Our Lady of Betania:
The name Betania means Bethany in Spanish. It was originally given this name by Maria Esperanza and was the site of their farm, in Venezuela. Apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary were reported and eventually a small chapel was built here and the faithful began to gather, especially on Feast Days but throughout the year.
Bl Everard of Nellenburg
Bl Herman of Zahringen
St Hermenland
St Humbert of Pelagius
Bl James Bird
Bl Josaphata Mykhailyna Hordashevska
St Kennocha of Fife
St Lucia Filippini St Marie-Alphonsine/Mariam Sultaneh Danil Ghattas (1843-1927)
St Matrona of Barcelona
St Matrona of Thessaloniki
St Mona of Milan
St Ndre Zadeja
Bl Pawel Januszewski
St Pelagius of Laodicea
Bl Placido Riccardi
St Procopius
St Quirinus of Rome
Bl Tommaso of Costacciaro
—
262 Martyrs of Rome: A group 262 Christians martyred together in Rome. We know nothing else about them, not even their names.
Our Morning Offering – 21 March – Saturday of the Third Week of Lent
Pope Francis Prayer recited by video on 11 March
asking Mary to protect Italy and the world during the coronavirus pandemic.
Prayer to Mary, Health of the Sick
Mary,
you always shine on our path
as a sign of salvation and of hope.
We entrust ourselves to you, Health of the Sick,
who at the cross took part in Jesus’ pain,
keeping your faith firm.
You, Salvation of the Roman People,
know what we need,
and we are sure you will provide
so that, as in Cana of Galilee,
we may return to joy and to feasting
after this time of trial.
Help us, Mother of Divine Love,
to conform to the will of the Father
and to do as we are told by Jesus,
who has taken upon Himself our sufferings
and carried our sorrows
to lead us, through the Cross,
to the joy of the Resurrection.
Amen
Under your protection, we seek refuge, Holy Mother of God.
Do not disdain the entreaties of we, who are in trial
but deliver us from every danger,
O glorious and blessed Virgin.
One Minute Reflection – 14 March – Saturday of the Second Week of Lent, Readings: Micah 7:14-15, 18-20, Psalm 103:1-4, 9-12, Luke 15:1-3, 11-32
“Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him” … Luke 15:22
REFLECTION – “How many there are who, through repentance, have been worthy to receive the love You hold for humankind. You justified the anguished publican and the weeping woman who was a sinner (Lk 18:14; 7:50) for, through a predetermined design, You foresee and grant pardon. Convert me also together with them, You who desire that all should be saved.
My soul was soiled as it put on the garment of its sins (Gn 3:21). O let me make fountains flow from my eyes that I may purify it by repentance. Clothe me with the shining robe worthy of your wedding (Mt 22:12), You who desire that all should be saved (…).
O heavenly Father, have compassion for my cry as You did for the prodigal son for I, too, am throwing myself at Your feet and crying aloud as he cried: “Father, I have sinned!” Do not reject me, Your unworthy child, O my Saviour but cause Your angels to rejoice also on my behalf, O God of goodness who desire that all should be saved.
For You have made me Your child and Your own heir through grace (Rm 8,17). Yet as for me, because I have offended You, am here a prisoner, an unhappy slave sold over to sin! Take pity on Your own image (Gn 1,26) and call it back from exile, O Saviour, You who desire that all should be saved…
Now is the time for repentance… The words of Paul urge me to persevere in prayer (Col 4,2) and await You. Therefore, with trust I pray, for I well know Your mercy, I know You come the first towards me and I am calling out for help. Should You delay, it is to give me the reward for perseverance, You who desire that all should be saved.
Grant me always to extol You and give You glory by leading a life that is pure. Grant that my deeds may be in accord with my words that I may sing to You, Almighty… with pure prayer, Christ alone who desires that all should be saved.” … St Romanos Melodios (c 490-c 556) 1 October Monk, Composer of Hymns, Poet – Hymn 55
PRAYER – Almighty God, whose healing grace even here on earth, brings us the gifts of heaven, guide us in this present life to constantly seek You and to know You and to love You. Lead us to that Light in which You have Your dwelling. By following Your Son, faithfully bearing our crosses, may we be His light here on earth . And may Mary, the Blessed Mother of Sorrows, constantly be our succour and lead us to You. We make our prayer through Christ, our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God for all ages, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 14 March – Saturday of the Second Week of Lent and always a “Marian Saturday”
In his General Audience on Ash Wednesday, 5 March 2014, Pope Francis highlighted the special protection and help of the Blessed Virgin for the journey of Lent:
“Let us give thanks to God for the mystery of His crucified love, authentic faith, conversion and openness of heart to the brethren. These are the essential elements for living the season of Lent. On this journey, we want to invoke with special trust the protection and help of the Virgin Mary.
May she, who was the first to believe in Christ, accompany us in our days of intense prayer and penance, so that we might come to celebrate, purified and renewed in spirit, the great paschal mystery of her Son.”
These words of Pope Francis help us to appreciate one reason why Mary is the perfect companion for Lent She is the model of the perfect disciple because she entrusted herself completely to God. At the Annunciation, Mary tells the angel: “I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38).
In 1974, St Pope Paul VI taught that Mary is “worthy of imitation because she was the first and the most perfect of Christ’s disciples” (Marialis Cultus, No. 35).
Lent is a perfect time to renew our devotion to Mary as our spiritual mother who cares for us in the midst of challenges and difficulties.
My Sorrowful Mother, Help Me to Bear My Crosses By St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787) Doctor of the Church
My sorrowful Mother,
by the merit of that grief
which you felt
at seeing your beloved Jesus
led to death,
obtain for me the grace
to bear with patience,
those crosses which God sends me.
I will be fortunate
if I also shall know how
to accompany you
with my cross until death.
You and Jesus,
both innocent,
have borne a heavy cross
and shall I,
a sinner who has merited hell,
refuse mine?
Immaculate Virgin,
I hope you will help me
to bear my crosses with patience.
Amen
Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face
Seventh Day – 23 February
DAILY PREPARATORY PRAYER
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity,
through the intercession of Holy Mary,
whose soul was pierced through
by a sword of sorrow
at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son,
we ask Your help,
in making a perfect Novena of Reparation with Jesus,
united with all His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints
to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena
to the Most Holy Face of Jesus
and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen
(Console Holy Face and recite Daily Preparatory Prayer)
SEVENTH DAY
Psalm 51,14-15
Give me again the joy of your help,
with a spirit of fervour sustain me,
that I may teach transgressors your ways
and sinners may return to you.
Lord Jesus!
After contemplating Thy features,
disfigured by grief,
after meditating upon Thy passion
with compunction and love,
how can our hearts fail to be inflamed
with a holy hatred of sin,
which even now, outrages Thy Adorable Face!
Lord, suffer us not to be content
with mere compassion
but give us grace to closely follow Thee in this Calvary,
so that the opprobrium destined for Thee
may fall on us,
0 Jesus, that thus, we may have a share,
small though it may be,
in expiation of sin.
Amen
Mary, our Mother, intercede for us.
Saint Joseph pray for us.
Through the merits of your precious blood
and your Holy Face, O Jesus,
grant us our petition………………
Pardon and mercy.
Hail Mary, Queen of Our Hearts, Our Mother Prayer in Honour of Mary By St Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716)
Hail Mary, Daughter of God the Father!
Hail Mary, Mother of God the Son!
Hail Mary, Spouse of the Holy Spirit!
Hail Mary, Temple of the Most Holy Trinity!
Hail Mary, our mistress, our wealth, our mystic rose.
Queen of our hearts, our Mother,
our life, our sweetness and our dearest hope!
We are all Thine and all we have is thine.
O Virgin blessed above all things,
may thy soul be in us, to magnify the Lord,
may thy spirit be in us, to rejoice in God.
Place thyself, O faithful Virgin,
as a seal upon our hearts,
that in thee and through thee,
we may be found faithful to God.
Grant, most gracious Virgin,
that we may be numbered among those,
whom thou art pleased to love,
to teach and to guide,
to favour and to protect as thy children.
Grant that with the help of thy love,
we may despise all earthly consolation
and cling to heavenly things,
until through the Holy Spirit, thy faithful spouse
and through thee,
His faithful spouse, Jesus Christ, Thy Son,
be formed within us
for the glory of the Father.
Amen
Pray (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Marys, one (1) Glory Be
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine! (Three times)
One Minute Reflection – 23 February – Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: Leviticus 19:1-2, 17-18, Psalm 103:1-4, 8, 10, 12-13, 1 Corinthians 3:16-23, Matthew 5:38-48
“But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” … Matthew 5:44
REFLECTION – “But what do his words mean? Why does Jesus ask us to love precisely our enemies, that is, a love which exceeds human capacities?
Actually, Christ’s proposal is realistic, because it takes into account that in the world there is too much violence, too much injustice and, therefore, that this situation cannot be overcome except by countering it with more love, with more goodness. This “more” comes from God, it is His mercy which was made flesh in Jesus and which alone can “tip the balance” of the world from evil to good, starting with that small and decisive “world” which is the human heart. This Gospel passage is rightly considered the magna carta of Christian non-violence. It does not consist in succumbing to evil, as a false interpretation of “turning the other cheek” (cf. Lk 6: 29) claims but in responding to evil with good (cf. Rom 12: 17-21) and thereby breaking the chain of injustice. One then understands that for Christians, non-violence is not merely tactical behaviour but a person’s way of being, the attitude of one who is so convinced of God’s love and power that, he is not afraid to tackle evil with the weapons of love and truth alone. … Here is the newness of the Gospel which silently changes the world! Here is the heroism of the “lowly” who believe in God’s love and spread it, even at the cost of their lives.
Dear brothers and sisters, Lent, which will begin this Wednesday with the Rite of Ashes, is the favourable season in which all Christians are asked to convert ever more deeply to Christ’s love.
Let us ask the Virgin Mary, docile disciple of the Redeemer, who helps us to allow ourselves to be won over without reserve by that love, to learn to love as He loved us, to be merciful as Our Father in Heaven is merciful (cf. Lk 6: 36).” … Pope Benedict XVI – Angelus, St Peter’s Square, Sunday, 18 February 2007
PRAYER – O Lord my God, give me the strength to endure with patience the sufferings I encounter in my life. Teach me to do my daily work for You alone and to do more than that in every way I can, for your greater glory. Teach me, Holy Father, to obey the words of Your Son, to pray for those who persecute me and to suffer for the glory of the Kingdom. May our Blessed and loving Mother, who had to bear the pain and forgive those who killed her Son, be at our side to help us to forgive, to pray for our enemies and offer our pain in reparation for our sins and those of the world. Amen
Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face Fourth Day – 20 February
DAILY PREPARATORY PRAYER
O Most Holy and Blessed Trinity,
through the intercession of Holy Mary,
whose soul was pierced through
by a sword of sorrow
at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son,
we ask Your help,
in making a perfect Novena of Reparation with Jesus,
united with all His sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels and Saints
to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena
to the Most Holy Face of Jesus
and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Amen
FOURTH DAY
(Console Holy Face and recite Daily Preparatory Prayer)
Psalm 51,8-9 Indeed you love truth in the heart, then in the secret of my heart, teach me Wisdom. O purify me, then I shall be clean, O wash me. I shall be whiter than snow.
O Lord Jesus, who has said,
learn of Me for I am meek and gentle of heart
and who did manifest upon Thy Holy Face,
the sentiments of Thy divine heart,
grant that we may love
to come frequently
and meditate upon Thy divine features.
We may read there Thy gentleness
and Thy humility
and learn how to form our hearts
in the practice of these two virtues,
which Thou desires to see shine in Thy servants.
Mary our Mother and Saint Joseph help us.
Through the merits of your precious blood and your Holy Face,
O Jesus, grant us our petition………………
Pardon and mercy.
Prayer in Honour of the Dolours of the Blessed Virgin
O Most Holy and afflicted Virgin, Queen of Martyrs!
Who stood beneath the cross,
witnessing the agony of your dying Son,
look down with a mother’s tenderness and pity on us,
as we kneel before you
to venerate your Dolours
and place our requests,
with filial confidence,
in the sanctuary of your wounded heart.
Present them on our behalf to Jesus,
through the merits of His most sacred Passion and Death,
together with your sufferings at the foot of the cross
and through the united efficacy of both,
obtain the favour which we humbly ask.
To whom shall we go in our wants and miseries,
if not to you. O Mother of Mercy,
who having so deeply drunk of the chalice of your Son,
graciously alleviate the sufferings of those
who still sigh in this land of exile.
Amen
Prayer for the Souls in Purgatory
My Jesus, by the sorrows You suffered
in Your agony in the garden,
in your scourging and crowning with thorns,
on the way to Calvary,
in your crucifixion and death,
have mercy on the souls in Purgatory
and especially on those, that are most forsaken.
Deliver them from the dire torments they endure.
Call them and admit them
to your most sweet embrace in Paradise.
Amen
Pray one (1) Our Father, three (3) Hail Marys, one (1) Glory Be.
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine (Three times)
Our Morning Offering – 16 February – The Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Consecration to Our Lady of the Eucharist After Holy Communion By the Claretian Fathers Teaching Ministr Order founded by St Anthony Mary Claret (1807-1870)
Mary is called Our Lady of the Eucharist, because without her, there would be no physical Body of Jesus to be present in the Eucharist. (See John 6:51)
Most kind Mother, we consecrate to thee, our bodies, which have just been honoured and sanctified, by the presence of thy Divine Son, our souls which have conversed with Him and our hearts which have loved Him. O dearest Mother, may the words which we have spoken, be made acceptable to Him. through thy intercession. Tell Him the things which we should have said but were unable to express. Love Him and beseech Him for us, thy poor children. Receive and keep us in thine heart. Warn us, protect us and guide us during this day that we may faithfully serve thy Divine Son and please Him in all our thoughts, desires and actions. Amen
Quote/s of the Day – 11 February – The Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes and St Pope Gregory II (669-731)
“I am the Immaculate Conception.”
Our Lady of Lourdes to St Bernadette
25 March 1858
St Pope Gregory II “Defender of Icons”
Here is an excerpt of one of his letters to the Emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire, Leo III the Isaurian, who became an iconoclast and issued an imperial decree forbidding the use of sacred images:
“The pious Emperors were submissive to the Pontiffs of the Church and never dishonoured them. You, on the contrary, since the day when you apostatised from the Faith, incurring the same curse that [in previous letters] you made against those who persecute sacred ministers and condemning yourself by your own decree, you have separated yourself from the Holy Ghost and you do persecute and tyrannise us, by the hands of your soldiers and earthly weapons. We do not have weapons or armies but we invoke the King of the whole Universe, Christ, Who is seated in Heaven over all the celestial powers and armies, to deliver you to Satan, as the Apostle says, in the flesh and the spirit.
We are travelling to the far East to assist those who are asking for Baptism. I had already sent Bishops and priests from my Church to them. The Princes of those places have not yet been washed in the waters of the Baptism and they have chosen me as Godfather. So, we need to be on our way, fearful lest one day God will ask an account for our negligence.
I pray God to give you prudence and repentance so that you will return to the truth that you left and bring the people to the bosom of the Catholic Church.”
Our Morning Offering – 5 February – Wednesday of the Fourth week in Ordinary Time, Year A
O Mary By Ven Fulton J Sheen (1895-1979)
O Mary,
we have exiled your Divine Son
from our lives,
our councils,
our education
and our families!
Come with the light of the sun
as the symbol of His Power!
Heal our wars, our dark unrest,
cool the cannon’s lips so hot with war!
Take our minds off the atom
and our souls out of the muck of nature!
Give us rebirth in your Divine Son,
us, the poor children of the earth,
grown old with age!
Amen
On 18 November Pope Francis approved a miracle for the Beatification of Ven Fulton Sheen, however the celebration has since been postponed.
Prayer for the Canonisation of Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen
Heavenly Father, source of all holiness,
You raise up within the Church in every age,
men and women who serve with heroic love and dedication.
You have blessed Your Church
through the life and ministry of Your faithful servant,
Archbishop Fulton J Sheen.
He has written and spoken well
of Your Divine Son, Jesus Christ
and was a true instrument of the Holy Spirit
in touching the hearts of countless people.
If it be according to Your Will,
for the honour and glory of the Most Holy Trinity
and for the salvation of souls,
we ask You to move the Church
to proclaim him a saint.
We ask this through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 2 February – Meditations with Antonio Cardinal Bacci (1881-1971)
The Purification of Our Lady
“When we meditate on the subject of this Feast, we find two outstanding examples to be imitated. The first is given by Mary. She was perfectly pure and holy, conceived without original sin and full of grace. She knew well that she had conceived her Divine Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. So, she was not obliged to observe this humiliating law of purification. Nevertheless, she fulfilled it and gave God the offering of the poor as a lesson for us, in humility and poverty. It is so easy for us to excuse ourselves from obeying the law and to make a display of our special privileges before others. Let us learn from Mary, to love silent submission and detachment from worldly wealth and honours.
The other example is given us by Jesus. Being God, there was no need for Him to be bought back, in the same way as the first-born sons of the Israelites. He was the Saviour who had come to redeem the human race from sin and make them heirs to the Kingdom of Heaven. But He said of Himself, “I have not come to destroy but to fulfil” (Mt 5:17). A few days earlier He had submitted to the painful and humiliating rite of circumcision. Now He allows Himself to be offered in the temple as a victim of expiation for all mankind. These are glorious examples, before which, our pride should bow in shame. We should be moved to offer ourselves to God, lovingly and without reserve”!
One Minute Reflection – 28 January – Tuesday of the Third week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 2 Samuel 6:12-15, 17-19, Psalm 24:7-10, Mark 3:31-35 and the Memorial of Joseph Freinademetz SVD (1852-1908) “Fu Shenfu” – Lucky Priest-
“Here are my mother and my brethren! Whoever does the will of God, is my brother, and sister and mother.”…Mark 34-35
REFLECTION – “Grace is thicker than blood – As mother, Mary made significant appearances in the life of Jesus. She followed Him in His ministry.
In today’s short Gospel text, she is outside with the relatives of Jesus asking for Him.
Notice the delicacy of Mary. She neither interrupts the ministry of Jesus nor enters the room where Jesus is ministering. She waits outside.
The response of Jesus to the one who brought the message seems like a rebuff.
In fact, it is a tribute to Mary.
She was His mother, not merely because she gave Him birth but even more, because she did the will of God.
Blood is thicker than water no doubt – but Grace is thicker than blood.
She conceived Jesus in faith, even before she conceived him in her womb.” … Msgr Alex Rebello – Diocese of Wrexham, Wales – Daily Reflections, Year A
PRAYER – Loving Father, You gave us Your only-begotten Son to teach us, to make us Your adopted children by His adoption of ourselves as His siblings. What grace, what mercy, what love, is this! We give You our gratitude and our love. Mary, holy and blessed Virgin, Mother of God, pray for us. St Joseph Freinademetz, you survived solely on faith in a strange land and brought Christ to those who spoke another language by the language of Grace, please pray for us. Through Jesus, our brother and our Saviour, who gave us His mother to guide and protect us, we pray, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Quote/s of the Day – 22 January – Wednesday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A and the Memorial of Blessed William Joseph Chaminade SM (1761-1850), Founder of the Marianists
“The deposit of the Faith is entirely in Mary. At the foot of the Cross she held the place of the Church. “
“…We are, so to say, conceived of the Holy Spirit but we must, like the Saviour, be born of the Virgin Mary.”
Our Morning Offering – 22 January – Wednesday of the Second week in Ordinary Time, Year A and the Memorial of Blessed William Joseph Chaminade SM (1761-1850), Founder of the Marianists
The Gift of a Mother’s Love (A Marianist Prayer)
Gracious God,
source of light in every age,
the Virgin conceived
and bore Your Son
who is called Wonderful God,
Prince of Peace.
May her prayer,
the gift of a mother’s love,
be Your people’s joy
through all ages.
May her response,
born of a humble heart,
draw Your Spirit
to rest on Your people.
Grant this through
Christ our Lord.
Amen
One Minute Reflection – 14 January – Tuesday of the First week in Ordinary Time, Year A, Readings: 1 Samuel 1:9-20, Responsorial psalm 1, Samuel 2:1, 4-8, Mark 1:21-28
“What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.” … Mark 1:24
REFLECTION – “Behind the disobedient choice of our first parents lurks a seductive voice, opposed to God, which makes them fall into death out of envy. Scripture and the Church’s Tradition see in this being a fallen angel, called “Satan” or the “devil”. The Church teaches that Satan was at first a good angel, made by God: “The devil and the other demons were indeed created naturally good by God but they became evil by their own doing.”
Scripture speaks of a sin of these angels (2 Pt 2:4). This “fall” consists in the free choice of these created spirits, who radically and irrevocably rejected God and His reign. We find a reflection of that rebellion in the tempter’s words to our first parents: “You will be like God” (Gn 3:5). The devil “has sinned from the beginning” (1 Jn 3:8), he is “a liar and the father of lies” (Jn 8:44). It is the irrevocable character of their choice, and not a defect in the infinite divine mercy, that makes the angels’ sin unforgivable. “There is no repentance for the angels after their fall, just as there is no repentance for men after death” (St. John Damascene).
Scripture witnesses to the disastrous influence of the one Jesus calls “a murderer from the beginning” (Jn 8:44), who would even try to divert Jesus from the mission received from his Father (Mt 4:1-11). “The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the works of the devil” (1 Jn 3:8). In its consequences the gravest of these works was the mendacious seduction that led man to disobey God.
The power of Satan is, nonetheless, not infinite. He is only a creature, powerful from the fact that he is pure spirit but still a creature. He cannot prevent the building up of God’s reign.” … Catechism of the Catholic Church #391-395
PRAYER – King of heaven and earth, Lord God, rule over our hearts and bodies this day. Sanctify us and guide our every thought, word and deed, according to the commandments of Your law, so that now and forever, Your grace may free and save us. Sanctify our hearts, minds and actions with Your power, that all we are may speak of Your Light. May the prayers of the Blessed Virgin our Mother and all your Angels and Saints, bring us to peace and confidence. We make our prayer through Your Son, our Lord Jesus, in union with the Holy Spirit, one God for all eternity, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 8 January – Third day after Epiphany and the Memorial of Blessed Titus Zeman SDB (1915-1969) Priest and Martyr
As today is the Memorial of the Priest and Martyr, Blesssed Titus Zeman of the Salesians of St John Bosco – a man whose life is an excellent example of faithfulness to Don Bosco’s cause, especially through the zeal and love that he showed to save the vocations of young Salesians under the Communist regime of Czechoslovakia, let us pray St John Bosco’s prayer to Our Lady Help of Christians, to whom Blessed Titus gave all the honour of his work.
Our Lady, Help Of Christians By St John Bosco (1815-1888)
Most Holy Virgin Mary,
Help of Christians,
how sweet it is to come to your feet
imploring your perpetual help.
If earthly mothers cease not
to remember their children,
how can you,
the most loving of all mothers forget me?
Grant then to me, I implore you,
your perpetual help in all my necessities,
in every sorrow and especially in all my temptations.
I ask for your unceasing help
for all who are now suffering.
Help the weak,
cure the sick,
convert sinners.
Grant through your intercession,
many vocations to the religious life.
Obtain for us, O Mary, Help of Christians,
that having invoked you on earth
we may love and eternally thank you in heaven.
Amen
Quote/s of the Day – 2 January – Christmas Weekday and The Memorial of St Basil the Great (329-379) and St Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390), Readings: 1 John 2:22-28, Psalm 98:1-4, John 1:19-2
“The hairsplitting difference between formed and unformed makes no difference to us. Whoever deliberately commits abortion is subject to the penalty for homicide.”
St Basil the Great (329-379)
Father & Doctor of the Church
“Different men have different names, which they owe to their parents or to themselves, that is, to their own pursuits and achievements. But our great pursuit, the great name we wanted, was to be Christians, to be called Christians.”
St Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390)
(from his writings on his friendship with St Basil)
“If anyone does not believe that Holy Mary is the Mother of God, such a one is a stranger to the Godhead.”
St Gregory of Nazianzen (330-390) Father & Doctor of the Church
Thought for the Day – 1 January – The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and the Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord
Excerpt
Pope Francis’ Homily on
The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
1 January 2019
“All who heard were amazed at what the shepherds told them” (Lk 2:18). To be amazed -this is what is asked of us today, at the conclusion of the Octave of Christmas, as we continue to contemplate the Child born for us, lacking everything, yet abounding in love. Amazement is what we should feel at the beginning of each year, for life is a gift that constantly gives us a chance to make a new start, even from the most lowly of circumstances.
Today is also a day to be amazed by the Mother of God. God appears as a little child, held in the arms of a woman who feeds her Creator. The statue before our eyes depicts the Mother and Child so close as to appear as one. That is the mystery we celebrate today, which gives rise to boundless amazement – God has become one with humanity forever. God and man, always together, that is the good news of this new year. God is no distant lord, dwelling in splendid isolation above the heavens but love incarnate, born like us of a mother, in order to be a brother to each of us, to be close to us – the God of closeness. He rests on the lap of His mother, who is also our mother and from there he pours out upon humanity a new tenderness. Thus we come to understand more fully God’s love, which is both paternal and maternal, like that of a mother who never stops believing in her children and never abandons them. God-with-us, Emmanuel, loves us despite our mistakes, our sins and the way we treat our world. God believes in mankind, because its first and pre-eminent member is His own Mother.
At the beginning of the year, let us implore from Mary the grace to be amazed at the God of surprises. Let us renew the amazement we felt when faith was first born in us. The Mother of God helps us – the Mother who gave birth to the Lord, now presents us, reborn, to the Lord. She is a mother who generates in her children the amazement of faith, because faith is an encounter, not a religion. Without amazement, life becomes dull and routine and so it is with faith. The Church too needs to renew her amazement at being the dwelling place of the living God, the Bride of the Lord, a Mother who gives birth to her children. Otherwise, she risks turning into a beautiful museum of the past. A “Church museum”. Our Lady, instead, gives the Church the feel of a home, a home in which the God of newness dwells. Let us receive with amazement the mystery of the Mother of God, as the inhabitants of Ephesus did at the time of the Council. Like them, let us acclaim her “Holy Mother of God”. From her, let us allow ourselves to be gazed upon, to be embraced, to be taken by the hand.
Let us allow ourselves to be gazed upon. Especially in times of need, when we are entangled in life’s knots, we rightly lift our eyes to Our Lady, to Our Mother. Yet first, we should let ourselves be gazed upon by Our Lady. When she gazes upon us, she does not see sinners but children. It is said that the eyes are the mirror of the soul, the eyes of Mary, full of grace, reflect the beauty of God, they show us a reflection of heaven. Jesus Himself said that the eye is “the lamp of the body” (Mt 6:22) – the eyes of Our Lady are able to bring light to every dark corner, everywhere they rekindle hope. As she gazes upon us, she says: “Take heart, dear children, here I am, your Mother!”
One Minute Reflection – 1 January – The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and the Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord, Readings: Numbers 6:22-27, Psalm 67:2-3, 5-6, 8, Galatians 4:4-7, Luke 2:16-21
But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart. … Luke 2:19
REFLECTION – “You will pray to the Virgin Mother that she obtain for you a perfect renewal of life and that, by this grace, she herself, the venerable rose, become your mother and godmother in such a way, that you may be her true daughter in conduct. And pray that this very gem of decency, may envelop your soul, in the mantle of her cleanliness, preserving you without any spot, under her most dulcet tutelage, for her Son, the Lord King. And pray that your name may be numbered among Israel, the choicest lot, so that you have share with those who walk in innocence of heart, always seeing the Lord before them in all of their ways. (cf. Ps 15:8)
Greetings, Mary, queen of clemency, olive tree of mercy, through whom life’s remedy has come to us. Queen of clemency, Virgin Mother of the divine offspring, through whom the Child of supernal light came to us, the scented offspring of Israel. Ah! Just as you became the true mother of us all, through your Son, who Himself, your one and only Son, did not scorn to become our Brother, now then, for the sake of His love take me, an unworthy woman, into your motherly care. Aid my faith, keep and instruct it and become so much the godmother of my renewal and faith now, that you may be my only mother and closest to my heart for eternity, always caring for me with loving-kindness in this life and taking me, into your full motherliness, at the hour of death. Amen.” … St Gertrude the Great of Helfta (1256-1301)
PRAYER – God, our Father, since You gave mankind a Saviour through the blessed Mary, virgin and mother, grant that we may feel the power of her intercession, when she pleads for us with Jesus Christ, Your Son, the author of life, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 1 January – The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and the Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lord
CHRISTMAS By Gertrude von le Fort (1876-1971)
Your voice speaks:
Little child out of Eternity, now will I sing to Thy mother!
The song shall be fair as dawn-tinted snow.
Rejoice Mary Virgin, daughter of my earth, sister of my soul,
rejoice, O joy of my joy!
I am as one who wanders through the night
but you are a house under stars.
I am a thirsty cup but you are God’s open sea.
Rejoice Mary Virgin, blessed are those who call you blessed,
never more shall child of man lose hope.
I am one love for all, I shall never cease from saying:
one of you has been exalted by the Lord.
Rejoice Mary Virgin, wings of my earth, crown of my soul,
rejoice joy of my joy!
Blessed are those who call you blessed.
The Baroness Gertrud von Le Fort (full name Gertrud Auguste Lina Elsbeth Mathilde Petrea Freiin von Le Fort – 11 October 1876 – 1 November 1971 – aged 95) was a German writer of novels, poems and essays. She converted to Catholicism in 1925 and most of her writings came after this conversion. She published over 20 books, comprising poems, novels and short stories. Her work gained her the accolade of being “the greatest contemporary transcendent poet.” Her works are appreciated for their depth and beauty of their ideas and for her sophisticated refinement of style. She was nominated by Hermann Hesse for the Nobel Prize in Literature and was granted an honorary Doctorate of Theology for her contributions to the issue of faith in her works.
53rd Annual World Day of Prayer for Peace: Feast day dedicated to peace. It first observed on 1 January 1968, proclaimed by St Pope Paul VI. It was inspired by the encyclical Pacem in Terris by St Pope John XXIII and with reference to Paul’s encyclical Populorum Progressio. Our Holy Fathers have used this day to make magisterial declarations relevant to the social doctrine of the Church on such topics as the United Nations, human rights, women’s rights, labour unions, economic development, the right to life, international diplomacy, peace in the Holy Land, globalisation, migrants, refugees and terrorism.
Titular Feast of the Society of Jesus – But now celebrated on 3 January, the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus
Bl Adalbero of Liege
St Baglan of Wales
St Basil of Aix
Bl Bonannus of Roio
St Brogan
St Buonfiglio Monaldi
Bl Catherine de Solaguti
St Clarus of Vallis Regia
St Clarus of Vienne
St Colman mac Rónán
St Colman Muillin of Derrykeighan
St Concordius of Arles
St Connat
St Cuan
St Demet of Plozévet
St Elvan
St Eugendus of Condat
St Euphrosyne of Alexandria
St Fanchea of Rossory
St Felix of Bourges
St Frodobert of Troyes St Fulgentius of Ruspe (c 462 – 533)
St Gisela of Rosstreppe
St Gregory Nazianzen the Elder
Bl Hugolinus of Gualdo Cattaneo
Bl Jean-Baptiste Lego
Bl Jean of Saint-Just-en-Chaussée
St Joseph Mary Tomasi
St Justin of Chieti
Bl Lojze Grozde
St Maelrhys
St Magnus the Martyr
Bl Marian Konopinski
St Mydwyn
St Odilo of Cluny
St Odilo of Stavelot
St Peter of Atroa
St Peter of Temissis
Bl René Lego
St Sciath of Ardskeagh
St Severino Gallo
St Telemachus
St Thaumastus of Mainz
St Theodotus
St Tyfrydog
Bl Valentin Paquay
St Vincent Strambi
St William of Dijon
St Zedislava Berka
St Zygmunt Gorazdowski
—
Breton Missionaries to Britain
Martyred Soldiers of Rome: Thirty soldiers martyred in Rome as a group during the persecutions of Diocletian. We don’t even known their names. They were martyred c 304 at Rome, Italy.
Martyrs of Africa – 8 saints: Eight Christians martyred together in Africa, date unknown. The only details we have are four of their names – Argyrus, Felix, Narcissus and Victor.
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Andrés Gómez Sáez
Second Thought for the Day – 31 December – The Seventh Day in the Octave of Christmas and the Memorial of Blessed Alain de Solminihac (1593-1659) Bishop of Cahors, France
2018 was the 400th Anniversary the Priestly Ordination of Blessed Alain de Solminihac. His Diocese of Cahors, France launched a Year of Vocations to conincide with this event of their former Bishop. One of their aims, besides promoting vocations, was to make known the life and holiness of Blessed Alain. Bishop Laurent Camiade, the current Bishop of Cahors, wrote:
“It is wonderful to know that you are called to holiness and it is inspiring to answer the call, to give your whole life, for consecration in the Church. All Christians are concerned with the “universal vocation to holiness.” Some are specifically called to give their whole life – religious consecration, or in an institute, hermit or order of the virgins, or commitment to celibacy with a view to being ordained a priest.
Providence wanted 2018 to be the 400th anniversary of the Priestly Ordination of Blessed Alain de Solminihac. He was Ordained Deacon on 25 March 1617 and Priest on 22 September 1618. In 1636, he was called again to become Bishop of Cahors. This is why, after having spoken to different councils, I hope that we will take advantage of this Anniversary to return to listening to the teachings of Blessed Alain. He teaches us with his vigorous and profound words … and by his exemplary life, to strive to be courageous, ardent and sober.
Today, as in Alain de Solminihac’s time, devoting his whole life to God involves difficulties. Celibacy according to a sober lifestyle has never been obvious. In the time of Blessed Alain, the choice of becoming a priest, religious or nun, made it possible to ensure material security, thanks to a system of benefits attached to abbeys or dioceses. As a result, in the 17th century, not all consecrated persons had internalised, the spiritual conditions, for living in accordance with their state and the clergy did not always give a good testimony. It is in this context, that Blessed Alain would become a “reformer”, that is to say, a demanding promoter of coherence between vocation and lifestyle.
Alain de Solminihac put spirituality and fidelity to the duties linked to the received mission first. “You must follow the good pleasure of God as soon as you know it , he wrote, and accomplish it by immediately turning your eyes to God, remaining in a simple expectation to receive another sign or command, without wasting time delight in the satisfaction of having accomplished this adorable Will of God.”
The requirements of Blessed Alain sometimes provoked reactions of opposition but they also attracted many young people, happy to give themselves, in a way that made sense and above all, pushed by the Holy Spirit who wanted this for the Church. His motto was Faith and Valour! and he lived up to it!
It is clearly a current need to relaunch the call to specific vocations (priests, religious, nuns, consecrated). The desire to give all of one’s life to follow Christ, exists in many young people (recent statistics prove it) but this is seldom realised, as we can see.
The priests and seminarians of our Diocese are deeply attached to Our Lady of Rocamadour, who played an often decisive role in their engagement. Blessed Alain fought with all the vigour of his temper, to keep this sanctuary in the Diocese of Cahors. We are therefore grateful to him for these graces which, by the will of God, reflect from the pierced heart of Christ, to our local Church. Blessed Alain considered Rocamadour to be the most famous Marian place in the kingdom . He was very attached to Mary who, he explains, “had more humility than all the other saints, because, holier than the others, she had a more perfect knowledge of the excellence of God and by consequence of her own nothingness. “
Relics of Blessed Alain de Solminihac in Cahors
May Blessed Alain de Solminihac help us to share his missionary ardour and his discreet humility.”
Our Morning Offering – 31 December – The Seventh Day in the Octave of Christmas
Let Me Spend My Life Near Thee, O Mother Blessed Miguel Pro SJ Martyr (1891-1927)
Let me spend my life near thee, O Mother
to keep thee company
in thy solitude and deepest grief.
Let me feel in my soul
the sadness of thine eyes
and the abandonment of thy heart.
On life’s highway I do not seek
the gladness of Bethlehem,
I do not wish to adore the infant God
in thy virginal hands,
nor to enjoy the winsome presence of Jesus
in thy humble home of Nazareth,
nor the mingle with the angelic choirs
in thy glorious Assumption.
My wish in life is for the jeers
and derision of Calvary,
for the slow agony of thy Son,
for the contempt, the disgrace
and infamy of the cross.
My wish, O most sorrowful Virgin,
is to stand near thee,
to strengthen my soul through thy tears
to complete my offering
through thy martyrdom,
to temper my heart through thy solitude
and to love my God and thy God
through my self-sacrifice.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 30 December – The Sixth Day in the Christmas Octave
Her Amazement at her Only Child Karol Wojtyla Saint Pope John Paul II (1920-2005)
Light piercing, gradually, everyday events,
a woman’s eyes, hands
used to them since childhood.
Then brightness flared, too huge for simple days,
and hands clasped when the words lost their space.
In that little town, my Son, where they knew us together,
You called me mother but no-one had eyes to see,
the astounding events as they took place day by day.
Your life became the life of the poor
in Your wish to be with them, through the work of Your hands.
I knew – the light that lingered in ordinary things,
like a spark sheltered under the skin of our days —
the light was You,
it did not come from me.
And I had more of You in that luminous silence,
than I had of You as the fruit of my body, my blood.
ST JOHN PAUL II’S CHRISTMAS POETRY Poem from his 1950 Collection, “The Mother”
Our Morning Offering – 25 December – The Solemnity of the Nativity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ
I hold Within my Heart, O Mother Queen, Thy Little Son, thy Child.
Prayer after Holy Communion
I hold within my heart, O Mother Queen,
Thy little Son, thy Child.
The right is thine,
And yet, by wondrous gift, this grace is mine!
‘Twas thou who first within thy heart serene
Thy God received.
By mortal eyes unseen
He dwelt secure,
thy loving heart His shrine.
In first communion with the Word Divine
Thou hadst a foretaste of our Gift supreme.
O thou, sweet Mother, who didst first embrace
Our God, teach me Thy potent way of grace,
That in the precious moments that are mine
I may constrain my Guest, thy Son Divine,
To abide with me.
Oh, may He ne’er depart!
Behold—-His living chalice,
my unworthy heart!
Amen
Thought for the Day – Saturday of Advent 21 December
Mary visits Elizabeth
Saint Ambrose of Milan (340-397)
Great Latin Father and Doctor of the Church
An excerpt from A Commentary on Luke, Book 2
When the angel revealed his message to the Virgin Mary, he gave her a sign to win her trust. He told her of the motherhood of an old and barren woman, to show that God is able to do all that He wills.
When she hears this, Mary sets out for the hill country. She does not disbelieve God’s word, she feels no uncertainty over the message or doubt about the sign. She goes eager in purpose, dutiful in conscience, hastening for joy.
Filled with God, where would she hasten but to the heights? The Holy Spirit does not proceed by slow, laborious efforts. Quickly, too, the blessings of her coming and the Lord’s presence are made clear, as soon as Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting the child leapt in her womb and she was filled with the Holy Spirit.
Notice the contrast and the choice of words. Elizabeth is the first to hear Mary’s voice but John, is the first to be aware of grace. She hears with the ears of the body but he leaps for joy at the meaning of the mystery. She is aware of Mary’s presence but he is aware of the Lord’s – a woman aware of a woman’s presence, the forerunner aware of the pledge of our salvation. The women speak of the grace they have received, while the children are active in secret, unfolding the mystery of love with the help of their mothers, who prophesy by the spirit of their sons.
The child leaps in the womb, the mother is filled with the Holy Spirit, he fills his mother with the same Spirit. John leaps for you and the spirit of Mary rejoices in her turn. When John leaps for joy, Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit but we know, that though Mary’s spirit rejoices, she does not need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Her Son, who is beyond our understanding, is active in His mother, in a way beyond our understanding. Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit after conceiving John, while Mary is filled with the Holy Spirit before conceiving the Lord. Elizabeth says: Blessed are you because you have believed.
You also are blessed, because you have heard and believed. A soul that believes, both conceives and brings forth the Word of God and acknowledges His works.
Let Mary’s soul be in each of you, to proclaim the greatness of the Lord. Let her spirit be in each, to rejoice in the Lord. Christ has only one mother, in the flesh but we all bring forth Christ, in faith. Every soul receives the Word of God, if only it keeps chaste, remaining pure and free from sin, it’s modesty undefiled. The soul that succeeds in this, proclaims the greatness of the Lord, just as Mary’s soul magnified the Lord and her spirit rejoiced in God her Saviour. In another place we read – Magnify the Lord with me. The Lord is magnified, not because the human voice can add anything to God but, because He is magnified within us. Christ is the image of God and, if the soul does what is right and holy, it magnifies that image of God, in whose likeness it was created and, in magnifying the image of God, the soul has a share in its greatness and is exalted.
Quote/s of the Day – Saturday of Advent 21 December, Readings: Isaiah 7:10-14, Psalm 24:1-6, Luke 1:26-38 and The Memorial of St Peter Canisius (1521-1597) Doctor of the Church
God who is mighty, has done great things for me, holy is his name…
Luke 1:49
“While remaining the Mother of our Judge, Mary is a mother to us, full of mercy. She constitutes our protection. She keeps us close to Christ and she faithfully takes, the matter of our salvation, into her charge.”
Advent Reflection – Saturday of Advent 21 December, Readings: Isaiah 7:10-14, Psalm 24:1-6, Luke 1:26-38
The Lord is at hand, come let us adore Him.
“Mary set out… in haste” … Luke 1:26
REFLECTION – “Our Lady’s strength was her gaiety and joy. This is what made her God, her son’s attentive servant, because as soon as He came to her she “set out in haste.” Joy alone could have given her the strength to set out in all haste across the hill country of Judah to become the servant of her cousin. It is just the same for us. Like her, we must be true servants of the Lord and after holy communion each day we must hurry over the mountains of the difficulties we encounter, offering our service to the poor with all our heart. Give to Jesus in the poor, as a servant of the Lord.
Joy is prayer, joy is strength, joy is love. It is love’s net with which to catch souls. “God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor 9:7). Those who give with joy give twice over. If you meet up with difficulties and accept them with joy, with a big smile, in this, as in many other things, people will realise that your works are good and the Father will be glorified in them. The best way, of showing God and others your gratitude, is to accept everything with joy. A joyful heart comes from a heart that is burning with love.” … St Mother Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997) – Founder of the Missionary Sisters of Charity – Jesus, the Word to Be Spoken
MEDITATION –“A soul united to Jesus, is a living smile that radiates Him and, gives Him.” … St Elizabeth of the Trinity (1880-1906)
ADVENT ACTION – “God is interested in even the smallest events in the lives of His creatures – in your affairs and mine — and He calls each of us by name. This certainty that the faith gives, enables us to look at everything in a new light. And everything, while remaining exactly the same, becomes different, because it is an expression of God’s love. Our life is turned into a continuous prayer, we find ourselves with good humour and a peace that never ends and everything we do is an act of thanksgiving, running through all our day. ‘My soul magnifies the Lord,’ Mary sang, ‘and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.’” …St Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975) – “To Jesus through Mary,” Christ is Passing By, 144
PRAYER
O Radiant Dawn,
splendour of eternal light, sun of justice!
Come and shine on those
who dwell in darkness and in the
shadow of death.
Our Morning Offering – Saturday of Advent 21 December
The Magnificat The Canticle of Mary Luke 1:46-55
My soul glorifies the Lord,
my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour
He looks on His servant in her lowliness
Henceforth all ages will call me blessed:
The Almighty works marvels for me,
holy is his Name!
His mercy is from age to age,
on those who fear Him.
He puts forth His arm in strength
and scatters the proud-hearted.
He casts the mighty from their thrones
and raises the lowly.
He fills the starving with good things,
sends the rich away empty.
He protects Israel, His servant,
remembering His mercy,
the mercy promised to our fathers,
to Abraham and his sons forever.
Our life is turned into a continuous prayer, we find ourselves with good humour and a peace that never ends and everything we do is an act of thanksgiving, running through all our day. ‘My soul magnifies the Lord,’ Mary sang, ‘and my spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour.’” …St Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975) – “To Jesus through Mary,” Christ is Passing By, 144
AnaStpaul 
You must be logged in to post a comment.