Our Morning Offering – 4 October – The Memorial of St Francis of Assisi (1181–1226)
Morning Prayer
of St Francis of Assisi (1182-1226)
Lord, help me to live this day,
quietly, easily;
to lean on Your great strength,
trustfully, restfully;
to wait for the unfolding of Your will,
patiently, serenely;
to meet others,
peacefully, joyfully;
to face tomorrow,
confidently, courageously.
Amen
St Francis of Assisi OFM (c 1181–1226) (Memorial)
Biography:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/10/04/saint-of-the-day-4-october-st-francis-of-assisi-o-f-m-1181-1226/
AND:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/10/04/saint-of-the-day-4-october-st-francis-of-assisi-ofm-1181-2-1226-the-brother-of-jesus/
St Adauctus of Ephesus
Bl Alfonso Tabela
St Ammon the Great
St Aurea
Berenice
St Caius of Corinth
St Callisthene of Ephesus
St Crispus of Corinth
St Damaris of Athens
St Diogenes of Milan
St Domnina
St Hierotheus
Bl Julian Majali
St Lucius of Alexandria
St Peter of Damascus
St Petronius (Died c 450)
St Prosdoce
St Quintius of Tours
—
Martyrs of Alexandria – 2+ saints: A group of Christians, men and women, young and old, murdered together for their faith. The only names that have come down to us are the brothers Mark and Marcian.
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Alfredo Pellicer Muñoz
• Blessed Avelí Martínez de Arenzana Candela
• Blessed Dionisio Ibáñez López
• Blessed Francisco Martínez Granero
• Blessed Fulgencio Martínez García
• Blessed José Aloy Doménech
• Blessed José Gafo Muñiz
• Blessed José Miguel Peñarroya Dolz
• Blessed Juan de Francisco Pío
• Blessed Juan José Orayen Aizcorbe
• Blessed Martina Vázquez Gordo
• Blessed Publio Fernández González
• Blessed Tomás Barrios Pérez
The Holy Guardian Angels (Memorial)
Blessed Angels here:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/10/02/saint-of-the-day-the-holy-guardian-angels-2-october/
St Alfonso del Rio
St Andrea Ximenez
Bl Antoine Chevrier TOSF (1825-1879)
About Blessed Antoince:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/10/02/saint-of-the-day-2-october-blessed-antoine-chevrier-t-o-s-f-1825-1879/
St Beregisius
St Eleutherius of Nicomedia
Bl Georges-Edme René
St Gerinus
St Leodegarius of Autun
St Leudomer
St Maria Antonina Kratochwil
St Modesto of Sardinia
St Saturius of Soria
St Theophilus of Bulgaria
St Ursicinus II
—
Martyred in Antioch, Syria: Martyred in one of the early persecutions, date unknown.
St Cyril of Antioch
St Primus of Antioch
St Secundarius of Antioch
Martyred in Nagasaki, Japan: A husband, wife and two sons, who were all martyred together in the persecutions in Japan. They were beheaded on 2 October 1622 in Nagasaki, Japan and Beatified by Pope Pius IX on 7 May 1867.
• Blessed Andreas Yakichi
• Blessed Franciscus Yakichi
• Blessed Lucia Yakichi
• Blessed Ludovicus Yakichi
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Elías Carbonell Molla
• Blessed Enrique Sáiz-Aparicio
• Blesssed Felipe González de Heredia Barahona
• Blessed Francisco Carceller Galindo
• Blessed Isidoro Bover Oliver
• Blessed Juan Carbonell Molla
• Blessed Juan Iñiguez de Ciriano Abechuco
• Blessed Manuel Borrajo Míguez
• Blessed María Francisca Ricart Olmos
• Blessed Mateu Garrolera Masferrer
• Blessed Pedro Artolozaga Mellique
• Blessed Pedro Salcedo Puchades
Saint of the Day – 24 September – Saint Pacificus of Severino OFM (1653-1721) Priest, Franciscan Friar, Mystic, Miracle-worker, Missionary, Superior of the Friary of San Severino and joyful sufferer for Christ – born on 1 March 1653 at San Severino, Italy and died on 24 September 1721 at San Severino, Italy of natural causes aged 68.
Pacificus was born into the impoverished Divini family on 1 March 1653, in the city of San Severino, Italy. He was one of 13 children. At age three he lost his father and his mother. Along with his siblings he was brought to the house of an uncle to be raised. The children suffered greatly there, mistreated by two servants in the household.
From infancy Pacificus had received a good religious formation from his mother, which helped him to not fall into despair and to follow the religious vocation that early attracted him. At age 17 he entered the Franciscans of Forano, where he studied and received Holy Orders on 4 June 1678, subsequently becoming Professor of Philosophy at the Monastery.
The words of Our Lord, “the harvest is great but the workers are few,” refused to leave his mind and he concluded that the world did not need doctors but apostles. He spoke about this concern to his Provincial, who directed him in 1683 to take up missionary work. For five or six years he actively preached to the people of the surrounding regions. His ideal was to convert the infidel and suffer martyrdom. But God had reserved to this hunter of souls another apostolate, that of suffering.
His feet became swollen and covered with wounds, which prevented him from walking, a condition he suffered until his death. For a while, he held the post of guardian in the Monastery and dedicated many hours to hearing confessions. However, he could no longer do so after he became deaf and could not communicate with those around him. This intensified his union with God.
The loss of this sense was not enough. Pacificus also became blind. In the last years of his life he could no longer celebrate Mass or go to the choir. And, since the worse enemies of man are his neighbours, St Pacific found some persons in his Monastery – like the sacristan and nurse – who mistreated him with words and deeds.
The Saint bore all this with an inextinguishable and firm patience. He became a model for all those who carry this cross. But “he sought for comfort and relief in God alone and was by him favoured with marvellous supernatural graces and with the gift of working miracles.” He was said to have “borne his ills with angelic patience, worked several miracles and was favoured by God with ecstasies.” He died on 24 September 1721. (Scamoni, The True Face of the Saints)
He was Beatified on 4 August 1786 by Pope Pius VI and Canonised on 26 May 1839 by Pope Gregory XVI.
Our Lady of Mercy/Our Lady of Ransom:
Commemorates the foundation of the Mercedarian Order and the apparition of Our Lady of Ransom. In this appearance she carried two bags of coins for use in ransoming Christians imprisoned by Moors. On 10 August 1218, the Mercedarian Order was legally constituted at Barcelona, Spain by King James of Aragon and was approved by Pope Gregory IX on 17 January 1235. The Mercedarians celebrated their institution on the Sunday nearest to 1 August because it was on 1 August 1218 that the Blessed Virgin showed Saint Peter Nolasco the white habit of the Order. This custom was approved by the Congregation of Rites on 4 April 1615. On 22 February 1696 it was extended to the entire Latin Church and the date changed to 24 September. St Peter Nolasco (1189-1256) was the Founder of the Mercedarian Order – Memorial 28 January.
Patronages – Bahía Blanca, Argentina, archdiocese of, Barcelona, Spain, Dominican Republic.
Our Lady of Walsingham/Virgin of the Sea:
In 2012 the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter for Anglicans joining the Church was given its patron as the Blessed Virgin Mary under the title Our Lady of Walsingham. Patronages – England,East Anglia, England, diocese of, Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter
St Anathalon of Milan
St Andochius of Autun
St Anthony Gonzalez
Bl Anton Martin Slomsek (1800-1862)
Biographical details here:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/09/24/saint-of-the-day-24-september-blessed-anton-martin-slomshek-1800-1862/
AND:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/09/24/saint-of-the-day-24-september-blessed-anton-martin-slomsek-1800-1862/
St Chuniald
Bl Colomba Matylda Gabriel
St Coprio
St Erinhard
St Felix of Autun
St Gerard Sagredo
St Geremarus
St Gislar
St Isarnus of Toulouse
St Lupus of Lyons
St Pacificus of Severino OFM (1653-1721)
St Paphnutius of Egypt
Bl Robert Hardesty
St Rusticus of Clermont
St. Rupert of Salzburg
St Terence of Persaro
St Thyrsus of Autun
St Ysarn of Saint Victor
Bl William Spenser
—
Martyrs of Chalcedon – (49 saints): Forty-nine Christian choir singers of the church in Chalcedon in Asia Minor who were martyred together in their persecutions of Diocletian in 304.
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Antonio Pancorbo López
• Blessed Esteban García y García
• Blessed José María Ferrándiz Hernández
• Blessed Juan Francisco Joya Corralero
• Blessed Luis de Erdoiza Zamalloa
• Blessed Manuel Gómez Contioso
• Blessed Melchor Rodríguez Villastrigo
• Blessed Pascual Ferrer Botella
• Blessed Rafael Rodríguez Mesa
• Blessed Santiago Arriaga Arrien
Thought for the Day – 23 September – The Memorial of St Padre Pio (1887-1968)
“For the stigmatist of the Gargano, love for the Madonna meant perpetual imitation of her, if Jesus is the way and the light that leads to the Father, Mary is the way and the light which leads to Jesus. With Mary’s help and by imitating her virtues, Padre Pio drew ever closer to Jesus, so very close as to be transformed into Him.
His imitation of Mary meant, most importantly, imitation of her humility. For him, that humility was a constant interior torment, a slow and painful agony, the anguish of not knowing whether he was corresponding to divine grace. You could read that deep humility on his face even when he was surrounded by clamorous crowds who believed in him, who trusted in his prayers and expected so many miracles from him every day. He always remained collected. His humility made it possible for him to be serene and dignified as he silently accepted mortification, slander, quarrels, humiliation and sorrow.
For him, love of the Madonna signified perpetual mortification. He implored his spiritual director to allow him to make a vow of abstinence from fruit on Wednesdays, he also asked him to suggest a means of pleasing the Blessed Mother in all things at all times.
Love of the Madonna animated Padre Pio and inspired him all the more to become an apostle. “I should like to have a voice strong enough to invite all the sinners of the world to love the Madonna.” God heard this sigh of love, he was given a voice that could be heard even when he was silent. It was a voice that touched the depths of people’s hearts and that penetrated their consciences, a voice that tormented and shook those who were dormant. It was a voice that was as terrible as the crashing of thunder in the night, yet as sweet as a caress. It was a voice that was threatening yet inviting, a voice that annihilated yet restored, that consoled and pardoned.
To all those who recommended themselves to his prayers, Padre Pio would say: “Love the Madonna. Recite the Rosary!”
One day, his guardian asked him how many rosaries he recited daily. Padre Pio answered, “Well, I have to tell my Guardian the truth, I have recited thirty-four!” For him, the rosary was a perpetual meditation on the profound mysteries of Calvary, on Jesus’s plan of salvation, on His sorrowful Mother. Padre Pio was fascinated by the Hail Mary.
…His love became an endless, ardent, faithful prayer. Who could possibly count the rosaries that he recited over the course of his marvellous life? He was the Friar of the rosary. He always carried it in his hand or on his arm as if it were a bracelet or a shield. He had other rosaries under the pillow of his bed, on the bureau in his cell. He called the rosary his weapon.
One night when he was sick in bed, he was unable to find his rosary beads, so he called Fr Onorato of San Giovanni Rotondo, saying, “Young man, get me my weapon, give me my weapon.”
The rosary was his favourite pray,r; he recited it continually. He devoured the rosary with insatiable hunger, it was the prayer that he had learned from the Virgin herself, the Virgin of Pompeii, Lourdes and Fatima, as a means of obtaining the conversion and salvation of sinners.
At certain hours, he would walk down the centre path of the friary garden, absorbed in his suffering and in his love, while the beads slipped through the fingers of his wounded hands. in his pockets he carried rosary beads, which he would give to anyone who requested a set, even today, people still hold these dear, saying, “This is a rosary which Padre Pio gave me, I treasure it with all my heart!”
Excerpted from Padre Pio: A Personal Portrait, by Fr Francesco Napolitano OFM Cap
Padre Pio: A Personal Portrait is a classic introduction to one of the most intriguing saints of the twentieth century—written five years after the saint’s death by someone who worked alongside the Capuchin priest and knew him well, this account is now in print in English for the first time in more than forty years.
Quote/s of the Day – 23 September – The Memorial of St Padre Pio (1887-1968)
“Keep close to the Catholic Church at all times,
for the Church alone can give you true peace,
since she alone possesses Jesus,
the true Prince of Peace,
in the Blessed Sacrament.”
“Every Holy Mass, heard with devotion,
produces in our souls marvellous effects,
abundant spiritual and material graces
which we, ourselves, do not know…
It is easier for the earth to exist
without the sun
than without the
Holy Sacrifice of the Mass!”
“Remember – the sinner,
who is sorry for his sins,
is closer to God,
than the just man,
who boasts of his good works.”
“If any one would be first, he must be
last of all and servant of all.”
“The life of a Christian is nothing
but a perpetual struggle against self:
there is no flowering of the soul
to the beauty of its perfection,
except at the price of pain.”
“My past, O Lord, to Your mercy,
my present, to Your love,
my future, to Your Providence.”
One Minute Reflection – 23 September – Monday of the Twenty Fifth Week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 8:16–18 and the Memorial of St Padre Pio (1887-1968)
“Take heed then how you hear…” … Luke 8:18
REFLECTION – “The lamp on the lampstand is our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the Father’s true light “who enlightens everyone coming into the world” (Jn 1:9), in other words, the Father’s Wisdom and Word. having accepted our flesh, He truly became and was called, the “light of the world”. By our faith and devotion He is honoured and exalted in the Church. In this way He is made visible to all nations and shines out for “all the people in the house”, namely the whole world, as He said: “They do not light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket, it is set on a lampstand , where it gives light to all in the house” (Mt 5:15).
As we have seen, Christ calls Himself a lamp. God by nature, He became flesh according to the plan of salvation, a light held within the flesh as if in a vase… This is what David was thinking when he said: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path” (Ps 119[118]:105). Since He causes the darkness of ignorance and the evil of men to vanish, my Saviour and my God is called a lamp in Scripture. And since He is the only one able, to obliterate the darkness of ignorance and disperse the shadows of sin, He has become the way of salvation for all. He leads towards the Father all those who, through understanding and virtue, walk with Him along the path of the commandments as on a road of righteousness.
The lampstand is holy Church because the Word of God shines out through her preaching. This is how the beams of its truth can enlighten the whole world… On one condition, however – so long as it is not hidden under the letter of the Law. Anyone who clings to Scripture according to the letter only is living according to the flesh, he is placing the lamp under a bushel basket. But when, to the contrary, the Church is set on the lampstand, it enlightens everyone.” … Saint Maximus the Confessor (c 580-662) – Abbot and Theologian – Question 63 to Thalassius
PRAYER – Holy God, teach me gratitude for Your love, teach me faithfulness no matter what difficulties I face. Jesus, my Lord, Your Church is my guide and my understanding, help me to always be true to her, my holy mother. St Padre Pio, pray for the Church and all God’s people. We make our prayer through Jesus Christ, our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God for all eternity, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 23 September – Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C and the Memorial of St Padre Pio (1887-1968)
Prayer to St Padre Pio of Pietrelcina
by St Pope John Paul II (1920-2005)
Teach us, we pray, humility of heart,
so that we may be counted
among the little ones of the Gospel
to whom the Father promised
to reveal the mysteries of His Kingdom.
Help us to pray without ceasing,
certain that God knows what we need,
even before we ask Him.
Obtain for us the eyes of faith
that will help us recognise in the poor and suffering,
the very face of Jesus.
Sustain us in the hour of trouble and trial
and, if we fall, let us experience the joy
of the sacrament of forgiveness.
Grant us your tender devotion to Mary,
mother of Jesus and our Mother.
Accompany us on our earthly pilgrimage
toward the blessed Homeland,
where we too, hope to arrive
to contemplate forever the
Glory of the Father, the Son
and the Holy Spirit.
Amen
St Padre Pio/ Pius of Pietrelcina OFM Cap (1887-1968) (Memorial)
Biography here:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/09/23/saint-of-the-day-23-september-st-pio-of-pietrelcina-o-f-m-cap/
__
Our Lady of Valvenecra:
The title was established at Anguiano in the province and autonomous community of La Rioja in north-central Spain, located near Nájera, where it is celebrated on 23 September. The title originated with the discovery of an image of the Blessed Mother in the Byzantine style from the ninth century in an oak. The sanctuary of Santa Maria de Valvanera was built in the Gothic style in the 10th century. The name comes from the Latin expression, Vallis Venaria (valley of the veins of water) because it lies in a valley of springs, waterfalls and streams. The church of today dates from the 15th century while preserving a tower from a Romanesque church of the 12th century. The statue of the Virgen de Valvanera stands in a niche on the high altar. The title is also known as Virgen de Valvanera and, mistakenly, as Our Lady of Valvanere; Our Lady of Vulvancre; and Our Lady of Valvencre.
This image is a replica of the original which appears to have dated from the tenth century and is preserved in the Royal Abbey shrine of Our Lady of Valvanera, or Valvanere, in Rioja, jealously guarded by Benedictine monks. The oldest documents preserved date from the thirteenth century, and tell how, according to tradition, the original image was found by a thief who later converted and became a hermit.
St Alfonso Burgos
St Adamnan of Iona
Bl Antonio of Tlaxcala
Bl Bernardina Maria Jablonska
St Cissa of Northumbria
St Constantius of Ancona
Bl Cristobal of Tlaxcala
Bl Emilie Tavernier Gamelin
Bl Francisco de Paula Victor
Bl Guy of Durnes
Bl Helen Duglioli
Bl Juan of Tlaxcala
St Pope Linus (c 10 – c 76) Successor to St Peter
About St Pope Linus:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/09/23/saint-of-the-day-23-september-st-pope-linus-c-10-c-76-successor-to-st-peter/
St Peter Acontanto
St Polyxena
St Thecla (1st century)
Bl William Way
St Xantippa
—
Martyrs of Syracuse – (4 saints): Group of Christians deported from Syracuse, Sicily by invading Saracens and sent to North Africa where they were tortured and executed for their faith. Martyrs. The names that have survived are Andrew, Antony, John and Peter. c900
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Crispulo Moyano Linares
• Blessed María Josefa del Río Messa
• Blessed Norberto Cembranos de la Verdura
• Blessed Purificación Ximénez y Ximénez
• Blessed Sofía Ximénez y Ximénez del Río
• Blessed Vicente Ballester Far
Thought for the Day – 22 September – The Twenty Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C and The Memorial of St Ignatius of Santhia OFM Cap (1686-1770)
“Receive the Holy Spirit, whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven” (Jn 20, 22-23).
With these words, the Risen One bestows on the Apostles the gift of the Spirit and with it the divine power to forgive sins. The Capuchin priest Ignatius of Santhiá lived uniquely the mission of forgiving sins and of guiding men and women on the paths of evangelical perfection.
For the love of Christ and to advance more quickly in evangelical perfection he walked in the footsteps of the Poverello of Assisi.
In the Piedmont of his time, Ignatius of Santhiá was father, confessor, counsellor and teacher of many – priests, religious and lay people – who sought his wise and enlightened guidance.
Even today he continues to remind everyone of the values of poverty, simplicity and authentic Christian life.
“Come, Holy Spirit fill the hearts of your faithful
and enkindle in them the fire of your love.”
The Holy Spirit radically transformed the Apostles who out of fear had locked themselves into the Upper Room, making them fervent heralds of the Gospel. Down through the ages, the Spirit continues to support the Church in her evangelising mission, raising up in every age courageous witnesses to the faith.
With the Apostles, the Blessed Virgin Mary received the gift of the Spirit (cf. Acts 1,14). With her and in communion with the new saints, let us also implore the miracle of a new Pentecost for the Church. For the humanity of our time let us ask an abundance of the gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Come Holy Spirit, enkindle the hearts of your faithful!
Help us to spread the fire of your love in the world. Amen!
St Pope John Paul II – Canonisation Homily – Sunday, 19 May 2002
Quote of the Day – 22 September – The Memorial of
St Ignatius of Santhia OFM Cap (1686-1770)
“Paradise is not made for slackers. Let’s get to work!”
Sunday Reflection – 22 September – The Twenty Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
In the book “Padre Pio’s Mass” written by Fr Tarcisio of Cervinara, we again are given proof that the Holy Mass is the unbloody Holy Sacrifice of Jesus Christ, offered once and for all on Calvary. At the Council of Trent in the 22nd. session it states:
“Jesus Christ, our Lord and God, when he was about to offer himself once on the altar of the Cross to God the Father, making intercession by means of his death, so that he might gain there an eternal redemption, since his priesthood was not to be extinguished by death, at the last Supper, ‘on the night that he was handed over’, left to his beloved Spouse the Church a visible sacrifice, such as the nature of man requires, by which the bloody sacrifice achieved once upon the Cross might be represented and its memory endure until the end of the age and its saving power be applied to the remission of those sins which are daily committed by us.”
St Padre Pio is the first priest to have received the “stigmata,” the wounds of Jesus in his body (hands, feet and side). St Francis received them but only as a deacon. This is important because Padre Pio offered the sacrifice of the Holy Mass and St Francis was only able to assist.
St Padre Pio’s Holy Masses would last from 3 to 4 hours. People came from all over the world to be present. They would have to get there very early to be able to get a place in the church. No-one complained about it being so long and quiet. The only person for whom it was excruciating long was St Padre Pio. During the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, he would actually re-live the passion and crucifixion of Jesus.
First we need to be reminded, that at every Holy Mass, Jesus is, in an un-bloody form, offering His life on the Cross for the salvation of sinners. Then that the priest is truly an Alter Christus, which means the priest actually becomes the victim with Jesus Christ at the Holy Mass. This is shown by the priest saying: “This is My Body” and “This is My Blood”. The priest does not say: This is Jesus‘ Body or This is Jesus‘ Blood.
So when St Padre Pio would offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, he would become literally this Alter Christus in suffering the crucifixion and bleeding in his wounds. One priest who was next to the altar during Padre Pio’s Mass, said he could never do that again, because he could not stand to see Padre Pio go through that agony again.
Cleonice Morcaldi, one of the spiritual daughters of Padre Pio, asked him several times what he felt and lived in each of his Masses. She wrote carefully each of his answers and thanks to her, we have a unique testimony from the Father himself about his Mass.
– Father, what is your Mass?
– A sacred accomplishment of the Passion of Jesus.
– What should I comprehend in your Holy Mass?
– All of Calvary.
– Father, tell me all that you suffer at the Holy Mass.
– All that Jesus suffered in His Passion, I inadequately suffer to the extent a human creature can possibly suffer. All of it, at no merit of my own and only because of His Goodness.
Father, is it true that you suffer the torment of the crowning of thorns during the Holy Mass?
– And you doubt it?
– During the whole Mass?
– And also before and after it. The crown is never taken away.
Saint Padre Pio’s Feast Day is tomorrow, 23 September.
One Minute Reflection – 22 September – Twenty Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 16:1–13 and the Memorial of St Ignatius of Santhia OFM Cap (1686-1770)
“You cannot serve God and mammon.” … Luke 16:13
REFLECTION – “A servant cannot serve two masters.” Not that there are two, there is only one Master. For even if there are some people who serve money, it has no inherent right to be a master, they themselves are the ones, who assume the yoke of this slavery. In fact, money has no rightful authority but constitutes an unjust bondage. That is why Jesus says: “Make friends for yourselves with deceitful money” so that by generosity to the poor we will win the favour of angels and saints.
The steward is not blamed. By this we learn that we are not masters but rather stewards of other people’s wealth. He was praised even though he was in the wrong because, in paying out to others in his master’s name he won support for himself. And how rightly Jesus spoke of “deceitful wealth” because love of money so tempts our desires with its various seductions that we consent to become its slaves. That is why He said: “If you are not trustworthy with what belongs to another, who will give you what is yours?” Riches are alien to us because they exist outside of our nature, they are not born with us, they do not follow us in death. But Christ, to the contrary, belongs to us because He is life… So don’t let us become slaves of exterior goods because Christ is the only one we should acknowledge as our Lord.” … Saint Ambrose (340-397) – Bishop of Milan, Father and Doctor of the Church – Commentary on Saint Luke’s Gospel, 7, 244s SC 52
PRAYER – All-powerful, eternal God, splendour of true light and never-ending day, turn our ears and hearts to Your Word, that we may hear and live by the seed You have sown. May all that grows in us, be of Your good seed and yield fruit a hundredfold. Grant Lord, we pray, that by the prayers of St Ignatius of Santhia, we may be filled with courage and love and spread Your Word by our lives. We make our prayer through Jesus, our Lord and Word, with the Holy Spirit, one God with You, forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 22 September – Twenty Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
Stay With Me, O Lord
St Padre Pio (1887-1968)
Stay with me, Lord, for You are my life
and without You I am without fervour.
Stay with me, Lord, for You are my light
and without You I am in darkness.
Stay with me, Lord,
so that I hear Your voice and follow You.
Stay with me, Lord,
for I desire to love You very much
and always be in Your company.
Stay with me, Lord,
if You wish me to be faithful to You.
Stay with me, Lord, as poor as my soul is,
I want it to be a place of consolation for You,
a nest of Love.
Stay with me, Jesus, for it is getting late
and the day is coming to a close
and life passes, death, judgement
and eternity approach.
It is necessary to renew my strength,
so that I will not stop
along the way and for that, I need You.
It is getting late and death approaches,
I fear the darkness, the temptations,
the dryness, the cross, the sorrows.
O how I need You, my Jesus, in this night of exile!
Stay with me tonight, Jesus,
in life with all its dangers, I need You.
Let me recognise You as Your disciples did,
at the breaking of the bread,
so that the Eucharistic Communion be the Light
which disperses the darkness,
the force which sustains me,
the unique joy of my heart.
Stay with me, Lord, because at the hour of my death,
I want to remain united to You,
if not by Communion, at least by grace and love.
Stay with me, Lord, for it is You alone I look for,
Your Love, Your Grace, Your Will,
Your Heart, Your Spirit, because I love You
and ask no other reward but to love You more and more.
With a firm love, I will love You
with all my heart while on earth
and continue to love You perfectly during all eternity.
Amen
Saint of the Day – 22 September – Saint Ignatius of Santhia OFM Cap (1686-1770) Franciscan Priest and Friar, renowned Spiritual Director, servant of the Confessional, apostle of charity – known as the “Father of sinners and the lost” born Lorenzo Maurizio Belvisotti, on 5 June 1686 in Santhià, Vercelli, Italy and died on 21 September 1770 of natural causes in Turin, Italy. Patronages – Chaplains, Santhià.
St Ignatius made it his mission to help penitents in the sacrament of Reconciliation and also devoted himself to the care of the ill. He gained a strong reputation for the humble and austere nature of his life in addition to the application of the Franciscan charism in his life which served as a model for thousands.
Saint Ignatius of Santhiá was born on 5 June 1686 in Santhiá, in the Vercelli region of Northern Italy and died in Turin on 21 September 1770. He was a Capuchin priest, who was faithful to the Franciscan spirit, especially by his obedience, simplicity and humility. He was renowned for his gift of spiritual direction and concern for the spiritual growth of the faithful. He was also called the “Father of sinners and the lost” thanks to his particular ability to deal with the “spiritually sick”.
Capuchin vocation
He was baptised Lorenzo Maurizio, the fourth of six children of the upper-class Belvisotti family. He received his early education from a good priest, who inspired him and helped discern his call to enter the priesthood. In 1710 he was ordained a diocesan priest. After six years of priestly ministry, he joined the Capuchin Friars. At the time he suffered from the criticism of his family and parish who did not understand his decision. In the Capuchin Order, Ignatius finally found the inner peace he had been searching for in the simplicity of Franciscan life.
Life of obedience
On 24 May 1717, he made his religious profession and from that day he was like putty in the hands of his superiors. He began his spiritual journey being sent from one house to another in the Savoy region of Northern Italy. He was happy to be moved around out of obedience and honoured to be able to serve his brothers. He was completely at “God’s disposition”.
In 1727, Ignatius was sent to the convent in Torino-Monte, with the responsibility of prefect of the sacristy and confessor for the laity, a mission he was to fulfil for the last 24 years of his life when he returned to Turin, after serving as master of novices and chief of chaplains for the army of the Kingdom of Savoy. In this ministry he showed his fatherly concern for others and the spiritual wisdom that is learned at the foot of the Crucified One. It was not long before religious, priests, the faithful and the most hardened sinners began coming to the monastery to make their confession and to receive spiritual direction.
Special forms of service
In 1731, he was sent to the monastery of Mondovì, where he was made master of novices and vicar of the monastery. He was in charge of the novitiate for 14 years and his only desire was to make the novices entrusted to his care, true followers of Christ and obedient sons of St Francis. His teaching was founded on two pillars – divinely loving the novices and teaching by example, more than by words. He was available at all hours of the day and night for novices in need of help and he knew each one of them, making their formation his top priority. In 1744 he had to leave the novitiate and go to Turin because he suffered from a mysterious eye ailment that led to near blindness. He was partially cured so that he could return to active ministry.
In 1743-1746, war broke out in the Piedmont. This also brought with it the influx of the wounded and an epidemic. The King of Sardinia-Piedmont, Charles Emmanuel III asked the Capuchins to provide medical and spiritual care for the hospitals. Fr Ignatius was made head chaplain and offered his assistance for two years in the hospitals of Asti, Vinovo and Alessandria, offering an example of tireless activity and piety, serving and healing in a spirit of genuine evangelical love.
Spiritual director
When Piedmont was at peace, he returned once more to his convent in Turin-Monte where he would remain for 24 years as spiritual director and confessor. He visited the sick and begged for money and food for the needy. The well-loved old friar died a peaceful and gracious death in Turin-Monte on 21 September 1770. He would often say: “Paradise is not made for slackers. Let’s get to work!” To all people, religious brothers and laity, he taught the way of holiness and of abandonment in God’s hands, by his example and by his words.
On 17 April 1966, St Paul VI Beatified Ignatius of Santhiá and St John Paul II, Canonised him on 19 May 2002. … Vatican.va
Thought for the Day – 18 September – The Memorial of St Joseph of Cupertino (1603-1663)
Joseph of Cupertino is most famous for levitating at prayer. Already as a child, Joseph showed a fondness for prayer. After a short career with the Capuchins, he joined the Conventual Franciscans. Following a brief assignment caring for the friary mule, Joseph began his studies for the priesthood. Though studies were very difficult for him, Joseph gained a great deal of knowledge from prayer. He was ordained in 1628.
Joseph’s tendency to levitate during prayer was sometimes a cross, some people came to see this much as they might have gone to a circus sideshow. Joseph’s gift led him to be humble, patient and obedient, even though at times he was greatly tempted and felt forsaken by God. He fasted and wore iron chains for much of his life.
The friars transferred Joseph several times for his own good and for the good of the rest of the community. He was reported to and investigated by, the Inquisition; the examiners exonerated him.
Joseph was Canonszed in 1767. In the investigation preceding the Canonisation, 70 incidents of levitation are recorded.
While levitation is an extraordinary sign of holiness, Joseph is also remembered for the ordinary signs he showed. He prayed even in times of inner darkness and he lived out the Sermon on the Mount. He used his “unique possession”–his free will–to praise God and to serve God’s creation. He said:
“Clearly, what God wants above all, is our will,which we received as a free gift from God, in creation and possess, as though our own. When a man trains himself to acts of virtue, it is with the help of grace from God, from whom all good things come, that he does this. The will is what man has as his unique possession.”
St Ariadne
St Dominic Trach Doai
St Eumenius Thaumaturgus
St Eustorgius of Milan
St Ferreolus the Tribune
St Ferreolus of Limoges
St Hygbald
St Irene of Egypt
St Joseph of Cupertino OFM Conv. (1603-1663)
All about the this holy Flying Saint here: https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/09/18/saint-of-the-day-18-september-st-joseph-of-cupertino-o-f-m-conv-1603-1663/
St Józef Kut
St Juan Macias OP (1585-1645)
About St Juan:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/09/18/saint-of-the-day-18-september-st-juan-macias-o-p-1585-1645/
St Oceano of Nicomedia
Saint Richardis (839-c 895)
St Sophia of Egypt
—
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Carlos Eraña Guruceta
• Blessed Fernando García Sendra
• Blessed Jacinto Hoyuelos Gonzalo
• Blessed Jesus Hita Miranda
• Blessed José García Mas
• Blessed José María Llópez Mora
• Blessed Justo Lerma Martínez
• Blessed Salvador Chuliá Ferrandis
• Blessed Salvador Fernández Pérez
• Blessed Vicente Gay Zarzo
• Blessed Vicente Jaunzarás Gómez
Thought for the Day – 17 September – Tuesday of the Twenty Fourth week in Ordinary Time, Year C and the Memorial of Saint Zygmunt Szcesny Felinski (1822-1895)
From a young age, the life of Zygmunt Szczęsny Feliński was marked by his striving after sanctity. Christ was for him “the Way, the Truth and the Life.” He wanted to achieve such a degree of unity with God so as to say after Saint Paul: I live now not with my own life but with the life of Christ who lives in me.
He was marked by unfaltering faith and utter trust in Providence. He always placed love of God and Church, devotion to his country and respect for all people in the first place. His great integrity, fortitude and justice were characteristic features of his spirituality. Apart from that, he was full of devotion and mercy marked by Franciscan cheerfulness, humility and straightforwardness – work and poverty. He was described as “the pride of the Polish episcopate”, “martyr”, “faithful son of the Church”.
Also nowadays, we can take the refreshing spirit and light from the treasury of his life. The Canonisation of the Shepherd-Exile encourages reflection on one’s own way of life, family and its revival, the building of the common house, the homeland, under God’s providential care and that of His Holy Mothe and ours.
During his Canonisation homily, on 11 October 2009, Pope Benedict said:
Archbishop of Warsaw, the Founder of the Congregation of the Franciscan Sisters of the Family of Mary, was a great witness of faith and pastoral charity in very troubled times for the nation and for the Church in Poland. He zealously concerned himself with the spiritual development of the faithful, he helped the poor and orphans. At the Ecclesiastical Academy in St Petersburg he saw to the sound formation of priests and as Archbishop of Warsaw he instilled in everyone the desire for inner renewal. Before the January 1863 Uprising against Russian annexation he put the people on guard against useless bloodshed. However, when the rebellion broke out and there were repressions he courageously defended the oppressed. On the Tsar of Russia’s orders he spent 20 years in exile at Jaroslaw on the Volga, without ever being able to return to his diocese. In every situation he retained his steadfast trust in Divine Providence and prayed: “O God, protect us not from the tribulations and worries of this world… only multiply love in our hearts and obtain that in deepest humility, we may keep our infinite trust in Your help and Your mercy”.Today his gift of himself to God and to humankind, full of trust and love, becomes a luminous example for the whole Church.
St Robert Bellarmine SJ (1542-1621) Doctor of the Church (Optional Memorial)
St Robert’s life here:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/09/17/saint-of-the-day-17-september-st-robert-bellarmine-s-j-doctor-of-the-church/
Stigmata of St Francis of Assisi
Two years before the great Saint Francis of Assisi died and when he was forty-two years old — one year after he had built the first crib in honour of Our Lord — he went off to a lonely mountain called Mount Alvernia, to prepare himself by forty days of fasting and prayer for the feast of Saint Michael, the greatest of God’s angels, whose feast day is 29 September. On the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross on 14 September, Saint Francis received in his hands, feet and side the Sacred Wounds from Our Lord’s own body.
Never was a saint more beautifully loved by Jesus than Saint Francis of Assisi. The wounds Jesus gave him stayed in his hands, feet and side and continually bled for two more years, until he died in 1226. The day on which Saint Francis received the Five Wounds of Our Lord was 14 September but so, that this beautiful event might have a feast day for itself, the Stigmata of Saint Francis are commemorated today, on 17 September. The simple liturgy of this holy saint’s life might be put this way – the crib in 122, and the Cross in 1224.
St Agathoclia
St Brogan of Ross Tuirc
St Columba of Cordova
St Crescentio of Rome
St Emmanuel Nguyen Van Trieu
St Flocellus
St Hildegard von Bingen OSB (1098-1179) Doctor of the Church
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/09/17/saint-of-the-day-17-september-st-hildegard-von-bingen-osb-1098-1179-doctor-of-the-church/
St Justin of Rome
St Lambert of Maastricht
St Narcissus of Rome
St Peter Arbues
St Rodingus
St Satyrus of Milan
St Socrates
Bl Stanislaus of Jesus and Mary
St Stephen
St Theodora
St Uni of Bremen
St Zygmunt Sajna
St Zygmunt Szcesny Felinski TOSF (1822-1895)
—
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War
• Blessed Álvaro Santos Cejudo Moreno Chocano
• Blessed Juan Ventura Solsona
• Blessed Timoteo Valero Pérez
Quote/s of the Day – 12 September – Feast of the Most Holy Name of Mary
“This most holy, sweet and worthy name
was eminently fitted
to so holy, sweet and worthy a virgin.
For Mary means a bitter sea, star of the sea,
the illuminated or illuminatrix.
Mary is interpreted Lady.
Mary is a bitter sea to the demons,
to men, she is the Star of the sea,
to the Angels, she is illuminatrix
and to all creatures she is Lady.”
“Mary means Star of the sea,
for as mariners are guided to port
by the ocean star,
so Christians attain to glory,
through Mary’s maternal intercession.”
“One cannot contemplate Mary
without being attracted by Christ
and one cannot look at Christ
without immediately perceiving
the presence of Mary.”
Mary’s Name
Rare perfume is a rough and reeking place,
A bell-like music breaking through the blare
Of strident streets, a dear remembered face
Appearing through the mind’s pondrous despair.
A foam of summer flowers fringing the drear
Immobile desert sea, a cherished voice
Calling in some long night of pain and fear
To make the heavy, heaving heart rejoice.
Such is the mystic wonder of her name
That is a shudder down Hell’s shaken halls,
And joy where angel-wings flit like white flames,
Where height to echoing height its glory calls.
The Apostle – October 1962
Saint of the Day – 11 September – Blessed Bonaventure of Barcelona OFM (1620-1684) Franciscan Friar, Reformer, Papal Adviser, Founder of Retreat houses – born on 24 November 1620 on Carrer de la Butxaca (Pocket Street) in Riudoms, Tarragona, Catalonia (in modern Spain) as Miguel Baptista Gran Peris (the street where he was born has been re-named in his honour) and died on 11 September 1684 at the friary of Saint Bonaventure on the Palantine Hill in Rome, Italy of natural causes. Patronage – Riudoms, Spain.
He was born in Riudoms, Catalonia, on 24 November 1620 in a modest house in the street known as a Pocket Street and now has his name. After marrying at the age of 18 as his father wished, he was widowed in a few months. He entered the Franciscan convent of Sant Miquel d’Escornalbou and made religious profession on 14 July 1641, changing his name to Bonaventura. In the following years, he was sent to Mora d’Ebre , Figueres, la Bisbal d’Empordà and Terrassa, where another street has been named for him.
In 1658 he was sent to Rome where he founded Santo Retiro are four monasteries in the province of Rome, including San Bonaventura al Palatino. He was an adviser to four popes – Alexander VII, Clement IX, Clement X and Innocent XI. In Rome in 1662 he founded the Riformella, a reform movement within the Reformed Order of Friars Minor of the Strict Observance, so the monks and Franciscan priests who dedicated themselves to the apostolate could gather in meditation and spiritual retreat, living the founding spirit of the Franciscan order.
In 1679, he sent from Rome the relics of Saint Boniface, Saint Julian and Saint Vincent. Since then, the second Sunday of May is celebrated in Riudoms as the Feast of the Holy Relics.
In 1775 he was declared venerable and in 1906 he was beatified by the Pope Pius X, after the verification of two miraculous healings. The first one in 1790 when a woman was in a serious condition after falling from the horse and was inexplicably cured after have invoked him. The other, in 1818 in which another woman remained unconscious for three days after childbirth and cured instantaneously after applying a relic of Bonaventura.
In Riudoms, his remains are preserved since 1972, when they were moved from Rome. They are currently in the tabernacle chapel in the church of Saint James the Apostle. In Riudoms, there is a great devotion to Blessed Bonaventura and a feast in his honour is celebrated every 24 November the day he honoured Riudoms by his birth, where his remains are taken in procession through the village.
Sunday Reflection – 8 September – Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
“When Mass ended I remained with Jesus to render Him thanks.
My thirst and hunger do not diminish after I have received Him in the Blessed Sacrament but rather, increase steadily.
Oh, how sweet was the conversation I held with Paradise this morning.
The Heart of Jesus and my own, if you will pardon my expression, fused.
They were no longer two hearts beating but only one.
My heart disappeared, as if it were, a drop in the ocean.”St Pio of Pietrelcina aka St Padre Pio (1887 to 1968)
Our Morning Offering – 8 September – Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C
My Lord, I am Unworthy!
Prayer before Holy Communion
By St Bonaventure (1217-1274)
Doctor of the Church
My Lord,
Who are You
and who am I,
that I should dare to take You
into my body and soul?
A thousand years
of penance and tears
would not be sufficient
to make me worthy
to receive so royal a Sacrament
even once!
How much more am I unworthy of it,
who fall into sin daily,
I, the incorrigible,
who approach You so often
without due preparation!
Nevertheless, Your mercy
infinitely surpasses my unworthiness.
Therefore, I make bold
to receive this Sacrament,
trusting in Your love.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 6 September – Friday of the Twenty-second week in Ordinary Time, Year C
Holy Spirit, Fire of Love
By St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231)
Doctor of the Church
Holy Spirit,
fire of love,
come rest over each of us,
make our tongue ready
to confess our sins,
that in revealing everything
and concealing nothing,
we may attain heavenly life
to sing eternal praise
with the angels.
With your help,
You who live
and reign through all ages.
Amen
Quote of the Day – 1 September – Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C and The 5th World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation
Dear mother earth, who day by day
Unfolds rich blessing on our way,
O praise God! Alleluia!
The fruits and flowers that verdant grow,
Let them His praise abundant show.
O praise God, O praise God,
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.St Francis of Assisi (c 1181-1226)
(Translated by William H Draper) (Image by St Francis by Albert Chevallier Tayler)
Our Morning Offering – 30 August – Friday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C
Send Us Your Sevenfold Grace
By St Bonaventure (1217-1274)
Doctor of the Church
Send upon us, O God,
the Spirit of sevenfold grace –
the spirit of wisdom,
enabling us to relish the fruit of the tree of life,
which is indeed Yourself;
the gift of understanding,
to enlighten our perceptions;
the gift of strength,
to withstand our adversary’s onslaught;
the gift of knowledge,
to distinguish good from evil
by the light of Your holy teaching;
the gift of piety,
to clothe ourselves with charity and mercy;
the gift of fear,
to withdraw from all ill-doing
and live quietly in awe of your eternal majesty.
These are the things for which we ask.
Grant them for the honour of Your Holy Name,
to which, with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
be all honour and glory,
thanksgiving, renown
and lordship forever and ever.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 17 August – Saturday of the Nineteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C and a Marian Saturday
The Praises of Mary
“Assumption”
Poem by Saint Anthony of Padua (1195-1231)
Doctor of the Church
O how wondrous is the dignity of the glorious Virgin!
She merited to become the mother of Him
who is the strength and beauty of the angels
and the grandeur of all the saints.
Mary was the seat of our sanctification,
that is to say,
the dwelling place of the Son
who sacrificed Himself for us.
“And I shall glorify the place where my feet have stood.”
The feet of the Saviour signify His human nature.
The place where the feet of the Saviour stood
was the Blessed Mary,
who gave Him His human nature.
Today the Lord glorifies that place,
since He has exalted Mary
above the choirs of the angels.
That is to say,
the Blessed Virgin,
who was the dwelling of the Saviour,
has been assumed bodily into heaven.
Thought for the Day – 14 August – Memorial of Saint Maximilian Mary Kolbe OFM Conv (1894 -1941) “Martyr of Charity”
“The burning zeal for God’s glory that motivates you fills my heart with joy. It is sad for us to see in our own time that indifferentism in its many forms is spreading like an epidemic not only among the laity but also among religious. But God is worthy of glory beyond measure and, therefore, it is of absolute and supreme importance, to seek that glory with all the power of our feeble resources. Since we are mere creatures we can never return to Him all that is His due.
The most resplendent manifestation of God’s glory is the salvation of souls, whom Christ redeemed by shedding His blood. To work for the salvation and sanctification of as many souls as possible, therefore, is the preeminent purpose of the apostolic life. Let me, then, say a few words that may show the way toward achieving God’s glory and the sanctification of many souls.
God, who is all-knowing and all-wise, knows best what we should do to increase His glory. Through hHs representatives on earth, He continually reveals His will to us, thus it is obedience and obedience alone, that is the sure sign to us of the divine will. A superior may, it is true, make a mistake but it is impossible for us to be mistaken in obeying a superior’s command. The only exception to this rule is the case of a superior commanding something, that in even the slightest way, would contravene God’s law. Such a superior would not be conveying God’s will.
God alone is infinitely wise, holy, merciful, our Lord, Creator and Father; He is beginning and end, wisdom and power and love, He is all. Everything other than God, has value to the degree, that it is referred to Him, the maker of all and our own redeemer, the final end of all things. It is He who, declaring His adorable will to us through His representatives on earth, draws us to Himself and whose plan is, to draw others to Himself through us and to join us all to Himself in an ever-deepening love.
Look, then, at the high dignity that by God’s mercy belongs to our state in life. Obedience raises us beyond the limits of our littleness and puts us in harmony with God’s will. In boundless wisdom and care, His will guides us to act rightly. Holding fast to that will, which no creature can thwart, we are filled with unsurpassable strength.
Obedience is the one and the only way of wisdom and prudence, for us to offer glory to God . If there were another, Christ would certainly have shown it to us by word and example. Scripture, however, summed up His entire life at Nazareth in the words: He was subject to them, Scripture set obedience as the theme of the rest of His life, repeatedly declaring that He came into the world, to do His Father’s will.
Let us love our loving Father with all our hearts. Let our obedience increase that love, above all, when it requires us to surrender our own will. Jesus Christ crucified is our sublime guide toward growth in God’s love.
We will learn this lesson more quickly through the Immaculate Virgin, whom God has made the dispenser of His mercy. It is beyond all doubt, that Mary’s will represents to us, the will of God Himself. By dedicating ourselves to her, we become in her hands, instruments of God’s mercy even as she was such an instrument in God’s hands. We should let ourselves be guided and led by Mary and rest quiet and secure in her hands. She will watch out for us, provide for us, answer our needs of body and spirit, she will dissolve all our difficulties and worries.”
Quote/s of the Day – 14 August – The Memorial of St Maximillian Kolbe OFM Conv (1894 -1941) “Martyr of Charity”
“A man cannot rise any higher than this.
The Immaculate is the highest degree
of perfection and sanctity of a creature.
No man will ever attain this celestial summit of grace,
for the Mother of God is unique.
However, he who gives himself without limits,
to the Immaculate, will in a short time,
attain a very high degree of perfection
and procure for God, a very great glory.”
“We do not limit ourselves in love.
We want to love the Lord Jesus,
with her heart,
or rather, that she would love the Lord,
with our heart.”
“Let us not forget,
that Jesus not only suffered
but also rose in glory;
so, too, we go to the glory
of the Resurrection,
by way of suffering
and the Cross.”
“The most deadly poison of our times is indifference.
And this happens, although the praise of God
should know no limits.
Let us strive, therefore, to praise Him
to the greatest extent of our powers!”
“Be a Catholic!
When you kneel before an altar,
do it in such a way that others
may be able to recognise
that you know before Whom you kneel.”
AnaStpaul 
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