The last weeks we have been preparing reflections about the “Four sources of spirituality” to be prayed and lived out in the VDMFa. The next two weeks we will emphasize the relevance of the Trinity, Eucharist, Mystical Body and Mary in our discipleship as members of the VDMFa.

   Where the term spirituality comes from? The word spirituality comes from Latin “spiritus” which literally means “breath,” signifying Life. The spirit is the breath that animates Life.

   What is the meaning of spirituality? What is spirituality referred to? According to the Oxford dictionary spirituality is the quality of being concerned with religion or the human spirit, not with physical existence or material world. It´s related with the experience or expression of the sacred, with the beliefs or experiences connected with the supernatural.

   What is the value of spirituality? Spirituality is the way in which a person understands and live life in view of her or his ultimate meaning, beliefs, and values. It is the unifying and integrative aspect of the person´s life and, when lived intentionally, is experienced as a process of growth and maturity. Spirituality is also linked to many important aspects of human behavior because spiritual people have positive relationships, higher self-esteem, are more optimistic. Spiritual people go beyond what they do or think or know intellectually and are centered on their own identity and goal as they follow a strong purpose in life.

   What can we say about spirituality in the Bible? Spirituality is understood to refer to the relationship between God and man that can be summed up under four headings: holiness, the gift of the Spirit, life in the Spirit and the discipline of the Spirit.  

   Biblical spirituality means to be born of God (John 1:12-13; John 3:5-8; 1 John 4:7), be changed by the grace of Jesus Christ (Rom 12:1-2), surrendered and obedient to the Spirit, living according to the Spirit (Rom 8:4-11), and consequently empowered by the Spirit to draw others to find life in the Spirit.

   Christian spiritual formation is the process of being conformed to the image of Jesus Christ for the glory of God and for the sake of others (2 Cor 3:17-18). The focus of spiritual formation is the Holy Spirit, who guides the ongoing journey towards union with God.  

   After explaining about spirituality in general and in the Bible, how can we connect it with the four sources of spirituality as our essential way to grow and mature as committed disciples in the VDMFa? Our four sources of spirituality are the solid ground where to build up our identity and mission (Mt 7: 24-25), they are also the fountain from where we drink the salvation first for us and for other people as well (Is 12:2-3).  If the disciple doesn´t nourish himself or herself from these sources of spirituality he/she may be like a noisy gang or a clanging bell (1 Cor 13:1-3)

   The two following weeks we will take some numbers from IDENTITY AND MISSION OF THE VDMFa for our daily food in the guidelines sheet. Why? Because this document is a “bedside book “for all the Verbum Dei members in the Family (Fraternidad, Lay Consacrated Missionaries and Missionary Disciples). Why does this document come into existence last 2019?  Rodrigo Carrizo said: “The V Congress (2018) marked with clarity that our strength resides in our identity and made us recognize the need we have of a mission lived according to our own identity. It is for this reason that in this search to characterize our missionary identity, it has been necessary to offer some common guidelines to the different groups of the VDMFa, which can clarify, consolidate, and promote our charism and mission. In addition, these orientations which the document offers are very important and can help to give us unity and to walk together according to the breath of the Spirit”

   The basis support to elaborate this document has been the Constitutions and Statues of the Verbum Dei.
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   The document IMVDMFa emphasizes about the baptismal consecration common to all of us and reaffirms that “the focus is to draw out the fullness of the baptismal consecration” (IMVDMFa,70). We are talking about consecration, it means, to dedicate ourselves to God (Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit) and to develop our Christian identity with its rights and duties. The Verbum Dei spirituality is the forge where we are transformed or the potter´s house where to be molded as Christ´s disciples. In order to live our baptismal consecration to the full this document explicitly makes us aware of some relevant characteristic of our spirituality common also to all of us. We´ll have three reflections this week and three next week for us to read slowly, to pray on with calm and to assimilate it to grow and mature in our spiritual life as VDMFa.

FIRST REFLECTION
FIDELITY TO THE CHARISM AS A GIFT FROM THE HOLY SPIRIT TO THE CHURCH​

IMVDMFa 59 “The Verbum Dei spirituality is the specific way, inspired by the Holy Spirit, to live the Gospel in a manner appropriate to the Verbum Dei charism. Each person has been created to live inhabited by the Trinity, to dialogue with God, and to abandon themselves to His Love and to live the fullness of their life in the call to be Christ.”

The Second Vatican Council affirms: “The dignity of man rest above all on the fact that he is called to communion with God. The invitation to converse with God is addressed to man as soon as he comes into being. Many however of our contemporaries either do not at all perceive or explicitly reject this intimate and vital bond of man to God.” (G.S 19)

Constitutions VDMF 26 “To be Christ is the supreme ideal that, with all justice, we will present to all people in our preaching and apostolate. Such was the plan of the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who chose us in Him before the foundation of the world (Eph 1:3-6) and predestined us to reproduce the imagen of His Son (Rom 8:29).”

   There are many charisms in the Catholic Church as a gift from the Holy Spirit. Each religious community has a specific way to live out its spirituality in accordance with its own charism.

   Jaime Bonet, our founder, perceived the deep longing for God in each person. It was the reason why he devoted himself to prayer and preaching with the intentionality to connect everyone with God. Do I perceive the longing for God in people near to me? In what moments or situations do I realize that they are searching for God?

Jn 10:10 “I have come in order that you might have life- life in all its fullness”

Jn 6:67-68 “Jesus asked the twelve disciples, ‘And you- would you also like to leave? ´. Simon Peter answered him, `Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life´

   Do I believe that they need to converse with Him? Our dedication to converse with the Trinity and to lead others to do the same depends on our conviction that everyone needs God´s presence and love to live the fullness of life.

Gal 2:19-20 “I have been put to death with Christ on his cross, so that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. This life that I live now, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave his life for me”
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   Am I convinced that the fullness of our lives is to be Christ? Nowadays, what are my concrete options to reproduce Jesus’ life? Do I believe that the best ideal or project in everybody´s life is to have the same thinking and feelings of Jesus?

 IMVDMFa, 60 “The Verbum Dei spirituality is deeply rooted in the personal experience of God´s love that leads us to love as he loved us; it is centered in Christ, the one sent by the Father, and is a way of identification with Him, by the power of the Holy Spirit, where our way of living, praying and carrying out the mission is determined.”

IMVDMFa, 63.2 “Centered in the Word. The dynamism of the Word of God orients the way of life and of realizing the mission of the VDMFa.:  to pray with the Word, assimilating it, living it out and creating communion around the Word, announcing the Gospel, celebrating the life that it generates, teaching others to do the same so that they too may participate actively in the evangelizing mission of the Church.”

   Verbum Dei spirituality is centered in Christ. Verbum Dei spirituality is also centered in the Word of God. These two sentences are pointing out to the same goal: the identification with Christ´s life and mission.

   Christ is the Word of God made flesh. The Word of God is Jesus Himself. To pray with the Word of God introduces us into the personal encounter with the person of Jesus who reveals us the Father’s love by the power of the Holy Spirit. If we don´t enter into an intimate relationship with Jesus through the Word of God we can´t discover and taste our identity as children of God the Father and as disciples of Jesus.

   How is my relationship with Jesus in my daily prayer? I can relate with him as a friend and to dialogue with him in an intimate and friendly way or I can be with him as a stranger in whom I have no confidence and trust. Do I allow him to direct me towards the goal of identification with him? Do I put myself into His hands to change me inwardly: style of life, options for him, inner thoughts, feelings…?
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Heb 4:12 “The Word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double -edged sword. It judges the desires and thoughts of the heart.”  The Word of God is effective when we have an authentic encounter with Jesus, the friend who wants to transform us into his likeness. Only in His transformation we find the joy and peace we are looking for.

IMVDMFa, 63.1 “A contemplative-missionary spirituality. Our spirituality is not only in function of personal sanctification, but of the life of many and at the service of the whole Church of Christ and humanity. Our life necessarily acquired the fundamental spirituality of Jesus in his prayerful attitude as adorer of the Father and, from the Father, a gift and offering in favor of the whole humanity, guided by the Holy Spirit. Our living dialogue with the Trinity will impel us to live a life of continuous prayer in all the areas in which we find ourselves.”

IMVDMFa 61 “Our loving dialogue with the Trinity and our Mother Mary directs our gaze and focusses our entire life on being a response to the total Christ, freeing us from a self-centered or individualistic spirituality.”

Verbum Dei Statutes 201 “Our spirituality is not only in function of our own sanctification, but of the life of many and for the service of Christ´s Church. We won´t be led by our individual likes or other people´s liking, neither will we be led by any uncertain wind of doctrine. We will be nurtured by the solid and sure food of the Word of God.”

Verbum Dei Statutes 205 “Our life, centered in the Person, Life and Gospel of Christ, will assimilate the fundamental spirituality of Jesus in his prayerful attitude that makes of the Man-God a worshipper of the Father, and is sent by the Father to love all mankind.”

   We can define the Verbum Dei spirituality as contemplative-missionary. These very important characteristics are like the two sides of the same coin. They are interconnected in a way that we can´t accept one and deny the other. According to the Verbum Dei charism it´s impossible to transmit Jesus´ love and teaching without contemplating him for a long time. Without paying attention to Jesus, observing him carefully, listening to him patiently and following him closely the mission is a mere activity or duty that don´t touch people´s life for them to know him personally and to opt for him. The effective mission comes out from affective prayer.

 Acts 3: 3-6 “When he saw Peter and John going into the Temple, he begged them to give something to. They looked straight at him, and Peter said, `Look at us´. So, he looked at them expecting to get something from them. But Peter said to him, `I have no money at all but I give to you what I have: in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth I order you to get up and walk´. God´s experience rooted in us is what we can give or share to all.
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   How prayer and mission are interconnected in my life as Verbum Dei disciple? Do I realize the importance of contemplative prayer in my following of Jesus? What do I need to become a more contemplative disciple of Christ? For sure, all of us need to learn from Jesus and from each other about contemplation to carry out our specific mission to the fullness.

Last week we discovered that “the reality is the Mystical Body of Christ” (cf. Col 2:17), and out of love and mercy that He totally assumed and inserted us in His Body up to the point that “nothing and nobody can ever separate us from Him even our own miseries and death” (cf. Rom 8:39). Our life now is a life hidden in the Mystical Body of Christ (Col. 3:3)
 
This week we will continue to deepen on this reality of the Mystical Body of Christ and to see the great influence that we can do in His Body.  As Verbum Dei Disciples, we have an irreplaceable function in building up His broken body today. 
           
As in St. Paul says, “In the same way, though we are many, we are one body in union with Christ, and we are all joined to each other as different parts of one body. So we are to use our different gifts in accordance with the grace that God has given us. What is that gift that God has given to us as Verbum Dei Community?  If our gift is to speak God's message, we should do it according to the faith that we have.” (1 Cor 12:4-6)
 
God has given us the grace to be prophets and evangelizers in our contemporary world. This is our irrepleable function in the Body of Christ He needs us to bring the good news to His people. And that is why, "Let love make us serve one another" (Gal. 5:13) because only love can help build up the suffering Body of Christ today.
 
As an active member, it is our joys to take part in our own flesh the sufferings of Christ, for in this way, that we complete in our own body what is still lacking in the Body of Christ. (cf. Col.1:24)
 
Yet, our desire, to be responsible and committed life-giving members in His Body is a fruit from our sincere love and profound gratitude to Him. We say yes freely, consciously and voluntarily to this concrete function “to prophesied to the valley of dry bones and announce to them the Word of Life” (Ez 37) in order to quench the thirst of Christ in our brothers and sisters and such task entails for us to become a grain of wheat, as Jesus says to His disciples “I am telling you the truth: a grain of wheat remains no more than a single grain unless it is dropped into the ground and dies. If it does die, then it produces many grains. (Jn 12: 24) We need to die to our little and, at times, unnecessary suffering realities in order to give way to the great suffering reality, the reality of Christ. 

MONDAY (JUNE 24)​

Our sincere and profound gratitude to the Father, who out of love gave us His only Son until death which was a death on the cross so that we may have eternal life, and the love of Christ, who loved us and gave His life for us as victim of our sins, move us to apply to Him all our flesh and blood that are turned into pain and love in His own open wounds by us in His Mystical Body…” (VDS 248)
       
It is this crucified Christ of today that polarizes, monopolizes, enchains, squeezes, and presses out our lives crucified with Him, without time nor tasks nor interests nor likes nor thoughts nor ways nor objectives of our own…“If we live, it is for the Lord that we live; if we die, it is for the Lord that we die. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.” (VDS 249)
 
We are the hands and feet of Jesus today, are we open to offer our total self-giving to Jesus so others can receive eternal life through us?

​And because of God's gracious gift to me I say to every one of you: do not think of yourself more highly than you should. Instead, be modest in your thinking, and judge yourself according to the amount of faith that God has given you. We have many parts in the one body, and all these parts have different functions. In the same way, though we are many, we are one body in union with Christ, and we are all joined to each other as different parts of one body. So we are to use our different gifts in accordance with the grace that God has given us. If our gift is to speak God's message, we should do it according to the faith that we have; if it is to serve, we should serve; if it is to teach, we should teach; if it is to encourage others, we should do so. Whoever shares with others should do it generously; whoever has authority should work hard; whoever shows kindness to others should do it cheerfully.                 
(1 Cor 12:3-8)
 
All of us has something to offer for the mission. St John Paul once said: nobody is so poor he has nothing to give and nobody is so rich he has nothing to receive. Our missionary intentionality will always bear fruit no matter how small or irrelevant our part may seems, as long as it is done because of love.
 
What talents and abilities can you offer for the sake of the mission?

​Who will accuse God's chosen people? God himself declares them not guilty! Who, then, will condemn them? Not Christ Jesus, who died, or rather, who was raised to life and is at the right-hand side of God, pleading with him for us! Who, then, can separate us from the love of Christ? Can trouble do it, or hardship or persecution or hunger or poverty or danger or death? As the scripture says,
    "For your sake we are in danger of
         death at all times;
    we are treated like sheep that are
         going to be slaughtered."
    No, in all these things we have complete victory through him who loved us! For I am certain that nothing can separate us from his love: neither death nor life, neither angels nor other heavenly rulers or powers, neither the present nor the future, neither the world above nor the world below - there is nothing in all creation that will ever be able to separate us from the love of God which is ours through Christ Jesus our Lord.
(Rom 8:33-38)
 
United in the mystical body of Christ, we become vulnerable to sacrifices, disappointments and persecution in the mission. But we are reminded not to give up, for the love of Jesus and our love for our brothers and sisters will keep us going. “Nothing can separate us from the love of God” indeed.
 
What challenges in the mission that made you want to give up? We are reminded today that love conquers all. This is an invitation to go continue with the mission in face of challenges.

​“And now I am happy about my sufferings for you, for by means of my suffering I am helping to complete what remains of Christ sufferings on behalf of his body, the church.”
(Col.1:24)
 
“I am telling you the truth: a grain of wheat remains no more than a single grain unless it is dropped into the ground and dies. If it does die, then it produces many grains.”
(Jn 12: 24)
 
All of us has a story to tell on the challenges of the mission such as difficulty of inviting others or accompanying others, test of humility in relationships with our co-disciples or missionaries, giving up our comfort zones and many others. Jesus reminds us that this is the way to become a true missionary disciple, to die to oneself so we can bear more fruits.
 
In what aspect of your being missionary disciple, Jesus is asking you to “die” so you can bear much fruit?

​I felt the powerful presence of the LORD, and his spirit took me and set me down in a valley where the ground was covered with bones. He led me all round the valley, and I could see that there were very many bones and that they were very dry. He said to me, "Mortal man, can these bones come back to life?"
    I replied, "Sovereign LORD, only you can answer that!"
    He said, "Prophesy to the bones. Tell these dry bones to listen to the word of the LORD. Tell them that I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to them: I am going to put breath into you and bring you back to life. I will give you sinews and muscles, and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you and bring you back to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD."
    So I prophesied as I had been told. While I was speaking, I heard a rattling noise, and the bones began to join together. While I watched, the bones were covered with sinews and muscles, and then with skin. But there was no breath in the bodies.
    God said to me, "Mortal man, prophesy to the wind. Tell the wind that the Sovereign LORD commands it to come from every direction, to breathe into these dead bodies, and to bring them back to life."
    So I prophesied as I had been told. Breath entered the bodies, and they came to life and stood up. There were enough of them to form an army.  
 (Ezekiel 37:1-10)
 
`Come, you that are blessed by my Father! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world. I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you received me in your homes, naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me, in prison and you visited me.'
    "The righteous will then answer him, `When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? When did we ever see you a stranger and welcome you in our homes, or naked and clothe you? When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you?' The King will reply, `I tell you, whenever you did this for one of the least important of these members of my family, you did it for me!'
    "Then he will say to those on his left, `Away from me, you that are under God's curse! Away to the eternal fire which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels! I was hungry but you would not feed me, thirsty but you would not give me a drink; I was a stranger but you would not welcome me in your homes, naked but you would not clothe me; I was sick and in prison but you would not take care of me.'
    "Then they will answer him, `When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and would not help you?’ The King will reply, `I tell you, whenever you refused to help one of these least important ones, you refused to help me.' These, then, will be sent off to eternal punishment, but the righteous will go to eternal life."
(Matthew 25:35-46)
 
The greatest gift that the a Verbum Dei Missionary disciple can offer to the church and to the mission as a whole is through our charism, that is, to share the Word of God to the four corners of the Earth. There are many “dry bones” in our world today that need to be prophesied so life can come back: the dry bones of isolation, consumerism, greed, suicide, divorce and many others. Let us offer ourselves to tirelessly preach and live the Word of God so others can live. And Jesus will tell to come as partakers of His kingdom as a reward.
 
What compels you to tirelessly preach the Word of God to others?

The last source of Spirituality that we are going to deepen in this week is the fact that we are all part of the Mystical Body of Christ.  By our very baptism, we were introduced into this reality of faith that we are now living in, “since it is in him that we live, and move, and exist.” (Acts 17:28)
 
“The reality is the Body of Christ” (Col 2:17) as St. Paul would tell us, and this is the reality that we are invited to live in as Christians.  We are all part of Christ and also part of one another.  (cf. 1 Cor 12:12)  Christ has ‘inserted’ us into his body in order that we may stay connected to him at all times!  There is no moment that we need to stay separated from Him, since we are living in Him!  This is the security that we have as Christians, that “nothing can separate us from the love of Christ” (Rom 8:39) because we are fully immersed into Him by the Holy Spirit.

“The Total Christ – Head and members – opens us in this way the most natural setting of our daily prayer.” (Verbum Dei Statutes 253)  This is the sum up and goal of all our drawing from all the other sources of spirituality: living in companionship with the Blessed Trinity, being nourished and renewed constantly by the Lord’s fraternal love in the Eucharist, and the constant presence of our mother in our daily life.
 
When we are able to identify the daily sufferings of our brothers and sisters in the world of today with the crucified Christ, we are moved to respond to Him with greater urgency in our mission personally and as one family dedicated to the preparation and ministry of Word of God
Each one of us in Christ’s body has a vital role to play.  Each one of us is irreplaceable in building up His Body – the community, the Church.  It is the wisdom of God that he makes us so diverse and endowed with different gifts, so that we need one another – from the greatest to the smallest, and even he asks us to take care of the one of seems the least useful or great among us. (cf. 1 Cor 12:22-24)
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As we draw closer to Jesus this week, let us allow ourselves to receive the invitation of Jesus to take care of His Body, that is, each member of the community, especially those who are least noticed or seemingly less important among us. “For whatever you did to the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me.” (Matt 25:40)

MONDAY (JUNE 17)
John 15:4-5​

Remain united to me, and I will remain united to you. A branch cannot bear fruit by itself; it can do so only if it remains in the vine. In the same way you cannot bear fruit unless you remain in me. "I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me.
(John 15:4-5)

Being part of the Body of Christ means that we affect Jesus and many people and we are able to influence them in a very positive or negative way.  For this reason, Jesus insists on us to stay united to Him, so that we may become life-giving members in His Body – drawing life from Him and giving life to other members.  Our union with Him will also make us sensitive to what others really need.
How can you be a life -giving member of the Body of Christ?

It was he who "gave gifts to people"; he appointed some to be apostles, others to be prophets, others to be evangelists, others to be pastors and teachers. He did this to prepare all God's people for the work of Christian service, in order to build up the body of Christ. And so we shall all come together to that oneness in our faith and in our knowledge of the Son of God; we shall become mature people, reaching to the very height of Christ's full stature.
(Ephesians 4:11-13)

Each one of us in Christ’s body has a vital role to play.  Each one of us is irreplaceable in building up His Body – the community, the Church.  It is the wisdom of God that He makes us so diverse and endowed with different gifts, so that we need one another – from the greatest to the smallest, and even He asks us to take care of the one of seems the least useful or great among us. (cf. 1 Cor 12:22-24 )  We are called to use our gifts to build up the Body of Christ since only as one body can we reach the full knowledge of God. 

WEDNESDAY (JUNE 19)
Ephesians 4:15-16​

Instead, by speaking the truth in a spirit of love, we must grow up in every way to Christ, who is the head. Under his control all the different parts of the body fit together, and the whole body is held together by every joint with which it is provided. So when each separate part works as it should, the whole body grows and builds itself up through love. 
(Ephesians 4:15-16)
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To actively work our talents and limitations in an atmosphere of mutual help and forgiveness, creating channels for building-up the other in the spirit of the Gospel (cf. Mt 18, 15-20).
Identity and Mission of VDMFa

The Body is built up when we speak the truth in a spirit of humility and love.

How can I build up my brothers and sisters when there limitations are being exposed? Do I accept their limitations without  judgement and condemnation? 

THURSDAY (JUNE 20)
Mark 1:40-42​

A man suffering from a dreaded skin disease came to Jesus, knelt down, and begged him for help. "If you want to," he said, "you can make me clean." Jesus was filled with pity, and reached out and touched him. "I do want to," he answered. "Be clean!". At once the disease left the man, and he was clean.                                 
(Mark 1:40-42)

Jesus has given us the power to heal the members of His Body. Only friendship with Jesus will move us with the compassion to forget ourselves and to heal the disease of the world.  Many of our brothers and sisters are suffering from loneliness, anxiety, insecurity, hatred , and the like and seek healing from the pleasures  of the world  yet only the love of Jesus can heal them. We were once the weak and wounded part of Christ’s body and some faithful forgot themselves in order to heal us, would you do the same? How can I be an effective healer of the weak and the wounded members of Christ’s Body?

FRIDAY (JUNE 21)
1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 11, 18. 27​

4There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but the same Spirit gives them. 5There are different ways of serving, but the same Lord is served. 6There are different abilities to perform service, but the same God gives ability to all for their particular service. 11But it is one and the same Spirit who does all this; as he wishes, he gives a different gift to each person. 18As it is, however, God put every different part in the body just as he wanted it to be. 27All of you are Christ's body, and each one is a part of it.
(1 Corinthians 12:4-6, 11, 18. 27)
 
In the VDMFa there are different ministries or services that assist apostolic effectiveness . With creativity and discernment we seek out various means so that each of us may find our place with joy and contribute in our own way to evangelization. Some ministries are: the written word, the media, music, liturgy, logistics, catechesis, and evangelisation of culture in family, work, intellectual, political, economic and social environments. These ministries are the various services needed to unfold the VDMFa mission in each local community. 
​(VDMD Regulations #29)

We find our stable identity and sense of belonging when we learn to accept the place that God gives us in His plan. Have you found your place in the  Body of Christ? 

This week, we continue to pray with Mary. She is our mother who continues to accompany us in our daily following and patiently forges in us a missionary heart like hers.
 
Her presence will accompany our laborious missionary journeys sustained by a living and proven faith and the joy of a strong redemptive love. She fosters in our VDMFa the sense of her spiritual and apostolic fruitfulness, forming Jesus in us and in our brothers and sisters. (Identity and Mission of VDMFa)
 
As we continue to pray on Mary’s role in our discipleship, let us also ask the Holy Spirit for the grace to grow in relationship with her, to be close to her just as how close Jesus is to her.

“When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.” “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” (John 2:3-5)

Our practice of asking Mary’s intercession comes from her role on the first public miracle that Jesus did in the wedding at Cana. Though not yet His time, Jesus performed the miracle of turning water into wine at the request of her mother. This request came from her sensitivity to notice the needs of the bride and groom.

In our life, while we rejoice in having a mother who knows our needs and intercedes for us to the Father, we are also invited to learn from Mary her same sensitivity. Many times, we lose our sensitivity when we are carried away by our own needs and when we focus only on our own struggles and challenges.
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In our prayer, let us ask Mary to forge in us that same sensitive heart. Perhaps we won’t be able to solve the concerns of others, but we could offer to them a priceless and precious gift – our prayer. Let us be each other’s intercessor and prayer warrior in our journey of discipleship.
Who do you want to pray for today? Offer to that person not only this time of prayer, but also all that you will live today and trust that your offering is blessing and bringing miracle to that person.

“Near the cross of Jesus stood his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.”(John 19:25)
 
From her womb to the cross, Mary accompanied Jesus in the important moments of His life. She did not run away even from the reality of pain, grief, sorrow, and perhaps, disappointment. Mary knows for whom she is standing there at the foot of the Cross – for God and His people.

Perhaps in our journey of discipleship, we also have experienced the same in our community. We felt pain and disappointment. And we might experience it again and again because we are not a perfect community. But our hope is to find ourselves standing up again and going back again to our community of faith convinced of the reason of our following with the help of our Mother.

“..Thousand times we fall and get up, other times our weaknesses block us, or the falls that drown us, Mary keeps watch beside us waiting for our resurrection. And in the traumas of our life and of our brothers and sisters, we experience her gentle and strong, welcoming and firm hand..” (Statues of the FMVD no. 238)

In those moments, we can count on our Mother. Let us ask her to forge in us a heart filled with inner strength to go beyond painful experiences in order to stand up for God and the people He entrusted to us – our family, community, workmates, etc.
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Today, think of a person/people who perhaps is/are passing through difficult situations. Stand with that person at the foot of the cross by asking our Mother to intercede for that person/people’s needs and concerns.

“They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.” (Acts 1:14)

After the ascension of Jesus, Mary continued to accompany the first Christian community. She joined them in constant prayer and fellowship.
Mary is our mother who forges in us a prayerful heart and gathers us in prayer as one community.

“Mary, the first contemplative person of all history has had a very important role in Verbum Dei in the process and in the rhythm of our life of prayer as in the configuration and growth of the ecclesial Fraternity.” (Statues of the FMVD no. 260)

While it is true that prayer is something personal and we can pray anywhere, praying as one community is also an essential aspect of our personal and communitarian growth in our discipleship. That is why in our community, we have different means where we can gather as one family to pray together - retreats, Spiritual exercises, School of the Word, etc.
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How do you take those means personally? Do you take it for granted? Or you take it as an opportunity to be configured in Christ personally and as a community? Why do you think praying with community is necessary?

“At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth.” (Luke 1:39-40)

After receiving the news of the pregnancy of her cousin Elizabeth, Mary got ready and hurried to the place of her cousin.
Mary’s gesture and movement transmits to us a sense of urgency. As Verbum Dei, our authentic life of prayer never fails to open our eyes to the urgency of mission of evangelization.

Once the Gospel of Jesus is assimilated, it radiates and spreads with spontaneity, joy and missionary urgency. "We cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard…" (VDMD Regulations no. 17)

“The current realities of injustice, technological advances, and new social and ecological challenges open us to a renewed urgency for evangelization and the need to learn to live in a world that is constantly changing.” (Identity and Mission of the VDMFa no. 58)

What urgent mission you recognize in your own family, workplace, and in our community? Do you take initiatives or you fall in complacency? Do you take actions or you simply complain?
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Let us ask our Mother to forge in us a heart that responds with urgency to the needs we see around us.

FRIDAY (JUNE 14)
Luke 1:48-49​

“.. for He has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty one has done great things for me, holy is His name.” (Luke 1:48-49)
 
This passage is part of Mary’s Magnificat. We give special attention to verse 48 where Mary expressed with confidence the transcendence of the great things God has done for her to all the generations.
 
What about us? Do we believe in the transcendence of our life when we allow God to work in us? Are we aware how our simple yes could give life to many generations? Many times, we do not see the fruit of our self-giving. Sometimes, it is difficult to believe that our offering is giving life to the Body of Christ.
 
Let us ask our Mother to forge in us a heart that believes in the transcendence of our lives. When we are faithful to what God is asking from us, surely, it will bear fruit in our own life and in the life of many.
 
Today, take time to notice how your faith and options is forming your own children, siblings, or loved ones close to you.

The two following weeks, we will center our guidelines sheet in the Virgin Mary. In Verbum Dei, our Mother Mary is also a person who leads us to grow in our spiritual life as faithful disciples of Jesus.

“Mary will always be in Verbum Dei, the source and guarantee of our clean and abundant joy, our perseverance and optimism obedience in the vocation, of our pure love” (Statutes VDMF 244) 

“Mary, Mother of God and of the Church, will always occupy a unique, decisive, indispensable, and irreplaceable place in Verbum Dei. Mary, “cause of our joy”, impels and guides the growing rhythm of our life of prayer and apostolate. She directs and determines the development and configuration of our Fraternity in both its ecclesial and universal dimensions” (Constitutions VDMF 78)
 
The Rosary is very important devotion for Catholics. We pray the Rosary in the parishes, in the families and many times in a personal way.
 
“The Rosary is and will always be in the Verbum Dei, together with the Eucharistic Sacrament, the most fraternal, familiar and homelike act” (Statues VDMF 242)

Through praying the Rosary, Mary is guiding us to Jesus. But, how do we pray the Rosary? Is rosary for me a monotonous and routinary prayer? Do I pray the Rosary without enough consciousness of what I am doing?  The Church is inviting us to pray the Rosary in a meditative way. Why?

Because meditation is a deeper and more efficacious form of prayer than vocal, and according to various Saints and Doctors of the Church such as St Alphonsus Liguori and St Theresa of Avila, meditative prayer is necessary for one’s spiritual life and even eternal salvation. The purpose of meditation as with all prayer is to elevate the heart and mind to God.

St Louis de Montfort among many other Saints recommend praying slowly and intently for a tremendous spiritual benefit.

In Verbum Dei, we also emphasize the meditation of the Word of God. “For that reason, our contemplation, meditation and prayer life, will be based on the Word of God, interpreted by the Teaching of the Church” (Statutes VDMF 202)
 
When praying the Rosary, it´s ideal to have a short meditation for each mystery, so that one may contemplate the significance of the mysteries as the prayers are recited. During this week, we´ll meditate on the Joyful Mysteries. It may help us to know more the life of Jesus, Mary and Joseph.

The Angel Gabriel declares Mary as the handmaid of the Lord. She will conceive by the Holy Spirit, and bear a son who will be called the Son of the Most High. Mary accepts this honor, while also accepting, without fully understanding, the pain and sorrow that would accompany its fulfillment. This mystery teaches us that even the purest joy we experience in this life necessarily entails suffering. It is with full reliance and trust in God that we are able to accept our suffering in order to fulfill our mission and forward God’s plan of salvation with humility and love.

Spiritual Fruit: Humility

Mary accepted God´s plan without resistances or reservations because she was completely confident that His plans are best. Do I humbly trust in the Lord especially when I don't understand clearly His plans?

TUESDAY (JUNE 4)
The Second Joyful Mystery
The Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth
Lk 1:39-56

Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth, who learns that she has conceived a child in her old age. Their visit is marked by happiness and thanksgiving as they rejoice in the wonderful gifts of God. Mary, with the Holy one inside of her, makes Elizabeth’s unborn child leap within her womb. Though such a simple visit, both are moved with God’s love and strengthened by His Grace. This mystery teaches us that we are to cherish our encounters with others. Each person God puts in our path is an opportunity to love, and share in the blessings God has bestowed upon us.

Spiritual Fruit: Charity and Love
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Mary thought of her cousin´s situation more than in her own personal condition due to her early pregnancy. Mary loved her cousin and wanted to help her. Do I live moments of self-giving to a person in need in dialogue with Mary? She encourages us to help in the best way possible.

The time for the birth of Christ has come. Joseph and Mary travel to Bethlehem where they find there to be no room at the inn. Mary is left to give birth to her Son in a modest and meager stable. Along with the interminable glory of Christ’s birth, Christ’s entrance into the world is marked by poverty and suffering. This mystery teaches us the virtue of poverty in spirit. Christ calls us to continual detachment from earthly things, and in so doing; we move closer to Christ and join our sufferings with His.

Spiritual Fruit: Poverty in Spirit
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This mystery is a manifestation of God´s ways to enter into our lives. He wants to be born and dwell in us but it may only happen when we acknowledge our poverty, unworthiness, our being a creature in need of Him. Do I welcome Him in my life when I experience my weaknesses, limitations or material and spiritual poverty? Is my joy founded in His presence in my life?

In observance of the law of Moses, Joseph and Mary take the child Jesus to be presented in the temple to God. Although not subject to this law, Jesus submits in obedience, and in like manner, Mary, not subject to the law of purification, humbly submits herself to it. It is at this time also, that the old man Simeon beholds the Son of Man. Simeon immediately recognizes the child as the King and Savior foretold, and declares the fate of Jesus as a sign that will be contradicted. This mystery teaches us the importance of purity in thought and deed. It is in humility that we are able to see our weaknesses and failings, while we recognize our constant need of God’s mercy and grace.

Spiritual Fruit: Purity of Mind and Body
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Simeon and Anna believed in the coming of the Savior. Their expectations were fulfilled upon seeing Jesus because they recognize Him as the Savior of the world. Do I believe in the presence of God in this world or do I doubt? Do I believe in God´s power in the midst of contradictions and uncertainties?

At twelve years of age, Jesus goes with his parents to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. It is on their return journey home that Joseph and Mary realize that their son is missing. Joseph and Mary seek Him endlessly. On the third day, they find Jesus preaching in the temple amongst teachers, who were at once astonished at his wisdom. Despite their grief and anxiety, Jesus assures His parents that all is well, as He is doing is Father’s work. Although Joseph and Mary do not fully understand this at the time, they will see that this event foreshadows the mission of ministry and sacrifice that Jesus will fulfill in obedience of His Heavenly Father. This mystery teaches us that submission to God our Father comes before all else. There is always joy to be found when we seek Jesus in the spirit of obedience.

Fruit: Obedience to God
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The joyful mysteries help us to meditate on Jesus’ infancy. Mary and Joseph played an important role in Jesus’ life. Both were very obedient to God in taking care of Jesus as He was growing physically and spiritually. That’s why at the age of twelve Jesus defended obedience to the Heavenly Father. Are we concerned to teach our younger generations to believe in God? Faith is primarily taught in the families. Let´s be ready to transmit our faith to those who come behind us.