Our Morning Offering – 11 March – Wednesday of the Second Week of Lent
Thy Grace – a Lenten Prayer By St John Henry Newman (1801-1890)
O my God,
suffer me still,
bear with me in spite of my
waywardness,
perverseness
and ingratitude!
I improve very slowly
but really, I am moving onto heaven,
or at least I wish to move.
Only give me Thy grace
meet me with Thy grace,
I will, through Thy grace, do what I can
and Thou shall perfect it for me.
Then shall I have happy days, in Thy Presence
and in the sight and adoration of
Thy five Sacred Wounds.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 10 March – Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent
This Is Our Accepted Time By Fr Michael Gannon (1927– 2017)
This is our accepted time,
This is our salvation.
Prayer and fasting are our hope,
Penance, our vocation.
God of pardon and of love,
Mercy past all measure,
You alone can grant us peace,
You, our holy treasure.
Lord, look down upon Your sons,
Look upon their yearning.
Man is dust and unto dust
He shall be returning,
Lift him up, O Lord of life,
Flesh has gained him sadness,
Hear his plea, bestow on him
Everlasting gladness.
This is Our Accepted Time was written in 1955 by Sulpician Priest, Fr Michael Gannon. It is set to the 1609 tune, Weimar (Vulpius) by composer, Melchior Vulpius (c.1560-1615).
Our Morning Offering – 9 March – Saturday after Ash Wednesday and always a Marian Saturday
Traditional Lenten Prayer to Our Lady of Sorrows
O most holy Virgin,
Mother of our Lord Jesus Christ
by the overwhelming grief you experienced
when you witnessed the martyrdom,
the crucifixion
and death of your divine Son,
look upon me with eyes of compassion
and awaken in my heart,
a tender commiseration for those sufferings,
as well as a sincere detestation of my sins,
in order that being disengaged from all
undue affection for the passing joys of this earth,
I may sigh after the eternal Jerusalem
and that henceforward,
all my thoughts and all my actions,
may be directed towards
this one most desirable goal –
the honour, glory and love
of our divine Lord Jesus
and to you, the holy
and immaculate Mother of God.
Amen
In this prayer to Our Lady of Sorrows, we call to mind the pain endured both by Christ on the Cross and by Mary as she watched her Son being crucified. In reciting the prayer, we ask for the grace to join in that sorrow, so that we may awaken to what is truly important—not the passing joys of this life but the lasting joy of eternal life in Heaven.
Our Morning Offering – 8 March – Friday after Ash Wednesday
Thy Grace – a Lenten Prayer By Blessed John Henry Newman
O my God,
suffer me still,
bear with me in spite of my
waywardness,
perverseness
and ingratitude!
I improve very slowly
but really, I am moving onto heaven,
or at least I wish to move.
Only give me Thy grace
meet me with Thy grace,
I will, through Thy grace, do what I can
and Thou shall perfect it for me.
Then shall I have happy days, in Thy Presence
and in the sight and adoration of
Thy five Sacred Wounds.
Amen
Lenten Reflection – 14 March 2018 – Wednesday of the 4th Week of Lent
Isaiah 49:8-15, Psalms 145:8-9, 13-14, 17-18, John 5:17-30
Isaiah 49:13 – “For the Lord has comforted his people and will have compassion on his afflicted.”
John 5:28-29 – “…. for the hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgement.”
As we approach the end of the Lenten journey, the tone becomes darker and we can feel the crises approaching.
Today’s first reading is a lovely one, Israel’s God promising that all is going to be well “I shall answer you” and “they shall find food on all the bare places.” And there is a beautiful image of God as mother, utterly incapable of forgetting Israel. Notice however, that Israel is feeling forgotten, they are hungry and thirsty and in desolate places and in darkness.
These dark tones return in today’s gospel, which continues from yesterday. Jesus here lays His cards on the table and states plainly and simply, His intimate relationship with the One whom He calls Father and precisely because of who He is – He incurs now the homicidal wrath of His opponents.
We need to be clear this Lent, NOW and forever, about who we think Jesus is – and KNOW that what we believe, will bring the same response – hostility, ire, persecution even hatred! For it is literally – it is very important to be aware of this – a matter of life and death!
But, “the one who hears my word and believes the One who sent me, has eternal life”. There is Resurrection here but there is also first death.
We must choose our sides NOW! Now is the time!…(Fr Nicholas King SJ – Reflections for Lent)
Am I ready? Have I chosen my side? Am I prepared?
“There was once a good Trappist Father, who was trembling all over at perceiving the approach of death. Someone said to him, “Father, of what then are you afraid?” “Of the judgement of God,” he said. “Ah! if you dread the judgement–you who have done so much penance, you who love God so much, who have been so long preparing for death–what will become of me?”
See, my children, to die well we must live well; to live well, we must seriously examine ourselves: every evening think over what we have done during the day; at the end of each week review what we have done during the week; at the end of each month review what we have done during the month; at the end of the year, what we have done during the year. By this means, my children, we cannot fail to correct ourselves and to become fervent Christians in a short time. Then, when death comes, we are quite ready; we are happy to go to Heaven.”…St John Vianney (1786-1859)
I have nothing, O my Saviour and my God!
I have nothing, O my Saviour and my God! I have nothing which can be pleasing unto Thee; I can do nothing, I am nothing but I have a heart and this is enough for me. Health, honour and life itself may be taken from me but no man can rob me of my heart. I have a heart and with this heart I can love Thee, O my Saviour Jesus, worthy of all adoration! And with this heart, it is my determination to love You and always I resolve to love Thee, only to love Thee always. Amen
26 February 2018 – Monday of the Second Week of Lent Daniel 9:4-10, Psalms 79:8-9, 11, 13, Luke 6:36-38
Daniel 9:4-5 – “I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and terrible God, who keepest covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from thy commandments and ordinances…”
Luke 6:36-38 – Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful. “Judge not, and you will not be judged; condemn not and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For the measure you give will be the measure you get back.”
Daniel confesses that his people’s sufferings in exile are due to their own lack of fodelity to God. This sort of confession is a frank admission that evil has consequences. It is similar to Jesus’ teaching – “one who takes up the sword will perish by the sword.”
The argument may be turned round – good deeds have beneficial consequences. “The measure you give will be the measure you get back” whether it be mercy, forgiveness or sympathetic understanding.
If we keep giving out good things consistently, the blessings we will receive will be beyond measure. Every giving enriches the giver, whether gift be in the form of material assistance, psychologival affirmation or spiritual admonition, giving up an argument, settling a quarrel or going out of our way to help someone who deserves it least!
Be not afraid then to give, for you will receive beyond anything you could ever expect.
Am I generous with my time, material gifts, with my love? Am I patient and willing to be forgiving, even when I was not in error? Am I aware that as part of the Body of Christ, my good and my bad, affect all? Archbishop Thomas Menamparampil SDB – God’sWord
“Desire not the praises of men, seeing they are vain. Be not fearful of their reproach, for instead of doing harm to your soul, humiliations cleanses it and renders it more meet to receive a brighter crown in heaven and none are worthy to be glorified in heaven who are unable to bear reproach on earth for the love of God.”… Thomas a Kempis
Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name; deliver us and forgive our sins, for thy name’s sake! …Psalm 79:9
For ah! the Master is so fair, His smile so sweet to banished men That they who meet it unaware Can never rest on earth again.
And they who see Him risen afar At God’s right hand to welcome them Forgetful stand of home and land, Desiring fair Jerusalem.
Praise God! the Master is so sweet; Praise God! the country is so fair, We would not hold them from His feet. We would but haste to meet them there.
Our Morning Offering – 22 February – Thursday of the First Week of Lent
Penitential Prayer St Jerome (343-420) Father & Doctor of the Church
Show me, O Lord, Your mercy
and delight my heart with it.
Let me find You whom I so longingly seek.
Behold, here is the man
whom the robbers seized, manhandled
and left half dead on the road to Jericho.
Kind-hearted Samaritan,
come to my aid!
I am the sheep who wandered into the wilderness.
Seek after me
and bring me home again to Your fold.
Do with me according to Your Will,
that I may abide with You,
all the days of my life
and praise You with all those
who are with You
in heaven for all eternity.
Amen
Our Morning Offering – 20 February 2018 – Tuesday of the First Week of Lent
Thy Grace – a Lenten Prayer By Blessed John Henry Newman
O my God,
suffer me still,
bear with me in spite of my
waywardness,
perverseness
and ingratitude!
I improve very slowly
but really, I am moving onto heaven,
or at least I wish to move.
Only give me Thy grace
meet me with Thy grace,
I will, through Thy grace, do what I can
and Thou shall perfect it for me.
Then shall I have happy days, in Thy Presence
and in the sight and adoration of
Thy five Sacred Wounds.
Amen
AnaStpaul 
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