Category: LENT

Posted in LENT, MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY

Quinquagesima Sunday, Feast of Our Lady of Lourdes and the Saints for 11 February

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Quinquagesima Sunday:
This Season is seventeen (17) days long and includes the three Sundays before Ash Wednesday.
The length of the Season never changes but the start date is dependent on the movable date of Easter, which can fall between 22 March-25 April.
For many early Christians Quinquagesima marked the time after which meat was forbidden. In many places, this Sunday and the next two days, were used to prepare for Lent by a good Confession; hence in England, we find the names Shrove Sunday and Shrovetide. Shrove is a form of the English word “shrive,” which means – to obtain absolution for one’s sins by way of Confession and doing penance..
As the days before Lent were frequently spent in merry-making, Pope Benedict XIV by the Constitution “Inter Cetera” (1 January 1748) introduced a Forty Hours’ Devotion to keep the faithful from dangerous amusements and to make some reparation for sins committed.
Quinquagesima also means, the time between Easter and Pentecost, or from the Saturday after Easter to the Sunday after Pentecost; it is then called Quinquagesima Paschae paschalis, or laetitae.

Notre-Dame-de-Lourdes / Our Lady of Lourdes (11 February and 16 July of 1858) – (Optional Memorial)
Our Lady of Lourdes:
HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/02/11/our-lady-of-lourdes-and-memorials-of-the-saints-11-february/
AND:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/02/11/the-memorial-of-the-apparitions-of-our-lady-of-lourdes-our-lady-of-the-immaculate-conception-and-the-26th-world-day-of-prayer-for-the-sick/

St Ampelius of Africa
St Ardanus of Tournus
Bl Bartholomew of Olmedo

St Caedmon (Died c680) Monk and the is the earliest English known Poet of Sacred verse,
Biography of St Caedmon:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/02/11/saint-of-the-day-11-february-st-caedmon-died-c-680/

St Calocerus of Ravenna
St Castrensis of Capua
St Dativus the Senator
Bl Elizabeth Salviati
St Etchen of Clonfad
St Eutropius of Adrianopolis
St Felix the Senator

St Gobnata (6th Century) Abbess, Founder of a Convent and ‘Order’ of Sisters, Miracle-worker, Apostle of the sick. Patronages – of bees, beekeepers.
About St Gobnata or Abigail:

St Pope Gregory II (669-731) Bishop of Rome from 715-731, Pope Gregory was a man of immense intellect and used his talents in negotiating peace in times of war and fought for the truth of the faith against heresies. He was a miracle-worker who placed all his trust in God ‘s Divine Providence.
About “The Defender of Icons”
https://anastpaul.com/2020/02/11/saint-of-the-day-11-february-saint-pope-gregory-ii-669-731-defender-of-icons/

St Helwisa
St Jonas of Muchon

St Lazarus of Milan (Died 449) Archbishop of Milan.
About this St Lazarus:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/02/11/saint-of-the-day-11-february-saint-lazarus-of-milan-died-449-archbishop-of-milan/

St Lucius of Adrianople
St Pedro de Jesús Maldonado-Lucero
St Saturninus of Africa
St Secundus of Puglia
St Severinus of Agaunum (Died c507) Abbot
St Simplicius of Vienne (Died c417) Bishop
St Theodora the Empress

Guardians of the Sacred Scriptures: Also known as – Anonymous Martyrs in Africa – Martyrs of Africa – Martyrs of Numidia – Martyrs of the Sacred Books
A large number of Christians tortured and murdered in Numidia (part of modern Algeria) during the persecutions of Diocletian but whose names and individual lives have not survived. They were ordered to surrender their sacred books to be burned. They refused. Martyrs. c 303 in Numidia.

Martyrs of Africa – 5 Saints: A group of five Christians who were Martyred together; we know nothing else but the names of four of them – Cyriacus, Oecominius, Peleonicus and Zoticus.

Posted in ACT of CONTRITION, CONFESSION/PENANCE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, GOD is LOVE, LENT, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on BAD CONVERSATION, QUOTES on FORGIVENESS, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on MERCY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on UNITY/with GOD, QUOTES on VICE, QUOTES on VIRTUE, REDEMPTORISTS CSSR, St Francis de Sales, The PASSION, To JESUS through MARY

Quote/s of the Day – 5 February – In Sexagesima Week, Preparing for Lent

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 5 February – In Sexagesima Week, Preparing for Lent

“Listen to the Lord’s appeal:
‘Come, then, return to Me
and learn to know Me as your Father,
Who repays good for evil,
love for injury
and boundless charity
for piercing wounds!”

St Peter Chrysologus (c400-450)
“Golden Words”
Father & Doctor of the Church

Have Mercy, Lord
By St Peter Damian (1007-1072)
Father & Doctor of the Church

Have mercy, Lord,
on all my friends and relatives,
on all my benefactors,
on all who pray to Thee for me
and on all who have asked me
to pray to Thee, for them.
Give them the spirit of fruitful penance,
mortify them in all vices
and make them flower
in all Thy virtues.
Amen

“What better penance
can a heart do
which commits faults,
than to submit
to a continual abnegation
of self-will?”

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of the Church

O Jesus, My Sweet Love!
(I too have kept Thee suffering)
Prayer of Contrition
By St Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor of the Church

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

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

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

Posted in BLESSED TRINITY PRAYERS, CONSECRATION Prayers, FEBRUARY - THE BLESSED TRINITY (Traditional), LENT, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, St Francis de Sales, The MOST HOLY & BLESSED TRINITY

Our Morning Offering – 4 February – An Act of Consecration to the Holy Trinity

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Our Morning Offering – 4 February – “The Month of the Most Holy and Blessed Trinity” – Sexagesima Sunday

An Act of Consecration to the Holy Trinity
By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor of Charity

I vow and consecrate to God
all that is in me:
my memory and my actions
to God the Father;
my understanding
and my words
to God the Son;
my will and my thoughts
to God the Holy Ghost;
my heart, my body,
my tongue, my senses
and all my sorrows
to the Sacred Humanity of Jesus Christ,
“who was content to be betrayed
into the hands of wicked men
and to suffer the torment of the Cross..”
Amen

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, GOD is LOVE, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, Quotes on SALVATION, QUOTES on THE VOICE OF GOD, The NATIVITY of JESUS, The REDEMPTION

Quote/s of the Day – 4 December – St Peter Chrysologus

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Quote/s of the Day – 4 December – St Peter Chrysologus (c400-450) “Golden Words” Confessor, Father & Doctor of the Church

“Listen to the Lord’s appeal:
‘Come, then, return to Me
and learn to know Me as your Father,
Who repays good for evil,
love for injury
and boundless charity
for piercing wounds!”

“Christ’s birth was not necessity
but, an expression of omnipotence,
a sacrament of piety for the redemption of men.
He, Who made man, without generation,
from pure clay, made man again
and was born from a pure body.
The Hand which assumed clay
to make our flesh,
deigned to assume a body,
for your salvation!
That the Creator is in His creature
and God is in the flesh,
brings dignity to man. without dishonour to Him
Who made him.
Why then, man, are you so worthless
in your own eyes and yet, so precious to God?!”

MORE:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/12/04/quote-s-of-the-day-4-december-st-peter-chrysologus-golden-words/

St Peter Chrysologus (c400-450)
“Golden Words”
Father & Doctor of the Church

Posted in DOCTRINE, FATHERS of the Church, HOLY WEEK, HOLY WEEK 2019, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The HOLY CROSS, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The NATIVITY of the BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The PASSION, The SIGN of the CROSS

Quote/s of the Day – 4 July – St Andrew of Crete

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Quote/s of the Day – 4 July – St Andrew of Crete (c660-c740) Bishop, Father of the Church

“But Jesus he delivered up to their will.”
Luke 23:25

“Then, let us run with Him as He presses on to His Passion.
Let us imitate those who have gone out to meet Him,
not scattering olive branches
or garments or palms in His path
but spreading ourselves before Him as best we can,
with humility of soul and upright purpose.
So may we welcome the Word as He comes (Jn 1:9);
so may God, Who cannot be contained within any bounds,
be contained within us.
For He is pleased to have shown us this gentleness,
He, Who is gentle and who “rides upon the setting sun”
(Ps 56:12) which refers to our extreme lowliness.
He is pleased to come and live with us
and to raise us up or bring us back to Himself

“We are celebrating the Feast of the Cross
which drove away darkness and brought in the light…
Had there been no Cross,
Christ could not have been Crucified.
Had there been no Cross,
Life Itself could not have been nailed to the tree.
And if Life had not been nailed to it,
there would be no streams of immortality,
pouring from Christ’s side –
Blood and Water for the world’s cleansing.
The legal bond of our sin would not be cancelled,
we should not have obtained our freedom,
we should not have enjoyed the fruit
of the tree of life and the Gates of Paradise
would not stand open.
Had there been no Cross,
death would not have been trodden underfoot,
nor hell despoiled…
The Cross is called Christ’s glory;
it is saluted as His triumph,
through the Word which unites to God!”

“… The design of the Redeemer of our race
was to bring about a birth and, as it were,
a new creation to replace the one that went before.
Therefore, just as in Paradise,
He had taken a little clay
out of the pure and spotless earth,
to fashion the first Adam (Gn 2,7),
so, at the moment of bringing about
His Own Incarnation,
He made use of another earth, so to speak,
namely, this Pure and Immaculate Virgin,
chosen from among all other beings He had created.
It is in her that He, Adam’s Creator,
has remade us in our very substance
and became a new Adam (1Cor 15,45)
that the old might be saved by the new and eternal.”

“Today the Virgin is born,
tended and formed
and prepared for her role as Mother of God,
who is the universal King of the ages.
… Therefore, let all creation sing and dance
and unite, to make worthy contribution
to the celebration of this day.
… Let everything, mundane things
and those above, join in festive celebration.
Today, this created world is raised
to the dignity of a holy place
for Him, Who made all things.
The creature is newly prepared
to be a Divine Dwelling Place for the Creator.”

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

Posted in CHRIST the HIGH PRIEST, EASTER, FATHERS of the Church, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on MERCY, Quotes on SALVATION, The LAMB of GOD, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR

Our Morning Offering – 13 April – O Lamb of God By St Irenaeus

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Our Morning Offering – 13 April – Easter Thursday and “The Month of the Resurrection”

O Lamb of God
By St Irenaeus (c130 – c202)
Bishop & Martyr,
Father of the Church

O Lamb of God,
who takes away the sin of the world,
look upon us
and have mercy upon us,
Thou who art Thyself,
both Victim and Priest,
Thyself, both Reward and Redeemer,
keep safe from all evil
those whom Thou hast redeemed,
O Saviour of the world!
Amen

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, EASTER, LENT 2023, NOTES to Followers, QUOTES on JOY, St Francis de Sales

Wishing you all a most Blessed and Holy Easter! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Wishing you all a most Blessed and Holy Easter! Alleluia!

Thank you for accompanying me on our Lenten journey with St Francis de Sales. I hope his words have been inspiring and helpful.
Today we rejoice and continue with joy singing in our hearts through the Octave as we celebrate this great Feast!
And, St Francis will not be leaving at all, he has hired a permanent abode here that we might visit him as often as we wish.

“Live joyfully!
Our Lord is looking lovingly down upon you! ”

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

My deepest gratitude to the benefactors of “Breathing Catholic.” 💘🤗 Your faithfulness and love are in my heart and my prayers.
May the Risen Lord fill your hearts with His infinite love, may He protect your faith and your families.

Posted in CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, EASTER, GOD ALONE!, LENT 2023, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on FEAR, QUOTES on STRENGTH

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 9 April – Easter Sunday, Such is the case when one is without God …

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 9 April – Easter Sunday, Alleluia, He is Truly Risen, Alleluia!

“Such is the case when one is without God … ”
St Francis de Sales

EASTER SUNDAY!
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“Alas, how the faith of Jesus’ Apostles is shaken after His Crucifixion!
Assembled in a room with closed doors, they are filled with fear.
Then Jesus enters, stands in their midst and greets them: ‘Peace be with you.’
Showing them the signs and marks of the reconciliation of humanity with God, He says, ‘See My Hands and My Side.’
Why does He do this?
To bolster their vacillating faith. Without the presence of our Saviour, they felt timid and lacked strength.
Such is the case when one is without God. They were afraid. Like a ship tossed in a storm without a pilot, such was this poor boat.
Our Lord appears to His disciples to bring relief to their fear.” – (Sermon of St Francis de Sales for Lent).

Posted in DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, HOLY WEEK, LENT 2023, QUOTES on BLASPHEMY, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, The HEART, The PASSION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 5 April – “Spy” Wednesday in Holy Week – O miserable Judas!

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 5 April – “Spy” Wednesday in Holy Week – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“O miserable Judas!
He saw the gravity of his crime and despaired.”
St Francis de Sales

“SPY” WEDNESDAY
Judas
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“O MISERABLE JUDAS!
He saw the gravity of his crime and despaired.
Truly, he confessed his sin, for in returning to the chief priests the thirty pieces of silver ,for which he had sold his good Master, he acknowledged aloud that he had sold innocent blood. [Matt. 27:3-5.]
But these priests would give him no absolution.
Alas, did not this unhappy man know that Our Lord alone could give it to him, that He was the Saviour and held Redemption in His hands?
Had he not seen this Truth clearly in those whose sins Jesus had remitted? Certainly, he knew it but he did not wish, nor
dare, to ask pardon.

To make him despair, the devil showed him the enormity and hideousness of his crime and, perhaps, made him fear that if he asked his Master’s pardon, He might impose too great a penance. Perhaps for fear of such penance, he was unwilling to ask for forgiveness.
Thus, despairing, he hanged himself and his body burst wide
open, all his entrails spilling out [Acts 1:18] and he was buried in the deepest of Hells.” – (Sermons of St Francis de Sales for Lent).

“O God, fullness of goodness,
You do not forsake any,
except those who forsake You.
You never take away Your gifts,
except when we take away our hearts.
We rob the goodness of God,
if we claim the glory of our salvation for ourselves.
We dishonour His mercy,
if we say He has failed us.
… We blaspheme His goodness,
if we deny that He has helped and assisted us.
In short, O God, cry loud and clear into our ears:
“your destruction comes from you, O Israel.
In me alone is found your help” (Hos 13:9).

St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritatis
Treatise on the Love of God, Ch 9

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOMINICAN OP, FATHERS of the Church, HOLY WEEK, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on KINDNESS, QUOTES on MYSTERIES of our FAITH, Quotes on SALVATION, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The PASSION, The REDEMPTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 5 April – ‘Come, come, let us go up together to the Mount of Olives.’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 5 April – St Vincent Ferrer (1350-1419) Confessor called the “Angel of the Apocalypse” and of “The Last Judgement” and the “Mouthpiece of God.”– “Spy” Wednesday in Holy Week – Isaias 53:1-12, Luke 22:1-71 and 23:1-53 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“But Jesus he delivered up to their will.” – Luke 23:25

REFLECTION – “Come, come, let us go up together to the Mount of Olives. Together let us meet Christ, Who is returning today from Bethany and going of His own accord to that Holy and Blessed Passion, to complete the Mystery of our Salvation. And so He comes, willingly taking the road to Jerusalem, He Who came down from the heights for us, to raise us who lie in the depths, to exaltation with Him, as the revealing Word says: “above all authority and rule and power and above every Name that is named” (Eph 1:21). He comes without display, without boast. For, as the prophet says, “He will not contend or shout out and no-one will hear His Voice” (Is 42:2). He is gentle and lowly and His entrance is humble…

Then, let us run with Him as He presses on, to His Passion. Let us imitate those who have gone out to meet Him, not scattering olive branches or garments or palms in His path but spreading ourselves before Him as best we can, with humility of soul and upright purpose. So may we welcome the Word as He comes (Jn 1:9); so may God, Who cannot be contained within any bounds, be contained within us.

For He is pleased to have shown us this gentleness, He Who is gentle and who “rides upon the setting sun” (Ps 56:12) which refers to our extreme lowliness. He is pleased to come and live with us and to raise us up or bring us back to Himself through the Word which unites to God.” – St Andrew of Crete (660-740) Bishop and Father (Homily for Palm Sunday).

PRAYER – O God, Who graciously enlightened Thy Church by the virtues and preaching of blessed Vincent, Thy Confessor, grant that we, Thy servants, may be taught by his example and delivered from all harm by his intercession. Through Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, HOLY WEEK, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, Quotes on SALVATION, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The HOLY CROSS, The PASSION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 4 April – Tuesday in Holy Week – “There is no salvation except in this Cross”

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 4 April – Tuesday in Holy Week

“There is no salvation except in this Cross”
St Francis de Sales

TUESDAY IN HOLY WEEK
Obedience
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“MISERABLE PEOPLE, what do you mean by asking our dear Saviour and Master, to descend from this gibbet?
He will certainly not do so, for as St Paul says, He humbled Himself, obediently accepting even death, death on a Cross.

He mounted the Cross through obedience and died on it through obedience.

All those who are willing to be saved through the Cross, will find salvation there.
But those who desire to be saved without it, will perish miserably.
There is no salvation, except in this Cross.” – (Sermons of St Francis de Sales for Lent).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, HOLY WEEK, LENT 2023, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The PASSION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 3 April – Monday in Holy Week “ – Her heart was crucified with the same nails which Crucified Our Lord’s Body …”

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 3 April – Monday in Holy Week

“Her heart was crucified
with the same nails
which Crucified Our Lord’s Body …”
St Francis de Sales

MONDAY in HOLY WEEK
Our Lord’s Third Word …
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“OUR LORD’S THIRD WORD was one of consolation.
He spoke it to His sacred Mother who was at the foot of the Cross, pierced by a sword of sorrow [Lk 2:35] but certainly not swooning, nor with faint heart, as artists have falsely and
impertinently painted her.
The Evangelist clearly says the contrary, insisting that she
remained standing with an incomparable firmness [Jn. 19:25].
That courage did not keep her from the grieving which she endured with the generous and magnanimous heart belonging to her alone.
O God! what agonies were hers!
They are inexplicable and inconceivable.
Her heart was crucified with the same nails which Crucified Our Lord’s Body, for now she would be without both Child and husband.

Seeing her in this distress, our dear Saviour said a word of consolation to her. But this consoling and tender word was not given to lift her heart from such great desolation.
The heart of this perfectly submissive and resigned holy Virgin needed to be extremely strong and Our Lord, Who knew her so well, dealt with her accordingly.
Indicating St John, His Heart’s beloved disciple, He said: Woman, there is your son. [Jn. 19:26.] He gave him to her to care for her, for this holy Virgin was not thinking of herself at all. Her every thought was centered around her Divine Son’s Sorrows, Sorrows which she herself pondered in her soul [cf Lk 2:35, 51] while at theFoot of His Cross.” – (Sermons of St Francis de Sales for or Lent).

Posted in "Follow Me", CATECHESIS, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, QUOTES on FEAR, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on THE WORLD, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, The WILL of GOD

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 2 April – Palm Sunday, Humility

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 2 April – Palm Sunday – Philippians 2:5-11, Matthew 26:36-75; 2 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Thou hast held me by my right hand
and by Thy will, Thou hast conducted me
and in Thy glory, Thou hast received me.”
Psalm 72:24

“Behold the hour is at hand
and the Son of man shall be betrayed
into the hands of sinners.”
Matthew 26:45

PALM SUNDAY – HUMILITY
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“THE APOSTLES LED the ass and colt to Our Lord. …
This ass and colt had only the Apostles’ cloaks laid on them, then Our Lord mounted … and in this abjection and humility, He made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem.
In this He confounded the world which overthrows all the maxims of the Gospel, relishing neither humility nor abjection.
It never ceases to say: “Unfortunate are the poor and suffering. But how happy that wealthy one is!”
“Why do you find him happy?”
“Because his barn is full of grain and his cellar is full of wine.
This girl is also happy because she too is rich, well dressed and covered with jewels.”
Others are considered happy because their hair is well curled or daintily braided, or they have a fancy gown.
How childish all this is! Nevertheless, these are the kinds of people the world considers happy and fortunate!

Our Lord turns all such ideas upside down today by His entrance into Jerusalem. He in no way acts like princes of the world, who, when entering a City, do it with much pomp, show and expense. He chooses no other mount but an ass covered with the worthless and poor cloaks of His Apostles.

Oh! how blessed are they whom our Divine Master chooses to carry Him, who are covered with the Apostles’ cloaks, that is, clothed with apostolic virtues, which render them worthy of bearing our dear Saviour and of being led by Him.
Blessed are they who conduct themselves here in lowliness and humility. They will be exalted in Heaven [Matt. 18:4; 23:12; Lk. 14:11; 18:14].
Their patience will win for them perpetual peace and tranquility; for their obedience they shall receive a crown of glory [Tab. 3:21; James 1:12]; finally, they shall be covered with the hundredfold of blessings in this life and shall bless the Father, Son and Holy Ghost, eternally in the next.
May God give us this grace. Amen.” – (Spiritual Conferences, XVII – St Francis de Sales).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The HOLY CROSS, The PASSION, The SIGN of the CROSS

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 1 April – Saturday in Passion Week, Thy Holy Cross

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 1 April – Saturday in Passion Week

“Thy Holy Cross ”

SATURDAY IN PASSION WEEK
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“IT WILL BE USEFUL always to carry the Crucifix about with us, to kiss it often with love, to look upon it with respect and tenderness, saying at times:
O Jesus, the Beloved of my heart,
permit me to press Thee to my breast
as a bundle of myrrh.
I promise that my mouth,
which is so happy as to kiss Thy Holy Cross,
shall abstain from deceits,
from murmurs, from every word
which might displease Thee;
that my eyes, which behold Thy tears
and Blood flowing for my sins,
shall look no more upon the vanities
of the world, or anything
which might expose me to offend Thee;
that my ears, which hear
with so much consolation
the seven words pronounced on the Cross,
shall take no more pleasure in empty praise,
in useless conversation,
in words that wound the neighbour;
that my mind, after having studied
with so much relish,
the Mystery of the Cross,
shall be closed against all vain or evil thoughts
and imaginations;
that my will, submissive to the laws of the Cross
and to the love of Jesus Crucified,
shall have only charity towards my brethren
that, in fine, nothing shall enter into ,
or depart from my heart,
without the permission of this Holy Cross,
the Sacred Sign of which,
I trace upon myself at rising
and at going to rest
and in all the sorrows of life.
Amen.” – (Consoling Thoughts of St Francis de Sales).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES on the CROSS of CHRIST, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, St PAUL!, The HOLY CROSS, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The PASSION, The REDEMPTION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 31 March – Friday in Passion Week, Blessed is the soul, which thus everywhere,,finds Jesus Christ Crucified!

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 31 March – – Friday in Passion Week, The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin

“Blessed is the soul, which thus everywhere,
finds Jesus Christ Crucified!”
St Francis de Sales

FRIDAY IN PASSION WEEK
The Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“St Paul, the incomparable master, the great Doctor of the Infant Church, made Jesus Christ on the Cross the delightful object of his love, the sweet subject of his discourses, the end of all his aspirations in this world and the foundation of all his hopes in eternity.
“I have judged myself,” he says, “to know nothing but my Jesus Crucified; God forbid that I should ever glory in any other thing. than in the Cross of my Jesus and think not that I have any other life, than that of the Cross; for I assure you, that I so feel and behold everywhere, the Cross of my Saviour, that by His grace I am altogether crucified to the world and the world is entirely crucified to me.”
Blessed is the soul, which thus everywhere, finds Jesus Christ Crucified!” – (Consoling Thoughts of St Francis de Sales).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, DYING / LAST WORDS, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, SEPTEMBER-The SEVEN SORROWS of MARY and The HOLY CROSS, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 31 March – “Woman, behold thy son. … Behold thy mother” – John 19:26

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One Minute Reflection – 31 March – Friday in Passion Week, the Fifth Friday in Lent, Our Lady of the Seven Sorrows – Judith 13:22, 25, John 19:25-27 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Woman, behold thy son. … Behold thy mother” – John 19:26

REFLECTION – “Mary, the Mother of the Lord, stood by her Son’s Cross. No-one has taught me this but the holy Evangelist John. Others have related how the earth was shaken at the Lord’s Passion, the sky was covered with darkness, the sun withdrew itself and how, the thief was, after a faithful confession, received into paradise. John tells us what the others have not told, how the Lord, while fixed on the Cross called to His Mother. He thought it was more important that, victorious over His sufferings, Jesus gave her the offices of piety, than that He gave her a Heavenly Kingdom. For if it is the mark of religion to grant pardon to the thief, it is a mark of much greater piety, that a mother is honoured with such affection, by her Son. “Behold,” He says, “thy son.” “Behold thy mother.” Christ testified from the Cross and divided the offices of piety, between the mother and the disciple.

Nor was Mary below what was becoming the Mother of Christ. When the Apostles fled, she stood at the Cross and with pious eyes beheld her Son’s wounds. For she did not look to the death of her offspring but to the salvation of the world. Or perhaps, because that “royal hall” knew, that the redemption of the world would be through the death of her Son, she thought that by her death, she also might add something to that universal gift. But Jesus did not need a helper, for the redemption of all, Who saved all without a helper. This is why He says, “I am counted among those who go down to the pit. I am like those who have no help.” He received indeed, the affection of His Mother but sought not another’s help. Imitate her, holy mothers, who in her only dearly beloved Son, set forth so great an example of maternal virtue. For neither have you sweeter children, nor did the Virgin seek the consolation of being able to bear another son.” – St Ambrose (340-397) Archbishop of Milan, Great Western Father and Doctor (Letter 63)

PRAYER – O God, in Whose Passion the sword, according to the prophecy of blessed Simeon, pierced through the soul of Mary, the glorious Virgin and Mother, mercifully grant that we, who reverently commemorate her piercing through and her suffering, may, by the interceding glorious merits of all the saints faithfully standing by the Cross, obtain the abundant fruit of Thy Passion. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, The MOST HOLY REDEEMER, Our SAVIOUR, The PASSION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 30 March – Thursday in Passion Week – Live Jesus, Who didst die that my soul might live!

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 30 March – Thursday in Passion Week

“Live Jesus, Who didst die
that my soul might live!”
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)

THURSDAY IN PASSION WEEK
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“MY SOUL, live henceforward amid the scourges and the thorns of thy Saviour and there, as a nightingale in its bush, sing sweetly:
Live Jesus, Who didst die that my soul might live!
Ah, Eternal Father!
What can the world return Thee for the gift Thou hast made it of Thy only Son?
Alas! to redeem a thing so vile as I, the Saviour delivered Himself to death and, unhappy me! I hesitate to surrender my nothingness to Him, Who has given me everything!” – (Consoling Thoughts of St Francis de Sales).

Posted in CATECHESIS, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, GOD is LOVE, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, LENT 2023, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, Quotes on SALVATION, St Francis de Sales, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, The PASSION, The REDEMPTION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 29 March – WEDNESDAY IN PASSION WEEK – “He has become all ours, to make us all His.”

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 29 March – Wednesday in Passion Week

“He has become all ours,
to make us all His.”
St Francis de Sales

WEDNESDAY IN PASSION WEEK
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“Since Our Lord has so much loved us, that He has equally redeemed all, bedewed us with His Divine Blood and called us to Himself, without excluding anyone; since He has become all ours, to make us all His, giving us His Death and His Life to deliver us from eternal death and to procure us the joys of eternal life, that we may belong to Him in this mortal life and yet more perfectly, in the next.

What remains, what conclusion have we to draw, unless that living, we should no longer live for ourselves but for Jesus Christ, Who died for us; that is, we should Consecrate to Him, every moment of our life, referring to His glory our works, our thoughts and our affections?” – (Consoling Thoughts of St Francis de Sales).

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2023, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on REPARATION/EXPIATION, SACRED HEART PRAYERS, The WILL of GOD

Our Morning Offering – 29 March – A Lenten Offering By St Thérèse

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Our Morning Offering – 29 March – Wednesday in Passion Week

A Lenten Offering
By St Thérèse of the Child Jesus
and the Holy Face of Lisieux (1873-1897)

O my God!
I offer Thee all my actions of this Lent
for the intentions and for the glory
of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.
I desire to sanctify every beat of my heart,
my every thought,
my simplest works,
by uniting them to Its Infinite Merits
and I wish to make reparation for my sins,
by casting them into the furnace
of Its Merciful Love.
O my God!
I ask of Thee for myself
and for those whom I hold dear,
the grace to fulfil perfectly Thy Holy Will,
to accept for love of Thee,
the joys and sorrows of this passing life,
so that we may one day
be united together in Heaven,
for all eternity.
Amen

Posted in "Follow Me", DOCTORS of the Church, GOD is LOVE, JUNE-THE SACRED HEART, LENT 2023, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on VOCATIONS, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS, SACRED HEART REFLECTIONS, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The PASSION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 28 March – TUESDAY IN PASSION WEEK –“Arrows of Love”

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 28 March

“Arrows of Love”
St Francis de Sales

TUESDAY IN PASSION WEEK
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“HE WISHED, even after His death, to have His side opened, that we might see the thoughts of His Heart, which were all thoughts of love and that we might go to Him with confidence, in order to hide ourselves in His side and to receive, from Him, an abundance of graces and benedictions.

In this manner, from the first moment of His life until the present hour, has the kind Jesus been continually drawing arrows, if we may so speak, from the quiver of His love, with which to wound the souls of His lovers, showing them clearly, that they can never love Him nearly as much as He deserves.

My God, could He show more love to sinners than to become a perfect holocaust for their sins?
Ah! if we could see the Heart of Jesus, such as it is, we should die of love for Him, since we are mortal, as He died of love of us, while He was mortal and as He would die again, if He were not now immortal.
Nothing has as much power to wound a loving heart, as to see another heart wounded for love of it.” – (Consoling Thoughts of St Francis de Sales).

Posted in CATECHESIS, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, GOD is LOVE, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES on CHARITY, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on MYSTERIES of our FAITH, Quotes on SALVATION, QUOTES on TRUTH

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 27 March – MONDAY IN PASSION WEEK – “In love, by love, for love and of love”

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 27 March – Monday of Passion Week

“In love, by love, for love and of love”
St Francis de Sales

MONDAY IN PASSION WEEK
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“THE SWEET JESUS was scourged, crowned, condemned, mocked and rejected as man, devoted, destined and dedicated to carry out and endure, the opprobriums and ignominies due in punishment to all sins and He served as a general sacrifice for sin, being made, as it were, an anathema, separated from and abandoned by His Eternal Father.

The Divine Saviour wished to die in the flames of love because of the Infinite Charity He bore towards us and, by the force and power of love, that is to say, He would die in love, by love, for love and of love.
This is what He Himself says:
“No-one takes away My life but I lay it down of Myself, for I have power to lay it down and to take it up again” .—He was offered, says Isaias because He wished it.” – (Consoling Thoughts of St Francis de Sales).

Posted in CATECHESIS, DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES on CONSCIENCE, QUOTES on DEATH, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, St Francis de Sales, The LAST THINGS, The PASSION, The WORD

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 26 March – DEATH

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 26 March – Passion Sunday – Hebrews 9:11-15, John 8:46-59 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“… By means of His death,
… they, who have been called,
may receive the eternal inheritance,
according to the promise,
in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Hebrews 9:15

“Amen, amen, I say to you,
if anyone keep My word,
he will never see death.”
John 8:51

DEATH
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“CONSIDER THE UNCERTAINTY of the day of your death. One day, my soul, you must depart from this body. When will it be? In winter or summer? In town or country? At home or afar? During the day or the night? With or without warning? As a result of illness of accident? Shall I have a chance to go to Confession? Shall I be assisted by a Priest? Will I be prepared? Unhappily, I know the answer to none of these things. Only one thing is certain – that I shall die and sooner than I imagine.”

Consider that then, the world will come to an end, as far as you are concerned. You will have no more part in it. It will turn upside down before your eyes, for worldly joys and pleasures and the things you loved in vain, will turn into empty dreams and shadows.
Fool that I am to offend God for the sake of such trifling vanities. I have forsaken God and for what – for nothing!
On the other hand, devotion and good deeds will be seen as desirable and delightful and you will ask yourself – why did I not take this beautiful and pleasant path of everlasting joy?
At that hour, your sins – which at the time seemed so small – will appear as vast as mountains and your devotions truly small. …

Pray to God and cast yourself into His arms.
O my God, take me into Thy care on that terrible day; may all other days be sad, if only that single day will be a happy one!
Thank God for inspiring these resolutions and offer them to Him, imploring Him to grant you the grace of a Happy Death, through the merits of His Son and through the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary and all the Saints.
Carry with you always a small Happy Death Crucifix, properly blessed, to obtain a Plenary Indulgence at the hour of death and meditate upon it often.” – (Introduction to the Devout Life – Excerpt from The Fifth Meditation on Death).

The Complete Fifth Meditation:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Muoe86JLRA

WHAT IS A HAPPY DEATH CRUCIFIX?
A Crucifix which displays the “Skull and Crossbones” preferably at the Feet of Jesus.
“The skull and bones have many symbolic meanings. All Catholics are encouraged to meditate on the “Four Last Things – Death and Judgement, Heaven and Hell” so that they will live in a state of grace and prepare themselves for Heaven.
The skull is a great reminder of human mortality. Jesus Christ was Crucified on Golgotha – “the place of the skull,”
There is a tradition that Christ, the New Adam, Who conquered sin and death, was Crucified on the gravesite of the first man, Adam, who brought sin and death into the world through his disobedience to God.
The skull is a symbol of Adam’s grave.
Most important of all, the skull and bones are placed beneath Jesus’ Feet, to show that He triumphed over death and sin on our behalf.”

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, GOOD FRIDAY, HOLY WEEK, LENT 2023, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The PASSION

Our Morning Offering – 26 March – Prayer to Christ in His Passion and Death By St Francis de Sales

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Our Morning Offering – 26 March – Passion Sunday

Hail, Sweet Jesus!
Prayer to Christ
in His Passion and Death
By St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

Hail, sweet Jesus!
Praise, honour and glory be to Thee, O Christ,
Who, of Thou own accord, embraced death,
and recommending Thyself to Thy heavenly Father,
bowing down Thy venerable Head,
did yield up Thy Spirit.
Truly thus giving up Thy life for Thy sheep,
Thou hast shown Thyself, to be the Good Shepherd.
Thou died, O Only-begotten Son of God.
Thou died, O my beloved Saviour,
that I might live forever.
O how great hope,
how great confidence have
I reposed in Thy Death and Thy Blood!
I glorify and praise Thy Holy Name,
acknowledging my infinite obligations to Thee.
O good Jesus,
by Thy bitter Death and Passion,
give me grace and pardon.
Give unto the faithful departed,
rest and life everlasting.
Amen.

Posted in CATECHESIS, DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2023, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MOTHER of GOD, QUOTES on CHASTITY, QUOTES on HUMILITY, St Francis de Sales, The ANNUNCIATION

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 25 March – CHASTITY and HUMILITY

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 25 March – The Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary – Isaias 7:10-15, Luke 1:26-38 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Hail, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee,
blessed art thou amongst women!”
Luke 1:28

“And Mary said to the Angel:
How shall this be done
as I know not man?”
Luke 1:34

CHASTITY and HUMILITY
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“VIRGINITY AND ABSOLUTE CHASTITY, is an angelic virtue but, although it belongs, more especially to Angels than to men, yet the purity of Our Lady infinitely surpassed that of the Angels, having three great perfections above theirs, even that of the Cherubim and Seraphim…that of the Angels is sterile and can produce no fruit.
On the contrary, that of our glorious Mistress was not only fruitful because she produced, for us, this sweet Fruit of Life, Our Lord and Master but, in the second place, she has begotten many virgins.
It is it in imitation of her, as we have said, that virgins have vowed their virginity …

But she was not only virgin par excellence above all others, Angels as well as men – she was also more humble than all others. This was manifest excellently on the day of the Annunciation.
She then made the greatest act of humility that was ever made, or ever will be made, by a pure creature; for seeing herself exalted by the Angel, who saluted her, saying she was full of grace and that she would conceive a Son Who would be both God and Man…Our Lady, being reassured by the Angel and having learned what God willed to do with her and in her, made this supreme act of humility, saying:
“I am the servant of the Lord.
Let it be done to me as you say.”
She saw herself raised to the highest dignity that ever was or will be, for although it should please God to create anew many worlds, He could never make a pure creature be greater than the Mother of God.

Our Lady humbled herself and acknowledged herself unworthy of being raised to the high dignity of Mother of God, therefore, she was made to be His Mother, for she had no sooner uttered the protestation of her littleness, than, having abandoned herself to Him, by an act of incomparable charity, she became the Mother of the Most High, Who is the Saviour of our souls!” (Sermon on 25 March 1621at a religious Profession).

Posted in ArchAngels and Angels, CATECHESIS, DOCTORS of the Church, JESUIT SJ, LENT 2023

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 24 March – THE ANGELS

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 24 March – Friday of the Fourth Week in Lent and the Feast of St Gabriel the Archangel – Daniel 9:21-26, Luke 1:26-38 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“He hath given His Angels charge over thee,
to keep thee in all thy ways.”
Psalm 90:11

“At that time, the Angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary.”
Luke 1:26-27

THE ANGELS
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“INASMUCH AS GOD continually sends us inspirations by means of His Angels, we may fittingly send back our aspirations, through the same channel. …
Seek to be familiar with the Angels; learn to realise that they are continually present, although invisible.
Especially love and revere the Guardian Angel of the Diocese in which you live, those of the friends who surround you and your own.
Commune with them frequently, join in their songs of praise and seek their protection and help in all you do, spiritual or temporal.

That pious man Peter Faber, the first companion of Saint Ignatius and the first Priest, first preacher and first theological teacher of the Company of the Jesuits, who was a native of our Diocese, (the French region of Savoy) once, passing through this country on his way from Germany, (where he had been labouring for God’s Glory) told, how great comfort he had found, as he went among places infested with heresy, in communing with the Guardian Angels thereof, whose help had often preserved him from danger and softened hearts to receive the Faith.
He spoke with such earnestness that a lady, who, when quite young, heard him, was so impressed that she repeated his words to me only four years ago, sixty years after their utterance! with the utmost feeling.” – (Introduction to the Devout Life – PART II. Containing sundry counsels).

Posted in ArchAngels and Angels, JULY - The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD, LENT, MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY, The MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD

Friday of the Fourth Week in Lent – FAST AND ABSTINENCE, FEAST OF THE MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS, The Archangel Saint Gabriel, / Our Lady of the Flowering Thorn, France and Memorials of the Saints – 24 March

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Friday of the Fourth Week in Lent – FAST AND ABSTINENCE

FEAST OF THE MOST PRECIOUS BLOOD OF JESUS is a Feast for the Fridays of Lent, which has been in the General Roman Calendar from 1849 to 1969 with the same Office as that of the Solemnity of the Precious Blood in July..
HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2022/07/10/the-solemnity-of-the-most-precious-blood-of-of-our-lord-jesus-christ-and-the-litany/
For many Diocese, there were two days to which the Office of the Precious Blood was assigned, the Office for both being the same. The reason was that the Office was at first granted only to the Fathers of the Most Precious Blood. Later, as one of the Offices of the Fridays of Lent, it was assigned to the Friday after the Fourth Sunday in Lent (Laetare Sunday) in some Diocese, including, by decision of the Fourth Provincial Council of Baltimore (1840), those in the United States.

The Solemnity in July is again the same Office and both Feasts (during Lent and in July) are kept in some Diocese. On 10 August of the same year, (1849) Pope Pius IX officially included the Feast of the Most Precious Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the General Roman Calendar, for celebration on the first Sunday in July, that is the first Sunday after 30 June, which is the anniversary of the liberation of the City of Rome from the insurgents.

In reducing the number of Feasts fixed for Sundays, Pope Pius X assigned the date of 1 July to this Feast. In 1933, Pope Pius XI raised the Feast to the rank of Double of the 1st Class to mark the 1,900th anniversary of the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Archangel Saint Gabriel
The Feast of Saint Gabriel was included by Pope Benedict XV in the General Roman Calendar in 1921, for celebration on 24 March.
The Archangel Saint Gabriel whose name means “the Power of God. ” He appeared to the prophet Daniel (Dan 8:16; 9:21), to the priest Zachary to announce the forthcoming birth of Saint John the Baptist (Luke 1:11, 19) and to the Blessed Virgin Mary to announce the birth of Our Saviour (Luke 1:26.).
St Gabriel!
https://anastpaul.com/2022/03/24/saint-of-the-day-24-march-the-archangel-saint-gabriel/

Notre-Dame de L’épine Fleurie / Our Lady of the Flowering Thorn, France – 24 March:
HERE:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/03/24/our-lady-of-the-flowering-thorn-and-memorials-of-the-saints-24-march/

St Agapitus of Synnada
St Aldemar the Wise OSB (985-c1080) Priest, Abbot
St Bernulf of Mondov
Bl Bertha de’Alberti of Cavriglia
Bl Bertrada of Laon
Bl Brian O’Carolan
St Caimin of Lough Derg
St Cairlon of Cashel

St Catherine of Sweden (1331-1381) Widow, Nun of the Brigittine Order. Catherine was Canonised in 1484 (cultus confirmed) by Pope Innocent VIII.
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/03/24/saint-of-the-day-24-march-st-catherine-of-sweden-1331-1381/

Blessed Diego José of Cádiz/Blessed Didacus Joseph of Cadiz OFM Cap (1743–1801) Spanish Capuchin Priest Friar, renowned Preacher, Missionary. He was Beatified on 22 April 1894 by Pope Leo XIII.
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2020/03/24/saints-of-the-day-24-march-blessed-didacus-joseph-of-cadiz-ofm-cap-1743-1801/

St Domangard of Maghera
St Epicharis of Rome
St Epigmenius of Rome
St Hildelith of Barking

Blessed John dal Bastone OSB Silv. (c 1200-1290) Priest, Priest, Monk. He was Beatified on 29 August 1772 by Pope Clement XIV (cultus confirmed).
His Life:
https://anastpaul.com/2021/03/24/saint-of-the-day-24-march-blessed-john-dal-bastone-c-1200-1290/

St Latinus of Brescia
St Macartan of Clogher
St Mark of Rome
St Pigmenius of Rome
St Romulus of North Africa
St Secundus of North Africa
St Seleucus of Syria
St Severo of Catania
St Timothy of Rome

Martyrs of Africa – 9 Saints: A group of Christians murdered for their faith in Africa, date unknown. The only details about their that survive are the names – Aprilis, Autus, Catula, Coliondola, Joseph, Rogatus, Salitor, Saturninus and Victorinus. .

Martyrs of Caesarea – 6 Saints: A group of Christians Martyred together in the persecutions of Diocletian. We know little else but six of their names – Agapius, Alexander, Dionysius, Pausis, Romulus and Timolaus. They were martyred by beheading in 303 at Caesarea, Palestine.

Posted in CHRIST the PHYSICIAN, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SIN, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 23 March – THE DIVINE PHYSICIAN

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Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 23 March – Thursday of the Fourth Week in Lent – 4 Kings 4:25-38, Luke 7:11-16 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“Come to Me, all ye who are weary …”
Matthew 11:28

“Young man, I say to thee, arise!”
Luke 7:14

THE DIVINE PHYSICIAN
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“Our Lord, the great and excellent Physician of our infirmities, announced everywhere, before coming into this world, both His arrival and the maladies He would cure; sometimes by His prophets. …”

What wonder then if, in the Gospel, we find Him surrounded by the sick, by sinners and by publicans! O vain and foolish murmuring of the Hebrews, when they said: “This man receiveth sinners.” Whom would you wish Him to receive? Is it not the honour of a Physician to be sought for by the sick and so much the more, as their maladies are considered incurable? …

Thus, how were the poor Prodigal and the unfortunate Absalom received by their fathers? And, otherwise, what would become of us, for all have sinned? Every man is a liar, that is to say, a sinner. If we say that we are without sin, we deceived ourselves.
Return to the Lord, and forsake your injustice, for His Mercy is great towards those who are converted to Him. Why is He called Saviour, unless in order to save? …

But, oh, miserable that we are! We are often called and we only turn a deaf ear. “I have called and you have not heard,” says God. We are drawn and we obstinately resist Him. He complains, saying: “All the day long have I stretched out My hands to this incredulous and rebellious people! ”…

Let us then depart, let us depart from Egypt, let us approach Our Lord, let us make provision of good works; let the feet of our affections be bare, let us clothe ourselves with innocence, let us not be satisfied with crying for mercy, let us go forth from Egypt, let us delay no longer.
The hour is come to arise from sleep, since we know that He receives sinners; the Angels await our repentance, the Saints pray for it!” – (Consoling Thoughts on God and Providence).

Posted in CHRIST the SUN of JUSTICE, CONFESSION/PENANCE, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE, QUOTES on GOOD WORKS, QUOTES on MERIT, QUOTES on SIN

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 22 March – THE MERCY OF GOD ON THE RETURN OF A SINNER

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 22 March – Wednesday of the Fourth Week in Lent – Isaias 1:16-19, John 9:1-38 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“If sin abounds in malice to destroy,
grace superabounds to repair.”
Romans 5:20

“One thing I know
that whereas I was blind.
now I see.”
John 9:25

THE MERCY OF GOD
ON THE RETURN OF A SINNER
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“THE ENTRANCE OF SIN, takes away life from the heart and from all its good works; the entrance of grace, restores life to the heart and to all its good works. A severe winter kills the plants of the field, so that, were it to continue always, they should remain forever dead.

Sin, the sad and fearful winter of the soul, kills the holy works which it finds there and, were it to continue always, never should life or vigour return. But as, on the approach of lovely spring, not only the new seeds which we cast into the earth, shoot up and bud, under the influence of this mild season of fecundity, every one according to its kind but also the old plants, which the bitterness of the preceding winter had wasted and withered, grow green again and take back their former life.

So sin being destroyed,and the grace of Divine Love coming back to the soul, not only the new affections, which the return of the sacred springtime brings, germinate and produce many merits and benedictions but also, the works faded away under the harshness of the winter of past sin, being delivered from their mortal enemy and reinvigorated and, as it were, resuscitated, flourish anew and fructify in merits for eternal life. …

God has promised an eternal recompense to the works of the just man but, if the just man turn away from His Justice by sin, God will no longer remember his justices, or the good works which he has done. But if, nevertheless, this poor man, after falling into sin, rises again and returns to Divine Love by penance, God will no longer remember his sin and, if He will no longer remember his sin, He will then remember his preceding good works and the recompense they had deserved, since sin, which alone can take them away from the Divine Memory, is effaced, abolished and annihilated.” – (Consoling Thoughts on God and Providence).

Posted in CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ETERNAL LIFE

Our Morning Offering – 22 March – Grant us Thy Light, O Lord By The Venerable St Bede

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 22 March – Wednesday of the Fourth Week in Lent

Grant us Thy Light, O Lord
By The Venerable St Bede (673-735)
Father and Doctor of the Church

Grant us Thy Light, O Lord,
so that the darkness of our hearts,
may wholly pass away
and we may come at last,
to the Light of Christ.
For Christ is that Morning Star,
Who, when the night
of this world has passed,
brings to His Saints,
the promised Light of Life
and opens to them,
everlasting day.
Amen.

Posted in "Follow Me", GOD ALONE!, LENT 2023, LENTEN THOUGHTS, OUR Cross, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on SELF-DENIAL, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, The WILL of GOD

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 21 March – FOLLOW ME!

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Lenten Journey with St Francis de Sales – 21 March – Tuesday of the Fourth Week in Lent – Ecclesiasticus 45:1-6, Matthew 19:27-29 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

“He asked life of Thee
and Thou hast given him
length of days forever and ever.”
Psalm 20:5

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

FOLLOW ME!
St Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Doctor Caritas

“WE MUST POSSESS a continual and imperturbable equanimity, amid the great variety of human occurrences and although, all things change around us, remain immovable, with our eyes fixed on God alone.
And although, all things, I will not merely say around us but even within us, should turn topsy-turvy; whether our souls be joyful or sorrowful, in peace or in trouble, in light or in darkness, in temptation or in repose, in happiness or in disgust, although the sun scorch, or the dew refresh – we should always keep our will fixed on the good pleasure of God, as its sole and supreme object.

It is true that we require great confidence to abandon ourselves, without any reserve, to Divine Providence but, when we do abandon all, Our Lord takes care of all and disposes of all.
But, if we reserve anything which we are unwilling to confide to Him, He leaves us, as if He would say: “You think yourselves sufficiently wise to manage that affair without Me – you can do so and see what will come of it!” ( Consoling Thoughts on God and Providence).