Are you lying on a bed of Ivory?

The Holy Father quoted the words of the prophet Amos: “Woe to the complacent in Zion … lying upon beds of ivory! They eat, they drink, they sing, they play and they care nothing about other people’s troubles”. He explained that, although these are harsh words, “they warn us about a danger that all of us face. … The danger of complacency, comfort, worldliness in our lifestyles and in our hearts, of making our well-being the most important thing in our lives”.

This was also the case of the rich man in the Gospel, who dressed luxuriously and banqueted sumptuously without concern for the poor man on his doorstep who had nothing to relieve his hunger. “Whenever material things, money, worldliness, become the centre of our lives, they take hold of us, they possess us; we lose our very identity as human beings. … The rich man in the Gospel has no name, he is simply 'a rich man'. Material things, his possessions, are his face; he has nothing else”.

This happens to us when we find “security in material things which ultimately rob us of our face, our human face. This is what happens when we become complacent, when we no longer remember God. … Life, the world, other people, all of these become unreal, they no longer matter, everything boils down to one thing: having. When we no longer remember God, we too become unreal, we too become empty; like the rich man in the Gospel, we no longer have a face. Those who run after nothing become nothing”.

Are you lying on a bed of Ivory?

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Attachment to money is a sickness, Pope Francis says

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/attachment-to-money-is-a-sickness-pope-francis-says/

The Kingdom of Heaven is for those who place their trust in the love of God,not in material possessions." ~ Pope Francis.

Sin of Omission [Not Sharing] & Sin's of Self Pity Leads the Soul to Hell.

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/sin-of-omission-not-sharing-sins-of.html

Jesus Loves The Rich & The Poor 

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/jesus-loves-rich-poor-in-bible-we-see.html

The Amazing Thing Pope Francis Does After Midnight

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2013/12/the-amazing-thing-pope-francis-does_21.html

Avarice & Greed- The Root Cause of Personal, Family & Social Problems....

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/avarice-greed-root-cause-of-personal.html

Generational Curses - Stinginess, Hoarding, Avarice & Greed

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/generational-curses-stinginess-hoarding.html

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Avarice & Greed- The Root Cause of Personal, Family & Social Problems....

The Secret of Good Health is Not Exercise or Diet Rather It is to be Free from Unfulfilled Desires, Greed, Hording, Lust, Jealousy, Pried etc   

The World Says Be Ambitious - Bible Says Do Not Be Ambitious

Where the world teaches us to go all out to be the best, to have a bigger house, a fancier car, a larger paycheck than our neighbor, the Bible teaches us the opposite: “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself” (Philippians 2:3).

- - - Bridon Francis Dsouza

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Father John A. Hardon Speaks Now on Avarice & Greed

[Meaning of Avarice - Insatiable greed for riches; Miserly desire to gain and hoard wealth.] 

Avarice

Actually, I would distinguish covetousness as generic and avarice as more specific. Covetousness is the inordinate love of possessing anything, any creature. There’s only one being we can love and not love excessively. Who is that? (God). Can we love creatures inordinately? (Yes) Yes. And who’s the one creature that we’re constantly prone to love inordinately? (Ourselves) Oh, sometimes you’re embarrassed of having the same name as the person about whom we know so many nasty things.

There it is. Avarice, more commonly therefore, refers to the inordinate love of material possessions. In other word, three words that are used in English almost synonymously, they are not quite synonymous, and that is greed. So covetousness, avarice, and greed in English which you know is the most confused language in the world. You’re never quite sure what people mean. But theologically, covetousness is generic. Inordinate desire for creatures – possessing creatures. Avarice rather material, physical possessions. And greed is avarice that has become an uncontrollable passion. Never absolutely uncontrollable, but greed then is extreme avarice. Notice what I’ve said: A greedy person loves material possessions but he wants to acquire, accumulate, pile up in an avarice that has become an addiction.

Greed

Greed lacks any reasonableness; greed is extreme avarice. And, hear it; it took me years in the priesthood to learn this, dealing with thousands of souls, that unless a sin or a sinful tendency is controlled, it becomes more impulsive, becomes stronger. And thus, you got to be constantly on our guard regarding say, material possessions. Not to possess anymore than we really need. And the more we possess, the more wealthy we are, the more prone we are to being greedy. I may have told the story of my friend, Terrytown, NY. His brother and his sister lived next door to the provincial residence in Oakpark, IL. I was working with our Jesuit provincial for some six years. The sister especially she was asking if I could ever visit her brother: become a multimillionaire but lost his faith in the process. Finally, mainly to please the sister, I got myself to give her a retreat somewhere in the neighborhood, community of nuns, and then on the last day of the retreat called up this wealthy tycoon, can I come over? And because his sister asked him to talk, he talked to anybody, even a Jesuit priest. Well, went through three secretaries to reach him. Finally, allowed me to talk to him. So we talked. I think I’ve told this story at least to some of you. But the first time we met, he asked me, “Do you believe in Hell?” I sure do. “Well, I don’t. They tell me nobody gets out of hell.” Well, so what. I wouldn’t be here in this hot, July sun. They want to keep you out of hell. In other words, accumulation of wealth becomes, and I’ve dealt with enough wealthy people, becomes, except for supernatural grace, uncontrollable. On more and more and more and that is true of all the seven capital sins. The more sex pleasure a person gets, they want more. They want more. And they do commit some awful crimes to get more pleasure. Pleasure, they get pleasure from killing people say whom they’ve raped. They get pleasure out of it. I’ve talked to them – lifetime prisoners.

Back to avarice and greed. And this is our Lord went out of His way, remember, in telling us how hard it is for rich people to enter Heaven. Oh what stories I could tell. A retreat only to multimillionaires. I told them on one condition. All I want is my transportation from New York to Milwaukee and back. When I got my check, little note on the bottom of the check, $10 besides my travel fare for incidental expenses. But as I was trained to do, I let those millionaires have it. Lest you men use your money, not just throw it away, use your money wisely, for charity, you’re all going to go to Hell. You didn’t have to call me in the first place.

-Father John A. Hardon, S.J

Cause for Canonization of Fr.John A Hardon

https://www.facebook.com/groups/120666934626396/

Fr. John A. Hardon

http://socrates58.blogspot.in/2011/05/servant-of-god-fr-john-hardon-s-j-great.html

Sin of Omission [Not Sharing] & Sin's of Self Pity Leads the Soul to Hell.

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/sin-of-omission-not-sharing-sins-of.html

Generational Curses - Stinginess, Hoarding, Avarice & Greed

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/generational-curses-stinginess-hoarding.html

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Generational Curses - Stinginess, Hoarding, Avarice & Greed

The spirit of Stinginess & Hoarding can Pass from Generation to Generation, and can even Dominate Family's, People of Certain Places, City's & Towns. If Parents are Bound with the spirit of  Stinginess & Hoarding, then even their Children are Most Likely to be Bound with the spirit of Stinginess & Hording - A Generational Curses.                                                 

We even get to See that Majority of People of Certain Places [City's & Towns] are Bound with the spirit of Stinginess, They Behave In a Similar Manner, It is an Evil spirit Strong Hold on them. Only God can Deliver them, if they Confess and Repent - Like Zacchaeus In the Bible ---  LUKE 19:1-10

The Typical Characters of a Stingy Person -  

Those who are Stingy  - They Will Always Shamelessly Ask for Things

Those who are Stingy - They like to go Uninvited at People's Home [Party's]

Those who are Stingy - They will Invite you when you give them a Phone Call but they will not Call you with Personal Invitation.

When It Is Proper To Be Ashamed - Sense Of Decency - Sirach 41:19

Be Ashamed of Leaning on the Dinner Table with your Elbows,

Be Ashamed of Stinginess when you are Asked for something,

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When a Stingy Person will Invite you to his Home [For Supper] he will Invite you in a Such A Way that you will Understand that he is Not Inviting you with a Good heart. But when a Generous Person will Invite a Stingy Person [For Supper], this Stingy Person will Not Only Come But he will also Shamelessly Bring his Friends Along with him. Just Give a Little Sing ---- to a Stingy Person, He will come with his Entire Family to your House, But When his Turn Comes to Show Hospitality he will Back Off.  

Bible Says: Proverbs 23:6-8

6 Don't eat with people who are Stingy  [ Selfish Evil Eye People]; ; don't Desire [Long] their Delicacies. 7 "Eat and Drink," they say, but they Don't Mean it [Their heart is Not with you].  They are always Thinking about How Much it Costs [They calculate in their minds the Cost]. . 8 You will vomit up the Delicious food they Serve, and you will have to take back your words of Appreciation for their "kindness." 

The Saying Goes >>>>>>>>>>>

                                                                                                          

Visit a Rich & Stingy mans House and you will get Poor Hospitality [You will get to See Empty Plates and Food Items Kept only for Display] 

Visit a Poor & Generous mans House, you will get Good Hospitality, he will Send you Full Stomach [Satisfied].

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The Reason People Like being Stingy [Shameless] because it does makes them Rich. Stinginess is the Easy Way of Getting Rich but only at the Price of Losing ones soul - Jesus told his disciples, “Do you have any idea how difficult it is for the rich to enter God’s kingdom? Matthew 19:23

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The spirit of Stinginess is a Captivating spirit.

If a Woman Marries a Stingy Man, Then With In Few Days She also Becomes Stingy, and Starts Behaving in a Stingy Manner Or if a Man Marries a Sting Woman with in Few Days the Man also Becomes Stingy.  

Difinition of Stingyness 

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stingy

Its Very Hard To Confess [Admit] That We Are Stingy 

"You cannot convince someone to see something that they do not

want to see, no matter how much you know it would improve their

lives. You have to love and accept them exactly as they are

today. If you cannot do that, you have to let them go and find

their own way, in their own time, if they ever choose to do so.

Otherwise, you'll be giving them the power over your happiness,

too." -- Doe Zantamata

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Jesus: Never Weep Over Material Things

http://www.tlig.org/en/messages/875/

Sin of Omission [Not Sharing] & Sin's of Self Pity Leads the Soul to Hell.

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/sin-of-omission-not-sharing-sins-of.html

Jesus Loves The Rich & The Poor 

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/jesus-loves-rich-poor-in-bible-we-see.html

Please Scroll Down 

Sin of Omission [Not Sharing] & Sin's of Self Pity Leads the Soul to Hell.

The Rich can End Up in Hell, because of the Sin's of Omission [Not Sharing their Riches with the Poor - Stinginess & Hording] 

The Poor can End Up in Hell, because of Self Pity, Being Jealous of the Rich, Hating the Rich or Being Disappointed with God & Not Trusting In God.

Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus the Poor Beggar. Luke 16:19-31

As we All Know in the Parable Lazarus the Poor Beggar Ends Up In Heaven and the Rich man Ends Up In Hell. The Question Arises, What were the Sin's of the Rich man that Lead him to Hell? And What were the Good Deeds of the Poor man Lazarus that Lead him Into Heaven?  In the Gospel Jesus Did Not Tell us that the Rich man was Very Bad (Evil person) or the Poor man Lazarus was Very Holy & a Perfect person, NO, Jesus Didn't Tell that. The Early Church Fathers came to an Conclusion that It was the SIN'S OF OMISSION [Not Sharing his Riches with Lazarus] that Lead the Rich man to Hell, And Lazarus the Poor Beggar went to Heaven because he KEPT ON TRUSTING IN GOD [Not Getting Disappointed with God & Not Giving into Self Pity or Being Jealous of the Rich People]  Lazarus Just Kept on Trusting in God in his Poverty {Sufferings} Until his Last Breath, Lazarus Died In Hunger {Poverty} because of the Rich Peoples Stinginess But God Gave Lazarus JOY, HAPPINESS & FULL SATISFACTION for All Eternity in Paradise.             God is Faithful. 

Lazarus had Sores on his Body but the Rich man had Sores on his Soul.

The Rich man Enjoyed the Best Food on Earth, Satisfied ALL his Cravings and Kept his Riches for himself [In today's Term - Living a Life Style of Indulging in Luxury, Leisure & Spa - Tasting Different Cuisine & Delicacy - Traveling Different Place's Every Now & Then etc]  But Sadly the Rich man after his Death Ended Up in Hell, A Place of Never Ending Pain, Thirst, Hunger & Torments..............

The Sad thing is that , there are Souls in Hell who Never Did the Most Evil Things like Murder, Abuses or Heinous Crime and Yet they Ended Up in Hell, Just Because of their Sin's of Omission [Not Sharing] On the other hand there are Souls in Heaven who Never Reached the Heights of Holiness or Did Great  Works of Charity, but Just because They Trusted in God & Praised God In their Poverty {Sufferings}, They Did Not Gave Into Self Pity, They Received the Free Gift of Eternal Life In Heaven. 

.Sin of omission- knowing to do good and not doing it.

(James 4:17 anyone then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins.)

.And sin of commission - transgression or violation of the law of God.

( 1 John 3:4)

Short Movie Clip: Rich Man & Lazarus: 

My Heart Decisions Affect Eternity

http://www2.crown.org/GodProvides/pub/RichManandLazarus.aspx

Jesus Loves The Rich & The Poor 

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/jesus-loves-rich-poor-in-bible-we-see.html

The Amazing thing Pope Francis does after Midnight

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/search?updated-min=2013-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&updated-max=2014-01-01T00:00:00-08:00&max-results=13

 

Jesus Loves The Rich & The Poor 

In the Bible, We See Zacchaeus the Tax Collector, Who was a Rich & Wealthy man he Seek's Jesus Earnestly. Luke 19: 1-10

There was a Chief Tax Collector there named Zacchaeus, who was RICH. 3 He was TRYING to SEE Who Jesus was, but he was a Little man and Could Not See Jesus because of the crowd. 4 So he Ran Ahead of the crowd and climbed a sycamore tree to SEE Jesus, who was going to pass that way. Luke 19: 1-4

When the Rich People SEEK Jesus Earnestly by Living a Life of Prayer & Sacrifice - Going to Church {Mass} Regularly, Attend Spiritual Retreats Frequently with Love for God, Then Jesus will Say to the Rich the Same Words He Said to Zacchaeus:   “Hurry down, Zacchaeus, because I Must Stay in your House (Heart) Today.”   

God Does Not Condemns the Rich, Rather I is the Rich who Themselves Chose there Own Condemnation by their Greed, Stinginess & Lust for Worldly Things.

There is Hope of Salvation for the Rich, When they Chose to Live for Christ and Use there Riches for God's Kingdom by Serving in the Church (As Helpers in the  Church) by Giving Money for the Work of  Evangelization, and by Helping the Poor as Zacchaeus Did.

Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Listen, sir! I will Give Half my Belongings to the Poor, and if I have Cheated anyone, I will Pay Back Four Times as Much.”

Then Jesus will Say to the Rich, the Same Words He Said to Zacchaeus: Jesus said to him, “Salvation has come to this house today, for this man, also, is a descendant of Abraham. 10 The Son of Man came to Seek and to Save the Lost.”

by Bridon Francis Dsouza.
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More Bible References on How the Rich Pleased God:

Please Read - Elisha and the Rich Woman & Her Reward for Pleasing God. 2 Kings 4: 8-37 & 8:1-6.

Job Was a Rich man, Who Worshiped God Faithfully. Job Loses his Wealth but God makes Him Prosperous Again & God Gives him Twice as Much he had Before. Job 1: 1-3, 13-22, Job 42:1-16

Solomon was a Rich man, God Himself Chooses Solomon to be the Richest man Ever. Solomon Gathered Silver & Gold as if it were Tin or Lead. 1 Kings 3:13 & Sirach 47:12-18.

Online Bible
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=2%20Kings%204:%208-37&version=GNT
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God will not give a man anything Unless he comes Empty Handed.  He has nothing to say to the Proud.  He is Opposed to the Proud (James 4:6).  He Resists the one who has No Need.

Just as He does not give His Wisdom to the one who doesn’t Really want it (James 1:6-8), so also He does not give Spiritual Riches to the one who is Satisfied with the Riches of this World.  He does not Fill Cups that are Already Full.  But when you go to God {To Church & For Spiritual Retreats} with an Empty Cup, He Fills it so that you Cup Runs Over (Psalm 23:5).

EVIL THAT MEN (MALES) DO - MEN WITH LUSTFUL EYES.

You are doomed! You are unable to break free from your sins. [Lust for Woman, which Leads to Crime and Self Destruction] Isaiah 5:18-23

They want to look for nothing but the chance to commit adultery; their appetite for sin is never satisfied. They lead weak people into a trap. 

2 Peter 2:14

Some of them [Men] go into people's houses and gain control over weak women who are burdened by the guilt of their sins and driven by all kinds of desires, women who are always trying to learn but who can never come to know the truth. 2 Timothy 3:6-7

JESUS: Then he added, "Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: 'I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.' For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners."

Matthew 9:13 

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When you See a Good-Looking Woman, Look the Other Way; don't let your Mind Dwell on the Beauty of any Woman who is not your Wife. Sirach 9:8

But I say to you, anyone who Looks [Stares - Gazes] at a Woman with Lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. Matthew 5:28

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It's All In The Eyes - Eyes Revels The Truth

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/its-all-in-eyes-eyes-revels-truth.html

MEN ARE CHATTERBOXES & WOMAN'S MORAL BEHAVIOR WITH MEN

http://jesusbloggerforu.blogspot.in/2014/01/men-are-chatterboxes-womans-moral.html

Please Scroll Down To See All Images............

MEN ARE CHATTERBOXES & WOMAN'S MORAL BEHAVIOR WITH MEN 

ST.FAUSTINA: They talk about everything but You, Jesus.

My room is next to the men's ward. I didn't know that men were such chatterboxes. From morning till late at night, there is talk about various subjects. The women's ward is much quieter. It is women who are always blamed for this; but I have had occasion to be convinced that the opposite is true. It is very difficult for me to concentrate on my prayer in the midst of these jokes and this laughter. They do not disturb me when the grace of God takes complete possession of me, because then I do not know what is going on around me. 

My Jesus, how little these people talk about You. They talk about everything but You, Jesus. And if they talk so little [about You], it is quite probable that they do not think about You at all. The whole world interests them; but about You, their Creator, there is silence. Jesus, I am sad to see this great indifference and ingratitude of creatures. O my Jesus, I want to love You for them and to make atonement to You, by my love. 

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WOMAN'S MORAL BEHAVIOR WITH MEN 

Today, when I warned a certain young lady that she should not be standing for hours in the corridor with the men, because it was unbecoming for a well-bred young lady to do so, she apologized and promised to correct herself. She began to cry when she became aware of her thoughtlessness. As I was saying these few things to her concerning moral behavior, all the men from the ward came over and listened to my words of advice. The Jewish people even heard a few things about themselves. A certain person told me afterwards that they put their ears against the wall and listened attentively. I somehow felt they were listening, but I said what I had to say. The walls are so thin here that one can be heard, even when speaking in a low voice. 

There is a woman here [165] who was once one of our students. Naturally, she puts my patience to the test. She comes to see me several times a day. After each of these visits I am tired out, but I see that the Lord Jesus has sent that soul to me. Let everything glorify You, O Lord. Patience gives glory to God. O how poor the souls are! 

March 1, 1937. The Lord gave me to know how displeased He is with a talkative soul. I find no rest in such a soul. The constant din tires Me, and in the midst of it the soul cannot discern My voice.

ST.FAUSTINA: They talk about everything but You, Jesus.