From: richarra@gmail.com   
      
   COVETOUSNESS”   
      
   Did Christ warn against Covetousness?    
   And He said to them, "Take heed    
   and guard yourselves from all    
   covetousness, for a man's life does   
   not consist in abundance of his possessions"     
   (Luke 12:15).   
      
   "With what worldly goods should we   
   be content? For we have brought   
   nothing into the world, and certainly   
   we can take nothing out; but having   
   food and sufficient clothing,    
   with these let us be content"    
   (1 Tim.6:7-8).   
      
   "To what dangers does covetousness   
   lead? But those who seek to become   
   rich, fall into temptation and a snare   
   and into many useless and harmful   
   desires, which plunge men into   
   destruction and damnation, for    
   covetousness is the root of all evils,   
    and some in their eagerness to get rich   
   have strayed from the faith and have   
   involved themselves in many troubles"   
    (1 Tim. 6:9-10).   
      
   <<>><<>><<>>   
   September 20th – Bl. Francisco Martín Fernández de Posadas   
   † 1713   
      
   HE was born at Cordova in 1644 and brought up by his parents, who were   
   green-grocers, to the idea that he should become a religious, in   
   particular a Friar Preacher, a prospect that was more than attractive   
   to him. But on the death of his father his mother married again, and   
   his stepfather decided that the studies on which he was engaged were a   
   waste of time. He therefore made Francis give them up and apprenticed   
   him to a trade. His master at first treated him very roughly, but   
   Francis won him over by patience and good temper and by sticking to   
   his work, and eventually the master even helped him to get on with his   
   studies in his spare time. When his stepfather also died, Francis had   
   to devote himself to the care of his mother for a time, but in 1663   
   was able to enter the Dominican noviciate at the convent of  Scala   
   Caeli in Cordova.   
      
      For a time his experience here was not happy. He was misunderstood   
   by his fellows and made the butt of ridicule and petty persecution; he   
   persevered, was professed, and admitted to the priesthood. Francis at   
   once made his mark as a preacher and he was hailed as a second Vincent   
   Ferrer. He gave missions all over the southwest of Spain, adding to   
   the fatigues of preaching, hearing confessions, and travelling on foot   
   voluntary mortifications of a most rigorous kind. His combination of   
   example and precept won him a great influence over all with whom he   
   came in contact, and in his native city he brought about a much-needed   
   reform and improvement in public and private morals; disorderly places   
   of amusement shut up for lack of business. He was always at the   
   service of the poor and learned from them a humility that made him   
   avoid not only the offices of his order but also bishoprics that were   
   offered to him. Bd Francis wrote several books—The Triumph of   
   Chastity, lives of St Dominic and other holy ones of his order, moral   
   exhortations—and died at Scala Caeli after forty years of   
   uninterrupted work for souls on September 20, 1713. He was beatified   
   in 1818.   
      
   Following close upon the beatification Father V. Sopena published in   
   Rome a Vita del B. Francesco de Posadas. It contains amongst other   
   things an interesting account of his levitations when he was   
   celebrating Mass (pp. 42-45), and of his sensations in endeavouring to   
   resist this lifting of his body into the air. See also Martinez-Vigil,   
   La Orden de Predicadores (1884), pp. 352 seq. and a short notice in   
   Procter, Dominican Saints, pp. 263-265. For afuller bibliography   
   consult Taurisano, Catalogus Hagiographicus OP.   
      
      
   Saint Quote :   
   But above all preserve peace of heart. This is more valuable than any   
   treasure. In order to preserve it there is nothing more useful than   
   renouncing your own will and substituting for it the will of the   
   Divine Heart. In this way His will can carry out for us whatever   
   contributes to His glory, and we will be happy to be His subjects and   
   to trust entirely in Him.   
   --Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque   
      
   Bible Quote:   
   The men of Ninive shall rise in judgment with this generation, and   
   shall condemn it: because they did penance at the preaching of Jonas.   
   And behold a greater than Jonas here.   (Matthew 12:41)   
      
      
   <><><><>   
   from sermon of St. Alphonsus de Liguori on pernicious books   
      
      "But some one may say, 'What harm is there in reading [and clearly   
   also watching/listening on TV and radio] romances and profane poetry   
   when they contain nothing immodest? Do you ask what harm?   
      "Behold the harm: the reading of such works kindles the   
   concupiscence [desires] of the senses, and awakens the passions   
   [emotions: irrational but irresistible motives for a belief or   
   action]; these easily gain the consent of the will, or at least render   
   it so weak that when the occasion of any dangerous affection occurs   
   the devil finds the soul already prepared to allow itself to be   
   conquered.   
      "By the reading of such pernicious books heresy has made, and makes   
   every day, great progress; because such reading has given and gives   
   increased strength to libertarianism [Libertarianism: belief/opinion,   
   that it is good for people to practice in their lives complete freedom   
   of thought and speech and whatever these lead to].   
      "The poison of these books enters gradually into the soul; it first   
   makes itself master [the basis] of the understanding, then infects   
   [becomes taken up by] the will, [the consent of which leads to   
   grievous/mortal sin and thus] in the end kills the soul.   
      "The devil finds no means more efficacious and secure of sending a   
   young person [people] to perdition [often to mortal sin and   
   condemnation to Hell by God] than the reading of such poisoned works."   
   --St. Alphonsus de Liguori (Doctor, 1696-1787)--"The True Spouse Of   
   Jesus Christ"   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)