BA13 – “Spiritual Accompaniment and it’s Fruits ” pt 2 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

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Episode 13 – Spiritual Accompaniment and it’s Fruits pt 2 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

In this episode, Fr. Timothy Gallagher discusses the actual spiritual direction Ven. Bruno Lanteri offered to a laywoman, Gabriella Solaro della Margarita.

A further letter of Lanteri to Gabriella Solaro della Margarita, the third of the three letters conserved from this correspondence of spiritual direction. Here Lanteri has just learned of the death of Henry, the little child of Gabriella (possibly her youngest), and writes a note of both human and spiritual solace to the grieving mother and her two daughters, Guiseppina and Gabriella. Translated from Carteggio, III, 197-199.

Madame

I have learned from Madame your mother-in-law of how you have lost your little child Henry. In one way, as I think of this, I feel deep sorrow for what has happened to you, since no sacrifice could be more painful for you. He had such wonderful qualities that no one could help loving him, and how much more his own mother. And so, in this sense, you have every reason to feel pain for his loss, and to shed tears for him. Yet, in another way, I share with you a gladness that you that you have very surely gained a protector in heaven, who cannot fail to care for you from his heart, since he is your son. And because you love him so deeply, turn your thoughts to his eternal happiness, share in his glory, and do not imagine that you have lost him; that would not be true, since you have lost him only from sight, and not in reality. Consider that he is at your side like another angel, that he encourages you to dedicate yourself to the things of heaven, and to share in his joy; that he assures you of his efforts before the throne of the Most Holy Trinity on your behalf, as also for his father, for his brother, and for his dear sisters, to obtain for you all great and abundant graces for your eternal salvation. And so, remain in continual and loving conversation with him; speak to him about all that happens both within your heart and without, in the family, and about whatever is of importance to you; be on guard against thinking him uncaring toward you or powerless to help you, since such thoughts would be to misunderstand the immense love and the almost infinite power which each of the Blessed enjoys, with all the other divine perfections which God shares with him in the most abundant way possible.

And so, if before you had no reason to become discouraged in the service of God, so much the less is there reason now. I would add further that, if it were possible for your little Henry to feel any sorrow even now in heaven, it would be to see you discouraged and saddened, whether because of him or because of your own failings, or because of the difficulties you meet in the service of God.

This will be then the remedy for all your feelings of sadness and of fearfulness of heart: the thought that, with the grace of God and the protection of your little child Henry, you will be able to accomplish all things.

I beg you to share some part of these reflections with your respected and worthy daughters, to console them also in their great affliction for the loss of their beloved brother. Tell them that I too take part in their pain, and that I will hold them constantly present in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass to obtain for them consolation of heart, and their spiritual growth.

I conclude this letter by blessing you all, and I am, with all the esteem and respect possible
From Bardassano, July 31, 1818

During this series, we find that the Ven. Bruno Lanteri’s life and mission contain significant spiritual relevance to nurture the hearts of today’s religious and lay faithful.

For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio which are available for purchase, please visit his website: frtimothygallagher.org

Visit the “Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of the Venerable Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Discerning Hearts podcast” for more episodes of this series

For books on the life and teachings of Ven. Bruno Lanteri:

For the other episodes in this series check out
Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s “Discerning Hearts” page

Please visit the site dedicated to Ven. Bruno Lanteri for more information and prayer requests

Prayer to Obtain Graces by the intercession of Ven. Bruno Lanteri

Heavenly Father, you filled the heart of your servant Bruno with a living and active faith. Grant that our lives be guided by that same faith, and, through his intercession, give us the grace of which we have so great need… Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.

Jesus, uncreated Wisdom, through the hope in your merits and in your Cross, infused into the heart of your servant Bruno, and through the zeal he showed in teaching your goodness and mercy, grant us the same ardor and the grace for which we fervently ask… Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.

Holy Spirit, fount of charity, through the love for God and neighbor that you enkindled in the heart of your servant Bruno, grant also to us that, living far from sin, in charity and justice, we may be worthy of the grace we humbly seek and gain the joy of heaven… Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.

And you, Virgin Mother of God and our Mother, obtain from the Lord the beatification of your servant Bruno, who all his life loved you as a loyal son and zealously sought to lead others to you, and obtain for us through his intercession the grace that with great trust we ask of you… Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory Be.

BA14 – “Fixing Our Eyes on the Crucified Christ” – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

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Episode 14 – “Fixing Our Eyes on the Crucified Christ” – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

In this episode, “Suffering” … no spiritual direction can be truly complete unless it offers effective counsel with regard to suffering. Ven. Lanteri guides those he directs to look toward the only fully satisfying answer to the question about suffering—the crucified Christ—and to see in such suffering the hand of God which disposes all things for our spiritual progress.

Anxieties, temptations, aridity, heaviness of heart, tribulations, injuries, unpleasant situations, offenses, ingratitude, crosses, matters which do not go well, and sorrows of various kinds: I will expect all these, even from those I love and those I have helped. But I will never consider these as evil, nor will I regard their origin in men, but rather in God. I know that nothing can take place against the will of God. I know that this is the way He Himself followed here on earth, and through which He led the saints closest to Him, even His very mother, so as to glorify her correspondingly in heaven. And so I will consider these as favors and opportunities which He gives me, so that I will need to ask His help, so that I will know my weakness, and do penance for my sins. I will try to accept them, confident that this is the road He has laid out for me, that all is ordered for my good, and that my part is to seek to benefit from these situations (To a Married Woman, Positio, 539).

Let us fix the eyes of our faith and love on the crucified Christ, and we will see that He was not satisfied only with the possibility of suffering, but that He truly suffered every kind of pain, both in body and in spirit, since it is not the possibility of suffering, but sufferings themselves that cause us to gain merit. Let us then accept from His hand every occasion of suffering and practicing virtue, and since all things are disposed for our salvation, let us try to enter into His purpose of love, to follow His plan the best we can, convinced that grace is linked to all that happens, to every cross, and that every such grace we welcome will receive an eternal recompense and reward (in Gastaldi, 473)

For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio which are available for purchase, please visit his website: frtimothygallagher.org

Visit the “Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of the Venerable Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Discerning Hearts podcast” for more episodes of this series

For books on the life and teachings of Ven. Bruno Lanteri:

For the other episodes in this series check out
Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s “Discerning Hearts” page

Please visit the site dedicated to Ven. Bruno Lanteri for more information and prayer requests

Prayer to Obtain Graces by the intercession of Ven. Bruno Lanteri

BA15 – “The Quality and Aim of Our Actions” – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

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Episode 15 – “The Quality and Aim of Our Actions” – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

In this episode, Fr. Gallagher offers that a clear understanding of one’s state of life and of one’s specific path toward holiness—one’s vocation—forms a basic point of the spiritual direction which Lanteri offers to the laity. It is in “this state…and not in another” that God “wills that I serve Him and gain my salvation.” Lanteri leads men and women to understand their state in lay life as the will of God and to seek to fulfill faithfully the tasks connected with that state of life.

The state of life…in which I find myself is the condition in which I can, I ought, and I desire to become holy. And so I need to see my obligations, and the means to fulfill them. My true happiness consists in the faithful practice of these (To a Married Woman, Positio, 534).

1. My heart must belong totally to God and to my husband, not only because of natural attraction, but also because of a commitment contracted with God Himself. 2. I must make every effort to maintain harmony between all in the house, and to seek and to create a domestic peace. 3. I must strive to win the affection of all who live near to us (To a Married Woman, ibid., 534).

I will seek to understand the inclinations of all those in the house so as to provide for them, and to please them cheerfully in all that is not of offense to God, even though at times this may cost effort (To a Married Woman, ibid., 535).

God has placed me in this state of life, and in no other, so that may I serve Him and win my salvation. All the circumstances and events related to my state in life, such as the different temperaments of those with whom I deal, the matters that arise, the times and places in which these things take place, all this forms the order of providence the Lord has chosen for my salvation (To a Married Woman, ibid., 537).

For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio which are available for purchase, please visit his website: frtimothygallagher.org

Visit the “Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of the Venerable Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Discerning Hearts podcast” for more episodes of this series

For books on the life and teachings of Ven. Bruno Lanteri:

For the other episodes in this series check out
Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s “Discerning Hearts” page

Please visit the site dedicated to Ven. Bruno Lanteri for more information and prayer requests

Prayer to Obtain Graces by the intercession of Ven. Bruno Lanteri

BA16 – “Celebration of Holy Mass” pt. 1 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

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Episode 16 – “Celebration of Holy Mass” pt. 1 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

In this episode, Fr. Gallagher offers aspects of Ven. Lanteri’s on how to enter into the celebration of the Holy Mass as found in Ven. Lanteri’s Directory, a commentary on the Rule of the Oblates, with many teachings on the spiritual life.

in saying Mass, they shall unite themselves with Jesus Christ, having a mind to share in the designs of His Heart in instituting such a mystery, paying particular attention to the principal actions so as to stir up in themselves such dispositions as correspond to each. Thus for example at the Confiteor they should kindle in themselves the sentiments of the publican; at the Gloria, those of the Angels; at the Oremus those of an ambassador in the Church’s service;

For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio which are available for purchase, please visit his website: frtimothygallagher.org

Visit the “Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of the Venerable Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Discerning Hearts podcast” for more episodes of this series

For books on the life and teachings of Ven. Bruno Lanteri:

For the other episodes in this series check out
Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s “Discerning Hearts” page

Please visit the site dedicated to Ven. Bruno Lanteri for more information and prayer requests

Prayer to Obtain Graces by the intercession of Ven. Bruno Lanteri

BA17 – “Celebration of Holy Mass” pt. 2 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

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Episode 17 – “Celebration of Holy Mass” pt. 2 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

In this episode, Fr. Gallagher offers aspects of Ven. Lanteri’s teachings on how to enter into the celebration of the Holy Mass as found in the Directory, a commentary on the Rule of the Oblates, with many insights on the spiritual life.

at the Epistle and Gospel, those of a disciple; at the Creed, those of a martyr; at the Offertory, those of the priest Melchisedech; at the Preface, those of the blessed in heaven;

Visit the “Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of the Venerable Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Discerning Hearts podcast” for more episodes of this series

For books on the life and teachings of Ven. Bruno Lanteri:

For the other episodes in this series check out
Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s “Discerning Hearts” page

Please visit the site dedicated to Ven. Bruno Lanteri for more information and prayer requests

Prayer to Obtain Graces by the intercession of Ven. Bruno Lanteri

BA18 – “Celebration of Holy Mass” pt. 3 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

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Episode 18 – “Celebration of Holy Mass” pt. 3 – Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of Ven. Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

…at the Elevation, those of Jesus Christ Himself, at the Pater Noster, those of a beggar, at the Agnus Dei those of a criminal; at the Communion, those of a lover; at the Ite Missa est, those of an apostle.

Visit the “Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of the Venerable Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Discerning Hearts podcast” for more episodes of this series

For books on the life and teachings of Ven. Bruno Lanteri:

For the other episodes in this series check out
Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s “Discerning Hearts” page

Please visit the site dedicated to Ven. Bruno Lanteri for more information and prayer requests

Prayer to Obtain Graces by the intercession of Ven. Bruno Lanteri

Overcoming Spiritual Discouragement: Conference 4 with Fr. Timothy Gallagher – Discerning Hearts Podcast Seminar

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Conference 4 -Living with Hope – Overcoming Spiritual Discouragement with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

Conference talk 4 from the Discerning Hearts Seminar/Retreat held online in late spring 2020 with Fr. Timothy Gallagher

Personal Spiritual Directory: If I should fall even a thousand times, I will not lose courage, I will not be troubled, but I will always say immediately with peace, Nunc coepi [Now I begin]. My God, I have acted in accord with what I am, what else could you have expected from me, nor would I have stopped here had you not held me back; act now in accordance with what you are, I do not desire to think so poorly of you, that I could think that you allow yourself to be conquered by my faults, when I know that you hold my conversion and salvation so deeply in your heart.

For a lay woman: “If I should fall a thousand times a day, a thousand times a day I will begin again, with new awareness of my weakness, promising God, with a peaceful heart, to amend my life. I will never think of God as if he were of our condition and grows weary of our wavering, weakness, and negligence. Rather, I will think of what is truly characteristic of him and what he prizes most highly, that is, his goodness and mercy, knowing that he is a loving Father who understands our weakness, is patient with us, and forgives us.”

Letters of Spiritual Direction: “Keep constantly before you these two proposals that I urge you to renew often and with a holy persistence: first, never to offend God knowingly, and, second, if you should fall, never to persevere in this with your will, but, with humility and courage, to rise immediately and begin again, firmly convinced that God forgives you in the instant itself that with humility and trust you ask his forgiveness.”

“It is very important that we understand deeply how good God is, and not measure him by our own limitations or think that he tires of our wavering, weakness, and negligence. Our God is not such. Let us think of him as he truly is, filled with goodness, mercy, and compassion, and let us know him as the loving Father he is, who raises us when we have fallen, who never tires of forgiving us, and to whom we give great joy and honor when we seek forgiveness.”

“Say then with boldness, “Now I begin,” and go forward constantly in God’s service. Do not look back so often, because one who looks back cannot run. And do not be content to begin only for this year. Begin every day, because it is for every day, even for every hour of the day, that the Lord taught us to say in the Our Father, ‘Forgive us our trespasses,’ and ‘Give us this day our daily bread.’”

“Be on guard against discouragement and lack of trust. Strive to do well all that you do, but do this with respect for your humanity, without striving for an impossible perfection, focusing simply on the day at hand. Remember that ‘The just man falls seven times a day,’ and so you will find blessing in beginning not only every day, but every hour.”

“Holiness does not consist in never failing, but in rising immediately, recognizing our weakness and asking God’s forgiveness, and in doing this with peace of heart, without letting ourselves be troubled.”

Counsels to a married woman: I will never give in to discouragement, no matter what fault I fall into. Convinced that I will fall often, I will immediately ask forgiveness of God and will always try to correct myself. If I fall one thousand times a day, one thousand times I will-begin again. I will recognize my misery, but with equal peace of spirit I will promise God to amend my life.

I will take care not to think of the Divine Majesty as if he were of our condition, that is, that he were weary of so much instability, weakness, and forgetfulness, punishing me, therefore, by removing the help and graces I need…. We do a great wrong to God when we measure him by our own limits. I will always attribute to him that which is proper to him, that which is most precious to him, that is, to be filled with goodness, merciful and compassionate, to be a loving Father who knows our weakness, bears with us and forgives us.

Fr. Timothy Gallagher – Bruno Lanteri — Venerable Bruno Lanteri

The image of Our Lady of Consolation referred to by Fr. Gallagher

Visit the “Begin Again: The Spiritual Legacy of the Venerable Bruno Lanteri with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Discerning Hearts podcast” for more episodes of this series

For books on the life and teachings of Ven. Bruno Lanteri:

For the other episodes in this series check out
Fr. Timothy Gallagher’s “Discerning Hearts” page

Please visit the site dedicated to Ven. Bruno Lanteri for more information and prayer requests

Prayer to Obtain Graces by the intercession of Ven. Bruno Lanteri

CALG1 – The Notes, The Preludes and The First Point- The Contemplation to Attain the Love of God with Fr. Timothy Gallagher, O.M.V. Podcast

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“Contemplation to Attain the Love of God” Part 1 – Fr. Gallagher looks at an exercise of prayer that St. Ignatius places at the end of the spiritual journey of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises but because of their richness they can also be fruitful outside of that original context and in daily life. In this episode, he covers an introduction to the prayer, the Notes, the Preludes, and the First Point

CONTEMPLATION TO ATTAIN THE LOVE OF GOD

The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, [1914], at sacred-texts.com

Note. First, it is well to remark two things: the first is that love ought to be put more in deeds than in words.

The second, love consists in the interchange between the two parties; that is to say in the lover’s giving and communicating to the beloved what he has or out of what he has or can; and so, on the contrary, the beloved to the lover. So that if the one has the knowledge, he gives to the one who has it not. The same of honors, of riches; and so the one to the other.

CONTEMPLATION TO GAIN LOVE

Prayer. The usual Prayer.

First Prelude. The first Prelude is a composition, which is here to see how I am standing before God our Lord, and of the Angels and of the Saints interceding for me.

Second Prelude. The second, to ask for what I want. It will be here to ask for interior knowledge of so great good received, in order that being entirely grateful, I may be able in all to love and serve His Divine Majesty.

First Point. The First Point is, to bring to memory the benefits received, of Creation, Redemption and particular gifts, pondering with much feeling how much God our Lord has done for me, and how much He has given me of what He has, and then the same Lord desires to give me Himself as much as He can, according to His Divine ordination.

And with this to reflect on myself, considering with much reason and justice, what I ought on my side to offer and give to His Divine Majesty, that is to say, everything that is mine, and myself with it, as one who makes an offering with much feeling:

Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my intellect, and all my will — all that I have and possess. Thou gavest it to me: to Thee, Lord, I return it! All is Thine, dispose of it according to all Thy will. Give me Thy love and grace, for this is enough for me.

Second Point. The second, to look how God dwells in creatures, in the elements, giving them being, in the plants vegetating, in the animals feeling in them, in men giving them to understand: and so in me, giving me being, animating me, giving me sensation and making me to understand; likewise making a temple of me, being created to the likeness and image of His Divine Majesty; reflecting as much on myself in the way which is said in the first Point, or in another which I feel to be better. In the same manner, will be done on each Point which follows.

Third Point. The third, to consider how God works and labors for me in all things created on the face of the earth — that is, behaves like one who labors — as in the heavens, elements, plants, fruits, cattle, etc., giving them being, preserving them, giving them vegetation and sensation, etc.

Then to reflect on me.

Fourth Point. The fourth, to look how all the good things and gifts descend from above, as my poor power from the supreme and infinite power from above; and so justice, goodness, pity, mercy, etc.; as from the sun descend the rays, from the fountain the waters, etc.

Then to finish reflecting on myself, as has been said.

I will end with a Colloquy and an OUR FATHER.

Be sure to check out Fr. Timothy Gallaghers latest book

Father Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V., was ordained in 1979 as a member of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, a religious community dedicated to retreats and spiritual formation according to the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Fr. Gallagher is featured on the EWTN series “Living the Discerning Life: The Spiritual Teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola”. For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio which are available for purchase, please visit his website: frtimothygallagher.org

CALG2 – The Second, Third and Fourth Point – The Contemplation to Attain the Love of God with Fr. Timothy Gallagher, O.M.V. Podcast

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“Contemplation to Attain the Love of God” Part 2 – Fr. Gallagher looks at an exercise of prayer that St. Ignatius places at the end of the spiritual journey of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises but because of their richness they can also be fruitful outside of that original context and in daily life. In this episode, he covers the Second, Third and Fourth Point.

CONTEMPLATION TO ATTAIN THE LOVE OF GOD

The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, [1914], at sacred-texts.com

Note. First, it is well to remark two things: the first is that love ought to be put more in deeds than in words.

CONTEMPLATION TO GAIN LOVE

Prayer. The usual Prayer.

First Prelude. The first Prelude is a composition, which is here to see how I am standing before God our Lord, and of the Angels and of the Saints interceding for me.

Then to reflect on me.

Then to finish reflecting on myself, as has been said.

I will end with a Colloquy and an OUR FATHER.

Be sure to check out Fr. Timothy Gallaghers latest book

LST13 – Joy and Gratitude – The Letters of St. Therese of Lisieux with Fr. Timothy Gallagher Podcast

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Episode 13 – In this conversation, Fr. Gallagher reflects on the joy and gratitude of St. Therese and our call to become a saint.

St. Therese of Liesuex

Here are some of the various texts Fr. Gallagher refers to in this episode:

The Letters of St. Therese of Lisieux, Vol. I: 1877-1890 (Critical edition of the complete works of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux)

Letters of St. Therese of Lisieux, Vol. II

St. Therese to her sister Celine:

“Gratitude is the thing that brings us the most grace. I have learned this from experience. Try it and you will see. I am content with whatever God gives me and I show him this in a thousand different ways”

Father Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V., was ordained in 1979 as a member of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, a religious community dedicated to retreats and spiritual formation according to the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Fr. Gallagher is featured on the EWTN series “Living the Discerning Life: The Spiritual Teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola”. For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio which are available for purchase, please visit his website: frtimothygallagher.org

For the other episodes in this series check out “The Letters of St. Therese of Lisieux with Fr. Timothy Gallagher – Discerning Hearts” page