Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 8 August – Saint Hormisdas of Persia

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St Hormisdas of Persia (or Hormizd) was the son of a governor and a Persian martyr who died in the fifth century. At the time Christians were being persecuted by the Persian kings, and the tortures and method of murder inflicted upon them ws so cruel and horrible that according to sources from the period, it was difficult to even put it into words. Even worse than threat of pain, the Persian kings offered barbarism in one hand, and offers of power in the other. Despite this dual onslaught against weak human nature, the most terrible possible, many Christians stood fast to the Faith.

Babylon

High status and power were taken from Hormisdas because of his strict allegiance to Christianity. From a nobleman, he was stripped of everything, including most of his clothes, and made to take care of the royal camels.

In answer to the king’s demand that he renounce Christ, Hormisdas refused, saying that such a denial would offend God, and that a man willing to violate the supreme law of the sovereign Lord of all could not be trusted to remain faithful even to his earthly king. He added that if treason against an earthly sovereign is punishable by death, “what must it be to renounce the God and ruler of the universe?”

After a long time suffering humiliation, the king pitied the saint, gave Hormisdas a tunic and offered him clemency if he would “renounce the Carpenter’s Son.” In response, Hormisdas stripped off the tunic, asking the emperor how he could have believed it would persuade him to abandon the law of God. He was executed in the year 420 by Bahram V.

Posted in MARIAN TITLES

Santa Maria della Querce / Our Lady of the Oak, Lucignano, Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy (1417) and Memorials of the Saints – 8 August

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Santa Maria della Querce / Our Lady of the Oak, Lucignano, Arezzo, Tuscany, Italy (1417) – 8 August, Third Saturday of September:

In 1417 Feliciano Batone painted a fresco of the Pietà on a wayside Shrine beneath a great oak . Fifty years later, there was a surge in devotion to the Madonna of the Oak after the story circulated that on 8 August 1467, a man from Siena, running from his enemies, stopped there to pray to Mary, who made him invisible to his pursuers.

A small wooden Chapel was built to protect the image and Consecrated that year. Located on a hill northeast of the old City centre, beyond the Medici Fortress and the cemetery, the present Church was designed by Giorgio Vasari in 1558 and Consecrated in 1617.

On the third Sunday of September, near the feast of the Sorrowful Mother on S15 September, Lucignano celebrates St. Mary of the Oak with religious services, food, games and fireworks.

St Aemilian of Cyzicus
St Altman of Passau (c 1020 – 1091) Bishop

Ven Antonio/Margil of Jesus OFM (1657-1726)

St Cyriacus/Cyriac the Martyr (Died c 303) Deacon, Miracle-worker. One of the Fourteen Holy Helpers.

St Eleutherius of Constantinople
St Ellidius
St Famianus of Compostela
St Gedeon of Besancon
St Hormisdas of Persia
Bl John Felton

Bl John Fingley
St Largus
St Leobald of Fleury
St Leonidas of Constantinople
St Marinus of Anzarba

St Mummolus of Fleury
St Myron the Wonder Worker
St Paulus Ge Tingzhu
St Rathard of Diessen
St Severus of Vienne
St Sigrada
St Smaragdus
St Ternatius of Besançon
St Ultan of Crayke
Bl William of Castellammare di Stabia
Bl Wlodzimierz Laskowski
—
Martyrs of Albano – 4 saints: Four Christians who were martyred together, and about we today know little more than their names – Carpóforo, Secondo, Severiano and Vittorino. They were martyred in Albano, Italy – their remains are interred in the San Senator cemetery, on the Appian Way, 15 miles from Rome, Italy.

Martyrs of Rome – 5 saints: Five Christians martyred together; we know nothing else about them but the names – Ciriaco, Crescenziano, Giuliana, Memmia and Smaragdus. They were martyred at the 7 mile marker, on the Via Ostia, Rome, Italy.

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War – Martyrs of El Saler – 5 beati: Five nuns, all members of the Sisters of the Pious Schools, all teachers, and all martyred together in the Spanish Civil War.
• Antonia Riba Mestres
• Maria Baldillou Bullit
• María Luisa Girón Romera
• Nazaria Gómez Lezaun
• Pascuala Gallén Martí
They were martyred on 8 August 1936 in El Saler, Valencia, Spain.

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
Bl Cruz Laplana Laguna
Bl Fernando Español Berdie
Bl Leoncio López Ramos
Bl Manuel Aranda Espejo
Bl Mariano Pina Turón
Bl Pedro Álvarez Pérez

Posted in Our MORNING Offering

Our Morning Offering – 8 August – Omnipotentia Patris

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 8 August – Sunday of the Holy Trinity

Omnipotentia Patris

O Omnipotence of the Father,
help my frailty
and save me from the depths of misery.

O Wisdom of the Son,
direct all my thoughts,
my words and my deeds.

O Love of the Holy Spirit,
be the source of all the actions of my mind,
that they may always be conformed
to God’s good pleasure.
Amen

Posted in ONE Minute REFLECTION

One Minute Reflection – 8 August – “Ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks”

Posted on by AnaStpaul

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples, Let your loins be girt about and your lamps burning, and you yourselves like men waiting for their master’s return from the wedding; so that when he comes and knocks, they may straight-way open to him.

Luke 12:35-40

REFLECTION – God, the Word, stirs up the lazy and arouses the sleeper. For indeed, someone who comes knocking at the door is always wanting to come in. But it depends on us if he does not always enter or always remain. May your door be open to him who comes; open your soul, enlarge your spiritual capacities, that you may discover the riches of simplicity, the treasures of peace and sweetness of grace. Expand your heart; run to meet the sun of that eternal light that “enlightens everyone”. It is certain that this true light shines for all, but if anyone shuts their windows then they themselves shut themselves off from this eternal light.

So even Christ remains outside if you shut the door of your soul. It is true that he could enter but he doesn't want to use force, he doesn't put those who refuse under pressure. Descended from the Virgin, born from her womb, he shines throughout the universe to give light to all. Those who long to receive the light that shines with an everlasting brightness open up to him. No night comes to intervene. Indeed, the sun we see each day gives way to night's darkness; but the Sun of justice knows no setting for Wisdom is not overcome by evil.

Saint Ambrose (12th Sermon on Psalm 118)

PRAYER – Almighty, ever-living God, in Your Word, You shed the light of Your glory on the peoples who are living in the shadow of death. By Your Word, You teach us all things and ‘draw’ us in the way of hope and love. For Your Word is Truth and Your Word became flesh and filled our world with the Sun of Justice, Your Son, He who is the Sun and the Truth. May our steps be guided by His Mother, Our Blessed Lady, as we follow in the footsteps of Your Word and be a protection in our trials by the Bread of Life. Through Christ, our Lord Jesus, with You in union with the Holy Spirit, now and forever, amen.

Posted in CATHOLIC Quotes

Quote/s of the Day – 8 August – You also must be ready

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 8 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – Readings: Ps 36:30-31, Ps 36:1, Sir 31:8-11, Luke 12:35-40

Amen I say to you, he will gird himself, and will make them recline at table, and will come and serve them. And if he comes in the second watch, and if in the third, and finds them so, blessed are those servants!

Luke 12:35-40

Finally, to die of the plague is not a dreadful death. St. Roch and St. Francis Xavier died of it. But what makes death bad is sin. Ah, this horrible sin which tears and devours at this dread moment! Alas, no matter where the poor, unfortunate sinner looks, he sees only sin and neglected graces! If he lifts his eyes to Heaven, he sees only an angry God, armed with all the fury of His justice, Who is ready to punish him. If he turns his gaze downwards, he sees only Hell and its furies already opening its gates to receive him. Alas! This poor sinner did not want to recognise the justice of God during his life on earth; at this moment, not only does he see it, but he feels it already pressing down upon him. 

St John Vianney

“There is no peace, saith the Lord, unto the wicked.”

Isa. xlviii. 22.

“Great is the peace that they have who love Thy law.”

Ps. cxix.

Hast thou the soul of a hog? Ah, wretched one, perhaps thou art like a beast, so that thou canst be satisfied with eating, with drinking, with sensual pleasures?

St Bernard of Clairvaux

If the riches of this world could satisfy a man, the rich and those who govern, would be fully happy; but experience teaches us the contrary. Solomon observes the same thing, even he who asserts that he never denied his senses one thing. But not withstanding, what does he say? “Vanity of vanities; …. all is vanity.”

St Alphonsus Liguori

Wherefore when the time of discretion is come, the soul can, by her free will, make choice either of good or evil, according as it pleases her will; and so great is this liberty that man has, and so strong has this liberty been made by virtue of this glorious Blood, that no demon or creature can constrain him to one smallest fault without his free consent. He has been redeemed from slavery, and made free in order that he might govern his own sensuality, and obtain the end for which he was created. Oh, miserable man, who delights to remain in the mud like a brute, and does not learn this great benefit which he has received from Me! A benefit so great, that the poor wretched creature full of such ignorance could receive no greater.

The Dialogue of St Catherine of Siena

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Thought for the Day – 8 August – Mary’s Heart, The Sun

Posted on by AnaStpaul

St John Eudes – The Admirable Heart of Mary

Mary’s Heart, The Sun

The sun is the second symbolic picture which God, the Creator of heaven and earth, has deigned to give us of the Immaculate Heart of the Queen ~ of heaven and earth. God did not create the natural sun, our wonderful luminary, merely to enlighten our material world; He made it also to be a representation of the excellent perfections which shine in the luminous Heart of the world’s Sovereign Lady.

We should remember that the infinite power of God has divided this great universe into three different states or orders, namely the state of nature, the state of grace and the state of glory. His divine wisdom has nevertheless established such a perfect bond, relationship and resemblance among these three states and among the beings existing in these orders that whatever is in the order of nature is an image-of the things belonging to the order of grace, and whatever belongs to the order of nature and grace is a figure of what is to be seen in the state of glory.

Hence, the sun, which is truly the heart of the visible world, and the most beautiful and glowing gem of nature, gives us, in spite of its dazzling light, only a very faint shadow of our heavenly Sun, the Heart of the Mother of God.

Sacred Scripture calls the sun an admirable vessel, the work of the Sovereign Lord. “An admirable instrument, the work of the Most High. Great is the Lord that made him,” But we can say of the most excellent Heart of the Mother of God that it is an incomparable masterpiece of God’s almighty hand. It is a compendium of all the marvels He has worked in pure creatures, and will be the eternal object of the admiration and delight of angels and men. Great indeed is He who made it, because His divine magnificence appears in her admirable Heart more clearly than in all the other wonderful things of nature, grace and glory.

Mary’s Heart is surrounded, filled, penetrated by light, and her light is incomparably more brilliant and radiant than all the lights of the celestial spaces. It is all light, and after God, it is the first source of the lights which shine in the firmament of the Church. “I made that in the heavens there should rise light that never faileth.”

Yes, hers is indeed the heart of the entire world, the heart of Heaven and earth, the heart of the Church Militant, Suffering and Triumphant, since the Holy Spirit bids us sing: Vitam datam per Virginem, gentes redemptae plaudite. “All ye nations, redeemed by the Precious Blood of Jesus Christ, rejoice, sing the praises of your Redeemer and His glorious Mother! You were condemned to eternal death, and the Son of Mary has made you free; the Mother of Jesus has restored life to you, even eternal life, by giving you her Son, who is Life essential and the source of all life.”

The solar sun has been in perpetual motion since its creation in space, and it travels so rapidly that mathematicians calculate its speed to be over one million leagues an hour. Similarly, the holy Heart of Mary, from the moment of her Immaculate Conception, has been completely kept in motion by love for God and charity towards mankind. As long as Mary, the admirable Sun of Light and Purity, was on earth, she sped or rather flew with such celerity on the path of sanctity that the speed of our material sun is simply a shadow and a figure by comparison. For this holy Sun, Mary’s immaculate Heart, progressed incomparably farther in the mystical and supernatural way of the world of grace than the material sun which revolves around our visible world.

St. Germanus of Constantinople calls the Heart of Mary the happiness of the entire world. Commune mundi gaudium. And St. John Damascene says that it is an ocean of inexhaustible delight: Gaudii pelagus inexhaustum.

“Take away the sun that enlightens our material world,” says St. Bernard, “what will become of day or light? Take away Mary, the Star of the Sea, or take away the Heart of Mary, the true Sun of the Christian World, and what would be left? Without Mary’s radiance, nothing is left but enveloping darkness, the shadow of death and the frightful night of the grave.”

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Novena to Our Lady of the Assumption – Day Three – 8 August

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Novena to Our Lady of the Assumption

DAY THREE

Daily Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ,
Thou has destroyed the power of death
and given the hope of eternal life,
for body and soul.
Thou granted Thy Mother
a special place in Thy glory
and did not allow decay to touch her body.
As we rejoice in the Assumption
of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
grant us renewed confidence
in the victory of life over death.
Amen.

Day 3:
O Mother, Assumed into Heaven
because thou shared in all the mysteries
of our Redemption here below,
Jesus has crowned thee with glory.
With thy most glorious and powerful intercession,
help us O loving Mother
and present to Jesus our request.
…………………………………
(Mention your request)
O Queen assumed into Heaven, pray for us.
Amen

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Thought for the Day – 7 August – Mary’s Heart, the Heavens

Posted on by AnaStpaul

St John Eudes – The Admirable Heart of Mary

Mary’s Heart, the Heavens

The first symbolic picture of the Admirable Heart of Mary which the Eternal Father has given to us is the heavens. Mary’s pure Heart is truly a heaven of which the sky over our heads is a mere shadow and image. It is a heaven exalted above all others, of which the Holy Ghost speaks when He says that the Saviour of the World went out from a heaven surpassing all others in excellence, when He came on earth to redeem mankind.

The heavens are called the special work of God’s hands: “The heavens are the works of thy hands,” but the Heart of the Mother of God is the unequalled masterpiece of His omnipotence, His unfathomable wisdom and His infinite goodness. The Admirable Heart of Mary is an empyrean heaven, that is, a Heaven all fire and flames, ever burning with the fire and flames of celestial love, holier and more ardent than the love of the Seraphim and of the greatest Saints who dwell in the empyrean heaven.

Yes, the most holy Heart of the Queen of Angels is the Heaven of Heavens for three significant reasons.

First of all, Jesus Christ is truly the Heaven of the Blessed Trinity. The Holy Ghost assures us that the fulness of the Divinity abides in Him: “For in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead,” and this same Jesus has forever fixed His dwelling in the Blessed Heart of His most worthy Mother. This must not surprise us, for Sacred Scripture reveals that even in this present life, He maintains His dwelling in the hearts of all who believe in Him with a firm and perfect faith. We can therefore conclude that, as our most lovable Saviour is Himself a Heaven, possessing no abode more glorious and delightful, next to the adorable bosom of His Eternal Father, than the Heart of His holy Mother, which is itself a Heaven, He is truly Heaven dwelling within a heaven. In this way, the Heart of the Mother of Jesus can be said to be the Heaven of Heaven.

Secondly, Mary’s Immaculate Heart is the Heaven of Heaven because the spotless Virgin is really a heaven considered in her own person. This is the quality ascribed to her by the Holy Ghost, according to a learned and holy writer: “From heaven the Lord hath looked upon the earth.” As this commentator explains it, “the Lord, dwelling in the Blessed Virgin Mary, as in a heaven, has turned the eyes of His mercy towards the earth, that is, towards sinners.” Then the same author goes on to say that this marvellous Virgin is a heaven because, as all living things in the order of nature receive their life from the influence of heaven, so does Holy Church teach us that the life of grace is given to us through the Blessed Virgin Mary: Vitam datam per Virginem.”

Thirdly, the Admirable Heart of Mary is the Heaven of Heaven, because, as St. Bernard says, it contains the entire Church, which is called in Sacred Scripture the Kingdom of Heaven, and because all the children of the Church receive through Mary the life of grace. Who will contradict me if I add that Our Lady will forever carry all the inhabitants of heaven in her inmost Heart, which becomes the Heaven of Heaven, and a true Paradise of the Elect, in which they find the fullness of delight and joy, due to the inconceivable love for each soul which consumes her maternal Heart? Thus the blessed will forever sing: Sicut laetantium omnium nostrum habitatio est in corde tuo, sancta Dei Genetrix. O holy Mother of God, thy boundless charity has so vastly extended thy maternal Heart that it has become like a great city, or rather an immense heaven, full of ineffable consolations and unspeakable joys for thy beloved children, whose happy dwelling it shall be for all eternity.

Present our requests to the Mother of grace and mercy. Through the intercession of her Heart, most exalted, yet most tender, we shall obtain the graces that we need to become pleasing in the sight of the celestial majesty of God,

Rejoice, O readers, rejoice, you whose great happiness it is to be numbered among the true children of the Mother of pure love, for your names are written in her maternal Heart! Lift up your eyes and your hearts to that beautiful heaven! It is there that your hearts will find light, strength, powerful aid in the battle of life, guidance and succor, and above all inspiration to love your Creator and Redeemer, the Lord of Heaven, strongly, purely and above all things.

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 7 August – Saint Afra of Augsburg

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Saint Afra, martyr and penitent, listed in some records as the daughter of the king of Cyprus. In the late 3rd century, her pagan family journeyed from Cyprus to Augsburg. Afra was dedicated to the service of the goddess Venus by her mother, Hilaria, a service which involved ritual prostitution.

When the persecutions started in Augsburg, Bishop Narcissus of Gerona, Spain, arrived in the city and took lodging with Afra and her mother, not knowing their profession. His holiness and the doctrine of redemption he brought converted the women, who were baptised, and Afra’s uncle Dionysius was ordained as a bishop. She immediately began to give liberally to the poor. When officials came looking for the bishop, Afra hid him under a pile of flax.

Arrested for being a Christian and refusing to participate in pagan rites, she was burned to death, tied to a tree on the small island of Lech. She was buried in Augsburg and her mother erected a chapel for her tomb. Soon after, Hilaria and her serving women were also martyred, burned alive in their house. Afra’s remains were buried in a church named after her. Pilgrims visited her shrine as early as 565. In 1012, the Benedictine monastery of St. Ulrich and St. Afra displayed her sarcophagus. The Acts of Afra give an account of her martyrdom.

The judge, Gaius, said to her: “Come now, sacrifice to the gods; it is better to live than to die amid torments.”

The saint replied: “The sins which I have committed before I knew the true God are sufficient; wherefore I cannot now do that which thou commandest. I never will do so: it would be adding a new insult to my God.”

The judge having ordered her to repair to the temple, she answered with great courage: “My temple is Jesus Christ, whom I have continually before mine eyes, and to whom I every day confess my sins. Since I am unworthy to offer him any other sacrifice, I am anxious to sacrifice myself, in order that this body, with which I have offended him, may be purified by torments; this reflection shall make me suffer most willingly.”

“Since, therefore,” said Gaius, “by reason of thy wicked life thou hast nothing to expect from the God of the Christians, thou hadst better sacrifice to our gods.”

The saint replied: “My Lord Jesus Christ has said that he descended from heaven to save sinners. We read in the Gospel that a sinful woman, having washed his feet with her tears, obtained from him the forgiveness of all her offences; and, moreover, that he never rejected sinful creatures nor publicans; but, on the contrary, condescended to converse and even to eat with them.”

The iniquitous judge was not ashamed to counsel her to return to her infamous practices, in order that she might gain the favor of the gallants, and enrich herself.

“I renounce,” said the penitent Saint Afra, “that execrable gain, and look upon it with horror. That which I had, I have cast from me and given to the poor, imploring them to accept it; how, then, can I consent to earn it again?”

Afra’s martyrdom deeply influenced the Christian community in Augsburg. A church was built over her burial site, and she became the patron saint of the city. Over the centuries, her veneration grew beyond Germany, and she became known in other parts of Europe. During the Middle Ages, pilgrims visited her shrine, and her cult was promoted by the Benedictine monks who cared for the church bearing her name—St. Ulrich and Afra Abbey. Her remains are still there.

Posted in MARIAN TITLES

Our Lady of Schiedam and the Memorials of the Saints – 7 August

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Our Lady of Schiedam is a statue of Our Lady in Holland, the Netherlands.  A merchant stole this image with the intention of selling it at a fair at Antwerp, but no matter what he attempted, he could never leave port.  Frightened by this miracle, he restored the image, and it was solemnly transported to the Church of St. John the Baptist.

Our Lady of Schiedam in the boat and church

It was at the shrine of Our Lady of Schiedam that the mystic, St. Lidwina spent whole nights in prayer. Early in her life, Lidwina was drawn toward the Mother of God and prayed a great deal before this miraculous image.  The Mother of God revealed to her the extent of suffering Christ would ask her to endure, but likewise assured her that she, Mary, would sustain her through her grace and intercessory power. The Blessed Virgin was true to her word, as was St. Lidwina in accepting the will of God in imitation to Our Lady’s Fiat.

St Cajetan (1480-1547) (Optional Memorial) Known as the “Father of Providence” and the “Huntsman of Souls” – Founder of the Theatine Order – Priest, Confessor, Reformer, Doctor of Civil and Canon Law, Diplomat, Mystic, Miracle Worker, apostle of the sick and the poor.

St Afra of Augsburg
Bl Agathangelus Nourry

St Albert of Trapani O.Carm. (c 1240-1307) Carmelite Priest, Confessor, Preacher, Evangeliser, apostle of prayer and a devout servant of the Blessed Virgin and the Passion of Christ. St Teresa of Jesus (1515-1582) and St Mary Magdalene de Pazzi (1566-1607) were especially devoted to him, the Bl Baptist Spagnoli (1447–1516) composed a sapphic ode in his honour.

Bl Cassian Vaz Lopez-Neto
St Claudia of Rome
St Donat
St Donatian of Chalons-sur-Marne

St Donatus of Arezzo (Died 362) Bishop and possibly a Martyr, Confessor, Miracle-worker.

St Donatus of Besancon
Bl Edmund Bojanowski
Bl Edward Bamber
St Faustus of Milan
St Hilarinus of Ostia
St Hyperechios
Bl John Woodcock
Bl Jordan Forzatei
St Julian of Rome
St Miguel de la Mora
Bl Nicholas Postgate
St Peter of Rome
Bl Thomas Whitaker
Blessed Vincent de L’Aquila OFM (c 1435-1504)
St Victricius of Rouen
—
Martyred Deacons of Rome – 6 saints: A group of deacons who were martyred with Pope Saint Sixtus II. We know nothing about them but their names and their deaths – Agapitus, Felicissimus, Januarius, Magnus, Stephen and Vincent. They were
beheaded on 6 August 258 in a cemetery on the Appian Way, Rome, Italy.

Martyrs of Como – 6 saints: A group of Christian soldiers in the imperial Roman army. Martyred in the persecutions of Maximian. We know little else but the names – Carpophorus, Cassius, Exanthus, Licinius, Secundus and Severinus. c.295 on the north side of Lake Como, near Samolaco, Italy. Their relics in the church of San Carpoforo, Como, Italy.

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: 10 Beati
Bl Dalmacio Bellota Perez
Bl Diodorus Hernando Lopez
Bl Francisco Gargallo Gascón
Bl Luis Villanueva Montoya
Bl María del Carmen Zaragoza y Zaragoza
Bl María Rosa Adrover Martí
Bl Rafaél Severiano Rodríguez Navarro
Bl Tomás Carbonell Miquel

Posted in Our MORNING Offering

Our Morning Offering – 7 August – O Mother Blest By St Alphonsus

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Our Morning Offering – 7 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary”

O Mother Blest
By St Alphonsus Maira Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor of the Church
Trans. Fr Edmund Vaughn C.SS,R, (1827 – 1908 )

O Mother blest, whom God bestows
On sinners and on just,
What joy, what hope thou givest those
Who in thy mercy trust.
Thou are clement, thou are chaste,
Mary thou art fair,
Of all mothers, sweetest best,
none with thee compare.

O heavenly Mother, mistress sweet!
it never yet was told
that suppliant sinner left thy feet,
unpitied, unconsoloed.
Thou are clement, thou are chaste, …

O Mother, pitiful and mild,
Cease not to pray for me;
For I do love thee as a child,
And sigh for love of thee.
Thou art clement, thou art chaste, …

Most powerful Mother, all men know
Thy Son denies thee nought;
Thou askest, wishest it, and lo!
His power thy will hath wrought.
Thou art clement, thou art chaste, …

O Mother blest, for me obtain,
Ungrateful though I be,
To love that God who first could deign
To show such love for me.
Thou art clement, thou art chaste,
Mary, thou art fair.
Of all mothers, sweetest, best,
None with thee compare.

Posted in ONE Minute REFLECTION

One Minute Reflection – 7 August – Choosing to enter through the narrow gate

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One Minute Reflection – 7 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – Readings: Ps 36:30-31, Ps 36:1, Sir 31:8-11, Matt 6:24-33

At that time, Jesus said to His disciples: No man serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will stand by the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Matt 6:24-33

REFLECTION – I firmly believe that you know the kingdom of heaven is promised and given by the Lord only to the poor, because she who loves what is temporal loses the fruit of love.

It is not possible to serve God and mammon, for either the one is loved and the other hated, or the one is served and the other despised; one clothed cannot fight another naked because she who has something to be caught hold of is more quickly thrown to the ground: someone who lives in the glory of earth cannot rule with Christ; it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Therefore you have cast aside your garments, that is, earthly riches, so that instead of being overcome by the one fighting against you, you will be able to enter the kingdom of heaven through the straight path and the narrow gate.

St Clare (1st Letter to Agnes of Prague)

PRAYER – Holy God, grant we pray, Your Holy Spirit of love and divine grace to grow ever more in faith. By our prayers and love for You and our neighbour, may we merit Your divine assistance. Lord Jesus, help us to dwell often on the manner in which we are following You. Let us strive each day to become more and more like You in all things and, to become beacons of Your Light, to all the world. St Cajetan, you who were and are a light to all, pray for us, We make our prayer through Christ, our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.

Posted in CATHOLIC Quotes

Quote/s of the Day – 7 August –St Cajetan

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Quote/s of the Day – 7 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – The Memorial of St Cajetan (1480-1547)

“We may seek graces
but shall never find them
without the intercession of Mary.”

“My desire is not my way
but Your way.”

“May all praise and thanks
be continually given
to the Most Holy
and Most August Sacrament.”

“If you want Christ to love you
and help you, you must love Him
and always make every endeavour to please Him.
Do not waver in your purpose
because even if all the saints
and every single creature were to abandon you,
He will always be near you,
no matter what your needs may be.”

“Do not receive Christ in the Blessed Sacrament
so that you may use Him as you judge best
but give yourself to Him
and let Him receive you in this Sacrament,
so that He Himself, God your Saviour,
may do to you and through you, whatever He wills.”

Look Down, O Lord
By St Cajetan (1480-1547)

Look down, O Lord, from Thy sanctuary
and from the high habitation of Heaven
and behold this Sacred Oblation
which our great High Priest,
Thy Holy Servant, the Lord Jesus,
immolates unto Thee, for the sins of His brethren
and be propitious to the multitude of our iniquities.
Behold, the Voice
of the Blood of Jesus, our Brother,
cries to Thee from the Cross.
Graciously hear, O Lord,
be appeased, O Lord, hearken and do.
Delay not for Thy own sake, my God
because Thy Name is invoked upon this city
and upon Thy people
and do with us,
according to Thy mercy.
Amen

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Novena to Our Lady of the Assumption – Day Two – 7 August

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Novena to Our Lady of the Assumption

DAY TWO

Daily Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ,
Thou has destroyed the power of death
and given the hope of eternal life,
for body and soul.
Thou granted Thy Mother
a special place in Thy glory
and did not allow decay to touch her body.
As we rejoice in the Assumption
of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
grant us renewed confidence
in the victory of life over death.
Amen.

Day 2:
Mary, Assumed into Heaven,
we venerate thee as the Queen of Heaven and earth.
As thou tasted the bitterness of pain and sorrow
with thy Son on earth,
thou now enjoy
eternal bliss with Him in Heaven.
Loving Queen,
we beg thy intercession,
do not despise our petitions,
for we trust in thy power with God
………………………………….
(Mention your request)
We praise and bless Our Lord Jesus
for giving us such a loving Mother.
O Queen Assumed into Heaven, pray for us.
Amen

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 6 August – Blessed Octavian of Savona

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Blessed Octavian of Savona, also known as Ottaviano, was born in 1060 in Quingey, in France. He was the brother of Pope Saint Callistus II. Educated by the Benedictines, he became a monk at the Benedictine community at Saint Peter’s Abbey in Pavia, Italy. His devotion and commitment to the monastic way of life meant he rose through the ranks of the Benedictine order. In 1129, Octavian was appointed the Bishop of Savona, in northern Italy.

Savona, 1860

He was venerated for his deep devotion and strong faith, in only a short time becoming an extremely powerful force for good in the lives of those around him by inspiring them to follow Christ more diligently. He died peacefully in 1132, of natural causes. In recognition of his virtues and the impact he had on the lives of others, Octavian was beatified by Pope Pius VI in 1793, confirming his cultus and recognizing him as a blessed.

Posted in MARIAN TITLES

Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord, Nossa Senhora das Graças / Our Lady of Graces, Pesqueira, Pernambuco, Northeast, Brazil (1936) and Memorials of the Saints – 6 August

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Transfiguration of Our Lord (Feast)

AND

Nossa Senhora das Graças / Our Lady of Graces, Pesqueira, Pernambuco, Northeast, Brazil (1936) – 6 August :

On 6 August 1936, Maria da Luz Teixeira, 13, and Maria da Conceição, 16 (a poor girl living with the Teixeira family), were gathering castor beans on Guarda mountain in the Cimbres district, 15 miles from Pesqueira. There was a flash of light and then Maria da Conceição said, “Look, there’s an image that looks like Our Lady.” Maria da Luz saw it too, up on a rock. They ran home and told Maria da Luz’s parents. At her mother’s insistence, Artur Teixeira climbed the hill with the girls, who reached the spot long before he struggled up through the brush. He saw nothing unusual but, at his suggestion, the girls together asked the image, “Who are you?” “I am Grace.” They asked what she wanted. “I’ve come to warn of three punishments sent by God. Tell the people to pray much and do penance.”

After this the girls returned to the site daily, where they prayed with a growing crowd of pilgrims. On 9 August, the crowd demanded a sign; reluctantly, the girls asked for one. The next day, they found water flowing from the rock and two sets of footprints embedded in stone, one an adult’s and one a child’s. The apparition confirmed they belonged to her and her son. The Bishop conducted an investigation. Maria da Luz described Our Lady of Grace as “similar to Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Pesqueira Cathedral but her mantle is blue and her dress cream, with a belt. She has a little child in her left arm and both have very beautiful crowns on their heads.”

Eventually the Virgin told her that the people’s response had been sufficient to avert the three chastisements, sometimes identified as armed bandits (particularly the notorious Lampião, killed by police in 1938) and the coming of World War II or a Communist regime to Brazil. Maria da Conceição died young. In 1940, Maria da Luz joined the Religious of Christian Instruction, taking the name Sister Adélia. In her absence, pilgrims continued to visit the Shrine at the apparition site, where 296 carved stone steps lead to a Statue of Our Lady of Grace (as depicted on the Miraculous Medal, without the Child, not as the girls saw her) and to report miracles there.

Bl Gezelin of Schlebusch
St Gislain of Luxemburg
St Glisente of Brescia
Bl Goderanno
Bl Guillermo Sanz
St Hardulf of Breedon

St Pope Hormisdas (c 450-523) Bishop of Rome from 514 until his death in 523. A talented diplomat, arbitrator and negotiator.

St James the Syrian

St Justus and St Pastor of Alcala – Holy Martyred Children (Died 304) Saints Justus and Pastor of Alcala were two brothers, who in their tender age overcame, with an heroic courage, the rage and power of Dacian, armed with all the instruments of cruelty.

Bl Octavian of Savona
St Pope Sixtus II (Died 258) Pope and Martyr

St Stephen of Cardeña
Bl Tadeusz Dulny
Bl William of Altavilla
—
Martyrs of Cardeña: Two hundred Benedictine monks at the Saint Peter of Cardegna monastery, Burgos, Spain who were martyred in the 8th century by invading Saracens. They were buried by local Christians in a nearby churchyard in Burgos, Spain and Beatified in 1603 by Pope Clement VIII (cultus confirmed).

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War: 10 Beati
• Blessed Alejandro Casare Menéndez
• Blessed Andrés Soto Carrera
• Blessed José González Ramos Campos
• Blessed José María Recalde Magúregui
• Blessed Juan Silverio Pérez Ruano
• Blessed Saturnino Ortega Montealegre

Posted in Our MORNING Offering

Our Morning Offering – 6 August – Transfigured Christ, Believed and Loved,

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Our Morning Offering – 6 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary”- Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

Transfigured Christ, Believed and Loved,
(More Ancient than the Primal World)
Benedictine Nuns of Stanbrook Abbey
Breviary Lauds Hymn
Feast of the Transfiguration

More ancient than the primal world
And older than the morning star,
Before the first things took their shape,
Creator of them all, You are.

Your image is the Lord of life,
Your Son from all eternity,
All that must perish, He restores,
In Him, all reconciled will be.

Transfigured Christ, believed and loved,
In You our only hope has been.
Grant us, in Your unfathomed love,
Those things no eye has ever seen.

O Father, Son and Spirit blest,
With hearts transfigured by Your grace,
May we Your matchless splendour praise
And see the glory of Your Face.

Posted in ONE Minute REFLECTION

One Minute Reflection – 6 August – “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased”

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As he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them, and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, This is My beloved Son, in Whom I am well pleased; hear Him. And on hearing it the disciples fell on their faces and were exceedingly afraid.

Matt 17:1-9

REFLECTION – He leads them up on a high mountain to show them the glory of his divinity and to let them know that he was Israel’s Saviour, as revealed by his prophets. They saw him eat and drink, become tired and rest, sleep, suffer anguish to the point that his sweat became like drops of blood, all things that did not seem to have much to do with his divine nature, but only with his human nature. This is why he leads them up on a high mountain so that the Father may call him “my Son” and show them that he really was his Son and that he was God.

He leads them up on a high mountain and shows them his royalty before suffering, his power before dying, his glory before being insulted and his honor before undergoing ignominy. In this way, when he will be captured and crucified, his apostles will understand that he did not undergo this because of weakness, but to consent and willingly for the salvation of the world.

He leads them up on a high mountain and shows them the glory of his divinity, before his resurrection. In this way, when he will rise from the dead in the glory of his divinity, his disciples will testify that he did not receive this glory as a reward for having suffered – as if he needed to, but that this glory belonged to him long before the centuries, with the Father and in the Father as he himself will say as he approaches his voluntary Passion “Now glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory that I had with you before the world began.”

Saint Ephrem (Sermon for the Transfiguration 1,3-4)

PRAYER – Father, at the Transfiguration in glory of Your only-begotten Son, You confirmed the mysteries of faith by the witness to Jesus of the prophets Moses and Elijah. You foreshadowed what we shall be when You bring our sonship to its perfection. Grant that by listening to the voice of Jesus, we may become heirs with Him, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God forever and may Mary, our tender and caring Mother, help us to be bright rays of the saving light of her Son Jesus. Amen

Posted in QUOTES on HEAVEN

Quote/s of the Day – 6 August – How lovely is Your dwelling place, O Lord of Hosts!

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Quote/s of the Day – 6 August – Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord – Readings: Ps 76:19, Ps 83:2-3, 2 Pet. 1:16-19, Matt 17:1-9

How lovely is Your dwelling place, O Lord of Hosts! My soul yearns and pines for the courts of the Lord.

Ps 83:2-3

Your lightning illumined the world; the earth quivered and quaked.

Ps 76:19

But not men only, but women also practise this self-denial, overcoming the weakness of their nature by the abundance of their zeal. Let us be abashed then at their earnestness, we who are men, let us cease to be fastened to the things present, to shadow, to dreams, to smoke. For the more part of our life is passed in insensibility.

St John Chrysostom (Homily 55 on Matthew)

Wherefore, I pray, let us seek the unmovable and eternal goods, and the life that never has old age.

St John Chrysostom (Homily 55 on Matthew)

Think what happiness it will be for thee, when thy body shines like the sun at midday. Everything that lives and moves rejoices in the light and warmth of the sun: it gladdens all the face of nature. In like manner thy body will be a joy and delight to thyself and all around thee in Heaven, because of its beauty and its glory.

Fr Martin von Cochem (The Four Last Things)

We must not, as some do, picture to ourselves heaven as a purely spiritual realm. St Dorothea sent to Theophilus by the hands of an angel a basket of flowers culled in the gardens of the celestial paradise, of such surpassing beauty that the sight of them led him to become a Christian, and lay down his life for the faith of Christ.

Fr Martin von Cochem (The Four Last Things)

We know that when He shall appear we shall be like to Him, because we shall see Him as He is.

St John the Evangelist

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Thought for the Day – 6 August – God the Father, Delineator of the Admirable Heart of Mary

Posted on by AnaStpaul

St John Eudes – The Admirable Heart of Mary

God the Father, Delineator of the Admirable Heart of Mary

The first foundation and the primary source of the devotion to the most holy Heart of Mary is the adorable Heart of the Eternal Father and His unfathomable love for the Blessed Mother of His Only-begotten Son. This infinite love induced our Heavenly Father to give us many beautiful images and figures of the most worthy Heart of His holy Mother.

The Eternal Father lovingly prefigured, both in the visible world and in the rites of the Mosaic Law, Mary, the woman chosen from all eternity to be the Mother of the adorable Redeemer. “It was she whom the Prophets foretold long before her birth,” says St. Jerome. “It was she whom the Patriarchs described in many figures; it was she who was announced by the Evangelists.”

St. John Damascene says that the earthly paradise, Noe’s ark, the burning bush, the Tables of the Law, the Ark of the Covenant, the golden vessel containing the manna, the golden candlesticks in the Tabernacle, the table with the loaves of proposition, Aaron’s rod, the furnace of Babylon, were all figures of the incomparable Virgin Mary.

The Eternal Father did not content Himself with prefiguring the person of His Son Jesus in His prototypes, Abel, Noe, Melchisedech, Isaac Jacob, Moses, Aaron, Josue, Samson, Job, David and many other holy persons who lived under the Old Law, which preceded His Son’s appearance on earth. God also wished to give us several beautiful representations of His mysteries in detail, such as His divine espousal of human nature in the Incarnation, His Passion, Death, Resurrection and Ascension. In like manner, God the Father was not satisfied to foreshadow and represent the person of the Mother of His Beloved Son merely in the person of Mary, sister of Moses, in the Prophetess Debbora, wise Abigail, chaste and generous Judith, beautiful and compassionate Esther, and many other valiant women.

But above all else, Our Heavenly Father has willed to place before our eyes a wealth of beautiful figures and marvellous representations of Mary’s most holy Heart. He has done this to show us how much He values and cherishes this lovable Heart and because the rare and wondrous perfections that fill it are well-nigh innumerable and can be represented and described only through a great number of figures and symbolic pictures.

Among the many images and representations of the Admirable Heart of Mary I can distinguish twelve of surpassing beauty. Six of them are found in the principal divisions of the universe; namely, the heavens, the sun, the center of the earth, the inexhaustible fountain of Genesis, the sea and the Garden of Eden. The six others appear in six of the most important manifestations witnessed by the world from the time of Moses to the death of Our Lord. They are the burning bush of Mount Horeb, the mysterious harp of David, the magnificent throne of Solomon, the marvellous Temple of Jerusalem, the miraculous furnace of Babylon, and the Holy Mount of Calvary.

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Novena to Our Lady of the Assumption – Day One, 6 August

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Novena to Our Lady Assumed into Heaven

As we prepare for the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we ask her to intercede for all our needs. After her humble and hidden life on this earth, Our Lady had a greater role after the death of Our Lord as Queen and Mother of the Catholic Church. She underwent all kinds of suffering, anguish and humiliations on earth. It is fitting that Our Lord glorified her through her Assumption. Our world and in particular, South Africa under the Patronage of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven, is at a very serious crossroads, with crises and difficulties on many fronts… Let us share this Novena that many may solemnly pray, begging the merciful intercession of Our Lady on her Country and on our world

Daily Prayer:
Lord Jesus Christ,
Thou has destroyed the power of death
and given the hope of eternal life,
for body and soul.
Thou granted Thy Mother
a special place in Thy glory
and did not allow decay to touch her body.
As we rejoice in the Assumption
of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
grant us renewed confidence
in the victory of life over death.
Amen.

DAY 1
Immaculate Virgin, Mother of Jesus
and our Mother,
we believe in thy triumphant Assumption into Heaven
where the Angels and Saints
acclaim thee as Queen of Heaven and earth.
We join them in praising thee
and bless the Lord .
Who raised thee above all creatures.
With them we honour thee.
We are confident that thou
do watch over our daily lives
and we ask that thou
shall intercede for us now
in this, our special need,
…………………………….
(Mention your request)
We are comforted by our faith
in the coming resurrection
and we look to thee
for thy help, prayers and comfort.
After this earthly life,
show unto us, the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus,
O kind, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.
O Queen Assumed into Heaven,
pray for us who have recourse to thee.
Amen.

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 5 August – Saint Paris of Teano

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Saint Paris or Paris of Teano or Paride. A dragon slayer. From Athens, Greece, he was the apostle and first bishop of Teano. Upon arriving in town, his eyes were greeted with a procession of the locals, including young women carrying food and votive offerings. When asked by the saint what what they were doing, they replied they were honouring a serpent god living in a cave nearby. Holy indignation filled Saint Paris’ breast, and as soon as the monster emerged from its lair, the saint crushed its head with a stick. Then he dragged it to the river, where it drowned. For this holy deed the inhabitants of the town threw him to the hungry lions in the arena, but the animals refused to touch him. The miracle converted the entire town, and Paris was appointed the much beloved bishop.

Saint Paris’ Tomb

The original cathedral, San Paride ad Fontem (“Saint Paris at the Spring”) was erected at the location of his heroic deed, and dedicated to him. Built over a Roman cistern, it was named ad Fontem because the low ground once had a spring at which Paris preached.

San Paride ad Fontem

Paris died at Teano in 346. His remains lie in a chapel in the later Cathedral of San Clemente.

Posted in MARIAN TITLES

Dedication of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major / Our Lady of the Snows, Our Lady of the Snow, Adro, Italy (1519) and Memorials of the Saints – 5 August

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Dedication of the Basilica of Saint Mary Major / Our Lady of the Snows (Optional Memorial)

Nostra Signora della Neve / Our Lady of the Snow, Adro, Italy (1519) – 5 August, 8 July:

St Abel of Rheims
St Addai
St Aggai of Edessa
Bl Arnaldo Pons
St Cantidianus
St Cantidius
St Cassian of Autun
St Casto of Teano
Bl Corrado of Laodicea
St Emygdius (Died c 303) Bishop Martyr
St Eusignius
St Gormeal of Ardoilen
Bl James Gerius
St Margaret the Barefooted
St Mari
St Memmius of Châlons-sur-Marne
St Nonna

St Oswald of Northumbria (604-642) Martyr and King.

St Paris of Teano
Bl Pierre-Michel Noël

St Sobel
St Theodoric of Cambrai-Arras
St Venantius of Viviers
St Viator
—
Martyrs of Fuente la Higuera: A group of Augustinian priests and clerics who were martyred together in the Spanish Civil War. 5 August 1936 in Fuente la Higuera, Valencia, Spain:
• Anastasio Díez García
• Ángel Pérez Santos
• Cipriano Polo García
• Emilio Camino Noval
• Felipe Barba Chamorro
• Gabino Olaso Zabala
• Luciano Ramos Villafruela
• Luis Blanco Álvarez
• Ubaldo Revilla Rodríguez
• Victor Gaitero González

Martyrs of the Salarian Way: Twenty-three Christians who were martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian.
303 on the Salarian Way in Rome, Italy.

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
Bl Eduardo González Santo Domingo
Bl Jaume Codina Casellas
Bl José Trallero Lou
Bl Lluís Domingo Mariné
Bl Manuel Moreno Martínez
Bl Maximino Fernández Marinas
Bl Victor García Ceballos

Posted in Our MORNING Offering

Our Morning Offering – 5 August – Concórdi lætítia

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Our Morning Offering – 5 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – The Memorial of the Dedication of Mary Major, Our Lady of the Snows

Concórdi lætítia
Harmonious Joy

Sounds of joy have put to flight
All the sadness of the night.
Now a Maid beyond compare
Hears her praises fill the air:
Virgo María.

Who is she whom angels sing,
Making all creation ring?
She it is who wins our priase,
As on earth our voice we raise:
Virgo María.

Queen of virgins, Maiden mild,
Hear me, take me for your child.
Ever my protector be,
Bring eternal life to me:
Virgo María.

Mighty Godhead, Three in One,
While eternal ages run,
Look to Mary, full of grace,
And forgive the human race:
Virgo María.
Amen

Posted in ONE Minute REFLECTION

One Minute Reflection – 5 August – Before all ages, in the beginning, He created me

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One Minute Reflection – 5 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” –  The Memorial of the Dedication of Mary Major, Our Lady of the Snows

“Upon this rock I will build my church” – Matthew 16:18

REFLECTION – “Nothing escaped the wisdom and power of Christ: – the elements of nature lay at His service, spirits obeyed Him, angels served Him… And yet, out of all the world, Peter alone was chosen to stand at the head for the calling of all the peoples and the oversight of all the Apostles and Fathers of the Church. Thus, even though there are many priests and shepherds among the people of God, Peter governed them all in person while Christ also governs them in the capacity of Head.

The Lord asks all the Apostles what people think of Him and they all say the same thing so long as they are making known the doubts deriving from human ignorance. But when the Lord demands to know what the disciples themselves think, the first to confess the Lord is he who is the first in dignity of the Apostles. As he had said: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God”, Jesus answers him: “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you but my heavenly Father.” That is to say: blessed are you because my Father taught this to you. Earthly opinion has not led you astray but it is heavenly inspiration that has instructed you. It is not flesh and blood that enabled you to discover me but He whose only Son I am.

“And so I say to you”, that is to say: – just as My Father has manifested My divinity to you, so I am making known your superiority to you. “You are Peter,” namely – I am the unshakeable Rock, the Cornerstone Who makes two peoples one, the Foundation, other than which, no-one can lay any other. But you also, you are rock since you are impregnable by My Strength and what I have by virtue of My Power, you have, in common with Me by the fact, that you participate in it. “On this rock I will build my Church“. On the firmness of this foundation, He says, will I build an everlasting temple and My Church, whose summit is to reach to heaven, will be raised on the strength of that faith.”

– St Pope Leo the Great (4th Sermon for the Anniversary of his Ordination)

PRAYER – Forgive the sins of Your people Lord and since of ourselves, we are unable to do what pleases You, lead us on the way of salvation by the prayers of Mary, the Immaculate Mother of Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever, amen.

Posted in CATHOLIC Quotes

Quote/s of the Day – 5 August – The full assembly of Saints

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Quote/s of the Day – 5 August – “Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – Readings: Sedulius, Ps 44:2, Ecclus 24:14-16, Luke 11:27-28

I have struck root among the glorious people, in the portion of my God, His heritage, and my abode is in the full assembly of Saints.

Ecclus 24:14-16

Whoever has no desire to be praised is unable to be altered. The one on whom flattery does not have a hold, constancy does. The one on whom pompous ostentation has no hold, virtue does not forsake.  

St Peter Chrysologus

They deem themselves favored because I wish to punish them in this life, and in this finite time; they drive away sin with contrition of heart, and with perfect patience do they merit, and their labors are rewarded with infinite good. Hereafter they learn that all suffering in this life is small, on account of the shortness of time. Time is no more than the point of a needle; and, when time is over, so is suffering – so you see how small it is. Therefore they endure it patiently, and the thorns they pass through do not touch their heart, because their heart is drawn out of them and united to Me by the affection of love. It is indeed the truth that these souls have a foretaste and guarantee of eternal life, even in this life and that, though they walk on thorns, they are not pricked.

God to St Catherine of Siena

As, therefore, we speak justly when we say concerning any teacher of literature who is alone in a city, He teaches literature here to everybody — not that all men learn, but that there is none who learns literature there who does not learn from him — so we justly say, God teaches all men to come to Christ, not because all come, but because none comes in any other way. 

St Augustine (On the Predestination of the Saints)

Hades and the devil have been despoiled, and stripped of their ancient armour, and cast out of their peculiar power. And even as Goliath had his head cut off with his own sword, so also is the devil, who has been the father of death, put to rout through death; and he finds that the selfsame thing which he was wont to use as the ready weapon of his deceit, has become the mighty instrument of his own destruction. Yea, if we may so speak, casting his hook at the Godhead, and seizing the wonted enjoyment of the baited pleasure, he is himself manifestly caught while he deems himself the captor, and discovers that in place of the man he has touched the God. By reason thereof do the martyrs leap upon the head of the dragon, and despise every species of torment.

St. Gregory Thaumaturgus (On All the Saints)

There are things which, in your extreme ignorance, you had never read, and therefore you neglected the whole range of Scripture and employed your madness in outraging the Virgin, like the man in the story who being unknown to everybody and finding that he could devise no good deed by which to gain renown, burned the temple of Diana: and when no one revealed the sacrilegious act, it is said that he himself went up and down proclaiming that he was the man who had applied the fire. The rulers of Ephesus were curious to know what made him do this thing, whereupon he replied that if he could not have fame for good deeds, all men should give him credit for bad ones. Grecian history relates the incident. But you do worse. You have set on fire the temple of the Lord’s body, you have defiled the sanctuary of the Holy Spirit from which you are determined to make a team of four brethren and a heap of sisters come forth.

St Jerome (The Perpetual Virginity of Mary)

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary

Thought for the Day – 5 August – The Divine Heart of Mary

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St John Eudes – The Admirable Heart of Mary

The Divine Heart of Mary

Jesus Christ, the Heart of the Eternal Father, is the Heart of His Holy Mother. Is not the heart the principle of life? And what is the Son of God to His dear Mother? He always was and will be forever the heart of her heart, the soul of her soul, the spirit of her spirit, and the sole principle of all the movements, uses and functions of her most holy life. St. Paul tells us that it is not himself who lives but Jesus Christ who lives in him. Our Lord is the life of all Christians: so who could doubt that He abides in His holy Mother, and that He is the life of her life, the heart of her heart, in a union incomparably more excellent even than with St. Paul and the other faithful saints?

Let us listen to what Our Lady revealed to St. Brigid: “My Son was truly my Heart to me. When He left my bosom to be born, it seemed as though half of my Heart were going forth from me. When He suffered, I felt His pain as though my Heart endured the identical sorrows and torments that He endured. When my Son was being scourged and torn with whips, my Heart was scourged and whipped with Him. When Hel ooked at me from the Cross, and I at Him, two streams of tears gushed from my eyes; and when He saw me oppressed with sorrow, He experienced such violent anguish at my desolation that the pain caused by His sorrow was my sorrow as His Heart was my Heart. Because Adam and Eve together betrayed the world for one, single forbidden fruit, so did my beloved Son wish that I should cooperate with Him in redeeming it with one Heart, quasi cum uno Corde.“

Jesus lives in her soul and in her body, and in each faculty of her body and soul. He lives in her entirely, which means that whatever is in Jesus is also in Mary. His Heart abides in her heart, His soul in her soul, His spirit in her spirit. The memory, intellect and will of Jesus are alive in the memory, intellect and will of Mary; his interior and exterior senses in her interior and exterior senses. His passions in her passions; His virtues, mysteries and divine attributes are living in her Heart. Nay, more than living, they hold sovereign sway, producing inconceivably marvellous effects and impressing a living image of themselves as her Heart mirrors His Sacred Heart.

This veneration of Mary means honoring the corporeal Heart, the spiritual Heart and the divine Heart of Jesus, who are also the Hearts, or rather, the one and only Heart of Mary. It means giving glory to Our Lord, Jesus Christ, who is the Heart of the Eternal Father, and has willed to become the Heart of His Holy Mother. If Holy Church celebrates an annual feast in honor of the chains of St. Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, how great a solemnity does not the august Heart of the Queen of Apostles deserve!

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 4 August – Saint Sithney

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Saint Sithney (or Setna) was one of a group of Irish monks who travelled to western Cornwall, and from there he moved to Guic-Sezni in Brittany, where he founded a monastery. He was a native of Munster, the son of Erc and Magna – a sister of St. David. Sithney had two brothers, Saint Govan and Multos. He may be the Setna, a deaf and mute boy who kept cows on Slieve-Bloom. Saint Columba of Terryglass pitied the child and blessed him. He not only recovered hearing and speech, but also acquired the gift of prophecy.

When God chose Sithney to be the patron of girls seeking husbands; the saint recoiled, saying he would never get to rest in that case, and that he would rather take care of mad dogs than women. Ever since, sick or mad dogs have been given water from Sithney’s well as a tonic.

He died in 529, of natural causes. William Worcester recorded in 1478 that the body of the saint lay within the church of Saint Sithney.

Saint Sithney church

Patronages: Against hydrophobia, against rabies, against mad dogs, Sithney, Cornwall, England

Posted in MARIAN TITLES

Madonna dell’Apparizione / Our Lady of the Apparition, Pellestrina, Italy (1716) and Memorials of the Saints – 4 August

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Madonna dell’Apparizione / Our Lady of the Apparition, Pellestrina, Italy (1716) – 4 August:

The Sanctuary of Madonna dell’Apparizione in Pellestrina was built in July 1717, a year after the appearance of the Madonna on the island. The event of 4 August 1716, the Feast day of St Dominic, was in fact confirmed true by canonical process: – a young boy from Pellestrina met a woman who advised him to tell the parish priest to celebrate Mass and to pray for the salvation of Venice, which, at that time, was besieged by the Turks. The following day, at the same hour of the Apparition, the Venetians won the Battle of Petrovaradin against the Turks.

Throughout the entire year the Sanctuary is a destination for many pilgrims and devotees in search of grace and even today, on 4 August in Pellestrina, the Madonna dell’Apparizione and the victory of Venice is celebrated over three days.

St Dominic de Guzman OP (1170-1221) (Memorial) Founder of the Dominican Order of Preachers – Priest, Founder, Confessor, Teacher, Preacher, Mystic, Miracle-Worker, Apostle of the Holy Rosary. At Dominic’s baptism, Blessed Joan, his Mother, saw a star shining from his chest, which became another of his symbols in art, and led to his patronage of astronomy. The Roman Martyrology states today: “At Bologna, St Dominic, Confessor, Founder of the Order of Friars Preachers, most renowned for sanctity and learning. He preserved his chastity unsullied to the end of his life and by his great merits, raised three persons from the dead. After having repressed heresies by his preaching and instructed many in the religious and Godly life, he rested in peace on the 6th of this month. His Feast, however, is celebrated on this day by decree of Pope Paul IV.

St Agabius of Verona
St Aristarchus of Thessalonica (1st Century)
St Crescentio of Rome
St Eleutherius of Bithynia
St Epiphanes of Besançon
St Euphronius of Tours (c 530-573) Bishop
St Francesc Mercader Rendé

St Hyacinth of Rome
St Ia of Persia
St Isidore of Besançon
St Lua of Limerick
St Onofrio of Panaia
St Perpetua of Rome
St Protasius of Cologne
St Rainerio of Split
St Sithney (Died c 529)
St Tertullinus of Rome
Bl William Horne

Posted in Our MORNING Offering

Our Morning Offering – 4 August – St Dominic’s Blessing

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 4 August – The Memorial of St Dominic de Guzman OP (1170-1221)

St Dominic’s Blessing
By St Dominic de Guzman (1170-1221)

May God the Father,
who made us, bless us.
May God the Son,
send His healing among us.
May God the Holy Spirit,
move within us
and give us eyes to see with,
ears to hear with,
and hands, that Your work,
might be done.
May we walk and preach
the word of God to all.
May the angel of peace
watch over us
and lead us at last,
by God’s grace,
to the Kingdom.
Amen