₦airaland Forum

Carlosein:
oby, how now?

Carlos i'm just fine. What is happening at your end?
What is happening to Ebos, i just hope all is well with him.

~Lady~:
one of them attempted to beat me up. he put his hands on me and so i pressed charges. it broke my heart to do it, but it's the rule. i called my supervisor and my director and they said call the sherriff's office and tell them you're pressing charges. so he's gone. i think about all the things he has said to me (f*** u b****es) and the times he has tried to get me fired, and what he has done to other kids (if this boy isn't already a sociopath, he is on his way to becoming one) so that made it easier for me.

please pray for him.

the other kids are quiet now that he's gone.

oh glad to know it's not just me. i want to know what's happening too.
well i am glad u didn't just brush Our Lady off to the side, some people would have done that.

Most of the kids over there are something else, very stubborn.
You dey try o, how do u manage with them (well i know is never by your own strength, because with your strength you can never handle them), well i know there are good ones anyway.

Sure all the kids all over the world needs our prayer with the high rate of decadence all over the world.

Saint of the Day

Blessed Adolph Kolping (1813-1865)

The rise of the factory system in 19th-century Germany brought many single men into cities where they faced new challenges to their faith. Father Adolph Kolping began a ministry to them, hoping that they would not be lost to the Catholic faith as was happening to workers elsewhere in industrialized Europe.
Born in the village of Kerpen, Adolph became a shoemaker at an early age because of his family’s economic situation. Ordained in 1845, he ministered to young workers in Cologne, establishing a choir, which by 1849 had grown into the Young Workmen’s Society. A branch of this began in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1856. Nine years later there were over 400 Gesellenvereine (workman’s societies) around the world. Today this group has over 400,000 members in 54 countries across the globe.

More commonly called the Kolping Society, it emphasizes the sanctification of family life and the dignity of labor. Father Kolping worked to improve conditions for workers and greatly assisted those in need. He and St. John Bosco in Turin had similar interests in working with young men in big cities. He told his followers, “The needs of the times will teach you what to do.

”Father Kolping once said, “The first thing that a person finds in life and the last to which he holds out his hand, and the most precious that he possess, even if he does not realize it, is family life.”

He and Blessed John Duns Scotus are buried in Cologne’s Minoritenkirche, served by the Conventual Franciscans. The Kolping Society’s international headquarters is at this church.

Kolping members journeyed to Rome from Europe, America, Africa, Asia and Oceania for Father Kolping’s beatification in 1991, the 100th anniversary of Pope Leo XIII’s revolutionary encyclical Rerum Novarum (On the Social Order). Father Kolping’s personal witness and apostolate helped prepare for that encyclical.

Comment:

Some people thought that Father Kolping was wasting his time and talents on young working men in industrialized cities. In some countries, the Catholic Church was seen by many workers as the ally of owners and the enemy of workers. Men like Adolph Kolping showed that was not true.

Quote:
“Adolph Kolping gathered skilled workers and factory laborers together. Thus he overcame their isolation and defeatism. A faith society gave them the strength to go out into their everyday lives as Christ’s witnesses before God and the world. To come together, to become strengthened in the assembly, and thus to scatter again is and still remains our duty today. We are not Christians for ourselves alone, but always for others too” (Pope John Paul II, beatification homily).

Carlosein:
Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent

Reading 1
Is 40:25-31

To whom can you liken me as an equal?
says the Holy One.
Lift up your eyes on high
and see who has created these things:
He leads out their army and numbers them,
calling them all by name.
By his great might and the strength of his power
not one of them is missing!
Why, O Jacob, do you say,
and declare, O Israel,
“My way is hidden from the LORD,
and my right is disregarded by my God”?

Do you not know
or have you not heard?
The LORD is the eternal God,
creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint nor grow weary,
and his knowledge is beyond scrutiny.
He gives strength to the fainting;
for the weak he makes vigor abound.
Though young men faint and grow weary,
and youths stagger and fall,
They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength,
they will soar as with eagles’ wings;
They will run and not grow weary,
walk and not grow faint.

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 103:1-2, 3-4, 8 and 10

R. (1) O bless the Lord, my soul!
Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.
R. O bless the Lord, my soul!
He pardons all your iniquities,
he heals all your ills.
He redeems your life from destruction,
he crowns you with kindness and compassion.
R. O bless the Lord, my soul!
Merciful and gracious is the LORD,
slow to anger and abounding in kindness.
Not according to our sins does he deal with us,
nor does he requite us according to our crimes.
R. O bless the Lord, my soul!

Gospel
Mt 11:28-30

Jesus said to the crowds:
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

MEDITATION OF THE DAY
The people Jesus was speaking to in today's reading knew that sheep are totally helpless animals, able neither to fight back against an attacker nor to run quickly enough to escape.  The flock, then, is dependent solely on its shepherd for survival.  The shepherd walked ahead of the sheep choosing a safe path when the flock was travelling.  The followed trustingly; the shepherd was their only hope of finding good pasture and abundant drink.  The shepherd fought off attacks by predators.  He watched to see that no lambs strayed away and became separated from the flock.  If a sheep was cut or bruised on the rocky terrain, the shepherd tended to its injuries.  He ate beside them, slept among them, and quite possibly sang to them in the evening.  Their welfare and his were one.
The Lord wants us to undersand that this is how the Father cares for each person on this earth.  Perhaps if Jesus were speaking to us today, he would use the analogy of how much parents care for their children. Most are willing to make any sacrifice for their children's welfare, and they suffer very much when they see them going astray.  They will go to nealy any lengths to help them see their errors, never giving up hope, no matter how desperate the situation appears.

God our Father loves us more than the most loving parent ever loved his child, and watches over us more closely than the most vigilant shepherd ever guarded his sheep.  What he desires most is that we will turn to him in response to his love, entering into a deeper and fuller relationship with him than we have yet experienced.  That indeed is his call to us this Advent-to enjoy the love and care which our Good Shepherd wants to extend to us.

karlie4nia:
sweet!how it gion with y'all carlosein, oby1,lady, larrymc, maykelly, wonderful love and moyola? its been a while since i come on. its all good, where is Lindiwe @?. well, be right back. just want to wish y'all and your loved ones God's protection and kindness this beautiful season of Advent.

by the way moyola whats with the heartslamming thing, that comic just evoked a memory of my ex-love wayback in uni days that really slammed my precious heart on the hard concreate and made me feel devastated.

Karlie quite a long time, wir u come go since.
Anyway u better pass some people like lawyer wey dey show face wen he wan take credit.

Today's Saint
St. Sabas (b. 439)

Born in Cappadocia (modern-day Turkey), Sabas is one of the most highly regarded patriarchs among the monks of Palestine and is considered one of the founders of Eastern monasticism.
After an unhappy childhood in which he was abused and ran away several times, Sabas finally sought refuge in a monastery. While family members tried to persuade him to return home, the young boy felt drawn to monastic life. Although the youngest monk in the house, he excelled in virtue.

At age 18 he traveled to Jerusalem, seeking to learn more about living in solitude. Soon he asked to be accepted as a disciple of a well-known local solitary, though initially he was regarded as too young to live completely as a hermit. Initially, Sabas lived in a monastery, where he worked during the day and spent much of the night in prayer. At the age of 30 he was given permission to spend five days each week in a nearby remote cave, engaging in prayer and manual labor in the form of weaving baskets. Following the death of his mentor, St. Euthymius, Sabas moved farther into the desert near Jericho. There he lived for several years in a cave near the brook Cedron. A rope was his means of access. Wild herbs among the rocks were his food. Occasionally men brought him other food and items, while he had to go a distance for his water.

Some of these men came to him desiring to join him in his solitude. At first he refused. But not long after relenting, his followers swelled to more than 150, all of them living in individual huts grouped around a church, called a laura.

The bishop persuaded a reluctant Sabas, then in his early 50s, to prepare for the priesthood so that he could better serve his monastic community in leadership. While functioning as abbot among a large community of monks, he felt ever called to live the life of a hermit. Throughout each year —consistently in Lent—he left his monks for long periods of time, often to their distress. A group of 60 men left the monastery, settling at a nearby ruined facility. When Sabas learned of the difficulties they were facing, he generously gave them supplies and assisted in the repair of their church.

Over the years Sabas traveled throughout Palestine, preaching the true faith and successfully bringing back many to the Church. At the age of 91, in response to a plea from the Patriarch of Jerusalem, Sabas undertook a journey to Constantinople in conjunction with the Samaritan revolt and its violent repression. He fell ill and, soon after his return, died at the monastery at Mar Saba. Today the monastery is still inhabited by monks of the Eastern Orthodox Church, and St. Sabas is regarded as one of the most noteworthy figures of early monasticism.

My beloved how una dey, I've being out since morning, i'm just coming in.

I'm inviting you all to the 9th Archdiocesan Conference which started yesterday and will end on Sunday.  The venue is Trade fair complex Lagos. Please try and be there to witness the goodness of God.
I will be going this evening to be back on Sunday morning.

Sorry the invitation is coming late.

Carlosein:
yea, she's a heartbreaker

No Carlos i don't think so, seems she has repented of it because she is sober. Moyola hope i'm right

Moyola:
aite!!

hehe. . . .

heard it in 1 of Onyeka Owenu's song 'obijanjaja - obi' 'obikerere*** - obi'

You are really something else moyola.

work dey, we dey push am.

Moyola:
Oby,
is yur real name Obiagele, Obikachi, Obianuju Obi-jan-ja-ja _{juz askin}

Catholic?

Yes Catholic.
my real name is obiageli, abeg which one b obi-jan-ja-ja

Moyola:
OK

d more reason it'd b broken

i totally disagree with u dear

Moyola:
even me sef. . . .

nde ewo! _{wteva dhat meanz}

I can see that.
nde ewo means weldone

Please don't break my heart cos is fragile

Carlosein:
same to you oby. kedu kodi?

Odinma, this man don turn to ibo man finish.

Today's Saint
St. John Damascene (676?-749)

John spent most of his life in the monastery of St. Sabas, near Jerusalem, and all of his life under Muslim rule, indeed, protected by it. He was born in Damascus, received a classical and theological education, and followed his father in a government position under the Arabs. After a few years he resigned and went to the monastery of St. Sabas.
He is famous in three areas. First, he is known for his writings against the iconoclasts, who opposed the veneration of images. Paradoxically, it was the Eastern Christian emperor Leo who forbade the practice, and it was because John lived in Muslim territory that his enemies could not silence him. Second, he is famous for his treatise, Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, a summary of the Greek Fathers (of which he became the last). It is said that this book is to Eastern schools what the Summa of Aquinas became to the West. Thirdly, he is known as a poet, one of the two greatest of the Eastern Church, the other being Romanus the Melodist. His devotion to the Blessed Mother and his sermons on her feasts are well known.

Quote:
Lead me to pastures, Lord, and graze there with me. Do not let my heart lean either to the right or the left, but let your good Spirit guide me along the straight path. Whenever I do, let it be in accordance with your will, now until the end. ST. JOHN DAMASCENE.

Hello everyone!!!
wonderful day to you all.

Today's Saint

Blessed Rafal Chylinski (1694-1741)

Born near Buk in the Poznan region of Poland, Melchior showed early signs of religious devotion; family members nicknamed him "the little monk." After completing his studies at the Jesuit college in Poznan, Melchior joined the cavalry and was promoted to the rank of officer within three years.
Against the urgings of his military comrades, in 1715 Melchior joined the Conventual Franciscans in Kraków, receiving the name Rafal, and was ordained two years later. After pastoral assignments in nine cities, he came to Lagiewniki (central Poland), where he spent the last 13 years of his life, except for 20 months ministering to flood and epidemic victims in Warsaw. In all these places, Rafal was known for his simple and candid sermons, for his generosity as well as his ministry in the confessional. People of all levels of society were drawn to the self-sacrificing way he lived out his religious profession and priestly ministry.

Rafal played the harp, lute and mandolin to accompany liturgical hymns. In Lagiewniki he distributed food, supplies and clothing to the poor. After his death, the Conventual church in that city became a place of pilgrimage for people throughout Poland. He was beatified in Warsaw in 1991.

Ebos note that we miss your presence, please come online.

~Lady~:
thanksgiving was great so much to be thankful for. it was my first thanksgiving after my accident. so i really had much to be thankful for.
mumsy is great and so is the whole family. i saw my Godson, he is sooo tiny and soooo cute.

It seems everyone was missing during the weekend. I do have a request, please pray fo rme, this is the final week for classes and I have a lot of exams. Please raise my intentions to the Lord.

I am praying for my mum to return to the Church and for the rest of my family to stay devout and not waver. Please offer up these intentions in particular. It is very dear to my heart. Thank you.

Jesus Loves you, Mary loves you, I love you

For the intention of your family as a whole "Hail Mary full of grace the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb Jesus. Holy Mary mother of God pray for us sinners now and the hour of our death. Amen"

I didn't know you had an accident, so sorry and thank God for the gift of life.

Carlosein:
hey oby finally you showed.

thank God. what happened now?

Greetings Carlos. How are you doing?
I'm fine, nothing mega.
Just mood problem, but i'm ok.

Hello Everyone; lady, viee, larry and where is Lindiwe and pamperme.

MEDITATION OF THE DAY
This healing was unusual; the one who came seeking this miracle was not a Jew but a Gentile.  He was, in fact, a centurion, an officer of the Roman army of occupation.  Attractively uniformed and well paid, centurions were often given special assignments by the Roman governors, tasks ranging from controlling riots and conducting public executions to escorting visiting dignitaries.  A centurion posted in Jerusalem might well be contemptous of the local-and-often rebellious-inhabitants who were so different from the citizens of Rome.  Yet this centurion, we are told, loved the Jewish people and had built a synagogue for them (Luke7:5).  

In humility he went to Jesus seeking a favor. As a man who understood what it was like to exercise authority, he recognised even greater authority in Jesus.  Awe-struck, he felt unworthy even to have Jesus enter his house, all the while affirming his faith that Jesus authority was not constrained by distance.  Jesus pointed out to his disciples that many would come from the east and west (Gentiles) to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God,while many of the children of Israel would remain outside (matt.8:11-12).  The centurion received much more than he had requested, as noted by St.John Chrysostom in a homily on this passage: "He came seeking health of body for his servant, but went away having received a kingdom.  Do you see how the saying had already been fulfilled, 'seek you the kingdom of heaven, and all these things shall be added unto you, 'for, because he showed great faith, and lowliness of mind, he both gave him heaven and added unto him health."  Despite his great faith, the centurion saw himself as unworthy.  In truth, none of us is worthy, but the Lord still desires to work in our lives.  We are his people, and when we have the faith to ask, we will see him act.  We need to approach Jesus with the same faith as the centurion.  "Lord Jesus, please teach me during this season of Advent to come to you with a faith that recognizes your authority in my life.  Grant to me the promise of your kingdom, both on earth and in the life to come."

May kelly:
kpapa koro, kpa koro, udu m, ogene, onye omara dudu yaya ya, udu ya around and around they go,

do you kn the meaning

I don't understand you Maykelly?

Hello LARRYMcCOY

~Lady~:
Hi all, I have been celebrating Obama's victory with tears.

I looked at Michelle and tears rolled down my eyes, it hit me that my First Lady looks like me.

Jesus loves you, Mary loves you, I love you.

Emotional tears you will say, tears of joy.

Today's Saint
St. Didacus (1400-1463)

Didacus is living proof that God "chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong" (1 Corinthians 1:27).
As a young man in Spain, Didacus joined the Secular Franciscan Order and lived for some time as a hermit. After Didacus became a Franciscan brother, he developed a reputation for great insight into God’s ways. His penances were heroic. He was so generous with the poor that the friars sometimes grew uneasy about his charity.

Didacus volunteered for the missions in the Canary Islands and labored there energetically and profitably. He was also the superior of a friary there.

In 1450 he was sent to Rome to attend the canonization of St. Bernardine of Siena. When many friars gathered for that celebration fell sick, Didacus stayed in Rome for three months to nurse them. After he returned to Spain, he pursued a life of contemplation full-time. He showed the friars the wisdom of God’s ways.

As he was dying, Didacus looked at a crucifix and said: "O faithful wood, O precious nails! You have borne an exceedingly sweet burden, for you have been judged worthy to bear the Lord and King of heaven" (Marion A. Habig, O.F.M., The Franciscan Book of Saints, p. 834).

San Diego, California, is named for this Franciscan, who was canonized in 1588.

Today's Saint

St. Nicholas Tavelic and Companions (d. 1391)

Nicholas and his three companions are among the 158 Franciscans who have been martyred in the Holy Land since the friars became custodians of the shrines in 1335.
Nicholas was born in 1340 to a wealthy and noble family in Croatia. He joined the Franciscans and was sent with Deodat of Rodez to preach in Bosnia. In 1384 they volunteered for the Holy Land missions and were sent there. They looked after the holy places, cared for the Christian pilgrims and studied Arabic.

In 1391 Nicholas, Deodat, Peter of Narbonne and Stephen of Cuneo decided to take a direct approach to converting the Muslims. On November 11, 1391, they went to the huge Mosque of Omar in Jerusalem and asked to see the Qadi (Muslim official). Reading from a prepared statement, they said that all people must accept the gospel of Jesus. When they were ordered to retract their statement, they refused. After beatings and imprisonment, they were beheaded before a large crowd.

Nicholas and his companions were canonized in 1970. They are the only Franciscans martyred in the Holy Land to be canonized.

viee:
hey peeps . . .

hey larry, nice to have u around
would have loved to see God in action in Itele
abeg pray for us. . .

Lady, Lin, Carl, Oby hw una dey?
hope good

just popped in to say haloooo
u kip kipn it real!

viee u did well by poppin in, please do that everyday ok.
how work naw?

Helloooooooooooooooooooooooo, , , , where is everyone!

Today's Saint

Venerable Solanus Casey (1870-1957)

Barney Casey became one of Detroit’s best-known priests even though he was not allowed to preach formally or to hear confessions!
Barney came from a large family in Oak Grove, Wisconsin. At the age of 21, and after he had worked as a logger, a hospital orderly, a streetcar operator and a prison guard, he entered St. Francis Seminary in Milwaukee—where he found the studies difficult. He left there and, in 1896, joined the Capuchins in Detroit, taking the name Solanus. His studies for the priesthood were again arduous.

On July 24, 1904, he was ordained, but because his knowledge of theology was judged to be weak, Father Solanus was not given permission to hear confessions or to preach. A Franciscan Capuchin who knew him well said this annoying restriction "brought forth in him a greatness and a holiness that might never have been realized in any other way." During his 14 years as porter and sacristan in Yonkers, New York, the people there recognized him as a fine speaker. "For, though he was forbidden to deliver doctrinal sermons," writes his biographer, James Derum, "he could give inspirational talks, or feverinos, as the Capuchins termed them" (18:96). His spiritual fire deeply impressed his listeners.

Father Solanus served at parishes in Manhattan and Harlem before returning to Detroit, where he was porter and sacristan for 20 years at St. Bonaventure Monastery. Every Wednesday afternoon he conducted well-attended services for the sick. A co-worker estimates that on the average day 150 to 200 people came to see Father Solanus in the front office. Most of them came to receive his blessing; 40 to 50 came for consultation. Many people considered him instrumental in cures and other blessings they received.

Father Solanus’ sense of God’s providence inspired many of his visitors. "Blessed be God in all his designs" was one of his favorite expressions.

The many friends of Father Solanus helped the Capuchins begin a soup kitchen during the Depression. Capuchins are still feeding the hungry there today.

In 1946 in failing health, he was transferred to the Capuchin novitiate in Huntington, Indiana, where he lived until 1956 when he was hospitalized in Detroit. He died on July 31, 1957. An estimated 20,000 people passed by his coffin before his burial in St. Bonaventure Church in Detroit.

At the funeral Mass, Father Gerald, the provincial, said: "His was a life of service and love for people like me and you. When he was not himself sick, he nevertheless suffered with and for you that were sick. When he was not physically hungry, he hungere with people like you. He had a divine love for people. He loved people for what he could do for them —and for God, through them."

In 1960 a Father Solanus Guild was formed in Detroit to aid Capuchin seminarians. By 1967 the guild had 5,000 members—many of them grateful recipients of his practical advice and his comforting assurance that God would not abandon them in their trials. He was declared Venerable in 1995.

It's quite easy to join but I recommend it to those who are ready and willing to give up self for the Lord.

Here are the requirements:
1) To wear the scapular continuously
2) To be chaste in one's area of life (single or married)
3) To pray the Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary or
With the permission of the priest to pray the rosary everyday or
Observe the fasts of the Church and abstain from meat on Wednesdays and Saturdays or
Do good works continuously, tirelessly.

(the above is from memory, so please double check)

The first two have no substitutes.

I pray the Little Office because I already pray the rosary everyday anyway, and I try as much as I can to abstain from meat and ofcourse I do good works. For me the prayer is the one that can be difficult at times, it has seven hours to it and school and work sometimes gets in the way, but I make time.

To get invested, you have to buy a scapular, it must be wool, and then take it to a priest and tell him your intentions and during mass he'll invest you into it. It should come with paper that has all the instructions.

Mine came with a St. Benedict medal and a crucifix.

Thanks Lady for that breakdown.

mine o mine, i can see that the house is almost complete.
how una dey na?

Carlosein:
oby, who you want make e read all this long post?

abeg try edit small before seun go run out of space

i have reduced it, make seun no crucify me