Friday, May 24
Veneration 4:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Mass 5:00 PM
Saturday, May 25
Mass 8:00 AM
Veneration 8:45 AM – 12:00 Noon
On the Catholic Priesthood
Saturday June 15, 2019
Summer Ember Saturday
Hymns, readings and prayers for this Whit Embertide:
Hymns: Veni, Sancte Spiritus (Come, Thou Holy Spiritus, come) Veni, Creator Spiritus, (Come Holy Spirit, Creator Blest) Readings: Ember Saturday:
Leviticus, 23. 9-11, 15-17, 21
Saint Paul to the Romans, 5. 1-5
Prayers:
An excellent prayer for this purpose is the Litany of the Saints, in which so many bishops, priests, and levites are invoked; or the Rosary may be appropriately said, grouping those for whom we pray into five classes, corresponding to the five decades.
Source: Ember Days (Curé d'Ars Prayer Group)
Posted at 12:00AM Jun 15, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Friday June 14, 2019
Summer Ember Friday
Hymns, readings and prayers for this Whit Embertide:
Hymns: Veni, Sancte Spiritus (Come, Thou Holy Spiritus, come) Veni, Creator Spiritus, (Come Holy Spirit, Creator Blest) Readings: Ember Thursday:
Prayers:
An excellent prayer for this purpose is the Litany of the Saints, in which so many bishops, priests, and levites are invoked; or the Rosary may be appropriately said, grouping those for whom we pray into five classes, corresponding to the five decades.
Source: Ember Days (Cure d'Ars Prayer Group)
Posted at 12:00AM Jun 14, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Thursday June 13, 2019
Prayer to St. Anthony of Padua
Saint Anthony, glory of the Church and
hammer of heretics, pray for our Holy Father, our bishops, our priests,
our Religious Orders, that, through their pious zeal and apostolic
labors, infidels, heretics, and all those outside the true Church of
Christ may be converted and, united in faith, give greater glory to God.
Amen.
Source: Blessed Sacrament Book. Fr. Francis Xavier Lasance
Posted at 12:00AM Jun 13, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Wednesday June 12, 2019
Summer Ember Wednesday
"On Ember days we pray and make sacrifices for ourselves, our families, the Church and the world."
We should never let these seasons pass without adding prayer to our fasts, or it may be compensating fast by prayer. Our prayer should be for the clergy, not only those ordained, though for them especially; but for the Sovereign Pontiff, the cardinals, bishops, parochial clergy, missionaries and religious orders, seminarians; and for the grace of vocation to the priesthood. Hymns, readings and prayers for this Whit Embertide:
Hymns: Veni, Sancte Spiritus (Come, Thou Holy Spiritus, come) Veni, Creator Spiritus, (Come Holy Spirit, Creator Blest) Readings: Ember Wednesday: Acts of the Apostles, 2. 1-21 Acts of the Apostles, 5. 12-16 St. John, 6. 44-52
Prayers:
An excellent prayer for this purpose is the Litany of the Saints, in which so many bishops, priests, and levites are invoked; or the Rosary may be appropriately said, grouping those for whom we pray into five classes, corresponding to the five decades.
Source: Ember Days (Cure d'Ars Prayer Group)
Posted at 10:07AM Jun 12, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Saturday June 08, 2019
For a Priest on His First Mass
O Holy Spirit, Your servant who is about
to celebrate this Mass shares the holy priesthood of Jesus and Your
apostolate. Enkindle in his heart the flames that transformed the
disciples in the Upper Room. Let him be no longer an ordinary man but a
man living to transfuse the divine life into the souls of others. Give
him an ardent desire for the inner life as well as Your consolation and
strength. Enable him to see that even here below there is no true
happiness unless his life partakes of Yours and that of the Heart of
Jesus in the bosom of the Father.
Amen.
Source: Curé d'Ars Prayer Group
Ordination to the Sacred Priesthood
Posted at 12:18PM Jun 08, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Saturday June 01, 2019
Prayer to the Sacred Heart for Priests
(Picture Source: Google Books)
Remember, O most loving Heart of Jesus,
that they for whom I pray are those for whom You prayed so earnestly the
night before Your death. These are they to whom You look to continue
with You in Your sorrows when others forsake You, who share Your griefs
and have inherited your persecutions, according to Your word: That the
servant is not greater than his Lord.
Remember, O Heart of
Jesus, that they are the objects of the worldʼs hatred and Satanʼs
deadliest snares. Keep them then, 0 Jesus, in the safe citadel of Your
Sacred Heart and there let them be sanctified in truth.
May they
be one with you and one among themselves, and grant that multitudes may
be brought through their word to believe in You and love You. Amen.
Posted at 09:14PM Jun 01, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Friday May 31, 2019
Novena for Priests for Pentecost (From May 31st to June 8th)
Jesus, Good Shepherd, You sent us the Holy Spirit to guide Your Church
and lead her faithful to You through the ministry of Your priests.
Through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, grant to Your priests wisdom in leading,
faithfulness in teaching, and holiness in guarding Your sacred Mysteries.
As they cry out with all the faithful, "Abba, Father!" may Your priests be ever
more closely identified with You in Your divine Sonship and offer their own lives
with You, the one saving Victim. Make them helpful brothers of one another,
and understanding fathers of all Your people.
On this Pentecost Sunday, renew in Your priests deeper faith, greater trust in You,
childlike reliance on our Mother Mary, and unwavering fidelity to the Holy Father and his bishops.
Holy Mary, intercede for your priests.
St. Joseph, protect them.
St. Michael, defend them.
St. John Vianney, pray for them.
Amen.
Source: Curé d'Ars Prayer Group
Posted at 10:41AM May 31, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Thursday May 30, 2019
Novena for Those Preparing for Ordination to the Sacred Priesthood
Heavenly Father, source of all fatherhood on earth, we humbly beseech
you to abundantly bless David Miller and Noe Ramirez you have called
to the share in the sacred priesthood of Your Son.
By the power of the Holy Spirit, they will be configured to Christ the one
High Priest and thus be your instrument for the salvation of the world:
“This is my body, which will be given up for you.”
Through their total gift of self in celibacy, inspire David Miller and Noe
Ramirez to perfectly imitate Jesus and to lay down their lives for His
Bride,the Church.Thus may they bear witness that God must be loved
above all things.We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Holy Mary, Mother of priests, pray for us!
Raleigh Diocese Candidates for 2019
Source: Curé d'Ars Prayer Group.
Posted at 12:00AM May 30, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Wednesday May 29, 2019
Rogation Days, Prayer without Ceasing
Prescribed days of prayer and penance in
spring. Two sets of rogation days were kept since early Christian
times: the Major Rogation on April 25, the Feast of St. Mark; and the
Minor Rogations on the last three days before Ascension Thursday. They
were instituted to appease divine justice, ask for protection, and
invoke Godʼs blessing on the harvest. (Catholic Dictionary, Catholic
Culture)
Rogation is simply an English form of the Latin rogatio, which comes
from the verb rogare, which means "to ask". The Monday, Tuesday, and
Wednesday before Ascension day, were called Rogation days or days of solemn supplication and prayer. On these days the priest and people went
in procession, singing the litanies, to beg God’s blessing upon the
fruits of the earth, and be preserved from pestilence, famine, etc.
(Right Rev. Dr. Challoner)
Litany of the Saints
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Spirit, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, pray for us.
Holy Mother of God, pray for us.
Holy Virgin of Virgins, pray for us.
St. Michael, pray for us.
St. Gabriel, pray for us.
St. Raphael, pray for us.
All ye holy Angels and Archangels, pray for us.
All ye holy orders of blessed spirits,
St. John the Baptist, pray for us.
St. Joseph, pray for us.
All holy Patriarchs and Prophets, pray for us.
St. Peter, pray for us.
St. Paul, pray for us.
St. Andrew, pray for us.
St. James, pray for us.
St. John, pray for us.
St. Thomas, pray for us.
St. James, pray for us.
St. Philip, pray for us.
St. Bartholomew, pray for us.
St. Matthew, pray for us.
St. Simon, pray for us.
St. Thaddeus, pray for us.
St. Matthias, pray for us.
St. Barnabas, pray for us.
St. Luke, pray for us.
St. Mark, pray for us.
All holy Apostles and Evangelists, pray for us.
All holy Disciples of the Lord, pray for us.
All Holy Innocents, pray for us.
St. Stephen, pray for us.
St. Lawrence, pray for us.
St. Vincent, pray for us.
SS. Fabian and Sebastian, pray for us.
SS. John and Paul, pray for us.
SS. Cosmas and Damian, pray for us.
SS. Gervase and Protase, pray for us.
All holy Martyrs, pray for us.
St. Sylvester, pray for us.
St. Gregory, pray for us.
St. Ambrose, pray for us.
St. Augustine, pray for us.
St. Jerome, pray for us.
St. Martin, pray for us.
St. Nicholas, pray for us.
All holy Bishops and Confessors, pray for us.
All holy Doctors, pray for us.
St. Anthony, pray for us.
St. Benedict, pray for us.
St. Bernard, pray for us.
St. Dominic, pray for us.
St. Francis, pray for us.
All holy Priests and Levites, pray for us.
All holy Monks and Hermits, pray for us.
St. Mary Magdalen, pray for us.
St. Agatha, pray for us.
St. Lucy, pray for us.
St. Agnes, pray for us.
St. Cecilia, pray for us.
St. Catherine, pray for us.
St. Anastasia, pray for us.
All holy Virgins and Widows, pray for us.
All holy Saints of God, intercede for us.
Be merciful, spare us, O Lord.
Be merciful, graciously hear us, O Lord.
From all evil, deliver us, O Lord.
From all sin, deliver us, O Lord.
From Thy wrath anger, deliver us, O Lord.
From sudden and unprovided death, deliver us, O Lord.
From the snares of the devil, deliver us, O Lord.
From anger, and hatred, and all ill will, deliver us, O Lord.
From the spirit of fornication, deliver us, O Lord.
From lightning and storms, deliver us, O Lord.
From the scourge of earthquake, deliver us, O Lord.
From plague, famine, and war, deliver us, O Lord.
From everlasting death, deliver us, O Lord.
Through the mystery of Thy holy Incarnation, deliver us, O Lord.
Through Thy Coming, deliver us, O Lord.
Through Thy Nativity, deliver us, O Lord.
Through Thy Baptism and holy Fasting, deliver us, O Lord.
Through Thy Cross and Passion, deliver us, O Lord.
Through Thy Death and Burial, deliver us, O Lord.
Through Thy holy Resurrection, deliver us, O Lord.
Through Thy admirable Ascension, deliver us, O Lord.
Through the coming of the Holy Ghost, the Paraclete, deliver us, O Lord.
In the day of Judgment, deliver us, O Lord.
We sinners, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst spare us, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst pardon us, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst bring us to true penance, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst govern and preserve Thy holy Church, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst preserve our Holy Pope and all orders of the Church,
in holy Religion, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst humble the enemies of holy Church, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst give peace and true concord to Christian kings and princes, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst grant peace and unity to all Christian people, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst recall all who have wandered from the unity of the Church,
and lead all unbelievers to the light of the Gospel, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst confirm and preserve us in Thy holy service, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst lift up our minds to heavenly desires, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst give eternal blessings to all our benefactors, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst deliver our souls, and the souls of our brethren, relations,
and benefactors from eternal damnation, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst give and preserve from harm the fruits of the earth, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst grant eternal rest to all the faithful departed, we beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou wouldst graciously hear us, Son of God, we beseech Thee, hear us.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, graciously hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us,
Christ, graciously hear us.
Lord, have mercy on us. Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us. Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us. Lord, have mercy on us.
Our Father, who art in heaven, ....
Psalm 69
O God, come to my assistance; O Lord, make haste to help me.
Let them be confounded and ashamed that seek my soul.
Let them be turned backward, and blush for shame that desire evils to me.
Let them be presently turned away blushing for shame that say to me: ‘tis well, ‘tis well.
Let all that seek Thee rejoice and be glad in Thee. And let such as love Thy salvation say always: The Lord be magnified.
But I am needy and poor; O God, help me.
Thou art my helper and my deliverer: O Lord, make no delay.
V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost.
R. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
V. Save thy servants.
R. Who hope in Thee, O my God.
V. Be unto us, O Lord, a tower of strength.
R. From the face of the enemy.
V. Let not the enemy prevail against us.
R. Nor the son of wickedness have power to hurt us.
V. O Lord, deal not with us according to our sins.
R. Neither requite us according to our iniquities.
V. Let us pray for our Sovereign Pontiff N....
R. The Lord preserve him, and give him life, and make him blessed upon
the earth, and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies.
V. Let us pray for our benefactors.
R. Vouchsafe, O Lord, for Thy Name’s sake, to reward with eternal life all those who do us good. Amen.
V. Let us pray for the faithful departed.
R. Eternal rest give unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them.
V. May they rest in peace.
R. Amen.
V. For our absent brethren.
R. Save thy servants who hope in Thee, O my God.
V. Send them help, O Lord, from thy holy place.
R. And from Sion protect them.
V. O Lord, hear my prayer.
R. And let my cry come unto Thee.
Prayer
Let us pray.
O God, whose property is always to have mercy and to spare, receive our
humble petition: that we, and all Thy servants who are bound by the
chain of sin, may be the compassion of Thy goodness mercifully be
absolved.
Graciously hear, we beseech Thee, O Lord the prayers of Thy
suppliants, and forgive the sins of those that confess to Thee: that, in
Thy bounty, Thou mayest grant us pardon and peace.
In Thy clemency, O Lord, show Thine unspeakable mercy to us: that
Thou mayest both loose us from all the punishments which we deserve for
them.
O God, who by sin art offended, and by penance pacified, mercifully
regard the prayers of Thy people making supplication to Thee, and turn
away the scourges of Thine anger, which we deserve for our sins.
Almighty, everlasting God, have mercy upon Thy servant N, Our
Sovereign Pontiff, and direct him according to Thy clemency into the way
of everlasting salvation, that by Thy grace he may both desire those
things that are pleasant to Thee, and perform them with all his
strength.
O God, from Whom are all holy desires, right counsels, and just
works, give unto Thy servants that peace which the world cannot give:
that both our hearts, given over to Thy commands, and our times, the
fear of our foes removed, may by Thy protection be peaceful.
Inflame, O Lord, our reins and hearts with the fire of the Holy
Ghost: that we may serve Thee with a chaste body and please Thee with a
clean heart.
O God, the Creator and redeemer of all the faithful, grant to the
souls of Thy servants departed the remission of all their sins: that
through pious supplications they may obtain that pardon which they have
always desired.
Prevent, we beseech Thee, O Lord, our actions by Thy inspirations,
and further them by Thy assistance: that every word and work of ours may
begin always from Thee, and by Thee be likewise ended.
Almighty, everlasting God, who hast dominion over the living and the
dead, and art merciful to all, of whom Thou fore-knowest that they will
be Thine by faith and good works: we humbly beseech Thee, that they for
whom we intend to pour forth our prayers whether this present world
still detain them in the flesh, or the world to come hath already
received them out of their bodies, may, through the intercession of all
Thy Saints, by the clemency of Thy goodness, obtain the remission of all
their sins, Through our Lord Jesus Christ Who liveth and reigneth with
Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, world without end.
May the almighty and merciful Lord graciously hear us. Amen
And may the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God rest in Peace.
Source: Curé d'Ars Prayer Group
Posted at 12:21PM May 29, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Monday May 27, 2019
Rogation Days
Today is the beginning of three days of prayers and fasting that
were traditionally known as Rogation Days. Below you will find
historical information I gathered from different sources:
"Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday before Ascension Thursday were
instituted by the Church to appease God's anger at man's
transgressions, to ask protection in calamities.
These Rogation Days are of French origin, coming about in the 5th
c., when St. Mamertus, Bishop of Vienne, Dauphiné instituted them
after a series of natural calamities. Rogation is simply an
English form of the Latin rogatio, which comes from the verb
rogare, which means "to ask". The Rogation Days were marked by the
recitation of the litany of the Saints which would normally begin
in or at a church.
After Saint Mary was invoked, the congregation would proceed to
walk the boundaries of the parish, while reciting the rest of the
litany (and repeating it as necessary or supplementing it with
some of the penitential or gradual Psalms). Thus, the entire
parish would be blessed, and the boundaries of the parish would be
marked. The procession would end with a Rogation Mass, in which
all in the parish were expected to take part.
If your parish does not celebrate the Rogation Days, there's
nothing to stop you from celebrating them yourself. You can mark
the days by reciting the Litany of the saints.
We could also pray the Litany to obtain Holy Priests:
Finish it all off by attending daily Mass and praying for good
weather and a fruitful harvest."
sources:
Ember & Rogation Days ~ Fr Ripperger
Ember & Rogation Days ~ Fr Ripperger
The Kingdom of Heaven: An
Instruction in the Catholic Faith for Children
By Hazel Gillmore Alden Rogation Days
By Hazel Gillmore Alden Rogation Days
Posted at 10:19AM May 27, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Thursday May 23, 2019
Heart of a Priest: Relic Pilgrimage of St. Jean Vianney's Incorrupt Heart
St. Joseph Catholic Church, Raleigh NC
Posted at 12:00AM May 23, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Sunday May 12, 2019
World Day of Prayer for Vocations
Litany to St. John Vianney for Vocations
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, have mercy on us.
Lord, have mercy on us.
Christ, hear us.
Christ, graciously hear us.
God the Father of Heaven, have mercy on us.
God the Son, Redeemer of the world, have mercy on us.
God the Holy Ghost, have mercy on us.
Holy Trinity, one God, have mercy on us.
Holy Mary, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, endowed with grace from thine infancy, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney., model of filial piety, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, devoted servant of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, spotless lily of purity, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney., faithful imitator of the sufferings of Christ, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, abyss of humility, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, seraphim in prayer, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, faithful adorer of the Most Blessed Sacrament, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, ardent lover of holy poverty, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, tender friend of the poor, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, penetrated with the fear of Godʼs judgment, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, fortified by Divine visions, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, who wast tormented by the evil spirit, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, perfect model of sacerdotal virtue, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, firm and prudent pastor, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, inflamed by zeal, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, faithful attendant on the sick, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, indefatigable catechist, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, who didst preach in words of fire, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, wise director of souls, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, specially gifted with the spirit of counsel, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, enlightened by light from Heaven, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, formidable to Satan, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, compassionate with every misery, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, providence of the orphans, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, favored with the gift of miracles, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, who didst reconcile so many sinners with God, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, who didst confirm so many of the just in the way of virtue, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, who didst taste the sweetness of death, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, who dost now rejoice in the glory of Heaven, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, helpful to all those who invoke thee, pray for us.
Saint John Vianney, patron of the clergy, pray for us.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, Spare us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, Hear us, O Lord.
Lamb of God, who takest away the sins of the world, Have mercy on us, O Lord.
Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us.
V. Pray for us, Blessed John Marie,
R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray:
Almighty and merciful God, who didst make Saint John Vianney admirable
in his pastoral zeal and in his constant love of penance, grant us the
grace, we implore Thee, to win for Christ, by his example and
intercession, the souls of our brethren, and to attain with them
everlasting glory.
O, Saint John Vianney, incomparable laborer in the field confided to
thee, obtain for the Church the realization of Jesusʼ desire. The
harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few. Pray to the Master of the
harvest to send faithful laborers into His vineyard. O, Saint John
Vianney! Intercede for the clergy. May thy patronage, and thy prayer
multiply the real vocations to the priesthood. May the Holy Ghost grant
thee emulators; may He give us Saints! Through Christ, our Lord. Amen.
Source: Curé d'Ars Prayer Group
Posted at 12:00AM May 12, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Saturday May 04, 2019
Priests' First Saturday
Divine Savior, Jesus Christ, Who hast entrusted the whole work of Thy
redemption, the welfare and salvation of the world, to priests as Thy
representatives, through the hands of Thy most holy Mother and for the
sanctification of Thy priests and candidates for the priesthood I offer
Thee this present day wholly and entirely, with all its prayers, works,
sacrifices, joys, and sorrows.
Give truly holy priests who,
inflamed with the fire of Thy divine love, seek nothing but Thy greater
glory and the salvation of our souls.
And thou, Mary, good
Mother of priests, protect all priests in the dangers of their holy
vocation and, with the loving hand of a Mother, also lead back to the
Good Shepherd those poor priests who have become unfaithful to their
exalted vocation and have gone astray.
In addition to the above make it a point also to recite frequently the following:
Divine Savior, Jesus Christ, Who Hast entrusted the weal and woes of
Thy Holy Church to priests, with all the fervor of my heart I recommend
to Thee the wants of my pastor and all priests. Enrich them more and
more with true priestly sanctity. Give them generous, all embracing,
apostolic hearts, full of love for Thee and for all Thy souls, so that
they, being themselves sanctified in Thee, may sanctify us who are
confided to their care, and may lead us safely to heaven. Bestow upon
them in rich abundance all Thy priestly graces!
Let them ever
give us a glowing example of love and fidelity towards Holy Mother
Church, towards the Pope, and bishops, and grant that by word and
example they may shine as models of every virtue.
Most loving
Jesus, bless all their priestly labors and sacrifices! Bless all their
prayers and words at the altar and in the confessional, in the pulpit,
and in school, in confraternities, and at the bedside of the sick!
Protect and preserve them in all dangers from within and from without.
Divine Savior, give to Thy Church priests who abound in true holiness!
Call many good boys and young men to the priestly and religious state!
Aid and sanctify all those who are to become Thy priests! And to the
souls of departed priests grant everlasting rest.
But to me
give a true spirit of faith and humble obedience, in order that in my
pastor I may ever behold the representative of God and willingly follow
all his teachings. Amen
Source: Curé d'Ars Prayer Group
Posted at 11:25AM May 04, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Wednesday May 01, 2019
Prayer to Saint Joseph for the Church
Saint Joseph, God has appointed you
patron of the Catholic Church because you were the head of the Holy
Family, the starting-point of the Church. You were the father,
protector, guide and support of the Holy Family. For that reason you
belong in a particular way to the Church, which was the purpose of the
Holy Familyʼs existence.
I believe that the Church is the family
of God on earth. Its government is represented in priestly authority
which consists above all in its power over the true Body of Christ,
really present in the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar, thus continuing
Christʼs life in the Church. From this power, too, comes authority over
the Mystical Body of Christ, the members of the Church -- the power to
teach and govern souls, to reconcile them with God, to bless them, and
to pray for them.
You have a special relationship to the
priesthood because you possessed a wonderful power over our Savior
Himself. Your life and office were of a priestly function and are
especially connected with the Blessed Sacrament. To some extent you were
the means of bringing the Redeemer to us -- as it is the priestʼs
function to bring Him to us in the Mass -- for you reared Jesus,
supported, nourished, protected and sheltered Him.
You were
prefigured by the patriarch Joseph, who kept supplies of wheat for his
people. But how much greater than he were you! Joseph of old gave the
Egyptians mere bread for their bodies. You nourished, and with the most
tender care, preserved for the Church Him who is the Bread of Heaven and
who gives eternal life in Holy Communion.
God has appointed you
patron of the Church because the glorious title of patriarch also falls
by special right to you. The patriarchs were the heads of families of
the Chosen People, and theirs was the honor to prepare for the Saviorʼs
incarnation. You belonged to this line of patriarchs, for you were one
of the last descendants of the family of David and one of the nearest
forebears of Christ according to the flesh. As husband of Mary, the
Mother of God, and as the foster-father of the Savior, you were directly
connected with Christ. Your vocation was especially concerned with the
Person of Jesus; your entire activity centered about Him. You are,
therefore, the closing of the Old Testament and the beginning of the
New, which took its rise with the Holy Family of Nazareth. Because the
New Testament surpasses the Old in every respect, you are the patriarch
of patriarchs, the most venerable, exalted, and amiable of all the
patriarchs.
Through Mary, the Church received Christ, and
therefore the Church is indebted to her. But the Church owes her debt of
gratitude and veneration to you also, for you were the chosen one who
enabled Christ to enter into the world according to the laws of order
and fitness. It was by you that the patriarchs and the prophets and the
faithful reaped the fruit of Godʼs promise. Alone among them all, you
saw with your own eyes and possessed the Redeemer promised to the rest
of men.
Saint Joseph, I thank God for your privilege of being
the Patron of the Church. As a token of your own gratitude to God,
obtain for me the grace to live always as a worthy member of this
Church, so that through it I may save my soul. Bless the priests, the
religious, and the laity of the Catholic Church, that they may ever grow
in Godʼs love and faithfulness in His service. Protect the Church from
the evils of our day and from the persecution of her enemies. Through
your powerful intercession may the church successfully accomplish its
mission in this world -- the glory of God and the salvation of souls!
Amen.
Source:Curé d'Ars Prayer Group
Posted at 12:00AM May 01, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]
Tuesday March 19, 2019
Day 14 – March 19 -Catechism on Sin
Sin is the executioner of the good God, and the assassin of the soul. It snatches us away from Heaven to precipitate us into Hell. And we love it! What folly! If we thought seriously about it, we should have such a lively horror of sin that we could not commit it. O my children, how ungrateful we are! The good God wishes to make us happy; that is very certain; He gave us His Law for no other end. The Law of God is great; it is broad. King David said that he found his delight in it, and that it was a treasure more precious to him than the greatest riches. He said also that he walked well, because he had sought after the Commandments of the Lord. The good God wishes, then, to make us happy, and we do not wish to be so. We turn away from Him, and give ourselves to the devil! We fly from our Friend, and we seek after our murderer! We commit sin; we plunge ourselves into the mire. Once sunk in this mire, we know not how to get out. If our fortune were in the case, we should soon find out how to get out of the difficulty; but because it only concerns our soul, we stay where we are.
We come to confession quite preoccupied with the shame that we shall feel. We accuse ourselves with hot air. It is said that many confess, and few are converted. I believe it is so, my children, because few confess with tears of repentance. See, the misfortune is, that people do not reflect. If one said to those who work on Sundays, to a young person who had been dancing for two or three hours, to a man coming out of an alehouse drunk, "What have you been doing? You have been crucifying Our Lord!" they would be quite astonished, because they do not think of it. My children, if we thought of it, we should be seized with horror; it would be impossible for us to do evil. For what has the good God done to us that we should grieve Him thus, and put Him to death again – Him, who has redeemed us from Hell? It would be well if all sinners, when they are going to their guilty pleasures, could, like St. Peter, meet Our Lord on the way, who would say to them, "I am going to that place where you are going yourself, to be there crucified again." Perhaps that might make them reflect.
The saints understood how great an outrage sin is against God. Some of them passed their lives in weeping for their sins. St. Peter wept all his life; he was still weeping at his death. St. Bernard used to say, "Lord! Lord! it is I who fastened Youto the Cross!" By sin we despise the good God, we crucify the good God! What a pity it is to lose our souls, which have cost Our Lord so many sufferings! What harm has Our Lord done us, that we should treat Him so? If the poor lost souls could come back to the earth! if they were in our place! Oh, how senseless we are! the good God calls us to Him, and we fly from Him! He wishes to make us happy, and we will not have His happiness. He commands us to love Him, and we give our hearts to the devil. We employ in ruining ourselves the time He gives us to save our souls. We make war upon Him with the means He gave us to serve Him.
When we offend the good God, if we were to look at our crucifix, we should hear Our Lord saying to us in the depths of our soul, "Will you too, then, take the side of My enemies? Will you crucify Me again?" Cast your eyes on Our Lord fastened to the Cross, and say to yourself, "That is what it cost my Savior to repair the injury my sins have done to God!" A God coming down to earth to be the victim of our sins, a God suffering, a God dying, a God enduring every torment, because He would bear the weight of our crimes! At the sight of the Cross, let us understand the malice of sin, and the hatred we ought to feel for it. Let us enter into ourselves; let us see what we can do to make amends for our poor life.
"What a pity it is!" the good God will say to us at our death; "why have you offended Me – Me, who loved you so much?" To offend the good God, who has never done us anything but good; to please the devil, who can never do us anything but evil! What folly! Is it not real folly to choose to make ourselves worthy of Hell by attaching ourselves to the devil when we might taste the joys of Heaven, even in this life, by uniting ourselves to God by love? One cannot understand this folly; it cannot be enough lamented. Poor sinners seem as if they could not wait for the sentence which will condemn them to the society of the devils; they condemn themselves to it. There is a sort of foretaste in this life of Paradise, of Hell, and of Purgatory. Purgatory is in those souls that are not dead to themselves; Hell is in the heart of the impious; Paradise in that of the perfect, who are closely united to Our Lord.
He who lives in sin takes up the habits and the appearance of the beasts. The beast, which has not reason, knows nothing but its appetites. So the man who makes himself like the beasts loses his reason, and lets himself be guided by the inclinations of his body. He takes his pleasure in good eating and drinking, and in enjoying the vanities of the world, which pass away like the wind. I pity the poor wretches who run after that wind; they gain very little, they give a great deal for very little profit – they give their eternity for the miserable smoke of the world.
My children, how sad it is! when a soul is in a state of sin, it may die in that state; and even now, whatever it can do is without merit before God. That is the reason why the devil is so pleased when a soul is in sin, and perseveres in it, because he thinks that it is working for him, and if it were to die he would have possession of it. When we are in sin, our soul is all diseased, all rotten; it is pitiful. The thought that the good God sees it ought to make it enter into itself. And then, what pleasure is there in sin? None at all. We have frightful dreams that the devil is carrying us away, that we are falling over precipices. Put yourself on good terms with God; have recourse to the Sacrament of Penance; you will sleep as quietly as an angel. You will be glad to waken in the night, to pray to God; you will have nothing but thanksgivings on your lips; you will rise I towards Heaven with great facility, as an eagle soars through the air.
See, my children, how sin degrades man; of an angel created to love God, it makes a demon who will curse Him for eternity. Ah! if Adam, our first father, had not sinned, and if we did not sin every day, how happy we should be! we should be as happy as the saints in Heaven. There would be no more unhappy people on the earth. Oh, how beautiful it would be! In fact, my children, it is sin that brings upon us all calamities, all scourges, war, famine, pestilence, earthquakes, fires, frost, hail, storms – all that afflicts us, all that makes us miserable. See, my children, a person who is in a state of sin is always sad. Whatever he does, he is weary and disgusted with everything; while he who is at peace with God is always happy, always joyous.... Oh, beautiful life! Oh, beautiful death!
My children, we are afraid of death; I can well believe it. It is sin that makes us afraid of death; it is sin that renders death frightful, formidable; it is sin that terrifies the wicked at the hour of the fearful passage. Alas! O God! there is reason enough to be terrified, to think that one is accursed – accursed of God! It makes one tremble. Accursed of God! and why? for what do en expose themselves to be accursed of God? For a blasphemy, for a bad thought, for a bottle of wine, for two minutes of pleasure! For two minutes of pleasure to lose God, one's soul, Heaven forever! We shall see going up to Heaven, in body and soul, that father, that mother, that sister, that neighbor, who were here with us, with whom we have lived, but whom we have not imitated; while we shall go down body and soul to burn in Hell. The devils will rush to overwhelm us. All the devils whose advice we followed will come to torment us.
My children, if you saw a man prepare a great pile of wood, heaping up sticks one upon another, and when you asked him what he was doing, he were to answer you, "I am preparing the fire that is to burn me," what would you think? And if you saw this same man set fire to the pile, and when it was lighted throw himself upon it, what would you say? This is what we do when we commit sin. It is not God who casts us into Hell; we cast ourselves into it by our sins. The lost souls will say, "I have lost God, my soul, and Heaven; it is through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault!" He will raise himself out of the fire only to fall back into it. He will always feel the desire of rising because he was created for God, the greatest, the highest of beings, the Most High... as a bird shut up in a room flies to the ceiling, and falls down again, the justice of God is the ceiling which keeps down the lost.
There is no need to prove the existence of Hell. Our Lord Himself speaks of it, when He relates the history of the wicked rich man who cried out, "Lazarus! Lazarus!" We know very well that there is a Hell, but we live as if there were not; we sell our souls for a few pieces of money. We put off our conversion till the hour of death; but who can assure us that we shall have time or strength at that formidable moment, which has been feared by all the saints – when Hell will gather itself up for a last assault upon us, seeing that it is the decisive moment? There are many people who lose the faith, and never see Hell till they enter it. The Sacraments are administered to them; but ask them if they have committed such a sin, and they will answer you, "Oh! settle that as you please."
Some people offend the good God every moment; their heart is an anthill of sins: it is like a spoilt piece of meat, half-eaten by worms.... No, indeed; if sinners were to think of eternity – of that terrible forever – they would be converted instantly.
Posted at 12:00AM Mar 19, 2019 by VP in Prayers | Comments [0]