Fr. Peter and the Immaculate

I was blessed as a young Carmelite to be taught by  the late Fr. Peter Damian Fehlner. Here is a magnificent conference by Fr. Angelo about Fr. Peter's Marian writings. To quote:

At the Symposium titled "Sursum Actio" at Notre Dame Univ. from Jun 8-9, 2015, in honor of the life work of Fr. Peter Damian Fehlner, F.I., Fr. Angelo Geiger, FI, from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas, gives the thirteenth conference which he titles, "In the Counsels of the Immaculate: Fr. Peter Damian Fehlner’s Contribution to the Renewal of Franciscan Immaculatism". He points out how much Fr. Peter has contributed to renewing the great Marian tradition of the Franciscan Conventuals and how this is the way they will regroup and fulfill their mission of renewing the Church. Fr. Peter did this primarily by bringing to light the great patrimony of St. Maximilian Kolbe in promoting total consecration to Mary in the Church as a way of bringing to fruition the declaration of the Immaculate Conception as a dogma in 1854. (Read more.)

O Bona Crux

On this day, Andrew the poor fisherman from Galilee, patron saint of Scotland, of Greece, and of Russia, passed into eternal glory after many ordeals. Here is an excerpt from the old Martyrology for November 30, Feast of St Andrew the Apostle, as quoted in Dom Gueranger's The Liturgical Year, Vol XV :

Andrew, having been brought to the place of execution, seeing the cross at some distance, began to cry out: O good cross, made beautiful by the body of my Lord! so long desired, so anxiously loved, so unceasingly sought after, and now at last ready for my soul to enjoy! take me from amidst men, and restore me to my Master; that by thee He may receive me, Who by thee redeemed me. He was therefore fastened to the cross, on which he hung alive two days, preaching without cessation the faith of Christ....

The Pilgrims

Laudem Gloriae discusses the origins of our American Thanksgiving. To quote:

Queen Elizabeth had little patience for the Catholics, but even less for the Calvinists, who complained the Church of England remained too papist. In their desire to complete the Reformation and purify religion of popish trumperies, the Puritans broke from the Anglican Church, rejected the Book of Common Prayer, and preferred the anti-royalist Geneva Bible to the King James version. They instituted an independent congregationalist ideal that upheld the notion of the common priesthood of all believers, and thus granted an equal say among congregants in the election of the minister (some claim the roots of American democracy lie here). All of this naturally brought down upon them the wrath of the Crown. A number of Puritans sought refuge in Holland, where they lived in religious freedom for a dozen years, after which they chose to emigrate to America. After meeting another group of Puritans in Southampton, all boarded the Mayflower on September 16, 1620. Sixty-five days later, they sighted Cape Cod. The first Thanksgiving celebration (which lasted three days) took place in 1621 with about ninety Native Americans, and wasn't celebrated again until some years later, when in 1863 Abraham Lincoln declared it a national holiday. (Read more.)

More HERE.

The persistence of American Thanksgiving customs is impressive. While cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie may not have been on the menu at Plymouth in 1621, when venison and an unspecified "fowle"; graced the communal table, Americans have celebrated their unique holiday for giving thanks to God in ways that are highly recognizable from generation to generation, from century to century.

Blessed Miguel Pro

From Blessed Miguel Pro Catholic Academy:

 Blessed Fr. Miguel Pro was a Jesuit priest who was executed by a firing squad in Mexico for exercising his priestly ministry during the persecution of the Catholic Church in Mexico during the presidency of Elias Plutarco Calles.

Fr. Pro was born into a mining family in Guadalupe, Zacatecas on January 13, 1891. He was the third of eleven children, four of whom had died as infants or young children. Two of his sisters joined a convent. He was known for his great charity and for being a playful and prayerful man. He was known for the long periods he spent in the chapel. He was known for his great joy and love, even as he suffered from years of stomach illness that resulted in having to have multiple stomach surgeries.

Pro studied in Mexico until 1914 when a massive wave of governmental anti-Catholicism forced the novitiate to dissolve and the Jesuits to flee to Los Gatos, California, in the United States. He then went to study in Granada, Spain (1915–19), and from 1919 to 1922 taught in Nicaragua. Sadly, in Mexico, beginning in 1917, anti-Catholic laws were passed that did not allow priests to minister publicly, or even to wear clothing that identified them as priests in public. People had to be ministered to in their homes and in an underground manner. During this time the League for the Defense of Religious Liberty began to fight back against the oppression. They came to be known as the cristeros or Soldiers of Christ.

Fr. Pro took on many disguises in order to minister secretly to the persecuted Church and avoid being captured by the federales for carrying out ministry illegally. He was known to dress as a ‘dandy’ on the streets of Mexico City. He even disguised himself as a mechanic in order to give a conference to a group of cab and bus drivers.

Fr. Pro was also known for his great works of charity. The poverty level in Mexico at the time was so extreme that Fr. Pro, in addition to carrying out his spiritual duties, had an active ministry providing the poor with food, clothing, and shelter.

A  failed attempt to assassinate Álvaro Obregón in November 1927, provided the state with a pretext for arresting Pro, this time with his brothers Humberto and Roberto. A young engineer who confessed his part in the assassination testified that the Pro brothers were not involved. However, President Calles gave orders to have Pro and his brother Humberto executed for the assassination attempt.

On November 23, 1927, as Fr. Pro walked from his cell to the courtyard and the firing squad, he blessed the soldiers, knelt, and briefly prayed quietly. Declining a blindfold, he faced his executioners with a crucifix in one hand and a rosary in the other and held his arms out in imitation of the crucified Christ and shouted out,

“May God have mercy on you! May God bless you! Lord, Thou knowest that I am innocent! With all my heart I forgive my enemies!”

Before the firing squad was ordered to shoot, Pro raised his arms in imitation of Christ and shouted,

“Viva Cristo Rey!” – “Long live Christ the King!”. (Read more.)

The Last Judgment

From A Pilgrim's Journey:

We live in the “last days,” and those last days began with the birth, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. At the time of His ascension into heaven, the promise was given to the apostles that “this Jesus, whom you have seen taken from your sight, will return in the same way as you have seen Him go.” The second coming of Christ is a doctrine of our faith.

Our Lord Jesus Christ said, “In those days, after that great tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in heaven will be shaken. And then they will see the Son of man coming in clouds with great power and glory. And then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven...” And so when considering the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, there are four main features which call for our attention:

First, He will come in truth and with an unmistakable reality. Christ tells us, “They will see the Son of Man coming...” In other words, there won’t be any doubt about who He is. Up until the moment of His return, deception is possible. There were many false prophets in the Old Testament; we’re warned about false Christs in the New Testament. In fact, people were so accustomed to false Messiahs and false prophets, that even on the day of the Resurrection, two of the disciples said sadly on the way to Emmaus, “But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel...” thinking that Jesus was just one more in a long line of men who gave false hope. The rising up of false leaders giving false hopes is part of the common history of mankind. Certainly, we can understand that for those who don’t believe that Christ has come, they might be prepared to accept a self-styled Christ with the right credentials; but for those who believe that Christ has already come, it’s harder to understand how they could be fooled; however, Jesus warned of this very possibility, when He said, “For false Christs and false prophets will arise and show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect.” These false prophets will work on the fears and prejudices and doubts of the faithful, and there will be any number of movements and false apparitions and empty promises to fool even those who belong to Christ. We’ve seen these things come and go, even in our own lifetime, with people chasing after some charismatic speaker, or some supposed apparition, even some smooth-talking world leader. But at His true second coming, Christ will stand before the whole world, unmistakable as the one and only Saviour and Lord.

Secondly, Christ will be manifested universally. He tells us that He will be seen “from the far ends of the earth to the far ends of the heavens.” That’s what will happen. But for now, it is our responsibility to carry the message of Christ throughout the world. Dark corners need the Light of Christ so that we can help bring about the day when “the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord.” But the coming of Christ, when it happens for the second time, will not be so gradual, and it won’t depend upon our efforts. Rather, it will be like the flash of lighting which races across the dark sky. Lightning seems to follow no law. It penetrates everywhere with a frightening beauty, and there’s a split-second silence before the roar of the thunder is heard. Here’s a way to distinguish false Christs from true: the whole world will, all at once, know that He has come, just as the bolt of lightning illumines the whole sky.

Thirdly, Christ will come with “great power and glory.” This will be manifested first in the changes that will come over the material heavens. The sun will be darkened, the moon will no longer shine with the sun’s reflected light; the stars will appear to fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven will shake, in preparation for their demise. And then, there will be the appearance of the Son of man. What will be His sign? Perhaps a fiery Cross, remembering the sign of our salvation; or maybe a new sign, corresponding to the new heavens and the new earth. We don’t know. But there will be some signal so that everyone will know of this glory which will surround Christ in His second coming. We can scarcely imagine such a thing, and we cannot really put it into words before it happens. (Read more.)

 

Confitemini Domino

 Psalm 117 (The Vulgate)

 1 Give praise to the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.  2 Let Israel now say that he is good: that his mercy endureth for ever.  3 Let the house of Aaron now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.  4 Let them that fear the Lord now say, that his mercy endureth for ever.  5 In my trouble I called upon the Lord: and the Lord heard me, and enlarged me.

 6 The Lord is my helper, I will not fear what man can do unto me.  7 The Lord is my helper: and I will look over my enemies.  8 It is good to confide in the Lord, rather than to have confidence in man.  9 It is good to trust in the Lord, rather than to trust in princes.  10 All nations compassed me about; and in the name of the Lord I have been revenged on them.

 11 Surrounding me they compassed me about: and in the name of the Lord I have been revenged on them.  12 They surrounded me like bees, and they burned like fire among thorns: and in the name of the Lord I was revenged on them.  13 Being pushed I was overturned that I might fall: but the Lord supported me.  14 The Lord is my strength and my praise: and he is become my salvation.  15 The voice of rejoicing and of salvation is in the tabernacles of the just.

 16 The right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength: the right hand of the Lord hath exulted me: the right hand of the Lord hath wrought strength.  17 I shall not die, but live: and shall declare the works of the Lord.  18 The Lord chastising hath chastised me: but he hath not delivered me over to death.  19 Open ye to me the gates of justice: I will go into them, and give praise to the Lord.  20 This is the gate of the Lord, the just shall enter into it.

 21 I will give glory to thee because thou hast heard me: and art become my salvation.  22 The stone which the builders rejected; the same is become the head of the corner.  23 This is the Lord's doing: and it is wonderful in our eyes.  24 This is the day which the Lord hath made: let us be glad and rejoice therein.  25 O Lord, save me: O Lord, give good success.

 26 Blessed be he that cometh in the name Lord. We have blessed you out of the house of the Lord.  27 The Lord is God, and he hath shone upon us. Appoint a solemn day, with shady boughs, even to the horn of the altar.  28 Thou art my God, and I will praise thee: thou art my God, and I will exalt thee. I will praise thee, because thou hast heard me, and art become my salvation.  29 O praise ye the Lord, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever.

A Prayer for America on Election Day

A psalm for David. Judge me, O God, and distinguish my cause from the nation that is not holy: deliver me from the unjust and deceitful man. For thou art God my strength: why hast thou cast me off? and why do I go sorrowful whilst the enemy afflicteth me? Send forth thy light and thy truth: they have conducted me, and brought me unto thy holy hill, and into thy tabernacles. And I will go in to the altar of God: to God who giveth joy to my youth. To thee, O God my God, I will give praise upon the harp: why art thou sad, O my soul? and why dost thou disquiet me? Hope in God, for I will still give praise to him: the salvation of my countenance, and my God. —Psalm 42 (The Vulgate)

Novena for Election Day

Let us pray a novena in honor of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of the United States of America, for our country on election day.

  Ave Maris Stella

Hail, you Star of Ocean!
Portal of the sky,
Ever Virgin Mother,
Of the Lord most high.

O! by Gabriel's Ave,
Uttered long ago,
Eva's name reversing,
Establish peace below.

Break the captive's fetters;
Light on blindness pour;
All our ills expelling,
Every bliss implore.

Show yourself a mother;
Offer him our sighs,
Who for us Incarnate
Did not you despise.

Virgin of all virgins!
To your shelter take us;
Gentlest of the gentle!
Chaste and gentle make us.

Still as on we journey,
Help our weak endeavor,
Till with you and Jesus
We rejoice forever.

Through the highest heaven,
To the Almighty Three,
Father, Son, and Spirit,
One same glory be.

In Latin:

Ave, maris stella,
Dei mater alma,
atque semper virgo,
felix cœli porta.

Sumens illud «Ave»
Gabrielis ore,
funda nos in pace,
mutans Evæ nomen.

Solve vincla reis,
profer lumen cæcis,
mala nostra pelle,
bona cuncta posce.

Monstra te esse matrem,
sumat per te precem
qui pro nobis natus
tulit esse tuus.

Virgo singularis,
inter omnes mitis,
nos culpis solutos
mites fac et castos.

Vitam præsta puram,
iter para tutum,
ut videntes Jesum
semper collætemur.

Sit laus Deo Patri,
summo Christo decus,
Spiritui Sancto
tribus honor unus. Amen

 Music, HERE.

Tota Pulchra Es

 You are fair, O Mary: the original stain is not in you. You are the glory of Jerusalem. You are the joy of Israel. You are the great honor of our people. You are the advocate of sinners. O Mary, O Mary, Virgin most prudent, Mother most merciful, pray for us. Intercede for us with our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

And here is an excerpt from the Little Office of the Immaculate Conception, much of which is based on Sacred Scripture:

Holy Mary, Mother of God, I firmly believe in thy Immaculate Conception. I bless God for having granted thee this glorious privilege. I thank Him a thousand times for having taught it to me by the infallible voice of the Church. Receive my heart, O Immaculate Virgin; I give it to thee without reserve; purify it; guard it; never give it back to me, preserve it in thy love and in the love of Jesus during time and eternity. AMEN.

V. Thy name, O Mary, is as oil poured out.
R. Thy servants have loved thee exceedingly.

Let us pray.
O God, Who by the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin, did prepare a worthy habitation for Thy Son: we beseech Thee, that as in view of the death of that Son, Thou didst preserve her from all stain of sin, so Thou wouldst enable us, being made pure by her intercession, to come unto Thee. Through the same Christ Our Lord. AMEN.

I am adding this prayer to St. Joseph to the novena:

O Saint Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God, I place in you all my interests and desires.  

O Saint Joseph do assist me by your powerful intercession and obtain for me from your Divine Son all spiritual blessings, through Jesus Christ, our Lord, so that, having engaged here below your heavenly power I may offer my thanksgiving and homage to the most loving of Fathers. O Saint Joseph, I never weary in contemplating you and Jesus asleep in your arms; I dare not approach while He reposes near your heart. Press Him in my name and kiss His fine head for me and ask Him to return the kiss when I draw my dying breath.  Saint Joseph, patron of departing souls - pray for me. Amen

The Miserere (Psalm 50, The Vulgate) is a good idea, too.

1] Unto the end, a psalm of David, [2] When Nathan the prophet came to him after he had sinned with Bethsabee. [3] Have mercy on me, O God, according to thy great mercy. And according to the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my iniquity. [4] Wash me yet more from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. [5] For I know my iniquity, and my sin is always before me.
[6] To thee only have I sinned, and have done evil before thee: that thou mayst be justified in thy words and mayst overcome when thou art judged. [7] For behold I was conceived in iniquities; and in sins did my mother conceive me. [8] For behold thou hast loved truth: the uncertain and hidden things of thy wisdom thou hast made manifest to me. [9] Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed: thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow. [10] To my hearing thou shalt give joy and gladness: and the bones that have been humbled shall rejoice.
[11] Turn away thy face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. [12] Create a clean heart in me, O God: and renew a right spirit within my bowels. [13] Cast me not away from thy face; and take not thy holy spirit from me. [14] Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation, and strengthen me with a perfect spirit. [15] I will teach the unjust thy ways: and the wicked shall be converted to thee.
[16] Deliver me from blood, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall extol thy justice. [17] O Lord, thou wilt open my lips: and my mouth shall declare thy praise. [18] For if thou hadst desired sacrifice, I would indeed have given it: with burnt offerings thou wilt not be delighted. [19] A sacrifice to God is an afflicted spirit: a contrite and humbled heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. [20] Deal favourably, O Lord, in thy good will with Sion; that the walls of Jerusalem may be built up.
[21] Then shalt thou accept the sacrifice of justice, oblations and whole burnt offerings: then shall they lay calves upon thy altar.

OR: 

Judica me, Deus (Psalm 42, The Vulgate)

[1] A psalm for David. Judge me, O God, and distinguish my cause from the nation that is not holy: deliver me from the unjust and deceitful man. [2] For thou art God my strength: why hast thou cast me off? and why do I go sorrowful whilst the enemy afflicteth me? [3] Send forth thy light and thy truth: they have conducted me, and brought me unto thy holy hill, and into thy tabernacles. [4] And I will go in to the altar of God: to God who giveth joy to my youth. [5] To thee, O God my God, I will give praise upon the harp: why art thou sad, O my soul? and why dost thou disquiet me?

[6] Hope in God, for I will still give praise to him: the salvation of my countenance, and my God.

The North American Martyrs

The bravest of the brave. One of the best online accounts I could find was here:

Members of the Society of Jesus who dedicated themselves to the conversion of the American Indians took Christ’s words very literally. They journeyed from Renaissance France to the frontiers of North America that they might preach and baptize. After pouring the saving waters of Baptism on a dying Indian child, Saint John de Brebeuf, the great pioneer of this mission, exclaimed with joy, “For this one single occasion I would travel all the way from France; I would cross the great ocean to win one little soul for Our Lord!” And so pleased was God with the genuine zeal and the extraordinary sacrifices of these Jesuit apostles that He bestowed upon Father Brebeuf and seven of his fellow missionaries the glorious crown of martyrdom. The following is the incredible tale of the Eight North American Martyrs.

The Society of Jesus had been founded by Saint Ignatius of Loyola during the turbulent times following the Protestant Revolution. By the dawning of the seventeenth century the Jesuits had won renown as zealous missionaries and ardent defenders of the Catholic Faith.

The Order was still at the peak of its power, prestige, and holiness when a new mission field began to unfold. France, eldest daughter of the Church, was beginning to colonize North America, and the vast untamed regions of the New World were inhabited by pagan natives who had never before been evangelized. (Read entire post.)

Novena to St. Jude

It's that time of the year again. It is time to go to the Apostle and Martyr St. Jude Thaddeus with petitions for his aid in some hopeless and desperate situations and for certain hopeless and desperate persons (including myself).

Novena Prayer

Saint Jude, glorious apostle, faithful servant and friend of Jesus, the name of the traitor has caused you to be forgotten by many. But the Church honors and invokes you universally as the patron of difficult and desperate cases, of things despaired of. Pray for me who am so miserable. Make use, I implore you, of that particular privilege accorded to you to bring visible and speedy help where help was almost despaired of. Come to my assistance in this great need that I may receive the consolation and help of heaven in all my necessities, tribulations and sufferings, particularly — (here make your request) — and that I may bless God with you and all the elect throughout all eternity.

I promise you, O blessed JUDE, to be ever mindful of this great favor, and I will never cease to honor you as my special and powerful patron and do all in my power to encourage devotion to you. Amen.

Saint Jude, pray for us and for all who honor you and invoke your aid.

(Say the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory be to the Father, 3 times.)

The Secret of the Rosary

 From Marianna Bartold.

St. Teresa of Avila and Our Lady

The French Carmelite Père Joseph de Saint Marie, OCD, in some of his conferences on St. Teresa and in his book Notre Dame du Mont-Carmel remarks about the fact that many of the significant events in St. Teresa's life happened on or around the feast of the Assumption. Her vision of hell, which inspired her to begin the monastic reform, occurred in the month of August, as did the foundation of St. Joseph's monastery in Avila. Two magnificent visions of Our Lady took place, in different years, on August 15. In her Life, St. Teresa describes the visions. Of the first one she writes:

...In a rapture there was pictured to me [Our Lady's] ascent into Heaven and the joy and solemnity with which she was received in the place where she now is. To explain how this happened would be impossible for me. Exceeding great was the glory which filled my spirit when it saw such glory. The fruits of the vision were wonderful and I was left with a great desire to serve Our Lady, because of her surpassing merits....

In the second apparition, which occurred on August 15, 1561, St. Teresa found herself transfigured, with Our Lady on her right and St. Joseph on her left. They clothed her in a mantle of great "whiteness and brightness," which meant she was "cleansed of [her] sins." According to St. Teresa's autobiography: "Our Lady suddenly took me by the hands and told me that I was giving her great pleasure by serving St. Joseph and that I might be sure that all I was trying to do about the convent would be accomplished and that both the Lord and they would be greatly served in it." Our Lady gave her a jeweled cross on a golden chain (similar to that of an abbess) signifying the saint's authority as a mother foundress. The vision left St. Teresa feeling "greatly comforted and full of peace." In such mystical experiences the strong Marian aspect of the Carmelite charism was once again emphasized, as a witness for those who would come after.

(All quotations from Msgr. Doheny's Selected Writings of St. Teresa)

The Holy Mother St. Teresa receives a veil and necklace from Our Lady and St. Joseph

The Debate Over St. Faustina

 From Christine Niles:

October 5th is the feast day of St. Faustina. Debate continues to swirl around her and the Divine Mercy devotion. In this episode (originally aired June 6, 2023), Christine Niles delves into St. Faustina's life and the controversies surrounding Divine Mercy to answer the question: Is Divine Mercy a fraud — or is it one of God's greatest gifts to the modern world? 

 Objection 1: St. Faustina's diary was placed on the Index of Forbidden Books. 

ANSWER: This was owing to errors in the Italian translation. Once an accurate translation was commissioned, any errors were eliminated and the ban was lifted in 1978. 

Objection 2: Divine Mercy preaches unconditional mercy without sacrifice. 

ANSWER: False. St. Faustina was given a terrifying vision of Hell, and confirmed that many souls who reject God and His mercy will end up there. She also practiced many penances and mortifications in reparation for sinners, understanding that suffering is the price of sin. 

Objection 3: How could Our Lord say to St. Faustina that He united Himself more intimately with her than with any other creature, when God clearly unites Himself more intimately with Our Lady? 

ANSWER: He clearly meant He united Himself with her more intimately than with any other mortal creature at that time living on earth — not for all time. 

 Objection 4: How could St. Faustina claim the Lord told her, “From today on, do not fear God’s judgment, for you will not be judged.” 

ANSWER: Any saint who dies in the state of perfection and goes directly to Heaven is exempt from judgment. Saint Faustina lived an extraordinarily holy life and is now a canonized saint; it would not be difficult to believe that God granted her the extraordinary grace not only of sainthood, but of knowing that she would escape judgment. (Read more and listen.)

The Rosary and the Interior Life

 From Detroit Catholic:

In Luke 11:40, Christ speaks about His Father as a “maker.” The Father’s “making” always involves Christ Himself, the Word, through whom all things were made (John 1:3). Here in Luke, Christ reminds us that the Trinity made the interior of the human being. Man is not simply an object like those the Pharisees scrupulously wash; man has a rich interiority, a whole inner world of emotions and ideas and desires that are only partially visible exteriorly. That interiority is created by and for Love — Love who stands before the Pharisees, begging for the alms of their answering love.

In this month of the Rosary, we should turn to Our Lady as our guide to the interior life. What is going on in our head during the day? Do we lift our minds to the One who begs the alms of our love? Mary can teach us to do so. She lived each day with the knowledge that God was present to her at every moment; she lived in love and obedience to His will. She spoke to Him interiorly: in praise, in petition, in thanksgiving, in sorrow for sin — though not her own, of course!

The Rosary is a devotion that can foster this prayerful interiority; it masterfully addresses the needs of the human being, who has both an “outside” and an “inside.” The beads give us something to do with our hands, something to calm us, and also something to free our minds from counting the prayers so that we can, with Mary, “treasure the things [God has done], pondering them in [our] heart” (cf. Luke 2:19).

As we pray the mysteries of the Rosary, we learn to ponder the work of God in the world’s history and in our own personal story. Mary did this often, allowing the Holy Spirit to infuse her memory with His radiance. And from the interior treasury of her communing with God flowed alms for her neighbor — for example, her visit of charity to Zechariah and Elizabeth. (Read more.)

Good King Wenceslaus

Actually, he was a duke, not a king. The saintly Wenceslaus, Duke of Bohemia, held fast to the faith in the face of intransigent paganism. He was killed at the instigation of a family member while going to church to assist at the matins of Michaelmas. He is the patron saint of the Czech people. According to an old Slavic legend:

At the death of Vratislaus, the people of Bohemia made his son Wencelsaus their king. He was by God's grace a man of utmost faith. He was charitable to the poor, and he would clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and offer hospitality to travelers according to the summons of the Gospel. He would not allow widows to be treated unjustly; he loved all his people, both rich and poor; he also provided for the servants of God, and he adorned many churches. The men of Bohemia, however, became arrogant and prevailed upon Boleslaus, his younger brother. They told him, "Your brother Wenceslaus is conspiring with his mother and his men to kill you." On the feasts of the dedication of the churches in various cities, Wenceslaus was in the habit of paying them a visit. One Sunday he entered the city of Boleslaus, on the feast of Saints Cosmas and Damian, and after hearing Mass, he planned to return to Prague. But Boleslaus, with his wicked plan in mind, detained him with the words, "Why are you leaving brother?"

The next morning when they rang the bell for matins, Wencelaus, on hearing the sound, said, "Praise to you, Lord; you have allowed me to live to this morning." And so he rose and went to matins. Immediately Boleslaus followed him to the church door. Wenceslaus looked back at him and said, "Brother, you were a good subject to me yesterday." But the devil had already blocked the ears of Boleslaus, and perverted his heart. Drawing his sword, Boleslaus replied, "And now I intend to be a better one!" With these words, he struck his brother's head with his sword. But Wenceslaus turned and said, "Brother, what are you trying to do?" And with that he seized Boleslaus and threw him to the ground. But one of Boleslaus' counselors ran up and stabbed Wenceslaus in the hand. With his hand wounded, he let go of his brother and took refuge in the church. But two evil men struck him down at the church door; and then another rushed up and ran him through with a sword. Thereupon, Wenceslaus died with the words, "Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit."

An old English Christmas carol celebrates "King Wenceslaus," as the following describes:

The carol tells about a miracle said to have happened on December 26 wherein the good king sees a poor man gathering wood for his fire. Learning from his page where the man lives, he bids the page:

Bring me flesh and bring me wine; Bring me pine logs hither; Thou and I shall see him dine When we bear them thither.

And without ado he tucked his royal robes into his boots and trudged through the cold to the hut underneath the mountain.

This spirit of serving is one of the things that needs to be restored to our society. Money is needed, and the needy are thankful for it; but the givers of the money need to do more for their own spirits than sign checks. Like King Wenceslaus, they would refresh their vision of Christ by the experience of serving, by the experience of looking into Christ's face in His poor and feeding Him, changing His sheets, bathing His sick body, shopping at the grocer's for His food. And for every act done with love for Him, He repays a hundredfold.

So this day the children may imitate both St. Stephen the deacon, who served, and St. Wenceslaus the king, who served, and set aside some of their Christmas toys or dollars to take to other little Christs less fortunate than themselves. This is hard, but there is an inner joy that children as well need to experience if they would know what we mean when we talk of serving. It is one thing to hear your parents talk about the blessedness of giving. It is quite another to part with something you do not very much want to part with, and then taste the peace and joy and contentment that come to the souls who have given up their own will for love of Christ.

This act of serving was hard for the little page too, but the carol tells what a marvelous reward was his:

In his master's steps he trod, Where the snow lay dinted. Heat was in the very sod That the saint had printed.

Children love especially to sing this carol while walking outdoors in the snow. If there are enough who know it (do help them learn all the verses: it makes no sense otherwise) they can take parts, one being king, one page, one the poor man, the rest "voices." And afterward bid them remember, whenever they see footprints in the snow, the saint-king who journeyed to the poor man on the feast of St. Stephen, and bid them help someone that day in imitation of him.

St. Pio

It is his feast. Here is a biography of our modern thaumaturge. To quote:

From his early childhood, it was evident that Padre Pio had a deep piety. When he was five years old, he solemnly consecrated himself to Jesus. He liked to sing hymns, play church and preferred to be by himself where he could read and pray. As an adult, Padre Pio commented that in his younger years he had conversed with Jesus, the Madonna, his guardian angel, and had suffered attacks by the devil. (Read more.)

Novena to St. Pio

Here is a novena in preparation for St. Pio's feast on September 23.

"I want to be only a poor Friar who prays... Pray, hope and don't worry. Worry is useless. God is merciful and will hear your prayer... Prayer is the best weapon we have; it is the key to God's heart. You must speak to Jesus not only with your lips but with your heart. In fact on certain occasions you should speak to Him only with your heart...." ~Saint Pio of Pietrelcina

The Seven Archangels

The month of September is traditionally dedicated to honoring the Holy Angels. Here is an interesting post about the seven archangels. From Faith Warriors:

There were seven angels from the second lowest choir who were so outraged by the terrible offense to the dignity of the Most High that, though inferior to Lucifer and his legions, positioned themselves between the Throne of God and the offenders, prepared to defend the honor and dignity of God. On seeing this, God was so moved by their heroic love that he elevated them to the position of highest heaven, standing eternally before the Throne of God to carry out God’s Will. God granted them new gifts and graces.

“And from the throne, lightnings and voices and thunders went forth. And there were seven burning lamps before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God.” Revelation 4:5

“Bless [God], all his angels, mighty warriors who fulfill his commands, attentive to the sound of his words.” Psalm 103:20

The good angels who resisted Satan’s temptations were admitted into the immediate vision of God and became firmly rooted in virtue. For this reason, the angels who resisted the first sin are no longer capable of sinning; they have made a permanent and indelible choice to submit to the love of God. The fallen angels, or devils as we now call them, are likewise permanently rooted in sin. It is not possible for a devil to repent of his sins.
http://www.saintaquinas.com/angels.html


SS. Michael, Raphael and Gabriel, Archangels

There are three Archangels who are better known as they are mentioned Sacred Scripture they are are Michael, Gabriel and Raphael…In the year 1040, St. Celias made an exhaustive study of the approved writings of the Early Church Fathers up to the 4th Century. Through his studies we have come to know seven of the names of the Archangels, the meaning of their names and the sacrament each is the patron of. The names of the Seven Archangels [are] Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Jehudiel, Sealtiel and Barachiel.

Pope Pius V said in his Bull to the Spanish Clergy, permitting and encouraging the worship of the seven archangels: “One cannot exalt too much these seven rectors of the world, figured by the seven planets, as it is consoling to our century to witness by the grace of God the cult of these seven ardent lights, and of these seven stars reassuming all it’s luster in the Christian republic.” (Les Sept Esprits et l'Histoire de leur Culte; De Mirville's 2nd memoir addressed to the academy. Vol. II. p. 358.) In the 16th Century, Michelangelo was ordered to adorn the church of St. Maria Degli, dedicated to Mary and the Seven Archangels with a fresco of seven Archangels on the altar. During the reign of Pope Gregory XIII it was intended to build seven separate chapels there, one for each of the Seven Archangels.
http://www.santamariadelgiangliroma.it.  (Read more)

Our Lady and the Carmelites

A History.

For many centuries before Christ, men communicated with God living in caves on the slopes of Mount Carmel in the Holy Land where Jesus was to be born.  These men were hermits devoted to the one true God of Israel.  They lived a life of solitude and service inspired by the great prophet Elijah whom they looked on as their spiritual father.  In later centuries after Christianity had spread far and wide, came the desire to follow Christ in his homeland in solitude and prayer. Pilgrims to the Holy Land joined the hermits on Mount Carmel and became known as Carmelites.  In the 12 and 13thcenturies war in the Holy Land forced these men of prayer to spread abroad.  The Church asked this group, now officially known as "the Brothers of Our Lady of Mount Carmel" to serve the people by bringing their contemplation and love of prayer into communties in the busy streets of cities, in quiet rural areas, wherever they were needed.  They served the needs of the people by preaching , by teaching, by bringing the knowledge and love of Jesus into the market place.  Always and everywhere they remained true to the ancient heritage which they brought with them from Mount Carmel.  And in everything they did, they were inspired by the Old Testament prophet Elijah and Mary the Mother of Jesus.

Elijah embodied the ideal of the contemplative man of prayer and the active apostle of God.  Mary called them to selfless service and closeness to Christ.  The Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel is a garment and the Order of Carmel.  This sacramental is a sign of affiliation to the Carmelite Order and a symbol of our Lady's desire to bring us all to Jesus.  The message of the Scapular is the same advice she gave the servants at the Cana wedding: "Do whatever he tells you."  When we wear the Scapular, it is a sign of our loving response to the Mother of God.  So, in our special devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Carmelites celebrate our unique relationship with Mary as an intrinsic part of our spirituality.  We love her, venerate her and, with our bothers and sisters in Christ, we are called forever to be her children.  We invite you to share this spirituality with us, particularly in our devotion to Mary as Our Lady of Mount Carmel. (Read more.)

(Article taken from "Special Devotions to Our Lady of Mount Carmel" by National Shrine of Our Lady of Mount Carmel). 

In Defense of the Martyrdom of Saint Maria Goretti

Only known photo of St. Maria Goretti

A couple years ago, around the feast of St. Maria Goretti, I came upon an article and had a debate on Facebook with fellow Catholics, all ladies of deep faith. I think there are major misunderstandings about why the Church has from the earliest times held up virgin martyrs for our veneration. From Our Sunday Visitor:

It’s worth repeating: It is not a sin to be raped, but the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints continues to behave as if it is....If women who die at the hands of a would-be rapist are martyrs, why are we only celebrating the ones who died “intact”?...If we keep holding these assault victims up as models of chastity rather than victims of crimes, we impress upon faithful young women that keeping the Sixth Commandment is fundamentally about keeping men from breaking it....The girls who answered “yes” to the CDC survey are in our pews, in our confirmation classes and in our own homes. They are listening to how we talk about Maria Goretti and Isabel Cristina and all those who came between. They deserve better than to be told their value lies in their virginity. They deserve better than the suggestion that they would be better off dead. (Read more.)

True, girls and young women, virgins or not, from a human point of view, are definitely better off alive. Similarly, those Christians who were tortured to death because they refused to offer incense to pagan gods, would have been better off alive. St. Joan of Arc would have been better off staying home and embroidering with her mother than being burned alive at the stake. St. Isaac Jogues would have been better off teaching theology at the Sorbonne rather than being scalded alive and sodomized by the Iroquois. But sometimes, people need to take a stand, especially when called to do so for the love of God. Because martyrdom is a gift.

I think many young women today surrender their virginity not to a rapist but to a boyfriend or lover, out of infatuation or out of peer pressure. It was that way during the Roman Empire and it is that way now. Even in Roman times, they were not always threatened with rape; their attackers could have raped them at any time. Rather, the attackers wanted them to happily go along with it; they wanted to seduce them. The fact that some women have preferred death to giving into seduction and the ways of the world is a charismatic gift. Martyrdom is a gift. Virgin martyrdom is a gift. Just being a perpetual virgin, or a celibate of any kind, is a gift. Not everyone is called to it but when someone is, they know it is beyond their strength and a gift from God. When someone is called by God to be a martyr it means they refuse to cooperate with evil on any level, even to save themselves. They are saying to the evil person: you may kill me, you may rape me, you may kill and rape me, but you are not getting even a moment of my cooperation. We all have moments when our safety or well-being is secondary, when someone or something more precious than our lives is in danger. That is where grace builds on nature. But only God can give someone the grace to give up their lives for Him. It is a charismatic gift.

The article criticizes the Dicastery's mention of the intact hymens of St. Maria and another modern virgin martyr Blessed Isabel Cristina, insisting that the hymen should not even come into the investigation. Such intimate examination has long been a part of police procedure when a woman or girl is murdered, to see if the perpetrator should be charged with rape as well as with murder. When the Dicastery records the physical virginity of a victim it is as possible proof that the person lived a chaste lifestyle. It is certainly not complete proof since a pure and innocent girl might lose her virginity through being molested or even in an accident, through no fault of her own. Also, someone with an intact hymen might have impure habits and a filthy mind and not be holy at all. But along with the accumulated evidence of the young lady's piety, such as witness testimonies of her outward acts of faith, hope and charity, evidence of physical virginity plays a part in proving the sanctity of the victim. 

However, the value of the virgin martyr is not on the hymen but on a soul saying "no" and taking a stand against evil  no matter what the consequences. To do so requires supernatural strength. But yes, the Church has canonized saints who were slaves and who were probably raped such as St Felicity and St Josephine Bahkita. In the great Roman persecutions, it was against Roman law to put a virgin to death. Young Christian girls were regularly raped before being executed. We do not know how many of the virgin-martyrs had to suffer such brutality before being martyred. The surviving historical records do not tell us.

Someone said to me that St. Maria Goretti resisted her attacker because she knew if she was raped that she would be "trash" in her town. Well, sorry, but St. Maria was already regarded as "trash" in her community, which is why Alessandro saw her as an easy target. Some people theorize he may already have have been molesting her in some way. After all, they lived in the same house. We know he was making lewd suggestions. After her First Communion St. Maria was determined to say no. Because Alessandro did not just went to rape her. If he wanted to rape her he could have done so at any time, but he never did. He never did, even when she was lying there helpless. 

 

What Alessandro wanted was a cooperative little plaything. He wanted someone to willingly act out his favorite porn images which he had upstairs in this room. That is where his rage and frustration came from. If Maria had capitulated, we know she would have been acting out of terror. But that brave little girl, who had nothing and was nothing in her community, refused to comply with his demands. She asserted her personhood and her dignity over Alessandro's dehumanizing lust. Maria knew that through her baptism she was a child of God; she had been bound to Christ through the Sacraments of the Church, including Confession and the Holy Eucharist. Those sacraments meant everything to her, more than fear of death. 

 

So ultimately, it was not about resisting rape. It was resisting being his long term sex toy which is what Alessandro really wanted. Maria knew if she gave in once there would be no end to it. He wanted her  cooperation, like the master of anyone in sexual servitude. Alessandro wanted her complete submission and willing participation. She did not give it. Looking back, we can say it would not have been a sin for her, since she was a frightened child, and would have been acting under duress. But Maria refused to cooperate, even when threatened. Because in Maria's mind she would have been committing a sin, as she said after it happened: "He did it because I would not sin." That is why she is a martyr.

The Test of Love

Light of the World by William Holman Hunt

I begged Our Lord to teach you the secret of sanctity and happiness in the sanctification of the present moment--peacefully. The present moment contains all grace for our sanctification, and it is the only thing that matters.

Keep your eyes ever on the Divine Guest within, Whose love is directing all that concerns you every moment, even the annoying little things that cause irritation. Be generous with Him, and let your joy be in sacrifice. It was His joy. He came from Heaven to prove it to us, and love can find no other real test....

Sweet and peaceful conformity to God's Will is the test of love. It is often crucifying to self-love and self-will, but suffering was the chosen portion of Our Lord, and the faithful lover should want no other.

~Fragrance from Alabaster by Mother Aloysius of the Blessed Sacrament, OCD

Sainte Jehanne la Pucelle

"O how beautiful is the chaste generation with glory: for the memory thereof is immortal...." Wisdom 4:1

In 1431, May 30 fell upon a Wednesday, the Vigil of Corpus Christi. It was around noon when Jehanne Darc, or Jehanne la Pucelle, "the Maid," as she called herself, was led into the public square of Rouen by enemy soldiers to where the stake awaited her. Nineteen years old, her head shaven, surrounded by placards branding her a witch, idolatress, and abjured heretic, she invoked the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary, and St Michael the Archangel. She had been calumniated and condemned by those whose holy office it was to guide and protect her soul; she had been exposed to lewdness and impurity by those whose sacred duty it was to shelter her innocence and virginity. She was abandoned by the king whose crown her victories had won. She was in great interior darkness; the voices of her saints were silent.

Although she conversed with angels and saints, Joan the Maid was known to be practical and blunt. Very feminine, she missed her embroidery and her mother, yet she emerges on the pages of late medieval history like someone from the Acts of the Apostles. Surrounded by miracles, she was herself a Miracle; she led an army to victory at the age of 17, an illiterate peasant girl, who knew nothing of war or politics. She saved France as a nation, for it had all but ceased to exist when she came on the scene.

Such was her Faith that she confounded her judges, while exhausted, frightened and pushed to the breaking point of her mental and physical strength. Denied the Sacraments by her persecutors, she gazed upon the upheld crucifix, calling out, "Jesus! Jesus!" as the flames consumed her. When Joan's ashes were scattered in the river, her heart was found, untouched by the flames, and still bleeding.

"If I walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for Thou art with me, O Lord Jesus." Communion Antiphon for the Feast of St Joan

St. Joan, pray for us!

ATTENTION Catholics!

ATTENTION Catholics! It is almost June, Month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus! Let us all fly Sacred Heart banners from our homes as a Christian witness and in thanksgiving for the religious freedoms we enjoy, when freedom for Catholics has not always been the case. Banners available here and here.

By His Holy and Glorious Wounds

The Cross triumphant. To quote:

Although the Feast of the Finding (or Invention) of the Holy Cross on 3 May was removed from more recent liturgical books, it remains in the 1934 edition of the Benedictine Antiphonale that is still widely used, and continues to be celebrated in not a few Benedictine monasteries. While the Office is substantially the same as on 14 September (The Exaltation of the Holy Cross), on 3 May it is shot through and through with alleluias. It presents a vision of the Passion and Cross of the Lord in the light of the Resurrection. Theologically, mystically, and catechetically the Feast of the Finding of the Holy Cross on 3 May is a liturgical piece of genius.

The feast commemorates Saint Helena's finding of the Cross in Jerusalem, and the signs and wonders that accompanied it and verified its authenticity. Saint Helena, the mother of the Emperor Constantine, carried part of the Cross back to Rome, where it was enshrined in the Basilica of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, on the site of the Sessorian palace.

The entire Mass and Office of the Finding of the Holy Cross deserve to be meditated and held in the heart. The liturgical texts of the feast demonstrate and support that, far from being inappropriate during Paschaltide, the contemplation and celebration of the mysteries of the Lord's Passion and Cross emerge, in the light of these fifty days of jubilation, as an inexhaustible wellspring of healing and of hope. 

Fatima and the Mysteries of the Ark of the Covenant

 From Marianna Bartold.

Our Lady Will Declare the Time of Victory

From Marie-Julie Jahenny: Prophecies For Our Time:

 April 19, 1875: A vision of France.

"Marie-Julie is transported to an arid and desolate desert in the middle of confused darkness. Before her is a tomb, that of France. A foul smell rose from it which prevented one from approaching it. All of a sudden there is a bright light and Jesus Christ descends, opens the tomb, leans over the corpse and takes it in His arms, gently, as Saint Joseph used to take the Child Jesus. France wakes up and the Saviour speaks to her lovingly, in a language fragrant with divine ardour of the Canticle of Canticles. He promises her in the near future blessings, glories and triumphs that will surpass all the past victories because she weeps for her faults, for which she repents and she throws herself lovingly into the Sacred Heart. Then Jesus covers her again and disappears."

May 4, 1875: Another vision of the "Tomb" of France:

"France has come out of the tomb. She stands still in front of Jesus Christ who smiles at her tenderly. She is enveloped in a long black shroud, which represents her crimes. Jesus Christ divests her of it up to her chest. He covers her head with a veil that is dazzlingly white, then He tears from His Heart a flowering lily and plants it in the heart of the resurrected one." (Read more.)

Fifty Days of Easter

We have only just begun to celebrate! As Scott Richert writes:

...The period from Easter Sunday through Divine Mercy Sunday (the Sunday after Easter Sunday), also known as the Octave (or eighth day) of Easter, is an especially joyful time. But the Easter season doesn't end there: Because Easter is the most important feast in the Christian calendar—even more important than Christmas—the Easter season continues on for 50 days, through the Ascension of Our Lord to Pentecost Sunday. (Indeed, for the purpose of fulfilling our Easter Duty, the Easter season extends until Trinity Sunday, the first Sunday after Pentecost!)

So keep on celebrating and wishing your friends a happy Easter! As St. John Chrysostom reminds us in his famous Easter homily, read in Eastern Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches on Easter, Christ has destroyed death, and now is the "feast of faith."

You can read all about Easter, including its history, practice, how the date of Easter is calculated, what holidays fall during the Easter season, and much more in Easter 101: Everything You Need to Know About Easter in the Catholic Church.

To Saint Joseph in Thanksgiving

 "I am poor, and in labors from my youth and being exalted, I was humbled and troubled." Psalm 87:16

Joseph of Nazareth

On a joiner's bench

You ply your trade.

Hands calloused

Fingers nimble.

Wood chips and shavings

At your feet.

Sawdust

In your beard.

You sing

The song of your people

Longing

For the Face

Of Him

Who is to come.

Joseph of Nazareth

Of David's line

You sing

The wedding song.

"My sister, my spouse

Is a garden

Enclosed..."

Virgin husband

Of the Daughter of Sion

You prepare a

Dwelling

For the Stainless One.

Joseph of Nazareth

In sweat of anguish

You ponder

Another Joseph

Thrown in the cistern.

Your song

Becomes sad.

"Save me

O God

For the waters

Are come in

Even unto

My soul..."

You sing

Then fall silent.

Sleep comes

With the breeze

That stirs

The curls of wood...

And then

The voice: 

"Joseph, Son of David,

Fear not...."

By a Carmelite tertiary