Four Last Things

Get Serious About Your Salvation

DVRodriguez2020-03-07T05:48:24-05:00

Behold now is the acceptable time, now is the day of salvation! We exhort you that you receive not the grace of God in vain! God offers so many graces, always to either move us into a state of grace or to increase the grace we already have. The state of your soul - your salvation - is supremely important to Him; it must be for you too! If you faithfully reflect upon death, you will get more serious about your salvation. All of must die and leave everything behind. An eternity awaits each of us - an eternity of unspeakable happiness and delight or an eternity [...]

Get Serious About Your SalvationDVRodriguez2020-03-07T05:48:24-05:00

Truth and Judgment

DVRodriguez2019-12-24T06:28:04-05:00

Sermon given to Novus Ordo Catholics prior to the Rosary for Marcelo García, a baptized baby who passed away. Jesus Christ is the Truth and He teaches the truth. How? He teaches us through His Church. We have to live according to this Truth, and God will judge us accordingly upon our death. We have a great crisis today in the Church because we have strayed from the Truth. Just one example: consider the Catholic doctrine on hell.

Truth and JudgmentDVRodriguez2019-12-24T06:28:04-05:00

What Must I Do to Be Saved?

DVRodriguez2019-12-06T16:01:24-05:00

Two brief mission sermons.One thing is necessary: the salvation of our souls. Seal this great truth upon your mind and heart!When asked what one must do to be saved, Our Lord stated: [1] Only God is good. [2] Keep the Commandments. [3] Come follow me. Notice how all three of these are related to the Truth. In order to be saved, one must know the truth, adhere to the truth, and live according to the truth.

What Must I Do to Be Saved?DVRodriguez2019-12-06T16:01:24-05:00

Fix Your Heart on the World to Come

DVRodriguez2019-11-28T06:59:58-05:00

Three signs given to us by God which urge us to fix our minds and hearts on the world to come are [1] This month of November, [2] Today's Holy Gospel on the Coming of Christ at the Last Judgment, and [3] The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. So many of the changes made to the Mass have contributed, directly and indirectly, to the Catholic Faithful no longer fixing their attention on the life hereafter, but rather on things of this world which are passing away. At Holy Mass, Heaven comes down to earth and we are raised up to Heaven. [...]

Fix Your Heart on the World to ComeDVRodriguez2019-11-28T06:59:58-05:00

Thou Callest Me Master and Heedest Me Not

DVRodriguez2019-11-24T11:21:25-05:00

Consider the following words carved by an unknown sculptor into the walls of an old European Cathedral: "Thou callest Me Master, yet heedest not Me. Thou callest Me Light, yet I shine not in thee. That callest me Way, but dost follow Me not... Thou callest Me JUST; Oh! if just then I be, when I shall condemn thee, reproach thou not Me." These words can serve as a helpful examination of conscience. Place them in your prayerbooks or refrigerator door - anywhere you will see them often and meditate upon their profound import.

Thou Callest Me Master and Heedest Me NotDVRodriguez2019-11-24T11:21:25-05:00

Forgiving Enemies to Free Poor Souls

DVRodriguez2019-11-14T06:30:31-05:00

We can help the poor souls in Purgatory by our seeking to be reconciled with those who have offended us here on earth. St. Teresa of Jesus liked to forgive her enemies because she would then turn to God and ask Him to fulfill His promise to forgive her all her faults. A powerful example comes from the life of St. Gerard Majella, reputed for his pace-making ability. Through him God shows that our forgiveness can even cancel the debts of the poor souls. This is yet another reason not to let enmity simmer or desire revenge, but to seek a [...]

Forgiving Enemies to Free Poor SoulsDVRodriguez2019-11-14T06:30:31-05:00

Strive for the Eternal not the Perishable

DVRodriguez2019-11-14T06:11:18-05:00

We belong to God. Thus, we must do our very best to fulfill His holy will and our primary focus has to be on the world to come. During November, Holy Mother Church focuses us on the world to come in a more intense manner. She turns our attention to the saints and poor souls in Purgatory, reminding us that the Church is much more than those here on earth. On the other hand, a common trait shared by the three enemies of our soul's salvation is 'the insatiable craving for things perishable with complete forgetfulness of things eternal.' The more one learns [...]

Strive for the Eternal not the PerishableDVRodriguez2019-11-14T06:11:18-05:00