AnaStpaul

ADVENT, CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, The WORD

Advent Reflection on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception – 9 December – The wonderful tabernacle of Your glory,

Posted on December 9, 2019December 9, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Advent Reflection on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception – 9 December – Readings: Genesis 3:9-15, 20, Psalm 98:1-4, Ephesians 1:3-6, 11-12, Luke 1:26-38

And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord, let it what you have said be done to me.” … Luke 1:38 luke 1 38 - let what you have said be done to me - 18dec2018 ourladyofexpectation.jpg

REFLECTION – “May the holy divinity of Your glory, my God, O my gentleness, with which You deigned to fill and to inhabit for nine months the chaste viscera of the Virgin Mary, bless You. May the highest virtue of Your divinity, which bent to the humbleness of the virginal valley, bless You. May the utmost art of Your almightiness, God most high, with which You imparted onto the Virgin Rose, such virtue, radiance and comeliness as You, Yourself could yearn for, bless You. May Your wondrous wisdom, whose copious grace made all of Mary’s life and body, as well as her soul, comparable with Your worthiness, bless You. May You, strong, wise and most dulcet love which made You, the flower and spouse of virginity, become the Son of a virgin, bless You. (…)

May the worthiest heart and soul of the most glorious Virgin Mother Mary (whom, because of my need for salvation, You chose for Yourself as mother and that her motherly clemency might always be open to me) be jubilant to You, on my behalf. May that most faithful concern which is Yours for me (by which You have provided me with an advocate and patron saint of such capability that through her I may easily be able to find Your grace and in whom, I trustfully believe, Your eternal mercy is preserved for me) be jubilant to You. May that wonderful tabernacle of Your glory, which alone has ministered to You worthily, as a holy dwelling place and through which, You can best make amends for me, to Yourself, for the due measure of praise and glory that I owe You, be jubilant to You.” … Saint Gertrude of Helfta the Great (1256-1301) – Exercises VI, SC 127

MEDITATION – “All things came to be through him and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life and this life was the light of the human race.” … John 1:3-4 advent - solemnity of the imm conception 9 dec 2019.jpg

ADVENT ACTION – Remember the Babe in the Manger, keep Him before your eyes and you will not be able to forget what our sins do. Our actions with God and those, in this life, will determine our union with God and others, in eternal life. That is our great hope.

PRAYER – Heavenly Father, help us to imitate Your Immaculate Daughter Mary in her love for You. Grant us the grace to love You as much as she, all our lives and grant, that through her help and her prayers, we ourselves may come to You , cleansed from our sins. O Mary Immaculate, mother of our Lord, Pray for us! Amen immaculate-mary-pray-for-us - 8 dec 2017 and 9 dec 2019.jpg

CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, NOVENAS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception Day Nine – 9 December

Posted on December 9, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
Day Nine – 9 December

By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

OPENING PRAYER

How fair you are, 0 Mary!
The original stain is not in you.
You are the boast of Jerusalem,
You are the joy of Israel.
You are the pride of our people.
You are the advocate of sinners.
0 Mary!
You are the wisest of virgins.
You are the kindest of mothers.
Pray for us.
Intercede for us with our Lord Jesus Christ.
Holy Virgin, you were spotless
from the very moment of your conception.
Because you bore His Son, pray to the Father for us.
Through the spotless conception of the Virgin, 0 God,
You made ready a dwelling place worthy of Your Son.
In anticipation of Your Son’s death,
You preserved her from every stain.
Please purify us by her intercession,
so that we might find our way to You.
We ask this through Christ our lord.
Amen

Daily Readings and Meditations for each day of the Novena are given here, followed by two closing Novena Prayers for each day.

Day 9: The Immaculata’s Fullness of Love

Reading:
The Immaculata never knew the slightest stain, in other words, her love was always full, without flaw. She loved God with all her being and from the first instant of her existence her love united her with God so perfectly, that on the day of the Annunciation the angel could say to her, “Full of grace! the Lord is with you!” (cf. Lk 1:28). She is, then, God’s creature, God’s image, God’s child and in all these respects, she is all this in the most perfect manner possible, among the ranks of mere creatures (“Sketches for a book,” 1940). Intelligent creatures love God in a conscious manner, through this love, they unite themselves more and more closely with Him and so find their way back to Him. The creature most completely filled with this love, filled with God Himself, was the Immaculata. . . . In the Holy Spirit’s union with Mary, we observe more than the love of two beings, in one, there is all the love of the Blessed Trinity, in the other, all of creation’s love. So it is, that in this union, heaven and earth are joined, all of heaven with all the earth, the totality of eternal love with the totality of created love. It is truly the summit of love (“Sketches for a book,” 17 February 1941).

Meditation:
To channel all our spiritual, physical and psychological energies into their fullest human expression, means simply to love God, as totally as possible. May the Immaculata’s flawless love of God, inspire each of u,s to channel our love, in that same ultimate direction.

Closing prayers

Novena Prayer to the Immaculata

I greet you, ever-blessed Virgin,
Mother of God throne of grace,
miracle of almighty power!
I greet you, sanctuary of the most Holy Trinity
and Queen of the universe,
Mother of mercy and refuge of sinners!
Most loving Mother,
attracted by your beauty and sweetness
and by your tender compassion,
I confidently turn to you
and beg of you, to obtain for me of your dear Son
the favour I request in this novena
………………………… (here mention you request).
Obtain for me also, Queen of Heaven,
the most lively contrition for my many sins
and the grace to imitate closely,
those virtues which you practised so faithfully,
especially humility, purity and obedience.
Above all I beg you to be my mother
and protectress,
to receive me into the number of your devoted children
and to guide me from your high throne of glory.
Do not reject my petitions, Mother of mercy!
Have pity on me and do not abandon me
during life or at the moment of my death.

Daughter of the Eternal Father,
Mother of the Eternal Son,
Spouse of the Holy Spirit,
Temple of the adorable Trinity,
pray for me.
Immaculate and tender Heart of Mary,
refuge of the needy and hope of sinners,
filled with the most lively respect, love and gratitude,
I devote myself forever to your service
and I offer you my heart,
with all that I am and all that belongs to me.
Accept this offering,
sweet Queen of Heaven and earth
and obtain for me of your dear Son, Jesus Christ,
the favours I ask through your intercession in this novena.
Obtain for me also a tender, generous, constant love of God,
perfect submission to His adorable will,
the true spirit of a Christian
and the grace of final perseverance.
Amen

Closing Prayer of Identification with the Immaculata

O Immaculate Conception, Mary, my Mother,
live in me, act in me, speak in and through me.
Think your thoughts in my mind,
love through my heart.
Give me your own dispositions and feelings.
Teach, lead and guide me to Jesus.
Correct, enlighten and expand my entire personality and life.
Replace me with yourself.
Incline me to constant adoration and thanksgiving,
pray in and through me.
Let me live in you
and keep me in this union always.
Amen

BREVIARY Prayers, CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, HYMNS, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN TITLES, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Our Morning Offering – 9 December – Mary, Ever-Spotless Virgin

Posted on December 9, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 9 December – Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

Mary, Ever-Spotless Virgin
Breviary Morning Hymn

O Virgin Mary, words cannot describe you,
Clothed with the beauty of the sun at noonday,
Twelve stars to crown you
and the moon beneath you,
Queen of creation.

Through your submission,
death and hell were conquered,
Now you are seated by your Son and Saviour,
Strong to protect us by your intercession,
As we entreat you.

Guard and watch over those within the sheepfold,
Lead to the Shepherd those who are far distant,
Pity the nations groping in the darkness,
Graciously guide them.

Tenderly pleading, win us all forgiveness,
Help those in trouble, poverty or sickness,
Hope of salvation, as a star to pilgrims
Shine through the darkness.

Praise be forever, Trinity Almighty,
Who crowned you, Mary, ever-spotless Virgin,
Making you also Queen of men and angels,
Most loving Mother.
Amen.

Lebet Den Herren, Alle, 11.11.11.5
Music: Johann Crüger, 1598-1662
Text: Solis, O Virgo, Victorius Genovesi SJ 1887–1967

SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 9 December – Blessed Liborius Wagner (1593-1631) Priest and Martyr

Posted on December 9, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 9 December – Blessed Liborius Wagner (1593-1631) Priest and Martyr, Teacher, Confessor, Apostle of Charity, Teacher – born on 5 December 1593 at Mühlhausen, Unstrut-Hainich, Thuringia, Germany and died by being beaten to death with swords and firearms on 9 December 1631 near the River Main, Schonungen, Schweinfurt, Germany. He administered throughout his pastoral mission in Würzburg and was killed “in odium fidei” (in hatred of the faith). He performed a wide range of charitable acts and he was more than willing to shed his blood for his beliefs and for his fellow Christians. Patronage – of persecuted Christians. bl liborius wagner sml.jpg

He grew up in a Protestant household during the Counter-Reformation period. His decision in 1613, to learn Counter-Reformation theological matters in Würzburg and this was a decision that his parents disapproved of. This led him to convert to the Catholic Faith which earned the ire of his parents especially when he continued his studies in order to become a Priest.

He became a teacher in 1617 and was ordained as a priest on 29 March 1625. Thereafter, the became the parish priest of an area split between Protestants and Catholics. He attempted to reconcile both, as best he could but the divisions made this process extremely painful and difficult..

Fr Liborius was driven from his parish to another town during a time of conflict in Central Europe. Swedish Protestant soldiers apprehended him in a schoolhouse and tortured him for almost a week. He refused to renounce his faith and killed him on 9 December 1631. The immediate cause of his death was beating with firearms and swords. bl Liborius-Wagner_207x290.jpg

His body was stripped of his priestly garments to make identification more difficult and thrown into the River Main but was recovered from the river by Catholics living nearby and buried. Following the end of Swedish rule in the area, his body was re-interred in the chapel of the castle of Mainberg and finally re-interred in the parish church of San Lorenzo, Heidenfeld, Germany on 15 December 1637, where his Shrine now resides, see the images below. It is a place of pilgrimage for many Catholics, especially those suffering persecution.

bl liborius shrine church___Heidenfeld_a25ba8b797

bl liborius wagner shrine___Heidenfeld_Liborius_Wagner

St Pope Paul VI declared Blessed Liborius a Venerable in 1973 then Beatified him on 24 March 1974 as a Martyr. bl liborius wagner statue snip bl liborius wagner snip bl liborius wagner snip 2

DOGMA, MARIAN TITLES, SAINT of the DAY

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception +2019 – 9 December and Memorials of the Saints

Posted on December 9, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception +2019

https://anastpaul.com/2017/12/08/the-feast-of-the-immaculate-conception-solemnity-8-december/

https://anastpaul.com/2018/12/08/8-december-the-solemnity-of-the-immaculate-conception/

St Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin (1474-1548) (Optional Memorial)

About beloved St Juan Diego:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/12/09/saint-of-the-day-9-december-st-juan-diego-cuauhtlatoatzin-1474-1548/

And About the Tilma:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/12/09/st-juan-diegos-tilma-9-december-2/

St Adam Scotus
Bl Agustín García Calvo *
Bl Antonio Martín Hernández *
St Auditor of Saint-Nectaire
St Balda of Jouarre
St Bernhard Mariea Silvestrelli
St Budoc of Brittany
Bl Carmen Rodríguez Banazal *
St Caesar of Korone
St Cephas
Bl Clara Isabella Fornari
St Cyprian of Perigueux
Bl Dolores Broseta Bonet *
Bl Estefanía Irisarri Irigaray *
St Ethelgiva of Shaftesbury
St Gorgonia
Bl Isidora Izquierdo García *
Bl José Ferrer Esteve *
Bl José Giménez López *
Bl Josefa Laborra Goyeneche *
Bl Josep Lluís Carrera Comas *
St Julian of Apamea
Bl Julián Rodríguez Sánchez *
St Leocadia of Toledo
Blessed Liborius Wagner (1593-1631) Priest and Martyr
Bl María Pilar Nalda Franco *
St Michaela Andrusikiewicz
St Nectarius of Auvergne

St Peter Fourier CRSA (1565-1640)
Biography:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/12/09/saint-of-the-day-9-december-st-peter-fourier-c-r-s-a-1565-1640/

St Proculus of Verona
Bl Recaredo de Los Ríos Fabregat *
St Syrus of Pavia
St Valeria of Limoges
St Wulfric of Holme

Blessed Mercedarian Fathers – (10 beati): The memorial of ten Mercedarian friars who were especially celebrated for their holiness.
• Arnaldo de Querol • Berengario Pic • Bernardo de Collotorto • Domenico de Ripparia • Giovanni de Mora • Guglielmo Pagesi • Lorenzo da Lorca • Pietro Serra • Raimondo Binezes • Sancio de Vaillo

Martyred Salesians of Valencia – (5 beati)
Martyrs of North Africa – (4 saints): Twenty-four Christians murdered together in North Africa for their faith. The only details to survive are four of their names – Bassian, Peter, Primitivus and Successus.

Martyrs of Paterna – (7 beati)
Martyrs of Samosata – (7 saints): Seven martyrs crucified in 297 in Samosata (an area of modern Turkey) for refusing to perform a pagan rite in celebration of the victory of Emperor Maximian over the Persians. They are – Abibus, Hipparchus, James, Lollian, Paragnus, Philotheus and Romanus. They were crucified in 297 in Samosata (an area in modern Turkey).

Martyrs of the Spanish Civil War – (13 beati):
• Blessed Agustín García Calvo
• Blessed Antonio Martín Hernández
• Blessed Carmen Rodríguez Banazal
• Blessed Dolores Broseta Bonet
• Blessed Estefanía Irisarri Irigaray
• Blessed Isidora Izquierdo García
• Blessed José Ferrer Esteve
• Blessed José Giménez López
• Blessed Josefa Laborra Goyeneche
• Blessed Josep Lluís Carrera Comas
• Blessed Julián Rodríguez Sánchez
• Blessed María Pilar Nalda Franco
• Blessed Recaredo de Los Ríos Fabregat

CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, NOVENAS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception Day Eight – 8 December

Posted on December 8, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
Day Eight – 8 December

By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

OPENING PRAYER

Daily Readings and Meditations for each day of the Novena are given here, followed by two closing Novena Prayers for each day.

Day 8: The Immaculata’s Fruitfulness

Reading:
God sends to us the one who personifies His love – Mary, the spouse of the Spirit—a spirit of maternal love—immaculate, all beautiful, spotless, even though she is our sister, a true daughter of the human race. God confides to her the communication of His mercy to souls. He makes of her the Mediatrix of the graces merited for us by her divine Son, for she is full of grace, the mother of all souls born of grace, reborn and always being reborn, becoming ever more godlike (Commentary on MI “Act of Consecration,” 1940).

Meditation:
Productivity is one of the chief “virtues” upheld by modern society as a measure of worldly success. May the Immaculata give witness to each of us that her (and our) ongoing spiritual fruitfulness, in bearing Christ to others, is a far greater achievement than material productivity.

Closing prayers

Novena Prayer to the Immaculata

Closing Prayer of Identification with the Immaculata

NOTES to Followers

There is nothing I can do – 8 December

Posted on December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

There is nothing I can do – 8 December

South Africa is struggling under what is called “Load Shedding.”

This means our Electricity is switched off, up to 4 times per day, for 2 1/2 hours each time.

So when my posts are foreshortened, you will know why.

It is extremely frustrating, to put it mildly!

Please Pray for South Africa!

apologies - power cut - 5 dec 2019.jpg

QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on SANCTITY

Quote of the Day – 8 December – Making progess

Posted on December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote of the Day – 8 December – The Second Sunday of Advent, Year A

“If we wish to make any progress in the service of God,
we must begin everyday of our life, with new eagerness.
We must keep ourselves, in the presence of God,
as much as possible and have no other view
or end, in all our actions but the divine honour.”

St Charles Borromeo (1538-1584)

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SUNDAY REFLECTIONS, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Sunday Reflection – 8 December – Go With Him

Posted on December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Sunday Reflection – 8 December – The Second Sunday of Advent, Year A

Go With Him

St Ephrem of Syria (306-373)

Father & Doctor of the Church

“Go with Him, as His inseparable companion, to the wedding feast of Cana and drink of the wine of His blessing. Let you have ever before you, the Face of the Lord and look upon His beauty and let your earnest gaze turn nowhere away from His most sweet countenance.

Go before Him into a desert place and see the wonder of His works, where He multiplied in His own Holy Hands the bread that sufficed the great multitude.

Go, my brother, go forward and with all the love of your soul, follow Christ wherever He may go… And lovingly behold Him as taking bread into His hands, He blesses it and breaks it, as the outward form of His own Immaculate Body and the chalice which He blessed, as the outward form of His Precious Blood and gave to His Disciples and be you, also, a partaker of His sacraments.”

go my brother go forward - st ephrem - sun reflc 8 dec 2019.jpg

ADVENT QUOTES, ADVENT REFLECTIONS, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES on CONVERSION, The WORD

Advent Reflection – – 8 December – The Second Sunday of Advent – “My Father and I will come to him and make our dwelling within him”

Posted on December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Advent Reflection – – 8 December – The Second Sunday of Advent, Year A – Readings: Isaiah 11:1-10, Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17, Romans 15:4-9, Matthew 3:1-12

Let us adore the Lord, the king who is to come.

“Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” … Matthew 3:2

REFLECTION – “John the Baptist said: “Every valley shall be filled” (Lk 3:5) but it was not John who filled every valley, it was our Lord and Saviour… “And the winding roads shall be made straight.” Every one of us was going astray… and it was Christ’s coming, fulfilled within our very souls, that straightened all that was crooked… Nothing was so resistant as you were. Consider your former unruly desires, your fits of anger and other evil tendencies, as to whether they have disappeared. You will realise that nothing was so resistant as you were, or, in an even more expressive phrase, that nothing was brought so low as you were. Your behaviour was low, your words and deeds were low.

But my Lord Jesus came – He smoothed down your roughness, He changed all that muddle into roads that joined up to create a way without obstacles within you, well articulated and swept clean, so that God our Father could walk in you and Christ the Lord could make His home in you and say: “My Father and I will come to him and make our dwelling within him” (Jn 14:23).” … Origen (c 185-253)

MEDITATION – ” … The good news that Jesus brings us — and that John predicts — is that we do not need to wait for the kingdom of God in the future – it is at hand. In some way it is already present and we may experience spiritual power from now on. “The kingdom of God is in your midst!” Jesus will say. God comes to establish His lordship in our history, today, everyday, in our life and there — where it is welcomed with faith and humility — love, joy and peace blossom.” … Pope Francis (ANGELUS, 4 December 2016)

ADVENT ACTION – May we open the doors of our hearts, where the Lord dwells and share His hospitality with those in need, wherever we find them!

PRAYER – Lord, watch over Your people, who come to You in confidence. Strengthen the hearts of those who hope in You. Give courage to those who falter because of their failures. In this holy season of Advent, lead them closer to You in hope, by the power of Your Holy Spirit. May they we share Your saving acts of kindness today and one day proclaim them in your eternal kingdom. We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. the second sunday of advent - 8 dec 2019 .jpg

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Our Morning Offering – 8 December – Prayer After Holy Communion – by St Basil the Great (329-379)

Posted on December 8, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 8 December – The Second Sunday of Advent, Year A

Prayer After Holy Communion
By St Basil the Great (329-379)
Father & Doctor of the Church

O Christ, our Master and God,
King of the ages and Creator of all,
I thank You for all the Good things
that You have given to me
and for the reception of
Your most pure and life-giving Mysteries.
I pray You, therefore,
O good Lover of mankind,
keep me under Your protection
in the shadow of Your wings.
Grant that with a pure conscience,
until my last breath,
I may worthily partake of Your Holy Things,
for the forgiveness of sins
and for life everlasting.
For You are the bread of Life,
the Fountain of holiness
and the Bestower of blessings
and to You, we give glory
together with the Father
and the Holy Spirit,
now and forever and ever.
Amen prayer after Holy Communion by st Basil the great - 8 dec 2019.jpg

SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 8 December – Saint Pope Eutychian (Died 283)

Posted on December 8, 2019December 8, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 8 December – Saint Pope Eutychian (Died 283) – Born in Etruria or Tuscany (both in modern Italy) and died on 7 December 283. The Church states his reign as January, 275 to 7 December 283.

This was a time of relative quiet in the Roman Church. There was no persecution or outright hostilities. However, the Empire was in deep trouble. This era is called the Crisis of the Third Century. Emperors were assassinated with great frequency. While the Church fought battles over dogma, the Empire, in only 20 years, had to go through many battles over land.

Eutychian was thus free to fight internal battles which threatened to divide the Church. The two biggest battles were the Novationist schism and the Trinitarian controversy. Novatian had begun his campaign during the time of Pope Cornelius. The persecutions had scared many into denouncing Christianity to save themselves. After peace came, many wanted to come back to communion with the Church. Could they be given absolution? Novatian said no. He was so adamant and pushed his teaching so convincingly that he was elected pope by some in Rome, claiming primacy from 251 to 258. This led to the question of whether a schismatic presbyter could validly baptise someone, or did that person need to be re-baptised. Although previous popes declared that not to be so, it was still a point of contention during Eutychian’s papacy. Although Novatian left Rome during another series of persecutions, giving up his claim to antipope and no-one hearing from him again, his concepts lasted for several centuries. st pope eutychian,.jpg

The other battle waged in Rome was the question of the Trinity. It was obvious that God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit were mentioned individually in the New Testament. Were they three modes of God’s being? Or were they three “persons” in one God? There is no record of Eutychian’s opinion. The established concept was not decided on his watch.

Under Eutychian’s papacy and the next few, as well, the Roman Catholic Church became a main cultural institution in the empire. Peaceful acceptance of the religion had begun. This is his legacy. st pope eutychian medallion.jpg

St Eutychian was the last pope buried in the papal crypt at the Catacombs of Callixtus.

SAINT of the DAY

Second Sunday of Advent and Memorials of the Saints – 8 December

Posted on December 8, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Second Sunday of Advent, Year A +2019
Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception – MOVED to 9 December +2019

Bl Alojzy Liguda
St Anastasia of Pomerania
St Anthusa of Africa
St Antonio García Fernández
St Casari of Villeneuve-lès-Avignon
St Eucharius of Trier
St Pope Eutychian (Died 283) The 27th Pope
St Gunthildis of Ohrdruf
Bl Jacob Gwon Sang-yeon
Bl Johanna of Cáceres
Bl José María Zabal Blasco
St Macarius of Alexandria
St Marin Shkurti
St Patapius
Bl Paul Yun Ji-chung
St Rafael Román Donaire
St Romaric of Remiremont
St Sofronius of Cyprus

CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, NOVENAS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception Day Seven – 7 December

Posted on December 7, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
Day Seven – 7 December

By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

OPENING PRAYER

Daily Readings and Meditations for each day of the Novena are given here, followed by two closing Novena Prayers for each day.

Day 7: The Immaculata’s Discipleship

Reading:
The Immaculata is God’s instrument. With full consciousness and total willingness she allows God to govern her, she consents to His will, desires only what He desires and acts according to His will in the most perfect manner, without failing, without ever turning aside from His will. She makes perfect use of the powers and privileges God has given her, so as to fulfil, always and in everything, whatever God wants of her, purely for love of God, One and Three. This love of God reaches such a peak that it bears the divine fruits proper to God’s own love. Her love for God brings her to such a level of union with Him that she becomes the Mother of God. The Father confides to her His Son, the Son descends into her womb and the Holy Spirit fashions out of her perfectly pure body, the very body of Jesus! (“Sketches for a book,” 1940).

Meditation:
The only way to guarantee that we are on the “right track” in our everyday activities is to listen to God’s Word and live it out. That’s discipleship! May the Immaculata’s discipleship of total conformity to God’s Word inspire us to be similar instruments of his will.

Closing prayers

Novena Prayer to the Immaculata

Closing Prayer of Identification with the Immaculata

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, SAINT of the DAY

Thought for the Day – 7 December – St Ambrose, Pray for Us.

Posted on December 7, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 7 December – The Memorial of St Ambrose (c 340-397)- Father and Doctor of the Church

One of Ambrose’s biographers observed that at the Last Judgment, people would still be divided between those who admired Ambrose and those who heartily disliked him. He emerges as the man of action who cut a furrow through the lives of his contemporaries. Even royal personages were numbered among those who were to suffer crushing divine punishments for standing in Ambrose’s way.

When the Empress Justina attempted to wrest two basilicas from Ambrose’s Catholics and give them to the Arians, he dared the eunuchs of the court to execute him. His own people rallied behind him in the face of imperial troops . In the midst of riots, he both spurred and calmed his people with bewitching new hymns set to exciting Eastern melodies.

In his disputes with the Emperor Auxentius, he coined the principle – “The emperor is in the Church, not above the Church.” He publicly admonished Emperor Theodosius for the massacre of 7,000 innocent people. The emperor did public penance for his crime. This was Ambrose, the fighter sent to Milan as Roman governor and chosen while yet a catechumen to be the people’s bishop.

There is yet another side of Ambrose—one which influenced Augustine of Hippo, whom Ambrose converted. Ambrose was a passionate little man with a high forehead, a long melancholy face and great eyes. We can picture him as a frail figure clasping the codex of sacred Scripture. This was the Ambrose of aristocratic heritage and learning.

Augustine found the oratory of Ambrose less soothing and entertaining but far more learned than that of other contemporaries. Ambrose’s sermons were often modelled on Cicero and his ideas betrayed the influence of contemporary thinkers and philosophers. He had no scruples in borrowing at length from pagan authors. He gloried in the pulpit in his ability to parade his spoils—“gold of the Egyptians”—taken over from the pagan philosophers.

His sermons, his writings and his personal life reveal him as an otherworldly man involved in the great issues of his day. Humanity for Ambrose was, above all, spirit. In order to think rightly of God and the human soul, the closest thing to God, no material reality at all was to be dwelt upon. He was an enthusiastic champion of consecrated virginity.

The influence of Ambrose on Augustine seems to be universally accepted. The Confessions reveal some manly, brusque encounters between Ambrose and Augustine but there can be no doubt, of Augustine’s profound esteem for the learned bishop. glorious fathers st augustine and ambrose pray for us 7 dec 2019.jpg

Neither is there any doubt that Saint Monica loved Ambrose as an angel of God who uprooted her son from his former ways and led him to his convictions about Christ. It was Ambrose, after all, who placed his hands on the shoulders of the naked Augustine as he descended into the baptismal fountain to put on Christ.

Ambrose exemplifies for us the truly catholic character of Christianity. He is a man steeped in the learning, law and culture of the ancients and of his contemporaries. Yet, in the midst of active involvement in this world, this thought runs through Ambrose’s life and preaching – The hidden meaning of the Scriptures calls our spirit to rise to another world.

St Ambrose, Pray for Us!

DOCTORS of the Church, EUCHARISTIC Adoration, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, SAINT of the DAY, The HOLY EUCHARIST / The HOLY MASS

Quote/s of the Day – 7 December – Our ‘Daily Bread’

Posted on December 7, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 7 December – The Memorial of St Ambrose (c 340-397) Father and Doctor of the Church and St Maria Giuseppa Rosello FdM (1811-1880)

“Let your door stand open
to receive Him,
unlock your soul to Him,
offer Him a welcome in your mind
and then you will see
the riches of simplicity,
the treasures of peace,
the joy of grace.
Throw wide the gate of your heart,
stand before the sun of the everlasting light.”

“If it is “daily bread,”
why do you take it once a year? . . .
Take daily what is to profit you daily.
Live in such a way that you may deserve
to receive it daily.
He who does not deserve to receive it daily,
does not deserve to receive it once a year.”

St Ambrose (c 340-397)
Father and Doctor of the Church

“Go to Jesus.
He loves you
and is waiting for you,
to give you many graces.
He is on the Altar,
surrounded by angels adoring and praying.
Let them make some room for you
and join them in doing what they do.”

St Maria Giuseppa Rosello (1811-1880)

ADVENT REFLECTIONS, DIVINE Mercy, Goodness, Patience, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on CONVERSION, QUOTES on REPENTANCE, The WORD

Advent Reflection – 7 December – ‘He had compassion for them…’

Posted on December 7, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Advent Reflection – 7 December – Saturday of the First week of Advent, Year A – Readings: Isaiah 30:19-21, 23-26, Psalm 147:1-6, Matthew 9:35–10:1, 5-8

Let us adore the Lord, the king who is to come.

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. … Matthew 9:36 matthew 9 36 when he saw the crowds he had compassion 7 dec 2019

REFLECTION – “A person is counselled to his face, so to speak, when he is created for righteousness and receives the precepts of rectitude. When he despises these precepts, it is as if he is turning his back to his Creator’s face. But He still follows behind us and counsels us, that we have despised Him but He still does not cease to call us. We turn our backs on His face, so to speak, when we reject His words, when we trample His commandments underfoot but He who sees that we reject Him, still calls out to us by His commandments and waits for us by His patience, stands behind us and calls us back when we have turned away.” … St Gregory the Great (540-604) Father & Doctor of the Church – Forty Gospel Homilies, 34

MEDITATION – “The great thing to remember is that, though our feelings come and go, His love for us does not. It is not wearied by our sins or our indifference and, therefore, it is quite relentless in it’s determination, that we shall be cured of those sins, at whatever cost to us, at whatever cost to Him.” … Prof C S Lewis (1898-1963)

ADVENT ACTION – Freely you have received, freely give – forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. Let us offer our hand to those who hurt us.

PRAYER – Lord, to free man from his sinful state, You sent Your only Son into this world. Grant to us, who in faith and love, wait for His coming, Your gift of grace and the reward of true freedom. Be born in us O Lord! We make our prayer through Christ our Lord, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen. he still follows behind us and counsels us - st gregory the great - sat of the first week of advent be born in us o lord 7 dec 2019

ADVENT PRAYERS, CATHOLIC-PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, HYMNS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS of the CHURCH, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 7 December – Saviour of the Nations, Come – St Ambrose’s Advent Hymn

Posted on December 7, 2019December 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 7 December – The Memorial of St Ambrose (c 340-397)- Father and Doctor of the Church

Veni Redemptor gentium
Saviour of the Nations, Come
St Ambrose’s Advent Hymn

Saviour of the nations, come;
Virgin’s Son, here make Thy home!
Marvel now, O heaven and earth,
That the Lord chose such a birth.

Not by human flesh and blood;
By the Spirit of our God
Was the Word of God made flesh,
Woman’s offspring, pure and fresh.

Wondrous birth! O wondrous Child
Of the virgin undefiled!
Though by all the world disowned,
Still to be in heaven enthroned.

From the Father forth He came
And returneth to the same,
Captive leading death and hell
High the song of triumph swell!

Thou, the Father’s only Son,
Hast over sin the victory won.
Boundless shall Thy kingdom be;
When shall we its glories see?

Brightly doth Thy manger shine,
Glorious is its light divine.
Let not sin o’ercloud this light;
Ever be our faith thus bright.

Praise to God the Father sing,
Praise to God the Son, our King,
Praise to God the Spirit be
Ever and eternally. veni-redemptor-gentium-st-ambrose-advent-him-saviour-of-the-nations-come-7-dec-2017 and 7 dec 2019.jpg

SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 7 December – St Maria Giuseppa Rosello FdM (1811-1880)

Posted on December 7, 2019December 7, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 7 December – St Maria Giuseppa Rosello FdM (1811-1880) Religious sister and Founder of the Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy. Also known as St Maria Joseph Rosello – Born as Benedetta Rosello on 27 May 1811 at Albissola Marina, Liguria, diocese of Savona, Italy and died on 7 December 1880 (aged 69) in Savona, Italy. She is the Patron of the Order she founded.

Three hundred years after the apparitions of Our Lady of Mercy on the hillsides of Savona, Italy in 1536. That same city was the scene of another important event – the founding of the Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy in 1837. st-maria-joseph-rossello

Chosen by God to accomplish this task was an unassuming young woman named Benedetta Rossello, today invoked as Saint Maria Joseph Rossello. Pope Pius XII raised her to the altars of sainthood on 12 June 1949.

One of nine children, her father was a potter. Born in poverty, she suffered from poor health all her life. Pious from early youth she tried to enter a religious order but was refused admission due to her health and lack of dowry. The pious, childless couple she worked for could have given her a dowry but would not because they did not want to lose her as member of their family. Benedetta was devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary which led her to becoming a member of the Third Order of Saint Francis at the age of sixteen. Benedetta would become the sole support of her family after the death of her mother and second brother and her sister, Josephine and then her father too.

“Oh, that I could find a generous person who would care for these neglected children of my flock.” These were the words of Bishop De Mari of Savona one day as he came upon a group of uncouth girls playing on the street. Benedetta heard them as words from heaven and offered her services to the Bishop immediately.

Bishop DeMari was quick to see in the young woman before him a truly apostolic and generous person whom God had destined for great work. He did not hesitate to confide his plans to her, as he realised that God had sent Benedetta to him. st-maria josepha-rosello

On 10 August 1837, Benedetta Rossello and three companions who shared her vision laid the foundation of a new religious family in the Church – the Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy. They began in a small unpretentious house in the city of Savona on a street called Vico del Vento.

After a brief but intense period of preparation, the Bishop presented a religious habit to each young woman as well as a new name to symbolise their consecration to God and His service. Benedetta became Sister Maria Joseph because Saint Joseph was to be her protector, provider and father throughout her whole life. Two years later, the new Sisters sealed their consecration to God by taking the three vows – poverty, chastity and obedience. These new Religious – the first Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy – dedicated themselves wholeheartedly to the work for which God had called the new Congregation to life – the education of youth, the care of the sick and all the works of mercy. 7-Santa Maria JosefaRossello-7.jpg

The Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy spread rapidly throughout Italy and during the lifetime of the Foundress, even to South America. In 1875, Saint Maria Joseph Rossello sent 15 Sisters to Buenos Aires, Argentina and there too, they spread far and wide, now having foundations in Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Peru and many parts of Argentina.

In 1919, the Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy arrived in North America in response to an appeal similar to that of Bishop DeMari. They were requested to open a Social and Parish Mission Center in Springfield, MA, principally to offer religious Instruction to the children. Thus the mission and spirit of St Maria Joseph Rossello was extended to the United States.

Presently, the Daughters of Our Lady of Mercy minister in 19 countries on 5 continents. They may be found in Italy, Africa, India, Germany, Romania as well as North and South America and the Caribbean Islands. st maria joseph roselli

DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints – 7 December

Posted on December 7, 2019December 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

St Ambrose (c 340-397) – Father and Doctor of the Church (Memorial)
https://anastpaul.com/2018/12/07/saint-of-the-day-7-december-st-ambrose-c-340-397-father-and-doctor-of-the-church-2/
And More:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/12/07/more-on-todays-saint-st-ambrose-c340-397-father-and-doctor-of-the-church/

St Agatho of Alexandria
St Anianas of Chartres
St Antonius of Siya
St Athenodoros of Mesopotamia
St Buithe of Monasterboice
St Burgundofara
St Charles Garnier
St Diuma
St Geretrannus of Bayeux
Bl Humbert of Clairvaux
St John the Silent
St Martin of Saujon
St Maria Giuseppa Rosello FdM (1811-1880)
St Nilus of Stolbensk
St Polycarp of Antioch
St Sabinus of Spoleto
St Servus the Martyr
St Theodore of Antioch
St Urban of Teano
St Victor of Piacenza

CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, NOVENAS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception Day Six – 6 December

Posted on December 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
Day Six – 6 December

By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

OPENING PRAYER

Daily Readings and Meditations for each day of the Novena are given here, followed by two closing Novena Prayers for each day.

Day 6: The Immaculata’s Sinlessness

Reading:
Who then are you, 0 Immaculate Conception? Not God, of course, because He has no beginning. Not an angel, created directly out of nothing. Not Adam, formed out of the dust of the earth (Gn 2:7). Not Eve, moulded from Adam’s rib (Gn 2:21). Not the Incarnate Word, who exists before all ages and of Whom we should use the word “conceived” rather than “conception.” Humans do not exist before their conception, so we might call them created “conceptions.” But you, 0 Mary, are different from all other children of Eve. They are conceptions stained by original sin, whereas you, are the unique, Immaculate Conception (“Sketches for a book,” 17 February 1941).

Meditation:
Confronting the reality of sin is one of the fundamental struggles that we face in daily life. May the Immaculata, the sinless New Eve, confirm our hope in the victorious liberation from sin which Christ, the New Adam, won for each of us.

Closing prayers

Novena Prayer to the Immaculata

Closing Prayer of Identification with the Immaculata

CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GRACE, QUOTES on GRATITUDE, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on SANCTITY, SAINT of the DAY

Thought for the day – 6 December – Each is the Administrator of Their Own Grace

Posted on December 6, 2019December 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the day – 6 December – Friday of the First week of Advent, Year A – Readings: Isaiah 29:17-24, Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14, Matthew 9:27-31 and the Memorial of St Nicholas (270-343)

Each is the Administrator of Their Own Grace

Saint Maximus the Confessor (c 580-662)
Monk and Theologian

Fifth Century on Theology, nos. 34-35, 42, 45

“Each one of us possesses the manifest energy of the Spirit in proportion to the faith within them (cf Rm 12:6). And so, each is the administrator of their own grace. Someone, who is well disposed, could never be envious of anything, in the one who is honoured with graces, provided that the disposition towards receiving God’s graces, rests upon him. What determines that the gifts of God dwell in us, is the measure of each one’s faith. Because it is to the extent that we believe, that the enthusiasm to act is given us. And so those who act, reveal the measure of their faith proportionate to their action, they receive their measure of grace according to what they have believed. (…)

By means of the incomplete elevations of the virtues, we make the charisms that have been shared out to us, converge towards their cause, with the help of God, so that, by letting ourselves drift little by little into negligence, we might make our faith blind and sightless, deprived of the lights that the works of the Spirit gives us and may be justly punished for endless ages, for having blinded the divine eyes of faith in ourselves, insofar as it was in our power. (…)

The person who does not fulfil the divine commands of faith, has a faith that is blind. For if God’s Commands are lights (cf Is 26:9), this means, that whoever does not fulfil the Commands of God, is without divine light. He leaves the divine call without an answer. He does not really respond to him.”

Nicholas was loved for one reason. He loved. He loved God and God’s people so much that he would do anything for them. He was so grateful for the life God had given him that he just couldn’t stop giving joy and hope to others—no matter how far he had to travel or how many roofs he had to climb!

St Nicholas, Pray for Us!

ADVENT QUOTES, PRACTISING CATHOLIC, QUOTES of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HOPE, QUOTES on LOVE, QUOTES on PRAYER, QUOTES on TRUST and complete CONFIDENCE in GOD, QUOTES on WORRY/ANXIETY, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 6 December – Faith and Hope

Posted on December 6, 2019December 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 6 December – Friday of the First week of Advent, Year A – Readings: Isaiah 29:17-24, Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14, Matthew 9:27-31

“According to your faith be it done to you.”

Matthew 9:30

“Faith lifts the soul.
Hope supports it.
Experience says it must.
And Love says let it be!”

St Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821)

“Pray, hope and don’t worry.”

St Pius of Pietrelcina/Padre Pio (1887-1968)

ADVENT REFLECTIONS, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on HOPE, The WORD

Advent Reflection – – 6 December – “Do you believe that I am able to do this?”

Posted on December 6, 2019December 6, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Advent Reflection – – 6 December – Friday of the First week of Advent, Year A – Readings: Isaiah 29:17-24, Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14, Matthew 9:27-31

Let us adore the Lord, the king who is to come.

When he entered the house, the blind men came to him and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” Then he touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it done to you.” And their eyes were opened. …

Matthew 9:28-30

REFLECTION – “We too have been “illuminated” by Christ in Baptism and thus we are called to behave as children of the light. Acting as children of the light requires a radical change of mind-set, a capacity to judge men and things according to another scale of values, which comes from God. The Sacrament of Baptism, in fact, requires the choice of living as children of the light and walking in the light.

MEDITIATION – If I were to ask you: “Do you believe that Jesus is the Son of God? Do you believe that He can change your heart? Do you believe that He can show reality as He sees it, not as we see it? Do you believe that He is light, that He gives us the true light?” How would you answer? Each of you, respond in your heart.” … Pope Francis – Angelus, 26 March 2017 matthew 9 28 - 30 do you believe - pope francis 6 dec 2019.jpg

ADVENT ACTION – Faith engenders hope, which is a future-oriented virtue. It acknowledges that there is a future awaiting us that is much, much better than the present. The virtue of hope, with its orientation to the future, enables us to handle present distresses and struggles in a positive way.
Pope Benedict reminds us in Spe Salvi that this perspective. does not mean for one moment. that we live only for the future (4). People in hope are building up the kingdom on earth but, they are also on pilgrimage, to that eternal kingdom, God has in store for those who follow Him.

PRAYER – Lord, watch over Your people who come to You in confidence. Strengthen the hearts of those who hope in You. Give courage to those who falter because of their failures. In this holy season of Advent, lead them closer to You in faith and hope, by the power of your Holy Spirit. May they proclaim Your saving acts of kindness here on earth and one day, in Your eternal kingdom. Amen. friday of the first week of advent - 6 december 2019.jpg

ADVENT PRAYERS, Our MORNING Offering, PRAYERS for SEASONS, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Our Morning Offering – 6 December – A 10th Century Catholic Advent Prayer

Posted on December 6, 2019December 5, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Our Morning Offering – 6 December – Friday of the First week of Advent, Year A

A 10th Century Catholic Advent Prayer

Unknown Author

You are our eternal salvation,
The unfailing light of the world.
Light everlasting,
You are truly our redemption.
Grieving that the human race was perishing
through the tempter’s power,
without leaving the heights
You came to the depths
in Your loving kindness.
Readily taking our humanity
by Your gracious will,
You saved all earthly creatures,
long since lost,
Restoring joy to the world.
Redeem our souls and bodies, O Christ,
and so possess us as Your shining dwellings.
By Your first coming, make us righteous;
At Your second coming, set us free:
So that, when the world is filled with light
and You judge all things,
We may be clad in spotless robes
and follow in Your steps, O King,
Into the heavenly hall.
Amen 10th-cent-advent-prayer-you-are-our-eternal-salvation-16-dec-2017.jpg

SAINT of the DAY

Saint of the Day – 6 December – Saint Peter Pascual (Died 1299) Bishop and Martyr

Posted on December 6, 2019December 5, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Saint of the Day – 6 December – Saint Peter Pascual (c 1227 – 1299) Bishop and Martyr, Theologian – born in 1227 at Valencia, Spain (as Spanish: Pedro Pascual, Valencian: Pere Pasqual) and died by beheading on 6 December 1300 at Granada, Spain.

Peter Paschal was born in Valencia on Spain’s east coast in the year 1227. Peter’s parents were devout Mozarabs (Iberian Christians) who lived under Muslim rule, paying a yearly tax known as a jizyah. The Mozarabs and the Muslim Arabs co-existed and even spoke a similar language known as Mozarabic. st peter pascaul.jpg

The founder of the Mercedarians (The Royal, Celestial and Military Order of Our Lady of Mercy and the Redemption of the Captives), St Peter Nolasco (1189–1256), was very good friends of Peter’s family and he and his Mercedarian companions would often stay at Peter’s home when they were on a mission to free Christian captives. This exposure to these pious men helped to instil in young Peter a deep sense of piety. Combined with the virtuous, charitable and caring influence of his parents, Peter Paschal grew into a deeply devoted servant of God.

Ironically, the primary influence in Peter’s educational journey was a teacher whom Peter’s parents had ransomed from the Moors years before. The young man travelled with him to Paris and, under his guidance, studied, preached and taught, developing a fine reputation as a learned and pious man.

Peter then returned to Valencia and Peter Nolasco became his spiritual advisor. After another year of preparation, he became a full member of the Order of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mercy, the Mercedarians. It was time for him to begin redeeming captive Christians.

Peter Paschal had a brilliant mind and James I, the King of Arragon, appointed him as a teacher of his son, Sanchez. Sanchez was so influenced by Peter that he himself became a Mercedarian Priest and, in 1262, was made the Archbishop of Toledo. Since Prince Sanchez was too young to be consecrated, Peter Paschal was appointed to govern the Diocese and was ordained the Bishop of Granada. Granada was under the control of the Muslims. San_Pedro_Pascual,_de_Francisco_de_Solís_(Museo_de_Huesca).jpg

As Bishop of Grenada, Peter Paschal preached tirelessly about Christianity. He became known for his intense determination and zeal in redeeming captive Christian slaves who had been imprisoned by the Moors. His preaching was so potent that many Muslims began to embrace the doctrines of Jesus Christ and convert to Christianity.

Besides preaching, Peter not only continually ransomed captive Christians from the Moors, he also comforted those imprisoned and preached the gospel to their captors. His ability to bring the Moors to the Church was the reason he was finally arrested. Orders were given that no-one was allowed to visit or speak to Peter. He was held in prison and constantly treated cruelly and with disdain. But he was given permission to offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass every day. And this is where the beautiful miracle, for which St Peter is well-known happened.

One morning, the story goes, while Peter was preparing for Mass, a little boy about the age of five appeared before him. The boy was dressed in the clothes of a slave and told the Bishop he would gladly serve Mass for him if he would let him. Peter asked him who he was and the boy said, “I will tell you who I am when you have finished Mass.” After Mass was finished, Peter asked the boy a few questions and was amazed at the wisdom coming forth from the child. Then he asked the boy, “Tell me, who is Jesus Christ?”

The boy answered: “I am Jesus Christ. It is I Who was crucified for your salvation and for that of the whole world, look at My hands and My feet and My side and you will recognise the wounds I received during My Passion. Because you, have of your own choice, remained prisoner in order to procure freedom for my captive children and because, to obtain their freedom, you spent money sent to procure your own, you have made Me your Prisoner.” Then the little boy disappeared. Peter Paschal was filled with an indescribable joy. san pedropascual

His Muslim captors sensed and actually revered the sanctity of their prisoner. They told him if he would never say anything against Mohammad they would give him his freedom. He said he could never make such a promise. Shortly thereafter, as Bishop Peter Paschal was saying his thanksgiving after Mass, an executioner came up from behind him and cut off his head. The date was 6 January 1300. He was Beatified and Canonised by Pope Clement X on 14 August 1670.

St Peter was one of the first theologians to proclaim that Mary was Immaculately Conceived. mary imm conception .jpg

SAINT of the DAY

Memorials of the Saints – 6 December

Posted on December 6, 2019December 5, 2019 by AnaStpaul

St Nicholas (270-343) (Optional Memorial)
Full Biography here:
https://anastpaul.wordpress.com/2017/12/06/saint-of-the-day-6-december-st-nicholas-270-343/

More:
https://anastpaul.com/2018/12/06/saint-of-the-day-st-nicholas-270-343-bishop/

St Abraham of Kratia
St Aemilianus the Martyr
Bl Angelica of Milazzo
St Asella of Rome
St Boniface the Martyr
St Dativa the Martyr
St Dionysia the Martyr
St Gerard of La Charite
St Gertrude the Elder
St Giuse Nguyen Duy Khang
St Isserninus of Ireland
Bl Janos Scheffler
St Leontia the Martyr
St Majoricus the Martyr
Saint Peter Pascual (Died 1299) Martyr
St Polychronius
St Tertus
—
Martyred in the Spanish Civil War:
• Blessed Esteban Vázquez Alonso
• Blessed Florencio Rodríguez Guemes
• Blessed Gregorio Cermeño Barceló
• Blessed Heliodoro Ramos García
• Blessed Ireneo Rodríguez González
• Blessed Juan Lorenzo Larragueta Garay
• Blessed Luis Martínez Alvarellos
• Blessed Luisa María Frías Cañizares
• Blessed Miguel Lasaga Carazo
• Blessed Narciso Pascual y Pascual
• Blessed Pascual Castro Herrera
• Blessed Vicente Vilumbrales Fuente

Martyred Salesians of Guadalajara (Spanish Civil War) – 7 beati:
• Blessed Gregorio Cermeño Barceló
• Blessed Ireneo Rodríguez González
• Blessed Luisa María Frías Cañizares
• Blessed Narciso Pascual y Pascual
• Blessed Vicente Vilumbrales Fuente

CATHOLIC DEVOTIONS of the Month, MARIAN PRAYERS, MARIAN QUOTES, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, NOVENAS, The IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception Day Five – 5 December

Posted on December 5, 2019December 4, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Novena in Preparation for the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception
Day Five – 5 December

By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

OPENING PRAYER

Daily Readings and Meditations for each day of the Novena are given here, followed by two closing Novena Prayers for each day.

Day 5: The Immaculata’s Dignity as a Human Person

Reading:
The Mother of God is a creature. It follows that all she is, she has from God. But she is God’s most perfect creature. For this reason, the homage paid to her is, by the very nature of the case, paid to God Himself. If we admire a statue, we honour the artist who created this masterpiece. If we honour Mary most holy we honour God. The more we pay homage to the divine perfections found in Mary, the more perfect is our homage to God, this is perfectly in order, since God created her in the highest state of perfection (Conference, 9 April 1938).

Meditation:
The greatness of every work of art is directly proportionate to the mastery of the artist who forms it. Accordingly, the dignity of every human person derives from God who has created each of us in His image. May the Immaculata teach us always, to mirror, as she did, the dignity and perfection of our God.

Closing prayers

Novena Prayer to the Immaculata

Closing Prayer of Identification with the Immaculata

ADVENT REFLECTIONS, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Thought for the Day – 5 December – God is man’s glory.

Posted on December 5, 2019December 5, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Thought for the Day – 5 December – Thursday of the First week of Advent, Year A

St Irenaeus of Lyons (c 130-202) on the Incarnation, the Word of God born for us as Emmanuel, Jesus Christ, Son of Man, the sign of our salvation. He comes to restore God’s likeness in us and lead us to glory.

God is man’s glory. Man is the vessel which receives God’s action and all His wisdom and power.

Just as a doctor is judged in his care for the sick, so God is revealed in His conduct with men. That is Paul’s reason for saying: God has made the whole world prisoner of unbelief that He may have mercy on all. He was speaking of man, who was disobedient to God and cast off from immortality and then found mercy, receiving through the Son of God the adoption he brings.

If man, without being puffed up or boastful, has a right belief regarding created things and their divine Creator, who, having given them being, holds them all in His power and if man perseveres in God’s love and in obedience and gratitude to Him, he will receive greater glory from Him. It will be a glory which will grow ever brighter until he takes on the likeness of the One who died for him.

He it was who took on the likeness of sinful flesh, to condemn sin and rid the flesh of sin, as now condemned. He wanted to invite man to take on His likeness, appointing man an imitator of God, establishing man in a way of life in obedience to the Father, that would lead to the vision of God and endowing man with power to receive the Father. He is the Word of God who dwelt with man and became the Son of Man, to open the way for man, to receive God, for God to dwell with man, according to the will of the Father.

For this reason the Lord Himself gave as the sign of our salvation, the one who was born of the Virgin, Emmanuel. It was the Lord Himself who saved them, for of themselves they had no power to be saved. For this reason Paul speaks of the weakness of man and says: I know that no good dwells in my flesh, meaning that the blessing of our salvation comes not from us but from God. Again, he says: I am a wretched man, who will free me from this body doomed to die? Then he speaks of a liberator, thanks to Jesus Christ our Lord.

Isaiah says the same – Hands that are feeble, grow strong! Knees that are weak, take courage! Hearts that are faint, grow strong! Fear not, see, our God is judgement and He will repay. He himself will come and save us. He means that we could not be saved of ourselves but only with God’s help.

This excerpt from St Irenaeus’ monumental work, Against Heresies (Lib 3,20, 2-3; SC 34, 342-344) speaks of the incarnation, the birth of the Word of God as Son of Man, as the sign of our salvation. It is used in the Roman Office of Readings for Advent. It was originally written around 185 AD.

Maranatha! Come Lord Jesus, come!

ADVENT QUOTES, CHRISTMASTIDE!, DOCTORS of the Church, The NATIVITY of JESUS

Quote/s of the Day – 5 December – He comes into our world

Posted on December 5, 2019 by AnaStpaul

Quote/s of the Day – 5 December – Thursday of the First week of Advent, Year A

“If we would please this Divine Infant,
we too must become children,
simple and humble.
We must carry to Him, flowers of virtue,
of meekness, of mortification, of charity.
We must clasp Him in the arms of our love.”

St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787) Doctor of the Church

“Into this world, this demented inn
in which there is absolutely no room for Him at all,
Christ comes uninvited.”

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By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

Day 9: The Immaculata’s Fullness of Love

Closing prayers

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By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

Day 8: The Immaculata’s Fruitfulness

Closing prayers

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St Charles Borromeo (1538-1584)

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Go With Him

St Ephrem of Syria (306-373) Father & Doctor of the Church

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By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

Day 7: The Immaculata’s Discipleship

Closing prayers

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St Ambrose, Pray for Us!

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St Ambrose (c 340-397) Father and Doctor of the Church

St Maria Giuseppa Rosello (1811-1880)

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By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

Day 6: The Immaculata’s Sinlessness

Closing prayers

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Each is the Administrator of Their Own Grace

Saint Maximus the Confessor (c 580-662) Monk and Theologian

St Nicholas, Pray for Us!

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Matthew 9:30

St Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821)

St Pius of Pietrelcina/Padre Pio (1887-1968)

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By St Maximillian Kolbe OFM (1894-1941) Martyr

Day 5: The Immaculata’s Dignity as a Human Person

Closing prayers

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Maranatha! Come Lord Jesus, come!

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St Alphonsus Liguori (1696-1787) Doctor of the Church

Thomas Merton (1915-1968

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St Ephrem of Syria (306-373)

Father & Doctor of the Church

St Ambrose (c 340-397)
Father and Doctor of the Church

Saint Maximus the Confessor (c 580-662)
Monk and Theologian