Day: May 3, 2026

Posted in Quote on SELF-ABANDONMENT, QUOTES on BLASPHEMY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on THE WORLD, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, Quotes Self-Oblation, THE SPIRITUAL COMBAT - Fr Lorenzo Scupoli

Thought for the Day – 3 May – The Offering of Self to God (Part One)

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Thought for the Day – 3 May – The Spiritual Combat (1589) – Dom Lorenzo Scupoli OSM (c1530-1610)

“None shall be crowned who has not fought well.” 2 Tim 2: 5

LVIII: … The Offering of Self to God
(Part One)

“There are two things necessary to make our self-oblation completely acceptable to God.
One, is that it be made in union with the offering made by Christ to the Father and, the other, is that it be totally free from all attachment to creatures.

As regards the first, we must remember that the Son of God, during His sojourn on earth, offered to His heavenly Father, not only Himself and His works but also, ourselves and our works.
Thus, must our oblation be made in union with His and dependent upon His that both, may be sanctified in the sight of the Almighty.

With regard to the second, we must remember we can hardly offer ourselves to Heaven, if we are bound to earth by worldly attachments. Therefore, if we perceive ourselves to be bound by the slightest earthly affection, let us have recourse to God, imploring Him to break asunder the bonds which chain us to earth that we may belong to Him alone. This is of great importance!
For if, he who is a slave to creatures, pretends to give himself to God while bound to creatures, he gives what is not his, for he is the property of those creatures to whom he has given his will!
To offer to God what has been given to creatures, is to mock the Almighty.
Thus, it is that, although we have offered ourselves as a holocaust to the Lord, yet we have not only failed to advance in the way of virtue but, have even contracted fresh imperfections and increased the number of our sins!”

Dom Lorenzo Scupoli

Posted in CARMELITES, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, OUR Cross, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The HOLY CROSS, The PASSION

Quote/s of the Day – 3 May – The Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross

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Quote/s of the Day – 3 May – The Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross

“If anyone wishes to come after Me,
let him deny himself, take up his cross
and follow Me.”

Matthew 16:24

“Let us detach ourselves in spirit
from all that we see
and cling to that which we believe.
This is the Cross
which we must imprint
on all our daily actions and behaviour.”

St Peter Damian (1007-1072)
Bishop, Father and Doctor of the Church

“Behold Jesus Christ Crucified,
Who is the only Foundation of our hope;
He is our Mediator and Advocate;
the Victim and Sacrifice for our sins.
He is Goodness and Patience itself;
His Mercy is moved by the tears o sinners
and He never refuses pardon and grace
to those who ask it with a truly contrite
and humbled heart.”

St Charles Borromeo (1538-1584)

“The endurance of darkness
is the preparation for great Light!”

St John of the Cross (1542-1591)
Doctor of the Church

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the SUN of JUSTICE, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, QUOTES on TRUTH, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The HOLY CROSS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 3 April – “Light came into the world” – John 3:19

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One Minute Reflection – 3 May – “The Month of the Divine Infancy and the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – Thr 4th Sunday of Easter – The Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross – Philippians 2:5-11 – John 13:1-15 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Light came into the world” – John 3:19

REFLECTION – “The commandment of the Lord shines clearly, enlightening the eyes” (Ps 18:9). Receive Christ, receive power to see, receive your light, which you may plainly recognise both God and man… Let us open ourselves to the light then and so to God. Let us open ourselves to the light and become disciples of the Lord… Let us, then, shake off forgetfulness of truth, shake off the mist of ignorance and darkness which dims our eyes and contemplate the true God… For upon us, buried in darkness, imprisoned in the shadow of death, a heavenly light has shone, a light of a clarity, surpassing the sun’s and of a sweetness, exceeding any this earthly life can offer. That light is eternal life and those who receive it live. Night, on the other hand, is afraid of the light and melting away in terror gives place to the day of the Lord. Unfailing light has penetrated everywhere and sunset has turned into dawn.

This is the meaning of the new creation (Gal 6:15; Rv 21:1) for the Sun of Righteousness (Mal 3:20), pursuing His course through the universe, visits all alike, in imitation of His Father, “who makes His Sun rise upon all” (Mt 5:45) and bedews everyone with His Truth… He, it is, Who has changed sunset into dawn and death into life by His Crucifixion, He, it is, Who has snatched the human race from perdition and exalted it to the skies. Transplanting what was corruptible, to make it incorruptible, He has transformed earth into Heaven…

He deifies us by His heavenly teaching, by “instilling His laws into our minds and writing them on our hearts. That all, be they of high estate or low, shall know God. And I will be merciful to them, God says and I will remember their sin no more” (Jr 31,33f.). Let us accept the laws of life, then; let us obey God’s promptings, let us learn to know Him.” – St Clement of Alexandria (150- 215) Theologian, Father of the Church (Exhortation to the Greeks, 11, 113).

PRAYER – O God, Who didst cause the Cross of our salvation should in a most honourable wise, be found and Who didst manifest thereby, the marvellous efficacy of Thy Sufferings, mercifully grant that by the Ransom which Thou didst pay upon that Tree of Life, we may finally attain unto life eternal. Who livest and reignest with God the Father, in the unity of the Holy Ghostr, God, world without end. ℟. Amen (Collect).

Posted in MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS on the CROSS of CHRIST, Prayers to the SORROWFUL MOTHER, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The HOLY CROSS

Our Morning Offering – 9 September – Fr Faber’s O Come and Mourn With Me Awhile

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Our Morning Offering – 3 May – “The Month of the Blessed Virgin Mary” – Thr 4th Sunday of Easter

O Come and Mourn With Me Awhile
By Fr F W Faber C.Orat (1814-1863)

O come and mourn with me awhile,
See Mary calls us to her side;
O come and let us mourn with her.
Jesus, our Love, is Crucified.

Have we no tears to shed for Him,
While soldiers scoff and Jews deride?
Ah, look how patiently He hangs.
Jesus, our Love, is Crucified.

How fast His feet and hands are nailed,
His blessed tongue with thirst is tied,
His failing eyes are blind with blood.
Jesus, our Love, is Crucified.

O love of God! O sin of man!
In this dread act Thy strength is tried
And victory remains with love,
For He, our Love, is Crucified
Amen

Posted in franciscan OFM, SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 3 May – Blessed Zachariah (Died c1249) OFM Friar

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Saint of the Day – 3 May – Blessed Zachariah (Died c1249) OFM Friar of the Friars Minor of St Francis. Zachary was highly revered for his virtues and miracles, Also known as Zachary.

Zachariah had been welcomed into the Order by Saint Francis himself and had been sent to Spain to preach among the Moors.

His fame for sanctity grew rapidly, so much so that Queen Sancha and the Portuguese people venerated him and drew inspiration from his example to live a more modest life.

His remains, initially buried in the main Chapel of the Convent of Santa Caterina in Alemquer, were later placed under the Altar of the same Chapel and, in 1562, enshrined to the right of the Altar, visible through a gilded grate.

His memory is commemorated in the Franciscan Martyrology on 3 May with the approximate date of death being 1249.

Posted in FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, franciscan OFM, MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY

The Fourth Sunday of Easter, THE FEAST of the FINDING OF THE HOLY CROSS, Virgen de la Carrasca / Our Lady of Carrasca, Bordón, Teruel, Aragón, Spain (1212) and Memorials of the Saints – 3 May

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EASTER IV

THE FEAST of the FINDING OF THE HOLY CROSS
https://anastpaul.com/2022/05/03/the-feast-of-the-finding-of-the-holy-cross-3-may/

Virgen de la Carrasca / Our Lady of Carrasca, Bordón, Teruel, Aragón, Spain (1212) – 3 May, Commemorated on First Monday of May:

In 1212, a herder found an image of the Virgin in a holm oak (carrasca) in the rocky countryside of Aragón in Spaon. There are several stories about what happened then, all of them ending with a Shrine in Bordón. Templars carried the Statue to Castellote, 12 miles north but the next day the image was back in the oak, the Virgin made those carrying her to Castellote keep turning toward Bordón and springs arose at each turn.

The original Statue

In the place where it was found, a hermitage was built to house it, which would later be replaced by the building that today is the Parish Church of Bordón, built in 1306 by the Templar Order (The Order was dissolved by Pope Clement V in 1312 ).

Although its exterior hardly stands out, its interior is magical and fascinating, a place full of mystery. In one of the Chapels inside, the Templar novices who previously made a pilgrimage on foot from Castellote, capital of the Templar Commandery, performed initiation rites to become Knights of the Order.

In the 18th century, the interior of the Church was covered with marvellous frescoes, which have been recently restored. Unfortunately, the venerated carving of the Black Virgin of the Carrasca was lost during the Civil War, along with another very famous Romanesque carving with a reputation for miraculously calming storms, the Virgin of the Spider, only a series of photographs being preserved, which allowed the making a replica.

Replica Statue

On the first Monday in May, the faithful from the three towns to the south—Tronchón, Olocau del Rey and Mirambel—conduct a processional pilgrimage to the Virgin de la Carrasca. They have done this “from time immemorial,” according to a document of 1390 in the Parish archives of Tronchón.

St Adalsindis of Bèze
Bl Adam of Cantalupo in Sabina
St Ahmed the Calligrapher
St Aldwine of Peartney
St Pope Alexander I
St Alexander of Constantinople
Bl Alexander of Foigny
St Alexander of Rome
St Alexander Vincioli

St Ansfrid (c940-1010) Bishop of Utrecht, Count of Huy and the sword-bearer and Knight for Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor.
His Holy Life:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/05/03/saint-of-the-day-3-may-saint-ansfrid-of-utrecht-c-940-1010/

St Antonina of Constantinople
St Diodorus the Deacon

St Theodolus of Rome
St Timothy of Antinoe
St Uguccio
Blessed Zachariah (Died c1249) OFM Friar of the Friars Minor of St Francis

Martyrs of Antinoe:
Maura
Timothy

Martyrs of Rome:
Alexander
Eventius
Theodolus