Day: August 31, 2020

Posted in MARIAN PRAYERS, NOVENAS, The NATIVITY of the BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Novena in Preparation for the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Day Two – 31 August

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Novena in Preparation for the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Day Two

O Chosen One among the daughters of Adam,
admirable Mary,
the Son of God delights in your birth,
for He beholds the one chosen to be His Mother
and oh! such a beloved Mother.
May your birth give joy to my soul also,
by obtaining from your divine Son
the grace to be born again spiritually to a holy life,
perfectly conformed to yours,
so that I may merit to obtain eternal glory.
Dearest Mother, please pray for me
and for these my intentions…
……………………… (State your intentions)

Hail Mary…

Prayer:
Your Nativity, O Virgin Mother of God,
was the herald of joy to the whole world;
since from you arose the Sun of Justice,
Christ our God, who, destroying the curse,
bestowed the blessing
and confounding death,
rewarded us with life everlasting.

V. Let us celebrate with joy the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

R. That she may intercede for us with Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Let us pray:
Grant to us Your servants, we beseech You, O Lord,
the gift of Your heavenly grace,
that as our salvation was begun
in the child-bearing of the Blessed Virgin,
so from this solemn festival of her Nativity
may we obtain an increase of peace.
Through Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen

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Posted in MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on PATIENCE

Thought for the Day – 31 August – Patience

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Thought for the Day – 31 August – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Patience

“Patience may be external or internal.
Both are necessary aspects of the same virtue.
External patience consists in refraining from outbursts of anger and from sarcastic comments – in short, from all words and actions which might give offence to others.
It is easy to be patient when our affairs are running smoothly and everybody is being nice to us.
It is quite another matter, when we come up against difficulties or find that we are being slighted or insulted.
It is hard to remain silent when our pride has been wounded and it requires the virtue of a saint to be able to smile at our tormentors.
It took St Francis de Sales years of spiritual conflict before he achieved this kind of perfection.

How far can we claim to have succeeded in acquiring this virtue?
We should always remember that temperamental explosions are unworthy of a rational being.
The only proper course when we have been offended is to state our case clearly and calmly, though generally it is more heroic to remain silent.
Impatience is futile because it cannot remedy the situation and often harmful, because it upsets us and only produces bitterness.
Acts of impatience, moreover, are a source of bad example to others.
“The quick-tempered man,” says Sacred Scripture, “makes a fool of himself” (Prov 14:17).
“The patient man,” it adds,. “shows much good sense but, the quick-tempered man displays folly at it’s height” (Ibid 14:19).

If we live in the presence of God, we shall learn to be calm and self-controlled in all circumstances.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, I BELIEVE!, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The HOLY SPIRIT, The WILL of GOD, The WORD, THOMAS a KEMPIS

Quote/s of the Day – 31 August – “… The Light of the Only-begotten has Shone on Us …”

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Quote/s of the Day – 31 August – Monday of the Twenty Second week in Ordinary Time, Readings: 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, Psalms 119:97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, Luke 4:16-30

“… The Light of the Only-begotten has Shone on Us …”

“He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free.”

Luke 4:18

“This, beloved, is the way in which we found our salvation,
Jesus Christ, the High Priest who offers our gifts,
the patron and helper in our weakness (Heb 10:20; 7:27; 4:15).
It is through Him, that we look straight at the heavens above.
Through Him, we see mirrored, God’s faultless
and transcendent countenance.
Through Him, the eyes of our heart were opened.
Through Him, our unintelligent and darkened mind shoots up into the light.
Through Him, the Master was pleased to let us taste
the knowledge that never fades,
He who is “the radiance of His splendour,
who towers as much above the angels,
as the title He has inherited, is superior to theirs.”

St Pope Clement I (c 35 – c 99)

“For what reason did God send Him to preach to the poor?
“To preach release to captives.”
We were the captives.
For many years Satan had bound us
and held us captive and subject to himself.
Jesus has come
“to proclaim release to captives and sight to the blind.”
By His word and the proclamation of His teaching,
the blind see.”

Origen (c 185-253)

“On each occasion I say:
‘Lord, Thy will be done!
It’s not what this, or that one, wants
but, what You want me to do.’
This is my fortress,
this is my firm rock,
this is my sure support.”

St John Chrysostom (347-407)
Father and Doctor

“He did not treat us as our sins deserved.
For we are now sons of God.
How do we show this?
The only Son of God died for us,
so that He might not remain alone.
He who died as the only Son,
did not want to remain as the only Son.
For the only Son of God made many sons of God.
He bought brothers for Himself by His blood,
He made them welcome by being rejected,
He ransomed them by being sold,
He honoured them by being dishonoured,
He gave them life by being put to death.”

St Augustine (354-430)
Bishop, Great Western Father and Doctor of Grace

An excerpt from his Sermon 171

“You have the words of eternal life”

John 6:68

“These words surely make quite obvious to us
the necessity for sitting at the feet of Christ,
taking Him as our one and only teacher
and giving Him our constant and undivided attention. …
Keeping with their guide was the Israelites’ salvation then,
just as not leaving Christ is ours now.
… We will stay with You always and hold fast to Your commandments.
We will receive Your words without finding fault,
or thinking Your teaching hard,
as the ignorant do but thinking rather:
“How sweet are Your words to my throat!
Sweeter to the mouth are they, than honey or the honeycomb!”

“Our lives are all controlled by the Spirit now
and are not confined to this physical world
that is subject to corruption.
The light of the Only-begotten has shone on us
and we have been transformed into the Word,
the source of all life.”

St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444)
Father and Doctor of the Church

“He is the one who teaches
the truth of prophecy
through His presence
and makes obedience
to the commandments possible,
through grace.”

St Pope Leo the Great (400-461)
Father and Doctor of the Church

Heal us Lord God
Prayer of St Albert of Trapani O.Carm. (c 1240-1307)

O my God,
You have created the human race
by Your wonderful power.
It is an act of Your clemency that has called us
to share Your glory and eternal life.
When the first sin condemned us to suffer death,
out of Your goodness,
You wished to redeem us
through the blood of Your Son,
To unite us to You through our faith
and Your great mercy.
You have brought us back
from the shame of our sin,
You have veiled our dishonour
in the brightness of Your glory.
Look now and see that what You have created,
giving it subtle limbs and joints
and made beautiful through its immortal soul,
is now subject to the attack of Satan.
Be pleased Lord
to reconstitute Your work and heal it.
May Your power be glorified
and may the malice of the enemy be stunned.
Amen

St Albert of Trapani (c 1240-1307)

“Even to the present time
I have not stopped speaking to all men
but many are deaf and obstinate in response.
… He who possesses my words
yet spurns them,
earns his own judgement on the last day.”

Thomas á Kempis (1380-1471)

The Imitation of Christ

Posted in CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, SAINT of the DAY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 31 August – And they rose up and put him out of the city … Luke 4:29-30

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One Minute Reflection – 31 August – Monday of the Twenty Second week in Ordinary Time, Readings: 1 Corinthians 2:1-5, Psalms 119:97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102, Luke 4:16-30 and the Memorial of St Raymond Nonnatus O.deM. (1204-1240)

And they rose up and put him out of the city and led him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw him down headlong. But passing through the midst of them he went away….Luke 4:29-30

REFLECTION – “A doctor came amongst us to restore us to health – our Lord Jesus Christ. He discovered blindness in our hearts and promised the light that “eye has not seen and ear has not heard and has not entered the heart of man” (1Cor 2:9).
The humility of Jesus Christ is the cure for your pride. Do not scorn what will bring you healing, be humble, you for whom God humbled Himself. Indeed, He knew that the medicine of humility would cure you, He, who well understood your sickness and knew how to cure it. While you were unable to run to the doctor’s house, the doctor in person came to your house… He is coming, He wants to help you, He knows what you need.
God has come with humility precisely in order that man might imitate Him. If He had remained above you, how would you have been able to imitate Him? And, without imitating Him, how could you be healed? He came with humility because He knew the nature of the remedy He had to administer – a little bitter, it is true but healing. And do you continue to scorn Him? He who holds out the cup to you and you say: “But what sort of God is this God of mine? He was born, suffered, was covered with spittle, crowned with thorns, nailed on the cross!” O miserable soul! You see the doctor’s humility and not the cancer of your pride. That is why humility displeases you…
It often happens that mentally ill people end up by beating their doctor. When that happens, the unfortunate doctor is not only not distressed by the one who beat him but attempts to treat him… As for our doctor, He did not fear being killed by sick people afflicted with madness, He turned His own death into their remedy. Indeed, He died and rose again.”…St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of the Church

PRAYER – My Lord and my God, help me eternal Father, to overcome my weakness! Teach me to be constantly on guard against my pride, to constantly keep watch for temptation and to live constantly in prayer, that Your Son will lead me to safety. St Raymond Nonnatus, you suffered torture but always remain prayerful and awake, imitating the Lord, please pray for me, amen.

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Our Morning Offering – 31 August – Deign, O Immaculate Virgin

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Our Morning Offering – 31 August – The last day of the Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary – Monday of the Twenty Second week in Ordinary Time

Deign, O Immaculate Virgin
By St Paschasius Radbertus (785–865)

Deign, O Immaculate Virgin,
Mother most pure,
to accept the loving cry of praise
which we send up to you
from the depths of our hearts.
Though they can but add little to your glory,
O Queen of Angels,
you do not despise, in your love,
the praises of the humble
and the poor.
Cast down upon us a glance of mercy,
O most glorious Queen,
graciously receive our petitions.
Through your immaculate purity of body and mind,
which rendered you so pleasing to God,
inspire us with a love of innocence and purity.
Teach us to guard carefully the gifts of grace,
striving ever after sanctity, so that,
being made like the image of your beauty,
we may be worthy to become the sharers
of your eternal happiness.
Amen

St Paschasius Radbertus was a Theologian and the Benedictine Abbot of Corbie.
Read about him here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2019/04/26/saint-of-the-day-26-april-saint-paschasius-radbertus-785-865/

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 31 August – Saint Paulinus of Trier (Died 358 or 359) Bishop

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Saint of the Day – 31 August – Saint Paulinus of Trier (Died 358 or 359) Bishop of Trier, Missionary, Defender of the Faith, Confessor. Born in Gascony, France and died in 358 in Phrygia, Asia Minor (in modern Turkey). St Paulinus was the sixth Bishop of Trier in present day Germany. He was among the foremost defenders of orthodoxy during the Christological conflicts with Arianism.

Little is known of the early life of Paulinus. He was born in what is known as Gascony in France. He was educated in the cathedral school at Poitiers. He accompanied St Maximinus to Trier (died c 349) in present day Germany. At that time Trier, was the government seat of the Western Emperor of the Roman empire. There, he apparently was Consecrated a Bishop by Maximinus and succeeded him as Bishop of Trier in 349.

Paulinus attended the Council of Sirmium in 351, where he boldly championed the orthodox position. He defended the creed, as it was written down by the Council of Nicaea in 325. Accordingly, Christ was of the same nature as the Father; He is true God and at the same time true man. The opposite position is associated with the name of the Alexandrian priest Arius (circa 260-336). It’s followers, the Arians, held the view that Christ was only god-like.

When the letter of condemnation of St Athanasius was tendered for him to sign, he scornfully rejected it and exclaimed that he would sign the condemnation of Photinus and Marcellus but not of Athanasius. Sulpicius Severus (circa 363-425) mentions Paulinus by name among the few who resisted the “Arians.”

At the Council of Arles in 353, Paulinus’s fate was decided. There, he was targeted by the Arians and Emperor Constantius II, a friend of the Arians, decreed the banishment of all bishops who refused to subscribe to the condemnation of Athanasius. Paulinus remained firm and, after being condemned by the bishops, he was driven into exile to Phrygia in Asia Minor, to areas inhabited by heathen and heretics. This occurred in 353 or, at latest, in 354.

He died five years later, in either 358 or 359, while in exile. His relics were returned to Trier in 395 where he was entombed in the crypt of the city’s St Paulinus Minor Basilica, which was dedicated to him. The Basilica, named for him, was then outside the walls of the city and was one of the earliest churches at Trier.

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints – 31 August

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St Aidan of Lindisfarne (Died 651) Apostle of Northumbria
St Aidan’s Story:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/08/31/saint-of-the-day-31-august-st-aidan-of-lindisfarne-died-651-apostle-of-northumbria/
St Ammi of Caesarea
St Aristides the Philosopher
St Barbolenus of Bobbio
St Caesidius
St Cuthburgh of Wimborne
St Cwenburgh of Wimborne
St Mark of Milan
St Optatus of Auxerre
St Paulinus of Trier (Died 358) Bishop
Blessed Pere (Peter) Tarrés i Claret (1905-1950)
His Life:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/08/31/saint-of-the-day-31-august-blessed-pere-peter-tarres-i-claret-1905-1950/
St Raymond Nonnatus O.deM. (1204-1240)
Biography here:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/08/31/saint-of-the-day-31-august-st-raymond-nonnatus-o-dem/

St Raymond Nonnatus Robustian of Milan
St Raymond Nonnatus Rufina of Caesarea
St Raymond Nonnatus Theodotus of Caesarea
—
Martyrs of Prague – 64 beati

Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
Martyrs of Pozo de la Lagarta – 18 beati:
• Blessed Bernardo Cembranos Nistal
• Blessed Dionisio Ullivarri Barajuán
• Blessed Enrique Vidaurreta Palma
• Blessed Félix Paco Escartín
• Blessed Germán Martín y Martín
• Blessed Isidro Ordóñez Díez
• Blessed José María Palacio Montes
• Blessed Justo Zariquiegui Mendoza
• Blessed Marciano Herrero Martínez
• Blessed Miguel Menéndez García
• Blessed Tomás Alonso Sanjuán
• Blessed Ventureta Sauleda Paulís