Campos' Carmelite Third Order

Refections for Advent

2008-12-01T12:44:00.000-08:00

This time of Advent is a time for hope
What a marvellous time in which to renew your desire, your nostalgia,

your real longing for Christ to come.

by Saint Jose Mary Escrivá

Founder of Opus Dei

"Advent is here. What a marvellous time in which to renew your desire, your nostalgia, your real longing for Christ to come — for him to come every day to your soul in the Eucharist. The Church encourages us: Ecce veniet! — He is about to arrive!The Forge, 548 Seek union with God and buoy yourself up with hope — that sure virtue! — because Jesus will illuminate the way for you with the light of his mercy, even in the darkest night.The Forge, 293Today marks the beginning of Advent. And it is good for us to consider the wiles of these enemies of the soul: the disorder of sensuality and easy-going superficiality, the folly of reason that rejects God, the cavalier presumption that snuffs out love for both God and creatures. All these obstacles are real enough, and they can indeed cause us a great deal of trouble.

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For these very reasons the liturgy invites us to implore divine mercy: "To you, o Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust, let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me," as we prayed in the introit. And in the offertory we shall go back to the same idea: "Let none that wait for you be put to shame."Christ is passing by, 7"Look up, and lift up your heads, because your redemption is at hand," we have just read in the Gospel. This time of Advent is a time for hope. These great horizons of our christian vocation, this unity of life built on the presence of God our Father, can and ought to be a daily reality.

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I don't wish to go on any longer on this first Sunday of Advent, when we begin to count the days separating us from the birth of the Saviour. We have considered the reality of our christian vocation: how our Lord has entrusted us with the mission of attracting other souls to sanctity, encouraging them to get close to him, to feel united to the Church, to extend the kingdom of God to all hearts. Jesus wants to see us dedicated, faithful, responsive. He wants us to love him. It is his desire that we be holy, very much his own.Christ is passing by, 11Iesus Christus, Deus homo: Jesus Christ, God-man. This is one of "the mighty works of God," which we should reflect upon and thank him for. He has come to bring "peace on earth to men of good Will," to all men who want to unite their wills to the holy will of God — not just the rich, not just the poor, but everyone: all the brethren. We are all brothers in Jesus, children of God, brothers of Christ.

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His Mother is our mother.You must look at the Child in the manger. He is our Love. Look at him, realizing that the whole thing is a mystery. We need to accept this mystery on faith and use our faith to explore it very deeply. To do this, we must have the humble attitude of a christian soul. Let us not try to reduce the greatness of God to our own poor ideas and human explanations. Let us try to understand that this mystery, for all its darkness, is a light to guide men's lives.

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Christ is passing by, 13

St. Jose Mary Escrivá

2008-12-01T12:34:00.000-08:00

"I am the Immaculate Conception"

In the name of the Father...

My dear friends, my dear brethren,

As the whole liturgy of today shows us, God, in His wisdom, had long ago prepared for us the most Blessed Virgin Mary. It was not just at the moment of her birth on earth that God decreed to exempt her from all sin, and to make her the Immaculate Conception but already in eternity, which preceded the creation of the world.

The epistle today recalls this fact, applying to the Most Holy Virgin the words of the eternal Wisdom; already the Holy Virgin was in the mind of God – "iam concepta eram - I was already conceived" - yes, conceived in the mind of God, and thus already in the divine plan God was thinking of the Virgin Mary. Already He wished to fill her with all His graces, and to give her this extraordinary privilege of the Immaculate Conception, exempting her from all sin: "Tota pulchra es, Maria, et macula originalis non est in te - Thou art all fair, O Mary, and there is no stain of original sin in thee."

So already in eternity, before the creation of the world, God was thinking of this admirable creature, the first of His creatures after our Lord Jesus Christ Himself. All during the course of history which preceded the birth of the Blessed Virgin, during the whole history of humanity, God was thinking of the Blessed Virgin. We see it during the entire history of the Old Testament - already, immediately after the sin of Adam and Eve, God said to Adam and Eve, "I will place an enmity between thee and the woman…..She shall crush thy head." So already the Virgin Mary had been foreseen by the Spirit of God and her preparation, the preparation for her Immaculate Conception, was becoming more and more precise the whole time.

The image of the Blessed Virgin Mary can also be found in the holy women of the Old Testament. Think of the account of Sarah, the wife of Tobias, on whose behalf an angel bound up the demon and cast him far into the desert. She is an image of the Blessed Virgin Mary, "before whom the devil must flee, and whom the devil fears." The Virgin Mary was not under the empire of Satan for an instant, a single instant.

The story of Judith also illustrates the role of the most Holy Virgin Mary. She delivered the people of Israel from the hands of Holofernes. In cutting off the head of Holofernes Judith saved Israel, and in like manner the Blessed Virgin, by cutting off the head of the devil in a certain sense, saved the people of God.

Thus during the whole course of history God wished that we be reminded of the most Holy Virgin; the Blessed Virgin Mary was always present to God and in the plan of God and thus from her birth the Blessed Virgin Mary was exempt from all sin. At the moment of her birth she was filled with the Holy Ghost, and yet again even more so - if such be possible - at the moment when the Angel Gabriel came to announce that she would be the Mother of the Savior. Behold what the Angel said to the Blessed Virgin: "Thou art full of grace, overflowing with grace, and the Holy Ghost shall descend upon thee and overshadow thee."

How could the Holy Ghost be present with the devil in the soul of the most Holy Virgin? There could be no stain in the soul of the Blessed Virgin Mary; already God had decided that. And from the beginning of the Blessed Virgin's existence, we see that, in fact, the Blessed Virgin is wholly filled with the Holy Ghost. She is shown to us as a contemplative, and living in the presence of God, speaking little, reflecting on all the words which Our Lord said. At times she deemed it right to discreetly intervene, as at the marriage feast of Cana, and this was to teach us her whole gospel: "Do whatever He shall tell you." This is the gospel of our Holy Virgin Mary.

Again, she was present at Calvary as the Mother of the Eternal Priest, at the offering of Our Lord Jesus Christ, for she also was crucified with Our Lord. If St. Paul could say, "Confixus sure cruci - I am nailed to the Cross with Christ," how much more could the Blessed Virgin Mary say it!
Again, she was also present at the moment of Pentecost, when the Apostles received the Holy Ghost - she who was already filled with the Holy Ghost, she did not need to receive Him again but through her mediation, the Apostles received Him.

Finally the Blessed Virgin Mary went up to heaven, not only in her soul but also in her body, and thus was this extraordinary life of hers completed; a life unique in the history of humanity, but foreseen by God from all eternity.

The influence of the Blessed Virgin Mary has not ceased. Even now in heaven, the Blessed Virgin Mary continues to be the Mother of the Mystical Body of Our Lord, the Mother of the Church, the Mother of our souls. She shows it, she proves it, she proves it in every one of us, but she also proves it in her apparitions. Is it not admirable to think that after the Sovereign Pontiff Pius IX proclaimed the dogma of the Immaculate Conception as a revealed truth, that the Blessed Virgin Mary was Immaculate from her Conception - already four years later on March 21, 1858, the Blessed Virgin herself said to little Bernadette, the little shepherdess, "I am the Immaculate Conception."

Remember that Bernadette was incapable of understanding, she could not understand what these words meant, and she left the grotto on her way to her pastor’s house repeating these words which she did not understand, to make sure she would not forget them. The history of the life of Bernadette tells us that it was at that moment that the parish priest of Lourdes, Pere Pomian, was truly convinced by the apparitions at Lourdes. He realized that the poor little shepherdess was incapable of inventing this herself, and that the dogma had been proclaimed four years before by the Sovereign Pontiff. Thus it was confirmed by the Blessed Virgin herself that she was the Immaculate Conception.

What lesson, then, must we draw from this history of the Blessed Virgin Mary and her Immaculate Conception? For all of us who have been baptized, we who in a certain sense have received more than others because of the offices we may occupy in Holy Church - all of us: If the Blessed Virgin Mary was Immaculate in her Conception it is because she was to be the Mother of Our Lord Jesus Christ, because she had to carry within herself Our Lord, the Son of God, because she was charged with giving Him to the world, because she was to live in proximity with Him, to be His Mother.

We Christians, who receive Holy Communion, do we not receive the same Jesus Christ, the same Body, which was conceived by the Blessed Virgin Mary? We receive Him in us, in our bodies….in our souls. If it was decreed that the Blessed Virgin Mary was to be immaculate in her conception, so that she might receive the Body of Our Lord Jesus Christ, His soul, His divinity, must we not also be pure? Not that we can be immaculate in our conception, but may our souls be immaculate, by our prayers, by our dispositions, by our efforts, by the grace of God . . . to win this privilege that the Blessed Virgin had by the gift of Our Lord Jesus Christ, may we by our prayers and by the grace of God obtain the grace of having immaculate souls to receive Our Lord Jesus Christ.

We must! We must live without sin, we must struggle against anything that might tarnish our souls, so that it can be said of our souls: "Tota pub chra est, et macula non est in te -Thou art all fair, and there is no stain in thee." Let there be no stain in our souls so that we may worthily receive Our Lord Jesus Christ.

And if that is true for Christians, true for the faithful, true for every person, every soul receiving Our Lord Jesus Christ, how much more, dear brethren, is it true of you - you who are destined in a singular way to consecrate yourselves to God, to offer yourselves to God, and particularly those who offer themselves to God in the priesthood, who, in this world, call down Our Lord Jesus Christ upon the altar and, like the Blessed Virgin, touch Him with their hands, and give Him to others; how much more must your souls be immaculate!

With what joy, therefore, do we receive today the oblations of those who desire to offer their lives, offer their souls, for the service of God, the service of the altar. Let us ask in a special way of the Blessed Virgin to transmit, in a certain degree, this privilege she had, the graces which are necessary to keep our souls immaculate.

She is the creature that was created, designed by God to destroy sin. Thus there is no creature more free of sin than the Blessed Virgin Mary. She has crushed the head of the serpent. Therefore with the Blessed Virgin there is no compromise, no compromise with sin, no compromise with error; she is completely true, completely holy. She cannot bear error, or sin, or vice. Let us then ask the Blessed Virgin that we ourselves have this horror of sin, this horror of vice - but love for sinners, because it was for sinners that she was created, to save sinners. May we have this immense desire, this flame which must consume us, the desire to save souls from sin, to snatch them from the clutches of the devil, the clutches of the world, and the scandals of it.
Therefore let us all ask today that our Society be a sign, a sign of truth, a sign of holiness, a sign of flight from sin, and all the scandals of the world, and a sign of the presence of the Virgin Mary. We will truly be children of the Church, children of Mary, on this condition. But if, unhappily, we also become like the people who are drawn by the world and who want compromises with things of the world, with error - then we will no longer be worthy children of Mary, worthy children of Our Lord.

That is what we ask, for all those who are present at this Holy Mass, for all those who are present here, and particularly for those who, in a moment, will pronounce their oblation and their engagements in the Society.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Homily of + Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre ( in memorian)

8 December 1 972

Advent

2008-12-01T07:18:00.000-08:00

We start our preparation for this great season of Advent not with Jesus’ birth but by looking forward, to our Lord’s Second Coming. In the preceding verses of Mark 13, Jesus teaches important truths about what will happen before He returns to earth at the end of history. While we are given some clues about what will unfold, it is clear that Jesus wants to divert our attention from fruitless and divisive speculation about dates, towards faithful service. So Jesus concludes this teaching on His Second Coming with these few verses focusing on the need to stay alert and remain faithful to the task He has given us to do. Jesus uses the parable of a master leaving his servants to do their duties while he goes on a journey to help us understand this point. No one knows exactly when the master will return.

2. MEDITATIO

- What is the main message of today’s parable? Is it that Jesus expects to find us doing the work he asked us to do when he returns?- In the parable each of the servants had been given “his own work to do” (verse 34). What “work” has Jesus given to all Christians to do? What things has he given you to do personally?- Consider what can happen when debating with other Christians about when Jesus will return. Compare this to our responsibility towards our fellow servants in Jesus’ parable. Which is more constructive?- Mark 13 reminds us this world will one day come to an end. Are we spending too much time investing in temporal things?

3. ORATIO

Praise God – one day Jesus will return again in great power and glory and the end of history lies under His direct control. Pray for those who haven’t accepted God’s forgiveness yet. Pray that the Holy Spirit will reveal Jesus to them and that they will respond to His grace and mercy. Ask God to give you the grace and strength you need to serve Him and do his will. Pray that God will keep you from becoming weary or discouraged.

new update very soon.

Pax

October 12th 2008 - Feast of Our Lady of Aparecida

2008-10-13T04:57:00.000-07:00

The History of the Image of The Appeared Immaculate Conception "Aparecida"

In October of 1717, three Brazilian fishermen were out fishing, in order to supply a banquet the townspeople of Guaratinguetá were giving in honor of a visiting nobleman. Since it was outside the season for finding fish, they prayed to the Immaculate Conception for help. After many hours of coming up empty, the fishermen were about to give up. They cast in their net one last time and brought up the body of a terra cotta statue. Casting their net again, they brought up the head. They cleaned the statue, which turned out to be an image of the Immaculate Conception. Naming the statue "Our Lady Aparecida" (Our Lady who appeared), the fisherman wrapped it in cloth and cast their nets again. This time, they caught so many fish their boat was in danger of sinking. The statue came to be associated with many miracles brought about by the intercession of the Blessed Mother, and was an object of veneration. A prayer chapel was built; when that became too small, a church was built on the hill of the Coqueiros, around which a village sprang up. When the crowds outgrew that church, a new and bigger one was built; it was given the title of minor basilica in 1908. An even bigger basilica was begun in the 1950s; today, it is the second largest place of Catholic worship in the world, after St. Peter's, and the largest Marian shrine. Our Lady of Aparecida is the patroness of Brazil.

Pope John Paul II's Prayer to Our Lady of Aparecida

Lady Aparecida, a son of yours who belongs to you unreservedly "totus tuus" called by the mysterious plan of Providence to be the Vicar of your Son on earth, wishes to address you at this moment. He recalls with emotion, because of the brown color of this image of yours, another image of yours, the Black Virgin of Jasna Gora. Mother of God and our Mother, protect the Church, the Pope, the bishops, the priests and all the faithful people; welcome under your protecting mantle men and women religious, families, children, young people, and their educations. Health of the sick and Consoler of the afflicted, comfort those who are suffering in body and soul; be the light of those who are seeking Christ, the Redeemer of all; show all people that you are the Mother of our confidence. Queen of Peace and Mirror of Justice, obtain peace for the world, ensure that Brazil and all countries may have lasting peace, that we will always live together as brothers and sisters and as children of God. Our Lady Aparecida, bless all your sons and daughters who pray and sing to you here and elsewhere. Amen.

The town of Aparecida, Brazil, houses two Basilicas dedicated to the National Patron Saint, the "Appeared Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary", better known as Our Lady of Aparecida: the "Old Basilica", built between 1760 and 1770 and restored from 1824 to 1834, which was established as a Minor Basilica by Pope Saint Pius X in 1908, and the "New Basilica".

This much larger building became necessary due to the popularity of Our Lady of Aparecida, and in 1955 construction on this new Basilica started. Architect Benedito Calixto designed a building in the form of a Greek cross, 173 m (567 ft) long and 168 m (551 ft) wide; the dome reaches 70 m (229 ft) and the steeple rises to 105 m (334 ft), placing it also among the largest and biggest churches in the world, holding up to 45,000 people. The 272,000 square meters of parking hold 4,000 buses and 6,000 cars.

The building was consecrated by Pope John Paul II while still under construction, on July 4, 1980.^[1] The Pope created the church as a Minor Basilica and named it the National Shrine of Brazil.

The New Basilica is now the second-largest Catholic place of worship in the world, after St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City, and in 1984 was officially declared as "the largest Marian Temple in the world." According to the official site of the basilica, in 1999 the number of pilgrims was 6,565,849.

Pope Benedict XVI visited the Basilica of the Shrine ofAparecida on May 12, 2007, during his Apostolic Journey to Brazil on the occasion of the 5th General Conference of the Bishops of Latin America and the Caribbean.^[2]

Novena of Our Lady of Mount Carmel

2008-07-10T20:07:00.000-07:00

First Day: The prayer Flos Carmeli (Flower of Carmel) was composed by St. Simon Stock and in answer he received the Scapular from Our Blessed Mother. 0 BEAUTIFUL FLOWER OF CARMEL, most fruitful vine, splendor of heaven, holy and singular, who brought forth the son of God, still ever remaining a pure virgin, assist us in our necessity! 0 Star of the Sea, help and protect us! Show us that you are our Mother! (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Second Day: Most Holy Mary, Our Mother, in your great love for us you gave us the holy Scapular of Mount Carmel, having heard the prayers of your chosen son St. Simon Stock. Help us now to wear it faithfully and with devotion. May it be a sign to us of our desire to grow in holiness. (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Third Day: 0 Queen of Heaven, you gave us the Scapular as an outward sign by which we might be known as your special children. May we always wear it with honor by avoiding sin and imitating your virtues. Help us to be faithful to this desire of ours. (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Fourth Day: When you gave us, Gracious Lady, the Scapular as our Habit, you called us to be not only servants, but also your own dear children. We ask you to gain for us from your Son the grace to live as your children in joy, peace and love. (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Fifth Day: 0 Mother of Fair Love, through your goodness we are not only your children but persons called to live in the spirit of Carmel. Help us to live in charity with one another, prayerful as Elijah of old, and mindful of our call to minister to God's people. (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Sixth Day: With loving provident care, 0 Mother Most Admirable, you covered us with your Scapular as a shield of defense against the Evil One. Through your assistance, may we bravely struggle against the powers of evil, always open to your Son Jesus Christ. (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Seventh Day: 0 Mary, Help of Christians, you assured us that wearing your Scapular worthily would keep us safe from harm. Protect us both in body and soul with your continual aid. May all that we do be pleasing to your Son and to you. (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.
Eighth Day: You give us hope, 0 Mother of Mercy, that through your Scapular promise we might quickly pass through the fires of purgatory to the Kingdom of your Son. Be our comfort and our hope, grant that our hope may not be in vain but that, ever faithful to your Son and to you, we may speedily enjoy after death the blessed company of Jesus and the saints. (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.'
Ninth Day: 0 Most Holy Mother of Mount Carmel, when asked by a saint to grant privileges to the family of Carmel, you rather granted an assurance of salvation to the whole world. Behold us your children, kneeling at your feet. We glory, dearest Mother, in wearing your holy habit, that habit which makes us members of your family of Carmel, that habit through which we shall have your powerful protection in life, at death and even after death. Look down with love, 0 Gate of Heaven, on all those now in their last agony! Look down graciously, 0 Virgin, Flower of Carmel, on all those in need of help! Look down mercifully, 0 Mother of our Savior, on all those who do not know that they are numbered among your children. Look down tenderly, 0 Queen of All Saints, on the poor souls! (pause and mention petitions) Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory, etc. Our Lady of Mount Carmel, pray for us.

2008-02-25T18:49:00.000-08:00

What are the origins of Lent?

History of Lent FR. WILLIAM SAUNDERS

Did the Church always have this time before Easter?

Lent is a special time of prayer, penance, sacrifice and good works in preparation of the celebration of Easter. In the desire to renew the liturgical practices of the Church, The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy of Vatican Council II stated, "The two elements which are especially characteristic of Lent — the recalling of baptism or the preparation for it, and penance — should be given greater emphasis in the liturgy and in liturgical catechesis. It is by means of them that the Church prepares the faithful for the celebration of Easter, while they hear God's word more frequently and devote more time to prayer" (no. 109).

The word Lent itself is derived from the Anglo-Saxon words lencten, meaning "Spring," and lenctentid, which literally means not only "Springtide" but also was the word for "March," the month in which the majority of Lent falls.

Since the earliest times of the Church, there is evidence of some kind of Lenten preparation for Easter. For instance, St. Irenaeus (d. 203) wrote to Pope St. Victor I, commenting on the celebration of Easter and the differences between practices in the East and the West: "The dispute is not only about the day, but also about the actual character of the fast. Some think that they ought to fast for one day, some for two, others for still more; some make their ‘day’ last 40 hours on end. Such variation in the observance did not originate in our own day, but very much earlier, in the time of our forefathers" (Eusebius, History of the Church, V, 24). When Rufinus translated this passage from Greek into Latin, the punctuation made between "40" and "hours" made the meaning to appear to be "40 days, twenty-four hours a day." The importance of the passage, nevertheless, remains that since the time of "our forefathers" — always an expression for the apostles — a 40-day period of Lenten preparation existed. However, the actual practices and duration of Lent were still not homogenous throughout the Church.

Lent becomes more regularized after the legalization of Christianity in A.D. 313. The Council of Nicea (325), in its disciplinary canons, noted that two provincial synods should be held each year, "one before the 40 days of Lent." St. Athanasius (d. 373) in this "Festal Letters" implored his congregation to make a 40-day fast prior to the more intense fasting of Holy Week. St. Cyril of Jerusalem (d. 386) in his Catechectical Lectures, which are the paradigm for our current RCIA programs, had 18 pre-baptismal instructions given to the catechumens during Lent. St. Cyril of Alexandria (d. 444) in his series of "Festal Letters" also noted the practices and duration of Lent, emphasizing the 40-day period of fasting. Finally, Pope St. Leo (d. 461) preached that the faithful must "fulfill with their fasts the Apostolic institution of the 40 days," again noting the apostolic origins of Lent. One can safely conclude that by the end of the fourth century, the 40-day period of Easter preparation known as Lent existed, and that prayer and fasting constituted its primary spiritual exercises.

Of course, the number "40" has always had special spiritual significance regarding preparation. On Mount Sinai, preparing to receive the Ten Commandments, "Moses stayed there with the Lord for 40 days and 40 nights, without eating any food or drinking any water" (Ex 34:28). Elijah walked "40 days and 40 nights" to the mountain of the Lord, Mount Horeb (another name for Sinai) (I Kgs 19:8). Most importantly, Jesus fasted and prayed for "40 days and 40 nights" in the desert before He began His public ministry (Mt 4:2).

Once the 40 days of Lent were established, the next development concerned how much fasting was to be done. In Jerusalem, for instance, people fasted for 40 days, Monday through Friday, but not on Saturday or Sunday, thereby making Lent last for eight weeks. In Rome and in the West, people fasted for six weeks, Monday through Saturday, thereby making Lent last for six weeks. Eventually, the practice prevailed of fasting for six days a week over the course of six weeks, and Ash Wednesday was instituted to bring the number of fast days before Easter to 40. The rules of fasting varied. First, some areas of the Church abstained from all forms of meat and animal products, while others made exceptions for food like fish. For example, Pope St. Gregory (d. 604), writing to St. Augustine of Canterbury, issued the following rule: "We abstain from flesh, meat, and from all things that come from flesh, as milk, cheese and eggs."

Second, the general rule was for a person to have one meal a day, in the evening or at 3 p.m.
These Lenten fasting rules also evolved. Eventually, a smaller repast was allowed during the day to keep up one’s strength from manual labor. Eating fish was allowed, and later eating meat was also allowed through the week except on Ash Wednesday and Friday. Dispensations were given for eating dairy products if a pious work was performed, and eventually this rule was relaxed totally. (However, the abstinence from even dairy products led to the practice of blessing Easter eggs and eating pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday.)

Over the years, modifications have been made to the Lenten observances, making our practices not only simple but also easy. Ash Wednesday still marks the beginning of Lent, which lasts for 40 days, not including Sundays. The present fasting and abstinence laws are very simple: On Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, the faithful fast (having only one full meal a day and smaller snacks to keep up one’s strength) and abstain from meat; on the other Fridays of Lent, the faithful abstain from meat. People are still encouraged "to give up something" for Lent as a sacrifice. (An interesting note is that technically on Sundays and solemnities like St. Joseph's Day (March 19) and the Annunciation (March 25), one is exempt and can partake of whatever has been offered up for Lent.

Nevertheless, I was always taught, "If you gave something up for the Lord, tough it out. Don’t act like a Pharisee looking for a loophole." Moreover, an emphasis must be placed on performing spiritual works, like attending the Stations of the Cross, attending Mass, making a weekly holy hour before the Blessed Sacrament, taking time for personal prayer and spiritual reading and most especially making a good confession and receiving sacramental absolution. Although the practices may have evolved over the centuries, the focus remains the same: to repent of sin, to renew our faith and to prepare to celebrate joyfully the mysteries of our salvation.

source :

Saunders, Rev. William. "History of Lent." Arlington Catholic Herald.

2008-02-25T17:56:00.000-08:00

Prayer

O Lord, who hast mercy upon all,take away from me my sins,and mercifully kindle in methe fire of thy Holy Spirit.Take away from me the heart of stone,and give me a heart of flesh,a heart to love and adore Thee,a heart to delight in Thee,to follow and enjoy Thee, for Christ's sake, Amen

St. Ambrose of Milan (AD 339-397)

Lourdes - Celebrating the 150th Anniversary of Our Lady's Aparitions

2008-02-25T17:20:00.000-08:00

150 Years of Miracles

Basilica of Lourdes - France

One hundred and fifty years ago, a young peasant girl named Bernadette Soubirius wandered into an undiscovered grotto in the dense forest on the edge of her village.

The vision she saw there changed her life and elevated Lourdes from a small insignificant place beneath the Pyrenees to a global phenomenon that attracts five million people annually.

On February 11th 1858, Bernadette went with her sister and a friend to look for firewood.. As she was frail and sickly, they left her on one bank of the river, where she had found a cave, hidden in a copse, with a spring of clear water. According to Bernadette, a young woman appeared to her, "surrounded by light, and looked at me and smiled".

This was the first of seventeen or possible eighteen visions Bernadette claims to have had, although it was not until the sixteenth that the lady identified herself as 'the Immaculate Conception', in other words, the Virgin Mary.

Few believed Bernadette at first. She was subjected to rigorous questioning by religious and secular authorities, even briefly being taken into a sanatorium for the mentally ill, but she stuck to her story.

Hundreds and later thousands of people accompanied her to the grotto during some of these visions, but none of them ever experienced what Bernadette saw and heard.

Within months of the apparitions, rumours of miraculous cures brought about by drinking water from the spring in the grotto began to spread, encouraging visits by the seriously ill in greater and greater numbers.

Bernadette herself, questioned by an English tourist in April 1859, flatly denied such miracles, responding, "There's no truth in that at all." Nonetheless the Catholic Church has recognised 67 cures at Lourdes as miraculous, the last in 2005 of Anna Santaniello who suffered sever rheumatism.

Sceptics looking for an alternative explanation point to Bernadette's personal circumstances. Her family were bankrupt millers, forced to leave their mill two years previously and live in a single damp and dingy, cellar-like room. The visions of what may have been a very impressionable young girl undoubtedly changed their fortunes.

However, Bernadette herself never profited from her fame. She became a novice and later a nun at Nevers, leaving Lourdes for good in 1866. Bernadette suffered from several debilitating illnesses, including asthma and tuberculosis, and had treatment at a thermal spa, but she never returned to the grotto she had made famous. She died in 1879 at the young age of just 35.

Lourdes though never looked back. The town has more than 200 hotels and its post office handles about 6.5 million postcards each year. Its ciergerie produces a tonne of candles a day. A vast industry has been created to make religious souvenirs, including images of Christ backed by velvet in fake silver frames, and shocking pink rosaries. It seems safe to conclude, based of Jesus's visit to the Temple in Jerusalem, that he would have been no happier with the commercialism of Lourdes.

Undeniably magnificent, however, is the Basilica of the Rosary, built above Bernadette's grotto to celebrate her discovery. Although its dominant lines are Romanesque, it has all the grandeur of the heyday of Byzantine architecture with ornamental mosaics, arcades, ramps, domes and fifteen chapels radiating from the centre. In the upper basilica, the chapels mark the boundaries of a vast square capable of holding 80,000 worshippers.

The Venetian mosaics are superb, created by the master craftsman Giandomenico Facchina, whose other accomplishments include the frescoes of the Opera Garnier in Paris and of the Kyoto Imperial Palace in Japan.

High above the steep alleyways of the old town, and its covered market with charming craft shops and gastronomic food stalls, Lourdes castle possess a considerable pedigree that in other circumstances would make it the centre of attraction. The Romans were the first to have built here and legend - but little historical fact - would have it that Charlemagne himself took the fortress by stealth in 778.

The castle had three formidable lines of defence; a lower wall with ramparts and towers, and a donjon, added in the middle of the Gothic period, during the 14th century. The donjon became a prison for state prisoners of importance and the residence of the local counts of Bigorre in the 16th and 17th centuries. After their removal, the famous engineer Vauban strengthened its defences and in 1685 added Lourdes to the ring of fortresses surrounding the France of Louis XIV. The castle caters successfully for handicapped visitors, reflecting on the circumstances of the many who still come to Lourdes in the hope of a cure.

A chair lift, itself celebrating 100 years and known as Le Pic du Jer, marks the start of the Pyrenees. It takes visitors to the town up to a height of more than one thousand metres in less than six minutes. Lourdes glacier lake, bordered by coniferous trees, is just a flash of blue below. The ride through the pine trees is a magical experience and the view from the top is superb. The viewing table on the summit picks out the nearby towns of Pau and Tarbes and the great mountains beyond.

PRAYER TO OUR LADY OF LOURDES

This prayer was said during the Holy Father's August 15, 2004 visit to Lourdes, France. The Pope asked her among other things to "be our guide along the paths of the world."

Hail Mary, poor and humble Woman, Blessed by the Most High! Virgin of hope, dawn of a new era, We join in your song of praise, to celebrate the Lord’s mercy, to proclaim the coming of the Kingdom and the full liberation of humanity.Hail Mary, lowly handmaid of the Lord, Glorious Mother of Christ! Faithful Virgin, holy dwelling-place of the Word, Teach us to persevere in listening to the Word, and to be docile to the voice of the Spirit, attentive to his promptings in the depths of our conscience and to his manifestations in the events of history.Hail Mary, Woman of sorrows, Mother of the living! Virgin spouse beneath the Cross, the new Eve, Be our guide along the paths of the world. Teach us to experience and to spread the love of Christ, to stand with you before the innumerable crosses on which your Son is still crucified.Hail Mary, woman of faith, First of the disciples! Virgin Mother of the Church, help us always to account for the hope that is in us, with trust in human goodness and the Father’s love. Teach us to build up the world beginning from within: in the depths of silence and prayer, in the joy of fraternal love, in the unique fruitfulness of the Cross.Holy Mary, Mother of believers, Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us.Amen.

sources : http://www.pyreneanvillas.com/

www.ewtn.com

2007-11-14T06:59:00.000-08:00

The Holy Souls in Purgatory

A meditation for the Month of the Holy Souls

by Fr Armand de Malleray (Fraternity St. Peter)

The month of November is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Souls. What do we know about them? Well, the very adjective the Church uses to describe them is significant: though not yet in Heaven, they are ‘Holy’.

The Holy Souls are called Holy because they are on their way to Heaven, with no risk at all of failing to reach that goal. While they were still on earth as members of the Church Militant, they were already destined for the Beatific Vision, but like ourselves now, they were free not to answer such a wonderful calling. Whenever they sinned, they impeded the fulfilling of their divine vocation: but, whereas venial sin would only delay their entry into Paradise, mortal sin would forbid it.

When they died, the love of God happened to be the leading disposition of those Holy Souls. They had some attachments to creatures as well, but not to the extent that they would put those above their very Creator. Death being the natural separation between human body and soul, it drew their human selves out from the material world, and out from time altogether, which is the created dimension where they had led their lives on earth. Leaving time means to enter permanence, since time is characterized by changing. That is why after the soul has departed from the body, its ultimate disposition before dying remains for ever.

Heaven indeed has to be won, but on earth, before death, as Our Lord teaches us: ‘Walk while you have the light’; ‘the night cometh in which no man can work’; ‘this night do they require thy soul of thee’. After death, it is too late to change our minds.

Thanks be to God, in the case of the Holy Souls, their disposition was good. Therefore they have an absolute certainty of eventually enjoying the Beatific Vision. On the contrary, the souls whose main disposition when dying was hatred against God – they shall eternally endure the loss of Him Who is the only Beatitude.

Thus can the souls in Purgatory really be called ‘Holy’ Souls. Neither their own created will, nor God’s omnipotent will ever cease to meet and unite. Such a certainty makes the Holy Souls truly happy. In their individual judgment right after death, they received sufficient knowledge of God’s infinite bounty. They see how poor and wanting all created goods are, compared with divine perfections! They are now able to look spiritually at the many earthly attachments they kept until death, and they can’t imagine that they had been so stubborn and short-sighted as to load themselves with the burden of human pride and wealth, instead of lightly travelling toward the Sun of Justice!

And now they wish they were able to enter at once into Heaven in order to fulfil God’s adorable will more promptly! Instead, they have to wait until their wills have been purified from all their imperfections. For us to have an idea of how excruciating that delay is for the Holy Souls, we would need to have had a glimpse of the splendour of God, which emancipates from error and lies our minds made for the Truth and lovingly attracts our wills made for the Good. ‘What a waste,’ the holy soul thinks, ‘and what an offence, since what I have wasted is nothing else than God’s grace!’

Indeed, the souls in Purgatory realise that God had constantly helped them while they were still united with their bodies on earth. Every time they needed it, God provided adequate support: through unexpected encounters and edifying friendships, sound prayers and spiritual books, and regular reception of the sacraments. Nothing spectacular there, though all providential, to ensure their overcoming all temptations and their increasing in all virtues. But they neglected God’s help on so many ‘small’ occasions, keeping their hands and hearts busy with temporal tasks instead.

They remember the many times when they postponed their examination of conscience and finally went to bed without having done it; or the times when they walked past the parish church and failed to go in to confess even their venial sins; or the times when they found the phone number of a priest they trusted, and feared to call him to seek spiritual direction; or the times when they scratched from their diaries the monthly hour of doctrinal learning they had arranged for the whole year; and the times when they put the kettle on, deciding not to attend an early weekday Mass when they saw the rain falling outside…

They acknowledge their negligence and false humility when God had provided everything for them to be great saints, ‘lights of the world and salt of the earth’. With intense grief now they long for the eventual fulfilling in themselves of their adorable Saviour’s will: how burning their craving to satisfy at last the Groom they dared keep waiting, how consuming their shame for having been idle, and how urgent their desire to be cleansed, so that they might be totally and forever His!

The Church, true Bride of Christ, offers numerous prayers to hasten the entry of Her children into Heaven. All but one canonical Hours of the Breviary end with, ‘Fidelium animae per misericordiam Dei requiescant in pace. Amen’ – which shows how constant is the preoccupation of Mother Church for the Holy Souls.

And at the centre of all Catholic life and true summit of all prayer, i.e. in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, there also, after the Consecration, the Church commemorates the dead: ‘Memento etiam Domine, famulorum famularumque tuarum N. et N., qui nos praecesserunt cum signo fidei, et dormiunt in somno pacis. Ipsis, Domine, et omnibus in Christo quiescentibus, locum refrigerii, lucis et pacis, ut indulgeas deprecamur: per eumdem Christum Dominum nostrum. Amen’.

Let us pray these words with a deep faith in the efficacy of our intercession as devout members of Mother Church, hoping that the same Holy Souls once received into Heaven will powerfully intercede for us according to our beautiful Catholic dogma of the ‘communion of saints’, ad majorem Dei gloriam!

[Taken from the Latin Mass Society's November 2002 Newsletter.]

2007-10-02T20:54:00.000-07:00

THE MONTH OF THE ROSARY
FEAST OF THE ROSARY: OCTOBER 7

We may judge of the excellence of the Rosary by the attention given to this devotion by the Vicar of Christ. The great Pope Leo XIII issued thirteen encyclicals on the Rosary and recommended this devotion as a family prayer for every Catholic home. The month of October has been specially selected as the "Month of the Rosary," and the feast of the Holy Rosary is now celebrated on the 7th of this month. This feast of the most Holy Rosary took its origin from the great victory of the Catholic forces over the Mohammedans at the battle of Lepanto on October 7th, 1571. The defeat of the enemies of the Church and of civilization was due to the special assistance of the Mother of God. The Rosary was recited throughout the countries of Europe for the success of the Christian forces, and the victory was attributed to Our Lady, called the "Help of Christians." The Rosary has been the great weapon against heresy and infidelity, but it is also the chief safeguard for family peace and holiness.

Our Holy Father (Pius X) wished to raise up the Rosary as a bulwark against the encroachments of the wicked and against the wiles of the devil aimed at the destruction of domestic sanctity. Society depends upon the family, and if we have good families, not all the powers of earth and Hell can make headway against the Church in her mission for the salvation of souls. We see some countries where the Faith ahs been preserved in spite of all the fury of Hell and in the face of all the powers of the world. How can we account for such steadfastness in the face of such trials? We must go deep down to the basis of social virtue to get the explanation of such heroism, and when we go deep enough, we will find family holiness in these countries. If we examine a little more, we will find that the chief means of preserving this sanctity in family life was the practice of the Rosary as a family prayer.

The Child Jesus and the Blessed Mother give the Rosaryto St. Dominic and St. Rose
The great St. Dominic performed a wonderful work in the destruction of the Albigensian heresy. He had spent a long time in arguments with the heretics, and as is usual he made no converts by his arguments. Never has there yet been a single conversion made by arguments or dispute alone because heretics, as a rule, do not wish to know the Truth. The devil knows all the truths of the Church even better than many Catholics, and yet he has no wish to serve God. While Our Lord was dying on the Cross, He prayed for his executioners, and He excused them on the grounds that they knew not what they did. Our Lord’s prayer was heard and thousands were converted through this act of forgiveness who would never have received such a grace had not the suffering and merciful Heart of Jesus prayed for them. Jesus here excuses them on account of ignorance, but in the case of many of these people, their ignorance was culpable. They could have known the truth if they had wished, but they resembled the coward, Pilate, who asked, "What is truth?" but did not wait for an answer. Arguing over religious matters with those outside the Church only gives the enemies of God an opportunity to blaspheme and to mock at holy things. Reason unaided by grace is not able to grasp the great religious truths contained in the Catholic Church.

It may be asked then what are we to do with a view to instructing those outside the Faith? We must, like St. Dominic, teach the simple Christian doctrine and we may answer the objections of and give information to those who are sincerely anxious to know the Truth. The Church spread throughout the great pagan Roman empire by the preaching of the Gospel, aided by the blood of the martyrs and the prayers of the faithful. When a nation or an individual loses the Faith, it is never for intellectual reasons nor because they cannot harmonize the beliefs of the Church with their philosophy of life. The Faith is lost through the loss of grace owing to absence of prayer and through the commission of sin. The Faith in a country is preserved by the teaching of Christian doctrine and by the self-sacrificing lives of the faithful. Sanctity is only self-denial for the love of God. Some perform self-sacrificing actions, but for some worldly motive, and so that is not sanctity. The marks of true sanctity are prayer, self-denial and zeal for God’s glory.

When St. Dominic found that his arguments were of no value, he had recourse to the Mother of God, who has always been the consoler of the afflicted and the help of all those who carry on works for the salvation of souls. This sweet Mother told the saint to lay aside the arguments and begin the teaching of the simple Christian doctrine. The message of the angel to Mary was the beginning of the work of Redemption, and St. Dominic taught the people to repeat this Angelic Salutation, which at once reminded them of the great mystery of the Incarnation. St. Dominic at once gave up his arguments with the heretics and began to teach the people to pray to Mary by repeating the Hail Mary. While he repeated the Our Fathers and the Hail Marys, he taught the people in simple language some mystery of Our Lord’s life. In a short time the people gave up their heresy and returned once more to the practice of their religion. We see here the importance of prayer in the work of salvation. Prayer removes the obstacles to the reception of grace, and simple instruction will do the rest. Prayer obtains everything from God, simply because one who prays prepares his soul for the seeds of grace and sanctification, and if only heretics and all those outside the Church could be induced to pray, they would very soon receive the gift of the Faith. The absence of prayers means the absence of grace, and so the evils of sin and heresy are all due in the final result to the want of prayer.

We must not leave out another factor in the destruction of the Albigensian heresy, and that was the power of the intercession of Mary. St. Dominic prayed to Our Lady, and he taught the people to do so. Mary is the link that binds the soul to Jesus. She is also the link that binds that binds whole nations to Jesus, and so we have another explanation of the marvelous success of St. Dominic. Those who invoke the aid of this Holy Mother are assured of success because her prayers are so powerful that they can defeat all the powers of Hell and all the stratagems of wicked men. It is worthy of notice also that the Order of St. Dominic remained so faithful to the Church during the time of the Reformation. This is accounted for by their devotion to the Rosary and by their fidelity to the teaching of the ordinary Christian doctrine to the faithful. St. Thomas, who was perhaps after St. Dominic the greatest gem of the Dominican order, so simplified the philosophy and the theology of the Church that when the time of trial came, the sons of St. Dominic were ready to give a simple explanation of all the truths of the Church, and in this way they were able to confound all the tricks of the heretics.

The Rosary has been the great safeguard of whole nations during times of storm and stress when the wolves of heresy threatened to devour the faithful children of Jesus and Mary. When priests were put to death, it was practically impossible to preserve the Faith for the want of assistance of the Sacraments and on account of the absence of religious instruction. The devotion to the Rosary kept the Faith in whole countries, and we have no reason to be surprised at this. The simple meditations of the Rosary on the lives of Jesus and Mary and the consideration of some mystery of faith kept the knowledge of the supernatural truths before the minds of the faithful, and the prayers or the repetition of the Our Father and Hail Mary reminded the people of the Angelical Salutation and the Providence of God, while it at the same time prepared the soul for and obtained grace by the power of impetration, or by its efficacy as a prayer. This devotion of the Rosary has been the great secret of family holiness and has therefore been the source of vocations and of much of the sanctity of the Church. Vocation come from homes in which Jesus and Mary have a prominent place and in which the family is sanctified each evening by the recitation of the Rosary, which draws down the blessings and the protection of this sweet Mother.

We mean by goodness in families, supernatural goodness. Many families may be respectable and may enjoy the goodwill of their neighbors, but their goodness may be purely or largely natural, and may take no account of eternity. Some are here confused and they may tend to copy the natural goodness of others because they cannot distinguish between the natural and the supernatural. Some ask why do worldlings prosper, while the good have to suffer. This is again confusing the natural and the supernatural. Worldlings, or those who act as if this world were the only world, may prosper and be respected in this world, and God gives them this reward for their natural good works. But there is no word here of the supernatural rewards of eternity, which surpass any of the passing joys of this world. Our Lord never promised worldly rewards to His followers. The friends of Jesus may receive the gifts of this world, but these are only accidental. Our Lord advised His friends to lay up "treasures in Heaven" where they cannot be destroyed and where thieves do not steal. The hundredfold promised even in this life may not necessarily consist of wealth or honors. It may and generally does consist of blessings, which bring true peace of soul and prevent many misfortunes. But the supernatural reward promised to those who seek first the Kingdom of God will begin on the shores of eternity and will be never-ending. The family Rosary will prevent those unhappy occurrences in the home which cause such sadness for both parents and children and which often end in the destruction of the matrimonial bond. The family Rosary is one of the best prayers of the Church. Prayer is intended to raise the mind to God and to take our thoughts away from the passing affairs of this world. The Rosary is long enough to engage our attention for a sufficient time to enable us to leave aside our worldly cares, and this is good for both body and soul. It can be said on a journey or even when engaged in our occupations which do not demand all our attention. The indulgences of the Rosary are so great that the faithful ought to make use of this devotion for the relief of the souls in Purgatory. The Rosary is the devotion which belongs especially to Our Lady. No one who wishes for the assistance of Mary will neglect her Rosary.

Reprinted from The Mother of God and Her Glorious Feasts by Fr. H. O’Laverty, B.A.(1908), published by Tan Books & Publishers (1987). Imprimatur by Most Rev. J. Van der Meersch in Bruges, Belgium (June 27, 1925)

2007-02-28T14:08:00.000-08:00

FLOS Carmeli, vitis florigera, splendor caeli, Virgo puerpera singularis.
Mater mitis sed viri nescia Carmeliti sesto propitia stella maris.

FLOWER of Carmel, Tall vine blossom laden; Splendor of heaven, Childbearing yet maiden .None equals thee. Mother so tender, Who no man didst know,On Carmel's childrenThy favors bestow.Star of the Sea.

July - Month of the Most Sacred Blood of Jesus

July 16th - Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel

This feast was instituted by the Carmelites between 1376 and 1386 under the title "Commemoratio B. Marif Virg. duplex" to celebrate the victory of their order over its enemies on obtaining the approbation of its name and constitution from Honorius III on 30 Jan., 1226 (see Colvenerius, "Kal. Mar.", 30 Jan. "Summa Aurea", III, 737). The feast was assigned to 16 July, because on that date in 1251, according to Carmelite traditions, the scapular was given by the Blessed Virgin to St. Simon Stock; it was first approved by Sixtus V in 1587. After Cardinal Bellarmine had examined the Carmelite traditions in 1609, it was declared the patronal feast of the order, and is now celebrated in the Carmelite calendar as a major double of the first class with a vigil and a privileged octave (like the octave of Epiphany, admitting only a double of the first class) under the title "Commemoratio solemnis B.V.M. de Monte Carmelo". By a privilege given by Clement X in 1672, some Carmelite monasteries keep the feast on the Sunday after 16 July, or on some other Sunday in July. In the seventeenth century the feast was adopted by several dioceses in the south of Italy, although its celebration, outside of Carmelite churches, was prohibited in 1628 by a decree contra abusus. On 21 Nov., 1674, however, it was first granted by Clement X to Spain and its colonies, in 1675 to Austria, in 1679 to Portugal and its colonies, and in 1725 to the Papal States of the Church, on 24 Sept., 1726, it was extended to the entire Latin Church by Benedict XIII. The lessons contain the legend of the scapular; the promise of the Sabbatine privilege was inserted into the lessons by Paul V about 1614. The Greeks of southern Italy and the Catholic Chaldeans have adopted this feast of the "Vestment of the Blessed Virgin Mary". The object of the feast is the special predilection of Mary for those who profess themselves her servants by wearing her scapular

source : Catholic Encyclopedia
Author: Frederick G. Holweck

Prayer

O most beautiful Flower of Mt. Carmel, Fruitful Vine, Splendour of Heaven,
Blessed Mother of the Son of God, Immaculate Virgin, assist me in this my
necessity. O Star of the Sea, help me and show me herein you are my Mother. O
holy Mary, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and Earth, I humbly beseech you from
the bottom of my heart, to succour me in this necessity; there are none that can
withstand your power.
Amen

July - 20th

Saint Elijah Prophet & Our Father

The prophet Elijah appears in Scriptures as a man of God who lived always in God's presence and fought zealously for the worship of the one true God. He defended God's law in the solemn contest on Mount Carmel, and afterwards was given on Mount Horeb an intimate experience of the living God. The inspiration that was found in him from the very beginnings of the Order so pervades its whole history that the prophet may deservedly be called the founder of the Carmelite ideal.

Prayer

Almighty, ever‑living God, your prophet Elijah, our Father,

lived always in your presence and was zealous for the honour due to your name.

May we, your servants, always seek your face and bear witness to your love.

We ask this grace through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, One God, for ever and ever.

source - carmelite province - Ireland

Life

The Troparion of his feast calls him "a pillar of prophets, and the second Forerunner of the coming of Christ." Because, as Scripture tells us, he was taken to heaven in a fiery chariot, the Jewish people felt that he did not die as mortals do, and that some day he would return to earth to "restore the tribes of Israel." (Ecclus. 48: 10) Indeed, some people considered that Jesus Christ was actually the returned Elias.

Icons depicting Elias usually show him in a chariot drawn by fiery horses heading heavenward and his cloak or mantle falling earthward into the outstretched arms of Elisha his companion and disciple, signifying the transfer of his power and authority of a prophet.

His many miracles can easily be rendered in symbols:

rain ending a seven year drought; fire from heaven consuming his water drenched altar with its offering of a bull while the altar of the pagan priests, dry and ready, could not be ignited by incessant prayers to the pagan god Baal. There was also the widow of Sarephath whose two containers of oil and meal he kept repeatedly full through prayer, and then raised her son from a sudden death. On one occasion Elias, in order to cross the River Jordan, struck the waters with his cloak; the waters parted and he and Elisha were able to cross to the other side. At another time, while in hiding from persecutors, he hid by the Brook of Cherith and there, was miraculously fed by ravens.

To learn more details about these miraculous events we suggest you read Kings I, and Kings II of the Old Testament.

Elias was one of the greatest and most remarkable prophets of the Old Testament. Of his origin, not much is known, except that he was a Thesbite. He appeared on the historical scene during the reign of Achab (9 cent. B.C.). He delivered to that impious king the message of Yahweh: Israel would be punished by a long drought and Achab’s house would fall. He then lived to see the tragic end of Achab. Next we hear of Elias in connection with Ochozias, Achab’s son and successor, to whom he predicted that the injuries received in a fall would be fatal. The end of the earthly life of Elias came mysteriously. As he was conversing with Eliseus on the hills of Moah, "a fiery chariot, and fiery horses parted them both asunder, and Elias went up by a whirlwind into heaven" ( Kings. 2:11) Jews, Christians and Moslems pay high honor to Elias; Carmelite monks cherish the belief that their order was in some sense founded by him. Together with Moses, he appeared at Christ’s transfiguration.

The veneration of Elias dates back to apostolic times. In the fourth century, the feast was already generally known. St. John Chrysostom, St. Ambrose and St. Augustine have testified to his greatness, a fact which alone would prove the antiquity of this feast.

June - Month of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

The Devotion To The Sacred Heart Explained

Matt. 11:29 "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls."NRSV

"478 Jesus knew and loved us each and all during his life, his agony and his Passion, and gave himself up for each one of us: "The Son of God. . . loved me and gave himself for me." He has loved us all with a human heart. For this reason, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, pierced by our sins and for our salvation, "is quite rightly considered the chief sign and symbol of that. . . love with which the divine Redeemer continually loves the eternal Father and all human beings" without exception. "

Catechism of the Catholic Church.

"The worship, although paid to the Heart of Jesus, extends further than the Heart of flesh, being directed to the love of which this Heart is the living and expressive symbol." Catholic Encyclopedia.

The month of June, as all Catholics know, is the month of the Sacred Heart. During it the Church urges the faithful to special zeal in the worship of the Heart of our Saviour, considered as a part of His sacred Humanity and as the emblem of His infinite love.

The devotion to the Sacred Heart is one which has become widely known only since the seventeenth century; and it was not sanctioned by the Church for general use until the latter part of the eighteenth. Though it is now recognized as an important elenient in Catholic worship, it met with strenuous opposition when it was first introduced - not only from the

Jansenists (who had fallen into error regarding many doctrines of the Church) but from earnest Catholics who object to the new doctrine because they misunderstood it.

Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque.

Homage paid to the Heart of Jesus is mentioned by spiritual writers as early as the twelfth century; but it was practised to a very limited extent until a little more than two hundred years ago. A humble and holy French nun, the saintly Margaret Mary Alacoque, within the space of a religious life of only nineteen years, instituted a devotion which bids fair to last forever. She became the apostle of the beautiful and now universal worship of the loving Heart of our Blessed Saviour.

She was born in the village of Lhautecour, in France, in the year 1647, and lived until 1690. After a childhood remarkable for sanctity, she entered the community of the Visitation nuns at Paray-le-Monial in 1671. Here she lived a life of mortification and prayer, and in return for her fidelity and fervor our Divine Lord is said to have [granted] her a privilege which He has frequently given to other holy souls. He appeared to her on several occasions; and in one of these visions He showed her His Heart, pierced with a wound, encircled with a crown of thorns, surrounded by flames and surmounted by a cross - as we see it usually represented in pictures and statues at the present day. He commanded her to practise and to teach others the devotion to His Sacred Heart, because of His ardent desire to be loved by men and His wish to give to all mankind the treasures of His love and mercy. [See ccc 67 on private revelation.]

The pious nun sought the counsel of her superiors, and the account of her visions was received at first with incredulity. All her actions and her teachings were subjected to a most severe examination, and it was long before any approval was given to the devotion which she was endeavoring to establish. But the will of God cannot be opposed. The devotion spread rapidly through France, and was gradually established in other parts of the world. It did not at first receive the approbation[i.e. official approval] of the Holy See, for our Church is cautious in giving her sanctions to anything that savors of novelty in religion, and makes a long and careful scrutiny before she recommends a new devotion to her children. In 1794, however, Pius VI issued a decree approving the devotion to the Sacred Heart and granting indulgences to those who practise it.

The Feast of the Sacred Heart.

Attempts had been made, in 1697 and in 1729, to have a day set apart in honor of the Sacred Heart, but on both occasions the proposal was rejected by the Roman Congregation of Rites. In 1765, however, a number of churches were permitted to celebrate this feast, and in 1856 this permission was extended to the whole world, and the feast was fixed on the day after the festival of Corpus Christi, in the month of June. In 1889, under Leo XIII, the day was raised to a higher rank in the Church's calendar, and all mankind was solemnly consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. On account of the importance of this great June festival, the whole month of June is considered as being specially devoted to the worship of the Sacred Heart.

Margaret Mary Alacoque was pronounced Venerable by Leo XII in 1824, and was honored with the title of Blessed by Pius IX in 1864. Through her intercession many miracles have been performed, especially at the place of her burial; and on account of these and of the great devotion which she established, her name has been placed on the calendar of the Church's Saints, and her virtues will be henceforth venerated by all Catholics. She was declared a Saint by Pope Benedict XV in 1920.

Why We Adore the Sacred Heart.

Let us examine into the reasonableness of this devotion. Are we obliged to believe the account of the visions of Margaret Mary? No. We are not obliged to believe anything supernatural except the truths that God has revealed to be accepted by all. This is a point that is nearly always misunderstood by non-Catholics. Because we Catholics practise a devotion which was established by a woman who claimed to have had a vision, they regard us as votaries [followers] of superstition and our Church as a promoter of fanciful ideas, not reflecting that, even though the vision might be false, the devotion might be true. The Catholic Church does not assert that the French nun really saw our Blessed Lord; neither does she oblige us to believe it. She merely declares that the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus is not only not opposed in any way to divine revelation, but that it is an excellent form of worship; and she recommends it to her children, urges them to make use of it, and grants spiritual favors to those who do so.

We shall state briefly the Catholic doctrine regarding the worship of the Sacred Heart. It is not a mere relative homage, such as we give to holy things or to holy persons. It is not the higher form of religious veneration, such as we pay to the Blessed Mother of God. It is supreme adoration, because it is paid to the physical Heart of Christ, considered not as mere flesh, but as united to the Divinity. We Catholics adore that Heart as the Heart of Christ, an inseparable part of Him. All the members of Christ are or may be the object of divine worship, because they are a part of His human nature and are thereby united to the Divine Nature of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity.

["ccc 480 Jesus Christ is true God and true man, in the unity of his divine person; for this reason he is the one and only mediator between God and men." 481 Jesus Christ possesses two natures, one divine and the other human, not confused, but united in the one person of God's Son.
482 Christ, being true God and true man, has a human intellect and will, perfectly attuned and subject to his divine intellect and divine will, which he has in common with the Father and the Holy Spirit. 483 The Incarnation is therefore the mystery of the wonderful union of the divine and human natures in the one person of the Word."]

But why is the Heart of Jesus selected as the object of this special adoration? Because His real and physical Heart is a natural symbol of the infinite charity of the Saviour and of His interior and spiritual life. The heart is a vital organ which, as it throbs within us, is part of our existence. It has always been looked upon as an emblem, sometimes of courage, sometimes of one's whole interior nature, but oftener of love. How often we hear such expressions as "Be of good heart," meaning "Have courage"; " He opened his heart to me," meaning " He told me all his secrets "; and our Lord Jesus, in asking our love, made the request in these words, "Son, give me thy heart." We see, then the reasonableness of taking the Sacred Heart of our Saviour as an object of our worship, not only because it is a part of Him, but because it symbolizes His love for all mankind. ["The heart is the seat of the moral personality..."

ccc 2517.]

From early times the Five Wounds of our Lord were venerated as the symbol of His Passion, and this devotion received the approbation of the Church. In like manner, in these later days, she has seen fit to sanction and recommend the worship of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and to urge her children to offer their homage to that symbol of our Saviour's love, wherewith "He has loved us even to the end."

[ccc 2669 "The prayer of the Church venerates and honors the Heart of Jesus just as it invokes his most holy name. It adores the incarnate Word and his Heart which, out of love for men, he allowed to be pierced by our sins. Christian prayer loves to follow the way of the cross in the Savior's steps. The stations from the Praetorium to Golgotha and the tomb trace the way of Jesus, who by his holy Cross has redeemed the world. "]
A Symbol of Love.

We must remember, then, that while this devotion is directed to the material Heart of our Blessed Lord, it does not stop there. It includes also a spiritual element - namely, the infinite love of Jesus for us, which is recalled and symbolized by His Sacred Heart. [See ccc 478.]

There is no devotion that has been extended throughout the Catholic world in so short a time. This means of realizing and honoring the all-embracing love of our Blessed Saviour would seem to have filled a long-felt want in the hearts of the devout faithful...
The First Fridays.

One of the greatest factors not only in making the worship of the Sacred Heart known but in distributing its spiritual benefits is the " Devotion of the First Fridays." The faithful are exhorted to receive Holy Communion on the first Friday of each month for nine months in succession, by which they may gain a plenary indulgence; and in many churches and chapels the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament takes place, either during the whole day or in the evening, and special services are held in honor of our Eucharistic Lord and especially of His Sacred Heart, the symbol of His unutterable love for us whom He died to save." [See

ccc 1438 on the penetential character of each Friday.]

source : Rev. John F. Sullivan, The Externals of the Catholic Church, Kenedy & Sons (1917) pp. 243-47. Imprimatur +John Cardnal Farley, Archbishop of NY, 3/27/1918. References to the catechism and material in brackets are provided by the editor. The image above was obtained from the NY Sacred Heart Apostolate.

Month of Mary

The month of May is the "month which the piety of the faithful has especially dedicated to Our Blessed Lady," and it is the occasion for a "moving tribute of faith and love which Catholics in every part of the world [pay] to the Queen of Heaven. During this month Christians, both in church and in the privacy of the home, offer up to Mary from their hearts an especially fervent and loving homage of prayer and veneration. In this month, too, the benefits of God's mercy come down to us from her throne in greater abundance" (Paul VI: Encyclical on the Month of May, no. 1).

This Christian custom of dedicating the month of May to the Blessed Virgin arose at the end of the 13th century. In this way, the Church was able to Christianize the secular feasts which were wont to take place at that time. In the 16th century, books appeared and fostered this devotion.

The practice became especially popular among the members of the Jesuit Order — by 1700 it took hold among their students at the Roman College and a bit later it was publicly practiced in the Gesu Church in Rome. From there it spread to the whole Church.

The practice was granted a partial indulgence by Pius VII in 1815 and a plenary indulgence by Pius IX in 1859. With the complete revision of indulgences in 1966 and the decreased emphasis on specific indulgences, it no longer carries an indulgence; however it certainly falls within the category of the First General Grant of Indulgences. (A partial indulgence is granted to the faithful who, in the performance of their duties and in bearing the trials of life, raise their mind with humble confidence to God, adding — even if only mentally — some pious invocation.

Excerpted from Enchiridion of Indulgences.

The Month of Mary and the Popes

The pious practice of honoring Mary during the month of May has been especially recommended by the Popes. Pius XII made frequent reference to it and in his great Encyclical on the Sacred Liturgy (Mediator Dei) characterized it as one of "other exercises of piety which although not strictly belonging to the Sacred Liturgy, are nevertheless of special import and dignity, and may be considered in a certain way to be an addition to the liturgical cult: they have been approved and praised over and over again by the Apostolic See and by the Bishops" (no. 182).

Paul VI wrote a short encyclical in 1965 using the Month of Mary devotion as a means of obtaining prayers for peace. He urged the faithful to make use of this practice which is "gladdening and consoling" and by which the Blessed Virgin Mary is honored and the Christian people are enriched with spiritual gifts" (no. 2).

In May of 2002 Pope John Paul II said, "Today we begin the month dedicated to Our Lady a favourite of popular devotion. In accord with a long-standing tradition of devotion, parishes and families continue to make the month of May a "Marian" month, celebrating it with many devout liturgical, catechetical and pastoral initiatives!"

Devotion to Mary

The Blessed Virgin Mary is the Mother of the Church and therefore the example, as well as the guide and inspiration, of everyone who, in and through the Church, seeks to be the servant of God and man and the obedient agent of the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit, as Pope Leo XIII reminded us, is the soul of the Church: All the activity and service of the members of the Church, beginning with the supreme participation of the Blessed Mother in the work of the Church, is vivified by the Holy Spirit as the body, in all its activities, is vivified by its soul. The Holy Spirit is the Paraclete, Advocate, and Comforter which Christ Himself sent to be our consolation in the sorrowful mysteries of life, our source of moderation in the joyful mysteries of life, our added principle of exaltation in the glorious mysteries of life.

So He was for the Blessed Mother; so also He is for the least of us; so also He is for the rest of the Church, even for those who are its unconscious but conscientious members.

Wherever there is faith there is the example of Mary, because she lived by faith as the Scriptures remind us....

If, then, piety is the virtue which binds us to the sources of all life, to God, to our parents, to the Church, to Christ, certainly Christian piety binds us, in grateful love, to Mary — or our acceptance of Christ and of the mystery of our kinship with Him is imperfect, partial, and unfulfilled. — Cardinal John Wright

Mary and Our Spiritual Life

In our observance of the Marian month we should take into account the season of the Liturgical Year which largely corresponds with the fifty days of Easter. Our pious exercises could emphasize Our Lady's participation in the Paschal mystery and in Pentecost with which the Church begins. The pious exercises connected with the month of May can easily highlight the earthly role played by the glorified Queen of Heaven, here and now, in the celebration of the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Eucharist.

The following practices which are recommended by the Magisterium are offered as suggestions for honoring Our Lady during Her month.

The Regina Coeli
The ecclesial community addresses this antiphon to Mary for the Resurrection of her Son. It adverts to, and depends on, the invitation to joy addressed by Gabriel to the Lord's humble servant who was called to become the Mother of the saving Messiah.

The Rosary
Also called the Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Rosary is one of the most excellent prayers to the Mother of God. Thus, "the Roman Pontiffs have repeatedly exhorted the faithful to the frequent recitation of this biblically inspired prayer which is centered on contemplation of the salvific events of Christ's life, and their close association with the Virgin Mother."

Litanies of the Blessed Virgin Mary
These consist of a long series of invocations to Our Lady, which follow in a uniform rhythm, thereby creating a stream of prayer characterized by insistent praise and supplication.

Consecration and Entrustment to Mary
The Roman Pontiffs have frequently expressed appreciation for the pious practice of "consecration to the Blessed Virgin Mary" and the formulas publicly used by them are well known.

Louis Grignon de Montfort is one of the great masters of the spirituality underlying the act of "consecration to Mary". He "proposed to the faithful consecration to Jesus through Mary, as an effective way of living out their baptismal commitment."

The Brown Scapular and other Scapulars
The scapular is an external sign of the filial relationship established between the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother and Queen of Mount Carmel, and the faithful who entrust themselves totally to her protection, who have recourse to her maternal intercession, who are mindful of the primacy of the spiritual life and the need for prayer.

Medals
These are witnesses of faith and a sign of veneration of the Holy Mother of God, as well as of trust in her maternal protection.

The Church blesses such objects of Marian devotion in the belief that "they help to remind the faithful of the love of God, and to increase trust in the Blessed Virgin Mary."

source : www.catolicculture.org

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Pious Practices For Lent
source : Tom Nelson - Publisher: TAN Books & Publishing (www.tanbooks.com)

Every Lent, Holy Mother The Church advocates certain pious practices that her children should perform to satisfy their requirements to do penance, to pray, to perform good works, to make reparation for their sins, and to further the apostolic work of the Church.

Our Lord tells us, as recorded in Scripture, "Unless you shall do penance, you shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13:3). And St. John the Baptist announced the coming of the Saviour with the ominous admonition, "Do penance: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." (Matt. 3:2).

With regard to prayer, St. Paul tells us to "Pray without ceasing." (1 Thess. 5:17). And Our dear Lord advises us, "Amen, amen I say to you: if you ask the Father anything in my name, he will give it you." (John 16:23). Also He said, "If you abide in me [i.e., "live in Me," or "stay in the state of grace"], and my words abide ["live"] in you, you shall ask whatever you will, and it shall be done unto you." (John 15:7). Further, Our Lord has said, "Watch ye, therefore, praying at all times, that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that are to come, and to stand before the Son of man." (Luke 21:36). And in the Book of Judith we read, "Know ye that the Lord will hear your prayers, if you continue with perseverance in fastings and prayers in the sight of the Lord." (Judith 4:11).

Our obligation to do apostolic work, no matter who we are, is seen in the general admonition of St. John the Baptist, ". . .make straight the way of the Lord . . ." (In. 1:23; Is. 40:3). The Church has used this counsel in her Advent liturgy, so we know it applies to all-at least to the extent that all must pray and do penance for the success of the Church's missionary activity, help support it financially-and wherever possible take an active part in the conversion or reconversion of those we know.

The primary purpose of Lent, of course, is to help us become truly holy-and we should work toward this goal during Lent by extra prayer, penance, good works, almsgiving, attendance at Mass and reception of the Sacraments (the chief sources of grace).
SPECIFIC PRACTICES TO CHOOSE FROM

1. Abstinence: This is the giving up of something we like to eat, drink, smoke, use, etc. (All Catholics 14 and over are currently required to abstain from meat on Ash Wednesday and all the Fridays of Lent.) We can abstain from (give up) meat on days other than those required, give up candy, sweets, dessert, pop, gum, coffee, tea, smoking, beer, wine, hard liquor, eating between meals, and/or our favorite foods and drinks, etc.

2. Fasting: This is still required by the Church of all those age 21 through 59 on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, but it is something which most people can do every day during Lent (except Sunday, which was never a day of fasting). This was formerly required of all Catholics 21 through 59 years of age. The Catholic Church's traditional method of fasting is to take only one full meal per day, at which meat may be eaten (unless it is also a day of abstinence), plus 2 small meals that together do not equal the main meal and at which no meat is eaten, with nothing eaten between meals. This is a mild form of fasting, but one which leaves the person always a little on the hungry side and ever cognizant that he is depriving himself of his regular fare.

3. TV: We can drastically limit our TV viewing, give up favorite programs or eliminate it altogether.

4. Prayer:
- The daily Rosary. Our Lady urgently requested the daily recitation of the Rosary (5 decades) during each of her appearances at Fatima.

- The First Saturday devotion, requested by Our Lady at Fatima.

With regard to this devotion, Our Lady revealed to Sr. Lucy of Fatima on December 10, 1925, "I promise to assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation, all those who on the First Saturday of 5 consecutive months shall confess, receive Holy Communion, recite 5 decades of the Rosary, and keep me company for 15 minutes, while meditating on the 15 mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me." (A later revelation indicated that the Confession may be 8 days before or after the First Saturday and the meditation on the mysteries of the Rosary may be on as few as one of the mysteries and does not need to be performed before the Blessed Sacrament.).

- An extra Mass or more each week. The Holy Sarcrifice of the Mass is the greatest prayer there is.

- A Holy Hour, once a week, twice a week, or each day.

This is one of the most underrated devotions in the Church. Our Lord Himself has said, "Could you not watch one hour with me?" (Matt. 26:40). Granted, this was addressed to the Apostles in the Garden of Olives the night before He was crucified, but it can be applied to all of us generallyand how very, very few practice this powerful devotion! Archbishop Fulton Sheen made it the center of his daily devotions, after the Mass.

- Pray for those in Purgatory. We have an obligation to pray for our relatives and for anyone we may have harmed by our sins. A Rosary before the Blessed Sacrament after Mass is extremely efficacious for the Poor Souls and can lead to the gaining of a plenary indulgence-all other conditions for this being fulfilled.

- Pray for those who are in danger of dying without being in the state of Sanctifying Grace. Such prayers should be offered to Our Lady to apply as she desires, for she sees clearly who really needs the extra graces at any given time.

- Pray for anyone you may have had the misfortune to lead into sin.
- Pray for an end to abortion.
- Pray for peace in the world. The Old Testament tells us, "The heart of the king is in the hand of the Lord: whithersoever he will, he shall turn it." (Prov. 21:1). Prayer can work miracles and change the hearts of even wicked rulers.

5. Go to Confession once a week: Frequent Confession is generally said to be once a month, but in Introduction to the Devout Life St. Francis de Sales recommends once a week, and St. Alphonsus Liguori says that anyone who is serious about saving his soul will go often, "at least once a week." Some Saints went every day; many went several times a week. Just prior to Vatican II, priests in the U.S.A. were advocating once a week and getting about 1/3 to 1/2 compliance by the people. This is one of the best ways to make progress in the spiritual life because we regularly stay focused on what we are doing wrong.

6. Examine your conscience every night: Review the day and what you did and did not do that might have displeased God; then, keep these things in mind for your next Confession.

7. Do penance: Our Lord has made it perfectly clear that penance is necessary for salvation. (See the quotes from Scripture above.) To Sr. Lucy of Fatima, He revealed that "The penance I now ask and require is that necessary for the fulfillment of My law and the performance of one's daily duties."

8. Perform good works:
- Visit the sick.
- Visit people in nursing homes once a week.
- Counsel, picket or pray at abortion clinics.
- Join in the abortion rescue effort.
- Take someone to Mass with you on Sundays.
- Get someone with a marriage problem to see a priest.

9. Give alms:
- Increase your donation at Church.
- Give to cloistered monasteries and convents in your area.
- Support good Catholic schools.
- Support crisis pregnancy centers.
- Support local soup kitchens.
- Help those who are poor.

10. Do Apostolic work:
- Take someone to Mass with you.
- Take someone to Confession with you.
- Invite someone to become a Catholic-start talking to him about it.
- Get him to a priest for instruction.
- Get a priest to visit a fallen-away Catholic, especially an elderly one.
- Distribute Catholic books and booklets. (TAN has many titles that are discounted specifically for this purpose.)
- Distribute prayer cards and leaflets. (TAN has over a dozen of these, drastically discounted for wide distribution, plus small flyers announcing Catholic books.)

11. Engage in spiritual reading:
- Require yourself to do at least 15 minutes of reading from a good Catholic book each day.
- Read your Bible at least 15 minutes each day.
- Read from the life of a Saint for at least 15 minutes each day. (These are the heroes and heroines we should imitate.)

12. Consecrate your life to God and renew the consecration each day. Or, consecrate yourself to God through the Blessed Virgin Mary and read about and begin to practice "True Devotion to Mary." Read St. Louis De Montfort's book called True Devotion to Mary, one of the Church's greatest classics.

REMEMBER: Lent is a holy season set aside by the Church during which we are recommended to do extra prayer, penance, sacrifice, good works and almsgiving, plus to frequent the Sacraments and attend Mass more often-all for the welfare of our souls. And we should all keep before our minds that many a pious practice begun during Lent has become a lifelong virtuous habit that has thereby helped to perfect those who have made a mere "humble beginning" during Lent.

From Tom Nelson - Publisher: TAN Books & Publishing (www.tanbooks.com)

The Advent

2006-12-21T09:00:00.000-08:00

Mary Through Advent by

Benedict XVI Weekly Update

from the Marian Library/ International Marian Research Institute

December 20, 2005 / With the celebration of First Vespers of the First Sunday in Advent we are beginning a new liturgical year. In singing the Psalms together, we have raised our hearts to God, placing ourselves in the spiritual attitude that marks this season of grace: "vigilance in prayer" and "exultation in praise" (cf. Roman Missal, Advent Preface, II/A). Taking as our model Mary Most Holy, who teaches us to live by devoutly listening to the Word of God, let us reflect on the short Bible Reading just proclaimed.

It consists of two verses contained in the concluding part of the First Letter of St Paul to the Thessalonians (I Thes 5:23-24). The first expresses the Apostle's greeting to the community: the second offers, as it were, the guarantee of its fulfillment. The hope expressed is that each one may be made holy by God and preserved irreproachable in his entire person —"spirit, soul and body"—for the final coming of the Lord Jesus; the guarantee that this can happen is offered by the faithfulness of God himself, who will not fail to bring to completion the work he has begun in believers. This First Letter to the Thessalonians is the first of all St Paul's Letters, written probably in the year 51. In this first Letter we can feel, more than in the others, the Apostle's pulsating heart, his paternal, indeed we can say maternal, love for this new community. And we also feel his anxious concern that the faith of this new Church not die, surrounded as she was by a cultural context in many regards in opposition to the faith.

The "Coming"of the Lord Thus, Paul ends his Letter with a hope, or we might almost say with a prayer. The content of the prayer we have heard is that they (the Thessalonians) should be holy and irreproachable to the moment of the Lord's coming. The central word of this prayer is "coming." We should ask ourselves what does "coming of the Lord" mean? In Greek it is "parousia," in Latin "adventus," "advent," "coming." What is this "coming"? Does it involve us or not? To understand the meaning of this word, hence, of the Apostle's prayer for this community and for communities of all times—also for us—we must look at the person through whom the coming of the Lord was uniquely brought about: the Virgin Mary.

Mary belonged to that part of the People of Israel who in Jesus' time were waiting with heartfelt expectation for the Savior's coming. And from the words and acts recounted in the Gospel, we can see how she truly lived steeped in the Prophets' words; she entirely expected the Lord's coming. She could not, however, have imagined how this coming would be brought about. Perhaps she expected a coming in glory. The moment when the Archangel Gabriel entered her house and told her that the Lord, the Savior, wanted to take flesh in her, wanted to bring about his coming through her, must have been all the more surprising to her. We can imagine the Virgin's apprehension. Mary, with a tremendous act of faith and obedience, said "yes": "I am the servant of the Lord." And so it was that she became the "dwelling place" of the Lord, a true "temple" in the world and a "door" through which the Lord entered upon the earth. We have said that this coming was unique: "the" coming of the Lord.

Yet there is not only the final coming at the end of time: in a certain sense the Lord always wants to come through us. And he knocks at the door of our hearts: are you willing to give me your flesh, your time, your life? This is the voice of the Lord who also wants to enter our epoch, he wants to enter human life through us. He also seeks a living dwelling place in our personal lives. This is the coming of the Lord. Let us once again learn this in the season of Advent: the Lord can also come among us.

Advent

The word Advent derives from the Latin word meaning coming. The Lord is coming. We may reflect that every year at this time we celebrate his coming , so that in a sense we can lose the feeling of expectancy and joyful anticipation, because at the end of the season, everything seems to return to pretty much the same routine. If that is the case, then our preparation may have been lacking and we have therefore been robbed of much of the true meaning of this season.

During Advent we recall the history of God's people and reflect on how the prophecies and promises of the Old Testament were fulfilled. This gives us a background for the present. Today we can reflect on the past track record of God and so begin to understand what it means to us now for the sake of what is to come, in our own future and that of our world.

© Liguori Publications Excerpt from Advent - A Quality Storecupboard The Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer

Sermon XXVI. On the Feast of the Nativity, VI St. Leo the Great

(part I)

"Christmas Morning is the Most Appropriate Time for Thoughts on the Nativity.
On all days and at all times, dearly beloved, does the birth of our Lord and Saviour from the Virgin-mother occur to the thoughts of the faithful, who meditate on divine things, that the mind may be aroused to the acknowledgment of its Maker, and whether it be occupied in the groans of supplication, or in the shouting of praise, or in the offering of sacrifice, may employ its spiritual insight on nothing more frequently and more trustingly than on the fact that God the Son of God, begotten of the co-eternal Father, was also born by a human birth. But this Nativity which is to be adored in heaven and on earth is suggested to us by no day more than this when, with the early light still shedding its rays on nature, there is borne in upon our senses the brightness of this wondrous mystery. For the angel Gabriel's converse with the astonished Mary and her conception by the Holy Ghost as wondrously promised as believed, seem to recur not only to the memory but to the very eyes. For to day the Maker of the world was born of a Virgin's womb, and He, who made all natures, became Son of her, whom He created. To-day the Word of God appeared clothed in flesh, and That which had never been visible to human eyes began to be tangible to our hands as well. Today the shepherds learnt from angels' voices that the Saviour was born in the substance of our flesh and soul; and to-day the form of the Gospel message was pre-arranged by the leaders of the Lord's flocks, so that we too may say with the arm), of the heavenly host: "Glory in the highest to God, and on earth peace to men of good will."

The "O" Antiphons

December 17th:O Wisdom, you come forth from the mouth of the Most High. You fill the universe and hold all things together in a strong yet gentle manner. O come to teach us the way of truth.

December 18th:O Adonai and leader of Israel, you appeared to Moses in a burning bush and you gave him the Law on Sinai. O come and save us with your mighty power.

December 19th:O stock of Jesse, you stand as a signal for the nations; kings fall silent before you whom the peoples acclaim. O come to deliver us, and do not delay.

December 20th:O key of David and scepter of Israel, what you open no one else can close again; what you close no one can open. O come to lead the captive from prison; free those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.

December 21st:O Rising Sun, you are the splendor of eternal light and the sun of justice. O come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.

December 22nd:O King whom all the peoples desire, you are the cornerstone which makes all one. O come and save man whom you made from clay.

December 23rd:O Emmanuel, you are our king and judge, the One whom the peoples await and their Savior. O come and save us, Lord, our God.

The Blessed Scapular and the Rosary

2006-05-16T09:15:00.000-07:00

The Rosary, Brown Scapular and The Sabbatine Privilege

More information on the Carmelite Order and its Saints Calendar - click on this English Link

The Rosary,Brown Scapular andThe Sabbatine Privilege Pope St. Pius X said: "If you want peace in your heart, in your home, in your country, assemble together every night and say the ROSARY". Many complain that it is a tireless repetition-that they cannot meditate on the mysteries.

Our Blessed Mother gave this advice to St. Dominic: "This is why, before doing anything else, priests should try to kindle a love of prayer in people's hearts and especially a love of my rosary. If only they would all start saying it and persevere, God, in His mercy, could hardly refuse to give them His grace. So I want you to preach my Rosary!"

St. Louis de Montfort said: "I beg of you to beware of thinking of the Rosary as something of little importance – as do ignorant people and even several great but proud scholars. Far from being insignificant, the Rosary is a priceless treasure which is inspired by God." He also tells us: "For never will anyone who says his Rosary every day become a formal heretic or be led astray by the devil." St. Dominic prayed to Our Lady that she would force the devils who possessed a man to reveal the truth about devotion to her.

The devils were forced by Our Lady to reveal: "Now that we are forced to speak we must also tell you this: Nobody who perseveres in saying the Rosary will be damned, because she obtains for her servants the grace of true contrition for their sins and by means of this they obtain God's forgiveness and mercy." St. Teresa of Avila tells us how priceless a treasure it is by showing the value and merits of a single HAIL MARY. Shortly after her death, she appeared to one of the Sisters of her Community and told her that she was willing to return to a life of suffering until the end of time to merit the degree of glory which God rewards one devoutly recited Hail Mary.
What a Wonderful Consolation to know that we can be assured of Salvation by giving just fifteen minutes a day to Praying the Rosary.

Another magnificent assurance of Salvation is Our Lady's Brown Scapular.

One of the great mysteries of our time is that the great majority of Catholics either ignore or have forgotten the Blessed Virgin Mary's promise that "whoever dies clothed in this (Scapular) shall not suffer eternal fire." She further says: "Wear it devoutly and perseveringly. It is my garment. To be clothed in it means you are continually thinking of me, and I in turn, am always thinking of you and helping you to secure eternal life." Many Catholics may not know that it is the wish of our Holy Father, the Pope, that the Scapular Medal should not be worn in place of the Cloth Scapular without sufficient reason.

Mary cannot be pleased with anyone who substitutes the medal out of vanity or fear to make open profession of religion. Such persons run the risk of not receiving the promise. The medal has never been noted for any of the miraculous preservations attributed to the Brown Cloth Scapular. To obtain the fullest possible benefits from the Brown Scapular devotion, one must be validly invested (sometimes called enrolled) in the Brown Scapular by a priest. Every priest has the privilege of enrolling Catholics in the Scapular. After having received the initial blessed Scapular from a priest, no other Scapular need be blessed before wearing. The blessing and imposition are attached to the wearer for life.

During the Scapular Anniversary celebration in Rome, Pope Pius XII told a very large audience to wear the Brown Scapular as a sign of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Our Lady asked for this consecration in the last apparition at Fatima, when she appeared as Our Lady of Mount Carmel, holding the Brown Scapular out to the whole world. It was Her last loving appeal to souls to wear Her Scapular as a sign of Consecration to Her Immaculate Heart.

St. Claude de la Colombiere, the renowned Jesuit and spiritual director of St. Margaret Mary, gives a point which is enlightening. He said: "Because all the forms of our love for the Blessed Virgin, all its various modes of expression cannot be equally pleasing to Her, and therefore do not assist us in the same degree to Heaven. I say without a moments hesitation that the BROWN SCAPULAR IS THE MOST FAVORED OF ALL!" He also adds: "No devotion has been confirmed by more numerous authentic miracles than the Brown Scapular."

The two great founders of their own respective Orders, St. Alphonsus of the Redemptorists and St. Don Bosco of the Salesians – both had a very special devotion to Our Lad of Mount Carmel and both wore Her Brown Scapular. When they died, they were buried in their priestly vestments and Scapulars. Many years later, their graves were opened, the bodies and sacred vestments in which they were buried decayed-dust! BUT THE BROWN SCAPULAR WHICH EACH WAS WEARING WAS PERFECTLY INTACT. The Scapular of St. Alphonsus is on exhibit in his monastery in Rome.

Our Lady revealed to Venerable Dominic of Jesus and Mary: "Although many wear my Scapular, only a few fulfill conditions for the SABBATINE PRIVILEGE." We maintain the majority don't know them. It is an act of charity to make the SABBATINE PRIVILEGE known to all. A soul from Purgatory was asked by a Sister: "What is the average stay of the souls in Purgatory?" The Poor Soul answered: "From thirty to forty years!" Can you see the importance of making Our Lady's Privilege known-if you consider that the flames are the same as the fires of Hell!

A last reminder – we give you the message of one pastor. He said: "If I were positive that all my parishioners died wearing the Brown Scapular, I would be most certain that we would all meet in Heaven." If this pastor can be so certain about his parishioners, why can't all pastors be just as certain? Give your pastor this circular. Why can't every father and mother be certain of their children, family and friends? Explain to them the...

... SCAPULAR PROMISE and the SABBATINE PRIVILEGE. Heed Our Lady's wish: "DRESS THEM WITH THE GARMENT OF MY SCAPULAR, AND LEAD THEM TO MY SON, YOUR LORD JESUS CHRIST!"