Season 5 Episode 15: Glorifying God in Our Offering

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta discuss chapters 17 & 18 of The Sanctifier, which explores the mystery of the Cross, the offerings we are able to give to God, and how to handle sufferings (big and little) in the spiritual life.

“A true devotion to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit leads to one end, the cross: the true and supreme glorification of the Father, the highest expression of love on earth, the central point of the will of God.” The Sanctifier, Ch 17

“Perhaps in heaven we shall see that glorification and love are the same: that only love glorifies God, and that in glorification alone does love find its rest and its peace. On earth we do not see this. […] The cross, the supreme glorification of God, is also the supreme expression of love. Love is surrender; it is giving. It is the sweet communication of our whole being with that of the Beloved.” The Sanctifier, Ch 17

Each priest, each soul, must carry within himself that intimate reflection of the cross, that echo of Calvary. Each priest, each soul, must answer the sacrifice of Jesus with his own. The solemn and glorious martyrdom of blood is not the only one; there are personal martyrdoms, meritorious and cruel, unseen by man but seen by God. Each virtue can have its own martyrs. Charity, queen of them all, has many very great ones.The Sanctifier, Ch 18

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Kobo

1.     1 Corinthians 2:1-5: Resolved to know nothing among you

2.    Galatians 1:3: Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified?

3.    Personal Prayer: A Guide for Receiving the Father’s Love by Fr. Thomas Acklin and Fr. Boniface Hicks Amazon | Publisher

4.    Abandonment to Divine Providence (New translation!) PaulineStore.com | Amazon

Call to action:

1.    Reflect with the idea that what I can’t possibly imagine now to be good in my life will be exactly what I need in order to grow in my relationship with God.

2.    Begin with the next little thing. What might be the next incremental thing I want to allow the Lord to work on with me? How might Jesus be inviting me to generosity and trust here?

3.    As you begin, see how it becomes easy and light. Because it will, as we allow Jesus to share it.

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta are joined by Sr. Emily Beata in a conversation about discernment, the will of God, pitfalls we can fall into, and tips for making a good discernment about big or little things.

Sr. Emily describes discernment as placing ourselves in a space where we can become aware of both internal and external realities so that when we choose, we can choose with God.

“The will of God is his greatest act of love for us.”

– Blessed James Alberione

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Kobo

1.    1 Thessalonians 5:16-22: Test everything

2.    Joseph Chiwatenhwa brief biography, and the Prayer text

Excerpt:

It fills me with joy to know you. I can feel the

   presence of your love.

Thank you for letting me give you myself just

   as I am

The more I thank you, the more I find I can give

   myself to you

Help me let go of the things I used to place my

   faith in. All I ask is to be yours.

3.    Judges 6:36–40: Gideon’s fleece

Contact Sr. Emily Beata for vocational inquiries at daughtersofstpaul.com or at [email protected]

Call to action:

1.    Cultivate a daily habit of an examen, asking yourself, “Where was God today, and how did I respond to him?” and inviting the Holy Spirit to help you to see the patterns in your relationship with the Lord.

2.    Throughout your day, ask, “God what are you inviting me to now?” and pray, “Come Holy Spirit,” and then act. 

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta discuss chapters 15 & 16 of The Sanctifier, which emphasize love for the Father and how our longings can bring us into conformity with God’s will.

“Therefore charity is perfected when the soul is united to God and enters into the joy of the Lord. For this reason Jesus prayed so earnestly that we would all be perfected in unity; and this is why the first and last aspiration of the soul in love is expressed in the first versicle of the Song of Songs: “Let him kiss me with kisses of his mouth” (1:1). The mouth of the Father is the Word; his kiss is the Holy Spirit. Through that mysterious kiss the entire Trinity is communicated to the soul and the soul to the Trinity. The consummation of unity, the consummation of love, consists in this: that the soul transformed into Jesus reposes in the bosom of the Father, in the unity of the Holy Spirit.

“These are the three stages of divine love: the soul is possessed by the Holy Spirit; the soul is transformed into the Word made flesh; and the soul rests in the bosom of the heavenly Father. They are three aspects of the same love, three forms of one devotion, three depths of one abyss of life and happiness.” The Sanctifier, Ch 15

“Jesus, who loves the Father with a divine passion, had, as a secret nourishment, the fulfillment of the will of him who sent him. And therefore also, true devotion to the Father consists in a filial love that rejoices in loving adoration of the divine goodness and aspires with all its strength to fulfill the divine will.

“The Holy Spirit alone can give us a share of Jesus’ hunger to do the will of God, because this hunger is love and all true love comes from infinite Love.” The Sanctifier, Ch 16

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Kobo

1.    CCC 238-239: Many religions invoke God as “Father.” The deity is often considered the “father of gods and of men.” In Israel, God is called “Father” inasmuch as he is Creator of the world. Even more, God is Father because of the covenant and the gift of the law to Israel, “his first-born son.” God is also called the Father of the king of Israel. Most especially he is “the Father of the poor,” of the orphaned and the widowed, who are under his loving protection.

By calling God “Father,” the language of faith indicates two main things: that God is the first origin of everything and transcendent authority; and that he is at the same time goodness and loving care for all his children. God’s parental tenderness can also be expressed by the image of motherhood, which emphasizes God’s immanence, the intimacy between Creator and creature […] 

2.    Letter from J.R.R. Tolkien to his son Michael, June 9, 1941: “It is something to be the father of a good young soldier. Can’t you see why I care so much about you, and why all that you do concerns me so closely? Still, let us both take heart of hope and faith. The link between father and son is not only of the perishable flesh: it must have something of æternitas about it. There is a place called ‘heaven’ where the good here unfinished is completed; and where the stories unwritten, and the hopes unfulfilled, are continued. We may laugh together yet . . .” 

3.    Ephesians 3:14-21: that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the holy ones what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge…

4.    Matthew 12:46–50: Who is my Mother? Who are my brothers?

Call to action:

Slowly pray with the Our Father, meditating on the words, and ask the Holy Spirit to help you see which parts you need help to live more fully.

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

Season 5 Episode 12: Satan hates these three simple steps… (Disclaimer: Simple ≠ Easy)

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta discuss chapter 14 of The Sanctifier, which highlights the important role the Holy Spirit plays in bringing us to Jesus so that we may get to know him better, and so that we can become more like him.

“Devotion to the Holy Spirit is not properly understood if we do not see that it is closely related with devotion to the Father and to the Word and that by a divine logic it leads to these two devotions, and also contains them in their essential elements. […]

“The Holy Spirit, being the love of the Father and of the Son, pours into the soul he moves and into the heart he possesses a love for the Father similar to that of the Son, and a love for the Word similar to that of the Father. Even more: in the soul that possesses the Holy Spirit and is possessed by him, there is, as explained above, a limited but ineffable image of the mystery of the love of the Trinity. For the soul loves the Father as it loves the Word, and it loves the Word as it loves the Father.” The Sanctifier, Ch 14

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Apple Books | Kobo

The three step program we found in this chapter:

1.    Discovering the Ideal. Knowing who Jesus is and understanding that that’s the goal so that I can learn and discern the way that God wants me to reflect the Son

2.    Identifying and stripping myself of everything that gets in the way of #1, with God’s help

3.    Placing myself under God’s operations of grace with all of my free will and desire, accepting the movement of the Spirit

Call to action:

1.    What aspect or characteristic of Jesus attracts you most? Spend some time with the Holy Spirit asking why, and what more you can learn about that aspect and about who he’s calling you to be, how he’s inviting you to imitate Jesus.

2.    Talk to God about what these answers do in your heart, how they move you, and whatever else comes up during this time of prayer.

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

Season 5 Episode 11: Diving Into the Whirlpool of Love

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta discuss Chapters 12 & 13 of The Sanctifier, how we love God, how the love of God is like a whirlpool that gets deeper and more intense the more we enter into it, and some of the practical ways we can go about stepping into the experience.

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Apple Books | Kobo

“Human love in all its manifestations is admirably in harmony with the love of charity. It is confident in filial love, trusting in friendship, sweet and fruitful in the love of husband and wife, disinterested and tender in the love of a mother.

Our love of God must include all these forms of human love. Every fiber of our heart must vibrate when the harmonious and full canticle of love bursts forth from it. But since God is one in essence and triune in Persons, our love for him takes on a particular aspect accordingly as it is directed to each one of the divine Persons.

Our love for the Father is tender and confident like that of children, eager to glorify him as his only- begotten Son taught us to do by word and example. Love for the Father is the intense desire to have his will fulfilled on earth as it is in heaven.

Our love for the Son, who willed to become flesh for us, is characterized by the tendency to union with him and transformation into him, by imitation of his example, participation in his life, and the sharing of his sufferings and his cross. The Eucharist, mystery of love, of sorrow, and of union, reveals the characteristics of this love.

Love for the Holy Spirit also has its special character, which we should study in order completely to understand devotion to him. We have explained how the Holy Spirit loves us, how he moves us like a divine breath that draws us to the bosom of God, like a sacred fire that transforms us into fire, like a divine artist who forms Jesus in us.”

– Archbishop Luis Martinez, The Sanctifier Chapter 12. 

Other references:

·     Video about the Shema prayer

Deus Caritas Est by Pope Benedict XVI Vatican Website | On PaulineStore

Spe Salvi by Pope Benedict XVI Vatican Website | On PaulineStore

Call to action:

1.    Take some time in prayer to look at your own life and identify somewhere you would not expect God to show up. Where would his presence seem weird? Then consciously make an effort to invite the Lord into that space. If it seems it would help, find some physical way to remind yourself that you’re working on offering that thing or space to God.

2.    Consider listening (or re-listening) to Season 4, Episode 1 “The Experience of God’s Love,” and pray a bit about how you would answer the question “How do I know it’s God’s voice I’m hearing?”

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

Season 5 Episode 10: Holy Spirit as Director (with Sr. Tracey Matthia)

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta are joined by Sr. Tracey Matthia to talk about the Holy Spirit as our Director, and what it means to let him lead our prayer lives.

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Apple Books | Kobo

“Our chief concern and duty toward the divine Guest is to try to be with him.” – Archbishop Luis Martinez, The Sanctifier Chapter 9.

Sr. Tracey’s Vocation Story on YouTube

Other references:

·     The choosing of Matthias (Acts 1:15–26)

·     ARRR Prayer

·     How to go to confession

Deus Caritas Est by Pope Benedict XVI Vatican Website | On PaulineStore

Spe Salvi by Pope Benedict XVI Vatican Website | On PaulineStore

Call to action:

1.     Pray through Romans 8 slowly, word by word and ask, how is this true in my own life?

2.    Read through the Order of Confirmation and reflect on your own Confirmation (if you have been confirmed). What invitations arise as you read through these prayers?

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta break open chapters 9 through 11 of the book The Sanctifier, which work through the virtues of Faith, Hope, and Love in the light of our relationship with the Holy Spirit.

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Apple Books | Kobo

“Our chief concern and duty toward the divine Guest is to try to be with him.” – Archbishop Luis Martinez, The Sanctifier Chapter 9.

Other references:

• Catechism of the Catholic Church 1812–1832
• The theological virtues are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character. They inform and give life to all the moral virtues. They are infused by God into the souls of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. (CCC 1813)

• …the promised holy Spirit, which is the first installment of our inheritance. – St. Paul (Eph 1:11–14)

• 6 Year Old Fashion Designer (Interview)

• Attributes of Love from St. Paul — 1 Corinthians 13

• Deus Caritas Est by Pope Benedict XVI Vatican Website | On PaulineStore

• Personal Prayer: A Guide for Receiving the Father’s Love by Fr. Thomas Acklin and Fr. Boniface Hicks Amazon | Publisher

Call to action:

1.    Pick up a rosary or count on your fingers and pray the three Hail Marys for Faith, Hope, and Love in an intentional way.

 Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta break open chapters 7 & 8 of the book The Sanctifier, which is about how the Holy Spirit consecrates us, our own ability of practicing being in his presence, and how we love and glorify God.

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Apple Books | Kobo

Catechesis on the Holy Spirit (Weekly Audiences of John Paul II from April 26, 1989 to July 3, 1991) The talk quoted by Sr Benedicta is here.

•  “We read: "But you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the Spirit, if only the Spirit dwells in you" (Rom 8:9). "If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you" (Rom 8:11). Therefore, the influence of the divine indwelling in a person is extended to his or her whole being. It extends to his or her whole life, which in all its constitutive elements and operational activities is placed under the action of the Holy Spirit: of the Spirit of the Father and the Son, and therefore also of Christ, the Incarnate Word. This Spirit, alive in the Trinity, by virtue of the redemption won by Christ is present in the entire person who lets himself or herself be "inhabited" by him, and in all of humanity which recognizes and accepts him.”

• See with what large letters I write in my own hand! – St. Paul (Galatians 6:11)
• Catechism of the Catholic Church 1256
• So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God. – St. Paul (1 Cor 10:31)
• The Ark in the Temple of Dagon (1 Samuel 5)

Deus Caritas Est by Pope Benedict XVI Vatican Website | On PaulineStore

Call to action:

Read the Catechism’s section on Baptism (1213—1284) (Or order a copy on PaulineStore or Amazon)

 Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

 Season 5 Episode 7: Unwrapping the Gifts

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta dive into the sixth chapter of the book The Sanctifier, which is all about the Gifts of the Holy Spirit. They discuss how these are related to prayer, branding, and… puppies?

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Apple Books | Kobo

It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. – St. Paul (Galatians 2:20)

Jacques Philippe’s In the School of the Holy Spirit On PaulineStore.com | On Amazon

Isaiah 11

Call to action:

1.    Next time you go to pray and don’t feel like it, or have a lot of excuses to leave, choose to stay and ask the Holy Spirit to help you live out of his gifts and to know that when you do, he is working out the redemption of the world IN YOU.

2.    Take some time this week to really pray the chaplet with some intensity, and a stronger desire for the gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul

In today’s episode, Sr. Orianne Pietra René and Sr. Julie Benedicta are joined by Sr. Margaret Edward. They dive into the fifth chapter of the book The Sanctifier, which Sr. Benedicta insists is actually the theme of the whole book. What does it mean to be transformed into Christ, and how does this come about? They also share about the Pauline Charism’s emphasis on Christification, which is very important to all Daughters of St. Paul.

You don’t need to have the book to follow along, but if you’d like to get a copy, you can find it here:

  Paperback: PaulineStore.com | Amazon

  eBook: Kindle | Apple Books | Kobo

It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. – St. Paul (Galatians 2:20)

The Useless Video on YouTube

Call to action:

1.    Revisit your baptismal promises (or look into and pray about baptism if you have not been baptized)

2.    Pray with Zephaniah 3:16-18 and plan a few moments into your day to be still and to invite the Lord to show you what his gaze toward you is like, and what might he be singing over you.

Holy Spirit Chaplet: For Printing | For Mobile

STAY IN TOUCH WITH US!

Twitter: @DaughterStPaul and @PBMPublishing

Instagram: @DaughterStPaul and @PaulineBooksAndMedia

YouTube.com/daughterstpaul

Thank you for listening. Leave us a rating and review on your favorite platform so that others can discover and listen to us too!

Thank you to our supporters on Patreon who make this podcast possible!

Support us and find out more: connect.pauline.org/Patreon

The Daughters of Saint Paul