Catholic Meditations

Fever Dreams

Fever dreams
told me lies,
about how those I loved
twisted in hate
away from me
and all I was left with
was grief,
sorrow,
pain.

But when I awoke,
I knew
I was in the arms
of one who loved me.

And now I look around
and see the fevered dreams
of those looking for meaning
in mere stimulation,
sex,
drugs,
egoism
where others become dream figures
instead of real persons,
and life
limps along into nightmare.

And I know that if they woke up,
they too would find themselves
in the arms
of one who loved them,
loved them from the beginning of time,
who would chase the fever dreams away,
who gave his blood and heart and life
to wake them up.

O Lord,
lover of my soul,
waken those poor souls
out of their frenzied dreams
and into the light.

Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

O Lord,
forgive us of all the times
when we let ourselves be confused
about the true good
and the false gold
of gratification
that strips us
of our contact with thee.

O Lord,
your way is the golden path
that leads us to hope
and trust,
and peace
and joy,
and yet,so often
the glittering counterfeits
seem so good,
so true
so relevant,
and we chase after them,
then find we are in a quagmire,
lost,
confused,
and only you can rescue us.

Thank you, Lord,
for being he who is willing
to come and lift us out of the muck
when we are willing to be lifted,
and who will take us home.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Prayer for a friend whose husband has come home to die


The Lord keep all of you in the palm of his hands,
and be with each and every one touched by this loss.
He will be with you, each step of the way,
hovering over you
when the moments seem darkest,
whispering his words of hope,
and sending his angels when you least expect it.
He waits to be your rock,
your strong fortress,
your light
when things are darkest,
and is willing to hold you in his arms
when all you want to do
is scream
or cry,
or yell.
Our Lord will weep with you,
knowing the pain of loss himself,
he will remember with you,
he will hold those precious memories close
long after time greys the reality,
and in the end,
he will be there
at the moment you are reunited at last.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Jesus,
how much you are still
a sign of contradiction,
and some create
such interesting masks
to clothe your reality.

For some,
the mask
a sign of ignorance,
being backwards,
unthinking,
unlearned.

For some,
the mask is
an enlightened teacher,
a guru,
or the mask of a prophet,
the mask of a revolutionary
who lived and died
and that was enough.

For some,
we see the light behind the masks
man makes.

Help us see behind the masks we make,
and stripped of all we add,
may we find that you are Emmanuel,
God with us,
suffering and dying
that we might live,
and might have that life abundantly
in your peace,

and in seeing,
may those of us
who have experienced
the truth of your reality
be signposts
for those
who look at the masks
of their own creation.

Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Labels: Discipleship

O Lord,
Please pierce the heart
of those who would use you,
body and blood, soul and divinity,
there in the form of bread,
food of the poor,
symbol and reality
of your love for us,
as a political statement
of their determination
to act in sin
pierce their hearts
with the reality of their wrongdoing,
and may they realize the enormity
of the wrong they do
and return in penance.

O Lord,
pierce the hearts of the priests,
the bishops,
and those entrusted
to lead us
with the reality of the wrong
that others do for political statement,
and may they be given wisdom
to act rightly,
the strength of heart
to stand up for the truth,
wisdom to recognize the right action,
and the fire of courage
that comes from the touch of your Holy Spirit.

O Lord,
help us, just the regular men and women
who love you,
to be willing to stand up and say,
This is wrong,
the wisdom to know how to act,
and the joy of being your witness.

Amen.

Susan E. Stone, 2004

Labels: Discipleship, Eucharist, Forgiveness, Man's Sinfulness