Category: CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month

Posted in BAPTISM, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, FATHERS of the Church, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, MIRACLES, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on PRIESTS, the PRIESTHOOD and CONSECRATED LIFE, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, The HOLY NAME, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 8 August – ‘ … Even today! …’

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One Minute Reflection – 8 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – The Fourteen Holy Helpers – 1 Thessalonians 2:13-16 – Mark 16:15-18 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“And these signs shall follow them who believe: In My Name they shall cast out devils. They shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents and, if they shall drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them. They shall lay their hand upon the sick and they shall recover.” – Mark 16:17-18

REFLECTION – “The Lord said to the Eleven: “And these signs shall follow them who believe: In My Name they shall cast out devils. They shall speak with new tongues. They shall take up serpents and, if they shall drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them. They shall lay their hand upon the sick and they shall recover.” In the primitive Church all the signs the Lord lists here, were fulfilled to the letter, not only by the Apostles but, many other of the Saints. The Gentiles would not have abandoned the worship of idols if the Gospel preaching had not been confirmed with so many signs and wonders. Indeed, did not the disciples preach “a Crucified Christ, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,” according to Saint Paul’s saying? (1 Cor 1:23) …

As for us, from now on, signs and wonders are no longer needed, it is enough for us to read or hear an account of those which have happened. For we believe in the Gospel, we believe in the Scriptures which relate them. And yet, signs still take place daily and, if we would mark them well, we would acknowledge that they have far more worth than the concrete miracles of former times.

Everyday Priests administer Baptism and call to conversion – is not this to cast out demons? Everyday they speak a new language when they explain holy Scripture by replacing the old letter with the newness of its spiritual sense. They put serpents to flight, when they free sinners’ hearts from their attachment to evil with gentle exhortation … They cure the sick, when they reconcile weak souls to God with their prayers. Such are the signs the Lord had promised his Saints – it is these they accomplish even today!” – St Bruno of Segni O.Cart. (c1030 -1101) Cistercian Bishop (Commentary on Saint Mark’s Gospel).

PRAYER – PRAYER – O God, Who gladden us with the annual festival of Thy 14 holy Saints, mercifully grant, that we, who celebrate the anniversary of their death, may also strive to equal the courage of their Martyrdom. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PAPAL PRAYERS, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on the FAMILY, QUOTES on WORRY/ANXIETY, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Our Morning Offering – 7 August – Prayer for Peace to the Immaculate Virgin By Pope Paul IV

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Our Morning Offering – 7 August – “The Month of theI mmaculate Heart of Mary” – Feastday of St Cajetan (1480-1547) Known as the “Father of Providence” and the “Huntsman of Souls” – Confessor, Founder of the Theatine Order

(Pope Paul IV was a friend of St Cajetan and also a member
of his Order, the Theatines, named after Paul IV’s See as Bishop).

Prayer for Peace to the Immaculate Virgin
By Pope Paul IV CR (1476-1559)

Look down with maternal clemency,
most Blessed Virgin,
upon all your children.
Consider the anxiety of Bishops
who fear that their flocks will be tormented
by a terrible storm of evils.
Heed the anguish of so many people,
fathers and mothers of families
who are uncertain about their future
and beset by hardships and cares.
Soothe the minds of those at war
and inspire them with ‘thoughts of peace.’
Through your intercession,
may God, the avenger of injuries,
turn to mercy.
May He give back to nations
the tranquility they seek
and bring them to a lasting age
of genuine prosperity.
Amen

Posted in CATHOLIC Quotes, CHRIST the LIGHT, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, JUNE-THE SACRED HEART, MARIAN QUOTES, Quotes on SALVATION, The HOLY NAME of MARY

Quote/s of the Day – 5 August – Holy Mother Mary, ‘the most responsive chord in the Sacred Heart of Christ … ‘

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Quote/s of the Day – 5 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – Dedication of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Snows – Sirach 24:14-16: Luke 11:27-28 – Scripture search here:

“Blessed is the womb which bore thee”

Luke 11:27

“No matter how sinful
one may have been,
if he has devotion to Mary,
it is impossible that he be lost.”

St Hilary (315-368)
Father and Doctor of the Church

“Mary signifies “Light-Giver”
or “Star of the Sea”
for she gave birth
to the Light of the World.
In the Syriac tongue, however,
Mary means “Lady” and beautifully so,
since she gave birth to the Lord.”

St Isidore of Seville (c560-636)
Father & Doctor of the Church

“Being thy servant, O Mary,
is a surety of salvation
which God grants solely,
to those He will save!”

St Andrew of Crete (660-740)
Bishop, Father of the Church

“When we appeal to the throne of grace,
we do so through Mary,
honouring God by honouring His Mother,
imitating Him, by exalting her,
touching the most responsive chord
in the Sacred Heart of Christ,
with the sweet name of Mary!”

St Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621)
Doctor of the Church

Posted in CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, IMMACULATE CONCEPTION Prayers and Novena, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN TITLES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, QUOTES on PATIENCE, QUOTES on PHYSICAL SICKNESS, ILLNESS, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on SUFFERING

Our Morning Offering – 5 August – O Mary, Immaculate Virgin 

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Our Morning Offering – 5 August – “The Month of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary” – Feast of the Dedication of Our Lady of the Snows

O Mary, Immaculate Virgin
Prayer for Health of Soul and Body

O Mary, Immaculate Virgin,
our salvation lies in thy hands.
Cleanse our souls,
we beseech thee,
from the leprosy of sin
and assist us in our corporal infirmities.
And, if it be the will of God
that we must be acquainted
with sickness and suffering,
obtain for us, at least,
perfect patience and resignation,
in whatsoever God may dispose.
Amen.

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, DOCTORS of the Church, HYMNS, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART Quotes, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN POETRY, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN Saturdays, MARIAN TITLES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on MERCY, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, The FIVE FIRST Saturdays, THE FIVE FIRST SATURDAYS DEVOTION

Our Morning Offering – 2 August – O Mother Blest By St Alphonsus

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Our Morning Offering – 2 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary” – The Feastday of St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787) Bishop, Confessor, Most Zealous Doctor

O Mother Blest
By St Alphonsus Maira Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor of the Church
Trans. Fr Edmund Vaughn C.SS.R. (1827 – 1908 )

O Mother blest, whom God bestows
On sinners and on just,
What joy, what hope thou givest those
Who in thy mercy trust.
Thou are clement, thou are chaste,
Mary thou art fair,
Of all mothers, sweetest best,
none with thee compare.

O heavenly Mother, mistress sweet!
it never yet was told
that suppliant sinner left thy feet,
unpitied, unconsoloed.
Thou are clement, thou are chaste, …

O Mother, pitiful and mild,
Cease not to pray for me;
For I do love thee as a child,
And sigh for love of thee.
Thou art clement, thou art chaste, …

Most powerful Mother, all men know
Thy Son denies thee nought;
Thou askest, wishest it and lo!
His power thy will hath wrought.
Thou art clement, thou art chaste, …

O Mother blest, for me obtain,
Ungrateful though I be,
To love that God who first could deign
To show such love for me.
Thou art clement, thou art chaste,
Mary, thou art fair.
Of all mothers, sweetest, best,
None with thee compare.

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART Quotes, MARIAN TITLES, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS

1 August – The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

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August – The Month of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary

In 1944, Pope Pius XII set the Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary to be celebrated on 22 August as the Octave of the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin on 15 August. Two years earlier, on the 25th Anniversary of the Fatima apparitions, Pope Pius XII, Consecrated the Catholic family and whole human race, to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.

August also celebrates the Marian Feast of Our Lady of the Snows (St Mary Major) on 5 August, Our Lady Refuge of Sinners on 13 August, Our Lady of Knock on 21 August, Our Lady of Czestochowa and Our Lady Health of the Sick on 24 August.

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, OCTOBER - The HOLY ROSARY and The HOLY ANGELS, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Thought for the Day – 1 August – The Virginal Purity of Mary

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Thought for the Day – 1 August – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Virginal Purity of Mary

“Purity is the most beautiful of virtues.

It is a virtue which is admired by God and by men, even by the most corrupt.
It is often said, that it makes us like the Angels but in fact, looking at it in a particular way, it makes us superior to the Angels.
Since they have no bodies, the angels cannot sin against purity, while we have to fight many battles and overcome many temptations, in order to preserve our chastity.
Jesus had a very special love for this virtue.
He chose to be born of a Virgin and, He showed a particular affection for St John, who was a dedicated celibate.
On one occasion, He placed His Hands on the head of a little child and said: “Unless you turn and become like little children, you will not enter into the kingdom of Heaven “(Mt:18.3)

Unfortunately, the virtue of purity is as fragile as it is beautiful.
It can be lost in a single moment of weakness.
We must love this virtue as Mary loved it.
We must be prepared to make any sacrifice, even the most heroic, rather than lose it.
Worldly charm and beauty attract us and the devil works hard to control our imagination and our affections.
On account of the disturbance of original sin, the flesh is like a terrible weight retarding our spiritual advancement.
Sometimes it seems as if it is irresistibly drawing us towards the abyss of impurity.
But we need not be dragged down, if we are prepared to fly from the occasions of sin and to pray to God and to our heavenly Mother for her intercession.
We must always act at once, for there is no time to dally.
It is fatal to remain inactive and to allow temptation to make its way into our soul.
This kind of battle, said St Francis de Sales, is won only by soldiers who flee.
We must fly from the occasions of sin, no matter what sacrifice this entails.
Jesus has warned us, that it is better to enter Heaven without a hand or a foot, than to be cast into hell.

We know the remedies – instant flight, heroic sacrifice and constant prayer.
We can leave the rest to the grace of God and to the maternal protection of Mary.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, FATHERS of the Church, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, INDULGENCES, MARIAN Aspirations and Ejaculations, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN TITLES, MOTHER of GOD, PARTIAL Indulgence, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, Quotes on SALVATION, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS, St Francis de Sales, The ANNUNCIATION, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, To JESUS through MARY

Quote/s of the Day – 1 August – Sweet Heart of Mary

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Quote/s of the Day – 1 August – “The Month of the Immaculate Heart of Mary”

Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation.

(1943 Raccolta – Indulgence 300 days)

“May the Blessed Virgin,
unique in her merits,
stand in the presence of her Creator
interceding always in our favour.
She will be radiant in the fullness of glory,
she who brought forth,
from her virginal womb,
the King of glory.”

St Amadeus of Lausanne (1108-1159) 

“The Blessed Virgin was chosen
to be the Mother of God
and, therefore, it is not to be doubted,
but that God fitted her for it
by His graces.”

St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)
Doctor Angelicus / Doctor Communis

“To ask favours without interposing Mary
is to attempt to fly without wings!”

“The prayers of Mary,
have the force of command with Jesus Christ.
Hence, it is impossible for the Son
not to grant a grace
for which the Mother asks.”

St Antoninus (1389-1459)

Posted in HYMNS, IMMACULATE CONCEPTION Prayers and Novena, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, IMMACULATE HEART PRAYERS, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Our Morning Offering – 1 August – I’ll Sing a Hymn to Mary

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Our Morning Offering – 1 August – “The Month of the Immqculate Heart of Mary”

I’ll Sing a Hymn to Mary
By Father John Wyse (1825-1898)
Irish Priest and Hymn writer

I’ll sing a hymn to Mary,
The Mother of my God,
The Virgin of all virgins,
Of David’s royal blood.
O teach me, Holy Mary,
A loving song to frame,
When wicked men blaspheme thee,
To love and bless thy name.

O Lily of the Valley,
O Mystic Rose, what tree,
Or flower, e’en the fairest,
Is half so fair as thee?
O let me, tho’ so lowly
Recite my Mother’s fame.
When wicked men blaspheme thee,
I’ll love and bless thy name.

O noble Tower of David,
Of gold and ivory.
The ark of God’s own promise,
The gate of Heav’n to me.
To live and not to love thee
Would fill my soul with shame.
When wicked men blaspheme thee,
I’ll love and bless thy name.

When troubles dark afflict me
In sorrow and in care,
Thy light doth ever guide me
O beauteous Morning Star.
Lo, I’ll be ever ready
Thy goodly help to claim,
When wicked men blaspheme thee,
To love and bless thy name.

The saints are high in glory,
With golden crowns so bright;
But brighter far is Mary,
Upon her throne of light.
Oh that which God did give thee,
Let mortal ne’er disclaim;
When wicked men blaspheme thee,
I’ll love and bless thy name.

But in the crown of Mary,
There lies a wonderous gem,
As Queen of all the Angels,
Which Mary shares with them;
No sin hath e’er defiled thee,
So doth our faith proclaim;
When wicked men blaspheme thee,
I’ll love and bless thy name.

And now O Virgin Mary
My mother and my Queen,
I’ve sung thy praise so bless me,
And keep my heart from sin.
When others jeer and mock thee,
I’ll often think how I
To shield my Mother, Mary,
Would lay me down and die.

Verses 4, 5 and 6 omitted on image.

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, GOD ALONE!, GOD the FATHER, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on SIN, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The REDEMPTION

Thought for the Day – 29 July – Why God Created Us

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Thought for the Day – 29 July – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Why God Created Us

“We should ask the reason for everything which comes from the Hand of God.
Have you ever seriously considered WHY you are in this world?
It is certainly not for the sake of this passing earthly existence, for the sake of earning your living, or enjoying yourself.
You know well, that the passing pleasures of this life do not satisfy the human heart and cannot be the final goal of life.
Each one of us has a thirst for all that is infinite, eternal and perfect.
God alone can satisfy this thirst.
Just as we are created by God, so we are created for Him.
Just as we came from God, so we are gradually travelling back towards Him, for He is the final goal of our earthly journey.
We should meditate on this great truth which we were first taught in the Catechism, namely, that we were created to know, love and serve God on this earth and to be happy with Him forever in Heaven.
Let us not allow ourselves to be dazzled by earthly beauty.
God alone is the eternal beauty which will satisfy our hearts.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/03/26/thought-for-the-day-26-march-why-god-created-us/

Posted in ACT of CONTRITION, GOD ALONE!, JUNE-THE SACRED HEART, Our MORNING Offering, PAPAL PRAYERS, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on PATIENCE, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, SACRED HEART PRAYERS, The HEART, The WILL of GOD

Our Morning Offering – 29 July – O Good Jesus, Make Me Live in Thee and for Thee

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Our Morning Offering – 29 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood”

O Good Jesus, Make Me
Live in Thee and for Thee
By Pope Benedict XV (1854-1922)

O Most Sacred Heart of Jesus!
O fount of every good!
I adore Thee, I love Thee
and sincerely repenting of my sins
I present to Thee my poor heart.
Give it back to me
humble, patient,
pure and in everything,
conformed to Thy wishes.
Make me, O good Jesus,
live in Thee and for Thee.
Protect me in dangers,
comfort me in afflictions,
grant me health of body,
succour in my temporal needs,
Thy blessing in all my works
and the grace of a holy death.
Amen

Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, GOD ALONE!, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on MARTYRDOM, QUOTES on PERSECUTION, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, The HOLY NAME, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 28 July – ‘ … He will not refuse what He has promised. …’

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One Minute Reflection – 28 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – Sts Nazarius and Celus, Martyrs and St Pope Victor I (Died c199 – Wisdom 10:17-20 – Luke 21:9-19 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“And you shall be hated by all men for My Name’s sake. But not a hair of your head shall perish.” – Luke 21:17-18

REFLECTION – “Such as breathe out violence, have risen up against me” (Ps 26:12) … The psalmist struggles in the hands of those who pursue and attack him; he is breathless, struggling but he holds firm; he is assured, since God upholds him, God helps him, God leads him, God guides him. Both transported with joy by what he has been able to admire and sing and struck with groanings by that which he has had to suffer, in the end, he breathes and cries out: “I believe I shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living” (v.13). Oh, how sweet is the Lord’s bounty, immortal, incomparable, eternal, unchanging! And when shall I see you, O bounty of the Lord? “I believe I shall see,” but not in the land of mortals but “in the land of the living.” The Lord will bring me out of the land of mortals who deigned for my sake to accept this land of mortals and die at the hands of mortals…

May we listen too, to the Voice of the Lord which, from on high, exhorts and consoles us. Let us listen to the Voice of Him Whom we have for Father and Mother (cf. v.10). For He has heard our groaning, He has seen our sighs, He has sounded the desires of our hearts for “the one thing we ask” (v.4). Thanks to Christ’s intercession, He has favourably received our one prayer, our one request. And while we are completing our pilgrimage in this world, even as the road is a long one, He will not refuse what He has promised. He says to us: “Hope in the Lord.” He Who has promised is all powerful, He is trustworthy, He is faithful. “Hope in the Lord, be stouthearted” (v.14). Therefore, do not let yourself be troubled.” – St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace (2nd Discourse on Psalm 26).

PRAYER – May the Martyrdom of Thy Saints Nazarius, Celsus and Victor, give us courage, O Lord and may it give us a help to counter our weakness. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God forever, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS & NOVENA to St Joseph, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, PRAYERS to the SAINTS, St Francis de Sales

Our Morning Offering – 23 July – Glorious St Joseph!

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Our Morning Offering – 23 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – On Wednesdays, many Catholics make a special devotion to St Joseph by going to Mass on the first Wednesdays of 9 consecutive months and offering their Holy Communions in his honour and for the salvation of the dying.

Glorious St Joseph!
Prayer for the Intercession
of St Joseph in All Our Needs
By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritatis

Glorious St Joseph, Spouse of Mary,
grant us thy paternal protection,
we beseech thee, by the Heart of Jesus Christ.
O thou, whose power extends
to all our necessities
and can render possible for us,
the most impossible things.
Open thy fatherly eyes
to the needs of thy children.
In the trouble and distress
which afflicts us,
we confidently have recourse to thee.
Deign to take under thy charitable charge
this important and difficult matter,
cause of our worries.
Make its happy outcome
be for God’s glory
and for the good of His devoted servants.
Amen

Posted in JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, LOVE of NEIGHBOUR, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, ON the SAINTS, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on Love of Self, St PAUL!, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD

Thought for the Day – 18 July – The Love of Our Neighbour

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

The Love of Our Neighbour

“But who really loves his neighbour as if he were himself?
Only the Saints.
Jesus loved us, not only as much as He loved Himself but much more than this because He gave His life and His own Precious Blood for salvation.
The Saints who lived the life of Christ and followed His example, saw Jesus in all their fellowmen.
Therefore, they loved them as themselves and even more than themselves.
One could cite thousands of instances of heroic charity in the lives of the Saints.
The example of St Paul will suffice, however.
He said that his life was so much the life of Christ, that it was not he himself, who was living any longer but Christ in him. (Rom 9:3).

Do we possess this sincere and active love of our neighbour?
Let us examine ourselves in this regard.
Let us remember that if we are lacking in this charity towards our brothers in Jesus, we are not genuine Christians!”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

PART ONE HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/02/11/thought-for-the-day-11-february-the-love-of-our-neighbour/

Posted in GOD the FATHER, INDULGENCES, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, Our MORNING Offering, PAPAL PRAYERS, PARTIAL Indulgence, PRECIOUS BLOOD PRAYERS

Our Morning Offering – 18 July – By the Merits  of the Precious Blood of Jesus (Indulgenced)

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Our Morning Offering – 18 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood”

By the Merits of the
Precious Blood of Jesus
By Servant of God Pope Pius VII (1742-1823)
Papacy from 1800 to 1823
Indulgenced Act of Oblation to Our Father

Eternal Father!
I offer Thee the merits
of the Precious Blood of Jesus,
Thy well-beloved Son,
my Saviour and my God,
for all my wants,
spiritual and temporal,
in aid of the Holy Souls in Purgatory
and chiefly for those
who most loved this Precious Blood,
the price of our redemption
and who were most devout
to the sorrows and pains
of most Holy Mary,
our dear Mother.

Glory be to the Blood of Jesus,
now and forever
and throughout all ages.
Amen.

Indulgence of 300 days, each time this prayed is offered,
22 September 1817 with a Plenary Indulgence, once a month,
under the usual conditions.

Note of Interest: On 15 August 1811 – the Feast of the Assumption – it is recorded that the Pope celebrated Mass and was said to have entered a trance and began to levitate in a manner that drew him to the Altar. This particular episode aroused great wonder and awe among attendants, which included the French soldiers guarding him, who were awestruck at what had occurred and left records of it.

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on GREED, WEALTH, QUOTES on PURITY, QUOTES on WEALTH/RICHES, The HOLY NAME, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 17 July –‘ … such a one is fettered in the toils of the world …’

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One Minute Reflection – 17 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – The Feast of The Humility of the Blessed Virgin Mary – St Alexius –1 Timothy 6:6-12 – Matthew 19:27-29 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“And everyone who has left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for My Name’s sake, shall receive a hundredfold and shall possess life everlasting.” – Matthew 19:29

REFLECTION – “There is a kind of wealth which is deadly to all – the loss of it, unwelcome. Which, when it makes the soul pure – that is, poor and bare – hears the Saviour speaking thus: “Come, follow Me.” For to the pure in heart, He now becomes the Way. But into the impure soul the grace of God finds no entrance because that soul is unclean which is rich in lusts and enthrall to many worldly posessions.

For whoever holds possessions, gold, silver and houses, as gifts of God, witnesses his thanksgiving to God by coming to the aid of the poor. He knows that he possesses them more for the sake of others than his own and is superior to the possession of them, not the slave of the things he possesses. He does not carry them about in his soul, nor bind and circumscribe his life within them but is ever labouring at some good and divine work.
Even should he be necessarily, at some time or other, deprived of them, he is able, with cheerful mind, to bear their removal equally with their abundance. This is someone who is blessed by the Lord and called “poor in spirit”a fitting heir of the Kingdom of Heaven (Mt 5:3)…

But someone who carries his riches around enclosed within his soul and, bears in his heart, instead of God’s Spirit, gold or land and is always acquiring possessions without end and is perpetually on the lookout for more, never looking up to Heaven, such a one is fettered in the toils of the world, being earth and destined to return to the earth (Gn 3:19). How can someone like that be able to desire the Kingdom of Heaven who, instead of a heart, carries land or metal and who is due to be surprised by death in the midst of his uncontrolled desires? For “where your heart is, there also will your treasure be” (Mt 6:21).” – St Clement of Alexandria (150-215) Father of the Church, Theologian (Sermon “What rich man can be saved?” )

PRAYER – Grant, we beseech Thee, O Lord God, unto all Thy servants, that they may remain continually in the enjoyment of soundness both of mind and body and, by the glorious intercession of the Blessed Mary, always a Virgin, maybe delivered from present sadness and enter into the joy of Thine eternal gladness.ThroughJesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in GOD ALONE!, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, OUR Cross, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on SUFFERING, The HOLY NAME of MARY

Thought for the Day – 15 July – Carrying our Cross

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Thought for the Day – 15 July – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

Carrying our Cross

“We also read in the Imitation of Christ: “No man has so heartfelt a sense of the Passion of Christ, as he whose lot it has been, to suffer like things.” (Imitation of Christ, Bk II, Ch 12)
If you carry your cross willingly, it will lead you to your longed for destination, where suffering ends and everlasting joy begins.
If you carry it unwillingly, the weight will become unbearable and you will have to bear it in any case!
If you fling away the cross which you are carrying, immediately, an even heavier one will be laid upon you!
Look upon them as wonderful consolations because, the sufferings of this life cannot be regarded as the measure of that glory which will be ours in Heaven … (Rom 8:18).
We are fortunate and greatly blessed, if we deserve to suffer a little, for the Name of Jesus …
Only when we begin to die ourselves, can we begin to live in God.
Nothing is more acceptable to God and more helpful for us in this world, than to suffer willingly for love of Christ.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Posted in DOMINICAN OP, GOD ALONE!, Holy Name PRAYERS, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on GRACE, The HOLY NAME

Our Morning Offering – 10 July – Grant Me Grace, O Merciful God – The Daily Prayer of St Thomas Aquinas

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Our Morning Offering – 10 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood”

Grant Me Grace, O Merciful God
The Daily Prayer of St Thomas Aquinas
(1225-1274)
(Which he was accustomed to recite everyday
before the image of Christ.)
Doctor Angelicus & Doctor Communis

Grant me grace,
O merciful God,
to desire ardently
all that is pleasing to Thee,
to examine it prudently,
to acknowledge it truthfully
and to accomplish it perfectly,
for the praise
and glory of Thy Name.
Amen

Posted in EUCHARISTIC Adoration, GOD is LOVE, INGRATITUDE, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION, THE SPIRITUAL COMBAT - Fr Lorenzo Scupoli

Thought for the Day – 9 July – The Role of the Eucharist in Increasing Our Love of God

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Thought for the Day – 9 July – The Spiritual Combat (1589) – Dom Lorenzo Scupoli OSM (c1530-1610)

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

LV: … The Role of the Eucharist in
Increasing Our Love of God (Part Three)

“When the time itself draws near, we must consider, attentively, Who it is we are about to receive – for our Guest is to be the Son of the living God, the august Majesty before Whom the heavens and the powers of Heaven tremble in awesome fear!

Our Guest is to be the Saint of Saints, Mirror without blemish, Purity
itself, before Whom all is unclean in comparison.
This is Divinity become Man – One looked upon as the very outcast of men, Who was pleased to be spat upon, struck, reviled and Crucified out of love for us.

You are indeed about to receive God Himself, in Whose Hand is the destiny of the universe.
On the other hand, think of your own utter insignificance and your vile sinfulness which has reduced you below the level of the brute and made you worthy of being the sport and slave of devils!
Consider your acknowledgment of the Infinite favours you have received from your Saviour – you have insulted the Redeemer and trampled upon His Precious Blood, displaying a most absolute ingratitude.

But even human ingratitude cannot overcome Divine charity – capricious fickleness is no match for unchanging Love.
Still the gracious Lord summons you to the Divine banquet and rather
than rebuffing you for your obvious inadequacies, bids you come
under pain of death.
The arms of the merciful Father are always open to receive you, be you leprous, lame, blind, squandering, or possessed by devils.

He demands of you these few requisites alone:

To be sincerely sorry for having so grievously offended Him.
To hate sin of all kinds with an unquenchable vigour.
To consecrate yourself to cheerful acceptance of His Divine Will, whatever it may be.
To have a firm confidence that He will forgive your sins, cleanse your soul of all taint and defend you against all your enemies.

Encouraged by this ineffable Love of the Lord for you and all penitent sinners, approach the holy table with a prudent fear, tempered by hope and love, saying:

“After so many grievous offences, I am not worthy to receive Thee, not having fully satisfied Thy justice.
No, my God, I am unworthy of Thee, sullied as I am by an inordinate attachment to creatures and a reluctance to serve Thee completely, with my whole heart and my whole strength.
O my omnipotent Lord, be mindful of Thy goodness and Thy promise; through the Divine alchemy of Love and Faith, make my heart a worthy dwellingplace for Thy Divine Son.”

Dom Lorenzo Scupoli

Posted in GOD ALONE!, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, QUOTES on GRACE

Thought for the Day – 8 July – The Name of the Precious Blood of Jesus

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Thought for the Day – 8 July – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)

The Name of the Precious Blood of Jesus

+1. Why is the blood of Jesus called the Precious Blood?
Because It was the Blood of God Himself, veiled under the form of Man and, therefore, every Drop of It, as It flowed through His Sacred Veins deserved our supreme homage as being united to His Divinity!
Hence we can adore the Precious Blood as we adore the Sacred
Heart of Jesus and all else which belongs to the Sacred Humanity, with the supreme homage which belongs to God alone.

+2. We also term It, the Precious Blood, inasmuch as It was the Blood of One Who was not only full of grace but was Himself the Source of all grace, so the grace which dwelt with Him was Infinite and the grace which manifested itself through the veil of Flesh, had no bounds or limits, save those which the mere fact of His Human Nature carried with It.
If, therefore, the blood of the Saints is counted as most precious, if we treasure a piece of cloth stained with their blood, how much more precious, beyond all price,is the Blood of the King of Saints!

+3. The Precious Blood is also precious on account of Its effects. One Drop of It was sufficient, not only to cleanse the world from sin but, to earn all possible graces for all the millions who
have ever lived on earth.
How Infinite then must be its Preciousness!
What has it not done for man!
What has it not done for me!
It has washed me clean and made me pure, in spite of all my sins. O Jesus! give me an ever -increasing devotion to the Precious Blood!

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, GOD is LOVE, HOLY WEEK, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, LENT, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION, The WORD

Thought for the Day – 7 July – Your Attitude Must Be That of Christ

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Thought for the Day – 7 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – From The Sacred Triduum

“Carry one another’s burdens.”
Gal 6:2

“He loved them unto the end.”
John 13:1

Your Attitude Must Be That of Christ

Blessed Guerric of Igny (c1080-1157)
Cistercian Abbot

“He was in the form of God,” equal to God by nature, since He shared in God’s power, God’s eternity and God’s very being … He did the job of a servant “by humbling Himself, obeying His Father even to death, death on a Cross.” (cf Phil 2:5-8). One might consider it to be trivial that, as God’s Son and His equal, He served His Father as a servant. More than that, He served His own servant more than any other servant. For the human being had been created to serve His Creator. What could be more just for you, than to serve him who made you, without Whom you would not be? And what could be more blest, than to serve Him, since to serve Him is to reign? But the human being said to His Creator: “I will not serve.” (Jer 2:20)

Then the Creator said to the human being: “So I will serve you! Go sit down at the table; I will serve. I will wash your feet. Rest. I will take your pains upon myself; I will carry your weakness… If you grow tired or are burdened, I will carry you, you and your burden, so as to be the first to fulfil my law: ‘Carry one another’s burdens’ (Gal 6:2)… If you are hungry or thirsty… here I Am, ready to be sacrificed, so that you might eat My Flesh and drink My Blood… If you are taken into captivity or, if you are sold, here I Am… Redeem yourself by paying the ransom you will get from Me. I give Myself as ransom… If you are sick, if you fear death, I will die in your place, so that from My Blood you may make for yourself, a life-giving remedy!…”

O my Lord, what a price Thou paid to ransom my useless service! … What a way Thou has, full of love, of gentleness and of kindness, to win back and submit this rebellious servant, by triumphing over evil through good, by confounding my pride with Thy humility, by filling this ungrateful person, with Thy kindness! This! This is howThy Wisdom triumphed!” – (1st Sermon for Palm Sunday),

Posted in DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, GOD ALONE!, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, PRECIOUS BLOOD PRAYERS, QUOTES for CHRIST, The PASSION

Our Morning Offering – 7 July – O Most Merciful Lord, Engrave Thy Wounds Upon My Heart By St Gertrude

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Our Morning Offering – 7 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – O Most Merciful Lord, Engrave Thy Wounds Upon My Heart By St Gertrude

O Most Merciful Lord,
Engrave Thy Wounds Upon My Heart
By St Gertrude the Great (1256-1302)

O Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God,
grant that I may aspire to Thee
with my whole heart, with yearning desire
and with a thirsting soul,
seeking only Thy sweetness and Thy delights,
so that my whole mind
and all that is within me,
may ardently sigh for Thee,
Who art our true Beatitude.
O most merciful Lord,
engrave Thy Wounds upon my heart
with Thy most Precious Blood
that I may read in them,
both Thy Grief and Thy Love.
May the memory of Thy Wounds
ever remain in my inmost heart,
to excite my compassion for Thy sufferings
and to increase my love for Thee.
Grant too that I may despise all creatures
so that my heart may delight in Thee alone.
Amen.

Posted in HYMNS, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, St Alphonsus de Liguori,, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION

Our Morning Offering – 6 July – Glory Be to Jesus

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Our Morning Offering – 6 July – “The Solemnity and Month of the Most Precious Blood”

Glory Be to Jesus,
Who in Bitter Pains
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor
Trans. Fr Eward Caswell C.Orat. (1814–1878)

Glory be to Jesus!
Who in bitter pains
Poured for me the Life-Blood,
From His Sacred veins.

Grace and life eternal
In that Blood I find,
Blessed be His compassion,
Infinitely kind!

Blessed through endless ages
Be the precious stream!
Which from endless torment
Doth the world redeem.

There the fainting spirit
Drinks of life her fill.
There, as in a fountain,
Bathes herself at will.

O the Blood of Christ!
It soothes the Father’s ire,
Opens the Gate of Heaven,
Quells eternal fire.

Abel’s blood for vengeance
Pleaded to the skies
But the Blood of Jesus,
For our pardon cries.

Oft as it is sprinkled
On our guilty hearts,
Satan in confusion,
Terror-struck, departs.

Oft as earth exulting
Wafts its praise on high,
Hell with terror trembles,
Heaven is filled with joy.

Lift ye, then, your voices,
Swell the mighty flood,
Louder still and louder,
Praise the Precious Blood!

Tune: “Bemerton (Caswall)” Friedrich Filitz 1847

Posted in JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, MARIAN PRAYERS, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, MOTHER of GOD, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, PRECIOUS BLOOD PRAYERS, THE FIVE FIRST SATURDAYS DEVOTION

Our Morning Offering – 5 July – Mother of Love, of Sorrow and of Mercy

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Our Morning Offering – 5 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – First Saturday

Mother of Love, of Sorrow and of Mercy
By St Bridget of Sweden (1303-1373)

O Blessed Virgin Mary,
Immaculate Mother of God,
who endured a martyrdom of love and grief,
beholding the sufferings and sorrows of Jesus!
Thou didst co-operate in the benefit of my redemption
by thy innumerable afflictions
and by offering to the Eternal Father,
His only-begotten Son, as a holocaust
and victim of propitiation for my sins.
I thank thee for the unspeakable love
which led thee to deprive thyself
of the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus,
true God and true Man, to save me, a sinner.
Oh! make use of the unfailing intercession
of thy sorrows with the Father and the Son,
that I may steadfastly amend my life
and never again crucify
my loving Redeemer by my sins
and that, persevering till death in His grace,
I may obtain eternal life
through the merits of His Cross and Passion.
Amen

Mother of love, of sorrow and of mercy, pray for us!

Posted in JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, JUNE-THE SACRED HEART, LENT, The LAMB of GOD, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION, The SACRED PASSION - Meditations for LENT

Thought for the Day – 4 July – The Eating of the Paschal Lamb

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Thought for the Day – 4 July – Meditations with Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900) – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – Octave Day of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the First Friday of July

From “The Devout Year”
By Fr Richard Frederick Clarke SJ (1839-1900)
The Eating of the Paschal Lamb

Our Blessed Lord , before He suffered , celebrated the Jewish rite which, above all the rest, foreshadowed His own sacred sufferings. The paschal lamb was an exact type of Himself, the Lamb of God, Who taketh away the sins of the world.

+1. The paschal lamb was the means employed by Almighty God to deliver His people from Egypt. It was the sprinkling of its blood on the door-posts which caused the avenging Angel to pass by and leave the inmates unharmed.
So the Blood of Jesus Christ sprinkled on our souls, in the Sacraments and when we make an Act of Contrition, saves us from the vengeance which would otherwise fall upon us.
O Jesus! sprinkle me with One Drop of Thy Precious Blood and I shall be free from sin.

+2. The paschal lamb had to be drained of the last drop of its blood.
So the Lamb of God, shed the last drop of His Precious Blood for us. He was not satisfied with merely giving His Life for us but, He must needs endure all the intense agony, the burning thirst which came of this draining of His whole body for love of us.
How can I ever thank Him as I ought?

+3. The lamb suffers uncomplainingly.
It never murmurs against its lot, or struggles against those who lead it here and there; unlike the filthy swine which grunt and grumbles at every attempt to control them. None was ever so submissive as the Lamb of God.
“Lo, I come to do Thy Will, O my God.
I am content to do it.”
Can I echo these words?

Posted in FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, INDULGENCES, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, JUNE-THE SACRED HEART, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, SACRED HEART ASPIRATIONS, SACRED HEART REFLECTIONS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 4 July – ‘ … Thou art our All … ‘

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One Minute Reflection – 4 July – “The Month of the Most Precious Blood” – Octave Day of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the First Friday of July – Within the Octave of Sts Peter and Paul – Ephesians 3:8-12, 14-19 – John 19:31-37 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“But one of the soldiers, with a spear, opened His side and, immediately, there came forth, blood and water. ” – John 19:34

REFLECTION – “Brethren, let us pursue our calling – we are called by Life to the Source of Life and this Source is a source, not just of ‘living water’ (Jn 4:10) but of eternal life, Source of Light and illumination. Indeed, all things flow from it, wisdom, life and eternal light… O Lord, Thou are Thineself this Source Who always exists and is always to be desired and, at where it is always permitted and always necessary for us to draw. ‘Lord Jesus, give us this water always’ that it may also become within us, a spring of water \welling up to eternal life’ (Jn 4:15.14). It is true that I am asking Thee for a great deal, who could deny it? But Thou, O King of glory, know well how to give great things and Thou hast promised them. There is nothing greater than Thou art and, it is Thee Thyself Who give to us, it is Thee Who gave Thyself for us.

Therefore, it is Thee we are asking for … since we desire nothing other than Thee. Thou art our All, our Life, our Light and our Salvation, our Food and our Drink, our God. Breathe into our hearts, I beseech Thee, O our Jesus; with the breath of Thine Spirit, wound our souls with Thy Love that each of us may say in truth – “Show me Him Whom my soul loves” (Sg 3:3) for I have been wounded by Thy Love.

I desire these wounds to be in me, O Lord. Happy the soul who loves wounds in this way – the soul who seeks the Source, who drinks and who, nevertheless, never ceases to thirst even as it drinks, nor to draw continually by desire, nor to continue drinking in its thirst. Thus, it always seeks in loving, for in its wound, it finds healing.” – St Columban (543-615) Father of the Church, Monk, Missionary, Founder of many Monasteries (Spiritual Instructions No 13: 2-3).

PRAYER – God, Who hast consecrated this day to the Martyrdom of Thy Apostles Peter and Paul, give Thy Church a precept to follow them in all things. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

DIVINE Heart of JESUS, convert sinners, save the dying, set free the holy souls in Purgatory. Indulgence 300 Days Everytime – St Pius X, 11 September, 1907.

Posted in CARMELITES, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, PRECIOUS BLOOD PRAYERS, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD

July – The Month of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ

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1 July
The Feast and the Month
of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ

In his book, The Precious Blood, Father Frederick William Faber CO (1814-1863), calls St Paul ,the Doctor of the Precious Blood owing to his evident fondness of preaching on Ithis subject in his Epistles (Romans 3:25; Ephesians 1:7; Hebrews 9:12 et al).

He recounts that the lives of the Saints are replete with devotion to the Precious Blood making special mention of St John Chrysostom, St Augustine, St Gertrude and St Catherine of Sienna, the last whom he considered the Prophetess of the Precious Blood for putting emphasis on It as the solution to the ills of her times.

Constant Prayer
to the Precious Blood of Jesus
By St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)

Precious Blood,
Ocean of Divine Mercy,
Flow upon us!
Precious Blood,
Most Pure Offering,
Procure us every grace!
Precious Blood,
Hope and Refuge of sinners,
Atone for us!
Precious Blood,
Delight of holy souls,
Draw us!
Amen

Father Faber also remarks that the Precious Blood makes us appreciate more,, Christ’s redemption of mankind, His sacrifice and Passion. It makes us comprehend too, the beautiful doctrine and the august realities of the Blessed Sacrament, as we kneel in front of the Tabernacle, in humble adoration.

Over time, the Church gave Her blessing to the devotion by approving societies like the Missionaries of the Precious Blood; enriching confraternities like that of St Nicholas in Carcere, in Rome and that of the London Oratory; attaching Indulgences to prayers and Scapulars in honour of the Precious Blood and instituting commemorative Feasts of the Precious Blood, Friday after the fourth Sunday in Lent and, since Pius IX, the first Sunday of July. St Pius X assigned the date of 1 July to this Feast.

Posted in DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, DOMINICAN OP, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, OUR Cross, Quote on SELF-ABANDONMENT, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on MEDITATION, QUOTES on SUFFERING, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The HOLY CROSS, The PASSION

Thought for the Day – 1 July – The Passion of Our Lord

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Thought for the Day – 1 July – “The Feast and Month of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus” – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)

The Passion of Our Lord

“Meditation on the Passion of Jesus” writes St Albert the Great, “is more profitable than fasting on bread and water or than scourging ourselves.”

This is because, when we meditate with love and gratitude on the Passion of our Redeemer, we have the experience of being transformed and set aglow with charity.
We realise the truth of St Paul’s words, “The sufferings of the present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory to come, that will be revealed in us” (Rom 8:18)).

Let us cast ourselves, therefore, into the merciful arms of God and be prepared to suffer everything, even death, for the love of Jesus.”

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, OUR Cross, POETRY, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, The HOLY CROSS, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION

Quote/s of the Day – 1 July – The Feast and Month of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus

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Quote/s of the Day – 1 July – “The Feast and Month of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus”

“Carry me, O Christ,
on Thy Cross
which is salvation to the wanderer,
rest for the wearied
and, in which alone,
is Life for those who die.”

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

“Look on thy God, Christ hidden in our flesh.
A bitter word, the Cross and bitter sight –
Hard rind without, to hold the Heart of Heaven.
Yet, sweet it is, for God upon that tree
Did offer His Life upon that rood –
My Life hung, that my Life might stand in God.
Christ, what am I to give Thee for my life?
Unless, take from Thy Hands, the cup they hold,
To cleanse me with the precious draught of death.
What shall I do? My body to be burned?
Make myself vile? The debt is not paid out yet.
Whate’er I do, it is but I and Thee
And still do I come short, still must Thou pay
My debts, O Christ, for debts Thyself had’st none!
What love may balance Thine? My Lord was found
In fashion like a slave that so His slave
Might find himself in fashion like his Lord.
Think you the bargain’s hard, to have exchanged
The transient for the eternal, to have sold
Earth to buy Heaven? More dearly God bought me!”

St Paulinus of Nola (c354-431)
Father of the Church

“Embrace, then, Jesus Crucified,
raising to Him the eyes of your desire!
Consider His burning love for you
which made Jesus pour out His Blood
from every part of His body!
Embrace Jesus Crucified,
loving and beloved and in Him,
you will find true life because He is God made Man.
Let your heart and your soul burn
with the fire of love drawn from Jesus on the Cross!
… You will have no other desire than to follow Jesus!
Run, … do not stay asleep
because time flies and does not wait one moment!
Dwell in God’s sweet love!”

St Catherine of Sienna (1347-1380)

“O souls!
Seek a refuge, like pure doves,
in the shadow of the Crucifix.
There, mourn the Passion
of your Divine Spouse
and drawing from your hearts,
flames of love and rivers of tears,
make of them a precious balm
with which to anoint
the Wounds of your Saviour.”

St Paul of the Cross CP (1694-1775)

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, QUOTES on SUFFERING, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION, The REDEMPTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 1 July – ‘ … Not one of them gives his own blood. Christ gives His! …’

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One Minute Reflection – 1 July – “The Feast and Month of the Most Precious Blood” – The Octabe Day of the Nativity of St John the Baptist– Hebrews 9:11-15 – John 19:30-35 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“But one of the soldiers opened His side with a lance and immediately there came forth, Blood and water.” – John 19:34

REFLECTION – “The lovers of this world display their generosity by giving money, clothes and various gifts but not one of them gives his own blood. Christ gives His! In this way, He demonstrates the tenderness He feels for us and His ardent Love. Under the Old Law, … God consented to receive the blood of sacrifices but this was just to prevent His people from offering it to false gods and already, this was proof of a very great Love. But Christ transformed this rite … there is no longer the same sacrificial victim, it is Himself He offers in sacrifice!

“The bread we break, is it not a communion in the Body of Christ?” (1 Cor 10:16) … What is this bread? The Body of Christ. What becomes of those who communicate in it? The Body of Christ – not a large number of bodies but just One Body. Just as this bread, made up of so many wheat grains, makes only one loaf into which the grains disappear – foreven though the grains remain in it, yet it is impossible to distinguish them in such a closely compacted mass – so all of us, together with Christ, make up a single whole … Now, if we all share in the same bread and are united to the same Christ, why do we not show the same love for each other? Why do we not become one in this case too?

This is what was seen at the beginning: “The community of believers was of one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32) … Christ came in search of you who were far away from Him to unite Himself to you but you, do not wish to become one with your brother? … You violently separate yourself from him after winning from the Lord so great a proof of His Love – and life! For He did not only give His Body but, just as our flesh, drawn from the earth, had lost its life and died through sin, so He has introduced, so to speak, another substance like a leaven – this is His Body, the Body sharing the same nature as ours but free from sin and abounding in Life. And He has given it to all of us, so that, fed with this Banquet of this new food … we might enter immortal life.” – St John Chrysostom (347-407) Bishop of Constantinople, Father and Doctor of the Church (Excerpt from 24th Sermon on the 1st letter to the Corinthians).

PRAYER – Almighty, eternal God, Who made Thine Only-begotten Son the Redeemer of the world and, willed to be reconciled by His Blood, grant us, we beseech Thee, so to worship in this Sacred rite the price of our salvation and to be so protected, by its power against the evils of the present life on earth, that we may enjoy its everlasting fruit in Heaven. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Aspiration:  Precious Blood, ocean of Divine Mercy, Flow upon us.