Category: The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Posted in Act of SPIRITUAL COMMUNION, CHRIST the KING, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, MARIAN QUOTES, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on DISCIPLESHIP, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on MISSION, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on PRAYER, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Quote/s of the Day – 26 April – ‘…No wall can shut us out from the good God.’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 26 April – Third Sunday of Easter

“…He certainly meets us
where we are in life – and –
He will never leave us
where He found us!”

Fr Mark J Hunt STDhe certainly meets us where he found us - 5 may 2019

“Spiritual Communion is
an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Holy Sacrament
and a loving embrace, as though we had already received Him.”

St Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274)

Doctor of the Church

spiritual communion is an ardent desire to receive jesus - st thomas aquinas 26 april 2020

“In the morning let your first act be
to greet My Heart and to offer Me your own.
Whoever, breathes a sigh toward Me,
draws Me to himself.”

Jesus to St Matilda/Mechtilde of Hackeborn

(c 1241-1298)

in-the-morning-let-your-first-act-be-jesus-to-st-matilda-of-hackeborn-19-nov-2019 and 26 april 2020

“O blessed Jesus, give me stillness of soul in You.
Let Your mighty calmness reign in me.
Rule me, O King of Gentleness,
King of Peace.”

St John of the Cross (1542-1591)

Doctor of the Church

o-king-of-gentleness-st-john-of-the-cross-14dec2018-and-14dec2019-and 26 april 2020

“There are some who make a spiritual communion everyday …
If we are deprived of Sacramental Communion,
let us replace it, as far as we can, by spiritual communion,
which we can make every moment;
for we ought to have always, a burning desire to receive the good God.
Communion is to the soul, like blowing a fire that is beginning to go out
but that has still plenty of hot embers;
we blow and the fire burns again.
After the reception of the Sacraments,
when we feel ourselves slacken in the love of God,
let us have recourse at once, to spiritual communion.
When we cannot go to the church, let us turn towards the tabernacle;
no wall can shut us out from the good God.”

St John Vianney (1786-1859)

when we cannot go to the church let us turn -no wall - st john vianney 26 april 2020 3 easter

“Do not neglect to say, ‘Jesus, I love You’
and make one Spiritual Communion,
at least, each day,
in atonement for all the profanations and sacrileges
He suffers because He wants to be with us.”

St Josemaria Escrivá (1902-1975)

do not neglect to say jesus i love you and make one spiritual comm - st josemaria - 26 april 2020 3rd easter

“…Let us continue
Immaculate Mary’s mission.
All is included in it.
May [we].. follow her example
and be the handmaid of the Lord
in everything,
everywhere
and always.”

Bl Mary of the Passion (1839-1904)

let-us-continue-imm-marys-mission-bl-mary-of-the-passion-15-nov-2019 and 26 april 2020

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Hail MARY!, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 25 April – Blessed Virgin Mary, Holy Mary! by St Augustine

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 25 April – Saturday of the Second Week of Easter

Blessed Virgin Mary, Holy Mary!
By St Augustine (354-430)
Father & Doctor of the Church

Blessed Virgin Mary,
who can worthily repay you
with praise and thanks
for having rescued a fallen world
by your generous consent!
Receive our gratitude and by your prayers
obtain the pardon of our sins.
Take our prayers into the sanctuary of heaven
and enable them to make our peace with God.
Holy Mary,
help the miserable,
strengthen the discouraged,
comfort the sorrowful,
pray for your people,
plead for the clergy,
intercede for all women consecrated to God.
May all who venerate you feel now, your help and protection.
Be ready to help us when we pray
and bring back to us, the answers to our prayers.
Make it your continual concern to pray for the people of God,
for you were blessed by God and were made worthy to bear
the Redeemer of the world,
who lives and reigns forever.
Amenblessed-virgin-mary-holy-mary-by-st-augustine-4-may-2019 and 25 april 2020

Posted in CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, EASTER, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN Saturdays, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, PRAYERS for SEASONS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Our Morning Offering – 18 April – The Regina Coeli

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 18 April – Easter Saturday

Remember to exchange your Angelus prayer for the Regina Coeli as from Easter Sunday for the next 50 days of Eastertide.
According to Catholic tradition, St Gregory the Great (540-604) heard angels chanting the first three lines one Easter morning in Rome, while following barefoot in a great religious procession of the icon of the Virgin painted by St Luke the Evangelist.   He was thereupon inspired to add the fourth line.

The Regina Coeli

Queen of heaven, rejoice, alleluia.
For He whom thou did merit to bear, alleluia.
Has risen, as He said, alleluia.
Pray for us to God, alleluia.
Rejoice and be glad, O virgin Mary, alleluia.
For the Lord has truly risen, alleluia.

Let us pray.
O God, who gave joy to the world
through the resurrection of Thy son,
our Lord Jesus Christ,
grant we beseech Thee,
that through the intercession
of the virgin Mary,
His mother, we may obtain
the joys of everlasting life.
Through the same Christ our Lord.
Amenregina coeli - for eastertide 18 april 2020

Posted in HOLY SATURDAY, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN Saturdays, MARY, MATER ECCLESIAE, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, The PASSION

Sabbatum Sanctum – Holy Saturday, The “Second Sabbath”- 11 April

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Sabbatum Sanctum – Holy Saturday, The “Second Sabbath” – 11 April

Holy Saturday (from Sabbatum Sanctum, its official liturgical name) is sacred as the day of the Lord’s rest.   It has been called the “Second Sabbath” after creation.
The day is and should be, the most calm and quiet day of the entire Church year, a day broken by no liturgical function.Descent-from-the-Cross-Pieter-van-Mol-838x1102 deposition

Christ lies in the grave, the Church sits near and mourns.
After the great battle He is resting in peace but upon Him we see the scars of intense suffering…
The mortal wounds on His Body remain visible…Jesus’ enemies are still furious, attempting to obliterate the very memory of the Lord by lies and slander.jesus-burial-tomb-1083559-wallpaper-copy-1024x769

Mary and the disciples are grief-stricken, while the Church must mournfully admit that too many of her children return home from Calvary cold and hard of heart.
When Mother Church reflects upon all of this, it seems as if the wounds of her dearly Beloved were again beginning to bleed.

We are tempted to rush from Good Friday to Easter.   Mother Church with wisdom, separates the two with Holy Saturday – a day of peace and rest – a day to quietly ponder and pray – a day to sit in silence at the tomb of Jesus.   “What is happening?   Today there is a great silence over the earth, a great silence and stillness, a great silence, because the King sleeps, the earth was in terror and was still, because God slept in the flesh and raised up those who were sleeping from the ages.”   We do not need words to express our misery.   We need silence to ponder the mystery.   Silence is the best expression of what is deepest in us, for silence alone, can express what words cannot.

Christ-Descending-from-the-Cross-Nicolas-Tournier

According to tradition, the entire body of the Church is represented in Mary – she is the “credentium collectio universa” (the gathering of the universal Church) (Congregation for Divine Worship, Lettera circolare sulla preparazione e celebrazione delle feste pasquali, 73).
Thus, the Blessed Virgin Mary, as she waits near the Lord’s tomb, as she is represented in Christian tradition, is an icon of the Virgin Church keeping vigil at the tomb of her Spouse while awaiting the celebration of His Resurrection.james tissot - 2 marys watch at the tomb
The pious exercise of the Ora di Maria is inspired by this intuition of the relationship between the Virgin Mary and the Church – while the body of her Son lies in the tomb and His soul has descended to the dead to announce liberation, from the shadow of darkness to His ancestors, the Blessed Virgin Mary, foreshadowing and representing the Church, awaits, in faith, the victorious triumph of her Son over death. — Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgysorrowful mother with apostle peter maybe

Posted in LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN Saturdays, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, Our MORNING Offering, To JESUS through MARY

Our Morning Offering – 4 April – Loving Mother, have pity on me …

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 4 April – Saturday of the Fifth week of Lent, Year C “Marian Saturdays”

Mother of Sorrows, of Love, of Mercy
By Fr Lawrence Lovasik SVD (1913-1986)

Mary, most holy Virgin and Queen of Martyrs,
accept the sincere homage of my childlike love.
Into your heart, pierced by so many sorrows,
welcome my poor soul.
Receive it as the companion of your sorrows
at the foot of the Cross, on which Jesus
died for the redemption of the world.
Sorrowful Virgin, with you,
I will gladly suffer all the trials,
misunderstandings and pains
which it shall please our Lord to send me.
I offer them all to you in memory of your sorrows,
so that every thought of my mind
and every beat of my heart,
may be an act of compassion and of love for you.
Loving Mother, have pity on me,
reconcile me to your Divine Son Jesus,
keep me in His grace and assist me
in my last agony,
so that I may be able to meet you in heaven
and sing your glories.
Mary, most sorrowful Mother of Christians,
pray for us.
Mother of love, of sorrow
and of mercy, pray for us!
Amen. Amen!mother of sorrows of love of mercy fr lovasik-4 april 2020

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 28 March – My Sorrowful Mother

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 28 March – Saturday of the Fourth week of Lent
Let us think of and call on our Blessed and Most Sorrowful Mother

My Sorrowful Mother
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
hot 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.
Amenmy sorrowful mother - st alphonsus liguori 28 march 2020

Posted in FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN POETRY, The ANNUNCIATION, The INCARNATION

Second Thought for the Day – 25 March – The Annunciation by Thomas Merton

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Second Thought for the Day – 25 March – The Annunciation

the annunciation poem by thomas merton 25 march 2020

The Annunciation
By Fr Thomas Merton (1915-1968)

Ashes of paper, ashes of a world
Wandering, when fire is done:
We argue with the drops of rain!

Until one comes Who walks unseen
Even in elements we have destroyed.
Deeper than any nerve
He enters flesh and bone.
Planting His truth, He puts our substance on.
Air, earth and rain
Rework the frame that fire has ruined.
What was dead is waiting for His Flame.
Sparks of His Spirit spend their seeds, and hide
To grow like irises, born before summertime.
These blue thinas bud in Israel.

The girl prays by the bare wall
Between the lamp and the chair.
(Framed with an angel in our galleries
She has a richer painted room, sometimes a crown.
Yet seven pillars of obscurity
Build her to Wisdom’s house, and Ark and Tower.
She is the Secret of another Testament
She owns their manna in her jar.)

Fifteen years old –
The flowers printed on her dress
Cease moving in the middle of her prayer
When God, Who sends the messenger,
Meets His messenger in her Heart.
Her answer, between breath and breath,
Wrings from her innocence our Sacrament!
In her white body God becomes our Bread.

It is her tenderness
Heats the dead world like David on his bed.
Times that were too soon criminal
And never wanted to be normal
Evade the beast that has pursued
You, me and Adam out of Eden’s wood.
Suddenly we find ourselves assembled
Cured and recollected under several green trees.

Her prudence wrestled with the Dove
To hide us in His cloud of steel and silver:
These are the mysteries of her Son.
And here my heart, a purchased outlaw,
Prays in her possession
Until her Jesus, makes my heart
Smile like a flower in her blameless hand.

Fr Thomas Merton (1915-1968), Trappist monk and priest is recognized as one of the major spiritual fathers of our times.   His longing for silence and solitude, his contemplative vision, his engagement with need for world peace through inner life of the spirit, his journey across religious traditions, cultures and disciplines, make him a man for all times but especially for our own.   Thomas Merton expressed this vision in his poetry, novels, essays, devotionals and autobiographical writings.

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The ANNUNCIATION, The INCARNATION, To JESUS through MARY

Quote of the Day – 25 March – Mary’s Titles

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Quote of the Day – 25 March – The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

“Mary’s titles are numberless…
she is the palace in which the mighty King of kings abode,
yet He did not cast her out when He came,
because it was from her that He took flesh and was born.
She is the new heaven in which dwelt the King of kings,
in her, Christ arose and from her, rose up to enlighten creation,
formed and fashioned in His image.
She is the stock of the vine that bore the grape,
she yielded a fruit greater than nature
and He, although other than her in His nature,
ripened in colour on being born of her.
She is the spring from which living waters
sprang up for the thirsty
and all those who drank them,
yielded fruit a hundredfold.”

Saint Ephrem (306-373)

Father and Doctor of the Church

Sermons on the Mother of God, 2, 93-145

More here:
https://anastpaul.com/2019/03/25/quote-s-of-the-day-25-march-in-her-god-spun-a-garment-with-which-to-save-us/

mary's titles are numberless - st ephrem - annunciation - sermon 25 march 2019

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2020, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The ANNUNCIATION, The INCARNATION, The WORD

Lenten Reflection – 25 March – Mary’s Fiat must be our fiat!

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Reflection – 25 March – The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord –- Readings: Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10, Psalm 40:7-11, Hebrews 10:4-10, Luke 1:26-38

“Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall declare your praise.”

Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.” … Luke 1:38

Daily Meditation:
Today we step out of Lent, in one way.
We are nine months away from Christmas.
This is the feast of the Incarnation – the enfleshment of our God for us.
In Jesus, God entered this world, our world.

“God, who is Mighty has done great things for me, holy is his name” … Luke 1:49luke-1-49.GOD WHO IS MIGHTY HAS DONE GREAT THINGS FOR ME - 21 DEC 2017, 2018 2019jpg

“Contemplate Mary, my beloved, see how Gabriel went into her house and her questioning: “How can this be?”   The Holy Spirit’s servant gave her this answer:  “Nothing is impossible for God, for him, all is easy.”   Consider how she believed the word she had heard and said: “Behold I am the handmaid of the Lord.”   From that moment the Lord descended in a way known to Him alone, He bestirred Himself and came according to His good pleasure, He entered her without her feeling it and she opened herself to Him without experiencing any suffering.   She bore within herself, as a child, Him by whom the world was filled.  He descended to become the model that would renew Adam’s ancient image.” … Saint Ephrem (306-373) – Father and Doctor of the Church – Sermons on the Mother of God, 2, 93-145mary's fiat - luke 1 38 behold i am the handmaid of the lord - 11 may 2019

Intercessions:
Let us give thanks to God, our Father:
through the power of the Spirit He purifies our heart and strengthens us in love.
Let us humbly ask Him:
Lord, give us Your Holy Spirit.

Help us to receive good things from Your bounty with a deep sense of gratitude;
-and to accept with patience the evil that comes to us.
Teach us to be loving not only in great and exceptional moments,
-but above all in the ordinary events of daily life.
May we abstain from what we do not really need,
-and help our brothers and sisters in distress.
May we bear the wounds of Your Son,
-for through His body He gave us life.

Closing Prayer:
God of infinite love,
I thank You for this feast of our salvation,
right here in the middle of Lent.
I turn to You to beg for Your help.
I need the inspiration and help of Mary on this journey.
Please grant me the grace to be humbly faithful
to what You are calling me to do.
Please give me what I need to be free and to be Your servant.
Please let Mary guide us in the path to peace in our world.
I ask You this, through Jesus our Lord.
May the Lord bless us,
protect us from all evil
and bring us to everlasting life.
Amenmary's fiat must be our fiat 25 march 2019 annunciation

Posted in MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES for CHRIST, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The ANNUNCIATION, The INCARNATION

One Minute Reflection – 25 March – ‘And Mary’s body enfolds Him, whom the heaven of heavens does not contain.’

Posted on by AnaStpaul

One Minute Reflection – 25 March – The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord –- Readings: Isaiah 7:10-14; 8:10, Psalm 40:7-11, Hebrews 10:4-10, Luke 1:26-38

“The Holy Spirit shall come upon you and the power of the Most High shall overshadow you.”   And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it be to me according to your word.”...Luke 1:35, 38

luke 1 35 the holy spirit shall come upon you - 25 march 2020 annunciation

REFLECTION – “The Word came from Himself and came down beneath Himself and dwelt among us (cf. Jn 1:14), when He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant (Phil 2:7).   That emptying was a decent.   Yet He descended in such a way that He did not lose Himself.   He was made flesh in such a way that He did not cease to be the Word, nor did the taking of humanity lessen the glory of His majesty. (…)
Indeed, just as the sun’s brightness penetrates glass without breaking it and as a glance of the eyes plunges into calm clear water without parting or dividing it, while it opens up all things to their very depth, so the Word of God drew near the Virgin’s dwelling and went forth from it, her virgin womb still closed. (…)  Therefore, the invisible God was made visible man, the impassible and immortal showed Himself passible and mortal.  He who was not confined within the garments of our substance, willed to be so confined. There is enclosed within the womb of a mother one whose immensity encloses the whole range of heaven and earth.   And Mary’s body enfolds Him, whom the heaven of heavens does not contain.
If you ask how it was done, hear the Archangel setting forth the plan to Mary and saying to her:  “The Holy Spirit shall come upon you and the power of the Most High shall overshadow you.” (cf. Lk 1:35) (…)   For He chose you before and above all others, that you may surpass all those who have been before or after you or shall be in the fullness of grace.” … Saint Amadeus of Lausanne (1108-1159) Cistercian Monk, then Bishop – In praise of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Homily IIIthere is enclosed within the womb of a mother - 25 march 2020 annunciation

PRAYER – Shape us in the likeness of the Divine nature of our Redeemer, whom we believe to be true God and true man, since it was Your will, Lord God, that He, Your Word, should take to Himself, our human nature in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God for always and forever, amen.

the nicest word - servant of god guy pierre de fontgalland - 24 feb 2018-no 2

Posted in FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The ANNUNCIATION

Our Morning Offering – 25 March – The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 25 March – The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord

Prayer to Our Lady of the Annunciation
By Blessed James Alberione (1884-1971)
(The founder of the Daughters of St Paul)

Queen of heaven and earth,
daughter of the Father,
Mother of the divine Son,
spouse of the Holy Spirit,
I praise God
for the unique grace given to you.

Mary, you became the great Mother
of our divine Saviour,
our Master, true Light of the world,
uncreated Wisdom,
source of all Truth and first Apostle of Truth.
You gave the world
the book to read, the eternal Word.

For this I bless the holy Trinity
and I ask you to obtain for me
the grace of heavenly wisdom,
to be a fervent disciple of Jesus
and to be lovingly devoted to the Church,
the pillar of truth.

Make the light of the Gospel
shine to the farthest bounds of the earth.
Queen of the Apostles, pray for us!
Amenprayer to our lady of the annunciation by bl james alberione 25 march 2019

Posted in FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY, The ANNUNCIATION

The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord and Memorials of the Saints – 25 March

Posted on by AnaStpaul

The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord – 25 March
https://anastpaul.com/2019/03/25/the-solemnity-of-the-annunciation-of-the-lord-25-march/

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.

St Alfwold of Sherborne
St Barontius of Pistoia
St Desiderius of Pistoia
St Dismas
St Dula the Slave
Bl Emilian Kovch (1884-1944) Priest, Martyr
About St Emilian:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/03/25/saint-of-the-day-25-march-blessed-emilian-kovch-1884-1944-martyr/

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.

Posted in MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN TITLES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Our Morning Offering – 21 March – Prayer to Mary, Health of the Sick

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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.prayer to mary health of the sick - pope francis - 21 march 2020

Posted in DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, FATHERS of the Church, LENT 2020, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, QUOTES on SIN, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 14 March –  “Father, I have sinned!”

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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 15:22luke 15 22 quickly bring the finest robe - prodigal son 14 march 2020

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 55o have compassion for my cry as you did for the prodigal son - st romanos melodios 14 march 2020

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.mater dolorosa blessed virgin holy mother pray for us 23 feb 2020

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN Saturdays, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS to the SAINTS

Our Morning Offering – 14 March – My Sorrowful Mother, Help Me to Bear My Crosses

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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.
Amenmy-sorrowful-mother-help-me-to-bear-my-crosses-st-alphonsus-liguori-23-march-2019 and 14 march 2020

Posted in ASPIRATIONS and EJACULATIONS, Hail MARY!, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, MARIAN PRAYERS, NOVENAS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, St Louis-Marie Grignion de MONTFORT, The HOLY FACE

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face – Seventh Day – 23 February

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face
Seventh Day – 23 February

the holy face 2 suffering christ passion raul berzosa

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)LENTEN NOVENA TO THE HOLY FACE DAY SEVEN 23 FEB 2020

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 queen of our hearts our mother - lenten novena 23 feb 2020 st louis de montfort

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)

Posted in MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES on FORGIVENESS, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on PEACE, QUOTES on SACRIFICE, QUOTES on VIOLENCE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 23 February – ‘The magna carta of Christian non-violence.’ 

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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 5:44matthew-5-44-but-i-say-to-you-love-your-enemies-4-aug-2018

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 2007matthew 5 44 but i say to you love your enemies this gospel passage magna carta - pope benedict 23 feb 2020

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. Amenmater dolorosa blessed virgin holy mother pray for us 23 feb 2020

Posted in ASPIRATIONS and EJACULATIONS, LENTEN PRAYERS & NOVENAS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MATER DOLOROSA - Mother of SORROWS, NOVENAS, The HOLY SOULS

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face – Fourth Day – 20 February

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Lenten Preparation Novena to the Holy Face
Fourth Day – 20 February

day four lenten novena to the holy face 20 feb 2020

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

mary and st john at the cross crucifixion

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

prayer for the souls in purgatory by the passion of christ 20 feb 2020

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)

Posted in CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, CONSECRATION Prayers, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for VARIOUS NEEDS, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Our Morning Offering – 16 February – Consecration to Our Lady of the Eucharist

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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

Posted in DOGMA, MARIAN QUOTES, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, SAINT of the DAY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Quote/s of the Day – 11 February – Our Lady of Lourdes, St Gregory II

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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 1858i am the immaculate conception our lady of lourdes 11 feb 2020

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.”

St Pope Gregory II I pray god to give you prudence - st pope gregory II 11 feb 2020

Posted in Hail MARY!, MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering

Our Morning Offering – 11 February – Ave Maria, Amen

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 11 February – Tuesday of the Fifth week in Ordinary Time, Year A and the Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes

Ave Maria, Amen
Traditional Catholic Hymn/Poem
Unknown Author

A song ascends from vale to heights,
from town to town a hundred times,
Ave Maria, Amen.

In every place the earth around,
at every bells resound,
Ave Maria, Amen.

All creatures, be they low or high,
send joyous songs up to the sky,
Ave Maria, Amen.

Stars near each other in their rays
and greet each other on their ways,
Ave Maria, Amen.

The angels at the throne of God
with harps and flutes the Highest land,
Ave Maria, Amen.

And all the blest in paradise
to joyous, happy praise give rise,
Ave Maria, Amen.

Thus praises sound through space and time
in everlasting, glorious rhyme,
Ave Maria, Amenave-maria-amen-trad-catholic-hymn-poem-26-oct-2019

Posted in MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for CANONISATION, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Our Morning Offering – 5 February – O Mary – Ven Fulton Sheen

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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!
Ameno-mary-no-2-ven-fulton-sheen-6-feb-2019.and 5 feb 2020

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

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory beprayr for the canonisation of ven fulton sheen 5 feb 2020

Posted in FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MEDITATIONS - ANTONIO CARD BACCI, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Thought for the Day – 2 February – The Purification of Our Lady

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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”!

Antonio Cardinal Bacci

Posted in MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES - J R R Tolkien and MORE, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on the FAMILY, SAINT of the DAY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 28 January – “Grace is thicker than blood…”

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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 34-35mark-3-34-35-whoever-does-the-will-of-god-29-jan-2019 and 28 jan 2020

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 Ablood is thicker than water no doubt - she was his mother even before - msgr alex rebellow bible diary 28 jan 2020

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.mary-mater-creatoris-mother-of-the-creator-pray-for-us-14-may-2018, 29 jan 209 and 28 jan 2020

st joseph freinademetz pray for us 28 jan 2020

Posted in MARIAN QUOTES, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on PRAYER, SAINT of the DAY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The HOLY GHOST

Quote/s of the Day – 22 January – Blessed William Joseph Chaminade

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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. “

the-deposit-of-the-faith-bl-william-joseph-caminade-22-jan-2018 and 22 jan 2020

“…We are, so to say,
conceived of the Holy Spirit
but we must,
like the Saviour,
be born of the Virgin Mary.”

we are so to say conceived by the holy spirit - bl w joseph chaminade 22 jan 2020

“Do not neglect prayer,
however busy you may be.”

Blessed William Joseph Chaminade (1761-1850)

do not neglect prayer however busy you may be bl william joseph chaminade 22 jan 2020

Posted in MARIAN PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, SAINT of the DAY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Our Morning Offering – 22 January – The Gift of a Mother’s Love

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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.
Amenthe gift of amother's love - marianist prayer - bl william joseph de chamanade 22 jan 2020

Posted in ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on the DEVIL/EVIL, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

One Minute Reflection – 14 January –  Have you come to destroy us?

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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 #391-395mark 1 24 have you come to destory us - ccc 391 395 the power of satan.jpg

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.blessed virgin mother mary pray for us - 27 oct 2019.jpg

Posted in MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN TITLES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

Our Morning Offering – 8 January – Our Lady, Help Of Christians

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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.
Amenour lady help of christians by st john bosco 24 may 2019.jpg

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN QUOTES, MOTHER of GOD, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on ABORTION, QUOTES on FRIENDSHIP, SAINT of the DAY, St JOHN the BAPTIST, The CHRIST CHILD, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 2 January – Basil and Gregory

Posted on by AnaStpaul

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 Churchthe-hairsplitting-difference-st-basil-the-great-2-jan-2019 and 2020.jpg

“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)different-men-st-gregory-of-nazianzen-2-jan-2018 and 2020.jpg

“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

Posted in CHRISTMASTIDE!, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MOTHER of GOD, PRACTISING CATHOLIC

Thought for the Day – 1 January – Take heart, dear children, here I am, your Mother!

Posted on by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 1 January – The Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and the Octave Day of the Nativity of the Lordtake heart dear children here i am your mother - pope francis 1 jan 2019.jpg

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!”

Holy Mother of God, OUR  mother, Pray for Us!mother of god and our mother - mary pray for us - 14 may 2018.jpg