Category: Our MORNING Offering

Posted in JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The HOLY NAME

Our Morning Offering – 14 January – Jesus, Name Full of Glory By St Bernardine of Siena

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Our Morning Offering – 14 January – Month of the Most Holy Name

Jesus, Name Full of Glory
By St Bernardine of Siena (1380-1444)

Jesus,
Name full of glory,
grace, love and strength!
You are the refuge of those who repent,
our banner of warfare in this life,
the medicine of souls,
the comfort of those who morn,
the delight of those who believe,
the light of those
who preach the true faith,
the wages of those who toil,
the healing of the sick.
To You our devotion aspires,
by You our prayers are received;
we delight in contemplating You.
O Name of Jesus,
You are the glory of all the saints for eternity.
Amen

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, I BELIEVE!, Our MORNING Offering, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, PRAYERS on FAITH, QUOTES on EVANGELISATION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, SAINT of the DAY

Our Morning Offering – 13 January – I Owe You a Most Particular Duty

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Our Morning Offering – 13 January – The Octave of Epiphany and the Memorial of St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368) Father & Doctor of the Church

I Owe You a Most Particular Duty
By St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368)

I am well aware, Almighty God and Father,
that in my life I owe You a most particular duty.
It is to make my every thought
and word speak of You.
In fact, You have conferred on me,
this gift of speech
and it can yield no greater return
than to be at Your service.
It is for making You known as Father,
the Father of the only-begotten God
and preaching this to the world,
that knows You not
and to the heretics,
who refuse to believe in You.
… Grant that I may express what I believe.
Amen

Excerpt from a Sermon On the Trinity (Lib 1, 37-38: PL 10, 48-49) by Saint Hilary of Poitiers. It is used in the Roman Office of Readings for the feast of St Hilary, today.

Posted in Our MORNING Offering, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY

Our Morning Offering – 12 January – Behold Me, O Sweet Lord, Behold Me! By St Aelred

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Our Morning Offering – 12 January – Seventh day in the Octave of Epiphany and the Memorial of St Aelred of Rievaulx (1110-1167) “St Bernard of the North”

Behold Me, O Sweet Lord, Behold Me!
By St Aelred of Rievaulx (1110-1167)

Behold me, O sweet Lord, behold me!
For I hope. that in Your loving kindness,
O Most Merciful One,
You will behold me,
either as a loving physician to heal,
a kind teacher to correct,
or an indulgent father to pardon…
confident in Your sweet powerful mercy
and most merciful power,
I ask in virtue of Your sweet Name
and of the mystery of Your sacred humanity
that, mindful of Your kindness
and unmindful of my ingratitude,
You forgive me my sins
and heal the languors of my soul.
Amen

Posted in Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, The HOLY NAME

Our Morning Offering – 11 January – The Golden Arrow

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Our Morning Offering – 11 January – Month of the Most Holy Name of Jesus

The Golden Arrow

May the most holy,
most sacred,
most adorable,
most mysterious
and unutterable Name of God
be always praised,
blessed,
loved,
adored
and glorified in heaven.
on earth and under the earth,
by all the creatures of God
and by the Sacred Heart
of our Lord Jesus Christ
in the most Holy Sacrament
of the altar.
Amen

This prayer was revealed by Jesus Himself to a Carmelite Nun of Tours in 1843 as a reparation for blasphemy. “This Golden Arrow will wound My Heart delightfully” He said “and heal the wounds, inflicted by blasphemy.”

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Our Morning Offering – 10 January – O Christ, our Master and God

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Our Morning Offering – 10 January – Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

O Christ, our Master and God
St Basil the Great (329-379)
Father and Doctor of the Church

O Christ, our Master and God,
King of the ages and Creator of all,
I thank You for all the Good things
that You have given to me
and for the reception of Your most pure
and life-giving Mysteries.
I pray You, therefore, O good Lover of mankind,
keep me under Your protection
in the shadow of Your wings.
Grant that with a pure conscience,
until my last breath,
I may worthily partake of Your Holy Things,
for the forgiveness of sins
and for life everlasting.
For You are the bread of Life,
the Fountain of holiness
and the Bestower of blessings
and to You, we give glory
together with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
now nad forever and ever.
Amen

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 9 January – Let Me Love Your Jesus By St Ildephonsus

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Our Morning Offering – 9 January – Saturday after Epiphany

Let Me Love Your Jesus
By St Ildephonsus (c 607-670)

Virgin Mary, hear my prayer,
through the Holy Spirit,
you became the Mother of Jesus,
from the Holy Spirit,
may I too have Jesus.
Through the Holy Spirit,
your flesh conceived Jesus,
through the same Spirit,
may my soul receive Jesus.
Through the Holy Spirit,
you were able to know Jesus,
to possess Jesus
and to bring Him into the world.
Through the Holy Spirit,
may I too come to know your Jesus.
Imbued with the Spirit, Mary, you could say
“I am the handmaid of the Lord,
be it done unto me according to your word,”
in the Holy Spirit, lowly as I am,
let me proclaim the great truths about Jesus.
In the Spirit, you now adore Jesus as Lord
and look on Him as Son,
in the same Spirit, Mary,
let me love your Jesus.
Amen

Posted in Our MORNING Offering, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES for the NEW YEAR, QUOTES on DIVINE PROVIDENCE, QUOTES on FAITH, The WILL of GOD

Our Morning Offering – 8 January – Lord, May Your kingdom Come Into My Heart

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Our Morning Offering – 8 January – The Third Day within the Octave of Epiphany

Lord, May Your kingdom Come Into My Heart
By Fr Jean Pierre de Caussade (1675-1751)

Lord, may Your kingdom come into my heart
to sanctify me, nourish me and purify me.
How insignificant is the passing moment,
to the eye without faith!
But how important each moment is,
to the eye enlightened by faith!
How can we deem insignificant anything
which has been caused by You?
Every moment and every event is guided by You
and so contains Your infinite greatness.
So, Lord, I glorify You in everything
that happens to me.
In whatever manner You make me live and die,
I am content.
Events please me for their own sake,
regardless of their consequences
because Your action lies behind them.
Everything is heaven to me
because all my moments,
manifest Your love.
Amen

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The DIVINE INFANT, THE EPIPHANY of the LORD, The HEART

Our Morning Offering – 7 January – O Child, So Worthy of Our Love, I Offer You My Heart

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Our Morning Offering – 7 January – The Second Day within the Octave of Epiphany

O Child, So Worthy of Our Love,
I Offer You My Heart
By St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor

O Child so worthy of our love,
I see You lying on the straw in this cave,
so poor and despised.
Yet faith teaches me, that You are my God
come down from heaven for my salvation.
I acknowledge You as my Sovereign Lord and Saviour,
as such I proclaim You,
yet, I have nothing at all to offer You.
I am without love’s gold,
since I have given my love to the things of this world –
I have only loved my own whim, rather than loving You,
so infinitely worthy of love.
I am without prayer’s incense,
since I have lived wretchedly without thinking of You.
I have no myrrh of mortification since,
so as not to forsake some paltry pleasures,
I have so often saddened Your infinite goodness.
So what am I to offer You?
O my Jesus, I offer You my heart, soiled and naked as it is.
Take it and change it, for You have come down to us
to wash our guilty hearts with Your blood
and so transform us from sinners into saints.
O grant me that gold, incense and myrrh that I lack.
Grant me the gold of Your holy love;
grant me the incense that is the spirit of prayer;
grant me myrrh,
the willingness and strength to deny myself
in all that displeases You…
O holy Virgin, you welcomed those devout magi kings
with keen affection and satisfied them.
Deign to welcome and comfort me also,
I who come, following their example,
to visit and offer myself to your Son
Amen

Posted in MARIAN PRAYERS, MAY - The Blessed Virgin MARY'S MONTH, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Our Morning Offering – 5 January – Most Holy Virgin Mary, Oh, my Mother!

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Our Morning Offering – 5 January – Christmas Weekday and the Memorial of St Charles of Mount Argus CP (1821-1893)

Most Holy Virgin Mary, Oh, my Mother!
By St Charles of Mount Argus (1821-1893)

Most Holy Virgin Mary, Oh, my Mother!
How sweet it is to come to thy feet,
imploring thy perpetual help!
If earthly mothers cease not
to remember their children,
how can thou,
the most loving of all mothers, forget me?
Grant then, to me, I implore thee,
thy perpetual help in all my necessities,
in every sorrow
and especially in all my temptations.
As we are all thy children,
I ask for thy unceasing help
for all who are now suffering.
Help the weak, cure the sick, convert sinners
and console all earthly mothers
who are now weeping over their children.
Open the gates of heaven
to those we loved upon earth
and who are now suffering in purgatory.
Obtain for us, dear Mother,
that having earnestly invoked thee on earth,
we may see thee, love thee
and eternally thank thee,
hereafter in heaven.
Amen

St Charles of Mount Argus and St Gerlach, our Saint today, are both from the same Province in the Netherlands.

Posted in JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The HOLY NAME

Our Morning Offering – 4 January – Daily Prayer to the Most Holy Name

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Our Morning Offering – 4 January – Christmas Weekday “Month of the Most Holy Name”

Daily Prayer to the Most Holy Name
by St Bernardine of Siena (1380-1444)
Apostle of the Most Holy Name

Jesus,
Name full of glory, grace, love and strength!
You are the refuge of those who repent,
our banner of warfare in this life,
the medicine of souls,
the comfort of those who mourn,
the delight of those who believe,
the light of those who preach the true faith,
the wages of those who toil,
the healing of the sick.
To You, our devotion aspires;
by You, our prayers are received;
we delight in contemplating You.
O Name of Jesus,
You are the glory
of all the saints for eternity.
Amen

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The HOLY NAME

Our Morning Offering – 3 January – O Sweet Name of Jesus

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Our Morning Offering – 3 January – Month and Feast of the Most Holy Name of Jesus

O Sweet Name of Jesus
By Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)

O sweet Name of Jesus,
holy above all names
in heaven and on earth
and to which every knee,
both of men
and of angels in heaven,
on earth and in hell bends.
You are the Way of the just,
the Glory of the saints,
the Hope of those in need,
the Balm of the sick,
the Love of the devout
and the Consolation
of those that suffer.
O, Jesus be to me a help
and a protector
so that Your Name
may be blessed for all times.
Amen

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The MOST HOLY & BLESSED TRINITY

Our Morning Offering – 2 January – Father, Son and Holy Spirit

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Our Morning Offering – 2 January – Christmas weekday and the Memorial of St Basil the Great (329-379) and St Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390)

Father, Son and Holy Spirit
By St Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390)
Father and Doctor

O God,
You alone are unutterable,
from the time You created all things
that can be spoken of.

You alone are unknowable,
from the time You created all things
that can be known.

All things cry out about You,
those which speak
and those which cannot speak.

All things honour You,
those which think
and those which cannot think.

For there is one longing, one groaning,
that all things have for You.

All things pray to You
that perceive Your plan
and offer You a silent hymn.

In you, the One,
all things abide
and all things endlessly run to You
who are the end of all.

Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN TITLES, MAY - The Blessed Virgin MARY'S MONTH, MOTHER of GOD, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The INCARNATION

Our Morning Offering – 1 January – Hail O Mary, Mother of God By St Cyril of Alexander

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Our Morning Offering – 1 January – The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and the Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord

Hail O Mary, Mother of God
By St Cyril of Alexander (376-444)
Doctor of the Incarnation
Known as ‘The Pillar of Faith”

Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
Virgin and Mother!
Morning Star, perfect vessel.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
Holy Temple in which god Himself was conceived.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
Chaste and pure dove.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
Who enclosed the One who cannot be encompassed
in your sacred womb.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
From you flowed the true light, Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
Through you the Conqueror
and triumphant Vanquisher of hell came to us.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
Through you, the glory of the Resurrection blossoms.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
You have saved every faithful Christian.
Hail, O Mary, Mother of God,
Pray for us sinners now
and at the hour of our death.
Amen

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, ArchAngels and Angels, MARIAN Antiphons, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, The ANNUNCIATION, The INCARNATION

Our Morning Offering – 31 December – The Angelus

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Our Morning Offering – 31 December – The Seventh Day of the Octave of Christmas

The Angelus

V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R. And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.
Hail Mary, full of grace,
The Lord is with Thee;
Blessed art thou among women,
And blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
Pray for us sinners,
Now and at the hour of our death. Amen
V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to thy word.
Hail Mary, etc.
V. And the Word was made Flesh.
R. And dwelt among us.
Hail Mary, etc.
V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God.
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
LET US PRAY
Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts, that we to whom the Incarnation of Christ Thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection. Through the same Christ Our Lord.
Amen

The Angelus (/ˈændʒələs/; Latin for “angel”) is a Catholic devotion commemorating the Incarnation.
As with many Catholic prayers, the name Angelus is derived from its incipit—the first few words of the text: Angelus Domini nuntiavit Mariæ (“The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary”).
The devotion is practised by reciting as versicle and response three Biblical verses narrating the mystery, alternating with the prayer “Hail Mary.”
The Angelus exemplifies a species of prayers called the “prayer of the devotee.”

The devotion is traditionally recited three times daily: 06:00, 12:00 and 18:00.
The Angelus is usually accompanied by the ringing of the Angelus bell, which is a call to prayer and to spread goodwill to everyone. The angel referred to in the prayer is Gabriel, a messenger of God who revealed to the Virgin Mary that she would conceive a child to be born, the Son of God (Luke 1:26–38) so honouring the Incarnation of the Saviour, Redeemer – our Messiah, Jesus the Christ.

The words of the prayer are arranged above for leader and community but, of course, most of us pray the prayer alone 3 times each day, for we are always united with each other in faith.

Posted in GOD is LOVE, JESUIT SJ, Our MORNING Offering, POETRY, PRAYERS, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 30 December – Who lives in Love By St Robert Southwell

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Our Morning Offering – 30 December – The Sixth Day of the Octave of Christmas

Who lives in Love
By St Robert Southwell SJ (1561-1595) Martyr

Who lives in Love, loves least to live
and long delays doth rue,
if Him he love by whom he lives,
to whom all praise is due,
Who for our love did choose to live
and was content to die,
who loved our love more than His life,
and love with life did buy.
Let us in life, yea with our life
requite His living love,
for best we live when least we live,
if Love our life remove.
Mourn, therefore, no true lover’s death,
life only him annoy,
and when he taketh leave of life
then Love begins his joys.

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, POETRY, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 29 December – Jesu, Dulcis Memoria

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Our Morning Offering – 29 December – The Fifth Day of the Octave of Christmas

Jesu, Dulcis Memoria
Prayer, Poem, Hymn
By St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153)
Doctor Mellifluous
Tr. Fr Edward Caswell C.Orat. (1814-1878)

Jesus, the very thought of Thee
With sweetness fills the breast!
Yet sweeter far Thy face to see
And in Thy presence rest.
No voice can sing,
no heart can frame,
Nor can the memory find,
A sweeter sound than Jesus’ Name,
The Saviour of mankind.
O hope of every contrite heart!
0 joy of all the meek!
To those who fall, how kind Thou art!
How good to those who seek!
But what to those who find?
Ah! this Nor tongue nor pen can show
The love of Jesus, what it is,
None but His loved ones know.
Jesus! our only hope be Thou,
As Thou our prize shall be;
In Thee be all our glory now,
And through eternity.
Amen

Jesu, Dulcis Memoria is a celebrated 12th century prayer/hymn by St Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153), Doctor Mellifluous. The entire hymn has some 42 to 53 stanzas depending upon the translation. Parts of this hymn are used for the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus on 3 January.

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The DIVINE INFANT, The INCARNATION, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 28 December – O Dearest Infant

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Our Morning Offering – 28 December – The Feast of the Holy Innocents – The Fourth Day of the Christmas Octave.

O Dearest Infant
By St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
Most Zealous Doctor

O dearest Infant,
tell me what You came on earth to do.
Tell me whom You are seeking.
Ah, yes, I now understand…
You have come to die for me, a lost sheep,
in order that I may no more
hide from You but love You.
O Jesus, my treasure,
my life, my love, my all,
if I do not love You,
then whom shall I love?
Where can I find a mother or father,
a friend, or a spouse more loving than You?
And who has ever loved me more than You have?
I am sorry that I have lived so many years in this world
and yet still love You so little,
even having offended You
and sometimes forgotten You.
Amen

Posted in CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 27 December – Lord, Kindle our Lamps by St Columban

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Our Morning Offering – 27 December – Sunday within the Octave of Christmas and the Feast of the Holy Family

Lord, Kindle our Lamps
By St Columban (543-615)

Lord, kindle our lamps,
Saviour most dear to us,
that we may always shine
in Your presence
and always receive light
from You, the Light Perpetual,
so that our own personal darkness
may be overcome
and the world’s darkness
driven from us.
Amen

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, Our MORNING Offering, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 26 December – Sleep, Holy Babe

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Our Morning Offering – 26 December – Feast of St Stephen the ProtoMartyr and The Second Day in the Christmas Octave

Sleep, Holy Babe
By Fr Edward Caswell C.Orat. (1814-1878)

Sleep, holy Babe, Upon Your Mother’s breast!
Great Lord of earth and sea and sky,
How sweet it is to see You lie
In such a place of rest!
Sleep, holy Babe, Your angels watch around,
All bending low with folded wings
Before th’incarnate King of kings
In rev’rent awe profound!
Sleep, holy Babe, While I with Mary gaze
In joy upon that face awhile,
Upon the loving Infant smile
Which there divinely plays.
Sleep, holy Babe,
And take Your brief repose;
Too quickly will Your slumbers break
And You to lengthened pains awake,
That death alone shall close.

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, The DIVINE INFANT, The NATIVITY of JESUS, The O ANTIPHONS

Our Morning Offering – 23 December – O Come, O come, Emmanuel

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Our Morning Offering – 23 December – O Emmanuel!

O Come, O come, Emmanuel

O Come, O come, Emmanuel
And ransom captive Israel,
That mourns in lonely exile here
Until the Son of God appear.

Refrain:
Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel
Shall come to thee, O Israel!

O come, Thou Wisdom, from on high
And order all things far and nigh,
To us the path of knowledge show
And teach us in her ways to go.
Refrain

O come, o come, Thou Lord of might,
Who to thy tribes on Sinai’s height
In ancient times did give the law,
In cloud, and majesty and awe.
Refrain

O come, Thou Rod of Jesse’s stem,
From ev’ry foe deliver them
That trust Thy mighty power to save
And give them vict’ry o’er the grave.
Refrain

O come, Thou Key of David, come
And open wide our heav’nly home,
Make safe the way that leads on high,
That we no more have cause to sigh.
Refrain

O come, Thou Dayspring from on high
And cheer us by thy drawing nigh.
Disperse the gloomy clouds of night
And death’s dark shadow put to flight.
Refrain

O come, Desire of nations, bind
In one the hearts of all mankind.
Bid every strife and quarrel cease
And fill the world with heaven’s peace.
Refrain

The favourite O Come, O Come Emmanuel carol was originally written in Latin text in the 12th Century. The author of the words and composer to the music of O Come, O Come Emmanuel is unknown. It is, however, believed that the melody was of French origin and added to the text a hundred years later. The Latin was translated into English by John Mason Neale in 1851.

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, The INCARNATION, The NATIVITY of JESUS, The O ANTIPHONS

Our Morning Offering – 22 December – O Come, Divine Messiah!

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Our Morning Offering – 22 December – Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Advent, O Rex Gentium/O King of all Nations

O Come, Divine Messiah!
By Abbé Simon J Pellegrin (1663-1745)
English Translation of French Carol Venez Divin Messie
Translator: Sister Mary of St Philip, SND

O come, divine Messiah!
The world in silence waits the day
When hope shall sing its triumph,
And sadness flee away.

Dear Saviour haste;
Come, come to earth,
Dispel the night and show Thy face
And bid us hail the dawn of grace.

O come, divine Messiah!
The world in silence waits the day
When hope shall sing its triumph,
And sadness flee away.

O Christ, whom nations sigh for,
Whom priest and prophet long foretold,
Come break the captive fetters;
Redeem the long-lost fold.

You come in peace and meekness,
And lowly will Thy cradle be;
All clothed in human weakness
We shall Thy Godhead see.

Dear Saviour haste;
Come, come to earth,
Dispel the night and show Thy face
And bid us hail the dawn of grace.

O come, divine Messiah!
The world in silence waits the day
When hope shall sing its triumph,
And sadness flee away.
Amen!

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, DOCTORS of the Church, Hail MARY!, JESUIT SJ, MARIAN Antiphons, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY

Our Morning Offering – 21 December – Hail Mary, the Angelic Salutation

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Our Morning Offering – 21 December and the Memorial of St Peter Canisius (1521-1397) Doctor of the Church

Hail Mary, the Angelic Salutation

The Hail Mary/Ave Maria

Hail Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women,
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

Áve María, grátia pléna,
Dóminus técum.
Benedícta tū in muliéribus,
et benedíctus frúctus véntris túi, Iésus.
Sáncta María, Máter Déi,
óra pro nóbis peccatóribus,
nunc et in hóra mórtis nóstrae.
Ámen.

On today’s Memorial of St Peter Canisius, Catholics may wish to thank this Doctor of the Church for giving us the second half of the Hail Mary prayer.

This 16th-century saint, known as the second Apostle of Germany, followed in the giant footsteps of St Boniface, who evangelised Germany a thousand years earlier. He was also active at the Council of Trent and wrote much on the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The first half of the Hail Mary, of course, comes from Scripture. What many Catholics don’t know, is that the second half of this Catholic prayer is due to the intervention of St Peter Canisius at the Council of Trent. St Peter began adding on to the scriptural part of the Hail Mary, the “Holy Mary Mother of God pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.” It was Trent that officially accepted this addition to the prayer and included it in their famous Catechism of the Council of Trent in 1566.

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, HYMNS, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, The ANNUNCIATION, The INCARNATION

Our Morning Offering – 20 December – Blessed Shall be Her Name

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Our Morning Offering – 20 December – The Fourth Sunday of Advent

Blessed Shall be Her Name
Anonymous

Praise we the Lord this day,
This day so long foretold,
Whose promise shone with cheering ray
On waiting saints of old.

The prophet gave the sign
That those with faith might read;
A virgin, born of David’s line
Shall bear the promised seed.

Ask not how this should be,
But worship and adore;
Like her whom heaven’s majesty
Came down to shadow o’er.

She meekly bowed her head
To hear the gracious word,
Mary, the pure and lowly maid,
The favoured of the Lord.

Blessed shall be her name
In all the Church on earth,
Through whom that wondrous mercy came,
The incarnate Saviour’s birth.

Jesus, the virgin’s son,
We praise you and adore,
Who are with God the Father one
And Spirit evermore.

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, The WORD

Our Morning Offering – The Weekdays of Advent – 19 December – The Benedictus, Luke 1:68-79

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Our Morning Offering – The Weekdays of Advent – 19 December

The Benedictus
Canticle of Zechariah
Luke 1:68-79

The Messiah and His forerunner

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
He has visited His people and redeemed them.

He has raised up for us a mighty saviour,
in the house of David, His servant,
as He promised by the lips of holy men,
those who were His prophets of old.

A Saviour who would free us from our foes,
from the hands of all who us.
So His love for our fathers is fulfilled
and His holy covenant remembered.

He swore to Abraham, our father, to grant us,
that free from fear and saved from the hands of our foes.
we might worship Him in justice and holiness
all the days of our lives, in His Presence.

As for you, little child,
you shall be called the prophet of God, the Most High.
You shall go ahead of the Lord
to prepare His ways before Him,

to make known to His people their salvation,
through forgiveness of all their sins,
the loving kindness of the heart of our God,
who visits us like the dawn from on high.

He will give light to those in darkness,
those who dwell in the shadow of death
and to guide us into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father and to the Son,
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be for ever.
Amen

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH

Our Morning Offering – 16 December – Hark, a Herald Voice is Calling

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Our Morning Offering – 16 December – Wednesday of the Third week of Advent

Hark, a Herald Voice is Calling
En Clara Vox Redarguit
Trans. Fr E Caswall, 1695

Hark, a herald voice is calling,
“Christ is nigh,” it seems to say;
“Cast away the dreams of darkness,
O ye children of the day.”

Startled at the solemn warning,
Let the earthbound soul arise;
Christ her Sun, all sloth dispelling,
Shines up on the morning skies.

Lo, the Lamb so long expected,
Comes with pardon down from heav’n;
Let us haste, with tears of sorrow,
One and all to be forgiv’n.

So when next He comes with glory,
Shrounding all the earth in fear,
May He then as our defender,
On the clouds of heav’n appear.

Translated from En Clara Vox Redarguit, which is a 5th or 6th century hymn whose author is unknown. It was revised in the 1632 Roman Breviary and the English translation found above, is by Fr E Caswall, 1695.

Posted in ADVENT QUOTES, ADVENT REFLECTIONS, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MOTHER of GOD, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Our Morning Offering – 12 December – Mary Immaculate! By St John Damascene

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Our Morning Offering – 12 December – “Month of the Immaculate Conception” – Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Readings: Zechariah 2:14-17, Judith 13:18, 19, Luke 1:26-38.

Mary Immaculate!
By St John Damascene (675-749)
Father and Doctor of the Church

Today, the root of Jesse has produced its shoot,
she will bring forth a Divine flower for the world.
Today, the Creator of all things,
God the Word,
composes a new book:
a book issuing from the heart of His Father
and written by the Holy Spirit,
who is the tongue to God.

O daughter of King David and Mother of God,
the universal King.
O Divine and living object
whose beauty has charmed God the Creator;
your whole soul is completely open
to God’s action and attentive to God alone.

All your desires are centred
only on what merits to be sought
and is worthy of love.
You harbour anger only for sin and its author.
You will have a life superior to nature,
but not for your own sake.
For it has not been created for you
but has been entirely consecrated to God,
who has introduced you into the world
to help bring about our salvation
in fulfillment of His plan,
the Incarnation of His Son
and the Divinisation of the human race.

Your heart will find nourishment in the words of God,
like the tree planted near the living waters of the Spirit,
like the tree of life
that has yielded its fruit in due time,
the incarnate God who is the life of all things.

Your ears will be ever attentive to the Divine words
and the sounds of the harp of the Spirit,
through whom the Word has come to take on our flesh.
Your nostrils will inhale the fragrance of the Bridegroom,
the Divine fragrance with which He scented His humanity.

Your lips will savour the words of God
and will rejoice in their Divine sweetness.
Your most pure heart,
free from all stain,
will ever see the God of all purity
and will experience ardent desire for Him.

Your womb will be the abode
of the one whom no place can contain.
Your milk will provide nourishment for God,
in the little Infant Jesus.
Your hands will carry God
and your knees will serve
as a throne for Him
that is more noble
than the throne of the Cherubim.

Your feet, led by the light of the Divine Law,
will follow Him along an undeviating course
and guide you to the possession of the Beloved.

You are the temple of the Holy Spirit,
the city of the living God,
made joyous by abundant flowers,
the sacred flowers of Divine grace.
You are all-beautiful
and very close to God,
above the Cherubim
and higher than the Seraphim,
right near God Himself!

Image Excerpt

O daughter of King David
and Mother of God,
the universal King.
O Divine and living object
whose beauty has charmed God the Creator;
your whole soul is completely open
to God’s action and attentive to God alone.
… Your womb will be the abode
of the one whom no place can contain.
Your milk will provide nourishment for God,
in the little Infant Jesus.
Your hands will carry God
and your knees will serve
as a throne for Him
that is more noble
than the throne of the Cherubim.
… You are the temple of the Holy Spirit,
the city of the living God,
made joyous by abundant flowers,
the sacred flowers of Divine grace.
You are all-beautiful
and very close to God,
above the Cherubim
and higher than the Seraphim,
right near God Himself!
Amen

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Our Morning Offering – 10 December – MARY, I BEG YOU By St Anselm

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Our Morning Offering – 10 December – Thursday of the Second week of Advent and the Month of The Immaculate Conception

MARY, I BEG YOU
By St Anselm (1033-1109)
Magnificent Doctor
Marian Doctor

Mary, I beg you,
by that grace through which
the Lord is with you
and you will, to be with Him,
let your mercy be with me.
Let love for you always be with me,
and the care for me, be always with you.
Let the cry of my need,
as long as it persists,
be with you
and the care of your goodness,
as long as I need it,
be with me.
Let joy in your blessedness
be always with me,
and compassion for my wretchedness,
where I need it,
be with you.
Amen

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES for CHRIST, The CHRIST CHILD, The DIVINE INFANT, The INCARNATION, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 9 December – St Bernard’s Let Thy goodness, Lord, Appear to Us

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Our Morning Offering – 9 December – Wednesday of the Second week of Advent

Let Thy goodness, Lord, Appear to Us
An Advent Prayer
By St Bernard (1090-1153)
Father and Mellifluous Doctor of the Church

Let Thy goodness, Lord,
appear to us,
that we, made in Thy image,
conform ourselves to it.
In our own strength, we cannot imitate
Thy majesty, power and wonder,
nor is it fitting for us to try.
But Thy mercy reaches from the heavens
through the clouds, to the earth below.
Thou hast come to us as a small child
but Thou hast brought us the greatest of all gifts,
the gift of eternal love.
Caress us with Thy tiny hands,
embrace us with Thy tiny arms
and pierce our hearts
with Thy soft, sweet cries.
Amen

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, DECEMBER - The DIVINE INFANCY and The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, DOCTORS of the Church, DOGMA, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN TITLES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Our Morning Offering – 8 December – O Pure and Immaculate Blessed Virgin

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Our Morning Offering – 8 December – The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

O Pure and Immaculate Blessed Virgin
By St Ephrem (306-373)
Father and Doctor of the Church

O Pure and Immaculate
and likewise Blessed Virgin,
who art the sinless Mother of thy Son,
the mighty Lord of the universe,
thou who art inviolate and altogether holy,
the hope of the hopeless and sinful,
we sing thy praises.
We bless thee, as full of every grace,
thou who didst bear the God-Man:
we bow low before thee;
we invoke thee and implore thine aid.
Rescue us, O holy and inviolate Virgin,
from every necessity that presses upon us
and from all the temptations of the devil.
Be our intercessor and advocate
at the hour of death and judgement,
deliver us from the fire
that is not extinguished
and from the outer darkness;
make us worthy of the glory of thy Son,
O dearest and most clement Virgin Mother.
Thou indeed art our only hope most sure
and sacred in God’s sight,
to Whom be honour and glory
and majesty and dominion
forever and ever,
world without end.
Amen

Posted in ADVENT PRAYERS, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, POETRY, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 7 December – St Ambrose’s Advent Hymn, Saviour of the Nations, Come

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Our Morning Offering – 7 December – Monday of the Second Week of Advent and the Memorial of St Ambrose (c 340-397)- Father and Doctor of the Church

Veni Redemptor gentium
Saviour of the Nations, Come
St Ambrose’s Advent Hymn

Saviour of the nations, come;
Virgin’s Son, here make Thy home!
Marvel now, O heaven and earth,
That the Lord chose such a birth.

Not by human flesh and blood;
By the Spirit of our God
Was the Word of God made flesh,
Woman’s offspring, pure and fresh.

Wondrous birth! O wondrous Child
Of the virgin undefiled!
Though by all the world disowned,
Still to be in heaven enthroned.

From the Father forth He came
And returneth to the same,
Captive leading death and hell
High the song of triumph swell!

Thou, the Father’s only Son,
Hast over sin the victory won.
Boundless shall Thy kingdom be;
When shall we its glories see?

Brightly doth Thy manger shine,
Glorious is its light divine.
Let not sin o’ercloud this light;
Ever be our faith thus bright.

Praise to God the Father sing,
Praise to God the Son, our King,
Praise to God the Spirit be
Ever and eternally.