Enduring the Cross in life, in ourselves, in others...

 

It is the tradition at Nazareth House to travel the Stations of the Cross on Fridays.  Most Fridays that is done here at the NHA outdoors on the grounds or  in the Grace Church Chapel, sometimes off campus.  Enduring the Cross is ongoing in life, in ourselves, in others... Nazareth House Apostolate Taylorsville, Kentucky The Stations of the Cross © Way of the Cross,  NHA Media 2009,  VAHicks - all rights reserved.       Reflections of the Suffering Christ present in the people around the world. Note: The young boy above displays the scourging on his face. He received these beatings for asking to go to school instead of selling coal to help provide for the family. The Stations of the Cross are actual photos taken by NHA photographers of the people we served in Sierra Leone through Nazareth House Apostolate. These Stations are designed for you to ponder and develop your own personal meditations. The First Station: JESUS IS CONDEMNED TO DEATH A disease rarely seen and easily cured in the West, Sheku carries a belly full of internal parasites—worms. There is no medication available for him unless brought from in from the West. He is without hope and condemned to die. The very next day after this picture was taken he passed on. To give our lives to the making of more money and acquiring more possessions when there are people to be saved is to worship a lesser god. “He was beaten, he was tortured, but he didn’t say a word. Like a lamb taken to be slaughtered and like a sheep being sheared, he took it all in silence. Justice miscarried, and he was led off”— Isaiah 53:7-8 (The Message)   The Second Station: JESUS CARRIES HIS CROSS The wood is heavy, the day is hot. He has no proper clothing to ward off the blistering sun beating down on his back. Yet, this small boy continues on, focused on completing his task. He will sell the wood as firewood to provide food for his family. He understands that the heavy burden he carries is his loved ones’ salvation –the means by which they will continue to stay alive. Jesus carrying the cross is the call of God for us to continue on carrying the crosses of life when all is surely lost.   “But the fact is, it was our pains he carried— our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us. We thought he brought it on himself, that God was punishing him for his own failures. But it was our sins that did that to him, .” Isaiah 53:4 (The Message)   The Third Station: JESUS FALLS THE FIRST TIME Weak and hungry, this young boy collapses on the steps of a village home. He is unable to continue on, there is no energy left. He hasn’t eaten in several days. We all wish that some things in life would “go away”. But when they don’t, when we see no way out of them, then we must understand that God’s will is better for us than our own.   “But it was our sins that did that to him, that ripped and tore and crushed him—our sins! He took the punishment, and that made us whole. Through his bruises we get healed.” Isaiah 53:5 (The Message)   The Fourth Station: JESUS MEETS HIS MOTHER Jesus said to his mother, “Women, here is your son”, then he said to his disciple: “Here is your mother”. John 19:26, 27 Whatever the cost, Mary trusted that God’s will was more to be followed than her own. Mary took the step for us that can give us the guts to take the step for others. “Simeon went on to bless them, and said to Mary his mother, This child marks both the failure and the recovery of many in Israel, A figure misunderstood and contradicted— the pain of a sword-thrust through you— But the rejection will force honesty, as God reveals who they really are.” Luke 2:33-35 (The Message)   The Fifth Station: SIMON CARRIES THE CROSS The thinner man (on the left) is struggling to push the over-weight rice cart to the vendor. Weak, sick and starving, he labors on. The employer, who hired him to transport the rice, pays the man very little wages. His family is hungry but he doesn’t have enough money to purchase even one of the bags of rice that he hauls. A young, strong man sees the man’s toil and steps in to help him push the load. There are so few choices for the poor. They have to endure backbreaking labor simply to provide a meal a day for their families. May we recognize there is beauty in a burden shared. “I’ll meet you there. I’ll come down and speak with you. I’ll take some of the Spirit that is on you and place it on them; they’ll then be able to take some of the load ofthis people—you won’t have to carry the whole thing alone.” Numbers 11:17 (The Message)   The Sixth Station: VERONICA WIPES JESUS’ FACE At Grafton Displacement Camp, the children are ill. All of them are sick at some degree, suffering fevers with frequent hacking coughs. Most have worms. There was not one child in that camp that didn’t have a thick runny nose. In the name of compassion we must be willing to risk all. “Then the King will say to those on his right, Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what’s coming to you in this kingdom. It’s been ready for you since theworld’s foundation. And here’s why: I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me.” Matthew 25:34-36 (The Message)   The Seventh Station: JESUS FALLS THE SECOND TIME This young girl has been sent out to fetch water for her family. She is extremely thirsty, weak and tired. She lays on the side of a curb to rest. Later she scoops the water from the drainage ditch into her bucket and returns home. The effects of war, disease and extreme poverty have taken their toll on many in Sierra Leone after the 11 year war in which thousands died and many more maimed. The people struggle to get back up and rebuild their country.  Over and over we fall into the lure of the world, we must follow Christ by getting up and continuing on in His path.   “When a woman gives birth, she has a hard time, there’s no getting around it. But when the baby is born, there is joy in the birth. This new life in the world wipes out memory of the pain. The sadness you have right now is similar to that pain, but the coming joy is also similar. When I see you again, you’ll be full of joy, and it will be a joy no one can rob from you. You’ll no longer be so full of questions. John 16: 21-23 (The Message)   The Eighth Station: JESUS CONSOLES THE WOMEN A man contributes alms to the ill, the famished, and the maimed women who have gathered to beg at the street corner. May we recognize Jesus in others, no matter how lowly or poor, rich or greedy—may we see Him in everyone. “A huge crowd of people followed, along with women weeping and carrying on. At one point Jesus turned to the women and said, “Daughters of Jerusalem, don’t cry for me. Cry for yourselves and for your children. The time is coming when they’ll say, ‘Lucky the women who never conceived! Lucky the wombs that never gave birth! Lucky the breasts that never gave milk!’ Then they’ll start calling to the mountains, ‘Fall down on us!’ calling to the hills, ‘Cover us up!’ If people do these things to a live, green tree, can you imagine what they’ll do with deadwood?” Luke 23:28-31 (The Message)   The Ninth Station:  JESUS FALLS THE THIRD TIME Malaria has brought this child to a listless state. She hasn’t the strength to raise her head. Pain we bring upon ourselves is one thing to bear, but pain brought about unnecessarily is greater to bear. The burden can break the spirit. This poor little girl is suffering simply because she was born in Africa. Around the world malaria is being prevented and cured, but in Sierra Leone it is the number one killer of children underthe age of 5. Every individual has a place in God’s heart and therefore should have that same place in our own hearts. “You’re my cave to hide in, my cliff to climb. Be my safe leader, be my true mountain guide. Free me from hidden traps; I want to hide in you. I’ve put my life in your hands. You won’t drop me, you’ll never let me down.” Psalm 31:3-5 (The Message)   The Tenth Station: JESUS IS STRIPPED A young man’s torn, raggedy clothing barely cover him. He is lucky to have found this to wear. Yet, dignity is here, even here. The stripping away of resources brings you to a total reliance on God. “Think of yourselves the way Christ Jesus thought of himself. He had equal status with God but didn’t think so much of himself that he had to cling to theadvantages of that status no matter what. Not at all. When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human! Having become human, he stayed human. It was an incredibly humbling process. He didn’t claim special privileges. Instead, he lived a selfless, obedient life and then died a selfless, obedient death—and the worst kind of death at that—a crucifixion.” Philippians 2:5-8 (The Message)   The Eleventh Station: JESUS IS NAILED TO THE CROSS Isha was burned over 80% of her body. Her parents had no available means to treat her burns or the subsequent infection. Every time those, with the means to prevent it, ignore those who are suffering Jesus is nailed to the Cross. “Out of that terrible travail of soul, he’ll see that it’s worth it and be glad he did it. Through what he experienced, my righteous one, my servant, will make many “righteous ones,” as he himself carries the burden of their sins. Therefore I’ll reward him extravagantly— the best of everything, the highest honors—Because he looked death in the face and didn’t flinch, because he embraced the company of the lowest. He took on his own shoulders the sin of the many, he took up the causeof all the black sheep. Isaiah 53:11.12 (The Message)   The Twelfth Station: JESUS DIES ON THE CROSS Her burns oozing and infected, Isha’s body is no longer able to keep going and she dies. Her parents, unable to do anything to stop it, watch in pain as she draws in her last breath.   “Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered withthe transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.” Isaiah 53:12 (The Message)   The Thirteenth Station: JESUS IS TAKEN DOWN FROM THE CROSS Salu carries the body of his newly born child to the grave. He has no money for a proper coffin, he uses a cardboard box. Because the family had no money for a c-section, the medical facility allowed the baby to die in the womb and did nothing to assist the child in birth. Another child dies on the cross of poverty. “There was a man by the name of Joseph, a member of the Jewish High Council, a man of good heart and good character. He had not gone along with the plans and actions of the council. His hometown was the Jewish village of Arimathea. He lived in alert expectation of the kingdom of God. He went to Pilate and asked for thebody of Jesus. Taking him down, he wrapped him in a linen shroud and placed him in a tomb chiseled into the rock, a tomb never yet used.” Luke 23:50-53 (TheMessage)   The Fourteenth Station: JESUS IS LAID IN THE TOMB Alimamy, a good man, trained by Doctors without Borders, did much to save the lives of many in his country. Always putting others first, Alimamy treated a patient with a very contagious disease. He used the last available methods of treatment. When Alimamy caught the disease, there was nothing left to use to treat himself and he died.  There is always that silence at the graveside, repeated in hospital rooms, in war-torn villages, in deep famines – that speechless group huddled together in loss. A silence replaced only by the victory being won by Christ as He rises from the dead and our sin being transformed into forgiveness. “The women who had been companions of Jesus from Galilee followed along. They saw the tomb where Jesus’ body was placed. Then they went back to prepare burial spices and perfumes. They rested quietly on the Sabbath, as commanded”. Luke 23:55-56 (The Message) .  © Way of the Cross,  NHA Media 2009, all rights reserved.

Copyright © 2025 Nazareth House Apostolate, All rights reserved.

St. Antipas

 

St. Antipas

Today, April 11th is the Feast Day for one of the eleven patronal Saints of Nazareth House Apostolate: St. Antipas. 

On this rainy morning; we make our way down to Grace Church

There, at the Holy Mass, we enthrone the Icon of St. Antipas

"I know where you live -- where satan has his throne. Yet you remain true to My Name.  You did not renounce your faith in me, not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was put to death in your city, -- where satan lives." -Rev. 2:13 (NIV).  (-"...yet you hold fast my Name.." (E.S.V.); "...Yet you have held on to My Name..." (B.S.V); "...yet you are holding on to my Name" -(C.S.B.) )

"... To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it." Revelation 2:17. 

God loves His creation.  Sin corrupted it, but He has a plan to return it to its original state of perfection, and He will reward those who help Him carry out His plan. 

"If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door: it desires to have you, but you must master it." Gen. 4:7 (NIV)

"But He said to them, 'I have food to eat that you know nothing about." -Jn. 4:32 (NIV), because "In your struggle against sin, you have not resisted to the point of shedding your blood." Heb. 12:4 (NIV). 

The hidden manna is something you receive already in this life. It corresponds to your hidden life.  Our hidden life is the place inside us where no one knows what is happening except you and God. It's where you struggle with impure thoughts, pride, vanity, the untruth, etc. It's where you fight and overcome those temptations. 

The hidden manna is the assistance that you receive when you pray for it in those tempestuous times; the nourishment you receive, the power from on high. It is given to anyone that asks, all that ask with a heartfelt longing to be free from sin. 

At the time that the book of Revelation was written, a white stone was equivalent with innocence. If you were to be tried for a crime, a white stone signified acquittal. 

The white stone is a symbol of whom you have become through your faithfulness and your determination to conquer sin. It is rock-hard faith and purity.  Here on earth your faith is being tested - in eternity it will have been proven.  

Today at the NHA/Grace Church, we were given white stones as a remembrance of St. Antipas and the Scriptures of the day. 

Withstand the test. Written on the this flint-hard stone will be your new name "by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped corruption that is in the world through lust." - 2- Pet. 1:4

This name will reflect the struggles that you have stood in, and the sufferings you have endured. It will show who you've become because of your faithfulness and God's grace.  You know the fight you've had to live through to reach the place you are now, and you will instantly recognize that name and identify with it - - it is the ultimate symbol of victory and transformation.  Finally the name and the named are non-different, as the Name of Jesus and Jesus are non-different. So it will be for us.  This new name that only God and you know, is the attestation of your spirit; it's what God sees when He looks at you.  He won't be looking at your human nature, He'll zero in on the new creation in you, the outcome of your faithfulness to Him and His commandments. (2 Cor. 5:17) And that is what you will be for eternity, an eternally pure new creation, free from sin. 

 

Let your light so shine before men, that they may  see your good works, and glorify your Father which  is in heaven. St. Matt. v. 16.

Good Morning, “I am the light of the world,” said Christ. Because he has come, we are no longer living in the shadow of death. We can live in light. But without darkness, we would not know the light. God allows us to enter the darkness because he desires intensely that we identify with him, who took on himself the darkness of sin. In the darkness, we experience our helplessness and powerlessness. In the darkness, we are blind. Now God can heal us. The act of faith takes place in darkness, in regions where intellect cannot penetrate. When we enter this darkness of faith, eventually the light bursts in. But not right away. First God says: “If you believe in me, come.” But most of us are too filled with fear even to start out. There is a story of a boy in a burning house. His father is outside, calling to him, “Jump! Jump!” The child cries, “Daddy, I can’t see you!” “That’s okay,” the father says, “I can see you.” We want to see, not only the Father, whose arms are poised to catch us, but the very earth beneath his feet. We want everything sorted out and in order. We are afraid to walk into what seems like chaos to us, but is really perfect order to God. We want to say to God, “Let’s get organized,” and God refuses to organize himself to our standards. We cannot manipulate him—but oh, how we try! — Soul of My Soul

Pray, Pray Always

 "On this earthly pilgrimage—which for many has become a lonely road--we must walk in faith, keeping in our hearts the love of God above all things.

If you don’t know the faith, learn it. If you have forgotten it, find someone who knows it...get out the Bible and read, study and inwardly digest it.

Don’t be caught up in endless pointless polemics about who is more catholic (or proper or spiritual or devoted or more right) than whom. It’s the grand strategy of the devil to pit us against each other. He can do that easily if we don’t know what we’re doing, where we’re going, or why we claim the name Christian.

"We are hearing about and experiencing censorship in one manner or another these days -- Remember- No-one or Nothing can censor our prayers except our own sins. Pray, Pray always." - NHA (Remnant)

Faith is a gift of God

 

O LORD, we beseech thee mercifully to receive the prayers of thy people who call upon thee; and grant that they may both perceive and know what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfil the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Good Morning

 Faith is a gift of God. Only he can bestow it, and it is a gift that he passionately desires to give us. However, he can only give it to us if we ask for it. When we ask for faith, we are turning our face towards his face, and he can look into our heart. He loves to see us facing him, but we for some reason try to avoid this. Even while begging him for favors, we close the eyes of our soul, so as to avoid looking at him. 

Yet he is always looking at us, with deep love. It is faith that allows us to enter peacefully into the dark night each of us faces at one time or another. Faith walks simply, like a child, between the darkness of human life and the hope of what is to come, “for eye has not seen, nor ear heard what God reserves for those who love him.” Faith is a kind of folly, a folly of God himself. Faith breaks through barriers. When our face is turned to God in faith, our eyes meet his, and each day becomes more luminous. 


The veil between God and us becomes thinner and thinner, until it seems we can almost reach out and touch him.  “For I am certain of this: neither death nor life, no angel, no prince, nothing that exists, nothing still to come, not any power, or height or depth, nor any created thing, can ever come between us and the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38–39 -(God in the Nitty-Gritty Life) 

“Down through the centuries and generations it has been seen that in suffering there is concealed a particular power that draws a person interiorly close to Christ, a special grace. To this grace many saints ... owe their profound conversion. A result of such a conversion is not only that the individual discovers the salvific meaning of suffering but above all that he becomes a completely new person. He discovers a new dimension, as it were, of his entire life and vocation ...”- John Paul II 

"The Jesus Prayer is understood best, when it is considered in connection with the Eucharist, where we are permitted to join our self-surrender to Christ's perfect act of Love: Bringing before Thee Thine of Thine own, From all and for all (Liturgy of St.John Chrysostom) In this self-offering within the consecration, we are part of Christ, even before we receive Him in communion. Both self-oblation and communion are things which happen in eternity as well as in time. In the Eucharist, it is self-evident that Christ is all that we have and and all that we are. He is, one might say, the most perfect expression of the whole of our being as we desire it to be. Our thoughts, our will, all the words we could ever find to express ourselves are Himself. Thus, in the Eucharist, as far as we offer ourselves, we are wholly simple, there we attain oneness. The practice of the Jesus Prayer, in which we allow Christ Himself to be our prayer, is the abiding in this simplicity and oneness." - Mother Maria

Devotion, Prayer, Scotch Tape and Ale8

September is the Month of Mary of Sorrows.  The Feast Day for the Sorrows of Mary is 15th of September.  Nazareth House Apostolate is convinced that Pilgrimage is important and necessary, especially in these troublesome times. 

There is a special place hidden away in Kentucky, where everyday people make pilgrimage.  It is a location where the property owner had a vision of Mary on the top of the hill.  A shrine was built in which the  statue of Mary of Sorrows was placed.  

Stairs reaching up the hill to the shrine were made, the neighbors pitched in. 

When the property owner passed away the neighbors and others purchased the property from Medicare which had taken the property to cover the cost of the lady's medical bills.  This Shrine is not owned by the church, but by laity.   This Shrine is not a church but is most definitely the unity of the Body of Christ within the brethren.

People come here and symbolically lay their hurts, their fears, their struggles, their hopes, their addictions and their thanksgivings at the feet of Mary, the "Yes" to God.  Knowing that Mary will do what she always does, point them to her Son, Jesus.  

At first glance, the artificial flowers, the items piled up at the shrine look almost "kitschy", gaudy... but as with anything, if you take the time to look deeper you see clearer.  Each item is a concrete memorial of the prayers of the people.   

A tape dispenser may be a prayer for binding things together, the Ale8 a last reminder of a deceased loved one, a pack of cigarettes in prayer for quitting.  I've seen full bottles of bourbon, left behind in prayers of sobriety.   This is humanity piled up and laid at our Holy Mother's feet, offered to her Son. 

When you arrive at the Shrine you are greeted by statues of Angels and the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Just a bit East of the Sacred Heart is a Statue of Mary that leads to the bridge and the stairway to the Shrine. 

As you cross the bridge, you look over to see a building being constructed. 

This is a chapel being built by a man who lives in Cleveland, makes the bricks in his basement and hauls them to Kentucky in his old but well maintained car

 periodically adding a row of blocks to the chapel each visit.  The man's name is David Stillwell and he is an amazing Godly man. 

He'd like to finish the chapel some day, but it doesn't matter to him if he doesn't because his efforts are his gift to God. 

The people that come here are all amazing, and it is one of our favorite pilgrimage places to take the pilgrims that come to Nazareth House Apostolate. 

It is a holy place, complete with a stream to prepare for prayer with Ablutions.

Ablutions

“In the Name of...”, make a simple intention, then: 

1. Wash the hands to the wrists saying: “May these hands be instruments of peace.”
2. Then cup a handful of water to the lips with the right hand, rinsing the mouth three times saying: “May this mouth speak only the pleasing words, the healing words, the truthful words.”
3. Then lightly sniff water into the nose three times, which has a remarkable brightening effect on the senses.  Begin this stage by saying: “May I long for the sweet fragrance of His presence”, then sniff the water into the nose. 
4. Next wash the whole face and eyes saying: “May this face shine with the light of His countenance.  May these eyes behold the hand of the Creator everywhere they look.” 
5. Clean the ears by inserting the tips of the index fingers, wetted with water, into the ears twisting them around and in the folds of the ears then next pass the thumb behind the ears from the bottom, upwards and then over the nape of the neck saying: “May these ears be attentive to the resonance of His Word; may this neck bend in humility to the One. 
6. Wash feet (right foot first) up to the ankles, making sure that no parts of the feet are left dry.  “May these feet walk on holy ground.” 

True Ablutions: 

The purpose of washing each of these parts of the body is that it gives you time, bit by bit, part by part, to move your awareness away from the world and toward God.  It is to remind you of the need for inward impurity to be removed, a washing the self of the self (Ps. 51:2,7; Jn. 4:10-14; Jn. 3:3; Gal. 2:20). 

Time to say within your heart: 

I am now going to establish a connection with God

I am going to turn toward God.

I am going to hand over my cares and my love to God. 

As you make your way up the stairs you pass a Nativity Shrine, a Bathtub Mary

and small grottos.  This is not a perfectly groomed, sterile, disinfected, well marketed tourist spot.  This is a place that wreaks of humanity: its flaws, its strengths, positives, negatives -all coming together offering it all to God for His Will to be done.

As you approach the top of the hill you first glimpse a Golden Cross before you see the Shrine.

The shrine is in a cleared area surrounded by woodland and wildflowers.

On our visit for the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows this week, there was a man cutting the grass and trimming with a weed-eater.  He said that he and his wife have taken over the care of the lawn as a penance and devotion to God. 

Pilgrimage is both a journey and a sacred destination.  Its a conscious effort to journey afar either in search of meaning or as an act of praise, prayer and worship.

There are many places in the USA exactly like this, tucked away waiting for people to fill with prayer. In these days of confusion, I urge you to take the time to look for them.  We must remove ourselves from the bombardment of media, social media and all that seeks to distract us from our real center of focus - Our Lord and Our God.   Find your place of pilgrimage and visit often. 

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2

"And he said unto them, Come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while..." - Mark 6:31