Today we should pray, as always, the prayer that Jesus Christ taught his disciples.

The prayer that starts like this:

“Our Father, who art in Heaven

Hallowed be thy Name.

Thy Kingdom come.

Thy will be done . . . .”

* * *

There’s no doubt about it. God’s will WILL be done. We WILL get the government we deserve.

Let us pray, every day, for those who govern us, that they will put God first in everything. That they may be motivated always by love for Our Lord and by love for his children – young and old, rich and poor – who make up our nation.

Above all, pray for those who lead our Catholic Church. That all evil may be weeded out of our Church. That, as a Church, we may faithfully lead our families, and the community of Australia, to a fervent faith and to obedience to God’s commandments.

* * *

“O God, Who has appointed Mary, Help of Christians, St Francis Xavier and St Therese of the Infant Jesus, patrons of Australia . . . .

Grant that, through their intercession, our brethren outside the Church, may receive the light of Faith, so that Australia may become one in Faith,

Under one shepherd, through Jesus Christ, Our Lord.

Amen.

Mary, Help of Christians pray for us.

St Francis Xavier, pray for us.

St Therese of the Infant Jesus pray for us.

Saint Peter Mary Chanel, pray for us.

Blessed Mary of the Cross (*), pray for us.

Amen.”

* * *

 (*) that means Blessed Mary MacKillop, Patroness of this blog.

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Nelson Mandela, President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, is highly regarded for his life spent fighting race hatred.

On becoming President, he said, “The task at hand will not be easy. But you have mandated us to change South Africa from a country where the majority lived with little hope, to one where they can live and work with dignity, with a sense of self-esteem and confidence in the future.”

No doubt his words were applauded. But were they right?

Is self-esteem the secret to a better future?

Self-esteem will, without doubt, increase our “confidence in the future”. But sometimes confidence can be misplaced.

* * *

Self-esteem is, at best, a two-edged sword.

Research shows that the very persons who do acts of race-hatred typically have high self-esteem.

The researchers comment that:

“The pursuit of self-esteem has short-term benefits, but long-term costs — ultimately diverting people away from fulfilling their fundamental needs . . . self-esteem isn’t really worth the effort.  Self-control is much more powerful.”   (www.racematters.org/deflatingselfesteemsrole.htm)

Does not everything good in your life ultimately derive from outside yourself? Pride (self-esteem) is out of place, inappropriate, not very honest.

* * *

Today’s gospel in traditional Catholic churches is a story Jesus told showing what he thinks about self-esteem:

Two men went up into the temple to pray: one a Pharisee, the other a publican.  The Pharisee, standing, prayed thus with himself: ‘I thank you God, that I am not like the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, as also is this publican. I fast twice in a week: I pay tithes of all that I possess.’

The publican, standing afar off, would not even lift his eyes towards heaven; but struck his breast, saying: ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner.’

This man, I tell you, went down into his house justified rather than the other. Everyone who exalts himself, shall be humbled: and he who humbles himself, shall be exalted. (Luke’s gospel, chapter 18)

* * *

If you do something good, be pleased about it.

Just as pleased as if somebody else had done it.

Be pleased because it is pleasing to God.

If you receive credit for some good act, be aware that without God’s help you could not, would not, have done it.

Everywhere you look people are behaving badly.

People who should be setting a good example don’t.

People who are paid to enforce the law often break it themselves.

People we elect to represent us turn out to have other loyalties that we weren’t told about.

People who talk most about “family” pass laws breaking down the concept of full-time motherhood.

Worse, some priests ordained to spread the gospel, molest and exploit those who trust them.

* * *

It has always been more or less like this.

Will it ever change?

Will people ever start doing what is right, simply because it is right?

They would if they believed in God.

Really believed.

If you believe that God is your judge, you will do his will all the time, without fail.

Do people who say they believe in God, yet keep falling into sin, really not believe?

We don’t seem to have the courage of our convictions.

We don’t seem to know how to change ourselves.

* * *

Perhaps a left-handed approach will be more understandable.

Start off by making yourself believe in hell.

If you believe in hell, the struggle to avoid it is worth any sacrifice and any effort.

If you don’t believe in hell, then whatever you do makes no difference to anything except, perhaps, your self-esteem.

Most modern so-called religious people seem to think that everybody will go to heaven.

Most non-religious people also believe that everybody will end up in the same place. In their case they think all will end up in non-existence.

The only people with whom God can work are believers in the traditional Faith who realise that not everybody is going to end up in the same place.

To them it is sensible to try very hard to please God.

And it makes sense to pray for the salvation of other people’s souls.

* * *

What your unbelieving friends and family need most, if they are ever to become obedient believers, is to be prayed for by somebody who is truly obedient.

Only such a person will God listen to. Like Blessed Mary MacKillop.

That is what you and I should spend the rest of our lives learning to become.

Years ago, when our family lived in Fiji, there was a tremendous mango tree at the back of our compound.

I estimated it to be roughly 60 feet tall. Later I discovered that it was exactly 80 feet.

How did I come to be so sure?

It fell over. Then it could be measured as it lay on the ground.

Impressive as it had outwardly appeared, the tree was white-anted inside.

That’s why during one hurricane season it bit the dust . . . .

* * *

With books it can be the other way round.

Inside the book may be great, but its outer cover can white-ant the message before the reader even gets inside.

A set of three books containing more or less everything surviving that Mary MacKillop wrote in her lifetime has just been published.

The cover of Volume One promises us an insight into “Mary MacKillop’s mission to set up a group of women . . . who could make a positive contribution to the world through education and support for human dignity”.

Sounds plausible . . . .

But in fact that was NOT Mary MacKillop’s mission.

* * *

The mission for which Mother Mary’s Order’s existed was stated in its original “Rule”, drafted by Father Julian Tenison Woods.

The first section, entitled “The Objects of the Institute” said (in part): “Since those persons who enter religion do so first of all for the salvation of their own souls, the Sisters of St Joseph must never forget that they come to give themselves wholly to God. They must belong completely to him. Their whole desire must be to love God and to love nothing else . . . .”

This hierarchy of priorities came to assume practical importance.

Sometimes priests and others made so many demands on the Sisters that it interfered with them finding time for their regular prayers.

Mother Mary challenged one such priest: “Are we not Religious first — Teachers second?”

* * *

Are today’s Josephite Sisters preoccupied, first and foremost, with worldly matters of schooling, human rights etc.?

If so, perhaps they should emulate their founder by putting those worthy issues second – and putting the defence of Catholic Tradition first.

Today, the fifth Sunday after Easter, the gospel reading at Traditional Catholic Mass continues on from last week — Jesus explaining to his disciples, at their Last Supper together, what will soon happen.

* * *

Jesus said, “Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.

Until now you have not asked anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

I have told you this in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures, but I will tell you clearly about the Father.

On that day you will ask in my name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have come to believe that I came from God.

I came from the Father and have come into the world. Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.

His disciples said, “Now you are talking plainly, and not in any figure of speech. Now we realise that you know everything and that you do not need to have anyone question you. Because of this we believe that you came from God.”

* * *

Jesus reminds them that he will soon leave them because he belongs in heaven and is merely visiting this earth.

This is a message for us. We, too, are just visiting this place. Soon enough we’ll be gone — simply pilgrims passing through.

Saint Teresa of Avila was one person who never forgot where she really belonged. In her characteristic terse fashion she described our time on earth as “a night spent in a bad inn”.

* * *

About prayer:

Think of a happy family where a child grows up surrounded by love. He is welcome to ask for whatever he wants.

His requests are always answered.

He may ask for sweets and be given vegetables.

But he still knows he is loved.

We ask God for things and do not always receive them. This can be very puzzling and even seem unfair.

The Christian faith reassures us that we are loved nonetheless.

Twelve months ago, the Superior General of the Society of Saint Pius the Tenth (SSPX), Bishop Fellay, asked traditional Catholics worldwide to participate in a Rosary Crusade.

He requested that Rosaries be said asking that Pope Benedict, together with all the bishops of the world, will consecrate the nation of Russia to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

His aim was to have 12 million Rosaries recited for that intention between 1 May 2009 and 25 March 2010.

Well, the time has elapsed and it turns out that over 19 million Rosaries were said – including 5.5 million by Catholics in the USA and 3.1 million in France . . . Australia managed 439,000.

* * *

This consecration is something Our Lady herself requested of three children to whom she appeared at Fatima in 1917.

She said, “I shall come to ask for the Consecration of Russia to My Immaculate Heart . . . .

If people attend to my requests, Russia will be converted and the world will have peace . . . .

In the end, my Immaculate Heart will triumph. The Holy Father (and the remaining bishops) will consecrate Russia to me . . . .

Russia will be converted and a period of peace will be given to mankind . . . .” 

* * *

It’s a long story, but for various reasons the consecration has never been carried out in exactly the way Our Lady asked for.

That is what we hope Pope Benedict will now decide to do.

* * *

There have been two previous Rosary Crusades for two earlier intentions.

After the first (in 2007), the Pope lifted the ban on the use of the Old Latin Mass.

After the second (in 2009), he lifted the “excommunications” of the four bishops of the SSPX.

After this Third Rosary Crusade, will we see, in 2010, another miracle worked in the heart of the Pope?

If so, then we may confidently expect the further miracle of world peace to follow.

Natural methods have never achieved much peace.

We look now to God to grant us his peace by supernatural means.

Let’s keep praying for the Pope, for the worldwide Catholic community, and for peace.