Our Morning Offering – 20 March 2018 – Tuesday of the 4th Week of Lent
Prayer In Honour of the Holy Cross
Third Prayer from the Seven Penitential Psalms Devotion
Almighty God,
Lord Jesus Christ,
who, for our sake, stretched out
Your pure hands on the Cross
and redeemed us with
Your precious Blood,
grant me to feel and understand
that I may have true repentance
and great perseverance,
all the days of my life.
Your reign is a reign for all ages.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 19 March – The Solemnity of the Feast of St Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Guardian of Jesus and Patron of the Universal Church, Patron of Fathers, Patron of the Dying, Patron of Workers. et al
Joseph, wise ruler of God’s earthly household,
nearest of all men to the heart of Jesus,
be still a father, lovingly providing
for us, His brethren.
Saint strong and manly, chosen by the Father,
as trusted guardian of the Son eternal,
guide us as once you guided Wisdom’s footsteps
with sure direction.
Husband of Mary, loving and beloved,
teach us the joy of love so pure and holy,
warming our hearts with love
for God’s own Mother by your example.
Saint of the dying, blest with Mary’s presence,
in death you rested in the arms of Jesus;
so at our ending, Jesus, Mary, Joseph,
come to assist us!
Day Nine
PATRON OF A HAPPY DEATH
Saint Joseph, how fitting it was that at the hour of your death Jesus should stand at your bedside with Mary, the sweetness and hope of all mankind. You gave your entire life to the service of Jesus and Mary; at death you enjoyed the consolation of dying in their loving arms. You accepted death in the spirit of loving submission to the Will of God and this acceptance crowned your hidden life of virtue. Yours was a merciful judgement, for your foster-Son, for whom you had cared so lovingly, was your Judge and Mary was your advocate. The verdict of the Judge was a word of encouragement to wait for His coming to Limbo, where He would shower you with the choicest fruits of the Redemption and an embrace of grateful affection before you breathed forth your soul into eternity.
You looked into eternity and to your everlasting reward with confidence. If our Saviour blessed the shepherds, the Magi, Simeon, John the Baptist and others because they greeted His presence with devoted hearts for a brief passing hour, how much more did He bless you who have sanctified yourself for so many years in His company and that of His Mother? If Jesus regards every corporal and spiritual work of mercy, performed in behalf of our fellow men out of love for Him, as done to Himself and promises heaven as a reward, what must have been the extent of His gratitude to you who in the truest sense of the word have received Him, given Him shelter, clothed, nourished and consoled Him at the sacrifice of your strength and rest and even your life, with a love which surpassed the love of all fathers.
God really and personally made Himself your debtor. Our Divine Saviour paid that debt of gratitude by granting you many graces in your lifetime, especially the grace of growing in love, which is the best and most perfect of all gifts. Thus at the end of your life your heart became filled with love, the fervour and longing of which your frail body could not resist. Your soul followed the triumphant impulse of your love and winged its flight from earth to bear the prophets and patriarchs in Limbo the glad tidings of the advent of the Redeemer.
Saint Joseph, I thank God for your privilege of being able to die in the arms of Jesus and Mary. As a token of your own gratitude to God, obtain for me the grace of a happy death. Help me to spend each day in preparation for death. May I, too, accept death in the spirit of resignation to God’s Holy Will and die, as you did, in the arms of Jesus, strengthened by Holy Viaticum and in the arms of Mary, with her rosary in my hand and her name on my lips!
*NOVENA PRAYER
*(prayer to be said at the end of each day’s devotion)
Saint Joseph, I, your unworthy child, greet you.
You are the faithful protector and intercessor of all who love and venerate you.
You know that I have special confidence in you and that, after Jesus and Mary,
I place all my hope of salvation in you, for you are especially powerful with God
and will never abandon your faithful servants.
Therefore I humbly invoke you and commend myself,
with all who are dear to me and all that belong to me, to your intercession.
I beg of you, by your love for Jesus and Mary, not to abandon me during life
and to assist me at the hour of my death.
Glorious Saint Joseph, spouse of the Immaculate Virgin,
obtain for me a pure, humble, charitable mind
and perfect resignation to the divine Will.
Be my guide, my father and my model through life
that I may merit to die as you did in the arms of Jesus and Mary.
Loving Saint Joseph, faithful follower of Jesus Christ,
I raise my heart to you to implore your powerful intercession
in obtaining from the Divine Heart of Jesus all the graces necessary
for my spiritual and temporal welfare,
particularly the grace of a happy death and the special grace I now implore:
…………………………………………
(Mention your request)
Guardian of the Word Incarnate, I feel confident that your prayers
on my behalf will be graciously heard before the throne of God.
Amen.
O Blessed Joseph,
who died in the arms of Jesus and Mary,
obtain for me, I beseech you,
the grace of a happy death.
In that hour of dread and anguish,
assist me by your presence
and protect me by your power,
against the enemies of my salvation.
Into your sacred hands,
living and dying,
Jesus, Mary, Joseph,
I commend my soul.
Amen
Day Eight
FRIEND IN SUFFERING
Saint Joseph, your share of suffering was very great because of your close union with the Divine Saviour. All the mysteries of His life were more or less mysteries of suffering. Poverty pressed upon you and the cross of labour followed you everywhere. Nor were you spared domestic crosses, owing to misunderstandings in regard to the holiest and most cherished of all beings, Jesus and Mary, who were all to you. Keen must have been the suffering caused by the uncertainty regarding Mary’s virginity; by the bestowal of the name of Jesus, which pointed to future misfortune. Deeply painful must have been the prophecy of Simeon, the flight into Egypt, the disappearance of Jesus at the Paschal feast. To these sufferings were surely added interior sorrow at the sight of the sins of your own people.
You bore all this suffering in a truly Christ-like manner and in this you are our example. No sound of complaint or impatience escaped you — you were, indeed, the silent saint! You submitted to all in the spirit of faith, humility, confidence and love. You cheerfully bore all in union with and for the Saviour and His Mother, knowing well that true love is a crucified love. But God never forsook you in your trials. The trials, too, disappeared and were changed at last into consolation and joy.
It seems that God had purposely intended your life to be filled with suffering as well as consolation to keep before my eyes the truth that my life on earth is but a succession of joys and sorrows and that I must gratefully accept whatever God sends me and during the time of consolation prepare for suffering. Teach me to bear my cross in the spirit of faith, of confidence and of gratitude toward God. In a happy eternity, I shall thank God fervently for the sufferings which He deigned to send me during my pilgrimage on earth, and which after your example I endured with patience and heartfelt love for Jesus and Mary.
You were truly the martyr of the hidden life. This was God’s Will, for the holier a person is, the more he is tried for the love and glory of God. If suffering is the flowering of God’s grace in a soul and the triumph of the soul’s love for God, being the greatest of saints after Mary, you suffered more than any of the martyrs.
Because you have experienced the sufferings of this valley of tears, you are most kind and sympathetic toward those in need. Down through the ages souls have turned to you in distress and have always found you a faithful friend in suffering. You have graciously heard their prayers in their needs even though it demanded a miracle. Having been so intimately united with Jesus and Mary in life, your intercession with Them is most powerful.
Saint Joseph, I thank God for your privilege of being able to suffer for Jesus and Mary. As a token of your own gratitude to God, obtain for me the grace to bear my suffering patiently for love of Jesus and Mary. Grant that I may unite the sufferings, works and disappointments of life with the sacrifice of Jesus in the Mass and share like you in Mary’s spirit of sacrifice.
*NOVENA PRAYER
*(prayer to be said at the end of each day’s devotion)
Saint Joseph, I, your unworthy child, greet you.
You are the faithful protector and intercessor of all who love and venerate you.
You know that I have special confidence in you and that, after Jesus and Mary,
I place all my hope of salvation in you, for you are especially powerful with God
and will never abandon your faithful servants.
Therefore I humbly invoke you and commend myself,
with all who are dear to me and all that belong to me, to your intercession.
I beg of you, by your love for Jesus and Mary, not to abandon me during life
and to assist me at the hour of my death.
Glorious Saint Joseph, spouse of the Immaculate Virgin,
obtain for me a pure, humble, charitable mind
and perfect resignation to the divine Will.
Be my guide, my father and my model through life
that I may merit to die as you did in the arms of Jesus and Mary.
Loving Saint Joseph, faithful follower of Jesus Christ,
I raise my heart to you to implore your powerful intercession
in obtaining from the Divine Heart of Jesus all the graces necessary
for my spiritual and temporal welfare,
particularly the grace of a happy death and the special grace I now implore:
…………………………………………
(Mention your request)
Guardian of the Word Incarnate, I feel confident that your prayers
on my behalf will be graciously heard before the throne of God.
Amen.
Memorare to St Joseph
Remember, most chaste spouse of Mary, ever Virgin,
my loving protector, Saint Joseph,
that never was it known
that anyone who implored your help
or sought your intercession was left unaided.
Full of confidence in your power
I fly unto you and beg your protection
Despise not my petitions,
O Guardian of the Redeemer,
my humble supplication
but in your bounty,
hear and answer me.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 17 March – The Memorial of St Patrick (c 386-461)
Excerpt from St Patrick’s Breastplate (also known as The Deer Cry)
I bind unto myself today
the power of God to hold and lead,
His eye to watch, His might to stay,
His ear to hearken to my need;
the wisdom of my God to teach,
His hand to guide, His shield to ward;
the word of God to give me speech,
His heavenly host to be my guard.
Against the demon snares of sin,
the vice that gives temptation force,
the natural lusts that war within,
the hostile men that mar my course;
of few or many, far or nigh,
in every place and in all hours
against their fierce hostility, …….
Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win,
Christ to comfort and restore me,
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.
I bind unto myself the name,
the strong name of the Trinity,
by invocation of the same,
the Three in One and One in Three,
of whom all nature hath creation,
Eternal Father, Spirit, Word.
Praise to the Lord of my salvation:
Salvation is of Christ the Lord.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 14 March 2018 – Wednesday of the 4th Week of Lent
Prayer in Honour of the Holy Cross
from the Seven Penitential Psalms Devotion
Lord Jesus Christ,
glorious Creator of the World,
splendour of the Father’s glory,
co-eternal with Him and the Holy Spirit,
Who deigned to take flesh of the spotless Virgin
and permitted Your glorious hands to be
fixed to the gibbet of the Cross,
that You might overthrow the gates of hell
and free the human race
from everlasting death,
look down frpm heaven
and have mercy on me,
a wretch borne down by the weight of sin
and polluted by the stains of my many misdeeds,
in Your mercy, do not forsake me,
most loving Jesus
but forgive that which I have sinned.
Hear me, prostrate before Your most
glorious Cross,
that I may stand before You,
pure and pleasing in Your sight,
Who reigns with the Father,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, forever and ever.
Amen.
5 March 2018 – The Fifth Anniversary of the Election of Pope Francis
The writings and homilies of a pope indicate much about his papacy. Also his international presence and work within the Vatican demonstrate a large part of his mission.
Thus, Pope Francis’ actions transmit a more direct message than any encyclical ever could. It is in this “encyclical of gestures” that the richness of his papacy lies.
1 – THE LEAST
From the first minute of his pontificate, he made it clear that the sick or poor have priority in every public meeting. As an example, he has eaten lunch with them several times and some of his hugs with the sick have gone viral.
2 – WOMEN
Pope Francis was the first pope to visit a female prison. He also washed the feet of several inmates on Holy Thursday and visited ex-prostitute victims of the mafia. He has firmly denounced labour abuse and sexual exploitation, especially facing women.
POPE FRANCIS
“Today I apologize to all of you. For all the Christians, Catholics, who have abused you.”
POPE FRANCIS
“None of us is a ‘thing.’ We are all people.”
To him, the sensibility of women and motherhood are two key elements that he asks both the Church and the world to rediscover. He says we must give women a greater role in the Church but this does not mean ordaining female priests or deacons.
3 – DESTROY WALLS, BUILD BRIDGES
This is one of his most political gestures but it sends a very Christian message.
During his visit to Bethlehem, the pope surprised the crowds by getting off the popemobile and praying before the wall built by Israel.
Something similar happened in Mexico when he prayed at the border that lines with the United States. These are two places with different problems but both symbolise the great lack of dialogue that the pontiff is constantly calling out.
4 – SIMPLICITY
Pope Francis impacted the world by his simplicity. He presented himself to the world without boasting, nor did he try to hide his weaknesses that have come with age. He wears orthopaedic shoes and had to buy new ones in 2016. To do so, he went to a normal business outside the Vatican. It was the same when buying his glasses, which he bought like any citizen from an optician in the centre of Rome.
5 – CLOSENESS
This is a gesture composed of hundreds of small actions, which are performed every week when he lets youngsters take a selfie with him, when he drinks mate or when he jokes with those he meets.
They are the small, but continuous daily gestures that crown him as one of the most-valued people in the world.
The latest poll conducted by Gallup International reveals that Pope Francis is the most-esteemed world leader, with 56 percent acceptance, seven points more than the second in the ranking: German Chancellor Angela Merkel… RomeReports
Let us pray:
Prayer for Pope Francis
O God, Shepherd and Ruler of all the faithful,
look favourably on Your servant Francis,
whom You have set
at the head of Your Church as her shepherd;
Grant, we pray, that by word and example
he may be of service to those over whom he presides
so that, together with the flock entrusted to his care,
he may come to everlasting life.
Lord Jesus, shelter our Holy Father, Pope Francis
under the protection of Your Sacred Heart.
Be his light, his strength and his consolation.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son,
who lives and reigns with You in the
unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.
Amen.
Novena to St Joseph – Day Four
Day Four
FAITHFUL SERVANT
Saint Joseph, you lived for one purpose — to be the personal servant of Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh. Your noble birth and ancestry, the graces and gifts, so generously poured out on you by God — all this was yours to serve our Lord better. Every thought, word, and action of yours was a homage to the love and glory of the Incarnate Word. You fulfilled most faithfully the role of a good and faithful servant who cared for the House of God.
How perfect was your obedience! Your position in the Holy Family obliged you to command, but besides being the foster-father of Jesus, you were also His disciple. For almost thirty years, you watched the God-Man display a simple and prompt obedience, and you grew to love and practice it very perfectly yourself. Without exception you submitted to God, to the civil rulers, and to the voice of your conscience.
When God sent an angel to tell you to care for Mary, you obeyed in spite of the mystery which surrounded her motherhood. When you were told to flee into Egypt under painful conditions, you obeyed without the slightest word of complaint. When God advised you in a dream to return to Nazareth, you obeyed. In every situation your obedience was as simple as your faith, as humble as your heart, as prompt as your love. It neglected nothing; it took in every command.
You had the virtue of perfect devotedness, which marks a good servant. Every moment of your life was consecrated to the service of our Lord: sleep, rest, work, pain. Faithful to your duties, you sacrificed everything unselfishly, even cheerfully. You would have sacrificed even the happiness of being with Mary. The rest and quiet of Nazareth was sacrificed at the call of duty. Your entire life was one generous giving, even to the point of being ready to die in proof of your love for Jesus and Mary. With true unselfish devotedness you worked without praise or reward.
But God wanted you to be in a certain sense a cooperator in the Redemption of the world. He confided to you the care of nourishing and defending the Divine Child. He wanted you to be poor and to suffer because He destined you to be the foster-father of His Son, who came into the world to save men by His sufferings and death, and you were to share in His suffering. In all of these important tasks, the Heavenly Father always found you a faithful servant!
Saint Joseph, I thank God for your privilege of being God’s faithful servant. As a token of your own gratitude to God, obtain for me the grace to be a faithful servant of God as you were. Help me to share, as you did, the perfect obedience of Jesus, who came not to do His Will, but the Will of His Father; to trust in the Providence of God, knowing that if I do His Will, He will provide for all my needs of soul and body; to be calm in my trials and to leave it to our Lord to free me from them when it pleases Him to do so. And help me to imitate your generosity, for there can be no greater reward here on earth than the joy and honor of being a faithful servant of God.
*NOVENA PRAYER
*(prayer to be said at the end of each day’s devotion)
Saint Joseph, I, your unworthy child, greet you.
You are the faithful protector and intercessor of all who love and venerate you.
You know that I have special confidence in you and that, after Jesus and Mary,
I place all my hope of salvation in you, for you are especially powerful with God
and will never abandon your faithful servants.
Therefore I humbly invoke you and commend myself,
with all who are dear to me and all that belong to me, to your intercession.
I beg of you, by your love for Jesus and Mary, not to abandon me during life
and to assist me at the hour of my death.
Glorious Saint Joseph, spouse of the Immaculate Virgin,
obtain for me a pure, humble, charitable mind
and perfect resignation to the divine Will.
Be my guide, my father and my model through life
that I may merit to die as you did in the arms of Jesus and Mary.
Loving Saint Joseph, faithful follower of Jesus Christ,
I raise my heart to you to implore your powerful intercession
in obtaining from the Divine Heart of Jesus all the graces necessary
for my spiritual and temporal welfare,
particularly the grace of a happy death and the special grace I now implore:
…………………………………………
(Mention your request)
Guardian of the Word Incarnate, I feel confident that your prayers
on my behalf will be graciously heard before the throne of God.
Amen.
Memorare to St Joseph
Remember, most pure spouse of Mary, ever Virgin,
my loving protector, Saint Joseph,
that no one ever had recourse to your protection
or asked for your aid without obtaining relief.
Confiding, therefore, in your goodness,
I come before you and humbly implore you.
Despise not my petitions,
foster-father of the Redeemer
but graciously receive them.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 13 March – the Memorial of St Leander (c 534-c 600), who as Bishop of Seville, was responsible for including this Creed in the Holy Mass.
The Nicene Creed
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
consubstantial with the Father;
through Him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
He came down from heaven
(we bow here)
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake He was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
He suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and His kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Saint of the Day – 13 March – St Leander (c 534-c 600) Bishop, Monk, Confessor, apostle of Spain, teacher, writer. Patron of episcopal attire and liturgical garments.
The next time you recite the Nicene Creed at Mass, think of today’s saint. For it was Leander of Seville who, as bishop, introduced the practice in the sixth century. He saw it as a way to help reinforce the faith of his people and as an antidote against the heresy of Arianism, which denied the divinity of Christ.
St Leander, a close friend of St Gregory the Great, was born in Carthagena to a family of high nobility. He was the eldest brother of several saints. His brother, St Isidore, succeeded him as Bishop of Seville and is a Doctor of the Universal Church. Another brother, St Fulgentius, became Bishop of Carthagena and his sister, St Florentina, became an Abbess in Carthagena.
When he was still young, Leander retired to a Benedictine monastery where he became a model of learning and piety. In 579 he was raised to the episcopal see of Seville, where he continued to practice his customary austerities and penances.
At that time, a part of the territory of Spain was dominated by the Visigoths. Those barbarians were Arians and had spread their errors in the cities they had conquered. The Iberian Peninsula had been infected by that heresy for 170 years when St Leander was chosen Bishop of Seville. He began to combat it immediately. His efforts were successful and the heresy began to lose hold on its followers. He also played an important role in the conversion of Hermenegild, the eldest son of the Visigoth King.
King Leovigild, however, became angry over his son’s conversion and St Leander’s activity. He exiled the Saint and condemned his son to death. Later, he repented, recalled the Saint to Spain and asked him to educate and form his other son and successor, Reccared, who became a Catholic and helped the Saint to convert the rest of his subjects.
St Leander played a central role at two councils, the Council of Seville and the Third Council of Toledo, where Visigothic Spain abjured Arianism in all its forms. He also wrote an influential Rule for his sister with instructions on prayer and renunciation of the world. He reformed the liturgy in Spain, adding the Nicene Creed to the Mass in order to make an express profession of the Faith against Arianism. After a long life of fighting heresies and preaching the truth, St Leander died around the year 600. He was succeeded by his brother, Isidore. 
(Last year’s post -https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/03/13/saint-of-the-day-13-march-st-leander-of-seville/)
The month of March is dedicated to St Joseph. Joseph was the husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the foster-father of Jesus. Holy Scripture proclaims him as a “just man” and the Church has turned to Joseph for his patronage and protection. Pope Leo XIII in his encyclical Quamquam Pluries (On the Devotion to St Joseph) in 1889 explains why we place so much trust in this saint:
“Thus in giving Joseph the Blessed Virgin as spouse, God appointed him to be not only her life’s companion, the witness of her maidenhood, the protector of her honor, but also, by virtue of the conjugal tie, a participator in her sublime dignity. And Joseph shines among all mankind by the most august dignity, since by divine will, he was the guardian of the Son of God and reputed as His father among men.
Hence it came about that the Word of God was humbly subject to Joseph, that He obeyed him, and that He rendered to him all those offices that children are bound to render to their parents. From this two-fold dignity flowed the obligation which nature lays upon the head of families, so that Joseph became the guardian, the administrator, and the legal defender of the divine house whose chief he was. And during the whole course of his life he fulfilled those charges and those duties.
…It is, then, natural and worthy that as the Blessed Joseph ministered to all the needs of the family at Nazareth and girt it about with his protection, he should now cover with the cloak of his heavenly patronage and defend the Church of Jesus Christ.”
Blessed Joseph, husband of Mary
Be with us this day.
You defended the Virgin
loving the Child Jesus as your son,
you rescued Him from danger of death.
Defend the Church, the household of God,
purchased by the blood of Christ.
Guardian of the Holy Family,
be with us in our trials,
may your prayers obtain for us
the grace to flee from error
and wrestle with the powers of corruption,
so that in life we may grow in holiness
and in death rejoice in the Crown of Victory.
Amen
26 February 2018 – Monday of the Second Week of Lent
Daniel 9:4-10, Psalms 79:8-9, 11, 13, Luke 6:36-38
Daniel 9:4-5 – “I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and terrible God, who keepest covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from thy commandments and ordinances…”
Luke 6:36-38 – Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”
Daniel confesses that his people’s sufferings in exile are due to their own lack of fodelity to God. This sort of confession is a frank admission that evil has consequences. It is similar to Jesus’ teaching – “one who takes up the sword will perish by the sword.”
The argument may be turned round – good deeds have beneficial consequences. “The measure you give will be the measure you get back” whether it be mercy, forgiveness or sympathetic understanding.
If we keep giving out good things consistently, the blessings we will receive will be beyond measure. Every giving enriches the giver, whether gift be in the form of material assistance, psychologival affirmation or spiritual admonition, giving up an argument, settling a quarrel or going out of our way to help someone who deserves it least!
Be not afraid then to give, for you will receive beyond anything you could ever expect.
Am I generous with my time, material gifts, with my love?
Am I patient and willing to be forgiving, even when I was not in error?
Am I aware that as part of the Body of Christ, my good and my bad, affect all?
Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil SDB – God’sWord
“Desire not the praises of men, seeing they are vain. Be not fearful of their reproach, for instead of doing harm to your soul, humiliations cleanses it and renders it more meet to receive a brighter crown in heaven and none are worthy to be glorified in heaven who are unable to bear reproach on earth for the love of God.”… Thomas a Kempis
Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name;
deliver us and forgive our sins, for thy name’s sake! …Psalm 79:9
For ah! the Master is so fair,
His smile so sweet to banished men
That they who meet it unaware
Can never rest on earth again.
And they who see Him risen afar
At God’s right hand to welcome them
Forgetful stand of home and land,
Desiring fair Jerusalem.
Praise God! the Master is so sweet;
Praise God! the country is so fair,
We would not hold them from His feet.
We would but haste to meet them there.
English Missal 1936
Our Morning Offering – 18 February – The First Sunday of Lent, Year B
Act of Oblation before Holy Mass
Eternal Father,
we offer You the sacrifice
wherein your Son Jesus
offered Himself upon the Cross
and which He now renews upon this altar.
We adore You and render to You
that honour which is Your due,
acknowledging Your dominion over all things
and our absolute dependence on You.
You are our first beginning and our last end;
we give You thanks for countless benefits received;
we ask You to forgive our sins
and to offer You worthy satisfaction for the same.
Finally to implore Your grace and mercy
for all of us who will offer this sacrifice today,
for all those who are in tribulation and distress,
for all of us sinners,
for the whole world and for the souls in purgatory.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Our Morning Offering – 4 February – The Memorial of Blessed Rabanus Maurus (776-856)
Veni Creator Spiritus
By Blessed Rabanus Maurus (776-856)
Come, Creator, Spirit,
come from Your bright heavenly throne,
come take possession of our souls
and make them all Your own.
You who are called the Paraclete,
best gift of God above,
the living spring,
the vital fire,
sweet christ’ning and true love. . . .
O guide our minds with Your best light,
with love our hearts inflame
and with Your strength,
which ne’er decays,
confirm our mortal frame.
Far from us drive our deadly foe,
true peace unto us bring
and through all perils lead us safe
beneath Your sacred wing.
Through You may we the Father know,
through You th’eternal Son
and You the Spirit of them both,
thrice-blessed Three in One. . . .
Today, 4 February, us the Memorial of Blessed Rabanus Maurus.
Rabanus Maurus was a young boy who loved to study and became a disciple of the great Englishmen who brought learning and holiness to the kingdom of Charlemagne. He was born in 784, when the Carolingian renaissance was at its height and his parents sent him to be educated at St Boniface’s great monastery of Fulda, which had a famous school. So remarkable was he as a student that the Abbot of Fulda sent him to study under Charlemagne’s own schoolmaster, Alcuin, at Tours and it was under this teacher that he received the name Maurus, after St. Benedict’s favourite disciple. On returning to Fulda, he was first a teacher, then head of the school there, which became famous all over Europe.
He continued the tradition of sacred learning begun by St Boniface and Alcuin. He wrote homilies, scientific treatises, poetry, hymns and commentaries on most of the books of the Bible. Like St Bede, he was the marvel of his time for his learning and was unequalled in his time for his scriptural and patristic learning.
In 822, Blessed Rabanus Maurus was elected abbot of Fulda and the monastery flourished under his guidance. He increased the library, built new buildings and fostered learning of every kind. In 842, he retired, planning to live a life of prayer in solitude for the rest of his life.
In 847, he was chosen to be archbishop of Mainz, at the age of sixty-three and the last years of his life were spent directing the affairs of his diocese, holding provincial synods, and directing a multitude of charitable works. During a famine, he fed three hundred poor people at his own house. He became bedridden shortly before his death and from the moment of his death was regarded as a saint.
He was buried at the monastery of St Alban’s in Mainz but later his relics were transferred to Halle.
3 February – The Memorial of St Blaise – Martyr (Died c 316)
THROAT BLESSING of ST BLAISE
Although separated by customs, language, politics and more, Catholics around the world celebrate many of the same God-inspired devotional acts, practices and rituals handed down through the centuries by Holy Mother Church. Such a devotion is the optional memorial celebrating St Blaise and the blessing of throats today, every 3 February.
Throat blessings
The candles used in the blessing of throats may be those blessed yesterday, on Candlemas, or when blessed during the St. Blaise memorial.
With the crossed candles touched to the throat of each person, the celebrant says immediately:
Through the intercession of Saint Blase, bishop and martyr, may God deliver you from every disease of the throat and from every other illness. In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
Each person responds: Amen.
Thought for the Day – 2 February – Feast of the Presentation of the Lord and the World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life
On this holy feast-day we each have an opportunity to consecrate our lives anew to the Lord. How do we do this? We can simply make a prayer of re-dedication to God which can take many forms. It can be a simple heartfelt prayer reaffirming our baptismal promises or a re-visiting of our religious or marriage vows. Or it can be a prayer which asks the Holy Spirit to renew our sense of vocation as a priest or religious or as a lay person in our chosen job, trade or profession.
We gave our life to the Lord when we were baptised but the call to conversion continues to resound throughout our lives and ‘this second conversion is an uninterrupted task for the whole church’ (Catechism of the Catholic Church 1428). A re-dedication or renewal of vows or promises is a movement of conversion within our heart and is always a work of the Holy Spirit.
Today, step out in faith, whatever your vocation, whatever your calling and give your life to the Lord, in the assurance of God’s grace, blessing and renewal in the power of the Holy Spirit.
LET US PRAY FOR ALL CONSECRATED MEN & WOMEN AND FOR VOCATIONS:
Loving God, You call all who believe in You
to grow perfect in love
by following in the footsteps
of Christ Your Son.
Call from among us more men and women
who will serve You as religious.
Open the hearts of many, raise up
faithful servants of the Gospel, dedicated,
holy priests, sisters, brothers and deacons,
who will spend themselves for Your people
and their needs.
Bless those who are serving now
with courage and perseverance.
Grant that many will be inspired by their
example and faith.
By their way of life, may they provide a convincing sign
of Your Kingdom for the Church and the whole world.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
1 February 2018 – The Holy Father’s Monthly Prayer Intentions
In January, the Catholic Church celebrated the Month of the Holy Name of Jesus and in February, we turn to the entire Holy Family—Jesus, Mary and Joseph.
In sending His Son to earth as a Baby, born into a family, God elevated the family beyond a mere natural institution. Our own family life reflects that lived by Christ, in obedience to His mother and foster father. Both as children and as parents, we can take comfort in the fact that we have the perfect model of the family before us in the Holy Family.
One commendable practice for the month of February is a Consecration to the Holy Family – I will post this pray during this month. If you have a prayer corner or a home altar, you can gather the entire family and recite the consecration prayer, which reminds us that we aren’t saved individually. We all work out our salvation in conjunction with others—first and foremost, together with the other members of our family.
There’s no need to wait until next February to repeat the consecration, it’s a good prayer for your family to pray every month.
Grant unto us, Lord Jesus,
ever to follow the example of Your holy Family,
that in the hour of our death
Your glorious Virgin Mother
together with blessed Joseph
may come to meet us
and we may be worthily received by You
into everlasting dwellings
who lives and reigns, world without end.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 28 January – The Memorial of St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) Doctor angelicus (Angelic Doctor) and Doctor communis (Common Doctor)
PRAYER before HOLY MASS
By St Thomas Aquinas
(1225-1274)
Angelic Doctor and Common Doctor
Almighty and ever-living God,
we approach the sacrament
of Your only-begotten Son,
Our Lord Jesus Christ.
We come to the Doctor of Life
unclean, to the Fountain of Mercy,
blind, to the Radiance of Eternal Light
and poor and needy
to the Lord of heaven and earth.
Lord, in Your great generosity,
heal our sicknesses,
wash away our defilements,
enlighten our blindness,
enrich our poverty
and clothe our nakedness.
May we receive the bread of angels,
the King of kings and Lord of lords,
with humble reverence,
with the purity and faith,
the repentance and love
and the determined purpose
that will help to bring us to salvation.
May we receive the sacrament
of the Lord’s Body and Blood
and its reality and power.
Loving Father, as on our earthly pilgrimage
we now receive Your beloved Son
in the holy sacrifice of this Mass,
may we one day see Him face to face in glory,
who lives and reigns with You for ever,
AMEN.
PRAYER after HOLY COMMUNION
By St Thomas Aquinas
(1225-1274)
Angelic Doctor and Common Doctor
Lord, Father all-powerful and ever-living God,
I thank You, for even though I am a sinner,
Your unprofitable servant,
not because of my worth
but in the kindness of Your mercy,
You have fed me
with the Precious Body and Blood
of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
I pray that this Holy Communion,
may not bring me condemnation
and punishment
but forgiveness and salvation.
May it be a helmet of faith
and a shield of good will.
May it purify me from evil ways
and put an end to my evil passions.
May it bring me charity and patience,
humility and obedience
and growth in the power to do good.
May it be my strong defense
against all my enemies,
visible and invisible
and the perfect calming
of all my evil impulses,
bodily and spiritual.
May it unite me more closely to You,
the One true God
and lead me safely through death
to everlasting happiness with You.
And I pray that You will lead me, a sinner,
to the banquet where You,
with Your Son and holy Spirit,
are true and perfect light,
total fulfillment, everlasting joy,
gladness without end
and perfect happiness to Your saints.
Grant this through Christ our Lord,
AMEN.
Our Morning Offering – 25 January – Feast of the Conversion of St Paul the Apostle
Morning Hymn from the Psalter
for the Feast of the Conversion of St Paul
Apostle of the gentiles, Paul
The greatest witness of them all.
You turned to Christ, the risen Lord,
When out of light you heard Him call.
You journeyed far and wide to tell
That Christ was risen from the dead,
That all who put their faith in Him
Would live forever, as He said.
To Father, Son and Spirit blest,
The light of man’s uncharted ways,
With all the Church throughout the world,
Give glory and unceasing praise.
The Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity 18-25 January 2018
BIBLICAL REFLECTIONS AND PRAYERS DAY 2 – 19 JANUARY
Your right hand, O Lord,
glorious in power
(Ex 15:6)
Day 2: No longer as a slave but a beloved brother
Genesis 1:26-28 God created humankind in God’s own image
Psalm 10:1-10 Why, O Lord, do you stand far off?
Philemon No longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother
Luke 10:25-37 The Parable of the Good Samaritan
Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery in which victims are forced or tricked into sex work, child labour and the harvesting of organs for the profit of the exploiters. It is a global, multimillion-dollar industry. It is also a growing problem across the Caribbean. Reformed Churches in the Caribbean have joined with the Council for World Mission and the Caribbean and North American Council for Mission to educate Christian communities to end the scourge of human trafficking.
Reflection
One of the first things we learn about God in the Hebrew and Christian Bible is that God created humankind in his own image. However, this profound and beautiful truth has often been obscured or denied throughout human history. For instance, in the Roman Empire, the dignity of those enslaved was denied. The Gospel message is entirely different to this. Jesus challenged the social norms that devalued the human dignity of Samaritans, describing the Samaritan as the ‘neighbour’ of the man who had been attacked on the road to Jericho – a neighbour to be loved, according to the Law. And Paul, made bold in Christ, describes the once-enslaved Onesimus as ‘a beloved brother’, transgressing the norms of his society and affirming Onesimus’s humanity.
Christian love must always be a courageous love that dares to cross borders, recognising in others a dignity equal to our own. Like St Paul, Christians must be ‘bold enough in Christ’ to raise a united voice in clearly recognising trafficked persons as their neighbours and their beloved brothers and sisters, and so work together to end modern-day slavery.
Prayer
Gracious God,
draw near to those who are victims of human trafficking,
assuring them that you see their plight and hear their cry.
May your Church be united in compassion and courage to work for that day
when no one will be exploited
and all will be free to live lives of dignity and peace.
This we pray in the name of the Triune God
who can do immeasurably more than we can ask or imagine.
Amen.
The right hand of God
is lifting in our land,
lifting the fallen one by one;
each one is known by name,
and rescued now from shame,
by the lifting of the right hand of God.
For DAY ONE go here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/01/18/the-octave-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-18-25-january-2018/
For DAY ONE go here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/01/18/the-octave-of-prayer-for-christian-unity-18-25-january-2018/
Our Morning Offering – 16 January
St Patrick’s Morning Prayer
As I arise today,
may the strength of God pilot me,
the power of God uphold me,
the wisdom of God guide me.
May the eye of God look before me,
the ear of God hear me,
the Word of God speak for me.
May the hand of God protect me,
the way of God lie before me,
the shield of God defend me,
the host of God save me.
May Christ shield me today.
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit,
Christ when I stand,
Christ in the heart of everyone
who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone
who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
Amen.
Our Morning Offering – 12 January – Month of the Holy Name of Jesus
The Golden Arrow
May the most holy,
most sacred,
most adorable,
most mysterious
and unutterable Name of God
be always praised,
blessed,
loved,
adored
and glorified in heaven.
on earth and under the earth,
by all the creatures of God
and by the Sacred Heart
of our Lord Jesus Christ
in the most Holy Sacrament
of the altar.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 11 January
The Universal Prayer
Pope Clement XI
I believe, O Lord but may I believe more firmly
I hope but may I hope more securely,
I love but may I love more ardently
I sorrow but may I sorrow more deeply.
I adore You as my first beginning;
I long for You as my last end;
I praise You as my constant benefactor;
I invoke You as my gracious protector.
By Your wisdom direct me,
by Your righteousness restrain me,
by Your indulgence console me,
by Your power protect me.
I offer You, Lord,
my thoughts to be directed to You,
my words, to be about You;
my deeds, to respect Your will,
my trials to be endured for You.
I will whatever You will,
I will it because You will it,
I will it in the way You will it,
I will it for as long as You will it.
Lord, enlighten my understanding, I pray:
arouse my will,
cleanse my heart,
sanctify my soul.
May I weep for past sins,
repel future temptations,
correct evil inclinations,
nurture appropriate virtues.
Give me, good ‘God,
love for You, hatred for myself,
zeal for my neighbour,
contempt for the world.
May I strive to obey superiors,
to help those dependent on me,
to have care for my friends,
forgiveness for my enemies.
May I conquer sensuality by austerity,
avarice by generosity,
anger by gentleness,
lukewarmness by fervour.
Render me prudent in planning,
steadfast in danger,
patient in adversity,
humble in prosperity.
Make me, O Lord, attentive at prayer,
moderate at meals,
diligent in work,
steadfast in intent.
May I be careful to maintain interior innocence,
outward modesty,
exemplary behavior,
a regular life.
May I be always watchful in subduing nature,
in nourishing grace,
in observing Your law,
in winning salvation.
May I learn from You
how precarious are earthly things,
how great divine things,
how fleeting is time,
how lasting things eternal.
Grant that I may prepare for death,
fear judgment,
flee hell,
gain paradise.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Our Morning Offering – 7 January – The Solemnity of the Epiphany of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Traditional Epiphany Prayer
Lord Jesus
may Your light shine on our way,
as once it guided the steps of the Magi:
that we too may be led into Your presence
and worship You,
the Child of Mary,
Mother of God,
the Word of the Father,
the King of nations,
the Saviour of mankind;
in union with Your heavenly Father
and the Holy Spirit,
You are One God
forever and ever, amen.
Blessing of a Home at Epiphany – 7 January – The Solemnity of the Epiphany of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Priest: Peace be to this house.
All: And to all who live here.
Priest: Bless, O Lord, Almighty God,
this home, that in it there may be health,
chastity, strength of victory, humility,
goodness, and industry,
a fullness of law and the action of graces
through God the Father and the Son
and the Holy Spirit and that this blessing
may remain on this home
and on those who frequent it.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen..
After the blessing,
the initials of the Magi
(traditional names: Caspar, Melchior and Balthazar) but which can also be interpreted to mean Christus Mansionem Benedicat, which means ” May Christ bless this house”
are written with chalk over the main door way of the house, like this:
20 + C + M + B + 18
(the + is the Cross of our Salvation; the “18” stands for 2018;
change the year accordingly).
1 January – Catholic Devotion of the Month – The Most Holy Name of Jesus
In Philippians 2, St Paul tells us that “At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven and things in earth, and things under the earth and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” From the earliest days of Christianity, Christians have known the great power of Jesus’ Holy Name. As the once-popular hymn commanded:
All hail the pow’r of Jesus’ Name!
Let angels prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem,
And crown Him Lord of all.
Small wonder, then, that the Church sets aside the first month of the year in honour of the Holy Name of Jesus. hrough this devotion, the Church reminds us of the power of Christ’s Name and encourages us to pray in His Name. In our society, of course, we hear His Name uttered quite often but all too frequently, it is used in a curse or blasphemy. In the past, Christians would often make the Sign of the Cross when they heard Christ’s Name uttered in such a manner and that’s a practice that would be worthwhile to revive.
By way of concretising respect for the name of Jesus in a formal way the Second Council of Lyons in 1274 decreed that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow; whenever that glorious name is recalled, especially during the sacred mysteries of the Mass, everyone should bow the knees of his heart, which he can do even by a bow of his head”.
As regards what is to be done in Mass today, the General Instruction of the Roman Missal says: “A bow of the head is made when the three Divine Persons are named together and at the names of Jesus, of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of the saint in whose honour Mass is being celebrated” (GIRM 275).
The importance of honouring the holy name of Jesus is seen too in the feast of that name, which has been celebrated, at least at the local level, since the end of the 15th century. The feast was inserted into the universal calendar by Pope Innocent XIII in 1721 and is now celebrated on 3 January.
Given the widespread misuse of the names of God and Jesus today in ordinary life, as well as on television, in films and in other forms of entertainment, it is especially important to do all we can to restore respect for the name of God.
Bowing our head when we pronounce or hear the name of Jesus is a good way to do this.
Also important is to make an internal act of reparation whenever we hear the name of God or Jesus blasphemed.
It should hurt us that the object of our love is mistreated in this way.
It may very well be that the custom of bowing the head at the name of Jesus will pass out of general use, as have other laudable customs in recent times but that does not prevent us personally from continuing to live it and passing on to our children this ancient custom.
LET US EACH ONE BRING IT BACK for the very Angels in Heaven bow at the name of Jesus. And even the demons in Hell.
Another good practice that we could take to heart during this Month of the Holy Name of Jesus is the recitation of the Jesus Prayer. his prayer is as popular among Eastern Christians, both Catholic and Orthodox, as the rosary is among Roman Catholics but it’s not as well known in the West. This month, why not take a few minutes to memorise the Jesus Prayer and pray it during those moments of the day when you are between activities, or travelling, or simply taking a rest? Keeping Christ’s Name always on our lips is a good way to ensure that we draw ever nearer to Him.
Our Morning Offering – 29 December – Fifth Day of the Octave and the Memorial of St Thomas a Becket
Hymn/Prayer from the Common of Martyrs
The martyrs living now with Christ
in suffering were tried,
their anguish overcome by love,
when on His cross they died.
Across the centuries they come,
in constancy unmoved,
their loving hearts make no complaint,
in silence they are proved.
No man has ever measured love,
or weighed it in his hand
but God who knows the inmost heart,
gives them the promised land.
Prais Father, Son and Spirit blest
who guide us through the night,
in ways that reach beyond the stars
to everlasting light.
Amen
One Minute Reflection – 28 December – The Feast of the Holy Innocents – The 4th Octave Day of Christmas
We praise you, O God,
we acclaim you as Lord;
the white-robed army of martyrs praise you. (from the Te Deum)
REFLECTION – “These then, whom Herod’s cruelty tore as sucklings from their mothers’ bosom, are justly hailed as “infant martyr flowers”; they were the Church’s first blossoms, matured by the frost of persecution during the cold winter of unbelief.”… St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – O God, whom the Holy Innocents confessed and proclaimed on this day, not by speaking but by dying, grant, we pray, that the faith in You which we confess with our lips may also speak through our manner of life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Holy Innocents Pray for us! amen
Our Morning Offering – 23 December – Saturday of the Third Week of Advent 2017
As we draw to the end of this very short Advent-time, it is appropriate that we adopt the practice of praying this great prayer, EVERY DAY!
The Benedictus was the song of thanksgiving uttered by Zechariah on the occasion of the birth of his son, John the Baptist.
In the Roman Catholic Church, the Benedictus is part of Lauds because it is the song of thanksgiving for the coming of the Redeemer in the first part of the canticle.
It is believed to have been first introduced by Benedict of Nursia. According to Durandus, the allusion to Christ’s coming under the figure of the rising sun had also some influence on its adoption. It also features in various other liturgical offices, notably at a funeral, at the moment of interment, when words of thanksgiving for the Redemption are specially in place as an expression of Christian hope.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
He has come to His people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty saviour,
born of the house of His servant David.
Through His holy prophets He promised of old
that He would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant.
This was the oath He swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship Him without fear,
holy and righteous in His sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called
the prophet of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare His way,
to give His people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever, amen
AnaStpaul 
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