Our Morning Offering – 30 August – Friday of the Twenty-first week in Ordinary Time, Year C
Send Us Your Sevenfold Grace By St Bonaventure (1217-1274) Doctor of the Church
Send upon us, O God,
the Spirit of sevenfold grace –
the spirit of wisdom,
enabling us to relish the fruit of the tree of life,
which is indeed Yourself;
the gift of understanding,
to enlighten our perceptions;
the gift of strength,
to withstand our adversary’s onslaught;
the gift of knowledge,
to distinguish good from evil
by the light of Your holy teaching;
the gift of piety,
to clothe ourselves with charity and mercy;
the gift of fear,
to withdraw from all ill-doing
and live quietly in awe of your eternal majesty.
These are the things for which we ask.
Grant them for the honour of Your Holy Name,
to which, with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
be all honour and glory,
thanksgiving, renown
and lordship forever and ever.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 26 August – The Memorial of St Mary of Jesus Crucified OCD (1846-1878)
From the Writings of St Mary of Jesus Crucified
Holy Spirit, inspire me. Love of God, consume me. Along the true road lead me. Mary, my mother, look upon me. With Jesus bless me. From all evil, from all illusion, from all danger, preserve me.
“Holy Spirit, enlighten me. To find Jesus, what am I to do and how am I to do it? The disciples were very ignorant, they were with Jesus yet did not understand Him. I, too, live in the same house with Jesus yet did not understand Him. The least thing troubles and upsets me. I am too sensitive, I have not generosity enough to make sacrifices for Jesus. O Holy Spirit, when You gave them a ray of light, the disciples disappeared – they were no longer what they were before. They found new strength, they found it easy to make sacrifices. They knew Jesus better than they had ever known Him when with them. Source of peace and light, come and enlighten me. I am hungry, come and feed me; thirsty, come and refresh me; blind, come and give me sight; poor, come and enrich me; ignorant, come and instruct me. Holy Spirit, I abandon myself to You!
Lord, how good You are to hold a weak reed in Your Hand! I am that reed, I am even weaker. But I shall always remain with You, like that reed. I f You dropped it, it would get broken. You carry it, it is not the reed that carries You.
My enraptured spirit contemplates all your works. Who can speak of You, O God so great! Omnipotent One, my soul is carried away! His wonderful beauty delights my soul. Who can tell what the Almighty looks upon? One look! You who gaze at me, come to me, a little nothing. I cannot remain here on earth, my soul longing. Call me close to You, awaken me. You alone, my God, my All. The heavens, the earth, the sun rejoice at your Name so great. I see You, supreme goodness, Your gaze is maternal. My Father, my Mother, it is in You, that I sleep. It is in You, that I breathe. Awaken! My soul is mad with yearning, it can do no more, take it! When will we see Him forever world without end!
What are You like , my God? The ocean? That comparison is too feeble. One single raindrop is not enough to refresh the whole earth, so. too, the love of all hearts is not enough for You, my God. The drop of water is myself, the ocean is You, I wish to have a heart greater than earth.
Lord, if You abandon me , I am like a cinder. The cinder will not produce any fruit It hinders vegetable growth. But if You Lord look down on me, I become a good earth, a fertile soil that brings forth good fruits and plants producing flowers. O Lord, look down on me always!
Thank You, My God, for making me aware of what I am. I prefer to know my weakness than to perform miracles. That is better for me, for when people see me fall I have nothing then to nourish my pride upon. It is better for me because it makes me see You are my only strength, better for me to fall a thousand times, if it makes me say to You two thousand times ” “I hope in You, O Lord. Thank You, thank You, Lord.”
Inscribed on Blessed Mary’s tombstone
“Here in the peace of the Lord reposes Sister Mary of Jesus Crucified, professed religious of the white veil. A soul of singular graces, she was conspicuous for her humility, her obedience and her charity. Jesus, the sole love of her heart called her to Himself in the 33rd year of her age and the 12th year of her religious life at Bethlehem, 26 August 1878.”
Our Morning Offering – 21 August – Wednesday of the Twentieth week in Ordinary Time, Year C and The Memorial of St Pope Pius X (1835-1914)
O Holy Spirit of Light and Love By St Pope Pius X (1835-1914)
O Holy Spirit of Light and Love,
to You I consecrate my heart,
mind and will
for time and eternity.
May I be ever docile
to Your Divine inspirations
and to the teachings
of the Holy Catholic Church
whose infallible guide You are.
May my heart be ever inflamed
with the love of God and love of neighbour.
May my will be ever in harmony with Your Divine Will.
May my life faithfully imitate the life and virtues
of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
To Him,
with the Father,
and You, Divine Spirit,
be honour and glory forever.
Amen.
Our Morning Offering – 1 August – Thursday of the Seventeenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C and the Memorial of St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787) Doctor of the Church
Prayer of Saint Alphonsus to the Holy Spirit
You made Mary full of grace
and inflamed the hearts of the apostles
with a holy zeal.
Inflame our hearts with Your love
You are the spirit of goodness,
Give us the courage to confront evil
You are fire,
Set us ablaze with Your love
You are light,
Enlighten our minds,
that we may see what is truly important.
You are the dove,
Give us gentleness
You are a soothing breeze,
Bring calm to the storms that rage within us.
You are the tongue,
May our lips ever sing God’s praises
You are the cloud,
Shelter us under the shadow of Your protection
O Holy Spirit,
melt the frozen,
warm the chilled
and enkindle in us an earnest desire to please You.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen
One Minute Reflection – 30 July – Tuesday of the Seventeenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 13:36–43 and the Memorial of St Peter Chrysologus (c 400-450) Father & Doctor of the Church
“Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.” … Matthew 13:43
REFLECTION – Christians of the first centuries said, “The world was created for the sake of the Church” (Hermas). God created the world for the sake of communion with His divine life, a communion brought about by the “convocation” of men in Christ and this “convocation” (ecclesia) is the Church. The Church is the goal of all things and God permitted such painful upheavals as the angels’ fall and man’s sin only as occasions and means for displaying all the power of His arm and the whole measure of the love He wanted to give the world: “Just as God’s will is creation and is called “the world,” so His intention is the salvation of men and it is called “the Church” (St Clement of Alexandria).
The gathering together of the People of God, began, at the moment when sin destroyed the communion of men with God and that of men among themselves. the gathering together of the Church is, as it were, God’s reaction to the chaos provoked by sin. This re-unification is achieved secretly in the heart of all peoples: “In every nation anyone who fears him and does what is right is acceptable” to God (Acts 10,35). The remote preparation for this gathering together of the People of God begins when He calls Abraham and promises that He will become the father of a great people (Gn 12,2). Its immediate preparation begins with Israel’s election as the People of God (Ex 19,5). By this election, Israel is to be the sign of the future gathering of all nations (Is 2,2)….
It was the Son’s task to accomplish the Father’s plan of salvation in the fullness of time. It’s accomplishment was the reason for His being sent… To fulfil the Father’s will, Christ ushered in the Kingdom of heaven on earth, the Church “is the Reign of Christ already present in mystery” (Vatican II, LG 3)… “The Church . . . will receive its perfection only in the glory of heaven,” (LG 48) at the time of Christ’s glorious return… Until that day, “the Church… longs for the full coming of the Kingdom… The Church and through her, the world, will not be perfected in glory without great trials. Only then will “all the just from the time of Adam, ‘from Abel, the just one, to the last of the elect,’ be gathered together in the universal Church in the Father’s presence” (LG 2). … CCC #760-769
“This week, let’s ask the Holy Spirit for the wisdom of time, the wisdom regarding the end, the wisdom of the resurrection, the wisdom of the eternal encounter with Jesus, that we are able to understand that this wisdom is in our faith. It will be a day of joyful encounter with Jesus. Let us pray that the Lord prepare us for this. Let each one of us end this week thinking about the end – “I will come to an end. I will not remain forever. How would I like to come to an end?”… Pope Francis (Santa Marta, 27 November 2018)
PRAYER – Almighty Father, send forth Your Spirit, that we may be created and Thou shall renew the face of the earth. O, God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, did instruct the hearts of the faithful, grant that by the same Holy Spirit we may be truly wise and ever enjoy His consolations. Through Christ Our Lord, Amen. St Peter Chrysologus, pray for us!
Thought for the Day – 28 July – Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Luke 11:1–13 and the Memorial of St Pedro Poveda (1874-1936) Martyr
“The men of God and the women of God are unmistakable. They do not stand out because they are brilliant, or dazzling, or for their human strength but because of their wholesome fruit,” wrote Saint Pedro Poveda in a letter in 1925. These words may describe his life. He was a weaver of dreams because he was able to dream, design projects and even achieve some dreams through his trust in Divine Providence.
Saint Pedro Poveda, priest, educator, founder of the Teresian Association, active in over 30 countries now and martyr was born in Linares, Spain, on 3 December 1874. He died on 28 July 1936 at the beginning of the Spanish Civil War. He witnessed to his Christian faith and to his priesthood until his last moment. He was Canonised by St Pope John Paul II on 4 May 2003.
“My belief, my faith, is not wavering
but firm and unshakeable
and that is why I speak out.”
St Pedro Poveda, 1920.
PRAYER THROUGH THE INTERCESSION OF SAINT PEDRO POVEDA
Lord, our God,
you have given Saint Pedro Poveda,
Founder of the Teresian Association,
the grace of promoting
the evangelising action of Christians,
through education and culture,
and of giving his life in martyrdom
as a priest of Jesus Christ:
we ask that, like him, we may know
how to participate faithfully
in the mission of the Church
through the witnessing of our Christian life
and the generous surrender
to the announcement of Your Kingdom.
We pray that through his intercession,
you may grant us the favour we wish to receive.
………………………. (make your petition)
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen
His remains are venerated in the chapel that bears his name at the Cultural and Spirituality Center, Santa Maria de Los Negrales.
Quote/s of the Day – 15 July – Monday of the Fifteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 10:34-11,1 and The Memorial of St Bonaventure (1221-1274) Doctor of the Church
“Every creature is a divine word because it proclaims God.”
“In all your deeds and words, you should look upon this Jesus, as your model. Do so, whether you are walking or keeping silence, or speaking, whether you are alone or with others. He is perfect and thus, you will be, not only irreprehensible but praiseworthy.”
“Christ has something in common with all creatures. With the stone He shares existence, with the plants He shares life, with the animals He shares sensation and with the angels He shares intelligence. Thus all things are transformed in Christ since in the fullness of His nature, He embraces some part of every creature.”
“We must beg the Holy Spirit, with ardent longing, to give us these fruits. The Holy Spirit alone, knows how to bring to light, the sweetness hidden away under the rugged exterior of the words of the Law. We must go to the Holy Spirit for interior guidance.”
“Since happiness is nothing else than the enjoyment of the Supreme Good and the Supreme Good is above us, no-one can enjoy happiness, unless he rises above himself.”
“God might have created a more beautiful world, He might have made heaven more glorious but it was impossible for Him, to exalt a creature, higher than Mary, in making her His Mother.”
Our Morning Offering – 15 July – Monday of the Fifteenth week in Ordinary Time, Year C
Prayer for the Gifts of the Holy Spirit By St Bonaventure (1221-1274) – Seraphic Doctor of the Church
We beg the all-merciful Father through You,
His only-begotten Son made man for our sake,
crucified and glorified for us,
to send upon us, from His treasure-house,
the Spirit of sevenfold grace,
Who rested upon You in all His fullness.
The spirit of wisdom,
enabling us to relish the fruit of the tree of life,
which is indeed Yourself.
The gift of understanding:
to enlighten our perceptions.
The gift of prudence,
enabling us to follow in Your footsteps.
The gift of strength:
to withstand our adversary’s onslaught.
The gift of knowledge,
to distinguish good from evil
by the light of Your holy teaching.
The gift of piety,
to clothe ourselves with charity and mercy.
The gift of fear,
to withdraw from all ill-doing
and live quietly in awe
of Your eternal majesty.
These are the things for which we petition.
Grant them for the honour of Your Holy Name,
to which, with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
be all honour and glory, thanksgiving, renown
and Lordship forever and ever.
Amen
Quote/s of the Day – 27 June – Thursday of the Twelfth week in Ordinary Time, Year C and The Memorial of St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Father and Doctor
“He who receives Communion is made holy and divinised in soul and body in the same way that water, set over a fire, becomes boiling… Communion works like yeast that has been mixed into dough so that it leavens the whole mass; …Just as by melting two candles together, you get one piece of wax, so, I think, one who receives the Flesh and Blood of Jesus is fused together with Him by this Communion and the soul finds that he is in Christ and Christ is in him.”
“We have passed over the waves of this present life like a sea, with its commotion and insane bustle. We have eaten spiritual manna, the bread that came down from heaven giving life to the world.”
“If the touch alone of His sacred flesh, restores life to a corrupting body, what profit shall we not discover, in His life-giving Eucharist, when we make of it our food? It will wholly transform into its own property, which is immortality, those who participate in it.”
“Our Saviour went to the wedding feast to make holy the origins of human life.”
“From Christ and in Christ, we have been reborn through the Spirit, in order to bear the fruit of life, not the fruit of our old, sinful life but the fruit of a new life founded upon our faith in Him and our love for Him. Like branches growing from a vine, we now draw our life from Christ and we cling to His holy commandment, in order to preserve this life.”
“That anyone could doubt, the right of the holy Virgin to be called the Mother of God, fills me with astonishment. Surely, she must be the Mother of God, if our Lord Jesus Christ is God and she gave birth to Him!”
St Cyril of Alexandria (376-444) Father and Doctor
Thought for the Day – The Memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua OFM (1195-1231) Doctor of the Church, 13 June
Actions Speak Louder than Words
Saint Anthony of Padua
Priest and Doctor of the Church
An excerpt from Sermon, I #226
The man who is filled with the Holy Spirit speaks in different languages. These different languages are different ways of witnessing to Christ, such as humility, poverty, patience and obedience, we speak in those languages, when we reveal in ourselves, these virtues to others. Actions speak louder than words, let your words teach and your actions speak. We are full of words but empty of actions and, therefore, are cursed by the Lord, since He Himself cursed the fig tree when He found no fruit but only leaves. Gregory says: “A law is laid upon the preacher to practice what he preaches.” It is useless for a man to flaunt his knowledge of the law, if he undermines its teaching by his actions.
But the apostles spoke as the Spirit gave them the gift of speech. Happy the man, whose words issue from the Holy Spirit and not from himself! ,,For some men speak as their own character dictates but steal the words of others and present them as their own and claim the credit for them. The Lord refers to such men and others like them in Jeremiah – So, then, I have a quarrel with the prophets that steal my words from each other. I have a quarrel with the prophets, says the Lord, who have only to move their tongues to utter oracles. I have a quarrel with the prophets who make prophecies out of lying dreams, who recount them and lead my people astray with their lies and their pretensions. I certainly never sent them or commissioned them and they serve no good purpose for this people, says the Lord.
We should speak, then, as the Holy Spirit gives us the gift of speech. Our humble and sincere request to the Spirit for ourselves, should be that we may bring the day of Pentecost to fulfilment, insofar, as He infuses us with His grace, by using our bodily senses in a perfect manner and by keeping the commandments. Likewise, we shall request, that we may be filled with a keen sense of sorrow and with fiery tongues for confessing the faith, so that our deserved reward may be to stand in the blazing splendour of the saints and to look upon the triune God.
Saint of the Day – 13 June – St Anthony of Padua OFM (1195-1231) Doctor of the Church
The gospel call, to leave everything and follow Christ, was the rule of Saint Anthony of Padua’s life. Over and over again, God called him to something new in his plan. Every time, Anthony responded with renewed zeal and self-sacrificing to serve his Lord Jesus more completely.
His journey as the servant of God began as a very young man when he decided to join the Augustinians in Lisbon, giving up a future of wealth and power, to be a servant of God. Later, when the bodies of the first Franciscan martyrs went through the Portuguese city where he was stationed, he was again filled with an intense longing to be one of those closest to Jesus Himself: those who die for the Good News.
So Anthony entered the Franciscan Order and set out to preach to the Moors. But an illness prevented him from achieving that goal. He went to Italy and was stationed in a small hermitage where he spent most of his time praying, reading the Scriptures and doing menial tasks.
The call of God came again at an general chapter where no one was prepared to speak. The humble and obedient Anthon,y hesitantly accepted the task. The years of searching for Jesus in prayer, of reading sacred Scripture and of serving Him in poverty, chastity and obedience, had prepared Anthony to allow the Spirit to use his talents. Anthony’s sermon was astounding to those who expected an unprepared speech and knew not the Spirit’s power to give people words.
Recognised as a great man of prayer and a great Scripture and theology scholar, Anthony became the first friar to teach theology to the other friars. Soon he was called from that post to preach to the Albigensians in France, using his profound knowledge of Scripture and theology, to convert and reassure those, who had been misled by their denial of Christ’s divinity and of the sacraments..
After he led the friars in northern Italy for three years, he made his headquarters in the city of Padua. He resumed his preaching and began writing sermon notes to help other preachers. In the spring of 1231, Anthony withdrew to a friary at Camposampiero, where he had a sort of treehouse built as a hermitage. There he prayed and prepared for death.
On 13 June, he became very ill and asked to be taken back to Padua, where he died after receiving the last sacraments. Anthony was Canonised less than a year later and named a Doctor of the Church in 1946.
Anthony should be the patron of those, who find their lives completely uprooted and set in a new and unexpected direction. Like all saints, he is a perfect example of turning one’s life completely over to Christ. God did with Anthony as God pleased—and what God pleased was a life of spiritual power and brilliance that still attracts admiration today heaping miracle upon miracle during Anthony’s lifetime. He whom popular devotion has nominated as finder of lost objects, found himself by losing himself totally, to the providence of God.
St Anthony writes: “Christ, who is your life, is hanging before you, so that you may look at the Cross, as in a mirror. There you will be able to know, how mortal were your wounds, that no medicine other, than the Blood of the Son of God, could heal. If you look closely, you will be able to realise, how great your human dignity and your value are…. Nowhere other than looking at himself, in the mirror of the Cross, can man better understand how much he is worth”(Sermones Dominicales et Festivi III, pp. 213-214).
In meditating on these words we are better able to understand the importance of the image of the Crucified One for our culture, for our humanity that is born from the Christian faith. Precisely by looking at the Crucified One we see, as St Anthony says, how great are the dignity and worth of the human being. At no other point can we understand how much the human person is worth, precisely because, God makes us so important, considers us so important that, in His opinion, we are worthy of His suffering, thus, all human dignity appears in the mirror of the Crucified One and our gazing upon Him is ever a source of acknowledgement of human dignity…..Pope Benedict XVI (General Audience – February 10, 2010)
St Anthony of Padua, pray for us!
Wonderful St Anthony the miracle worker: https://anastpaul.com/2018/06/13/saint-of-the-day-13-june-st-anthony-of-padua-o-f-m-evangelical-doctor-hammer-of-heretics-professor-of-miracles-wonder-worker-ark-of-the-tes/
Celebrating St Anthony: https://anastpaul.com/2017/06/13/celebrating-the-life-and-miracles-of-st-anthony-of-padua-on-his-memorial-today-13-june/
O God, send forth Your Holy Spirit By St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) Doctor of the Church
O God,
send forth Your Holy Spirit
into my heart
that I may perceive,
into my mind,
that I may remember,
and into my soul,
that I may meditate.
Inspire me to speak
with piety,
holiness,
tenderness
and mercy.
Teach, guide and direct my thoughts
and senses, from beginning to end.
May Your grace,
ever help and correct me,
and may I be strengthened now
with wisdom from on high,
for the sake of Your infinite mercy.
Amen
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the heart of Your servant and enkindle in us the fire of Your gifts! Be with us, in us and lead us to the light, amen.
“…We have only to say “yes” to let Him take us there.“
St John Vianney (1786-1859)
“If the damned were asked – Why are you in Hell? they would answer: ‘For having resisted the Holy Spirit.’
And if the saints were asked – Why are you in Heaven? they would answer: ‘For having listened to the Holy Spirit.’
When good thoughts come into our minds, it is the Holy Spirit who is visiting us.
The Holy Spirit is a power.
The Holy Spirit …. sustained the martyrs. Without the Holy Spirit, the martyrs would have fallen like the leaves from the trees. When the fires were lighted under them, the Holy Spirit extinguished the heat of the fire by the heat of divine love.
The good God, in sending us the Holy Spirit, has treated us like a great king who should send his minister to guide one of his subjects, saying, “You will accompany this man everywhere and you will bring him back to me safe and sound.”
How beautiful it is, my children, to be accompanied by the Holy Spirit!
He is indeed a good Guide; and to think that there are some who will not follow Him!
The Holy Spirit is like a man with a carriage and horse, who should want to take us to Pans. We should only have to say “yes,” and to get into it. It is indeed an easy matter to say “yes”!… Well, the Holy Spirit wants to take us to Heaven, we have only to say “yes,” and to let Him take us there.“
“O Divine Spirit, draw us to the highest heaven where Jesus lives forever, interceding for us. Come, fill our hearts with Your fire, show us the way to the Lord, that we may find Him shining with beauty and love. Amen”
“Accordingly, in the Church, one God is preached, one God who is above all things and through all things and in all things. God is above all things as Father, for He is principle and source; He is through all things through the Word; and He is in all things in the Holy Spirit.”
St Athanasius (c295-373)
Father and Doctor of the Church
The Church, a communion living in the faith of the apostles
which she transmits, is the place where we know the Holy Spirit:
– in the Scriptures He inspired;
– in the Tradition, to which the Church Fathers are always timely witnesses;
– in the Church’s Magisterium, which He assists;
– in the sacramental liturgy, through its words and symbols,
in which the Holy Spirit puts us into communion with Christ;
– in prayer, wherein He intercedes for us;
– in the charisms and ministries, by which the Church is built up;
– in the signs of apostolic and missionary life;
– in the witness of saints, through whom
He manifests His holiness
and continues the work of salvation.
Catechism of the Catholic Church
Section Two – Article 8 “I believe in the Holy Spirit” #688
++++++++++++++++++++
“We receive the Spirit of truth so that we can know the things of God. In order to grasp this, consider how useless the faculties of the human body would becom, if they were denied their exercise. Our eyes cannot fulfil their task without light, either natural or artificial, our ears cannot react without sound vibrations and in the absence of any odour, our nostrils are ignorant of their function. Not that these senses would lose their own nature, if they were not used. rather, they demand objects of experience in order to function. It is the same with the human soul. Unless it absorbs the gift of the Spirit through faith, the mind has the ability to know God but lacks the light necessary for that knowledge.”
St Hilary of Poitiers (315-368)
Father & Doctor of the Church
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love,
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
O Lord, Holy Spirit,
grant me sight to see the wondrous promise of divine love,
insight to see my own weakness,
delight in Your divine presence in my soul
which You have made Your temple, through sanctifying grace.
I pray, O Holy Spirit,
that I may be not doubting;
that I be spared the pain of being alone
without trust or hope in Christ,
that my prayer may always be “My Lord and my God!”
I pray that I may acquire a sense of retreat
to prayer and recollection at various times in my daily life,
for prayer is the bond that joins us to Christ.
I pray that I may be aware of the physical needs of the poor
and that I may share what I can with them
in the charitable works of the Church.
I pray, O Holy Spirit,
that You will, in Your mercy
grant me the favour, I have sought in this novena.
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
“We can study the whole history of salvation, we can study the whole of Theology but without the Spirit we cannot understand. It is the Spirit that makes us realise the truth or – in the words of Our Lord – it is the Spirit that makes us know the voice of Jesus.”
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart,
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love,
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
O Holy Spirit,
life and light of the Church,
give us thoughts,
higher than our own thoughts
and prayers,
better than our own prayers
and powers,
beyond our own powers,
that we may love and live,
imitating Jesus Christ,
our Lord and Saviour.
Come to us, Holy Spirit,
come with the Father
and the Son
and grant me the favour I so earnestly request in this novena…
Vouchsafe to dwell within our souls
and quickly make our hearts Your own.
Quench in us the fires of hate and strife,
the wasting fever of the heart.
From perils guard our feeble life
and to our souls Your peace impart.
Let voice and mind and heart
and strength confess
and glorify Your name
and let the fire of charity burn bright
and other hearts inflame.
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
Amen
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart,
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love,
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
Come, Holy Spirit,
creator of all things:
come visit our hearts with Your power.
Fill with grace, friendly guest,
the hearts which You have created.
You are called the Consoler,
gift from the hand of God,
source of life,
light, love and flame, highest good.
You are the pledge of sevenfold grace,
finger of the Father’s hand,
promised us by Him,
and You make our tongues speak the truth.
Cast light on our senses,
pour love into our hearts.
Grant our weak bodies strength
that they may never grow weary of doing good
and grant me the favour I so earnestly seek in this novena…
Keep the enemy far from us,
give us peace always,
let us willingly follow in Your footsteps
that we may be far removed from sin.
Grant that through You
we may grow in knowledge
of the Father and of the Son
and that we may ever strongly believe in You,
the Spirit of both.
Praise and honour be forever
to the Father on the highest throne,
in the risen Son of God,
in the Consoler.
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
Amen
“Remember, then, that you received a spiritual seal, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of knowledge and reverence, the spirit of holy fear. Keep safe what you received. God the Father sealed you, Christ the Lord strengthened you and sent the Spirit into your hearts as the pledge of what is to come.”
St Ambrose (340-397)
Father & Doctor of the Church
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart,
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love,
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
O Father in Heaven,
I beg You to send the Holy Spirit.
May Your Holy Spirit remind me
when I am apt to forget Your law.
Your love, Your promises.
May Your Holy Spirit strengthen my memory
to recall frequently Your sanctity,
omniscience, wisdom and goodness,
faithfulness and love.
May Your Holy Spirit encourage me,
when I am slothful,
strengthen me,
when I am weak,
enlighten me,
when I no longer can help myself.
Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit,
that I may do what is holy.
Stir me, that I may love what is holy.
Strengthen me, that I may preserve what is holy.
Protect me, Holy Spirit,
that I may never lose what is holy
and grant me the favour,
I so earnestly seek in this novena…
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
Amen
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
Come, O Spirit of sanctity,
from the glory of heaven
and send forth the radiance of Your light.
Father of all the poor,
light and peace of all hearts,
come with Your countless gifts.
Consoler in desolation,
refreshment full of loveliness,
come dear friend of my soul.
In weariness send repose,
breath gently cool refreshing breeze,
console the desolate who weep alone.
Light of Beatitude,
make our hearts ready,
come enter our souls.
Without Your grace,
man stands alone;
he cannot be good or sure.
Cleanse what is soiled,
heal what is wounded,
moisten what is arid.
Bend the stubborn will,
warm the cold heart,
guide the wandering footstep.
O Holy Spirit,
we beg You to give us grace through Your seven-fold power
and grant me the favour I so earnestly seek in this novena…
Give us merit for the present
and one day beatitude, when we have finished our earthly journey.
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
Amen
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
O God,
Who today, by the light of the Holy Spirit
did instruct the hearts of the faithful,
give us, by the light of the same Holy Spirit,
a love for what is right and just
and a constant enjoyment of His comforts.
Pray Holy Spirit,
that I may strive to learn more of my faith;
that I may ever be conscious
that reason, in all its human magnificence,
is capable of grasping but a glimpse of the reality that is God.
Pray that I may accept as the motto of my life:
“All for the greater glory of God”
and grant me the favour I so earnestly seek in this novena…
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them
the fire of Your love.
Amen
“As the soul is the life of the body, so the Holy Spirit is the life of our souls.”
St Peter Damian (1007-1072)
Doctor of the Church
DAY THREE Begin by reciting the following prayer…
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart,
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love,
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
Heavenly Father,
You have called me to be a member
of the mystical body of Your Son, Jesus Christ,
and to be a temple of the Holy Spirit.
I ask You to give me these gifts of the Holy Spirit –
wisdom, that I may understand the follies of this world;
understanding, that I may grasp more fully
the meaning of my existence
and the purpose of all things in the world;
counsel, that I may always choose the proper way;
fortitude, that I may remain faithful to You
under the pressure of temptatio.;
piety, that I may revere You in all I do, think or say;
fear of the Lord, that should the motive of love fail me,
I may quickly be awakened to the eternal consequences of my deeds.
Visit me by Your grace
and Your love
and grant me the favour I so earnestly seek in this novena…
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
Amen
“Enrich your soul in the great goodness of God – The Father is your table, the Son is your food and the Holy Spirit waits on you and then makes His dwelling in you.”
St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380)
Doctor of the Church
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours.
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love,
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
O Holy Spirit,
make me faithful in every thought,
and grant that I may always listen to Your voice
and watch for Your light
and follow Your gracious inspirations.
I cling to You
and give myself to You
and ask You, by Your compassion,
to watch over me in my weakness.
Holding the pierced feet of Jesus,
looking at His Five Wounds,
trusting in His Precious Blood,
adoring His opened side and stricken heart,
I implore You adorable Spirit,
helper of my infirmity,
to keep me in Your grace,
now and always,
and grant us the favour me ask in this novena…
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
Amen
“We ought to pray and invoke the Holy Spirit, for each one of us greatly needs His protection and His help. The more we are lacking in wisdom, weak in strength, burdened with trouble, prone to sin, the more we should turn to Him, Who is the never-ceasing fount of light, strength, consolation and holiness.”
Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903)
The novena in honour of the Holy Spirit is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Himself when He sent His apostles back to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Ghost on the first Pentecost. It is still the only novena officially prescribed by the Church. Addressed to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, it is a powerful plea for the light and strength and love so sorely needed by every Christian. Whilst this is often called the Pentecost Novena, it can be said at any time you wish. For the Traditional Novena, Day One here with the Act of Consecration:https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2018/05/11/pentecost-novena-to-the-holy-spirit-for-the-seven-gifts-day-one-11-may-2018/
Day One
Begin by reciting the following prayer…
O Holy Spirit, Divine Consoler!
I adore You as my True God.
I offer You my whole heart,
and I render You heartfelt thanks
for all the benefits You have bestowed upon the world.
You are the author of all supernatural gifts
and enriched the Blessed Virgin Mary,
the Mother of God,
with all favours,
I ask You to visit me by Your grace and Your love,
and grant me the favour
I so earnestly seek…
…………………………………. State your request here…
O Holy Spirit,
spirit of truth, come into our hearts.
Let us Pray:
O Holy Spirit,
bestow upon us Your seven holy gifts.
Enlighten our understanding, that we may know You.
Give us wisdom, that Your will may be clear to us
and that we may accept it.
Grant us the gift of counsel,
that we may always perceive what is right.
Fortify us, that we may always be capable
of fulfilling Your Divine Will.
Inspire us, with the spirit of learning
that we may be able to penetrate more deeply,
into the truths that You have revealed.
Let our hearts be steeped in the spirit of childlikeness
that we may bring You joy.
Let us have proper fear of God
that we may never grieve You,
or wander from the path of goodness.
Give us the fullness of Your gifts,
that we may glorify You.
Look with compassion upon us,
O Holy Spirit,
and grant us the favour we seek in this novena…
if it be in accordance with Your Holy Will.
Come, O Holy Spirit,
fill the hearts of Your faithful,
and kindle in them the fire of Your love.
Amen
I think I am superwoman but have now realised I am not! I am so sorry but I have an imminent deadline for original work I am doing for my Diocese. It needs to be ready by Pentecost and I have done absolutely nothing as yet!
So no posts for a few weeks. I will be back as soon as I have made some progress and prepared at least 3 months of the 12 month-long programme.
I will be praying for you all! Please pray for me and keep on keeping on.
For those who would like to read about today’s Saints:
One Minute Reflection – 2 May – Thursday of the Second week of Easter, Gospel: John 3:31–36 and the Memorial of St Athanasius (297-373) – Father and Doctor of the Church and St Antoninus OP (1389-1459), Gospel: John 3:31–36
For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. He does not ration his gift of the Spirit…he who does not obey the Son shall not see life…John 3:34,36
REFLECTION – “The sanctification or, rather, the deification of the nature of man, is one main subject of St Athanasius’s theology. Christ, in rising, raises His Saints with Him to the right hand of power. They become instinct with His life, of one body with His flesh, divine sons, immortal kings, gods. He is in them, because He is in human nature and He communicates in them that nature, deified by becoming His, that them Itmay deify. He is in them by the Presence of His Spirit and in them He is seen.”…Bl John Henry Newman (1801-1890)
PRAYER – Lord God, whose name is holy and whose mercy is proclaimed in every generation, send forth Your Spirit into our hearts and grant that, faithfully pondering on all that is holy, we may ever live in the splendour of Your presence. Listen we beseech You, to the prayers we request from St Athanasius and St Antoninus, to help us on this earthly journey. We make our prayer through Christ, Your Son our Lord and Saviour, with the Holy Spirit, one God forever amen.
One Minute Reflection – 29 April – Monday of the Second week of Easter, Year C, Gospel: John 3:1–8 and the Memorial of St Peter of Verona OP (1205–1252)
“…that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”...John 3:6
REFLECTION – “We read in Saint John – No one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. To be reborn in the Holy Spirit during this life is to become most like God in purity, without any mixture of imperfection. Accordingly, pure transformation can be effected – although not essentially – through the participation of union.
Here is an example that will provide a better understanding of this explanation. A ray of sunlight shining on a smudgy window, is unable to illumine that window completely and transform it into its own light. It could do this, if the window were cleaned and polished… The extent of illumination is not dependent on the ray of sunlight but on the window. If the window is totally clean and pure, the sunlight will so transform and illumine it, that to all appearances the window will be identical with the ray of sunlight and shine just as the sun’s ray. Although, obviously, the nature of the window is distinct from that of the sun’s ray, even if the two seem identical, we can assert, that the window is the ray or light of the sun by participation.
The soul on which the divine light of God’s being is ever shining, or better, in which it is ever dwelling by nature, is like this window. A soul makes room for God by wiping away all the smudges and smears of creatures, by uniting its will perfectly to God’s, for to love is to labour, to divest and deprive oneself for God, of all that is not God. When this is done, the soul will be illumined by and transformed in God.”…St John of the Cross (1542-1591) Doctor of the Church
PRAYER – Almighty God and Father, grant that Your faithful people who were buried with Your Son in baptism, may by His Resurrection and intercession at Your right hand, obtain for us eternal life. Send Your Spirit upon Your adopted children and lead us in Your way. Grant that by the intercession of St Peter of Verona, our path may be straightened and glow with Your light. Through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Our Morning Offering – 29 April – Monday of the Second week of Easter, Year C and the Memorial of St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) Doctor of the Church
Holy Trinity, Holy Love By St Catherine of Siena
Holy Spirit, come into my heart;
draw it to Thee by Thy power,
O my God,
and grant me charity with filial fear.
Preserve me,
O beautiful love,
from every evil thought,
warm me,
inflame me with Thy dear love
and every pain will seem light to me.
My Father,
my sweet Lord,
help me in all my actions.
Jesus, love, Jesus, love.
Amen
Thought for the Day – 28 April – Low Sunday the Octave Day of Easter and Divine Mercy Sunday, Gospel: John 20:19–31
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. “...John 20:21-22
Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622)
Bishop of Geneva and Doctor of the Church
First Sermon for Pentecost
‘He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit” ‘
Lord Jesus Christ, once again grant that of us, too, there may be but “one heart and mind” (Acts 4:32) for then there will be “a great calm” (Mk 4:39). My dear listeners, I exhort you to good will and kindness to one another and peace with all. For were we to have charity among ourselves, we would have both peace and the Holy Spirit. Let us undertake to become devout and pray to God… since the apostles persevered in prayer… If we set ourselves to fervent prayer then the Holy Spirit will enter us and say: “Peace be with you! It is I; be not afraid” (cf. Mk 6:50)… And what ought we to ask God for, my brethren? For all that is for His honour and the salvation of your souls and, in a word, for the help of the Holy Spirit – “Send forth your Spirit and they will be created” (Ps 104[103]:30) – peace and tranquillity…
We are to ask for this peace so that the Spirit of peace may come down on us. We should give thanks to God, too, for all His blessings if we want Him to grant us those victories that are the beginning of peace. And to obtain the Holy Spirit we should give thanks to God the Father for having first of all sent Him upon our Head, Jesus Christ, who is our Lord and His Son… – for “from his fullness we have all received” (cf. Jn 1:16) – and for having sent Him upon His apostles that through their hands they might pass Him onto us. We should give thanks to the Son – as God, He sends the Spirit upon those who prepare themselves to receive Him. But, most especially, we should thank Him because, as man, He merited for us, the grace of receiving this divine Spirit…
And how has Jesus Christ merited the Holy Spirit’s coming? When “bowing his head, he gave up his spirit” (Jn 19:30), for, when He gave breathed His last and handed over His spirit to the Father, He merited the Father’s sending His Spirit upon His mystical body.
Thought for the Day – 26 April – Friday in the Octave of Easter
The Anointing with the Holy Spirit
Saint Cyril of Jerusalem (315-387)
Bishop, Father & Doctor of the Church
An excerpt from his Mystagogical Catechesis 3
When we were baptised into Christ and clothed ourselves in Him, we were transformed into the likeness of the Son of God. Having destined us to be His adopted sons, God gave us a likeness to Christ in His glory and living as we do, in communion with Christ, God’s anointed, we ourselves are rightly called “the anointed ones.” When He said: Do not touch my anointed ones, God was speaking of us.
We became “the anointed ones” when we received the sign of the Holy Spirit. Indeed, everything took place in us by means of images, because we ourselves are images of Christ. Christ bathed in the river Jordan, imparting to its waters the fragrance of His divinity and, when He came up from them, the Holy Spirit descended upon Him, like resting upon like. So we also, after coming up from the sacred waters of baptism, were anointed with chrism, which signifies the Holy Spirit, by whom Christ was anointed and of whom blessed Isaiah prophesied in the name of the Lord – The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because He has anointed me. He has sent me to preach good news to the poor.
Christ’s anointing was not by human hands, nor was it with ordinary oil. On the contrary, having destined Him to be the Saviour of the whole world, the Father Himself anointed Him with the Holy Spirit. The words of Peter bear witness to this – Jesus of Nazareth, whom God anointed with the Holy Spirit. And David the prophet proclaimed: Your throne, O God, shall endure for ever; your royal sceptre is a sceptre of justice. You have loved righteousness and hated iniquity; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above all your fellows.
The oil of gladness with which Christ was anointed was a spiritual oil, it was in fact the Holy Spirit Himself, who is called the oil of gladness, because He is the source of spiritual joy. But we too have been anointed with oil and by this anointing, we have entered into fellowship with Christ and have received a share in His life. Beware of thinking that this holy oil is simply ordinary oil and nothing else. After the invocation of the Spirit it is no longer ordinary oil but the gift of Christ and by the presence of His divinity, it becomes the instrument, through which we receive the Holy Spirit. While symbolically, on our foreheads and senses, our bodies are anointed with this oil that we see, our souls are sanctified by the holy and life-giving Spirit.
One Minute Reflection – 27 March – Wednesday of the Third week of Lent, Year C, Gospel: Matthew 5:17–19
“Think not that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfil them.”…Matthew 5:17
REFLECTION – “Grace, which was formerly veiled, so to speak, in the Old Testament, has been fully revealed in the Gospel of Christ by a harmonious disposition of the times, just as God usually disposes of everything with harmony… But within this wonderful harmony we notice a great difference between the two ages. On Sinai the people did not dare draw near the place where the Lord was giving His Law; in the Upper Room, the Holy Spirit comes down on all those assembled there, while waiting for the fulfilment of the promise (Ex 19:23; Acts 2:1). In the first instance, the finger of God inscribed the laws on tablets of stone but now, it is in human hearts, that He writes it (Ex 31:18; 2 Cor 3:3). Formerly the Law was written without and brought fear to sinners but now, it has been given to them within, to make them righteous…
Indeed, as the apostle Paul says, everything written on the stone tablets, “you shall not commit adultery, you shall not kill…, you shall not covet” and whatever other commandments there may be, are summed up in this saying: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself. Love does no evil to the neighbour, hence, love is the fulfilment of the Law” (Rm 13:9f.; Lv 19:18)… This charity has been “poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us” (Rm 5:5)….St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor On the spirit and the letter, 28-30
PRAYER – Protect Your family, Lord and strengthen us with Your consoling presence. Help us in our way to follow Your commandments and live as disciples of love. Look now on Your chosen people, grant us the light of Your Spirit and bring us forever to eternal life. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Your Son and our Mother, be ever our protective shield. Through Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.
Thought for the Day – 21 March – Thursday of the Second week of Lent, Year C and the Memorial of St Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello (1791 – 1858)
“O most blessed Light, fill the interior of the hearts of your faithful.” The words of the Sequence are a beautiful summary of the life of Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello and explain its extraordinary spiritual richness.
Guided by divine grace, the new saint was concerned to accomplish God’s will with fidelity and coherence. With boundless confidence in the Lord’s goodness, she abandoned herself to his “loving Providence”, deeply convinced, as she liked to repeat, that one must “do everything for love of God and to please Him”.This is the precious inheritance that St Benedetta Cambiagio Frassinello left to her spiritual daughters that today is offered to the entire Christian community.
Come Holy Spirit, enkindle the hearts of your faithful! Help us to spread the fire of your love in the world. Amen!
St Pope John Paul on the Canonisation of St Benedetta, Sunday, 19 May 2002
AnaStpaul 
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