February 2020 – Page 2

ASPIRATIONS and EJACULATIONS, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, NOVENAS, The HOLY SOULS

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face – Fourth Day – 20 February

Posted on February 20, 2020February 20, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face
Fourth Day – 20 February

DAILY PREPARATORY PRAYER

O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity,
through the intercession of Holy Mary,
whose soul was pierced through
by a sword of sorrow
at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son,
we ask Your help,
in making a perfect Novena of Reparation with Jesus,
united with all His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints
to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena
to the Most Holy Face of Jesus
and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen

FOURTH DAY

(Console Holy Face and recite Daily Preparatory Prayer)

Psalm 51,8-9
Indeed you love truth in the heart,
then in the secret of my heart, teach me Wisdom.
O purify me, then I shall be clean,
O wash me. I shall be whiter than snow.

O Lord Jesus, who has said,
learn of Me for I am meek and gentle of heart
and who did manifest upon Thy Holy Face,
the sentiments of Thy divine heart,
grant that we may love
to come frequently
and meditate upon Thy divine features.
We may read there Thy gentleness
and Thy humility
and learn how to form our hearts
in the practice of these two virtues,
which Thou desires to see shine in Thy servants.
Mary our Mother and Saint Joseph help us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face,
O Jesus, grant us our petition………………
Pardon and mercy.

Prayer in Honour of the Dolours of the Blessed Virgin

O Most Holy and afflicted Virgin, Queen of Martyrs!
Who stood beneath the cross,
witnessing the agony of your dying Son,
look down with a mother’s tenderness and pity on us,
as we kneel before you
to venerate your Dolours
and place our requests,
with filial confidence,
in the sanctuary of your wounded heart.
Present them on our behalf to Jesus,
through the merits of His most sacred Passion and Death,
together with your sufferings at the foot of the cross
and through the united efficacy of both,
obtain the favour which we humbly ask.
To whom shall we go in our wants and miseries,
if not to you. O Mother of Mercy,
who having so deeply drunk of the chalice of your Son,
graciously alleviate the sufferings of those
who still sigh in this land of exile.
Amen

Prayer for the Souls in Purgatory

My Jesus, by the sorrows You suffered
in Your agony in the garden,
in your scourging and crowning with thorns,
on the way to Calvary,
in your crucifixion and death,
have mercy on the souls in Purgatory
and especially on those, that are most forsaken.
Deliver them from the dire torments they endure.
Call them and admit them
to your most sweet embrace in Paradise.
Amen

Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Marys, one (1) Glory Be.

O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine (Three times)

MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on JUSTICE, The LAST THINGS

Thought for the Day – 20 February – The Five Tribunals

Posted on February 20, 2020February 20, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 20 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Five Tribunals

“We can distinguish five courts of justice, each of which, passes sentence on us.
(1) The first, is the tribunal of public opinion, of which some people are so afraid.
(2) Then, there is our own conscience, which shows, us what we are and what we ought to be.
(3) The third, is the tribunal of Penance, and
(4) the fourth is the civil court.
(5) Lastly, there is the judgement seat of God, before which, we shall have to appear one day with all our sins and our few merits.

Public opinion can be deceived by subterfuge and hyprocisy.
Conscience can be ignored, or, it can become warped or deadened.
The tribunal of Penance, can be misused and we can remain obdurate in our sins.
Civil authority can sometimes be evaded, it is also open to deception and corruption.
But, the tribunal of God is different.
We shall be alone before Him – fraud and deceit will be useless.
There will be no excuses, no defence.
Everything will be clear and His judgement, will be just and unchangeable.
Let us reflect on this while we have time.
Let us adopt the necessary remedies, for soon, there will be no more time!”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 20 February – “You are the Christ.”

Posted on February 20, 2020February 20, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 20 February – Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Gospel: Mark 8:27-33 and The Memorial of Sts Francisco (1908-1919) and Jacinta (1910-1920) – “The Shepherds of Fatima”

And he asked them,
“But who do you say that I am?”
Peter answered him,
“You are the Christ.”

Mark 8:29

“We were burning in that light,
which is God and we were not consumed.
What is God like?
It is impossible to say.
In fact, we will never be able to tell people”

St Francisco Marto of Fatima (1908-1919)

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY CROSS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 20 February – ‘Do not be a friend to Jesus in times of peace alone…’

Posted on February 20, 2020February 20, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 20 February – Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: James 2:1-9, Psalm 34:2-7,Mark 8:27-33 and the Memorial of Saint Eucherius of Orléans (c 687-743)

“Then Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him” … Mark 8:32

REFLECTION – “We should not be ashamed of the cross of the Saviour but rather make it our glory.
“The message of the cross is a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles” but for us it is salvation. For those who are perishing it is foolishness but for us who are being saved it is the power of God” (cf. 1 Cor 1:18-24).
For it is no mere man who died but the Son of God, God made man.
In Moses’ days the lamb caused the destroying angel to pass over (cf. Ex 12:23) and has not “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29) set us even more free from our sins?

Not by force did He lose His life, not by might was He sacrificed but by His own will.
Hear what he said: “I have power to lay down my life and I have power to take it up again” (Jn 10:18). (…)
He came to His Passion of set will, happy in His exploit, laughing at His victory, satisfied to be saving us.
He was not ashamed of the cross because He was saving the whole earth. It was not some poor man who was suffering but God made man who entered the combat to win the prize of patience. (…)

Do not rejoice in the cross only in times of peace, preserve the same faith in times of persecution.
Do not be a friend to Jesus in times of peace alone, only to become His enemy in times of war.
You are now receiving forgiveness for your sins and the spiritual gifts lavishly bestowed by your king so, when war breaks out, fight valiantly for your king.
Jesus has been crucified for you, He who was without sin. (…)
It is not you who bestowed this grace on Him, for you first of all received it.
But you offer thanks to Him who paid the price by being crucified for you on Golgotha.” … St Cyril of Jerusalem (315-387)) – Father and Doctor of the Church – Baptismal catecheses nos. 13, 3.6.23 mark 8 32 then peter took him aside - do not rejoice in the cross only in times of peace - st cyril jerusalem 20 feb 2020

PRAYER – Lord of heaven and earth, by Your grace You have brought our hearts and mind to seek and hope in Your saving love, in Your only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. May we, who like Peter, our father in faith, declare, ‘You are the Christ!’, remain ever in His steps, carrying the cross behind Him. We thank You for the blessing of St Eucherius of Orléans, grant that, through his intercession, we may, like him, constantly follow the Light of Christ and so rise to eternal life. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen st eucherius of orleans pray for us 20 feb 2020

Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 20 February – Every Day I Need You, Lord

Posted on February 20, 2020February 19, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 20 February – Thursday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A

Every Day I Need You, Lord
By St Pope John XXIII

Every day I need You, Lord
but today especially,
I need some extra strength
to face whatever is to come.
This day, more than any other day,
I need to feel You near me
to strengthen my courage
and to overcome any fear.
By myself, I cannot meet
the challenge of the hour.
We are frail human creatures
and we need a higher power
to sustain us in all that life may bring.
And so, dear Lord,
hold my trembling hand.
Be with me, Lord, this day
and stretch out,
Your powerful arm to help me.
May Your love be upon me
as I place all my hope in You.
Amen every day i need you lord - st pope john XXIII 20 feb 2020

SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 20 February – Saint Eucherius of Orléans (c 687-743)

Posted on February 20, 2020February 19, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 20 February – Saint Eucherius of Orléans (c 687-743) Bishop Orléans, Benedictine Monk, Confessor – born at Orleans, France and died on 20 February 743 at the monastery of Sint-Tuiden in Belgium of natural causes. st eucherius

St Eucherius was born in Orleans, France. He was very pious in his youth as he received a Christian upbringing and he was also highly educated.

A sentence from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians made a big impression on him – “This world as we see it is passing away” (1 Corinthians 7:31). It made Eucherius realise that our lives on this earth are very short and that heaven and hell last forever. He decided to seek the joys of heaven by living for God alone.

In 714, St Eucherius left his rich home and entered a Benedictine abbey as a monk. There, he spent seven years in close union with God. After the death of his uncle, the bishop of Orleans, the people asked for Eucherius to take his place.

Eucherius was then only twenty-five and he was very humble. He did not want to leave his beloved abbey. With tears, he begged to be allowed to remain alone with God in the monastery. But finally, he gave in for love of obedience. Eucherius became a holy, wise bishop and did much good to his priests and people. st eucherius of orleans

A powerful man Charles Martel sold some of the Church’s property to support his wars. Because Bishop Eucherius told him that was wrong, when Charles won the war, he had Eucherius taken prisoner.

He was sent away to Cologne in Germany. The people there greeted him with joy and he was given the job of distributing the governor’s alms. Later he was transferred to a fort near Liege. 406px-Sint-EUCHERIUS Truiden,_OLV-kerk,_schatkamer08

But the governor in whose charge Martel had placed the Bishop was touched by Eucherius’ meekness toward his enemies. Some time later, the governor quietly released the bishop from prison and sent him to a monastery. Here, the saint spent all his time peacefully in prayer until his death in 743.

518px-ST EUCHERIUS Sint-Truiden,_OLV-kerk,_schatkamer12 — Death of Saint Eucherius, stained glass window in the treasury of Our Lady Church, Sint-Truiden

Archbishop Hincmar of Reims reported to a Council of Quierzy in 858, a vision that Bishop Eucherius of Orléans had seen during the reign of King Pepin III over a century before. While at prayer, Eucherius had been taken up and shown, among other things, the sufferings of those in hell, among whom he saw Charles Martel. When the vision ended, he called St Boniface and Fulrad, Abbot of Saint-Denis and sent to them to see whether Charles was in his tomb. When the two opened the tomb a dragon rushed out and they found the tomb’s interior blackened as though burned. These two signs were taken as evidence that the vision had been accurate and that Charles had been condemned to hell for his despoliation of Church property.

SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints – 20 February

Posted on February 20, 2020February 19, 2020 by AnaStpaul

St Amata of Assisi
St Bolcan of Derken
St Colgan
St Eleutherius of Tournai
St Eucherius of Orleans OSB (c 687-743)
St Falco of Maastricht
St Francisco Marto (1908-1919)
St Jacinta Marto (1910-1920)
Today (2020) is the Fourth Anniversary of their Canonisation: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/02/20/saints-of-the-day-20-february-saints-francisco-1908-1919-and-jacinta-marta-1910-1920

St Leo of Catania
St Nemesius of Cyprus
St Pothamius of Cyprus
St Serapion of Alexandria
St Silvanus of Emesa
Bl Stanislawa/Julia Rodzinska OP (1899-1945) Martyr
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/02/20/saint-of-the-day-20-february-blessed-julia-rodzinska-op-1899-1945-martyr/
St Valerius of Courserans
St Wulfric of Haselbury
St Zenobius of Antioch

LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, NOVENAS, PAPAL PRAYERS, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The HOLY FACE

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face Third Day – 19 February

Posted on February 19, 2020February 19, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face
Third Day – 19 February

DAILY PREPARATORY PRAYER

THIRD DAY

(Console Holy Face and recite Daily Preparatory Prayer)

Psalm 51,6b-7
You are just when you pass sentence on me,
blameless when you give judgement.
You know I was born guilty,
a sinner from the moment of conception.

Prayer of Pope Pius IX

O Jesus!
Cast upon us a look of mercy,
turn Your Face towards each of us
as You did to Veronica,
not that we may see it with our bodily eyes,
for this we do not deserve
but turn it towards our hearts,
so that, remembering You,
we may ever draw from this fountain of strength,
the vigour necessary to
sustain the combats of life.
Amen. cast upon us alook of mercy pope pius IX - stations meeting veronica 19 feb 2020

Mary, our Mother and Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and Your Holy Face,
O Jesus, grant us our petition………………
Pardon and mercy.

Prayer of Saint Francis

All highest, glorious God,
cast Your light into the darkness of our hearts,
give us true faith, firm hope,
perfect charity and profound humility,
so that with wisdom,
courage and perception, O Lord,
we may do what is truly your holy will.
Amen.

To the Angels and Saints
We salute you,
through the Holy Face and Sacred Heart of Jesus,
O all you Holy Angels and Saints of God.
We rejoice in your glory
and we give thanks to our Lord
or all the benefits which He has
showered upon you,
we praise Him and glorify Him
and for an increase of your joy and honour,
we offer Him the most Holy Face
and gentle Heart of Jesus.
Pray that we may become formed
according to the heart of God.
Amen.

Pray (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Marys, one (1) Glory Be.

O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine (Three times)

MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on CREATION

Thought for the Day – 19 February – Good Inspirations

Posted on February 19, 2020February 18, 2022 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 19 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Good Inspirations

“God speaks to us in many ways.
He speaks in the language of nature.
Sky and earth tell us of their Creator.
Walk in silence beneath the night sky and contemplate the myriads of stars above.
It is impossible not to sense the power and beauty of the infinite God.
Look at the flowers in the meadows and the silent forests.
Look out across the vast expanse of the ocean, where the waves are breaking and surging but, never cross the limits imposed on them, by their Creator.
It is easy to repeat the words of St Augustine – “How great and good You are, O God!”
The voice of God, can also be heard in sermons and instructions, in the example which the Saints give us, in the advice of confessors and Superiors and others, whose task in life it is, to enlighten and guide the faithful.
Let us listen to these voices, for they represent the voice of God.”
Amen

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

franciscan OFM, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on COURAGE, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 19 February – ‘Keep a clear eye toward life’s end.’

Posted on February 19, 2020February 19, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 19 February – The Memorial of St Conrad of Piacenza TOSF (c 1290-1351), Today’s Gospel: Mark 8:22-26

Then again he laid his hands upon his eyes
and he looked intently
and was restored and saw everything clearly.

Mark 8: 25

“Keep a clear eye toward life’s end.
Do not forget your purpose
and destiny as God’s creature.
What you are in His sight,
is what you are and nothing more.
Remember that when you leave this earth,
you can take nothing that you have received…
but only what you have given – a full heart
enriched by honest service, love, sacrifice and courage.”

St Francis of Assisi (c 1181-1226)

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on EDUCATION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on IGNORANCE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on TRUTH, SAINT of the DAY

One Minute Reflection – 19 February – ‘…To teach perfectly it comes from the Lord’s mouth.’

Posted on February 19, 2020February 19, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 19 February – Wednesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: James 1:19-27, Psalm 15:2-5,Mark 8:22-26 and the Memorial of St Conrad of Piacenza TOSF (c 1290-1351)

And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village….Then again he laid his hands upon his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored and saw everything clearly. And he sent him away to his home, saying, “Do not even enter the village.”...Mark 8:22,25-26 then-again-he-laid-his-hands-upon-his-eyes-mark-8-25-26-20-feb-2019 and 19 feb 2020

REFLECTION – “Jesus put spittle on his eyes, placed his hands on him and asked him whether he could see anything. Knowledge always comes by degrees (…). It is only after a great deal of time and a long apprenticeship that we are able to attain perfect knowledge. First the impurities are removed, blindness goes and thus light enters. The Lord’s spittle is perfect teaching – to teach perfectly it comes from the Lord’s mouth. The Lord’s spittle, which comes forth, so to speak, from His substance, is understanding, just as the word coming forth from His mouth is a cure. (…)

“I see people looking like trees and walking” – I still see the shadow but not yet the truth. The meaning of these words is – I can see something in the Law but as yet I don’t perceive the blazing light of the Gospel. (…) “Then he laid hands on his eyes a second time and he saw clearly.” He could see, I say, everything that we can see – he saw the mystery of the Trinity and he saw all the holy mysteries contained in the Gospel. (…) And we, too, see them since we believe in Christ, the true light.” … Saint Jerome (347-420) Priest, Translator of the Bible, Doctor of the Church – Homilies on Saint Mark’s Gospel, no. 8, 235 the Lord's spittle is perfect teaching everything that comes from the mouth of the lord-mark-8-25-26-20-feb-2020-st-jerome

PRAYER – Heavenly Father, just as St Conrad of Pieacenza, was chosen to be a messenger of Your love and forgiveness, grant we pray, that by his prayers, we too maybe bearers of Your gracious love. We pray for the assistance of our holy Mother, during our journey to the eternal glory of the kingdom, help us to become like little children and in that new purity, shine with the Light of our Lord and Saviour. Through Jesus our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen. st-conrad-of-pacenza-pray-for-us-2- 19 feb 2020

DOCTORS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 19 February – Prayer for the Gift of Prayer

Posted on February 19, 2020February 18, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 19 February – Wednesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A

Prayer for the Gift of Prayer
By St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
Doctor of the Church

O Incarnate Word,
You have given Your Blood and Your Life
to confer on our prayers that power by which,
according to Your promise,
they obtain for us all that we ask.
And we, O God,
are so careless of our salvation,
that we will not even ask You for the graces
that we must have, if we should be saved!
In prayer You have given us the key
of all Your Divine treasures;
and we, rather than pray,
choose to remain in our misery.
Alas! O Lord, enlighten us,
and make us know the value of prayers,
offered in Your name and by Your merits,
in the eyes of Your Eternal Father.
Amen prayer for the gift of prayer by st alphonsus liguori - 24 feb 2018

franciscan OFM, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 19 February – St Conrad of Piacenza TOSF (c 1290-1351)

Posted on February 19, 2020February 18, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 19 February – St Conrad of Piacenza TOSF (c 1290-1351) Hermit, Pilgrim and Penitent, Member of the Third Order of St Francis, born Corrado Confalonieri in c 1290 at Piacenza, Italy and died on 19 February 1351 at Noto, Sicily of natural causes while kneeling before a crucifix. Patronages – cure of hernias, Calendasco and Noto. His body is incorrupt.

He was a member of one of the noblest families of Piacenza, in the town of Calendasco, a fiefdom of his family. The date of his birth is uncertain. He married an aristocratic young woman named Ephrosyne when he was quite young. Though pious, he led the normal way of life for a man of his station.

One day, as he was engaged in his usual pastime of hunting within his family’s domain, he ordered his attendants to set fire to some brushwood in which game had taken refuge. The prevailing wind caused the flames to spread rapidly to the surrounding fields and forest. A peasant who happened to be found near where the fire began was accused of starting the blaze and was imprisoned, tortured to confess and condemned to death. As the man was being led to execution, a remorseful Conrad publicly admitted his guilt to the Signoria of the city. As punishment and reparation for the damages he had caused, the city seized all his assets, only sparing his life due to his noble status

Thus reduced to poverty and seeking penance for his act of cowardice, Conrad and his wife saw the hand of God in this event. As a result, in 1315 they agreed to separate and Conrad retired to a hermitage near the town of Calendasco, joining a community of hermits, who were Franciscan tertiaries, while his wife became a nun of the Order of Poor Clares at their monastery in the city.

Conrad soon developed a reputation for holiness and the flow of visitors left him unable to keep the solitude he sought. He then embarked on the life of a pilgrim, going to Rome and from there to the Holy Land and Malta and, about 1340, to Palermo in Sicily, where he was directed to an isolated site in the Val di Noto. After many years of an itinerant life, he settled there in a grotto now named for him and for the rest of his life spent a most austere and penitential life of solitude, working numerous miracles and gifted with prophecy. st conrad piacenza

In 1343 Conrad felt called by God to serve the local people more directly and in 1343 went to the city of Netum, where he cared for the sick at the Hospital of St Martin there for the next two years. He lived in a hermitage attached to the Church of the Crucified Christ occupied by the Blessed William Buccheri, a former equerry to King Frederick III of Sicily, who had also taken up a life of solitude and prayer. Conrad would regularly return to his grotto for silent prayer. His fame was such that in 1348 the Bishop of Syracuse, Giacomo Guidone de Franchis, went to his hermitage to beg his prayers for the relief of a famine afflicting the island. ST CONRAD LG

Conrad died while in prayer, kneeling before a crucifix, on 19 February 1351, the day he had predicted. At his request, his body was buried at the Church of St Nicholas, the principal one of the city. After the city was destroyed in an earthquake in the 1690s, it was transferred to the new church of the same name, built in the relocated city, now called Noto, which has since been elevated to the statues of the Cathedral of the region. Saint-Conrad-of-Piacenza

Numerous miracles have been attributed to him while he lived and subsequently at his tomb in Noto, Italy. Holy legend records, for example, that when the Bishop of Syracuse visited him, the he asked Saint Conrad if he had anything to offer guests. Conrad said he would check in his cell and returned moments later carrying newly baked bread and cakes, which the bishop accepted as a miracle. Saint Conrad was also reported to have travelled surrounded by a cloud of fluttering birds, keeping him company.

Conrad is especially invoked for the cure of hernia. This comes from miracles attributed to him. He was visited at his hermitage by a former friend and companion in arms, Antonio da Stessa, from Daverio. His friend was suffering from the pain of a hernia he had developed. Seeing the pain his old comrade was suffering, Conrad was moved to pity and prayed for him. Stessa was immediately cured of the hernia. The same outcome was accomplished for a local tailor, who suffered severely from several hernias.

The miracle for which Conrad is best known is the “Miracle of the Bread”. This developed during the aforementioned famine which afflicted Sicily as a result of a severe outbreak of the bubonic plague on the island during 1348-49. During that catastrophe, anyone who approached the hermit for help was given a loaf of bread, still warm, which, it was said, he had received from the angels. Saint_Conrad_of_Piacenza

Pope Leo X Beatified Conrad on 12 July 1515 and permitted the town of Noto to celebrate his feast day. On 30 October 1544, Pope Paul III extended permission to the whole island. On 2 June 1625, he was Canonised by Cardinal Odoardo Farnese, who was the Duke of Parma and Piacenza in a solemn ceremony at the cathedral of Piacenza, where it was declared an obligatory feast. On 12 September of that same year, permission was granted to the Franciscan Order by Pope Urban VIII for a distinct text for the Divine Office and Mass to be used for his feast, today, it is celebrated solely by the Third Order of St Francis to which he belonged. In Vietnam there is a popular devotion to Conrad.

On his feast day, the Parish Church of San Corrado in Noto commemorates him by the distribution of blessed bread. 19Feb-St-Conrad-of-Piacenza-2

franciscan OFM, JESUIT SJ, SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints -18 February

Posted on February 19, 2020February 18, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Bl Alvarez of Cordova
St Auxibius
St Baoithin
St Barbatus of Benevento (c 610-682)
About St Barbatus:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/02/19/saint-of-the-day-19-february-st-barbatus-of-benevento-c-610-682-apostle-of-the-south/
St Beatus
St Belina
St Boniface of Lausanne
St Conon of Alexandria
St Conrad of Piacenza TOSF (c 1290-1351)

Bl Elizabeth of Mantua
St Gabinus
St George of Lodeve

Bl John Sullivan SJ (1861-1933)

His life:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/saint-of-the-day-19-february-blessed-john-sullivan-s-j-1861-1933/

Bl Józef Zaplata
St Lucia Yi Zhenmei
St Mansuetus of Milan
St Odran
St Proclus of Bisignano
St Quodvultdeus
St Valerius of Antibes
St Zambdas of Jerusalem

ASPIRATIONS and EJACULATIONS, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, NOVENAS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, The HOLY FACE, The HOLY GHOST

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face Second Day – 18 February

Posted on February 18, 2020February 18, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face
Second Day – 18 February

DAILY PREPARATORY PRAYER

SECOND DAY

(Console Holy Face and recite Daily Preparatory Prayer)

Psalm 51,5-6a.
My offences truly I know them,
My sin is always before me,
Against you, you alone, have I sinned,
What is evil in your sight I have done.

Most Holy Face of Jesus,
we are truly sorry that we have hurt You so much
by constantly doing what is wrong
and for all the good works we have failed to do.
Immaculate Heart of Mary, Saint Joseph,
intercede for us,
help us to console the Most Holy Face of Jesus.
Pray that we may share in the tremendous love
Thou hast for one another
and for the most Holy and Blessed Trinity.
Amen.

Through the merits of Your Precious Blood and Your Holy Face,
O Jesus, grant us our petition. ……………..
Pardon and mercy.

Prayer of the Church to the Holy Spirit

Come, Holy Spirit, Sanctifier, all powerful God of love,
Thou who didst fill the Virgin Mary with grace,
Thou who didst wonderfully transform the hearts of the apostles.
Thou who didst endow all Thy martyrs with a miraculous heroism,
come and sanctify us, illumine our minds, strengthen our wills,
purify our consciences, rectify our judgements, set our hearts on fire and preserve us from the misfortune of resisting Thine inspirations.
We consecrate to Thee our understanding,
our heart and our will, our whole being for time and for eternity.
May our understanding be always submissive to
Thy heavenly inspirations
and to the teachings of Thy Holy Catholic Church,
of which Thou art the infallible guide.
may our heart he ever inflamed with love of God and neighbour,
may our will be ever conformed to the divine will
and may our whole life be a faithful imitation
of the life and virtues of our
Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ,
to whom with the Father
and Thee be honour and glory forever.
Amen.

Pray (1) Our Father, (3) Hail Marys, (1) Glory Be.

O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine (Three times)

MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HUMAN DIGNITY, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on SILENCE

Thought for the Day – 18 February – Interior Silence

Posted on February 18, 2020February 17, 2022 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 18 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Interior Silence

“Many people allow themselves to be swept away in the confusion of the world around them.
Modern life has become a whirling machine which snatches men up into it’s enormous rotators and carries them with it.
Not only has it become difficult to remain a Christian but it is even difficult to continue to be a man!

You cannot cast aside the natural gifts of intellect, free will and personal dignity which God has given us.
Still less, can we renounce the dignity of being Christians.
This dignity can be retained by interior recollection, which will be nourished by divine grace, if we ask for it and, will find it’s external expression in good works.
A man must be able to detach himself from the din of modern life and spend an occasional moment in recollection.
No matter what is going on around him, he must be able to find time to raise his mind to God.
Otherwise, he will realise one day, that life has passed him by like a cloud, or, worse still, like a lost battle.
We shall not be tormented with useless regrets on our deathbed, if we think about this now.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on JUSTICE, QUOTES on MARTYRDOM, QUOTES on MISSION, SAINT of the DAY, The LAST THINGS

Quote/s of the Day – 18 February – Saint Francis Regis Clet Martyr Missionary

Posted on February 18, 2020February 18, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 18 February – The Memorial of Saint Francis Regis Clet CM (1748-1820) Priest and Martyr

“What a great treasure is a good Missionary
and how few people in this world, are willing
to serve God and His Church in purity of faith,
detachment from creatures and self-abnegation.”

St Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)

“My brother, you judge me now,
in a short time my Lord Himself will judge you.”

Saint Francis Regis Clet (1748-1820)
Vincentian Priest and Martyr Missionary

ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HYPOCRISY, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 18 February – ‘Spiritual schizophrenia’

Posted on February 18, 2020February 18, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 18 February – Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: James 1:12-18, Psalm 94:12-15, 18-19, Mark 8:14-21 and the Memorial of Saint Francis Regis Clet CM (1748-1820) Priest and Martyr

And he cautioned them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”…Mark 8:15

REFLECTION – “Jesus tells us to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. That leaven is hypocrisy.
Hypocrisy is an internal division, you say one thing and do another. It is a sort of spiritual schizophrenia. Furthermore a hypocrite is a phoney – he seems good, courteous but he has a dagger behind him. A hypocrite is two-faced. He is a phoney. Jesus, speaking of these doctors of the law, affirms that they say one thing but do not do. This is another form of hypocrisy, it is existential nominalism – those who believe that, by saying things, everything is in order. No, things must be done, not just said. On the contrary, a hypocrite is a nominalist, he believes that everything is done with words. Moreover, a hypocrite is incapable of blaming himself, he never finds a smudge on himself, he blames others. Just think of the speck and the log, this is precisely how we can describe this leaven which is hypocrisy.
May the Lord give to us, to all of us, the Holy Spirit and the grace of the clarity to tell ourselves what is the leaven I grow with, which is the leaven I act with. Am I a just and transparent person or am I a hypocrite?”…Pope Francis – Santa Marta, 14 October 2016 mark-8-15-take-heed-beware-of-the-leaven-jesus-tells-us-pope-francis-19-feb-2019-no-2 and 18 feb 2020

PRAYER – God of mercy, teach us to live as You have ordained. Help us to follow Your commandments with courage and steadfast devotion. Let our Saviour be our master, help us to learn from Him, the ways of prayer in silence. Fill us with the fire of the Holy Spirit, that we may learn. Grant blessed Trinity, that by the prayers of St Francis Regis Clet, we may grow in holiness. Through Jesus our Lord, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever. Amen st francis regis clet pray for us 18 feb 2020

DOCTORS of the Church, franciscan OFM, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 18 February – Jesus, Pierce My Soul with Your Love

Posted on February 18, 2020February 17, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 18 February – Tuesday of the Sixth Week in Ordinary Time, Year A

Jesus, Pierce My Soul with Your Love
By St Bonaventure OFM (1221-1274)
The Seraphic Doctor

Jesus, pierce my soul with Your love
so that I may always long for You alone,
the fulfilment of the soul’s deepest desires.
May my heart always hunger and feed on You,
my soul thirst for You,
the source of life,
wisdom, knowledge, light
and all the riches of God.
May I always seek and find You,
think about You,
speak about You
and do everything for Your honour and glory.
Be always my hope,
my peace, my refuge and my help,
in whom my heart is rooted,
so that I may never
be separated from You.
Amen jesus pierce my soul with your love st bonaventure 18 feb 2020

SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 18 February – Saint Francis Regis Clet CM (1748-1820) Priest and Martyr

Posted on February 18, 2020February 17, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 18 February – Saint Francis Regis Clet CM (1748-1820) Martyr, Religious Priest of the Vincentian Order, Missionary to China – born Francois Regis Clet on 19 August 1748 in Grenoble and died 18 February 1820 in Wuchang, China) is one of the Martyr Saints of China. OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Francis Regis Clet, the tenth of 15 children, was born into a farm family in Grenoble in the southwest corner of France in 1748 and was named for the recently Canonised fellow-Grenoblian, Jesuit St John Francis Regis (Jean Francois Regis). After completing studies at the Royal College (founded by the Jesuits), he followed his elder brother and sister into vowed religious life. In Lyons in 1769, he entered the Congregation of the Mission (Vincentians). After Ordination, Francis served as professor of moral theology at the Vincentian seminary in Annecy where he was affectionately called “the walking library” because of his encyclopedic knowledge and academic discipline. In 1786, he became Rector of Annecy and two years later, Director of Novices in Paris. st francois regis-clet-2

Francis Regis petitioned to go to China as a missionary several times but his superiors did not accede to his request until 1791. At the age of 43, he replaced another priest who had to withdraw from the assignment at the last minute. A confrere, in writing about Clet’s assignment to China, noted: “He has everything you could ask for – holiness, learning, health and charm.”

After a six month sea journey from France and some transition time in Macao, which included assuming the dress and customs of the Chinese people, the new missioner arrived in Kiang-si in October of 1792 as the only European in the area. Clet’s acculturation was hampered by his life-long difficulty with the language. In 1793 Clet joined two Chinese confreres in Hou-Kouang in the Hopei Province where both of his companions died within his first year, one in prison and one from exhaustion. In that year, Clet became superior of an international group of Vincentian missioners scattered over a very large territory, and he himself pastored an area of 270 thousand square miles. In that leadership capacity, he developed standards so that there would be a uniform approach to ministry (sacramental and catechetical) among the missioners.

His own life was simple and austere – he lived like the poor in the country. His great spirit of mortification accommodated the most diverse regimes and it was on foot that he made his long journeys. Gentle and humble, he nevertheless showed great firmness inspired by sound and upright judgement. st francois regis clet older

In 1811, the anti-Christian persecutions in China intensified with the Christians being accused of inciting rebellion against the ruling dynasty. For several years, Clet endured abuse and attacks, which frequently forced him to find refuge in the mountains. In 1819, with a generous reward on their heads, Clet and a Chinese confrere became fugitives. Like Jesus, he was finally betrayed by one of his own, a Catholic schoolmaster whom Clet had challenged for his scandalous behaviour. Like the missionary St Paul, Clet endured ignominy and forced marches in chains over hundreds of miles.

During the course of his judgement, Francis Régis Clet was treated with the most extreme inhumanity. To one of his judges, the holy confessor allowed himself to say: “My brother, you judge me now, in a short time my Lord Himself will judge you.” A few months later, the magistrate, who fell out of favour, was executed. On 1 January 1820, Fr Clet was found guilty of deceiving the Chinese people by preaching Christianity and was sentenced to strangulation on a cross. Pending confirmation of the sentence by the emperor, he wrote: “I prepare for death, often repeating with Saint Paul: ‘if I live, it is for Jesus Christ and death will be for me a gain’.” Finally, the emperor Tsiatsïn declared that “the European had deceived and corrupted many people by preaching the Christian religion and that he should be strangled.” On 18 February Francis Regis Clet was executed. He was 72 years old, twenty-nine of whom spent in the Chinese mission. st francois regis clet suffering

As in the case of Jesus, Christians took his body and buried it on a hillside where it rested until it was returned to the Vincentian motherhouse in Paris several decades later and is now honoured at St Lazare.

St Francis was Beatified on 27 May 1900 by Pope Leo XIII and Canonised on 1 October 2000 by St Pope John Paul II. st francois_regis_clet_480x645_01

DOMINICAN OP, SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints – 18 February

Posted on February 18, 2020February 17, 2020 by AnaStpaul

St Esuperia of Vercelli
St Ethelina
St Flavian (Died 449) Archbishop Martyr
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/02/18/saint-of-the-day-18-february-st-flavian-of-constantinople-died-449-martyr/

St Francis Regis Clet CM (1748-1820) Priest, Martyr

Bl John of Fiesole/Fra Angelico OP – The Angelic Friar Giovanni (1387-1455)
The Artist:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/02/18/saint-of-the-day-18-february-blessed-john-of-fiesole-fra-angelico-o-p-1387-1455/

St Gertrude Caterina Comensoli
St Helladius of Toledo
St Ioannes Chen Xianheng
St Ioannes Zhang Tianshen
St Jean-François-Régis Clet
St Jean-Pierre Néel
Bl Jerzy Kaszyra
Bl John Pibush – one of the Martyrs of Douai
St Leo of Patera
St Martinus Wu Xuesheng
Bl Matthew Malaventino
St Paregorius of Patara
St Sadoth of Seleucia
St Simeon
St Tarasius of Constantinople
St Theotonius
Bl William Harrington
—
Martyrs of North Africa – 7 saints: Group of Christians who were martyred together, date unknown. We know nothing else but seven of their names – Classicus, Fructulus, Lucius, Maximus, Rutulus, Secundinus and Silvanus.
They were born and martyred in North Africa.

Martyrs of Rome – 5 saints: A group of Christians martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian. We know nothing else but their names – Alexander, Claudius, Cutias, Maximus and Praepedigna. They were martyred in 295 in Rome, Italy.

ASPIRATIONS and EJACULATIONS, CATHOLIC Quotes, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, NOVENAS, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The HOLY FACE

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face Begins today, 17 February

Posted on February 17, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Lenten Preparation
Novena to the Holy Face
Begins today, 17 February

Shrove Tuesday is also the Feast of the Holy Face. Many who discover this are quickly struck by the significance of beginning Lent more in love with His countenance. For having made reparation “with Jesus, united with all His sorrows, love and total abandonment” through the novena, we can begin our Lenten walk with Christ more at the ready to comfort Him along the way, as St Veronica did.

Indeed, this searingly beautiful devotion goes back to the Passion itself, when the veil of Veronica smoothed the injuries of Jesus’ Holy Face, so besieged with pain.

In 1843, Sister Marie of St Peter had visions of Jesus requesting a devotion to His Holy Face called “The Golden Arrow,” [https://anastpaul.com/2019/01/14/our-morning-offering-14-january-month-of-the-holy-name-of-jesus/] which brings Him great delight, as He said to Sr Marie, “All who honour My Holy Face in a spirit of reparation thereby perform for Me the services of the pious Veronica.”

In 1938, Jesus appeared to Blessed Maria Pierina de Micheli, His face bloodied by His Passion and said, speaking of His Face, “I wish that it be venerated by a special feast on Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday. I wish that the feast be preceded by a novena in which the faithful make reparation with me, joining together and sharing in my sorrow.” For: “Those on earth who contemplate the wounds of My Face, shall in heaven, behold it, radiant with glory.”

Following that request, Pope Pius XII named Shrove Tuesday as the official Feast of the Holy Face in 1958.

We pray our Novena in fine company.
St Augustine (354-430), St Gertrude the Great (1256-1302) and St Bernard (1090-1153), St Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897), among many others, all venerated the Holy Face.

In the words of St John Paul II:
“And is it not the Church’s task, to reflect the light of Christ in every historical period, to make His face shine also before generations of the new millennium? Our witness, however, would be hopelessly inadequate, if we ourselves had not first contemplated His face.”

In a similar way, our Lenten witness to the wounds on His Hands and Fee, is inadequate if we have not first contemplated His Face, bitterly kissed by Judas, spat upon, battered, covered with sweat and blood and crowned with thorns, continuing to be dishonoured even today, through the Blessed Sacrament by profanations, sacrilege and neglect.

For so many, Shrove Tuesday is a date on the calendar that gets overshadowed by Ash Wednesday, that memorable day we wear the outward sign of repentance and recall our mortality. How much more meaningful will our Ash Wednesday be, if we first mark Shrove Tuesday as a Feast of the Holy Face, concluding the Novena we began in Ordinary Time and beginning Lent, more in love, with the countenance of Christ and, through Him, made more beautiful in our own soul. Amen!

THE HOLY FACE OF JESUS

“I firmly wish that My Face, reflecting the intimate pains of my soul, the suffering and love of my heart, be more honoured! Whoever gazes upon me already consoles me.”

(Our Lord Jesus Christ to Sister Pierina)

This novena prayer may be said at anytime but, especially in the nine days leading up to the Feast of the Holy Face on Shrove Tuesday. The Holy Face Devotion is approved by the Vatican.

DAILY PREPARATORY PRAYER

“All those who, attracted by My Love and venerating My Countenance, shall receive, by virtue of My Humanity, a brilliant and vivid impression of My Divinity. This splendour shall enlighten the depths of their souls, so that in eternal glory the celestial court shall marvel at the marked likeness of their features, with My Divine Countenance.” … Our Lord Jesus Christ to St Gertrude

FIRST DAY

(Console the Holy Face and recite Daily Preparatory Prayer) above.
Psalm 51,3-4.
Have mercy on me, O God in your goodness,
in your great tenderness wipe away my faults,
wash me clean of my guilt, purify me from my sin.

O most Holy Face of Jesus,
look with tenderness on us who are sinners.
You are a merciful God,
full of love and compassion.
Keep us pure of heart,
so that we may see Thee always.
Mary, our Mother,
intercede for us,
Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of Thy Precious Blood
and Thy Holy Face, O Jesus,
grant us our petition………………
and Thy pardon and mercy.

Prayer to Our Almighty Father
By St Augustine (354-430)

Almighty Father, come into our hearts
and so fill us with Your love that forsaking all evil desires,
we may embrace You, our only good.
Show us, O Lord our God, what You are to us.
Say to our souls, I am your salvation,
speak so, that we may hear.
Our hearts are before You,
open our ears,
let us hasten after Your Voice.
Hide not Your Face from us, we beseech You, O Lord.
Open our hearts, so that You may enter in.
Repair the ruined mansions, that You may dwell therein.
Hear us, O Heavenly Father,
for the sake of Your only Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ,
who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever.
Amen

Pray (1) Our Father, (3) Hail Marys, (1) Glory Be.

O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every Adoration Thine (Three times)

THE HOLY FACE - VERONICA'S VEIL

I BELIEVE!, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD

Thought for the Day – 17 February – The Will

Posted on February 17, 2020February 16, 2022 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 17 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Will

“The coat of arms of the great city of Chicago bears the motto “I will.”
With this forceful approach to it’s programme of expansion, it was not long before it became one of the largest cities in America.
It grew to be a wealthy industrial centre, in which skyscrapers, factories and churches, sprang up side-by-side.

When it is said with sincerity and determination, this little phrase, “I will,”
is capable of producing amazing results, both in the physical and spiritual order.
St Thomas Aquinas was once asked by a nun, what were the requirements for sanctity.
He replied, that the chief thing necessary, was a strong and decisive act of the will, which would be certain to be reinforced by divine grace.
The Saints began every project by making a sincere and definite resolution to succeed.
They were weak creatures like the rest of us but, they knew, that if they wanted something intensely enough, God would grant whatever miracles they needed.
The father who asked Jesus to heal his son pleaded: “If thou canst do anything, have compassion on us and help us,” to which Jesus replied: “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him who believes” (Mk 9:16-22).
The same answer could be given to any of us who say, that we are anxious to become holy.
Anything is possible if we really want it, because God will do the rest!“

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, I BELIEVE!, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 17 February – ‘Everything is a sign!’

Posted on February 17, 2020February 17, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 17 February – Monday of the Sixth week in Ordinary Time, Year A

And he sighed deeply in his spirit and said,
“Why does this generation seek a sign?

Mark 8:12

“But for what sign from heaven were they asking?
Maybe that He should hold back the sun,
or curb the moon,
or bring down thunderbolts,
or change the direction of the wind,
or something like that?
In Pharaoh’s time there was an enemy
from whom deliverance was needed.
But for one who comes among friends,
there should be no need of such signs.”

St John Chrysostom (347-407)
Father & Doctor

“You also are blessed,
because you have heard and believed.
A soul that believes, both conceives
and brings forth the Word of God
and acknowledges His works.
… Christ has only one mother, in the flesh
but we all bring forth Christ, in faith.”

St Ambrose of Milan (340-397)
Great Latin Father and Doctor of the Church

“For those who believe,
everything is a sign!”

Blessed Benedetta Bianchi Porro (1936-1964)

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, franciscan OFM, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DESPAIR, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 17 February – ‘…Don’t wait for Tabor to “see” God’

Posted on February 17, 2020 by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 17 February – Monday of the Sixth week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: James 1:1-11, Psalm 119:67-68, 71-72,75-76, Mark 8:11-13 and the Memorial of St Alexis Falconieri (13th century –1310) Priest, One of Seven Founders of the Servites

“Why does this generation seek a sign?” … Mark 8:12

REFLECTION – “Believing even in darkness – The Holy Spirit tells us: Do not let your mind succumb to temptation and sorrow, for joy of the heart is life for the soul. Sorrow is no good for anything and causes our spiritual death.

It happens sometimes that the darkness of trial overwhelms your soul’s heaven but this darkness is light!
Thanks to it, you believe even in darkness, the mind feels lost, it fears no longer being able to see, no longer understanding anything. But this is the moment when the Lord speaks and makes Himself present to the soul and the soul listens, understands and loves in the fear of God. So don’t wait for Tabor to “see” God when you are already contemplating Him on Sinai.

Progress in the joy of a sincere heart, that is wide open. And if it is impossible for you to keep that happiness, at least don’t lose courage and keep all your trust in God.” … Saint Pius of Pietralcina “Padre Pio” (1887-1968) mark 8 12 why does this generation seek a sign - dont wait for tabor - st padre pio 17 feb 2020

PRAYER – Almighty Lord and God, protect us by Your power throughout the course of this day, even as You have enabled us to begin it. Your grace is all that we need to see the loving kindness of Your Son, our Lord Jesus in all we meet. Do not let us turn aside from His path but by the faith You have granted us, let us find meaning in all, which is the sign of Your glory. Do not let us turn aside to sin and may the intercession of St Alexis Falconieri and the Seven Holy Founders of the Servites, grant us courage and peace. Through Jesus Christ, our Saviour, with the Holy Spirit, God now and forever, amen. st alexis falconieri 7 holy founders servites 17 feb 2020 pray for us 17 feb 2020

seven-holy-founders-pray-for-us-17-feb-2017 and 2020

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, JESUIT SJ, Our MORNING Offering, POETRY

Our Morning Offering – 17 February – Psalm 121 By Fr Daniel Berrigan

Posted on February 17, 2020February 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 17 February – Monday of the Sixth week in Ordinary Time, Year A

The Pharisees came forward and began to argue with Jesus, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him.
He sighed from the depth of his spirit and said, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Amen, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation.”
Then he left them, got into the boat again and went off to the other shore. – Today’s Gospel: Mark 8:11-13

Psalm 121
By Fr Daniel Berrigan SJ (1921–2016)

I lift my eyes to You
my Help, my Hope

the heavens (who could imagine)
the earth (only our Lord)
the infinite starry spaces
the world’s teeming breath

All this. I lift my eyes
– upstart, delighted –
and I praise.

Fr Daniel Joseph Berrigan SJ was an American Jesuit priest, anti-war activist, Christian pacifist, playwright, poet and author.

SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 17 February – Saint Alexis Falconieri (13th century –1310)

Posted on February 17, 2020February 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 17 February – Saint Alexis Falconieri (13th century –1310) Religious, one of Seven Founders of the Servites, who are celebrated together on the anniversary of his death. Born 13th century at Florence, Italy and died on 17 February 1310 at Monte Sennario, Italy. Patronage – Orvieto, Italy. st alexis falconieri

He was the son of Bernardo Falconieri, a merchant prince of Florence and one of the leaders of the Republic. His family belonged to the Guelph party and opposed the Imperialists.

Falconieri grew up in the practice of the most profound humility. He became a wealthy noble in one of Italy’s most wealthy and cultured cities. He joined the Laudesi, a pious confraternity of the Blessed Virgin and there met the six future companions of his life of sanctity. He was favoured with an apparition of the Mother of God on 15 August 1233, as were these companions. She asked these seven young nobles to dedicate their lives to God and they did, founding a religious order. 7 holy founders servites 6

They took up a common life together and were later again visited by Mary, who held a black habit and told them, “I have chosen you to be my first Servants, and under this name you are to till my Son’s vineyard. Here, too, is the habit which you are to wear, its dark colour will recall the pangs which I suffered on the day when I stood by the cross of my only Son.”

7 holy founders servites 5 7 holy founders servites 3

Falconieri at once abandoned all and retired to La Camarzia, a house on the outskirts of the town and was bestowed the title of Founder and Mystic.

With humility, he traversed, the streets of the city through which he had lately moved as a prominent citizen, as a mendicant, in quest of alms for his brethren. So deep and sincere was his humility that, though he lived to the great age of over 100 years, he always refused to enter the Priesthood, of which he deemed himself unworthy.

His duties were confined principally to the material needs of the various communities in which he lived . In 1252 the new church at Cafaggio, on the outskirts of Florence, was completed under his care, with the financial assistance of Chiarissimo Falconieri. Saint Giuliana Falconieri, his niece, was trained in sanctity under his personal direction. st alexis falconieri 2

The influence exerted on his countrymen by Falconieri and his companions may be gathered from the fact that in a few years ten thousand persons had enrolled themselves under the banner of the Blessed Virgin in the Servite Order.

He died in Monte Senario on 17 February 1310.

His shrine and entombed body is near the church of the Santissima Annunziata in Florence. Pope Clement XI declared Falconieri worthy of the veneration of the faithful, on 1 December 1717 and accorded the same honour to his six companions on 3 July 1725.

About these holy men:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/02/17/saints-of-the-day-17-february-the-seven-holy-founders-of-the-servite-order-osm-formation-on-15-august-1233/

st alexis falconieri death

SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints – 17 February

Posted on February 17, 2020February 16, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Seven Founders of Servants of Mary (Optional Memorial)
• St Alexis Falconieri (c (1200–1310) One of the Seven Founders of the Servites
• St Bartholomew degli Amidei
• St Benedict dell’Antella
• St Buonfiglio Monaldi
• St Gherardino Sostegni
• St Hugh dei Lippi-Uguccioni
• St John Buonagiunta Monetti 7 holy founders servites
About these holy men:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/02/17/saints-of-the-day-17-february-the-seven-holy-founders-of-the-servite-order-osm-formation-on-15-august-1233/

St Alexis Falconieri – SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS (13th century –1310)
St Antoni Leszczewicz
St Bartholomew degli Amidei – SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS
St Benedict dell’Antella – SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS
St Benedict of Cagliari
St Buonfiglio Monaldi – SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS
St Bonosus of Trier
Bl Constabilis of Cava
St Donatus the Martyr
Bl Elisabetta Sanna
St Evermod of Ratzeburg
St Faustinus the Martyr
St Finan of Iona
St Fintan of Clonenagh
St Flavian of Constantinople
St Fortchern of Trim
St Gherardino Sostegni – SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS
St Guevrock
St Habet-Deus
St Hugh dei Lippi-Uguccioni – SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS
St John Buonagiunta Monetti – SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS
St Julian of Caesarea
St Loman of Trim
Bl Luke Belludi (c 1200- c 1285)
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/02/17/saint-of-the-day-17-february-blessed-luke-belludi-ofm-c-1200-c-1285/

https://youtu.be/3Lr1ot2SwvE

St Lupiano
Bl Martí Tarrés Puigpelat
St Mesrop the Teacher
St Petrus Yu Chong-nyul
St Polychronius of Babylon
St Romulus the Martyr
St Secundian the Martyr
St Silvinus of Auchy
St Theodulus of Caesarea
Bl William Richardson

MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on ENVY, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on HAPPINESS, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on WORK/LABOUR, QUOTES on WORRY/ANXIETY

Thought for the Day – 16 February – The Duties of Our State

Posted on February 16, 2020February 15, 2022 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 16 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Duties of Our State

“Everyone finds himself in a certain position in life.
He may be there, either through force of circumstances, or, through somebody else’s desire, or through some secret inspiration from God,
In any case, each of us is in a certain place and God, either wills it or permits it.
We should not complain about our state in life.
No matter what that state is, we can either be saved or damned for all eternity.
In any position, we can do a great deal of good or a great deal of evil, according to the way in which we co-operate with the grace of God.
We should not envy the positions of others.
This would be unjust because, it would be tantamount to questioning the arrangements of Providence, which gives everyone the graces necessary, in his particular state.
It would also be injurious, insofar, as we should be worried and disturbed, instead of working peacefully and earnestly, in the place assigned to us by God.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 16 February – The Holy Eucharist, The Holy Word of God

Posted on February 16, 2020February 15, 2020 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 16 February – The Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A

“As to the truth of the flesh and blood of Jesus Christ,
there is no room left for doubt.
For both, from the declaration of the Lord Himself
and from our own faith, it is truly flesh and truly blood.
And when these are eaten and drunk,
it is brought to pass,
that we are both in Christ
and Christ is in us.
Is this not so?”

St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368)
Doctor of the Divinity of Christ

“Always give good heed to the Word of God,
whether you hear or read it in private,
or hearken to it when publicly preached.
Listen with attention and reverence,
seek to profit by it
and do not let the precious words fall unheeded
but receive them into your heart.”

	AnaStpaul on Thought for the Day –19 Decemb…
	hughie1 on Thought for the Day –19 Decemb…
	Two churches on Saint of the Day – 2 April – S…
	AnaStpaul on Thought for the Day – 10 Decem…
	AnaStpaul on Within the Octave, Casa de Lor…

FOURTH DAY

O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine (Three times)

Share this:

The Five Tribunals

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Share this:

Mark 8:29

St Francisco Marto of Fatima (1908-1919)

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face Third Day – 19 February

THIRD DAY

Share this:

Good Inspirations

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Share this:

Mark 8: 25

St Francis of Assisi (c 1181-1226)

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

SECOND DAY

O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine (Three times)

Share this:

Interior Silence

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Share this:

St Vincent de Paul (1581-1660)

Saint Francis Regis Clet (1748-1820) Vincentian Priest and Martyr Missionary

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

THE HOLY FACE OF JESUS

“I firmly wish that My Face, reflecting the intimate pains of my soul, the suffering and love of my heart, be more honoured! Whoever gazes upon me already consoles me.”

FIRST DAY

Share this:

The Will

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Share this:

Mark 8:12

St John Chrysostom (347-407) Father & Doctor

St Ambrose of Milan (340-397) Great Latin Father and Doctor of the Church

Blessed Benedetta Bianchi Porro (1936-1964)

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

Share this:

The Duties of Our State

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Share this:

St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368) Doctor of the Divinity of Christ

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622) Doctor caritatis

Share this:

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face
Third Day – 19 February

Saint Francis Regis Clet (1748-1820)
Vincentian Priest and Martyr Missionary

St John Chrysostom (347-407)
Father & Doctor

St Ambrose of Milan (340-397)
Great Latin Father and Doctor of the Church

St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368)
Doctor of the Divinity of Christ

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor caritatis