live.

Jesus, meek and humble of heart,
make our hearts like thine!

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Jesus, Divine Mercy

Jesus,
Divine Mercy
come to mankind
in an amazing act of love,
I trust in thee.

Jesus,
Heart of Mercy,
Pierced for us,
a fountain of healing
offered freely
to those who would seek it,
I trust in thee.

Jesus,
Mercy of God Incarnate,
Light against the darkness,
Shelter against the storm
Haven of the lost,
I trust in thee.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Good Friday Night

O Blessed Mother,
O Lady of Sorrows,
How dark that night must have been,
when they led you home
from Golgotha and the tomb.

Did you find yourself
staring numbly
into the dark,
seeing the sad day's moments
playing over and over
in your mind,
as the quiet tears
trickled down your cheeks?

Did they gather together,
one by one,
the scattered disciples,
afraid of each noise
yet not knowing where to go,
except towards you,
all they had left
of their master?

Did they come to hold you in your grief,
or come to be mothered?

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Labels: Friday Meditations

Behold the Man

Behold the Man! say Pilate,
wishing to make you look small,
frail,
worthless,
nothing for the authorities to worry about.

Behold the Man, say the nonbeliever,
wishing to strip you of the power of God,
to make you safe,
ignorable,
worthless,
nothing to worry about.

Behold the Man, say some,
wishing you were the person they want you to be,
ascended master,
apostle of hate,
elder brother,
letting your message be nothing to worry about.

Behold the Man, say I,
Wishing to follow you with all my heart,
True God and true man,
who lovingly laid down his life
to bring us all home,
let me proclaim clearly,
Jesus Christ is Lord!

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Lord, Help Me to Give

O Lord,
Help me to give,
to be your light,
to smile though I want to scream,
to speak softly when I feel angry
and want to hurt back,
to touch only with loving hands,
to break whatever chains of darkness
you put in front of me.

Remind me, O Lord,
that when I feel annoyed,
that is a sign that I should pray,
that when I am hurt by another,
that other has hurts that need your love,
that when I feel overwhelmed,
it is your strength that I need.

O Lord, let me be an instrument of your peace,
a lantern for your light,
a witness to your truth,
this day, and forever,
Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Suspended in Mid-Air

O Lord,
today I feel suspended
in mid-air,
in that place between heaven and earth,
caught between the joy
that comes from your love,
and the pain
that threatens to crash me down
into the dust.
Sad, joyful,
at peace and miserable
all at the same time,
and it makes me think of you,
suspended between heaven and earth,
a willing sacrifice
caught up in the web of pain
and sorrow and reproach
for the love of us all.

Today, O Lord,
I offer you up
my pain and my tears,
my joy and my thankfulness
for in this cross you have given me,
I feel in some way more united to thee,
and for that,
I offer you my thanks.

Susan Stone, 2004

Prayer to St. Joseph

O Saint Joseph,
Patron of the family,
protector of women and children,
guardian of the church,
how often I turn to you in times of need,
You, who God chose to be the foster father of our Lord,
You, of the kind and merciful heart,
who, when ashamed to be husband to our Lady,
would not make her a spectacle, either,
You, of the faithful heart,
who stood beside her all the way to Bethlehem,
and guarded Jesus and Mary
on the road to Egypt,
O Saint Joseph,
I love you for the example you set,
for the way you are so willing to help,
for your willingness to follow God's requests,
for having been there with our Lord when he was a child.

Saint Joseph,
in this my time of need,
pray for me.


Susan E. Stone, 2004

Carrying the Cross

The way seems hard today, Lord,
my arms too weak for the task,
my legs too frail to carry the load,
and yet,
I will cling to this cross,
rough hewn, and splintery,
because it is your cross,
more precious than if it were gold,
polished ebony,
encrusted with jewels.
And with you,
I stumble up the hill
shaky step by step,
knowing that if I fall,
you will be there to help me up,
until I reach the end of the way.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

For Those Who Do Not Believe

O Lord,
Today I pray for those
who turned their back when you called,
who raised their children
to despise what you stand for,
who cry in the night
when the darkness seems so heavy,
who craves meaning and light
but shutters the windows against the true light.

Have mercy on them, O Lord,
soften their hearts,
and let them realize
that all their posturing,
all their sense of superiority,
all their pretense to high culture
and worldly wisdom
will not save them against the night.

O Jesus,
teach us the way
to bring your light
wherever the darkness dwells.

Now and forever,
Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Prayer for Forgiveness

Light of Heaven,
forgive us for all those times
we choose not to reflect your light
to this poor, dark world around us,
for all those times
we said the angry word,
ignored our neighbor,
failed to forgive our brother,
and spread the darkness instead.

Word made Flesh,
forgive us for all those times
in our arrogance, or fear, or pride or anger,
we chose not to say the healing word,
chose not to speak your name to others,
chose not to spread your message,
chose to hide our truth beneath a bushell basket.

O dear Master,
teach us the way to be more like you,
teach us to love the way that you love,
teach us how to love others more in your name.

Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Thoughts on Jesus the Word

So shall my word be
that goes forth from my mouth;
It shall not return to me void,
but shall do my will,
achieving the end for which I sent it
Isaiah 55:11

O Lord,
fruitful word who comes forth from the mouth of the Father,
always doing the will of him who sent you,
fill me,
that I may be a tool in your hands
achieving the Father's will.

O Word Incarnate,
who came to shed light on this sad world,
so scarred by sin and its consequences,
thank you for letting us glimpse
the light of heaven
in your smile,
your words,
your actions.

Thank you for the love
which can heal our hearts.
Help us always
to be channels of your blessing,
your instruments of peace.

Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Morning Prayer

Dear Lord,
Thank you for the gift
of another morning,
another morning to try to walk in your ways,
another morning to share your light with those around me,
another morning to resist the ways of the evil one,
another morning to pray.

O Lord,
may this be a day where I touch another's life in your name,
may this be a day where I forgive the one who wrongs me,
may this be a day I give you thanks for all that comes my way.

O sweet Jesus,
bring to my mind the memory of the way you taught,
the way you lived,
the way you died,
to be my strength and shield,
and in the end,
bring me home to thee.

Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Immaculata

Immaculate.
clean
pure,
spotless

like a drop of water
falling like rain,
before it touches earth

like a beam of light
breaking through the darkness
to light the way.

Like you, O Mary!

You who never told God no,
you who always told God yes,
no matter how difficult.

Immaculate Mary,
pray for us now, and at the hour of our deaths.

Amen.

Susan E Stone, 2004

In Praise of the Bridegroom

Who would have imagined
the bride price you were willing to pay,
drop by drop,
your own heart's blood,
spilled out,
a libation
spilled in pain,
sorrow,
triumph.

O Sacred Heart,
A lover's heart,
big enough to love the whole world,
with all its griefs,
and evils,
and sorrows,
and not turn away
in despair or disgust!

O Sacred Heart,
Source of all consolations,
you who would heal our every wound
through having been wounded for love of us,
and giving what we have no right to demand,
Bridegroom of a most unworthy bride
whom you clothe in dazzling white linen
woven from your own true love,
glory to you!

Susan E Stone 2004

Labels: Jesus' Love, Passion of Christ

Jesus On the Cross

How hard the wood rubbed against
your bruised and bleeding back,
how hard the iron
that made your arms
throb with excruciating pain,
how the thorns dug in when you held your head fully up,
a symphony of pain
whose depths I can only vaguely
imagine,
how hard it was to see
the Magdalene there,
weeping her heart out,
your aunt,
and especially,
your mother,
who watched every moment,
sharing your pain
as you moved into the darkness of death,
but could any of these compare
to the wall of separation
from your Father
that our sins,
the sins of the world
placed between you,
until, bereft of everything but pain
and the approach of death,
you cried out
like a child longing
for the parent
he couldn't see.

All this for love.



Susan E. Stone, 2004

Labels: Passion of Christ

I know not why you chose
this way
to show us your love,
to embrace a slave's death,
a death of public humilation,
torture and pain.
I know not why you chose
to carry the rough wood
that your hands knew so well
how to shape and form
into so many better things
than a tool of torture,
or why you let them
pierce you,
but this was your choice.

O Lord,
let me never forget
that you really walked those steps,
felt the blows,
the roughness of the wood,
the pain,
tasted the blood.
You were there,
and you did it for love,
abandoning all,
until you felt even abandoned by the Father,
nothing left
but our sins,
the pain,
and the darkness of death.

What greater love story ever
was composed upon this sad earth?

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Labels: Jesus' Love, Passion of Christ

Mother of Sorrow, Mother of Consolation

O Sorrowful Mother, Mother of Consolation,
in your sorrows,
you have become the queen of martyrs,
the queen of those who know suffering,
the mother we turn to when
our griefs,
and our sufferings,
and our pain
become more than we know how to deal with.

Be with me, Mother,
as I stand with you at the foot of your son's cross.
Remind me of the sorrow
as you held his lifeless body in your arms,
arms powerless to heal his hurts,
Remind me of your grief
at the closing of his tomb.

Be with me Mother,
as I deal with those griefs life gives me,
my cross to bear,
Be with me, Mother,
as the sorrow and pain grow heavy,
sometimes overwhelming.
Mother, then please hold me in your arms.
Remind me of the final joy
that awaits he who perseveres
at the end of his days -
help me, O Mother, by your love and prayers
to be that one!

Susan Stone, 2004

Labels: Passion of Christ