{"id":16884,"date":"2010-03-17T09:59:48","date_gmt":"2010-03-17T13:59:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.firstthings.com\/blogs\/theanchoress\/?p=16884"},"modified":"2017-03-10T18:51:13","modified_gmt":"2017-03-10T18:51:13","slug":"st-patricks-breastplate-lent","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/theanchoress\/2010\/03\/17\/st-patricks-breastplate-lent\/","title":{"rendered":"St Patrick's Breastplate & Lent"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Reposted from 2007<\/a><\/p>\n

It is not what thou art, nor what thou hast been, that God looks upon with his merciful eyes, but what thou wouldst be.<\/strong>
\n\u2013 The Cloud of Unknowing.<\/em><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n


\nKeep before your own eyes that which you would wish to be.<\/strong> Don\u2019t be distracted by what other people are, but keep focused as much as possible, on your own soul. We all have regrets. We all wish we\u2019d not done some things in our lives (many things, in my case). We all have things we hate about ourselves.<\/p>\n

But we were all born for a purpose and with a potentiality. Think of the person you want to be \u2013 keep that person before your eyes \u2013 that\u2019s the person God sees, even when you feel submerged in your sins, and irretreivable.
\n
\nMaybe, even, ask Jesus to stand between you and all you have been<\/strong>, to stand between you and all you would be. Surrounded by Christ, things can only get better. I learned that from a police officer who told me he prayed, whenever he entered a dangerously unstable situation, such as a domestic dispute, that Jesus would stand between him and those to whom he was responding, that Christ would stand between each family member and their worst instincts. It was a powerful witness to me.<\/p>\n

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
\nChrist behind me, Christ before me,
\nChrist beside me, Christ to win me,
\nChrist to comfort and restore me.
\nChrist beneath me, Christ above me,
\nChrist in quiet, Christ in danger,
\nChrist in hearts of all that love me,
\nChrist in mouth of friend and stranger.<\/p>\n

I bind unto myself the Name,
\nthe strong Name of the Trinity,
\nBy invocation of the same,
\nThe Three in One, and One in Three.
\nBy Whom all nature hath creation,
\nEternal Father, Spirit, Word;
\nPraise to the Lord of my salvation,
\nSalvation is fo Christ the Lord.
\n\u2013 from St. Patrick\u2019s Breastplate<\/a>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

UPDATE:<\/strong>
\nFrom Ireland, Thank you, America!<\/a><\/p>\n

Then, turning a corner, there it was: the Statue of Liberty stood graceful in the blue distance. This immense figure was the first sight seen by millions of Irish immigrants who had never before beheld a structure more than thirty feet tall. Yet here, after many hard weeks at sea, they were met by a benevolent colossus which proclaimed that salvation was at hand, and that a new future free of tyranny and poverty was possible.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when it happened. I was drowned in wave of emotion. At first, I struggled to identify this overwhelming emotion. It was more than mere sadness, but what was it?<\/p>\n

As my wife and I embraced, all around us pulsed this extraordinary nation: a vast new country that has given millions of the Earth\u2019s poor a new life. Then I recognized what this overpowering feeling was: gratitude. Tears of pure gratitude for all of them, the Irish, and all the other peoples: a million human dramas unknown, all swept up from despair into the arms of America.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The Irish Famine Memorial<\/a>, a Half-acre of Ireland in NYC<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Related:<\/strong>
\nA little Irish kid tells the Story of St. Patrick<\/a>. Part of Give Up Yer Aul Sins<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reposted from 2007 It is not what thou art, nor what thou hast been, that God looks upon with his merciful eyes, but what thou wouldst be. \u2013 The Cloud of Unknowing. Keep before your own eyes that which you would wish to be. Don\u2019t be distracted by what other people are, but keep focused […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":112,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[157,171],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16884","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-lent-2010","category-misc"],"yoast_head":"\nSt Patrick's Breastplate & Lent<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Reposted from 2007 It is not what thou art, nor what thou hast been, that God looks upon with his merciful eyes, but what thou wouldst be. \u2013 The Cloud of\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/theanchoress\/2010\/03\/17\/st-patricks-breastplate-lent\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" 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