Category: The DIVINE INFANT

Posted in ADVENT, ADVENT PRAYERS, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus By St Alphonsus, Day Eight – 23 December

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

THE EIGHTH DAY
23 December
Meditation 8:
The sojourn of the Infant Jesus in Egypt and Nazareth.

Our blessed Redeemer spent His Infancy in Egypt, living there for seven years in poverty and contempt. Joseph and Mary were unknown there, with neither relatives nor friends. And they could scarcely earn enough to get by, through the labour of their hands. Their cottage was poor, their bed was poor and their food was poor.
In this humble hu holy home, Mary weaned Jesus. At first she fed Him from her breast. Later on, she took a little bread soaked in water and placed it in His mouth. It was in that cottage that she made His first little garments, taking off His swaddling clothes and dressing Him in tiny children’s garb. In that cottage, the Child Jesus took His first steps, although He kept faltering and toppling many times, just as all children do. There, also, He uttered His first words.

Imagine what God has reduced Himself to for love of us!
God, stumbling and falling as He walked!
God, stammering while He learned to speak!

The life Jesus led at the house in Nazareth, after His return from Egypt was much the same – poor and humiliating. Until age thirty, He was a simple shop boy, obeying Joseph and Mary. And He was obedient to them (Luke 2:51).
Jesus went to fetch water; Jesus opened and closed the shop; Jesus swept the house; He gathered wood for the fire and worked all day helping Joseph and following his requests, teachings in the trade and commands.

Imagine God living as a boy!
God sweeping the floor!
God sweating as He planed a piece of wood!
And who was He?
The all-powerful God, Who, with a simple nod, created the whole universe and Who could destroy it, just as easily, if He wished! Should not the mere thought of this move our hearts to love Him?

How inspiring it must have been to watch the devotion with which Jesus said His prayers, the patience with which He laboured, the haste in which He obeyed, the moderation He used in eating and the kindness and charity, with which He spoke and interacted with others!
Every word, every action of Jesus, was so virtuous that it filled everyone around Him with love for God — but especially Mary and Joseph, who were constantly with Him!

Affections and PrayersL

O Jesus, my Savior!
When I consider how, for love of me.
Thou didst spend thirty years of Thy life
hidden and unknown in a poor workshop,
how can I desire the pleasures
and honours and riches of the world?
Gladly do I renounce all these things,
since I wish to be Thy companion on this earth,
poor as Thou wast,
mortified and humble as Thou wast,
so that I may hope to be able, one day
to enjoy Thy companionship in Heaven.
What are all the treasures
and kingdoms of this world –
Thou, O Jesus, art my only treasure,
my only Good!

I keenly regret the many times in the past
when I spurned Thy friendship
in order to satisfy my foolish whims.
I am sorry for them, with all my heart.
For the future, I would rather lose my life
a thousand times than lose Thy grace by sin.
I wish never to offend Thee again
but always to love Thee.
Help me to remain faithful to Thee until death.

O Mary, thou art the refuge of sinners,
thou art my hope.
Amen.

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on HUMILITY, The DIVINE INFANT, The WILL of GOD

Thought for the Day – 23 December – What Jesus Wants From Us

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Thought for the Day – 23 December – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

A Christmas Novena VIII
What Jesus Wants From Us

“Unless you turn and become like little children,” the Infant Jess says to us, “you shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt 18:2).
He wishes us to be humble, simple and innocent, like children.
As we grow older, unfortunately, many of us become proud, complicated and vain.
We lose the honest candour of childhood

Worldly pretentiousness cannot possibly appeal to Jesus, since He, Who is truly great, chose to become a tiny Infant.
He wishes us to renounce the self-important airs and the intricate methods which we employ, in order to conceal the truth, to disguise our lack of virtue and to assume the appearances of learning and of authority, regardless of the fact that the highest achievement of which we are capable, is to be humble, the most necessary knowledge of all, is to know Jesus Crucified and the best kind of authority, is the ability to control our passions and to subject ourselves to the will of God.

It is, in this sense, that we must become little children before God and before man.
Then Jesus Christ will love us and will grant us His favours.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/12/23/thought-for-the-day-23-december-what-jesus-wants-from-us-2/

Posted in DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES on MYSTERIES of our FAITH, QUOTES on the CHURCH, QUOTES on THE MYSTICAL BODY, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Quote/s of the Day – 23 December – O Emmanuel,

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Quote/s of the Day – 23 December – Friday of the Fourth Week of Advent – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception”

“O Emmanuel,
King and Lawgiver
Desire of the nations,
Saviour of all people,
Come and set us free,
Lord, our God!”

“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

“He came from Him,
from Whom He did not depart,
going forth from Him,
with Whom He stayed,
so that without intermission,
He was wholly in eternity,
wholly in time,
wholly was He found in the Father
when wholly in the Virgin,
wholly in His own Majesty
and in His Father’s,
at the time
when He was wholly in our humanity. ”

St Amadeus of Lausanne (1110-1159)

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, BREVIARY Prayers, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, The DIVINE INFANT

Our Morning Offering – 23 December – Prepare for Christ your Saviour!

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Our Morning Offering – 23 December – Friday of the Fourth Week of Advent – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception”

Prepare for Christ your Saviour!
Stanbrook Abbey

Throughout a world in shadow,
John’s urgent voice we hear;
Prepare for Christ your Saviour!
The Son of God is near.

He gives a new beginning
To those who turn from sin,
Who answer love with loving
By turning back to Him.

His veiled but certain splendour
Begins to shine from far;
He comes, His Saints around Him,
The bright and Morning Star.

With all who wait in longing,
Give thanks that never cease,
For Him Whom God is sending
To visit us in peace.
Amen

Posted in DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus By St Alphonsus, DAY SEVEN – 22 December

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Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

THE SEVENTH DAY
22 December
Meditation 7:
The journey of the Infant Jesus to Egypt.

The Son of God came from Heaven to save humanity. But no sooner was He born, than they began to persecute Him, even unto death. Herod, afraid that this Infant would take away his kingdom, tried to put the Child to death. So in a dream, an Angel advised Saint Joseph to take Jesus and His Mother to Egypt.
Informing Mary, Joseph promptly obeyed. He took along with him the tools of his trade that he had available, to use in providing a livelihood, while in Egypt, for himself and his poor family.
For her part, Mary packed a small bag of clothes for the Holy Infant. Then, drawing near the crib with tears, she said to her sleeping Child, “O my Son and my God, Thou hast come down from Heaven to save humanity, yet hardly after Thou art born, they already seek to take away Thy life.”

That very night, still crying, she took the Infant Jesus and she and Joseph set off on their journey.

Think about how much these lonely pilgrims must have suffered, while making such a long journey, deprived of every comfort. The Infant was not yet able to walk, so Mary and Joseph had to take turns carrying him in their arms.
During the journey through the desert of Egypt, their only bed at night was the bare earth in the open air.
The Infant wept in the cold and Joseph and Mary also wept, out of compassion for Him. Who would not weep, seeing the Son of God, poor and persecuted, wandering about on the earth, so that He would not be killed by His enemies?

Affections and Prayers:

Dear Infant Jesus, crying so bitterly!
Well hast Thou reason to weep
in seeing Thyself persecuted by men,
whom Thou lovest so much.
I, too, O God, have once persecuted Thee, by my sins.
But Thou knowest that now I love Thee,
more than myself
and that nothing pains me more,
than the thought that I have so often spurned Thee,
my Sovereign Good.

Forgive me, O Jesus
and let me bear Thee with me, in my heart,
on all the rest of the journey
which I have still to travel through life,
so that, together with Thee,
I may enter into eternity.
So often have I driven Thee
from my soul by my sins.
But now, I love Thee above all things
and I regret, above other misfortunes,
that I have offended Thee.
I wish to leave Thee no more,
my beloved Lord.
But do Thou give me the strength
to resist temptations.
Never permit me to be separated from Thee again.
Let me rather die,
than ever again lose Thy good grace.

O Mary, my hope,
make me always live in God’s love
and then, die in loving Him.
Amen.

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus By St Alphonsus – The Fifth Day, 20 December

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Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

THE FIFTH DAY
20 December
Meditation 5:
The Life of sorrow which Jesus lived, even from His birth.

Jesus could have saved us without suffering and without dying. But He willingly chose a life full of tribulations, to show how much He loved us. The prophet Isaias called Him, the man of sorrows (Isaias 53:3) because the life of Christ was to be full of woe. His passion did not begin at the time of His death but, from the beginning of His life.

Imagine Jesus, as soon as He was born, lying in a stable, where everything caused distress for Him. His sight was troubled because he could see nothing in that cave but dark, rough walls. His sense of smell was haunted, by the stench of dung from the animals, lying nearby. His skin was irritated by the itchy straw that served as His bed. Soon after birth, He was forced to flee to Egypt, where He lived several years of His childhood, poor, and despised as a foreigner. The life He led afterward, in Nazareth, was not much better. Then, consider how His life ended in Jerusalem, dying in anguish on a Cross.

So the life of Jesus was one of continual anxiety, even worse than that because he had constantly, before His eyes, all the sadness that would be His on the day of His death.
One day a Nun, complaining before the Crucifix, said to Him, “O Lord, Thou remained on the Cross for three hours but I have suffered my pain for several years.”
Jesus answered her, “What you have said shows how unaware you are. I suffered even from my mother’s womb, all the pains of my life and death.”
But because Jesus voluntarily chose those afflictions, they did not hurt Him as much as did the sight of our sins and our ingratitude for His great love.
One particular saint could never stop lamenting over the offences she committed against God. Her Confessor said to her, “Cease crying. God has already forgiven you.” But she replied, “How can I cease crying, when I know that my sins kept Jesus in a state of agony all his life?!”

Affections and Prayers:

O Jesus, my sweet Love!
I too have kept Thee suffering
through all Thy life.
Tell me, then, what I must do
in order to win Thy forgiveness.
I am ready to do all Thou askest of me.
I am sorry, O sovereign Good, f
or all the offences I have committed against Thee.
I love Thee more than myself,
or at least I feel a great desire to love Thee.
Since it is Thou who hast given me this desire,
do Thou also give me the strength to love Thee exceedingly.

It is only right that I,
who have offended Thee so much,
should love Thee very much.
Always remind me of the love
Thou hast borne me,
in order that my soul may ever burn
with love of Thee and long to please Thee alone.
O God of love,
I, who was once a slave of hell,
now give myself all to Thee.
Graciously accept me and bind me to Thee
with the bonds of Thy love.
My Jesus, from this day and forever,
in loving Thee will I live
and in loving Thee will I die.

O Mary, my Mother and my hope,
help me to love Thy dear God and mine.
This is the only favour I ask of thee
and through thee, I hope to receive it.
Amen.

Posted in DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, GOD ALONE!, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Thought for the Day – 20 December – The Swaddling Clothes of the Divine Infant

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

Christmas Novena V
The Swaddling Clothes of the Divine Infant

“The swaddling clothes of the Infant Jesus are, moreover, a symbol of the love which should bind us to Him.
If we are not capable of loving Jesus, are we capable of love at all?
Perhaps we love wealth, honour and pleasure?
Some day, however, we shall have to leave all our wealth behind.
Worldly honour and glory are also fleeting and can never satisfy us, while earthly pleasures leave behind a sense of emptiness and disgust.

Jesus Christ alone, can satisfy our hearts, for He alone, has words of everlasting life!
“Lord,” let us say with St Peter, “to whom shall we go? Thou hast words of everlasting life” (Jn 6:69).”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/12/20/thought-for-the-day-20-december-the-swaddling-clothes-of-the-divine-infant-2/

Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Quote/s of the Day – 20 December – The Divine Infant

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Quote/s of the Day – 20 December – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception”

“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

“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, DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, QUOTES on HUMILITY, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus By St Alphonsus – The Fourth Day – 19 December

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Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

THE FOURTH DAY
19 December
Meditation 4:
The Life of humility which Jesus lived, even from His Infancy.

All the clues that the Angels gave the shepherds to help them find the Saviour, Who had just been born, were marks of humility –
“This will be a sign for you: you will find a Child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger” (Luke 2:12).
This is how you will find the newborn Messiah, the Angel said. You will find Him as an Infant, wrapped in poor ragged clothes, in a stable, lying on straw in a manger for animals. That is how the King of Heaven, the Son of God, was born because ,He came to destroy the pride which had been the cause, of humanity’s spiritual ruin.

The prophets foretold that our Redeemer would be treated as the most wretched person on earth and that He would be overwhelmed with insults.
How much ridicule Jesus had to tolerate because of us!
He was treated as a drunkard, as a magician, as a blasphemer and a heretic. Think of how many insults He had to endure during His passion. He was abandoned by His own disciples.
One of them even sold Him for thirty pieces of silver,and another, denied having ever known Him.
He was led through the streets bound like a criminal, scourged like a slave, treated like a madman and mocked as a bogus king.
He was struck, spat upon in the face and finally, He was put to death on a Cross, suspended between two thieves.
One would think that he had been the greatest lawbreaker the world had ever seen.

Saint Bernard commented that the noblest of all men, Jesus Christ, was treated like the most depraved person of all. “But, my Jesus,” he adds, “the more degraded Thou art, the more dear Thou art to me.”
The more humbled and despised He appears, the more esteemed and worthy of our love He becomes.

Affections and Prayers:

O Dearest Saviour,
Thou hast embraced so many outrages for love of me,
yet, I have not been able to bear
one word of insult without at once,
being filled with resentful thought –
I who have so often deserved
to be trodden under foot by the demons in hell!
I am ashamed to appear before Thee,
sinful and proud as I am.
Yet, do not drive me from Thy presence, O Lord,
even though that is what I deserve.
Thou hast said that Thou wilt not spurn
a contrite and humbled heart.
I am sorry for the offences
I have committed against Thee.
Forgive me, O Jesus. I will not offend Thee again.

For love of me Thou hast borne so many injuries;
for love of Thee, I will bear all the injuries
that art done to me.
I love Thee, Jesus, Who wast despised for love of me.
I love Thee above every other good.
Give me the grace to love Thee always
and to bear every insult, for love of Thee.

O Mary, recommend me to Thy Son,
pray to Jesus for me.
Amen.

Posted in DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on MERIT, QUOTES on SIN, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Thought for the Day – 19 December – The First Hours in the Childhood of Jesus Christ

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

A Christmas Novena IV
The First Hours of the
Childhood of Jesus Christ

“Through life’s long journey we have often had occasion to shed tears,
We have wept for sheer physical pain or moral suffering.
Sometimes perhaps, we have wept for joy, for such joy as the world can give.
On other occasions, jealousy, hatred or caprice, may have moved us to tears.
But have we ever wept like Mary Magdalen, or St Augustine, for the sins which we have committed?

If the Infant Jesus wept for our sins, why should not we weep tears of repentance for them?
If the tears which we shed for weak, human reasons are not inspired, in any way, by sentiments of faith, love or reparation, they fail to relieve our anguish or to gain everlasting merit for us!”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/12/19/thought-for-the-day-19-december-2/

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES for CHRIST, The DIVINE INFANT, The O ANTIPHONS

Quote/s of the Day – 19 December – O KEY OF DAVID

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Quote/s of the Day – 19 December – Monday of the Fourth Week of Advent – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception”

“O KEY OF DAVID,
and Sceptre of the House of Israel,
Who opens and no-one shuts,
who shuts and no-one opens.
Come and bring forth the captive
from his prison,
he who sits in darkness
and in the shadow of death.”

“The very Son of God,
Older than the ages,
the Invisible,
the Incomprehensible,
the Incorporeal,
the Beginning of beginning,
the Light of light,
the Fountain of Life and Immortality,
the Image of the Archetype,
the Immovable Seal,
the Perfect Likeness,
the Definition and Word of the Father:
He it is, Who comes to His Own Image
and takes our nature, for the Good of our nature
and unites Himself to an intelligent soul
for the good of the soul,
to purify like by Like.”

St Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390)
Father and Doctor of the Church

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The DIVINE INFANT

Our Morning Offering – 19 December – Let Your Goodness, Lord, Appear to Us By St Bernard

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Our Morning Offering – 19 December – The Fourth Week of Advent – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception”

Let Your Goodness, Lord, Appear to Us
An Advent Prayer
By St Bernard (1090-1153)
Father and Mellifluous Doctor

Let Your goodness, Lord,
appear to us,
that we, made in Your image,
conform ourselves to it.
In our own strength
we cannot imitate
Your majesty, power and wonder,
nor is it fitting for us to try.
But Your mercy reaches from the heavens
through the clouds to the earth below.
You have come to us as a small child
but You have brought us
the greatest of all gifts,
the gift of eternal love.
Caress us with Your tiny hands,
embrace us with Your tiny arms
and pierce our hearts
with Your soft, sweet cries.
Amen

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, The DIVINE INFANT

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus By St Alphonsus, The Third Day, 18 December

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Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

THE THIRD DAY
18 December
Meditation 3:
The life of poverty which Jesus lived, even from His birth.

God planned that when His Son was to be born on earth, an edict would be promulgated by the Emperor, obliging the head of every household to go to the place of his birth and register. And so, Joseph had to go with his wife to Bethlehem, to enrol according to the Decree of Caesar.
While there, Mary’s time of delivery arrived. Because she had been driven from all the other houses and even from the common shelter for poor people, she ended up spending the night in a cave, and there, gave birth to the King of Heaven.
It is true that Jesus would have been just as poor if he had been born in Nazareth. But at least there, He would have had a dry room, a little fire, warm clothes and a comfortable cradle. But no, He chose to be born in a cold cavern without a fire to warm Him. He chose to have the livestock’s manger for His cradle and a little prickly straw for His bedding, in order that He might experience what poor people have to experience.

Let us enter that cave in Bethlehem but, let us enter with faith. If we go without faith we will see nothing but a poor Infant, Who moves us to compassion, by seeing Him so beautiful but shivering with cold and crying, from the itchiness of the straw on which He lies. But if we enter with faith, we will believe that this Child is the Son of God, Who loved us so much that He came down to earth and endured so much, to pay for our sins.
How could we not thank Him and love Him?

Affections and Prayers:

O dear Infant Jesus,
how could I be so ungrateful
and offend Thee so often,
if I realised, how much Thou hast suffered for me?
But these tears which Thou sheddest,
this poverty which Thou embraces!
for love of me, make me hope
for the pardon of all the offences
I have committed against Thee.

My Jesus,
I am sorry for having so often,
turned my back on Thee.
But now I love Thee above all else.
“My God and my all!”
From now on Thou, O my God,
shalt be my only treasure and my only good.
With Saint Ignatius of Loyola
I will say to Thee,
“Give me the grace to love Thee –
that is enough for me.”
I long for nothing else;
I want nothing else.
Thou alone art enough for me,
my Jesus, my life, my love.

O Mary, my Mother,
obtain for me, the grace
that I may always love Jesus
and always be loved by Him.
Amen.

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on THE WORLD, The DIVINE INFANT

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

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

A Christmas Novena III
The Cradle of the Divine Infant Jesus

“Perhaps I still preserve a strong attachment to sin and fall badly from time to time.
What is the main motivating power in my life?
Perhaps, I am motivated by self-interest and am attracted by pleasure, ease and worldly glory.
How little I have learned from the example of Our Lord in the manger.

Let us remember, that the man who looks only for worldly success, cannot find Heaven!
He will wind up bitter and disillusioned, whereas the man who seeks Jesus Christ, will eventually enjoy the peace and happiness which God alone can give.”

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/

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus By St Alphonsus – The Second Day, 17 December

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Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

THE SECOND DAY
17 December
Meditation 2:
The love of God in being born as an Infant.

The Son of God, in becoming human for our sake, might have appeared in the world at the age of a grown man, the way Adam appeared when he was created. But since children usually attract greater love to themselves from those who take care of them, Jesus chose to appear on earth, as an Infant and as the poorest and most miserable Infant ever born.

Saint Peter Chrysologus wrote: “Our God chose to be born this way because he wanted to be loved.” The prophet Isaiah had already predicted that the Son of God was to be born an Infant and give Himself entirely to us through the love He bore for us:
A child is born to us, a son is given to us (Isaiah 9:6a).

O my Jesus, almighty and true God, what else could possibly have attracted Thee to come from Heaven and be born in a cave, if not Thy love for us?
What convinced Thee to leave the lap of Thy Father and lay Thyself down in a manger?
What drew Thee down from Thy throne above the stars, to stretch Thyself out on a little pile of straw?
What, from the midst of the Nine Choirs of Angels, has placed Thee between these sheep and oxen?
Thou inflame the Seraphim with holy fire, yet look, Thou trembles from the cold in this stable! Thou give the sun, the stars and the planets their paths of movement, yet now Thou cannot move at all without being carried in someone’s arms!
Thou provide food for all creatures and yet now, Thou depends on a little milk to sustain Thy life. Thou ary the delight of Heaven and yet, how is it that I now hear Thee whimper and cry? Tell me, who has reduced Thee to such lowliness? “Who has done this? Love has done it,” says Saint Bernard. Yes, the love that Thou hast for us has done it!

Affections and Prayers:

O Dearest Infant!
Tell me, what hast Thou come on earth to do?
Tell me, whom art Thou seeking?
Yes, I already know.
Thou hast come to die for me,
in order to save me from hell.
Thou hast come to seek me, the lost sheep,
so that, instead of fleeing from Thee any more,
I may rest in Thy loving arms.
Ah my Jesus, my Treasure, my life, my love and my all!
Whom will I love, if not Thee?
Where can I find a father, a friend, a spouse,
more loving and lovable than Thou art?

I love Thee, my dear God;
I love Thee, my only good.
I regret the many years,
when I have not loved Thee
but rather, spurned and offended Thee.
Forgive me, O my beloved Redeemer;
for I am sorry that I have thus treated Thee
and I regret it with all my heart.
Pardon me and give me the grace
never more to withdraw from Thee
but constantly, to love Thee in all the years
which still lie before me in this life.
My love, I give myself entirely to Thee.
accept me and do not reject me as I deserve.

O Mary, thou art my advocate.
By thy prayers thou dost obtain whatever thou wilt
from thy Son.
Pray Him then to forgive me
and to grant me holy perseverance until death.
Amen.

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus – 16 December – the First Day

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Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)

THE FIRST DAY
16 December
Meditation 1:
The love that God has shown to us in becoming human.

Think about the great love God has shown us by becoming human, in order to obtain eternal life for us.

Our first parents, Adam and Eve, rebelled against God and were driven out of paradise. As a result, they and all of us, their descendants, were condemned to everlasting death.
But the Son of God, grieving because humanity was lost, took upon Himself our human flesh.
Then, in order to save us from death, He died on a Cross, condemned as a criminal.

“My child, consider the hardships thou will have to undergo while on earth. Thou will be born in a cold cave, with no place to be laid except in the trough where animals come to feed.
As an infant, thou will have to flee to Egypt to escape the hands of Herod. After returning, thou will have to live in a workshop as a poor, humble servant. And finally, worn out by sufferings, thou will have to give up thy life, dying on a cross, insulted and forsaken by all.”

And Jesus would respond:

“Father, it does not matter. I am happy to endure whatever comes, provided that humanity is saved.”

How would we react if a millionaire took compassion on a dead worm and chose to become a worm himself, offering his own blood as a transfusion and died, in order to restore life to the other worm? Yet the Eternal Word has done even more than that for us. God, the Creator, has become like us, one of His own creatures, to share in our human life, so that we can share, once again, in His Divine Life. When God saw that all the natural gifts He had bestowed on us could not win our love for Him, He became one of us and gave Himself entirely to us.

“The Word became flesh and lived among us”(John 1:14a).

Through sin, humanity separated itself from God. But God, because of His great love for us, came from Heaven to seek us. Why? In order that we might realise how much God loves us and, in gratitude, love God in return. Any time a cat or a dog comes to us from across the room, we cannot help but respond, by petting it and speaking to it. So why do we ignore God, Who comes to us all the way from Heaven?

Once, when a Priest proclaimed the words, “and the Word became flesh,” someone in the Church neglected to make a proper reverence. This prompted the devil to give that person a blow, saying, “Oh, ungrateful one! If only God had done for me what He has done for you, I would remain with my head always bowed down in thanksgiving.”

Affections and Prayers:

O Great Son of God
Thou hast become man
in order to make Thyself loved by men.
But where is the love that men give Thee in return?
Thou hast given Thy life blood to save our souls.
Why then are we so unappreciative
that, instead of repaying Thee with love,
we spurn Thee with ingratitude?
And I, Lord, I myself more than others
have thus ill treated Thee.
But Thy Passion is my hope.
For the sake of that love
which led Thee to take upon Thyself human nature
and to die for me on the Cross,
forgive me all the offences
I have committed against Thee.

I love Thee, O Word Incarnate;
I love Thee, O Infinite Goodness.
Out of love for Thee, my God,
I am so sorry for all the injuries I have done Thee
that I could die of grief for these offences.
Give me, O Jesus, Thy love.
Let me no longer live in ungrateful forgetfulness
of the love Thou bearest me.
I wish to love Thee always.
Grant that I may always persevere in this holy desire.

O Mary, Mother of God and my Mother,
pray for me that Thy Son may give me the grace
to love Him always, unto death.
Amen.

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, NOVENAS, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT

Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus by St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori – BEGINS 16 December

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Christmas Novena to the Divine Infant Jesus
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)
Bishop of Sant’Agata de’ Goti, C.Ss.R (Founder)
Doctor zelantissimus (Most Zealous Doctor)

This Novena is translated from the Italian of Saint Alphonsus Maria de Liguori and was first published in 1758.
Although this Novena is intended, primarily as a preparation for the Feast of our Lord’s Nativity, it can be used with spiritual profit at any time of the year, as a devotion in honour of the Infant Jesus.
This translation by the Redemptorists of the UK.

The Novena begins on 16 December.

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, BREVIARY Prayers, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The DIVINE INFANT, The INCARNATION, The NATIVITY of JESUS, The REDEMPTION

Our Morning Offering – 7 December – St Ambrose’ Veni Redemptor Gentium / Saviour of the Nations, Come!

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Our Morning Offering – 7 December – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception” – St Ambrose (340-397) – Confessor, Bishop, Father and Doctor of the Church

Veni Redemptor Gentium
Saviour of the Nations, Come!
St Ambrose’s Advent Hymn

Saviour of the nations, come!
Virgin’s Son, here make Thy home!
Marvel now, O Heaven and earth,
That the Lord chose such a birth.

Not by human flesh and blood;
By the Spirit of our God
Was the Word of God made flesh,
Woman’s offspring, pure and fresh.

Wondrous birth! O wondrous Child
Of the Virgin undefiled!
Though by all the world disowned,
Still to be in Heaven enthroned.

From the Father forth He came
And returneth to the same,
Captive leading death and hell
High the song of triumph swell!

Thou, the Father’s only Son,
Hast over sin the victory won.
Boundless shall Thy kingdom be;
When shall we its glories see?

Brightly doth Thy manger shine,
Glorious is its light divine.
Let not sin o’ercloud this Light;
Ever be our faith thus bright.

Praise to God the Father sing,
Praise to God the Son, our King,
Praise to God the Spirit be
Ever and eternally.
Amen!

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Quotes on SALVATION, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The DIVINE INFANT, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR

Quote/s of the Day – 5 December – United to the Saviour

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Quote/s of the Day – 5 December – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception” – The Second Week of Advent

“Listen! the reason He is called Saviour
is because, for all those
to whom He is united,
He gains salvation.
Now salvation means,
to be delivered from all ills and,
at the same time,
to find all blessings forever –
Life instead of death,
Light in place of darkness
and, instead of the slavery
of the passions and unworthy deeds,
the complete freedom granted
to all those, who are united to Christ,
Saviour of all beings.
Thus they will possess,
without being able to lose it,
all joy, all happiness, all blessedness (…)
that that none can ever know,
or conceive, or see,
if not sincerely and ardently
attached to Christ.”

St Symeon the New Theologian (c 949-1022)

“My dear Jesus, Thou art the King of Heaven
but now I behold Thee as an Infant
wandering over the earth –
tell me whom dost Thou seek?
I pity Thee when I see Thee, so poor and humbled
but I pity Thee more when I see Thee
treated with such ingratitude
by the same men whom Thou came to save.
Thou dost weep but I also weep
because I have been one of those
who in times past have despised
and persecuted Thee.
But now I value Thy grace
more than all the kingdoms of the world;
forgive me, O my Jesus,
all the evil I have committed against Thee
and permit me to carry Thee always in my heart
during the journey of my life to eternity,
even as Mary carried Thee in her arms
during the flight into Egypt.”

By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)
Doctor of the Church

Posted in ADVENT, ADVENT PRAYERS, CHRISTMASTIDE!, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, HYMNS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The DIVINE INFANT, The INCARNATION, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 5 December – A Great and Mighty Wonder By St Germanus

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Our Morning Offering – 5 December – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception”

A Great and Mighty Wonder
By St Germanus (c 640-c 733)

A great and mighty wonder,
a glorious mystery,
a Virgin bears an Infant
who veils His Deity.
Refrain:
Proclaim the Saviour’s birth,
“To God on high be glory
and peace to all the earth!”
The Word becomes incarnate
and yet remains on high,
and Cherubim sing anthems
to shepherds from the sky. … [Refrain]
While thus they sing your monarch,
those bright angelic bands,
rejoice, O vales and mountains
and oceans, clap your hands. [Refrain]
Since all, He comes to ransom,
by all, be He adored,
the Infant born in Bethl’em,
the Saviour and the Lord. [Refrain]
All idols then shall perish
and Satan’s lying cease,
and Christ shall raise His sceptre,
decreeing endless peace. [Refrain]

St Germanus was one of the Greek hymnwriters and one of the grandest among the defenders of the Icons. He was born at Constantinople of a patrician family, was Ordained there and became subsequently, Bishop of Cyzicus. He was present at the Synod of Constantinople in 712, which restored the Monothelite heresy but, in after years, he condemned it.
He was made Archbishop of Constantinople in 715. In 730 he was driven from the See, not without blows, for refusing to yield to the Iconoclastic Emperor, Leo the Isaurian. He died shortly afterwards in exile at a good old age.
His Life below:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/05/12/saint-of-the-day-12-may-saint-germanus-of-constantinople-c-640-733/

Posted in ADVENT QUOTES, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, QUOTES on HOPE, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 4 December – Dear Saviour, Haste!

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Our Morning Offering – 4 December – The Second Sunday of Advent – “The Month of the Divine Infant and the Immaculate Conception”

Dear Saviour, Haste!
Venez divin Messie
By Abbé Simon-Joseph Pellegrin (1663-1745)

Dear Saviour, haste!
Come, come to earth.
Dispel the night
and show Thy Face
And bid us hail
the Dawn of grace.
O come, Divine Messias,
The world in silence waits the day
When hope shall sing its triumph,
And sadness flee away.
Amen

This is the Refrain from a beautiful Advent Hymn by Abbé Simon-Joseph Pellegrin, a French Cluniac Monk, Poet, Composer and Playwright.

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

DECEMBER – Month of Devotion to The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION of the BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

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DECEMBER – Month of Devotion to The DIVINE INFANCY
and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION of the BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

The observance of Divine Infancy Month recalls the first Christmas more than 2,000 years ago when Jesus humbled Himself and became Completely Human, while remaining Completely Divine.
The Blessed Virgin Mary was chosen to be the glorious Tabernacle of the Son of God. Therefore, in the first moment of her existence, God, called her into being that she might assume the exalted dignity of the Mother of His Son and, therefore, granted her the singular privilege of exemption from Original Sin.

Look to Our Lady – she is already waiting at the crib, desiring to teach us to make our hearts a pleasant crib for the Christ Child to dwell in.

Cultivate a spirit of prayer and attentiveness to His Presence as the Divine Infant by adopting Aspirations suitable to the season, such as:

Divine Infant King Jesus, come down into our hearts!
​
​Lord Jesus, through Thy Infant cries in the manger,
when Thou was born for me;
through Thy tears, when Thou died for me on the Cross;
throughThy love, as You live for me
in the Tabernacle, have mercy on me and save me.
Amen!

Posted in GOD ALONE!, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, OCTOBER - The HOLY ROSARY and The HOLY ANGELS, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, The DIVINE INFANT, The HOLY ROSARY/ROSARY CRUSADE, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Thought for the Day – 5 October – The Third Joyful Mystery, The Birth of Jesus

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Thought for the Day – 5 October – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

“Month of the Holy Rosary”
The Third Joyful Mystery
The Birth of Jesus

“Let us too, learn to adore and love Him as His Mother and Foster-father did.

Let us love Him that is, with a contemplative love, not distracted by worldly affairs;
a humble love because, we owe everything to Him, without Whom, we are nothing but miserable sinners;
with a sympathetic love because, we know that He suffered for us and spent Himself for our eternal salvation and, lastly,
with a love which is entirely dedicated.
After all, if He loved us so much that He gave Himself entirely for us, it is only just that in our love for Him, we should sacrifice ourselves completely.
All our thoughts, affections and actions should be offered to Him, with purity of intention and with a firm resolve of living in accordance with His Holy Will.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/10/05/thought-for-the-day-5-october-the-third-joyful-mystery-the-birth-of-jesus/
PART TWO:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/10/05/thought-for-the-day-5-october-the-third-joyful-mystery-the-birth-of-jesus-2/

Posted in MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, The DIVINE INFANT, The WILL of GOD

Thought for the Day – 10 August – Confidence in the Providence of God

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Thought for the Day – 10 August – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Confidence in the
Providence of God

“God does not forbid us, naturally, to work and to provide for the future.
But, He condemns such immoderate anxiety as would tend to distract our attention from our spiritual obligations.
We should be occupied certainly but never preoccupied.
We should always have perfect confidence in God and resignation to His Will.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/08/20/thought-for-the-day-20-august-confidence-in-the-providence-of-god/
PART TWO:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/06/19/thought-for-the-day-19-june-confidence-in-the-providence-of-god/

Posted in FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES on FEAR, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on MARTYRDOM, The DIVINE INFANT

Quote of the Day – 19 February – Saint Quodvultdeus

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Quote of the Day – 19 February – Saint Quodvultdeus (Died c 453) Father of the Church, Bishop of Carthage,

“Neither the weeping mothers’ love,
nor the mourning of fathers weeping for their sons,
nor the screams and howling
of the children themselves,
holds you back.
You massacre these little ones in their bodies
because fear is killing you, in your heart.
And you think that, if you achieve your end,
you will live on for a long time,
whereas, it is Life itself,
you are trying to kill!
He Who is the source of grace,
Who is both small and great,
Who is lying in a manger,
causes your throne to topple.
He accomplishes His design through you,
without your knowing it.
He gathers together the children of your enemies
and makes of them, children of adoption.”

Saint Quodvultdeus (Died c 453)
Father of the Church
Bishop of Carthage

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The DIVINE INFANT, The FLIGHT into EQYPT

Quote of the Day – 17 February – The Flight

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Quote of the Day – 17 February – Feast of the Flight into Egypt

“My dear Jesus, Thou art the King of Heaven
but now I behold Thee as an Infant
wandering over the earth –
tell me whom dost Thou seek?
I pity Thee when I see Thee, so poor and humbled
but I pity Thee more when I see Thee
treated with such ingratitude
by the same men whom Thou came to save.
Thou dost weep but I also weep
because I have been one of those
who in times past have despised
and persecuted Thee.
But now I value Thy grace
more than all the kingdoms of the world;
forgive me, O my Jesus,
all the evil I have committed against Thee
and permit me to carry Thee always in my heart
during the journey of my life to eternity,
even as Mary carried Thee in her arms
during the flight into Egypt.”

By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)
Doctor of the Church

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The DIVINE INFANT, The FLIGHT into EQYPT

Our Morning Offering – 17 February – My Beloved Redeemer, Prayer for the Flight into Egypt

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Our Morning Offering – 17 February – Feast of the Flight into Egypt

My Beloved Redeemer
Prayer for the Flight into Egypt (Excerpt)
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)
Doctor of the Church

My beloved Redeemer,
I have many times driven Thee out of my soul
but now I hope, that Thou
have again taken possession of it.
I beseech Thee,
do Thou bind it to Thyself
with the sweet chains of Thy love.
Oh, do Thou make Thyself loved,
make Thyself loved by all the sinners
who persecute Thee,
give them light,
make them know the love
Thou hast borne them
and the love Thou deserves,
since Thou goes wandering over the earth
as a poor Infant,
weeping and trembling with cold
and seeking souls to love Thee!
O Mary, most holy Virgin,
O dearest Mother
and companion of the sufferings of Jesus,
do thou help me always
to carry and preserve thy Son
in my heart,
in life and in death!
Amen.

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The DIVINE INFANT

Our Morning Offering – 11 January – O Adorable Infant

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Our Morning Offering – 11 January – Sixth Day within the Octave of Epiphany

O Adorable Infant
By St Alphonsus de Liguori

O Adorable Infant
I should not dare to present myself before Thee,
did I not know
that Thou, Thyself invitest me
to approach Thee.
It is I, by my sins,
who made Thee shed so many tears
in the stable of Bethlehem
but since Thou art come upon earth.
to pardon penitent sinners,
vouchsafe to pardon me.
I sincerely repent
of having despised Thee,
my Lord and my God,
Who art so good
and hast loved me so much.
Thy grace that I ask,
is that I may love Thee henceforth,
with all my heart.
Inflame my soul entirely
with Thy Holy Love.
I love Thee, O my God,
Who hast become an Infant for me.
Grant that I may never
cease to love Thee
O Mary, my Mother!
thou art all-powerful
by yhy prayers;
I ask but one favour of Thee,
namely, that Thou wilt pray to Jesus for me.
Amen.

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The DIVINE INFANT, THE EPIPHANY of the LORD, The EPIPHANY Prayers

Our Morning Offering – 10 January – O Child, So Worthy of Our Love, I Offer You My Heart

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Our Morning Offering – 10 January – The Fifth Day within the Octave of Epiphany

O Child, So Worthy of Our Love,
I Offer Thee My Heart
(O Grant Me that Gold, Incense and Myrrh
Which I Lack)
By St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor

O Child so worthy of our love,
I see You lying on the straw in this cave,
so poor and despised.
Yet faith teaches me, that You are my God
come down from heaven for my salvation.
I acknowledge You as my Sovereign Lord and Saviour,
as such I proclaim You,
yet, I have nothing at all to offer You.
I am without Love’s Gold,
since I have given my love to the things of this world –
I have only loved my own whim, rather than loving You,
so infinitely worthy of love.
I am without Prayer’s Incense,
since I have lived wretchedly without thinking of You.
I have no Myrrh of Mortification since,
so as not to forsake some paltry pleasures,
I have so often saddened Your infinite goodness.
So what am I to offer You?
O my Jesus, I offer You my heart, soiled and naked as it is.
Take it and change it, for You have come down to us
to wash our guilty hearts with Your Blood
and so transform us from sinners into saints.
O grant me that Gold, Incense and Myrrh which I lack.
Grant me the Gold of Your Holy Love;
grant me the Incense which is the spirit of prayer;
grant me Myrrh,
the willingness and strength to deny myself
in all that displeases You…
O holy Virgin, you welcomed those devout Magi Kings
with keen affection and satisfied them.
Deign to welcome and comfort me also,
I, who come, following their example,
to visit and offer myself to your Son
Amen.

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, GOD is LOVE, POETRY, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on WATCHING, The DIVINE INFANT, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 30 December – ‘He has come down to earth, to take you to heaven …’

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Quote/s of the Day – 30 December – The Sixth Day in the Christmas Octave, Readings: 1 John 2:12-17, Psalm 96:7-10, Luke 2:36-40

“She [Anna] spoke about the child to all
who were awaiting
the redemption of Jerusalem…”

Luke 2:38

“He has come down to earth
to take you to heaven,
He became mortal
that you might become God
and put on your original beauty.”

St Romanos Melodios (c 490-c 556)
Monk, Composer of Hymns, Poet

“The Angel said to the shepherds,
“This is a sign for you” (Lk 2: 12),
you who are humble,
you who are obedient,
you who are not haughty (Rom 12: 16),
you who are keeping vigil
and meditating on God’s law,
day and night (Ps 1:2).
“This is a sign for you,” he said.
What is this sign?
The sign the Angels promised,
the sign the people asked for,
the sign the prophets foretold,
the Lord Jesus has now made
and He shows it to you. …”

St Bernard (1091-1153)
Mellifluous Doctor of the Church

“Listen! the reason He is called Saviour
is because, for all those
to whom He is united,
He gains salvation.
Now salvation means,
to be delivered from all ills and,
at the same time,
to find all blessings forever –
Life instead of death,
Light in place of darkness
and, instead of the slavery
of the passions and unworthy deeds,
the complete freedom granted
to all those, who are united to Christ,
Saviour of all beings.
Thus they will possess,
without being able to lose it,
all joy, all happiness, all blessedness (…)
that that none can ever know,
or conceive, or see,
if not sincerely and ardently
attached to Christ.”

St Symeon the New Theologian (c 949-1022)

Who lives in Love
By St Robert Southwell SJ (1561-1595)
Martyr

Who lives in Love, loves least to live
and long delays doth rue,
if Him he love by Whom he lives,
to Whom all praise is due,
Who for our love did choose to live
and was content to die,
Who loved our love more than His life
and love with Life did buy.
Let us in life, yea with our life
requite His Living Love,
for best we live when least we live,
if Love our life remove.
Mourn, therefore, no true lover’s death,
life only him annoy
and when he taketh leave of life
then Love begins his joys.