Posted in DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, NOVENAS, The DIVINE INFANT

The Monthly Novena to the Miraculous Infant Jesus of Prague – The Third Day – 18 December

The Monthly Novena to the
Miraculous Infant Jesus of Prague

There are two standard Novenas to the Infant Jesus of Prague – the one we will use below and the other for the Feast on 2 January. The Monthly Novena attracts Indulgences (see Note below).

The more you honour Me,
the more I will bless you.

The Third Day

Devotion to the infant Jesus of Prague is devotion to the Child Jesus.
It is veneration of the Son of God, Who in the form of a lovely Infant chose a stable for a palace, a manger for a cradle and shepherds for worshipers.
Our Saviour grants special graces to all who venerate His sacred Infancy.

The secret of this devotion may be found in the words of a poor labourer who earned very low wages and was unable to meet the demands of his creditors. Hearing of the wonders of the Infant Jesus of
Prague, he said to himself:
I shall apply to the Divine Infant, for just as it is easy to obtain everything from a child, so I think Our Lord will the sooner hear me if I venerate His holy Infancy.
He made a Novena to the Divine Infant and on the last day received assistance.

The Infant’s Patronage is especially sought for:
vocations, good health, financial issues, a holy family life, schools, the welfare of children, freedom and peace, the missions and safety in travel.

THE NOVENA PRAYERS

  1. Eternal Father, I offer to Thy honour and glory,
    for my own salvation and that of the whole world,
    the Mystery of the Birth of our Divine Saviour.
    Glory be to the Father, etc.
  2. Eternal Father, I offer to Thy honour and glory
    and for my eternal salvation and that of the whole world,
    the sufferings of the most holy Virgin and of St Joseph,
    in that long and weary journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem.
    I offer Thee the sorrow of their hearts
    when they found no place wherein to shelter themselves,
    when the Saviour of the world was born.
    Glory be to the Father, etc.
  3. Eternal Father, I offer to Thy honour and glory
    and for my eternal salvation and that of the whole world,
    the sufferings of Jesus in the stable where He was born,
    the cold He endured, the swaddling clothes which bound Him,
    the tears He shed and His tender Infant cries.
    Glory be to the Father, etc.
  4. Eternal Father, I offer to Thy honour and glory
    and for my eternal salvation and that of the whole world,
    the pain which the Holy Child Jesus felt in His tender body,
    when He submitted to circumcision.
    I offer Thee that Precious Blood which then,
    for the first time He shed for the salvation
    of the whole humanrace.
    Glory be to the Father, etc.
  5. Eternal Father, I offer to Thy honour and glory
    and for my eternal salvation and that of the whole world,
    the humility, mortification, patience, charity,
    all the virtues of the Child Jesus
    and I thank Thee and I love Thee
    and I bless Thee without end,
    for the ineffable Mystery of
    the Incarnation of the Divine Word.
    Glory be to the Father, etc.

The Word was made Flesh,
And dwelt among us.

LET US PRAY
O God, Whose Only-begotten Son
was made manifest to us in the substance of our flesh,
grant, we beseech Thee, that through Him,
Whom we acknowledge to be like unto ourselves,
our souls may be inwardly renewed.
Who liveth and reigneth with Thee
forever and ever.
Amen.

7 years Indulgence each day, if the above prayers are recited on the 9 days preceding the 25th of any month. Plenary Indulgence under the usual conditions, when the Novena is completed. (125)

More about the Infant:
https://anastpaul.com/2023/01/02/saint-of-the-day-2-january-feast-of-the-infant-jesus-of-prague/

Posted in "Follow Me", GOD ALONE!, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Thought for the Day – 18 December – The Cradle of the Divine Infant Jesus

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

A Christmas Novena III
The Cradle of the Divine Infant Jesus

Blessed are the poor in spirit,” said Jesus Christ, “for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 5:3),
Before He spoke these words, however, He had taught us the same thing in deed.

In the utter poverty of the stable in Bethlehem, He tells us that riches, honours and human grandeur cannot make us happy.
We are entitled to accept these things, if Providence bestows them upon us but, we should not become attached to them.
The human heart longs for God.
It was not made for the transient pleasures and goods of this life but only for God.
In the presence of the Crib, therefore, let us learn to surrender ourselves, heart and soul, to Jesus Christ.

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/12/18/thought-for-the-day-18-december-a-christmas-novena-the-cradle-of-the-divine-infant-jesus/
PART TWO:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/12/18/thought-for-the-day-18-december-the-cradle-of-the-divine-infant-jesus/

Posted in "Follow Me", ADVENT QUOTES, ADVENT REFLECTIONS, AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on THE MYSTICAL BODY, QUOTES on WATCHING, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT, The HEART, The NATIVITY of JESUS, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 18 December – Ready to welcome Him …

Quote/s of the Day – 18 December – “The Month of the Divine Infancy and the Immaculate Conceptio of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – Monday of the Third Week of Advent – Ferial Day – Philippians 4:4-7; John 1:19-28 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

The Lord is near.
Have no anxiety
…”

Philippians 4:5-6

Let your door stand open
to receive Him,
unlock your soul to Him,
offer Him a welcome in your mind
and then you will see
the riches of simplicity,
the treasures of peace,
the joy of grace.
Throw wide the gate of your heart,
stand before the Sun of the Everlasting Light!

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

He became small because you were small –
understand how great He is
and you will become great along with Him.
This is how houses are built,
how the solid walls of a building are raised.
The stones brought to construct the building increase,
you, too, increase, understanding how great Christ is
and how He, Who appeared to be small, is great,
very great indeed…

St Augustine (354-430)
Father & Doctor of the Church

In adoring our Saviour’s birth,
it is our origin that we celebrate.
Christ’s temporal generation
is the source of the Christian people,
the birth of His Mystical Body.
All of us encounter in this Mystery,
a new birth in Christ.

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

If we would please this Divine Infant,
we too must become children,
simple and humble.
We must carry to Him, flowers of virtue,
of meekness, of mortification, of charity.
We must clasp Him in the arms of our love.

St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor

Posted in ADVENT QUOTES, ADVENT REFLECTIONS, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FRANCISCAN OFM, GOD ALONE!, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on FEAR, QUOTES on WORRY/ANXIETY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 18 December – “The Lord is near. Have no anxiety [at all]” Phil 4:5-6

One Minute Reflection – 18 December – “The Month of the Divine Infancy and the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – Monday of the Third Week of Advent and the Feast of Our Lady of Expectation – Ferial Day – Philippians 4:4-7; John 1:19-28 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“[One is standing] in the midst of you, Whom you do not know.” – John 1:26

REFLECTION The Lord is near. Have no anxiety [at all]” (Phil 4:5-6). This is what God the Father says in the Prophet Isaiah: “I am bringing on My Justice,” – that is to say, His Son; “My salvation shall not tarry. I shall put salvation within Zion and give to Israel My glory” (46:13). It is what today’s Gospel says: “One is standing in your midst, One Whom you do not know” Mediator between God and men, a Man (1Tim 2:5), Christ Jesus, arises in the camp of this world, to fight the devil. As victor, He rescues man and reconciles him with God our Father. But you do not know Him!

Sons have I raised and reared but they have disowned Me. An ox knows its owner and an ass, its master’s manger. But Israel does not know Me and My people have not understood” (Is 1:2-3). How close the Lord is to us! And we do not know Him! “I have fed My children with My blood,” He says to us, “as a mother feeds her children with her milk. I have raised the human nature I have taken, to which I am united, above the Choirs of Angels.” Could He show us greater honour? “And they have rejected Me. See whether there is any sorrow like Mine” (Lam 1:12) …

So, then, “have no anxiety at all,” for it is anxiety concerning material things which makes us forget the Lord!” – St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) Franciscan, Doctor of the Church (Sermons for Sundays and Feast days, 3rd Sunday of Advent).

PRAYER – O God, Who, by the message of an Angel, willed to take flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, grant that we, Thy suppliants, who believe her to be truly, the Mother of God, may be helped by her intercession with Thee. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, MARIAN HYMNS, MARIAN POETRY, Our MORNING Offering

Our Morning Offering – 18 December – Awaiting Baby Jesus

Our Morning Offering – 18 December – “The Month of the Divine Infancy and the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – The Feast of Our Lady of Expectation

Awaiting Baby Jesus
Traditional Catholic Advent Prayer

My heart is beating,
filled with joy,
awaiting Mary’s Baby Boy.
For with this Child, we embrace
the birth of God’s
most precious grace.
Baby Jesus, soon to come!
For us comes the Promised One.
Baby Jesus, God’s own Son,
Thou will be the Chosen One
to lead Thy flock unto salvation.
Our eternal life awaits.
The birth of Jesus brings us nearer
Heaven’s Holy Gates.
Sing with joy
and count the days,
for soon to come,
the Lord we’ll praise.
Rejoice that Jesus
will soon arrive,
the Messiah and our faith alive.
Amen

Posted in SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 18 December – St Flavitus (Died 630) Priest, Hermit

Saint of the Day – 18 December – St Flavitus (Died 630) Priest, Hermit, Miracle-worker. Born in the mid-6th Century in Lombardy, Italy and died on 18 December 630 at Marcilly-le-Hayer, modern France. Also known as – Flavitus of Sens, Flaive, Flav, Flavy. Additional Memorial – 16 December on some Calendars.

The Relics of the Saint in the Church of the Assumption-of-the-Virgin of Villemaur-sur-Vanne.

Flavitus was captured in his home region of Lombardy in Italy and then sold as a slave by the victorious Franks to a rich lord, named, Montan, whose home was located at Marcilly-le-Hayer, in France. There, Flavitus guarded his master Montan’s herd of pigs in the forest of Othe.

Flavitus was falsely accused by the wife of this lord. But having cured Montan of illness and despite the hostility of those around him, his master;s gratitude served to free him from slavery.

Flavitus became a Hermit in the forest and soon attracted the goodwill of the population through his mortifications and holiness. His prayers drew a Spring from the ground and the miraculous waters drew the blind, the crippled, demonically possessed – all who brought their faith and infirmities, were healed. The Bishop of Sens, Saint Lupus, hearing of Flavitus great spiritual attraction and his many miracles Ordains him as a Priest.

He became a missionary apostle and miracle-worker of the region. He died in Marcilly-le-Hayer on 18 December 630, under the Episcopate of Ragnegisius(?), the 17th Bishop of Troyes.

His Relics were shared between the Sainte-Colombe Abbey of Sens and the Saint-Flavit Priory of Villemaur-sur-Vanne which was destroyed in the 18th Century. The Treasury of the Cathedral of Sens preserves a Shrine of Saint Flavitus.

In 1807 a small Chapel was built on the site of his hermitage, very close to Marcilly-le-Hayer.  The village of Saint-Flavy honours our Saint’s memory.

Posted in MARIAN TITLES, MARTYRS, SAINT of the DAY

Christmas Novena to the Christ Child and The Monthly Novena to the Infant of Prague– Day Three, Our Lady of the Expectation and the Saints celebrated on 18 December

Christmas Novena to the Christ Child – Day Three:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/12/18/christmas-novena-to-the-divine-infant-jesus-by-st-alphonsus-the-third-day-18-december/

The Monthly Novena to the Infant of Prague – Day Three:

St Basilian of Laodicea
St Bodagisil of Aquitaine
St Desiderius of Fontenelle

St Flavitus (Died 630) Priest, Hermit

St Malachi the Prophet
St Mawnan of Cornwall
Bl Philip of Ratzeburg
St Rufus of Philippi+
St Samthann of Clonbroney
St Theotimus of Laodicea

St Zosimus of Philippi+