Our Morning Offering – 15 August
PRAYER of ST AMBROSE (340-397) Father and Doctor of the Church
O Lord, who has mercy upon all,
take away from me my sins
and mercifully kindle in me
the fire of Your Holy Spirit.
Take away from me the heart of stone
and give me a heart of flesh,
a heart to love and adore You,
a heart to delight in You,
to follow and enjoy You,
for Christ’s sake. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 13 August
A Eucharistic Offering
By Thomas à Kempis (1380-1471)
Lord, all things in heaven and earth are Yours.
I desire to offer myself to You
in free and perpetual oblation,
so that I may forever be with You.
Lord, in simpliciy of heart,
I offer myself this day to You,
to be Your servant in service
and sacrifice of perpetual praise.
Accept me with the oblation of Your precious Body,
which this day I offer You in the presence
of Your holy angels, here invisibly present,
so that it may be to my salvation
and to the salvation of all people. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 12 August
Prayer of Saint Jane de Chantal (1572-1641)
O Holy Mother of the children of God!
When shall I rest in your immortal arms?
Our souls should be wholly consumed by this desire.
But I will restrain myself and peacefully await the hour
which the divine Saviour has destined for me,
to overwhelm me with that bliss.
In the meantime let us have only one desire,
to please Him by doing His holy will in all things.
What God wishes for us, let it be done:
we are His for time and eternity. Amen
Thought for the Day – 11 August – The Memorial of St Clare of Assisi
Clare (a name meaning “shining with light”)
The 41 years of Clare’s religious life are a model of piety and sanctity. She demonstrated an indomitable resolve to lead the simple, literal gospel life as Francis taught her, resisting worldly pressures to dilute the rules of her order. Through her commitment to the Gospel and her unwavering life of prayer, Clare established a new manner for women to live in community and serve the Lord—one of poverty and humility, service and contemplation, and generous concern for others. Saint Clare continues to inspire us today through the example set forth in her life, as well as her writings which survive her.
Her life is one of simple focus. From an early age she dedicated herself to the Lord and through a lifetime of humility, service, obedience, patient suffering, prayer and contemplation, Clare refined her being into a “model of perfection.” Miracles aside, the daily life of poverty and labour resonates today, reminding us of the Lord’s call to us: “He who is last shall be first.” Saint Clare depended completely on the Lord, looking to the Eucharist as a source of joy and sustenance and never taking the gifts of God for granted. Today, on her feast day, we might slow down and contemplate our relationship with the Lord, our dependence, the value we place upon our Eucharistic gift and privilege. How well do we live the advice of Saint Clare: “Totally love Him, Who gave Himself totally for your love.”
St Clare, shining with light – Pray for us!
O wondrous blessed clarity of Clare!
In life she shone to a few;
after death she shines on the whole world!
On earth she was a clear light;
Now in heaven she is a brilliant sun.
O how great the vehemence of the
brilliance of this clarity!
On earth this light was indeed kept
within cloistered walls,
yet shed abroad its shining rays;
It was confined within a convent cell,
yet spread itself through the wide world.
– Pope Innocent IV
Our Morning Offering – 10 August
The Universal Prayer
Attributed to Pope Clement XI (1700-1721)
Lord, I believe in You: increase my faith.
I trust in You: strengthen my trust.
I love You: let me love You more and more.
I am sorry for my sins: deepen my sorrow.
I worship You as my first beginning,
I long for You as my last end.
I praise You as my constant helper
and call on You as my loving protector.
Guide me by Your wisdom,
correct me with Your justice,
comfort me with Your mercy,
protect me with Your power.
I offer You, Lord, my thoughts: to be fixed on You;
my words: to have You for their theme;
my actions: to reflect my love for You;
my sufferings: to be endured for Your greater glory.
I want to do what You ask of me:
in the way You ask,
for as long as You ask, because You ask it.
Lord, enlighten my understanding, strengthen my will,
purify my heart and make me holy.
Help me to repent of my past sins
and to resist temptation in the future.
Help me to rise above my human weaknesses
and to grow stronger as a Christian.
Let me love You, my Lord and my God,
and see myself as I really am: a pilgrim in this world,
a Christian called to respect and love all those lives I touch,
those in authority over me or those under my authority,
my friends and my enemies.
Help me to conquer anger with gentleness,
greed by generosity, apathy by fervour.
Help me to forget myself and reach out toward others.
Make me prudent in planning, courageous in taking risks.
Make me patient in suffering, unassuming in prosperity.
Keep me, Lord, attentive at prayer,
temperate in food and drink, diligent in my work,
firm in my good intentions.
Let my conscience be clear, my conduct without fault,
my speech blameless, my life well-ordered.
Put me on guard against my human weaknesses.
Let me cherish Your love for me, keep your law
and come at last to Your salvation.
Teach me to realise that this world is passing,
that my true future is the happiness of heaven,
that life on earth is short and the life to come eternal.
Help me to prepare for death with a proper fear of judgment,
but a greater trust in Your goodness.
Lead me safely through death to the endless joy of heaven.
Grant this through Christ Our Lord. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 9 August
Excerpt from a Prayer
By St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
O Prince of Peace,
to all who receive You,
Your bright light and peace.
Help me to live in daily contact with You,
listening to the words You have spoken
and obeying them.
O Divine Child, I place my hands in Yours;
I shall follow You.
Oh, let Your divine life flow into me.
O my God, fill my soul with holy joy,
courage and strength to serve You.
Enkindle Your love in me
and then walk with me
along the next stretch of road before me.
I do not see very far ahead
but when I have arrived
where the horizon now closes down,
a new prospect will open before me
and I shall meet with peace.
How wondrous are the marvels of Your love,
We are amazed, we stammer and grow dumb,
for word and spirit fail us.
Our Morning Offering – 8 August
Prayer of St Dominic
May God the Father who made us bless us.
May God the Son send His healing among us.
May God the Holy Spirit move within us and
give us eyes to see with, ears to hear with,
and hands that Your work might be done.
May we walk and preach
the word ofGod to all.
May the angel of peace watch over us
and lead us at last, by God’s grace,
to the Kingdom. Amen
When Pope Benedict XVI announced a special Year for Priests to be observed in the Church (June 19, 2009 — June 19, 2010), he noted that the timing was not arbitrary. The year coincides, he said, with the 150th anniversary of the death of St. John Vianney, “a true example of a pastor at the service of Christ’s flock.”
It is, therefore, appropriate that we pray for all our priests today:
Gracious and loving God, we thank your for the gift of our priests.
Through them, we experience your presence in the sacraments.
Help our priests to be strong in their vocation.
Set their souls on fire with love for your people.
Grant them the wisdom, understanding, and strength they need to follow in the footsteps of Jesus.
Inspire them with the vision of your Kingdom.
Give them the words they need to spread the Gospel.
Allow them to experience joy in their ministry.
Help them to become instruments of your divine grace.
We ask this through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns as our Eternal Priest.
Amen
St John Vianney, pray for all our priests!
Our Morning Offering – 4 August
I love You, O my God
St John Vianney (1786-1859)
I love You, O my God.
My only desire is to love You, until the last breath of my life.
I love You, O infinitely loveable God
and I prefer to die loving You,
rather than to live for an instant without You.
I love You, O my God
and I desire only to go to heaven,
to have the happiness of loving You perfectly.
I love You, O my God
and my only fear is to go to hell
because one will never have the sweet solace of loving You there.
O my God, if my tongue cannot say at all times that I love You,
at least I want my heart to repeat it to You as many times as I breathe.
Ah! Do me the grace: to suffer while loving You,
to love You while suffering.
And, that when I die: I not only will love You
but experience it in my heart.
I beg You that the closer I come to my final end,
You will increase and perfect my love for You. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 3 August
Grant me, O Lord by Thomas à Kempis
Grant me, O Lord,
to know what I ought to know,
to love what I ought to love,
to praise what delights You most,
to value what is precious in Your sight,
to hate what is offensive to You.
Do not suffer me to judge
according to the sight of my eyes,
nor to pass sentence
according to the hearing
of the ears of ignorant men;
but to discern with a true judgment
between things visible and spiritual,
and above all things,
always to inquire,
what is the good pleasure of Your will. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 2 August – The Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
EXCERPT from the ‘Our Father’ Paraphrase
By St Peter Julian Eymard (1811-1868)
“Apostle of the Eucharist”
Our Father Who art in Heaven
In the heaven of the Eucharist …
Grant me the grace to find
all my joy in wanting You alone,
in desiring You alone
and in thinking of You alone.
Grant that by denying myself,
I may find light and life
in obeying Your good,
acceptable and perfect Will.
I will, what You will.
I will it because You will it.
I will it, as You will it.
I will it, as long as You will it.
Keep my thoughts and desires purely
from You,
for You
and in You.
In You, O Lord Jesus, have I hoped,
let me not be confounded forever.
You alone are good.
You alone are powerful.
You alone are eternal.
To You alone be honour and glory,
love and thanksgiving,
forever and ever.
Amen
And here is the full Prayer:
PRAYER OF ST PETER JULIAN EYMARD
Our Father Paraphrased
Our Father Who art in Heaven
In the heaven of the Eucharist,
to You Who are seated
on the throne of grace and love,
be benediction,
and honour,
and power and glory forever and ever!
Hallowed be Your Name
first in myself,
through the spirit of Your humility,
obedience and charity.
May I, in all humility and zeal, make You known,
loved and adored by all men in the Holy Eucharist.
Thy Kingdom come
Thy Eucharistic kingdom.
Rule forever over us
for Your greater glory
through the power of Your love,
the triumph of Your virtues
and the grace of a Eucharistic vocation
in my state as a layman.
Grant me the grace of Your love
so that I may be able to effectively
extend Your Eucharistic kingdom everywhere
and realise the desire You expressed:
“I have come to cast fire on the earth;
and what will I but that it be kindled!”
O, that I might be the incendiaries of this heavenly fire!
Thy Will be done on earth as it is in Heaven
Grant me the grace to find
all my joy in wanting You alone,
in desiring You alone
and in thinking of You alone.
Grant that by denying myself,
I may find light and life in obeying Your good,
acceptable and perfect Will.
I will, what You will.
I will it, because You will it.
I will it, as You will it.
I will it, as long as You will it.
Keep my thoughts and desires purely from You,
for You and in You.
Give us this day our daily bread
You are our Eucharistic Lord
and You alone will be my food and clothing,
my riches and glory,
my remedy in illness
and my protection against all evil.
You will be all things to me.
And forgive us our trespasses
Forgive me Jesus,
for I am sorry for all my sins
just as they stand in Your eyes.
As we forgive those who trespass against us
For anyone who has offended me in any way,
with my whole heart I forgive them
and desire for them the gifts of Your love.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
Deliver me Jesus,
from the demon of pride,
impurity, discord and complacency.
Deliver me, from the cares and worries
of life, so that with a pure heart
and a free mind, I may joyfully spend my life
and devote all that I am
and all that I have,
in the service of You, my Eucharistic Lord.
Amen
In You, O Lord Jesus, have I hoped;
let me not be confounded forever.
You alone are good.
You alone are powerful.
You alone are eternal.
To You alone be honour and glory,
love and thanksgiving forever and ever. Amen Amen!
Our Morning Offering – 1 August
Morning Prayer of St. Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787)
Doctor of the Church
Doctor zelantissimus (Most Zealous Doctor)
My most sweet Lord,
I offer and consecrate to You this morning
all that I am and have:
my senses,
my thoughts,
my affections,
my desires,
my pleasures,
my inclinations,
my liberty.
In a word,
I place my whole body and soul in Your hands. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 31 July
Eternal Lord of All
By St Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556)
Eternal Lord of all things,
I come before Thine Infinite Goodness
and before Thy glorious Mother
and all Saints of the heavenly court,
to make my offering, with Thy help and favour,
it is my wish, desire and determination,
provided that it would be
for Thy greater service and praise,
to imitate Thee in suffering injury,
insults and poverty,
actual as well as spiritual,
should Thine most Holy Majesty
choose to receive me,
in such a way of life.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 30 July
Prayer before Mass and Holy Communion
By Blessed Angela of Foligno (1248-1309)
Holy God,
I go to You in order to be received,
go pure in order to be purified,
go alive in order to be enlivened,
go just in order to be justified,
go united and conjoined to Christ
in order to be incorporated through Him,
with Him
and in Him,
God created and God made man,
who is given in this most high mystery,
through the hands of the priest.
Thanks be to God always.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 29 July
Jesus Help me, Your Servant
By Ven Servant of God
Fr John A Hardon S.J. (1914-2000)
Jesus, help me, Your servant,
whom You redeemed by Your Precious Blood.
In every need let me come to You
with humble trust, saying:
Jesus help me.
In all my doubts, perplexities and temptations:
Jesus help me.
In hours of loneliness, weariness and trial:
Jesus help me.
In the failure of my plans and hopes:
Jesus help me.
In disappointments, troubles and sorrows:
Jesus help me.
When I throw myself on Your tender love
as Brother and Saviour:
Jesus help me.
When I feel impatient and my cross is heavy:
Jesus help me.
When I am ill and my head and hands
cannot do their work:
Jesus help me.
Always, always, in joys and sorrows,
in falls and shortcomings:
Jesus help me. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 28 July
Wash Me With Your Precious Blood
By St Peter Canisius S.J.
See, O merciful God, what return
I, Your thankless servant, have made
for the innumerable favours
and the wonderful love You have shown me!
What wrongs I have done, what good left undone!
Wash away, I beg You, these faults and stains
with Your precious blood, most kind Redeemer,
and make up for my poverty by applying Your merits.
Give me the protection I need to amend my life.
I give and surrender myself wholly to You,
and offer You all I possess,
with the prayer that You bestow Your grace on me,
so that I may be able to devote and employ
all the thinking power of my mind
and the strength of my body in Your holy service,
who are God blessed for ever and ever. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 27 July
“O God, I love You and not because
I hope for heaven thereby.”
St Francis Xavier translated by Gerald Manley Hopkins
I love You, God, I love You—
Not out of hope for heaven for me
Nor fearing not to love and be
In the everlasting burning.
You, my Jesus, after me
Did reach Your arms out dying,
For my sake suffered nails and lance,
Mocked and marred countenance,
Sorrows passing number,
Sweat and care and cumber,
Yes and death, and this for me,
And You could see me sinning:
Then I, why should not I love You,
Jesu so much in love with me?
Not for heaven’s sake, not to be
Out of hell by loving You;
Not for any gains I see;
But just the way that You loved me
I do love and will love You.
What must I love You Lord, for then?
For being my king and God. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 24 July
Eternal God, our Refuge
By St Boniface
Eternal God, the refuge and help of all Your children,
we praise You for all You have given us,
for all You have done for us,
for all that You are to us.
In our weakness, You are strength,
in our darkness, You are light,
in our sorrow, You are comfort and peace.
We cannot number Your blessings,
we cannot declare Your love:
For all Your blessings we bless You.
May we live as in Your presence,
and love the things that You love,
and serve You in our daily lives;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 23 July
Prayer in Praise and Thanksgiving
By St Bridget of Sweden
To You be praise indeed, O eternal God
and endless thanksgiving for the fact
that You deigned to become a human being
and that for us in the world,
You willed to consecrate Your venerable Body
out of material bread
and lovingly bestow it on us as food
for the salvation of our souls!
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 22 July
You are Christ
St Augustine
You are Christ,
my Holy Father,
my Tender God,
my Great King,
my Good Shepherd,
my Only Master,
my Best Helper,
my Most Beautiful
and my Beloved,
my Living Bread,
my Priest Forever,
my Leader to my Country,
my True Light,
my Holy Sweetness,
my Straight Way,
my Excellent Wisdom,
my Pure Simplicity,
my Peaceful Harmony,
my Entire Protection,
my Good Portion,
my Everlasting Salvation.
May the live coal of Your Love grow hot within my spirit
and break forth into a perfect fire;
may it burn incessantly on the altar of my heart;
may it glow in my innermost being;
may it blaze in hidden recesses of my soul;
and in the days of my consummation
may I be found consummated with You!
Amen.
Our Morning Offering – 21 July
St Francis’s Prayer Before the San Damiano Crucifix
Most High, glorious God,
enlighten the darkness of my heart
and give me
true faith,
certain hope
and perfect charity,
sense and knowledge,
Lord, that I may carry out
Your holy and true command.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 20 July
Prayer for Reconciliation and Peace
St Pope John Paul
O God, Creator of the universe,
who extends Your paternal concern
over every creature
and guides the events of history
to the goal of salvation,
we acknowledge Your fatherly love
when You break the resistance of mankind,
and, in a world torn by strife and discord,
You make us ready for reconciliation.
Renew for us the wonders of Your mercy;
send forth Your Spirit that He may work
in the intimacy of hearts,
that enemies may begin to dialogue,
that adversaries may shake hands and peoples
may encounter one another in harmony.
May all commit themselves
to the sincere search for true peace –
which will extinguish all arguments,
for charity -which overcomes hatred,
for pardon – which disarms revenge.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 19 July
Prayer for a Pure Faith
Blessed Pope Paul VI
Lord, I believe:
I wish to believe in You.
Lord, let my faith be full
and unreserved,
and let it penetrate my thought,
my way of judging Divine things
and human things.
Lord, let my faith be joyful
and give peace
and gladness to my spirit,
and dispose it for prayer with God
and conversation with men,
so that the inner bliss
of its fortunate possession
may shine forth in sacred
and secular conversation.
Lord, let my faith be humble
and not presume
to be based on the experience
of my thought and of my feeling;
but let it surrender
to the testimony of the Holy Spirit,
and not have any better guarantee
than in docility to Tradition
and to the authority of
the magisterium of the Holy Church.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 18 July
Eucharistic Lord Jesus
St Pope John Paul – Cremona,Italy, June 21,1992
Lord Jesus,
who in the Eucharist make Your dwelling among us
and become our travelling companion,
sustain Our Christian communities
so that they may be ever more open to listening
and accepting Your Word.
May they draw from the Eucharist
a renewed commitment to spreading in society,
by the proclamation of Your Gospel,
the signs and deeds of an attentive and active charity.
Lord Jesus, in Your Eucharist
make Christian spouses
the “signs” of Your nuptial love among us:
make families communities of people who,
living in dialogue with God and each other,
do not fear life
and become responsible for sowing the seeds
of priestly, religious and missionary vocations.
Lord Jesus, from Your altar
illuminate this world with light and grace,
so that it may reject the seduction
of a materialistic conception of life,
and defeat the selfishness that threatens it,
the injustices that upset it,
and the divisions with which it is affliicted.
Lord Jesus: give us Your joy, give us Your peace.
Stay with us, Lord!
You alone have the words of eternal life! Amen
Our Morning Offering – 17 July
Prayer of St Mary of Jesus Crucified O.C.D.
Holy Spirit, inspire me.
Love of God, consume me.
Along the true road lead me.
Mary, my mother, look upon me.
With Jesus bless me.
From all evil, from all illusion,
from all danger, preserve me. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 15 July
Excerpt from the Prayer of
St Bonaventure (1217-1274) Seraphic Doctor
Pierce, O most sweet Lord Jesus,
my inmost soul with the most joyous
and healthful wound of Your love
and with true, calm
and most holy apostolic charity,
that my soul may ever languish
and melt with entire love and longing for You,
may yearn for You and for Your courts,
may long to be dissolved and to be with You.
Grant that my soul may hunger after You,
the Bread of Angels,
the refreshment of holy souls,
our daily and supersubstantial bread,
having all sweetness and savour
and every delightful taste. Amen
Our Morning Offering – 14 July
A Prayer for Enlightenment
St Alcuin of York (735-804)
Eternal light, shine into our hearts,
Eternal Goodness, deliver us from evil,
Eternal Power, be our support,
Eternal Wisdom,
scatter the darkness of our ignorance,
Eternal Pity, have mercy on us;
that with all our heart
and mind
and soul
and strength,
we may seek Your Face
and be brought by Your infinite mercy
to Your Holy Presence;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord
Amen.
Our Morning Offering – 13 July
Prayer of St Aelred of Rievaulx
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
One Minute Reflection – 12 July
You have said, “Seek my face”. My heart says to you, “Your face, Lord, do I seek”. Hide not your face from me. Turn not your servant away in anger, you who have been my help. Cast me not off, forsake me not, O God of my salvation………Psalm 27:8-9
REFLECTION – “Veronica- ‘Bernice’ in the Greek tradition, embodies the universal yearning of the devout men and women of the Old Testament, the yearning of all believers to see the Face of God. On Jesus’ Way of the Cross, though, she at first did nothing more than perform an act of womanly kindness: she held out a facecloth to Jesus. She did not let herself be deterred by the brutality of the soldiers or the fear which gripped the disciples. She is the image of that good woman, who, amid turmoil and dismay, shows the courage born of goodness and does not allow her heart to be bewildered. “Blessed are the pure in heart”, the Lord had said in his Sermon on the Mount, “for they shall see God” (Mt 5:8). At first, Veronica saw only a buffeted and pain-filled Face. Yet her act of love impressed the true image of Jesus on her heart: on His human Face, bloodied and bruised, she saw the Face of God and His goodness, which accompanies us even in our deepest sorrows. Only with the heart can we see Jesus. Only love purifies us and gives us the ability to see. Only love enables us to recognize the God who is love itself.”…………..Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (24 March 2005)
PRAYER – Lord God, grant us restless hearts, hearts which seek Your Face. Keep us from the blindness of heart which sees only the surface of things. Give us the simplicity and purity which allow us to recognise Your presence in the world. When we are not able to accomplish great things, grant us the courage which is born of humility and goodness. Impress Your Face on our hearts. May we encounter You along the way and show Your image to the world. St Veronica, Pray for us! Amen.
Our Morning Offering – 12 July
The Eucharistic Face of Jesus
By Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity
O Eucharistic Face of Jesus,
brightness of the glory of my God
and figure of His substance,
I want to spend my life gazing upon You,
to become totally impressionable
so that I might bear Your likeness
and become an effigy of Your countenance.
Through all darkness,
all emptiness,
all powerlessness,
I want to keep my eyes fixed on You
and to remain under Your great light.
O my beloved Sun,
so fascinate me
that I may never be able to leave Your radiance.
Amen
AnaStpaul 
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