Our Morning Offering – 2 December – Wednesday of the First Week of Advent
Come, Sun and Saviour 8th Century Catholic Advent Prayer/Hymn
Come, Sun and Saviour, to embrace our gloomy world, i’s weary race, As groom to bride, as bride to groom: The wedding chamber, Mary’s womb. At Your great Name, O Jesus, now All knees must bend, all hearts must bow, All things on earth with one accord, Like those in heaven, shall call You Lord. Come in Your holy might, we pray, Redeem us for eternal day. Defend us while we dwell below, From all assaults of our dread foe. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 1 November – The Solemnity of All Saints, Readings: Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14, Psalms 24:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 1 John 3:1-3, Matthew 5:1-12
“Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.” – Matthew 5:12
REFLECTION – “Rejoice in the Lord without ceasing (cf. Phil 4:4), my dear children. I beg you rejoice, citizens of heaven but exiles on earth, inhabitants of the Jerusalem on high (cf. Gal 4:26) but banished from affairs here below, inheritors of the kingdom of heaven but disinherited from taking any part at all, in earthly pleasures! Rejoice, ardent travellers, at undergoing exile and maltreatment in a foreign land in the name of the commandment of God! Rejoice, you who are last in this world but lords of blessings that exceed our understanding (cf. Phil 4:7). Rejoice, noble company, brought together by God, assembly united in heart and soul, who give life to filial and fraternal love, a replica on earth of the host of angels! (…) Rejoice, God’s workers, apostolic men. (…) Rejoice, you who set your joy in each other, each making his own the reputation of his brother, you in whom is found neither jealousy, rivalry nor envy but, in their place, peace and charity and life in common. In truth, I do not say that we are not attacked – indeed, who is crowned if not the one who struggles and fights, who exchanges thrusts and wounds with his assailants? – but I say that we should not let ourselves be brought down by the machinations of Satan. Yes, my children, assembly of God, nourish yourselves with the food of the Spirit and drink the water given by the Lord: whoever comes to possess this water will never thirst again but it will become, in Him, a spring of living water welling up to eternal life (cf. Jn 4:14). (…) Yet a little while and we shall have vanquished. And blessed shall we be; blessed also, it shall be said, are the places, family and countries that have borne you (cf. Lk 11:27-28).” – St Theodore the Studite (759-826) – Catechesis 47 (The Great Catecheses)
PRAYER – Father, All-Powerful and ever-living God, today we rejoice in the holy men and women of every time and place. May their prayers bring us your forgiveness and love. Blessed Virgin, Mother of God, our trusted guide and loving mother and all you holy Saints of the Church Triumphant, pray for us! We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in union with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering –31 October – The last day of the Month of the Holy Rosary – Saturday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time
Excerpt from the Petition to Our Lady of the Rosary of Pompeii also known as Supplication to the Queen of the Holy Rosary By Blessed Bartholomew Longo (1841-1926) Apostle of the Holy Rosary
O Blessed Rosary of Mary, sweet Chain, which binds us to God, Bond of love, which unites us to the Angels, Tower of salvation against the assaults of hell, safe Port in our universal shipwreck, we shall never abandon you. You will be our comfort in the hour of agony. To you, the last kiss of our dying life. And the last word from our lips will be your sweet name, O Queen of the Rosary of Pompeii, O dearest Mother, O Refuge of Sinners, O Sovereign Consoler of the Afflicted. Be Blessed everywhere, today and always, on earth and in Heaven. Amen
One Sabbath, when he went to dine at the house of a ruler of the Pharisees, they were watching him carefully. – Luke 14:14
REFLECTION – “The world’s eternal and invisible Creator, preparing to save humankind, which for long ages had been hindered by it’s subjection to the heavy law of death, deigned “in these last days” (Heb 1:2) to become man (…) that in His mercy He might redeem those, who in justice He condemned. And so as to show the depth of His love for us, He not only became a man but a poor and humble man so that, by drawing near to us in His poverty, He might make us sharers in His riches (2 Cor 8:9). So poor did He become for our sake, that He had nowhere to lay His head: “Foxes have dens and the birds of the air have their nest but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head” (Mt 8:20).
This is the reason why He agreed to go and dine wherever He was invited, not out of an excessive enjoyment in eating but, so that He could teach the way of salvation and stimulate faith. There He would fill the guests with light by His miracles and the servants, who were kept busy inside and were not free to go with Him, would hear the words of salvation. Indeed, He despised no-one and none were considered unworthy of His love because “he has mercy on all; he hates nothing of what he has made and takes care of them all” (Wsd 11:24).
So that He might carry out this work of salvation the Lord entered the house of an eminent Pharisee on the sabbath. The scribes and Pharisees watched Him with the intention of calling Him to account, so that if He were to cure the man with dropsy they could accuse Him of breaking the Law and, if He did not, they could accuse Him of blasphemy or inability (…) By the pure light of His word of truth, they were to see the darkness of their deceit vanish away. … Blessed Guerric of Igny O.Cist (c 1080-1157) – Cistercian Abbot (Liturgical sermons).
PRAYER – Almighty, ever-living God, shed the light of Your glory on the peoples who are living in the shadow of death, as You did long ago, when our Lord Jesus Christ, the Sun of Justice, came among us from on high. As He taught us the way to life may we keep the precepts and finally reach our everlasting home. May the Mother of Jesus, our Lord and our always loving and merciful Mother, keep us forever in her prayers. With Jesus our Lord and our God, with the Holy Spirit, one God with You now and for all eternity, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 30 October – “Month of the Holy Rosary” – Friday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time
An October Prayer
Mother, at thy feet is kneeling One who loves thee–it’s thy child Who has sighed so oft’ to see thee, Bless me, Mother, Mother mild. And when storms are raging round me, And when tempests hover near, In thy own sweet arms enfold me, Shield me, Mother, Mother dear. Mother, when my Saviour calls me From this world of sin and strife, Clasp me upon thy spotless bosom, Let me bid farewell to life. Plead for me when Jesus judges, Answer for me when He asks How I’ve spent so many moments, How performed so many tasks. Tell Him I was weak and feeble, Yes, that I so often strayed From the thorny path of virtue To the one with roses laid. Yet, O Mother, tell my Jesus That I loved Him fond and true And, O Mother, dearest Mother, Tell Him I belong to you. Then He’ll place me (yes, I feel it) Close to thee, O Mother dear, Then I’ll praise and bless and thank thee Thru eternity’s long years. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 29 October – Thursday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time, Ephesians 6:10-20, Psalms 144:1, 2, 9-10, Luke 13:31-35 and the Memorial of Blessed Chiara “Luce” Badano (1971 –1990)
“How often would I have gathered your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings and you were not willing!” – Luke 13:34
REFLECTION – “Thus shall the spiritual thirst of Christ be quenched. This is His thirst – His love and longing for us that goes on enduring until we see the Day of Judgement. For of us who are to be saved and be Christ’s joy and bliss, some are alive now, while others- are ‘yet unborn and so, it will go on until that Day. His thirst and loving longing, is to have us all, integrated in Himself, to His great enjoyment. At least, so I see it (…) Because He is God, He is ‘supreme blessedness and never has been nor ever shall be other. His eternal blessedness can neither be increased nor diminished (…) Because He is human – this too is known by the creed and by the revelations – it was shown, that He, though God, suffered pain, passion, and death, for love of us and to bring us to blessedness (…) Since Christ is our Head, He must be both glorious and impassable. But since He is also the Body, in which all His members are joined (Eph 1:23), He is not yet fully either of these. Therefore, the same desire and thirst that He had upon the cross (Jn 19:28) – and this desire, longing and thirst was with Him from the very first, I believe He has still and shall continue to have, until the last soul to be saved has arrived at it’s blessedness. For just as there is in God the quality of sympathy and pity, so too in Him is there, that of thirst and longing. And in virtue of this longing which is in Christ, we in turn, long for Him too. No soul comes to heaven without it. This quality of longing and thirst springs from God’s eternal goodness just as pity does (…) and, this thirst will persist in Him, as long as we are in need, drawing us up, to His blessedness.” – Blessed Julian of Norwich (c 1342-c 1416) (aged 73–74) Anchorite, Mystic (Revelations of divine love, ch. 31)
PRAYER – Shed Your clear light on our hearts, Lord, so that walking continually in the way of Your commandments, we may never be deceived or misled. May Your loving Heart draw us more and more to Itself, so that Your love may be ours. Grant that the prayers of Blessed Chiara Badano, who always held Your Light up for others to see by, give us strength. Through Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 29 October – Thursday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time and the Memorial of St Gaetano Errico (1791-1860), Founder of the Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
Prayer to the Two Loving Hearts By St John Eudes (1501-1680)
O Jesus, only Son of God, only Son of Mary, I offer You the most loving Heart of Your divine Mother which is more precious and pleasing to You than all hearts.
O Mary, Mother of Jesus, I offer you the most adorable Heart of your well-beloved Son, who is the life and love and joy of your Heart.
Blessed be the Most Loving Heart and Sweet Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the most glorious Virgin Mary, His Mother, in eternity and forever. Amen
“In those days he departed to the mountain to pray and he spent the night in prayer to God.” – Luke 6:12
REFLECTION – “So the Lord prays, not to entreat for Himself but to intercede for me. Although the Father placed all things in the power of His Son, yet the Son, in order to fulfil the form of a man, thinks that the Father must be entreated for us because He is our Advocate. If He is an Advocate, He must intercede on account of my sins.
It says, “He passed the whole night in prayer.” A model is given to you. A form is prescribed which you must imitate. Unless I am mistaken, it is nowhere found that He prayed with the apostles. Everywhere He entreats alone, for human prayers do not grasp the counsels of God, nor can anyone share with Christ, in the inward mysteries.” – St Ambrose (340-397) Father and Doctor (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke, 5.)
PRAYER – Lord God, You taught us to call upon Your name, through the preaching of the Apostles. Open our eyes each day, grant that we may see Jesus Your Son at our side, open our ears that we may hear His voice, open our mouths, that we may beg forgiveness and proclaim the good news, as we follow the way Your Son carved out for us. At the intercession of Sts Simon and Jude, may Your Church continue to grow and to hope in Your love. We make our prayer through Jesus our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 28 October – Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles and Martyrs
Come, let us worship the Lord, the King of Apostles.
One Joyful Hymn of Praise must Greet Morning Hymn On the Feast of Sts Simon and Jude From the Breviary The Benedictines of Saint Cecilia’s Abbey, Ryde, UK
One joyful hymn of praise must greet Apostles whom we always find Together in the Gospel’s page, By faithful love and zeal combined.
To follow Christ in early youth Was surely Simon’s joy and pride, Before the Zealot would set forth To preach His Name both far and wide.
Saint Jude, a kinsman of our Lord, In heart and mind yet closer still, Your words remain until this day With hope and love our souls to fill.
As brothers both in life and death, A martyr’s crown was your reward, As shining witnesses to truth And victims worthy of your Lord.
O gleaming stars in heaven’s light Help us to tread our thorny way, That with our faith alert and strong We may attain to glory’s day.
Be praised the Father evermore, The Holy Spirit and the Son, May we rejoice before God’s throne Eternally when life is done. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 27 October – Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 5:21-33,Psalms 128:1-2, 3,4-5, Luke 13:18-21 and the Memorial of St Emeline of Boulancourt (c 1115-c 1178)
Again he said, “To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of wheat flour until the whole batch of dough was leavened.” … Luke 13:20-21
REFLECTION – “There are three measures – of the flesh, of the soul and of the spirit. This is truer of the spirit in which we all live. The woman, who prefigures the church, mixes with them the virtue of spiritual doctrine, until the whole hidden inner person of the heart is leavened and the heavenly bread arises to grace.
The doctrine of Christ is fittingly called leaven because the bread is Christ. The apostle said, “For we, being many, are one bread, one body.” Leavening happens, when the flesh does not lust against the Spirit, nor the Spirit against the flesh. We mortify the deeds of the flesh and, the soul, aware that through the breath of God, it has received the breath of life, shuns the earthly germs of worldly needs.” – St Ambrose (340-397) (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke, 7)
PRAYER – True light of the world, Lord Jesus Christ, as You enlighten all men for their salvation, give us grace, we pray, to herald Your coming by preparing the ways of justice and of peace. Help us Lord, that we may sprout and bear fruit, fitting to grow and be a home of comfort to our neighbour. By the prayers of St Emeline of Boulancourt, may we too be beacons of Your Light and of the glory of Your Kingdom. Through Jesus our Lord, Who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering -27 October – Tuesday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time
Jesus, My Friend By St Claude de la Colombiere (1641-1682) Excerpt
O Jesus! You are my true Friend, my only Friend. You take a part in all my misfortunes; You take them on Yourself, You know how to change them into blessings. You listen to me with the greatest kindness when I relate my troubles to You, and You have always balm to pour on my wounds. I find You at all times, I find You everywhere, You never go away, if I have to change my dwelling, I find You wherever I go. You are never weary of listening to me; You are never tired of doing me good. O Jesus! Grant that I may die praising You, that I may die loving You, that I may die for the love of You. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 26 October – Monday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Monday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 4:32-5:8, Psalms 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6, Luke 13:10-17
“But the leader of the synagogue, indignant that Jesus had cured on the sabbath, said to the crowd in reply, “There are six days when work should be done. Come on those days to be cured, not on the sabbath day.” – Luke 13:14
REFLECTION – “The whole human race, like this woman, was bent over and bowed down to the ground. Someone already understands these enemies. He cries out against them and says to God, “They have bowed my soul down.” The devil and his angels have bowed the souls of men and women down to the ground. He has bent them forward to be intent on temporary and earthly things and has stopped them from seeking the things that are above.
Since that is what the Lord says about the woman whom Satan had bound for eighteen years, it was now time for her to be released from her bondage on the sabbath day. Quite unjustly, they criticised Him for straightening her up. Who were these, except people bent over themselves? Since they quite failed to understand the very things God had commanded, they regarded them with earthbound hearts. They used to celebrate the sacrament of the sabbath in a literal, material manner and did not notice it’s spiritual meaning.” – St Augustine (354-430) Father, Doctor of Grace (Sermon 162)
PRAYER – Come to help us in our weakness, God of mercy, forgive the sins of Your people and as nothing we can do is worthy in Your sight, save us through the intercession of the Mother of our Lord, Jesus Christ. May the prayers of all your saints be offered to You on our behalf. We make our prayer through Jesus with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 26 October – Monday of the Thirtieth week in Ordinary Time
Please Lord, Make me Worthy Prayer of St Thomas à Becket (1118-1170) Martyr, Archbishop of Canterbury
My Lord, I find it difficult to talk to You. What can I say? I, who have turned away from You so often with indifference. I have been a stranger to prayer, undeserving of Your friendship and love. I’ve been without honour and feel unworthy. I am a weak and shallow creature, clever only in the second-rate and worldly arts, seeking my comfort and pleasure. I gave my love, such as it was, elsewhere, putting service to my earthly king, before my duty to You. Please Lord, teach me how to serve You with all my heart, to know at last, what it really is, to love, to adore. So that I may worthily administer Your kingdom here on earth and find my true honour, in observing Your divine will. Please Lord, make me worthy. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 25 October – Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Readings: Exodus 22:20-26, Psalms 18:2-3, 3-4,47, 51, 1 Thessalonians 1:5-10, Matthew 22:34-40 and the Memorial of St Maurus of Pécs OSB (c 1000-c 1075)
“Master, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” … Matthew 22:36
REFLECTION – “O Lord, what is it that you require of Your servants? “Take my yoke upon you,” you say. And what sort of yoke is this? “My yoke is easy and my burden light.” Now who would not willingly bear a yoke that does not press down but gives strength; a burden that does not weigh heavily but refreshes? As You rightly added: “And you will find rest” (Mt 11:29). And what is this yoke of Yours that does not tire but gives rest? It is the first and greatest of the commandments: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart.” What could be easier, better or more agreeable than to love the goodness, beauty and love that is most perfectly Yours, O Lord my God?
Do You not offer a reward to those who keep the commandments, which are “more desirable than a heap of gold and sweeter than honey from the comb?” (Ps 19[18]:11) So in every way You offer a very ample reward, as James the apostle says: “The Lord has prepared the crown of life for those who love him” (Jas 1:12) (…) And Paul quotes these words from Isaiah: “No eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor has the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Cor 2:9).
That first and great commandment is not only profitable for the man who keeps it or for God who commands it – the other commandments of God also make perfect, him who obeys them, improves him, instructs him and makes him illustrious; in a word, they make him good and holy. If you understand this, realise that you have been created for the glory of God and for your own eternal salvation; this is your end, this is the object of your soul and the treasure of your heart. You will be blessed if you reach this goal but miserable if you are cut off from it.” – St Robert Bellarmine (1542-1621) Doctor of the Church – The Ascent of the Mind to God, 1
PRAYER – Lord God, You fill us with Your grace and teach us true faith. Strengthen in our hearts that faith that no trials may quench the fire, that we may seek Your face in every moment and accept AND LIVE all of Your will. May You be our first thought and our last each day. Send us Your Spirit to keep the fire blazing. May the humble love and intercession of Mary Mother of our faith, be our succour and may St Maurus of Pecs intercede for us on our pilgrim way. Through Jesus Christ, Your Son our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 25 October – Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Oh Wondrous God, Oh Infinite Mercy By St Vincent Pallotti (1795-1850)
My God, in every moment You nourish me with Your Wisdom and You destroy my ignorance. You nourish me with Your inaccessible Light and You destroy all my shadows. You nourish me with Your infinite Perfection and you destroy my life which is a monstrosity of imperfections. You nourish me with Your infinite Being and you destroy my brutish life, my loathsome self, a sinful man and by a miracle of Your Mercy, even though I have merited infinite times. to lose God forever, God Himself, with all of His Nature, Person and Attributes made Himself all mine, He becomes my nourishment and He nourishes me always, so as to transform me into Himself and make me one with Him. Therefore, I am all in God and God is all in me and with His eternal nature He brings me to all times and in His immensity, He brings me to all places and I experience myself as eternal and am immersed in Him. Oh Wondrous God, oh Infinite Mercy. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 24 October – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 4:7-16, Psalms 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5, Luke 13:1-9 and the Memorial of St Anthony Mary Claret CMF (1807-1870)
And he said to the vinedresser, “Lo, these three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and I find none. Cut it down, why should it use up the ground? ” – Luke 13:7
REFLECTION – “The Lord also has something very fitting to say about a fruitless tree, “Look, it is now three years that I have been coming to it. Finding no fruit on it, I will cut it down, to stop it blocking up my field.” The gardener intercedes.
This tree is the human race. The Lord visited this tree in the time of the patriarchs, as if for the first year. He visited it in the time of the law and the prophets, as if for the second year. Here we are now, with the gospel the third year has dawned. Now it is as though it should have been cut down but the merciful one intercedes with the merciful one. He wanted to show how merciful he was and so he stood up to himself with a plea for mercy. “Let us leave it,” he says, “this year too. Let us dig a ditch around it.” Manure is a sign of humility. “Let us apply a load of manure, perhaps it may bear fruit.” Since it does bear fruit in one part and in another part does not bear fruit, it’s Lord will come and divide it. What does that mean, “divide it?” There are good people and bad people now in one company, as though constituting one body.” – St Augustine (354-430)Doctor of Grace – Sermon 254
PRAYER – Heavenly Father, help me to keep my death constantly before my eyes, for this is my final account. I pray You for a holy life that my death may be holy and that I may come to You and live for all eternity with You. May each moment of my life bear abundant fruit for love of You. When my hour is come, bid me come to You, Lord. Hear the prayers of your Saints, Anthony Mary Claret, who lived each moment of his life for the glory of Your Kingdom. We ask this through Christ, our Lord with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 24 October – Saturday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time
Mary, I Love You By St Philip Neri (1515-1595)
Mary, I love you. Mary, make me live in God, with God and for God. Draw me after you, holy mother. O Mary, may your children persevere in loving you. Mary, Mother of God and Mother of mercy, pray for me and for the departed. Mary, holy Mother of God, be our helper. In every difficulty and distress, come to our aid, O Mary. O Queen of Heaven, lead us to eternal life with God. Mother of God, remember me, and help me always to remember you. O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray to Jesus for me. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 23 October – Feast of the Most Holy Redeemer and Friday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time
Anima Christi
Soul of Christ, sanctify me. Body of Christ, save me. Blood of Christ, inebriate me. Water from the side of Christ, wash me. Passion of Christ, strengthen me. O Good Jesus, hear me. Within Your wounds hide me. Permit me not to be separated from You. From the wicked foe, defend me. At the hour of my death, call me and bid me come to You That with Your saints, I may praise You Forever and ever. Amen
For many years the prayer was popularly believed to have been composed by Saint Ignatius Loyola, as he puts it at the beginning of his Spiritual Exercises and often refers to it. In the first edition of the Spiritual Exercises Ignatius merely mentions it, evidently supposing that the reader would know it. In later editions, it was printed in full. It was by assuming that everything in the book was written by Ignatius that it came to be looked upon as his composition. On this account the prayer is sometimes referred to as the Aspirations of St Ignatius Loyola.
However, the prayer actually dates to the early fourteenth century and was possibly written by Pope John XXII but its authorship remains uncertain. It has been found in a number of prayer books printed during the youth of Ignatius and is in manuscripts which were written a hundred years before his birth.
The English hymnologist James Mearns found it in a manuscript of the British Museum which dates back to about 1370. In the library of Avignon there is preserved a prayer book of Cardinal Pierre de Luxembourg (died 1387), which contains the prayer in practically the same form as we have it today. It has also been found inscribed on one of the gates of the Alcázar of Seville, which dates back to the time of Pedro the Cruel (1350–1369).
“I have come to set the earth on fire and how I wish it were already blazing!” – Luke 12:49
REFLECTION – “Everything we are about to do, even if it were a supremely heroic action destroying the foundations of all evil on earth, that act will have no value, except to the extent, with which our will accords with the will of the Immaculate and, through her, with the will of God … It is love in all it’s profundity (beyond feelings, even though that is also beautiful) that must transform us … It should consume us and, through us, set fire to the world and destroy and burn all the evil it finds there. This is the fire of which the Saviour said: “I have come to cast fire on the earth and what how I wish that it were already burning!” (Lk 12:49). Consumed by this fire of divine love (I repeat, it is not a question here of sweet tears or of feelings but of the will, even in the midst of disgust and antipathy), we will set the whole world ablaze! Love never rests but spreads like fire that burns everything. And all of us human beings should tend towards being set alight by this fire of love and that it may burn all souls that are and will be in the world. This is the ideal towards which we should tend. We must remember the words of Jesus: “I have come to set the earth on fire” (Lk 12:49). On our part we should do all we can to make this fire light up more and more everyday.” – St Maximilian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Priest, Martyr – Conferences
PRAYER – Father, grant that we may be, bearers of Christ Jesus, Your Son. Allow us to fill with Your light the world around us. Strengthen us by Your Holy Spirit to carry out our mission of living and following the path of Jesus, our Lord. Help us to understand, that by Your grace our gifts are Your blessings, to be shared with others. Fill us with Your Spirit of love to give glory to You in loving all and preaching by our love. Nourish in us the desire to go forth as the bearers of Your Son fearless and gentle, loving and merciful. Make us true Christ bearers, that in seeing us only He is visible. Amen (The Christopher Prayer)
Our Morning Offering – 22 October – Thursday of the Twent Ninth week in Ordinary Time
O Holy Spirit of God By Cardinal Henry Edward Manning (1806-1892)
O Holy Spirit of God, take me as Your disciple; guide me, illuminate me, sanctify me. Bind my hands, that they may do no evil; cover my eyes, that they may see it no more; sanctify my heart, that evil may not dwell within me. Be You my God; be You my guide. Wherever You lead me, I will go; whatever You forbid me, I will renounce; whatever You command me, in Your strength, I will do. Lead me, then, unto the fullness of Your truth. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 21 October – Wednesday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 3:2-12, Responsorial Psalm: Isaiah 12:2-3, 4,5-6, Luke 12:39-48 and the Memorial of Blessed Karl of Austria (1887 – 1922)
“You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” – Luke 12:40
REFLECTION – “Watch!” Our Saviour gave this warning when He was leaving this world—leaving it, that is, as far as His visible presence is concerned. He looked forward to the many hundred years which were to pass before He came again. He knew His own purpose and His Father’s purpose gradually to leave the world to itself, gradually to withdraw from it the tokens of His gracious presence. He contemplated, as contemplating all things, the neglect of Him, which would spread, even among his professed followers … He foresaw the state of the world and the Church, as we see it this day, when His prolonged absence has made it practically thought, that He never will come back in visible presence.
Today, He mercifully whispers into our ears, not to trust in what we see, not to share in that general unbelief, not to be carried away by the world but to “take heed, watch and pray,” (Lk 21:34.36) and look out for His coming. Surely this gracious warning should be ever in our thoughts, being so precise, so solemn, so earnest.
Our Saviour foretold His first coming, yet He took His Church by surprise when He came; much more will He come suddenly the second time and overtake men, now that He has not measured out the interval before it, as then He did but left our watchfulness to the keeping of faith and love … We are not simply to believe but to watch; not simply to love but to watch; not simply to obey but to watch; to watch for what? for that great event, Christ’s coming … we seem to see a special duty enjoined on us … – most of us have a general idea what is meant by believing, fearing, loving and obeying but, perhaps we do not contemplate or apprehend what is meant by “watching.” – St John Henry Newman (1801-1890) Cardinal, Founder of the Oratory in England, Theologian – Sermon “ Watching ” PPS, t. 4, n° 22
PRAYER – Holy Father, grant me an operative faith, a faith that will move mountains. Enlighten my soul with Your Light, Goodness, Power and Wisdom. Let my faith be an image of You by lively deeds and love and by conforming myself to Your Will in all things. Blessed Karl of Austria, amidst the fineries of your earthly kingship, you longed only to serve the God of all and searched for complete closeness and abandonment to Him, teach us by your prayer, to serve God alone with upright hearts and thus manifest a true faith, through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 21 October – Wednesday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time
Write Your Blessed Name, Upon My Heart By Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)
Write Your blessed name, O Lord, upon my heart, there to remain so indelibly engraved, that no prosperity, no adversity shall ever move me from Your love. Be to me a strong tower of defence, a comforter in tribulation, a deliverer in distress, a very present help in trouble and a guide to heaven through the many temptations and dangers of this life. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 20 October – Tuesday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time
Only What You Will or Will Not By Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)
Grant me Your grace, most merciful Jesus, so that it may be with me and work with me and persevere with me to the end. Grant that I may always want and desire that which is most acceptable and pleasing to You. Let Your will be mine and let my will always follow Yours and be in perfect accord with it. Let me always will or not will, the same with You and may I not be able to will or not will anything, except what You will or will not. Amen
One Minute Reflection – 19 October – Monday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 2:1-10, Psalms 100:1-2, 3,4, 4-5, Luke 12:13-21 and the Memorial of St Paul of the Cross CP (1604-1775)
“What shall I do? For I do not have space to store my harvest ” – Luke 12:17
REFLECTION – “What shall I do?” There was a ready response to this: “I will satisfy hungry souls, open up my barns, call in everyone in need… I will speak out words of generosity – all you, who are short of bread, come to me; each according to your needs, take your share of God’s gifts flowing like a public fountain.” Yet you, you foolish rich man, are very far from doing this! And why? Jealous of seeing others enjoy their wealth you give yourself up to wretched calculations – you are not anxious about how to distribute to each according to their need but how to take everything and deprive everyone else, of the profit they might have drawn from it…
So then, my brethren, take care you don’t experience the same fate as that man! If Scripture gives us this example, it is so, that we can avoid behaving in the same way. Imitate the earth! – bear fruit and don’t prove yourself worse than it, soulless as it is. It yields crops, not for it’s own pleasure but to serve you. To the contrary, all the fruit of the kindnesses you show, will be gathered for yourself, since the graces that arise from good works, return to those who bestow them. You have given to the hungry and what you gave, remains with you and even comes back to you, with increase. As the grain of wheat that fell into the earth brings profit to the sower, so the bread given to the hungry, will bring you superabundant profit later on. May the end of all your labours, be for you, the commencement of your sowing in heaven.” – St Basil The Great (329-379) Monk and Bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia, Father and Doctor of the Church – Sermon 6, on Wealth
PRAYER – Almighty God, Your Priest Saint Paul, loved only the cross. May he obtain Your grace for us, so that, inspired with a new courage and the virtue of obedience and sacrifice, by his example, we may take up our cross without flinching. We make our prayer through Jesus Christ our Saviour, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God now and for all eternity, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 19 October – Monday of the Twenty Ninth week in Ordinary Time and the Memorial of St Paul of the Cross CP (1604-1775)
Oh Jesus, My Love By St Paul of the Cross (1604-1775)
Oh Jesus, my Love, may my heart be consumed in loving Thee. Make me humble and holy; giving me childlike simplicity; transform me into Thy holy Love. O Jesus, life of my life, joy of my soul, God of my heart, accept my heart as an altar, on which I will sacrifice to Thee, the gold of ardent charity, the incense of continual, humble and fervent prayer and the myrrh of constant sacrifices! Amen
And Jesus said to them, “Whose likeness and inscription is this?” They said, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Therefore, render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God, the things that are God’s.” – Matthew 22:20-21
REFLECTION – In an ancient work known as the Incomplete Work on Matthew, an anonymous Ancient Christian Writer (ACW) offers the following insight on these verses from today’s Gospel: “The image of God is not depicted on gold but is imaged in humanity. The coin of Caesar is gold; that of God, humanity. Caesar is seen in his currency; God, however, is known through human beings. And so give your wealth to Caesar but reserve for God the sole innocence of your conscience, where God is beheld. For the hand of Caesar has crafted an image by likenesses and lives each year by renewable decree. However, the divine hand of God has shown His image in ten points.
What ten points? From five carnal ones and five spiritual ones through which we see and understand what things are useful under God’s image. So let us always reflect the image of God in these ways:
I do not swell up with the arrogance of pride; nor do I droop with the blush of anger; nor do I succumb to the passion of avarice; nor do I surrender myself to the ravishes of gluttony; nor do I infect myself with the duplicity of hypocrisy; nor do I contaminate myself with the filth of rioting; nor do I grow flippant with the pretension of conceit; nor do I grow enamoured of the burden of heavy drinking; nor do I alienate by the dissension of mutual admiration; nor do I infect others with the biting of detraction; nor do I grow conceited with the vanity of gossip.
Rather, instead,
I will reflect the image of God in that I feed on love; grow certain on faith and hope; strengthen myself on the virtue of patience; grow tranquil by humility; grow beautiful by chastity; am sober by abstention; am made happy by tranquillity and am ready for death, by practicing hospitality.
It is with such inscriptions that God imprints His coins with an impression made neither by hammer nor by chisel but has formed them, with His primary divine intention. For Caesar required his image on every coin but God has chosen man, whom He has created, to reflect His glory.” (Incomplete Work on Matthew, «Homily 40»)
PRAYER – Lord God, You chose St Luke to reveal the mystery of Your love in his preaching and his writings. Grant, we pray, that we may grow in love for the Holy Face of Christ, His words and His directions, revealed to us in the Gospels, in the example of your saints. Today, on his feast, we especially look to St Luke, to guide, teach and pray for us. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, one God with You, forever and ever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 18 October – Twenty Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
I Am Not Worthy, Holy Lord
I am not worthy, holy Lord, That Thou shouldst come to me; Speak but the word – one gracious word Can set the sinner free. I am not worthy; cold and bare The lodging of my soul; How canst Thou deign to enter there? Lord, speak and make me whole. Amen
Author – Rev H W Baker (1821–1877), was an English hymn writer.
One Minute Reflection – 17 October – Saturday of the Twenty-eighth week in Ordinary Time, Readings: Ephesians 1:15-23, Psalms 8:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, Luke 12:8-12 and the Memorial of St Ignatius of Antioch (c 35 – 107) Father of the Church, Martyr
“The Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.” … Luke 12:12
REFLECTION – “All the saints were arrested and brought before the urban prefect at Rome, a man named Rusticus. After they had been arraigned, the prefect said to Justin: (…) “What are the doctrines that you practise ?” “I have tried to become acquainted,” said Justin, “with all doctrines. But I have committed myself to the true doctrines of the Christians (…)” “What belief do you mean?” Justin said: “The belief that we piously hold regarding the God the Christians, whom alone we hold to be the craftsman of the whole world from the beginning and also regarding Jesus Christ, child of God, who was also foretold by the prophets, as one who was to come down to mankind as a herald of salvation and teacher of good doctrines. What I say is insignificant when measured against His Godhead but, I acknowledge the power of prophecy (…), for you must know that in earlier times the prophets foretold His coming among men.”
Rusticus the prefect said: “Tell me, where do you meet, where do you gather together your disciples?” Justin said: “I have been living above the baths of a certain Martinus, son of Timothy (…) Anyone who wished could come to my abode and I would impart to him the words of truth.” “You do admit, then, that you are a Christian?” “Yes, I am”. To Chariton, the prefect, Rusticus said: “Chariton, are you a Christian, too?” “I am,” said Chariton, “by God’s command” (…) “And what are you Evelpistus?” “I too am a Christian. I have been freed by Christ and I share in the same hope by the favour of Christ” (…) “Did Justin convert you to Christianity?” “I have long been a Christian and ever shall be (…) I listened gladly to the teaching of Justin but my Christianity I received from my parents.” (…) Paeon arose and spoke: “I am a Christian also.” The prefect Rusticus said to Liberian: “And what have you to say? Are you a Christian and do you also refuse to be pious?” Liberian said: “Yes, I too am a Christian. I believe in the one, true God and worship Him.”
The prefect turned to Justin: “You are said to be learned and you think you know the true doctrine. Now listen – if you are scourged and beheaded, do you suppose that you will ascend to heaven (…) to receive certain worthy rewards?” “I have confidence that, if I endure all this, I shall possess His mansions. Indeed, I know that for all those who lead a just life, there awaits the divine gift even to the consummation of the whole world (…) I do not think it but I have accurate knowledge of it; I am fully convinced of it.” … Acts of the Martyrdom of Saint Justin and his companions (c 165).
PRAYER – “I am the wheat of God and am ground by the teeth of the wild beasts, that I may be found the pure bread of God. I long after the Lord, the Son of the true God and Father, Jesus Christ. Him I seek, who died for us and rose again. I am eager to die for the sake of Christ. My love has been crucified and there is no fire in me that loves anything. But there is living water springing up in me and it says to me inwardly, “Come to the Father” Amen – A Martyr’s Prayer – By St Ignatius of Antioch (c 35 – 107) Father of the Church, Martyr
Our Morning Offering – 17 October – Saturday of the Twenty-eighth week in Ordinary Time
Dear and Sweet Mother Mary By Blessed James Alberione (1884-1971)
Dear and sweet Mother Mary, keep your holy hand upon me; guard my mind, my heart and my senses, that I may never commit sin. Sanctify my thoughts, affections, words and actions, so that I may please you and your Jesus, my God, and reach heaven with you. Jesus and Mary, give me your holy blessing; In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
AnaStpaul 
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