Posted in ArchAngels and Angels, AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, JANUARY month of THE MOST HOLY NAME of JESUS, MARCH the month of ST JOSEPH, St JOSEPH, The HOLY FAMILY, THE HOLY FAMILY - FAMILIAE SANCTAE, The HOLY GHOST, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 7 January – The Holy Family

Quote/s of the Day – 7 January – “The Month of the Most Holy Name of Jesus and of the Holy Family” and tbe Feast of the Holy Family

He went down with them
and came to Nazareth
and was obedient to them

Luke 2:51

So, taking Christ’s genealogy from Joseph –
a husband in chastity,
he was father in the same way. …
Are you saying that he did not conceive Jesus
through the operation of nature?
Well then, what the Holy Spirit operated,
He did for them both.
For Joseph was “a just man,” Matthew tells us (1:19).
Both husband and wife were just.
The Holy Spirit dwelt within their mutual justice
and gave each of them, a Son!

St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

God, to Whom Angels submit themselves
and Who Principalities and Powers obey,
was subject to Mary;
and not only to Mary but Joseph too, for Mary’s sake [….].
God obeyed a human creature;
this is humility without precedent.
A human creature commands God!
it is sublime beyond measure.

St Bernard (1090-1153)
Father & Mellifluous Doctor of the Church

A pious practice among Catholics, is to write “✝ J M J ✝ often flanked by two Crosses at the top of letters, cards, documents and personal notes as a reference to Jesus, Mary and Joseph as the Holy Family.
Where it is written,✝ J M J ✝the writer appeals for the blessing and protection of the Holy Family.

Posted in "Follow Me", AUGUSTINIANS OSA, CHRIST the LIGHT, CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, HYMNS, PRAYERS of the SAINTS, QUOTES on FAITH, QUOTES on GREED, WEALTH, QUOTES on HEAVEN, QUOTES on JOY, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, QUOTES on SACRED SCRIPTURE, SOLDIERS/ARMOUR of CHRIST, The FAITHFUL on PILGRIMAGE, The HEART, The WORD

Quote/s of the Day – 9 January – Like Mary, put on the Lord Jesus Christ

Quote/s of the Day – 9 January – The Holy Family – Within the Octave of Epiphany – Colossians 3:12-17, Luke 2:42-52 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

But put on the Lord Jesus Christ.

Romans 13:14

You are walking now by faith,
still on pilgrimage in a mortal body
away from the Lord
but He, to Whom your steps are directed,
is Himself the sure and certain Way for you –
Jesus Christ, Who, for our sake became man.
For all who fear Him,
He has stored up abundant happiness
which He will reveal to those
who hope in Him, bringing it to completion,
when we have attained the reality
which, even now, we possess, in hope.
Set your hearts on heavenly things,
not the things that are on earth.
For you have died and your life
is hidden with Christ in God.
When Christ, your Life, appears,
then you too will appear with Him in glory.

St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

And His Mother kept all
these words in her heart.

Luke 2:51

Consider the most prudent woman Mary,
Mother of true Wisdom,
as the pupil of her Son.
For she learned from Him,
not as from a child or man but as from God.
Yes, she dwelt in meditation
on His words and actions.
Nothing of what was said
or done by Him, fell idly on her mind.
… That which she now beholds in the present,
she waits to have revealed
with greater clarity, in the future.

St Bede the Venerable (673-735)
Father and Doctor of the Church

And as for that in the good ground
they are those who, hearing the word,
hold it fast in an honest and good heart
and bring forth fruit with patience.

Luke 8:15

The more you devote yourself,
to study of the Sacred utterances,
the richer will be your understanding of them,
just as the more the soil is tilled,,
the richer is the harvest.

St Isidore of Seville (c 560-636)
Father & Doctor of the Church

Be Thou My Vision
By St Dallan Forgaill (c 530- 598)

Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art.
Thou my best thought by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my Light.

Be Thou my Wisdom and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord.
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son;
Thou in me dwelling and I with Thee one.

Be Thou my battle-shield, sword for my fight,
Be Thou my dignity, Thou my delight.
Thou my soul’s shelter, Thou my high tower.
Raise Thou me heavenward, O Power of my power.

Riches I heed not, nor man’s empty praise,
Thou mine inheritance, now and always.
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of Heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of Heaven, my victory won,
May I reach Heaven’s joys, O bright Heaven’s Son,
Heart of my heart, whatever befall

Still be my vision, O ruler of all.

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, FATHERS of the Church, GOD ALONE!, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES on LOVE of GOD, The HOLY FAMILY, THE HOLY FAMILY - FAMILIAE SANCTAE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 9 January – ‘ … She, who carried Him, Who carries the universe … ‘

One Minute Reflection – 9 January – The Holy Family – Within the Octave of Epiphany – Colossians 3:12-17, Luke 2:42-52 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

And His Mother kept all these words in her heart.” – Luke 2:51

REFLECTION – “Often, it seems to us, Mary forgot to eat and to drink, keeping vigil in order to think about Christ, to see Christ in His flesh. She burned with love of Him and passionately loved to serve Him. She often did what the Song of Songs sings about: “I was sleeping but my heart kept vigil.” (Song 5:2) Even when she was resting, she continued to dream of Him Who filled her thoughts throughout the day. Whether she was keeping vigil or resting in peace, she always lived in Him, was always occupied with Him.

Where her treasure was, there also was her heart (Mt 6:21); where her glory was, there also was her mind. She loved her Lord and her Son with all her heart, with all her mind, with all her strength (Mt 22:37). She saw with her eyes, touched with her hands, the Word of Life (1 Jn 1:1). How blessed was Mary, to whom it was given to embrace Him who embraces and nourishes everything! How happy was she, who carried Him, Who carries the universe (Heb 1:3), she, who nursed a Son, Who gives her life, a Son Who nourishes her and all beings on earth (Ps 145:15).

The One Who is the Wisdom of the Father, put His arms around her neck, the One Who is the strength, that gives movement to everything, sat in her arms. He Who is the rest of souls, (Mt 11:29) rested on her motherly breast. How gently He held her in His hands, peacefully looked at her, He Whom the angels wish to contemplate (1 Pet 1:12) and He gently called her, He Whom every being calls upon when in need. Filled with the Holy Spirit, she held Him close to her heart … She never had enough of seeing Him or of hearing Him, Whom “many prophets and kings wished to see … but did not see.” (Lk 10:24) Thus Mary grew evermore in love and her mind was unceasingly attached to Divine contemplation.” – St Amadeus of Lausanne (1108-1159) Bishop (Homily on the Motherhood of Mary, 4).

PRAYER – O Lord Jesus Christ, Thou Who while subject to Mary and Joseph, hallowed family life with virtues beyond description, grant us by their combined intercession, that, having been taught by the example of the Holy Family, we may attain unto their everlasting companionship. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in "Follow Me", DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, Holy Family PRAYERS, MARIAN HYMNS, PAPAL PRAYERS, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, The HOLY FAMILY, THE HOLY FAMILY - FAMILIAE SANCTAE

Quote/s of the Day – 8 January – The Holy Family –

Quote/s of the Day – 8 January – The Holy Family – Sunday within the Octave of Epiphany – Colossians 3:12-17, Luke 2:42-52 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

And He went down with them
and came to Nazareth
and was subject to them.

Luke 2:51

So, taking Christ’s genealogy from Joseph –
a husband in chastity,
he was father in the same way. …
Are you saying that he did not conceive Jesus
through the operation of nature?
Well then, what the Holy Spirit operated,
He did for them both.
For Joseph was “a just man,” Matthew tells us (1:19).
Both husband and wife were just.
The Holy Spirit dwelt within their mutual justice
and gave each of them, a Son!

St Augustine (354-430)
Father and Doctor of Grace

(Marriage and concupiscence 1,11; Sermon 51)

God, to whom angels submit themselves
and who principalities and powers obey,
was subject to Mary
and not only to Mary
but Joseph atoo, for Mary’s sake [….].
God obeyed a human creature –
this is humility without precedent.
A human creature commands God;
it is sublime beyond measure!

St Bernard (1090-1153)
Father and Doctor of the Church

O Gente Felix
O House of Nazareth The Blest
By Pope Leo XIII (1810-1903)

O house of Nazareth the blest,
Fair hostess of the Lord,
The Church was nurtured at thy breast
And shared thy scanty hoard.

In all the spreading lands of earth.
The wandering sun may see
No dearer spot, no ampler worth
Than erst was found in thee!

We know thy humble tenement
Was heaven’s hermitage:
Celestial heralds came and went
In endless embassage.

There, whatsoever Joseph asks
Christ hastens to fulfil;
While Mary loves the household tasks
That wait her joyous will.

There, Joseph toileth at her side
Her joys and griefs to share,
With thousand ties knit to his bride,
Of love and work and prayer.

Yet how their bosoms constant burn
And deeper ardours prove
In love of Christ, whose eyes return
Tokens of mutual love.

O then, in all the homes of earth,
Be Love the bond of life:
May it enthrone at every hearth
The peace that husheth strife.

All praise to thee, O Jesus,
Who parents dost obey;
Praise to the sovereign Father
And Paraclete for aye.
Amen.

Posted in "Follow Me", CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, DOCTORS of the Church, franciscan OFM, QUOTES on HUMILITY, QUOTES on OBEDIENCE, QUOTES on PRIDE, QUOTES on PURITY of INTENTION, The HOLY FAMILY, THE HOLY FAMILY - FAMILIAE SANCTAE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 8 January – “He was subject to them.” Luke 2:51

One Minute Reflection – 8 January – The Holy Family – Sunday within the Octave of Epiphany – Colossians 3:12-17, Luke 2:42-52 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

And He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was subject to them.” – Luke 2:51

REFLECTION –He was subject to them.” With these words let all pride dissolve, all rigidness crumble, all disobedience submit. “He was subject to them.” Who? In brief, He Who created all things from nothing; He Who, as Isaiah says, “has cupped in His Hand the waters of the sea and marked off the heavens with a span; Who has held in a measure the dust of the earth, weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance” (40:12). He Who, as Job says, “shakes the earth and the pillars beneath it tremble. He commands the sun and seals up the stars. He alone stretches out the heavens and treads upon the crests of the sea; He Who made the constellations; He does marvellous things beyond reckoning” (9:6-10)… This is He who, great and powerful though He be, was subject. And subject to whom? To a workman and a poor young maid.

O “First and Last”! (Apoc 1:17). O Leader of Angels, subject to men! The Creator of Heaven, subject to a workman; God of eternal glory, subject to a poor young maid! Has anyone ever seen anything like this? Has anyone heard such a thing before?

So no longer hesitate to obey or be submissive… Come down, come to Nazareth, be subject, obey perfectly: all Wisdom lies in this… This is what it means to be soberly wise. Simplicity that is pure, is “like the waters of Shiloah that flow silently” (Is 8:6). There are people of wisdom within religious orders but it is by means of simple men that God brought them there. God chose the foolish and weak, the lowly and ignorant to bring together those who were wise, powerful and of noble birth through them, “so that no human being might boast in itself” (cf 1 Cor 1:26-29) but in Him Who came down, Who came to Nazareth,and Who was subject!” – St Anthony of Padua (1195-1231) Franciscan, Doctor of the Church (Sermons for Sundays and Feasts of the Saints).

PRAYER – O Lord Jesus Christ, Thou Who while subject to Mary and Joseph, hallowed family life with virtues beyond description, grant us by their combined intercession, that, having been taught by the example of the Holy Family, we may attain unto their everlasting companionship. Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, MOTHER of GOD, ONE Minute REFLECTION, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 11 October – Feast of the Divine Maternity – ‘ … This most prudent woman … ‘ St Bede

One Minute Reflection – 11 October – Feast of the Divine Maternity – Ecclesiasticus 24:23-31, Luke 2:43-51 – Scripture search here: https://www.drbo.org/

He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them and His mother kept all these things in her heart.” – Luke 2:51

REFLECTION – “Consider the most prudent woman Mary, Mother of true Wisdom, as the pupil of her Son. For she learned from Him, not as from a child or man but, as from God. Yes, she dwelt in meditation on His words and actions. Nothing of what was said or done by Him, fell idly on her mind. As before, when she conceived the Word itself, in her womb, so now, does she hold within her, His ways and words, cherishing them, as it were, in her heart. That which she now beholds in the present, she waits to have revealed with greater clarity, in the future. This practice she followed as a rule and law through all her life.” – St Bede the Venerable (673-735) Father and Doctor of the Church (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke).

PRAYER – O God, Who, by the message of an Angel, willed to take flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, grant that we, Thy suppliants, who believe her to be truly the Mother of God, maybe assisted by her intercession with Thee.Through the same Jesus Christ, Thy Son our Lord, Who lives and reigns with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen (Collect).

Posted in CHRIST the WORD and WISDOM, CHRIST, the WAY,TRUTH,LIFE, DOCTORS of the Church, MARIAN POETRY, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MOTHER of GOD, ONE Minute REFLECTION, The HOLY FAMILY, THE HOLY FAMILY - FAMILIAE SANCTAE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 11 January – ‘Consider the most prudent woman Mary …’

One Minute Reflection – 11 January – Sixth Day within the Octave of Epiphany

He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them and his mother kept all these things in her heart.” – Luke 2:51

REFLECTION – “Consider the most prudent woman Mary, Mother of true Wisdom, as the pupil of her Son. For she learned from Him, not as from a child or man but as from God. Yes, she dwelt in meditation on His words and actions. Nothing of what was said or done by Him, fell idly on her mind. As before, when she conceived the Word itself in her womb, so now does she hold within her, His ways and words, cherishing them as it were in her heart. That which she now beholds in the present, she waits to have revealed with greater clarity, in the future. This practice she followed as a rule and law through all her life.” – St Bede the Venerable (673-735) Father and Doctor of the Church (Exposition of the Gospel of Luke)

PRAYER – All-powerful, eternal God, splendour of true light and never-ending day, let our striving for Your kingdom not fall short through selfishness or fear, may the universe be alive with the Spirit and our homes be the pledge of the world redeemed. May our hearts be eternally longing for that time alone with You, our one true Love. May our worldly duties be such, that they never impede our progress in devotion and may the intercession of our Holy Mother and all the Saints, be a strength and a comfort. Through Jesus, our compassionate and loving Redeemer, with the Holy Spirit, one God with You forever, amen.

Posted in AUGUSTINIANS OSA, DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, ONE Minute REFLECTION, The HOLY FAMILY, THE HOLY FAMILY - FAMILIAE SANCTAE, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 9 January – ‘ … So, taking Christ’s genealogy from Joseph …’ – St Augustine

One Minute Reflection – 9 January – Sunday withi the Octave of Epiphany and the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph, Readings: Colossians 3:12-17, Luke 2:42-52

He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them” – Luke 2:51

REFLECTION – “In saying to Joseph – “Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife” (Mt 1:20), the Angel was not mistaken. … The address as “wife” was neither empty nor false, for this Virgin was the happiness of her husband, in a way, that was all the more perfect and admirable, in that she became a mother without the participation of that husband, fecund, without him but faithful to him. It was because of that genuine marriage, that they both merited to be called “the parents of Christ” – not only she as “His Mother” but also he, as “his father,” insofar as he was husband of Christ’s Mother, father and husband spiritually, not according to the flesh. Both of them – he only by the spirit, she even in the flesh – are parents of His Humility, not of His Nobility, parents of His Weakness, not of his Divinity. Look in the Gospel, which cannot lie – His Mother said to Him: “Son, why have you done this to us? See how your father and I, have been searching for you anxiously.”

As for Him, wanting to show that He also had a Father, besides them, who had conceived Him without a mother, answered them: “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I had to be in my Father’s house?” And so, that no-one should think that in speaking thus, He was denying His parents, the Evangelist added: “He went down with them to Nazareth and was subject to them.” … Now why did He subject Himself to those who were so inferior to His Divine Nature? Because, “humbling himself, he took on the nature of a slave” (Phil 2:7), according to which, they were His parents. If they had not been united by a true marriage, even without carnal intercourse, they could not both have been the parents of that nature of a servant.

So, taking Christ’s genealogy from Joseph – a husband in chastity, he was father in the same way. … Are you saying that he did not conceive Jesus through the operation of nature? Well then, what the Holy Spirit operated, He did for them both. For Joseph was “a just man,” Matthew tells us (1:19). Both husband and wife were just. The Holy Spirit dwelt within their mutual justice and gave each of them, a Son!” – St Augustine (354-430) Father and Doctor of Grace (Marriage and concupiscence 1,11; Sermon 51)

PRAYER – God, our Father, in the Holy Family of Nazareth, You have given us the true model of a Christian home. Grant, that by following Jesus, Mary and Joseph in their love for each other and in the example of their family life, we may come to Your home of peace and joy. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son Who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, God, now and forever, amen.

Posted in AUGUST - The Immaculate Heart of Mary, FEASTS and SOLEMNITIES, MARIAN DEVOTIONS, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN Saturdays, SACRED and IMMACULATE HEARTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 12 June – “And his mother kept all these words in her heart.” – Luke 2:51

One Minute Reflection – 12 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Readings: Second Corinthians 5: 14-21, Psalms 103: 1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12, Gospel: Luke 2: 41-51

And his mother kept all these words in her heart.” – Luke 2:51

REFLECTION – “Often, it seems to us, Mary forgot to eat and to drink, keeping vigil in order to think about Christ, to see Christ in His flesh. She burned with love of Him and passionately loved to serve Him. She often did what the Song of Songs sings about: “I was sleeping, but my heart kept vigil.” (Song 5:2) Even when she was resting, she continued to dream of Him who filled her thoughts throughout the day. Whether she was keeping vigil or resting in peace, she always lived in Him, was always occupied with Him.

Where her treasure was, there also was her heart (Mt 6:21); where her glory was, there also was her mind. She loved her Lord and her Son with all her heart, with all her mind, with all her strength (Mt 22:37). She saw with her eyes, touched with her hands, the Word of Life (1 Jn 1:1). How blessed was Mary, to whom it was given to embrace Him who embraces and nourishes everything! How happy was she who carried Him, who carries the universe (Heb 1:3), she who nursed a Son, who gives her life, a Son who nourishes her and all beings on earth (Ps 145:15).

The One Who is the wisdom of the Father, put His arms around her neck, the One Who is the strength, that gives movement to everything sat in her arms. He Who is the rest of souls, (Mt 11:29) rested on her motherly breast. How gently He held her in His hands, peacefully looked at her, He Whom the angels wish to contemplate (1 Pet 1:12) and He gently called her, He Whom every being calls upon when in need. Filled with the Holy Spirit, she held Him close to her heart … She never had enough of seeing Him or of hearing Him, Whom “many prophets and kings wished to see but did not see.” (Lk 10:24) Thus Mary grew evermore in love and her mind was unceasingly attached to divine contemplation.” – St Amadeus of Lausanne (1108-1159) Bishop – Homily on Mary, 4

PRAYER – Lord open our hearts to Your grace. As You brought joy to the world through the incarnation of Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, grant that through the prayer of the Immaculate Heart of His Ever-Virgin Mother, our hearts too may grow in virtue and love by learning to reflect constantly on His commandments and counsels. We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.

Posted in DOCTORS of the Church, FATHERS of the Church, MARIAN REFLECTIONS, MARIAN TITLES, ONE Minute REFLECTION, QUOTES of the SAINTS, The BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, The WORD

One Minute Reflection – 20 June – ‘… The pupil of her Son.’

One Minute Reflection – 20 June – “Month of the Sacred Heart” Memorial of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, Readings: Isaiah 61:9-11, Responsorial psalm 1 Samuel 2:1, 4-8, Luke 2:41-51

“He went down with them and came to Nazareth and was obedient to them and his mother kept all these things in her heart.” … Luke 2:51

REFLECTION – “Consider the most prudent woman Mary, mother of true Wisdom, as the pupil of her Son.   For she learned from Him, not as from a child or man but as from God.   Yes, she dwelt in meditation on His words and actions.   Nothing of what was said or done by Him fell idly on her mind.   As before, when she conceived the Word itself in her womb, so now, does she hold within her, His ways and words, cherishing them as it were, in her heart.   That which she now beholds in the present, she waits to have revealed with greater clarity in the future.   This practice she followed as a rule and law through all her life.” … St Bede the Venerable (673-735) Father and Doctor of the Church – Exposition of the Gospel of Lukeluke 2 51 - he went down with them - consider the most prudent woman Mary - st bede - imm heart 20 june 2020

PRAYER – Lord open our hearts to Your grace.   As You brought joy to the world through the incarnation of Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, grant that through the prayer of the Immaculate Heart of His Ever-Virgin Mother, our hearts too may grow in virtue and love by learning to reflect constantly on His commandments and counsels.   We make our prayer through our Lord Jesus, with the Holy Spirit, God forever, amen.immaculate heart of mary - pray for us