of St Margaret Mary
Source: carnet-de-careme-2017-vf-1-lg.pdf (sacrecoeur-paray.org)
4th week Samuel or the King
“ I am sending you to Jesse because I have discovered a king among his sons” 1S 16, 1b
If David’s choice makes us understand the beauty of God’s gaze on man, there remains no less a drama at the beginning of this story: man has turned away from God to choose a human king. Opportunity this week for us to ponder our choice of God as King of our life by returning to the first commandment : the love of God!
4th Sunday
love God
“Saint Jerome says that we must look for a long time for a good friend, one finds him with difficulty and one has a hard time keeping him… ” “God no doubt deserves our outward respects, and He demands them. But He wants our heart to honors him as well as our mouth; and all the honor He can expect from our hearts is to be loved ! »
4th monday
Loving the Creator
“We have a tenderness for horses, for dogs, for cats, for birds, to the point of being inconsolable when you lose them. We give our heart, we lavish it, we throw it, so to speak, to the first to come.. You alone, O God, can have no part in it! You, I say, who alone are great, good, wise, faithful, constant, most holy, liberal, impeccable; who are without defect, who possess all the perfections… and we refuse Your Love, O my Divine Master, this Love so sweet, so pure, so satisfying, so glorious, which carries with it the peace and tranquility that makes happy all those it inflames. »
4th Tuesday
Loving Love
“ All the natural lights promote the love we have for him; more He is known, and the more He is lovable. This is why those who devote themselves to the contemplation of His divine perfections feel each day ablaze with greater fire; this is why in heaven where we will see God, the charity, far from being extinguished like hope and faith, will receive an increase immense with ardor and flames.
» 4th Wednesday
Loving the Beloved
“You alone, O my God, can be mine as long as I I would like… I know very well that neither exile nor death can separate me from you; I know that I will find you everywhere, that everywhere I will find you too good and kind, that nothing can prevent me from living with you, from dying between your arms, and to enter, through death, into an even fuller enjoyment and sweeter with your divine presence! »
4th Thursday
love in truth
The only reason we don’t love God is because we don’t know Him. But how would we know him, seeing that we don’t deign to approach Him by the consideration of His perfections… Who could help loving You, if every day we took a little time to study You, O my God, and to see how loving You are! »
4th Friday
Loving Merciful Jesus
Yes, Christians have the greatest, the most powerful, the wisest of all gods ; and yet they do not love him! It is He who brought them out of nothingness, who gave them all the goods they enjoy, who takes care to keep them … He renders them all kinds of services, with a heart full of zeal and infinite love; and yet these ingrates do not love Him! He was willing to bear the penalty that was due, and still daily He patiently suffers their rebellions and outrages; He forgives them, He is the first to seek them out, to offer them His friendship ; he has nothing to do with them and nevertheless, he is inconsolable when he loses; He loves beyond all that can be said; and yet, He cannot be loved!
4th Saturday
Give us a heart to love!
“ Lord, if You do not soften our hearts by Your Grace, we will be as insensitive to Your Love as to Your benefits. You must give us Yourself with kindness this Love that You demand of us with so much justice … so that having obtained it from Your Mercy, we begin to sooner to do here on earth what we must continue throughout happy eternity. Amen