Quote of the Day – 20 December – Wednesday of the Third Week of Advent
“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.”
One Minute Reflection – 20 December – The Memorial of St Dominic de Silos (1000-1073)
You, O God, are my stronghold, my gracious God!………..Psalm 59:18
REFLECTION – “In tribulations, turn to God with confidence. You will obtain strength, light and knowledge.
In joys and successes, turn to God with fear and sincerity. You will escape all snares and be free of everything false.”..St John of the Cross
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, let me turn to You in good times and in bad. Grant that I may always remain in loving union with You no matter what adversity or goodness should befall me. As St Dominic de Silos lived his life, when he was exiled, he found another way to give You honour and through this adversity You filled his work with miracles. So too may it be in my life. St Dominic de Silos Pray for us! Amen
Thought for the Day – 19 December – Tuesday of Gaudete Week
St Irenaeus of Lyons (c 130-202) on the Incarnation, the Word of God born for us as Emmanuel, Jesus Christ, Son of Man, the sign of our salvation. He comes to restore God’s likeness in us and lead us to glory.
God is man’s glory. Man is the vessel which receives God’s action and all his wisdom and power.
Just as a doctor is judged in his care for the sick, so God is revealed in his conduct with men. That is Paul’s reason for saying: God has made the whole world prisoner of unbelief that he may have mercy on all. He was speaking of man, who was disobedient to God and cast off from immortality and then found mercy, receiving through the Son of God the adoption he brings.
If man, without being puffed up or boastful, has a right belief regarding created things and their divine Creator, who, having given them being, holds them all in his power and if man perseveres in God’s love and in obedience and gratitude to him, he will receive greater glory from him. It will be a glory which will grow ever brighter until he takes on the likeness of the one who died for him.
He it was who took on the likeness of sinful flesh, to condemn sin and rid the flesh of sin, as now condemned. He wanted to invite man to take on his likeness, appointing man an imitator of God, establishing man in a way of life in obedience to the Father that would lead to the vision of God and endowing man with power to receive the Father. He is the Word of God who dwelt with man and became the Son of Man to open the way for man to receive God, for God to dwell with man, according to the will of the Father.
For this reason the Lord himself gave as the sign of our salvation, the one who was born of the Virgin, Emmanuel. It was the Lord himself who saved them, for of themselves they had no power to be saved. For this reason Paul speaks of the weakness of man and says: I know that no good dwells in my flesh, meaning that the blessing of our salvation comes not from us but from God. Again, he says: I am a wretched man; who will free me from this body doomed to die? Then he speaks of a liberator, thanks to Jesus Christ our Lord.
Isaiah says the same: Hands that are feeble, grow strong! Knees that are weak, take courage! Hearts that are faint, grow strong! Fear not; see, our God is judgement and he will repay. He himself will come and save us. He means that we could not be saved of ourselves but only with God’s help.
This excerpt from St Irenaeus’ monumental work, Against Heresies (Lib 3,20, 2-3; SC 34, 342-344) speaks of the incarnation, the birth of the Word of God as Son of Man, as the sign of our salvation. It is used in the Roman Office of Readings for 19 December one of the last days of Advent. It was originally written around 185 AD.
St Irenaeus of Lyons
Born about 130, St Irenaeus was one of the most important of the Early Church Fathers of the 2nd Century. His life reveals the cosmopolitan nature of the Roman Empire at the height of its power. Though Irenaeus ultimately became bishop of what is now Lyons, in Southern France, he grew up and was educated in Smyrna, located in modern-day Turkey. There Irenaeus had personal contact with St Polycarp, one of the Apostolic Fathers who in turn knew the Apostle John, son of Zebedee. Before becoming bishop, Saint Irenaeus apparently studied in Rome where he was influenced by St Justin Martyr. His major work, Against Heresies, which appeared around the year 185 exposed the absurdities of the Gnostic cults of the day and included a strong presentation and defense of Catholic Christianity. It is the earliest compendium of Christian theology surviving from ancient times and is the first work that cites virtually every book of the Christian writings that we now call the New Testament. Irenaeus is said to have won the crown of martyrdom around the year 200 AD. He is honoured in the Roman liturgy on 28 June.
Quote of the Day – 19 December – Tuesday of Gaudete Week
“God’s sign is His humility.
God’s sign is that He makes himself small;
He becomes a child;
He lets us touch him and He asks for our love.
How we would prefer a different sign,
an imposing, irresistible sign of God’s power and greatness!
But His sign summons us to faith and love
and thus it gives us hope: this is what God is like.
He has power, He is Goodness itself.
He invites us to become like Him.
Yes indeed, we become like God if we allow ourselves
to be shaped by this sign;
if we ourselves learn humility and hence true greatness;
if we renounce violence and use only the weapons of truth and love.”
One Minute Reflection- 19 December – Tuesday of Gaudete Week
Be my rock of refuge,
a stronghold to give me safety,
for you are my rock and my fortress.
O my God, rescue me from the hand of the wicked…Psalm 71:3-4a
REFLECTION – “‘The Lord is near!’ What can the whole year offer us more precious, lovely and joyful? Christmas is the shining Feast of nature and of life, full of grace and charm. Everything comes to us from that Child whom his Mother gives to every one of us and presents to the whole world!” …St Pope John XXIII
PRAYER – Deepen our faith, Lord God, as we celebrate the great mystery of the Incarnation by which You revealed to the world, the splendour of Your glory, through the Virgin Mary, when she gave birth to Your Son. As we meditate and pray about Your Son’s coming, help us to grasp its meaning in a way that is personal and profound. Through Him whom You sent to save us, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Come, Lord Jesus! Amen
Thought for the Day – 18 December – Monday of Gaudete Week and the Memorial of Bl Giulia Nemesia Valle (1847-1916) – Called “the Angel of Charity”
Try to gather together more frequently to give thanks to God and to praise Him. For when you come together frequently, Satan’s powers are undermined and the destruction that he threatens is done away with in the unanimity of your faith. Nothing is better than peace, in which all warfare between heaven and earth is brought to an end.
None of this will escape you if you have perfect faith and love toward Jesus Christ. These are the beginning and the end of life: faith the beginning, love the end. When these two are found together, there is God and everything else concerning right living follows from them. No one professing faith sins: no one possessing love hates. A tree is known by its fruit. So those who profess to belong to Christ will be known by what they do. For the work we are about is not a matter of words here and now but depends on the power of faith and on being found faithful to the end.
…Nothing is hidden from the Lord but even our secrets are close to Him. Let us then do everything in the knowledge that He is dwelling within us that we may be His temples, and He, God within us. He is and will reveal Himself, in our sight, according to the love we bear Him in holiness.
(excerpt from a letter to the Ephesians by Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop, Martyr, Father of the Church)
Quote/s of the Day – 18 December – The Memorial of Bl Giulia Nemesia Valle (1847-1916) – Called “the Angel of Charity”
“It is better to err by excess of mercy
than by excess of severity. . .
Wilt thou become a Saint?
Be severe to thyself but kind to others.”
“Mercy imitates God and disappoints Satan.”
” Love is itself the fulfillment of all our works.
There is the goal;
that is why we run:
we run toward it and once we reach it,
in it we shall find rest.
“Lord, I am in this world to show Your mercy to others…
For my part I will glorify You by making known
how good You are to sinners, that Your mercy is boundless.”
One Minute Reflection – 18 December – The Memorial of Bl Giulia Nemesia Valle (1847-1916)
Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me…John 15:4
REFLECTION – “Keep a quick pace, without looking behind and concentrate on the one goal -God Alone! To Him the glory, to the others joy, for me to pay the price and never make others suffer. I shall be very strict with myself and full of charity towards the others – love gratuitously offered is the only thing that remains.” – Bl Giulia Nemesia Valle (1847-1916)
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, grant we pray, that we may always cling with all our strength to You. Teach us to see the face of Your Son in all, to be a vehicle of love to all. Blessed Giulia, such was your life of charity and love, please pray for us, amen
Quote/s of the Day – 17 December – Gaudete Sunday
“Gaudete in Domino semper”
“Rejoice in the Lord always”
“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 my soul,
to purify like by like.”
One Minute Reflection – 17 December – The Memorial of St Josep Manyanet (1833-1901)
“The Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.”…John 14: 26
REFLECTION – “From the beginning, the Holy Spirit has brought forth men and women who have remembered and spread the truth revealed by Jesus. One of these was St Josep Manyanet, a true apostle of the family. Inspired by the school of Nazareth, he carried out his plan of personal sanctity and heroically devoted himself to the mission that the Spirit entrusted to him. He founded two religious congregations. A visible symbol of his apostolic zeal is also the temple of the Holy Family of Barcelona…St John Paul at the Canonisation Mass, 16 May 2004
PRAYER – Holy God, we pray for all families, most especially our fellow Catholic families, that they may live as their model – the Holy Family of Nazareth. May St Josep Manyanet bless all families and help them follow the example of the Holy Family in their homes! Grant this we pray, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, with You and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever, amen.
Thought for the Day – 16 December – Saturday of the Second Week of Advent
Once again, O Lord of hosts;
look down from heaven and see;
Take care of this vine
and protect what your right hand has planted
the son of man, whom you yourself made strong.
Psalm 80:15-16
What does it mean to be a CATHOLIC?
Jesus gave the best definition of the term when He said:
“In my Father’s house there are many rooms.”
This is not a description of a certain geography of heaven
but a revelation of the breadth of God’s heart….
To belong to a Church is to be loyal to many things, not just one thing.
A healthy member of a church community does not pick, in an “either/or fashion”
between having boundaries or emphasising freedom,
between believing in defined doctrines or emphasising individual conscience,
between the gift of legitimate institutionalised authority or the importance of individual charisma,
between the role of ordained ministers and the priesthood of all people,
between the needs of the local community and the needs of the larger universal Church,
between what the gifted artist brings to the community and what the poorest of the poor brings,
between liberal and conservative,
between old and new,
or even between what is being said by those church members who are still alive
and those who have died but with whom we are still in communion.
To be a member of the Church, is not to choose among these.
It is to CHOOSE THEM ALL!
Like our God in heaven, we too need a heart with many rooms.
Lord Jesus, give Your people hearts to embrace one another,
to embrace Your Holy Church and all its teachings, its works and its words
and to invite everyone in. Amen.
(Excerpted from Fr Ronald Rolheiser’s “Light for the World”)
Quote/s of the Day – 16 December – Saturday of the Second Week of Advent
“If we wish to make any progress in the service of God
we must begin every day of our life with new eagerness.
We must keep ourselves in the presence of God
as much as possible and have no other view
or end in all our actions but the divine honour.”
“We must meditate before,
during and after everything we do.
The prophet says:
“I will pray, and then I will understand.”
This is the way we can easily overcome
the countless difficulties we have to face
day after day, which, after all, are part of our work.
In meditation, we find the strength,
to bring Christ to birth in ourselves and in others.”
One Minute Reflection – 15 December – Friday of the Second Week of Advent
Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour...Matthew 25:13
REFLECTION – “To prevent His disciples from asking the time of His coming, Christ said: About that hour no one knows, neither the angels nor the Son. It is not for you to know times or moments. He has kept those things hidden so that we may keep watch, each of us thinking that He will come in our own day. If He had revealed the time of His coming, His coming would have lost its savour: it would no longer be an object of yearning for the nations and the age in which it will be revealed. He promised that He would come but did not say when He would come and so, all generations and ages await Him eagerly.”…St Ephrem (306-373) Father & Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – Holy God, keep us ever alert and watchful, making straight the paths of Your Son, as we await His coming. It is within our hearts that we need to straighten all things, for if all hearts are ready, our Lord will find His people waiting in hope, peace, joy and love. Come, Lord Jesus, come. Amen
Quotes of the Day – 14 December – The Memorial of St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church
“In giving us His Son, His only Word,
He spoke everything to us at once
in this sole Word – and He has no more to say…
because what He spoke before to the prophets in parts,
He has now spoken all at once by giving us
the ALL Who is His Son.”
“If a man wishes to be sure of the road
he treads on, he must close his eyes
and walk in the dark.”
“At the end of your life,
you will be judged by your love.”
One Minute Reflection – 14 December – The Memorial of St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church
In all truth I tell you, unless a grain of wheat
falls into the earth and dies,
it remains only a single grain;
but if it dies it yields a rich harvest…John 12:24
REFLECTION – “O you souls who wish to go on with so much safety and consolation, if you knew how pleasing to God is suffering and how much it helps in acquiring other good things, you would never seek consolation in anything; but you would rather look upon it as a great happiness to bear the Cross of the Lord.”…Saint John of the Cross
PRAYER – Lord God, You gave St John of the Cross, the grace of complete self-denial and an ardent love for the Cross of Christ. Grant that by following always in the footsteps of Christ and by the prayers of St John of the Cross on our behalf, we may come to the eternal vision of Your glory. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever, amen.
Thought for the Day – 13 December – Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent and the Memorial of St Lucy (c 283-304)
Gospel for today : Matthew 11:28-30
Jesus exclaimed, Come to me, all you that are weary
and are carrying heavy burdens
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me;
for I am gentle and humble in heart
and you will find rest for your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
The symbol of “yoke” used by Jesus in the Gospel has a special significance.
Two bulls are required to carry a yoke.
When Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you” means He is already on one side of the yoke.
He is inviting us to put our shoulder on the other side!
When we take Jesus’ yoke upon ourselves, we experience that the burden is light
and the yoke is easy to carry because of the presence of Jesus.
The ones who walk in the way of the Lord, will never be tired
because the Lord Himself will be their peace and their rest.
The peace and rest that come from the Lord are the signs which assures us
that we are carrying the burden with Jesus, whereas, disturbance and
restlessness, are signs which suggest that we are trying to do things
our own way and are burdened with our own agenda!
So how do we “see” our Lord there, right next to us?
Touch the hem of Christ’s garment! Celebrate the Eucharist – for it is here
that we are given peace and strength – in this mystery, God holds us to His Heart
and we can find Him on the other side of the yoke and we become whole.
Lord Jesus, our Christ, may we always accept Your invitation just as St Lucy did, whose Memorial we celebrate today and whose prayers we implore!
Quote/s of the Day – 13 December
“If you want to honour the body of Christ,
do not scorn it when it is naked;
do not honour the Eucharistic Christ
with silk vestments and then,
leaving the church, neglect the other Christ
suffering from cold and nakedness”
Father and Doctor of the Church – (Hom. in Matthaeum, 50.3: PG 58)
“The more we are afflicted in this world,
the greater is our assurance in the next;
the more we sorrow in the present,
the greater will be our joy in the future.”
“When it is all over, you will not regret having suffered;
rather, you will regret, having suffered so little
and suffered that little so badly.”
One Minute Reflection – 13 December – The Memorial of St Lucy (c 283-304)
Cast me not our of your presence and your Holy Spirit, take not from me….Psalm 51:13
REFLECTION – “When the Holy Spirit is in a soul, He communicates Himself in one way or another.
We can say that He makes virtue contagious and turns a simple faithful into an apostle.”…St Claude de la Colombiere S.J. (1641-1682)
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, grant that Your Holy Spirit may inspire me to be a true follower of Your Son. May He dwell in me always and keep me ever on the path of holiness. May the prayer of the virgin Martyr Lucy, support us, O Lord, so that with each passing year, we may celebrate her entry into life and finally see You face to face and greet her with joy. Through our Lord, Jesus Christ, in unity with the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever amen.
One Minute Reflection – 12 December – The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Who is this that comes like the dawn ….. as awe-inspiring as bannered troops?…..Song 6:10
REFLECTION – “Mary is an arsenal of graces and she comes to the aid of her clients. She sustains, strengthens and revives us by the heavenly favours that she heaps on us.”…..St Paulinus of York (died 644)
PRAYER – Lord Jesus Christ my Lord, help me to become a devoted client of Your holy Mother Mary. Through Your grace, may I receive the spiritual strength she has promised to all her clients. May I, in simplicity, like St Juan Diego, become her vessel to share Your Light of Love throughout my world. Our Lady of Guadalupe Pray for us! Amen
Quote of the Day – 11 December – The Memorial of St Pope Damasus I (c 305-384)
The arrangement of the names of Christ, however, is manifold:
LORD, because He is Spirit;
WORD, because He is God;
SON, because He is the only-begotten son of the Father;
MAN, because He was born of the Virgin;
PRIEST, because He offered Himself as a sacrifice;
SHEPHERD, because He is a guardian;
WORM, because He rose again;
MOUNTAIN, because He is strong;
WAY, because there is a straight path through Him to life;
LAMB, because He suffered;
CORNER-STONE, because instruction is His;
TEACHER, because He demonstrates how to live;
SUN, because He is the illuminator;
TRUTH, because He is from the Father;
LIFE, because He is the creator;
BREAD because He is flesh;
SAMARITAN, because He is the merciful protector;
CHRIST, because He is anointed;
JESUS, because He is a mediator;
VINE, because we are redeemed by His blood;
LION, because He is King;
ROCK, because He is firm;
FLOWER, because He is the chosen one;
PROPHET, because He has revealed what is to come.
from the Decree of Damasus (attributed to St Pope Damasus I)
One Minute Reflection – 11 December – The Memorial of St Pope Damasus I (c 305-384)
Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see…Hebrews 11:1
REFLECTION – “He who walking on the sea could calm the bitter waves, who gives life to the dying seeds of the earth; He who was able to loose the mortal chains of death and after three days’ darkness could bring again to the upper world the brother for sister Martha: He, I believe, will make Damasus rise again from the dust.”……………St Pope Damasus I
PRAYER – Jesus, my Lord and my God, grant us the grace of faith to believe that all that You have said will be fulfilled. And fill us with Your Holy Spirit of love so that we may translate that belief into practice, by obeying Your commands every day. St Pope Damasus, you proved your love for Christ and His Church, please pray that we may always be faithful and filled with a like zeal for the Church and Bride of Christ, amen.
Saint of the Day – 11 December – St Pope Damasus I (c 305-384) Priest and Pope – ( c 305 in Rome, Italy – 11 December 384 in Rome, Italy of natural causes). Patronage – archeologists. He was buried in the Mark and Marcellianus catacombs in Rome
and his bones re-buried in the church of San Lorenzo in Damaso.
The son of a Roman priest, possibly of Spanish extraction, Damasus started as a deacon in his father’s church and served as a priest in what later became the basilica of San Lorenzo in Rome. He served Pope Liberius (352-366) and followed him into exile.
When Liberius died, Damasus was elected bishop of Rome; but a minority elected and consecrated another deacon, Ursinus, as pope. The controversy between Damasus and the antipope resulted in violent battles in two basilicas, scandalising the bishops of Italy. At the synod that Damasus called on the occasion of his birthday, he asked them to approve his actions. The bishops’ reply was curt: “We assembled for a birthday, not to condemn a man unheard.” Supporters of the antipope even managed to get Damasus accused of a grave crime—probably sexual—as late as 378. He had to clear himself before both a civil court and a Church synod.
As pope, his lifestyle was simple in contrast to other ecclesiastics of Rome and he was fierce in his denunciation of Arianism and other heresies. A misunderstanding of the Trinitarian terminology used by Rome threatened amicable relations with the Eastern Church and Damasus was only moderately successful in dealing with that challenge.
He appointed St Jerome as his confidential secretary. Invited to Rome originally to a synod of 382 convened to end the schism of Antioch, Jerome made himself indispensable to the pope and took a prominent place in his councils. Jerome spent three years (382–385) in Rome in close intercourse with Pope Damasus and the leading Christians. Writing in 409, Jerome remarked, “A great many years ago when I was helping Damasus, bishop of Rome with his ecclesiastical correspondence, I was also helping to write his answers to the questions referred to him by the councils of the east and west…”
In order to put an end to the marked divergences in the western texts of that period, Damasus encouraged the highly respected scholar Jerome to revise the available Old Latin versions of the Bible into a more accurate Latin on the basis of the Greek New Testament and the Septuagint, resulting in the Vulgate. Jerome devoted a very brief notice to Damasus in his De Viris Illustribus, written after Damasus’ death: “he had a fine talent for making verses and published many brief works in heroic metre. He died in the reign of the emperor Theodosius at the age of almost eighty”.
The letters from Jerome to Damasus are examples of the primacy of the See of Peter:
Yet, though your greatness terrifies me, your kindness attracts me. From the priest I demand the safe-keeping of the victim, from the shepherd the protection due to the sheep. Away with all that is overweening; let the state of Roman majesty withdraw. My words are spoken to the successor of the fisherman, to the disciple of the cross. As I follow no leader save Christ, so I communicate with none but your blessedness, that is with the chair of Peter. For this, I know, is the rock on which the church is built! This is the house where alone the paschal lamb can be rightly eaten. This is the ark of Noah and he who is not found in it shall perish when the flood prevails. But since by reason of my sins I have betaken myself to this desert which lies between Syria and the uncivilised waste, I cannot, owing to the great distance between us, always ask of your sanctity the holy thing of the Lord. Consequently I here follow the Egyptian confessors who share your faith and anchor my frail craft under the shadow of their great argosies. I know nothing of Vitalis; I reject Meletius; I have nothing to do with Paulinus. He that gathers not with you scatters; he that is not of Christ is of Antichrist!”
During his pontificate, Christianity was declared the official religion of the Roman state, and Latin became the principal liturgical language as part of the Pope’s reforms. His encouragement of Saint Jerome’s biblical studies led to the Vulgate, the Latin translation of Scripture which 12 centuries later the Council of Trent declared to be “authentic in public readings, disputations, preaching.”
St Josemaria and Our Lady of Loreto – 10 December
Msgr Josemaria Escriva went to Loreto for the first time on January 3 and 4, 1948. But he considered himself especially indebted to Our Lady of Loreto for a very particular reason: she had heard his prayer in a time of acute need. The 1950s were years of great suffering for St Josemaria because of misunderstandings and conflicts. Amidst all these difficulties he decided to go to Loreto to place himself under our Lady’s protection. In her book Tiempo de Caminar, Ana Sastre tells the story of that visit:
“On August the fourteenth, 1951, Monsignor Escrivá decided to go to Loreto by car to be there on the fifteenth and consecrate Opus Dei to our Blessed Lady. The heat was stifling and they were very thirsty all the way. There was no motorway. The road followed the line of valleys, went steeply up the Apennine Mountains and finally plunged down towards the Adriatic coast.
According to a centuries-old tradition the Holy House of Nazareth has stood on the hill of Loreto since 1294, and a basilica was later built around it. The Holy House is rectangular in shape and its walls are about four and a half meters high. One of the walls is modern, but the others, which have no foundations and are blackened by the smoke of candles, are, according to tradition, the walls of the House at Nazareth. The structure of the Holy House and the materials of which it is built, bear no relation to those of local architecture in olden times but are exactly similar to houses built in Palestine twenty centuries ago: sandstone blocks with a limestone mortar. The shrine stands on a ridge covered in laurel-trees, from which comes the name ‘Loreto’.
St Josemaria’s party parked in the central square and he got out of the car quickly. For fifteen or twenty minutes he was lost to sight among the people filling the basilica. Finally he emerged, after praying to our Lady, smiling and in good spirits. It was seven-thirty in the evening and they had to go back to Ancona to spend the night.
The next morning, before the sun was high, they drove back to Loreto. In spite of the early hour, the shrine was already completely full. St Josemaria vested for Mass in the sacristy and came to the altar of the Holy House of Nazareth to say Mass. The small space was packed with people and the heat was stifling.
Holy Mass:
Under the votive lamps, he wanted to celebrate the sacred liturgy with all possible devotion. But he had not allowed for the fervour of the congregation on this feast day. He wrote later, “When I would kiss the altar in accordance with the rubrics, three or four local women would accompany me. It was distracting but certainly moving. I also noticed that above the altar in that holy house, which tradition says was the home of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, these words were written: ‘Here the Word was made flesh.’ Here, on a bit of the earth on which we live, in a house built by men, God dwelt” (Christ is Passing By, 12).
During the Mass, without a formula but in words filled with faith, St Josemaria consecrated Opus Dei to our Lady. Afterwards, speaking quietly to the people with him, he repeated it in the name of everyone in Opus Dei. “We consecrate to you our being and our life; everything that is ours: all that we love and all that we are. Our bodies, our hearts and our souls are for you; we are yours. And to make this consecration truly effective and lasting, today at your feet, O Mary, we renew the dedication that we made to God in Opus Dei. Inspire us with a deep love for the Church and the Pope and make us live in full submission to all their teachings.”
Invoking our Lady:
St Josemaria had been noticeably tired when he left Rome. But on the way back he seemed like a new man, as though all the obstacles in God’s path had crumbled into dust. Some weeks before he had suggested a new aspiration to his sons and daughters in Opus Dei, an invocation to the Mother of Jesus for them to repeat constantly: “Most sweet heart of Mary, prepare a safe way!” Our Lady’s loving smile always went ahead along the paths of Opus Dei. Once again, its founder had stepped forward in the parameters of faith. He used the human means but trusted in a decisive intervention from on high. “God is the same as always. It is men of faith that are needed: and then, there will be a renewal of the wonders we read of in the Gospel. Ecce non est abbreviata manus Domini, – God’s arm, his power, has not grown weaker!” (The Way, 586).
St Josemaria visited the Holy House of Nazareth on six further occasions: 7 November, 1953; 12 May 1955; 8 May 1960; 22 April 1969; 8 May 1969 and the last one on 22 April 1971. On 9 December 1973, he said, “I think that all the representations, all the names, all the invocations given by Christians to the Virgin Mary, are wonderful. But in Loreto I am especially indebted to our Lady.”
One Minute Reflection – 10 December- The Memorial of Our Lady and the Holy House of Loreto
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength and with all your mind………..Luke 10:27
REFLECTION – “Love for Christ pierced Mary’s heart in such a way that no part of it was left unkindled. Mary thus fulfilled the first commandment of love in all its fullness
and without the slightest imperfection.”….St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153) Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – O Mother! You, who carried the Divine Saviour in your immaculate womb and lived with Him in the Holy House that we venerate on the Loreto Hill, grant us the grace to seek Him and imitate His example, He who leads us to salvation. Our Lady of Loreto work miracles in us all! Amen
Our Morning Offering – 10 December – The Second Sunday of Advent and the Memorial of Our Lady and the Holy House of Loreto
Maiden yet a Mother
By Dante Alighieri (1265-1321)
Tr Msgr Ronald A Knox (1888-1957)
Maiden yet a mother,
daughter of thy Son,
high beyond all other,
lowlier is none;
thou the consummation
planned by God’s decree,
when our lost creation
nobler rose in thee!
Thus His place prepared,
he who all things made
‘mid his creatures tarried,
in thy bosom laid;
there His love He nourished,
warmth that gave increase
to the root whence flourished
our eternal peace.
Nor alone thou hearest
When thy name we hail;
Often thou art nearest
When our voices fail;
Mirrored in thy fashion
All creation’s gird,
Mercy, might compassion
Grace thy womanhood.
Lady, let our vision
Striving heavenward, fail,
Still let thy petition
With thy Son prevail,
Unto whom all merit,
prayer and majesty,
With the Holy Spirit
And the Father be.
Maiden Yet A Mother is a translation of a poem by Durante (Dante) degli Alighieri (c 1265–1321). It is based upon the opening verses of Canto 33 of the Paradiso from his Divine Comedy in which St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090–1153) praises and prays to the Virgin Mother on behalf of Dante. It was translated from the original Italian into English by the Catholic convert, Monsignior Ronald A Knox (1888-1957).
Quote/s of the Day – 9 December – The Memorial of St Juan Diego (1474-1548)
“Let not your heart be disturbed.
Do not fear that sickness,
nor any other sickness or anguish.
Am I not here, who is your Mother?
Are you not under my protection?
Am I not your health?
Are you not happily within my fold?
What else do you wish?
Do not grieve nor be disturbed by anything.”
“The Virgin chose Juan from among the most humble
as the one to receive that loving and gracious
manifestation of hers which is the Guadalupe apparition.
The lay faithful share in the prophetic, priestly and royal role of Christ …..
You must be the salt of the earth and the light of the world.”
“Beloved Juan Diego, “the talking eagle”!
Show us the way,
that leads to the “Dark Virgin” of Tepeyac,
that she may receive us in the depths of her heart,
for she is the loving, compassionate Mother,
who guides us to the true God. “
One Minute Reflection – – 9 December 2017- Saturday of the First Week of Advent
How I wish you were ….hot or cold! But because you are lukewarm … I will spew you out of my mouth!….Revelations 3:15
REFLECTION – The Word of God moves swiftly. He is not won by the lukewarm nor held fast by the negligent. Be attentive to His message and diligently follow the path God tells you to take. For He is swift in His passing…..St Ambrose (340-397) Father & Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – Lord Jesus, my Lord and Saviour, help me to avoid this lukewarmness in my spiritual growth. Allow me, this Advent, to use the time well to prepare for Your swift passing. Grant me an ardent faith, hope and love so that I may be ready for Your coming, every watchful and zealous in following You. May the great love and prayers of St Juan Diego, whose feast we celebrate today, be acceptable to You on our behalf, amen.
ANNOUNCING a Novena to the Christ Child in preparation for Christmas
In the birth of Jesus, God comes to us and asks us to receive Him, so that He can be born in our lives and transform them and our world, by the power of His love. The Christmas liturgy also invites us to contemplate Christ’s birth against the backdrop of His paschal mystery. Christmas points beyond itself, to the redemption won for us on the Cross and the glory of the Resurrection. May this Christmas fill you with joy in the knowledge that God has drawn near to us and is with us, at every moment of our lives”. …Pope Benedict XVI
Join us for the Christmas Novena to the Christ Child beginning 9 days before Christmas on 16 December. Each day will feature a Scripture Reflection and prayer. Let us dispose ourselves to receive the coming Lord. With great desire, with joy full of hope, with a heart that is free and capable of great love, for after all, we are made in His image and likeness and He is love!
Quote/s of the Day – 8 December – The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
The Apostolic Constitution «Ineffabilis Deus», published on 8th December 1854, more 150 years ago, by Blessed Pope Pius IX on the theology regarding the privilege of the Immaculate Conception, in the following solemn proclamation of this Dogma of Catholic faith:
“To the honour of the holy and undivided Trinity, to the worthiness and splendid beauty of the Virgin Mother of God, to the upholding of the Catholic faith and to the furthering of the Christian religion, with the authority of Our Lord Jesus Christ, with that of the holy Apostles Peter and Paul and with Our own authority, we declare, we pronounce and we define the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the very first moments of her Conception, through the singular grace of Almighty God and through the foresight of the merits of Christ Jesus, Saviour of the human race, was preserved immune from all stains of original sin. We furthermore declare, pronounce and define that this doctrine has been revealed by God and, therefore, has to be strongly and always believed by all the faithful.” Blessed Pope Pius IX
“As soon as she [Mary] had the use of reason, that is, from the first moment of her Immaculate Conception in the womb of St Anne, from that time she began with all her powers to love her God and thus she continued to do, ever advancing more in perfection and love through her whole life. All her thoughts, her desires, her affections, were wholly given to God. Not a word, not a motion, not a glance of the eye, not a breath of hers that was not for God and for His glory, never departing one step, nor separating herself for one moment from the divine love.”…Saint Alphonsus Ligouri (1696-1787) Doctor of the Church
One Minute Reflection – 8 December – The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul,
with all your strength and with all your mind ………………Luke 10:22
REFLECTION – Love for Christ pierced Mary’s heart in such a way that no part
of it was left unkindled. Mary thus fulfilled the first commandment of love
in all its fullness and without the slightest imperfection…………St Bernard
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, help us to imitate Your Immaculate Daughter Mary in her love for You. Grant us the grace to love You as much as she, all our lives and grant, that through her help and her prayers, we ourselves may come to You , cleansed from our sins. O Mary Immaculate, mother of our Lord, Pray for us! Amen
AnaStpaul 
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