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Video – Fra Joseph – No Apologies #17: “Mariolatry”

apostolate — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 13:31:10 +0000

No Apologies #17 – Adoration vs. Veneration (4min) >>> Play

Ave Maria!

Do Catholics commit “Mariolotry” The key to understanding the truth which underlies Catholics devotion to Mary is to be willing to make the rational and legitimate distinction between adoration and veneration.

Ave Maria!

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St. John Neumann and the 40 Hours Devotion

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Sat, 05 Jan 2008 16:00:57 +0000

Ave Maria Meditations

This incredible holy bishop did so many wonderful things but one of my favorite stories concerns the promotion of the 40 Hours Devotion of Adoration of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. His Feast Day is January 5th.

At the time of his episcopate there was a strong anti-Catholic sentiment in Philadelphia and having had two churches burned and another barely saved, priests were advising the Bishop, John Neumann, not to proceed with introducing the 40 Hours of continual adoration of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, believing it would somehow increase the hostility already directed against the Church.

The Bishop had a decision to make and then something happened to make up his mind to proceed with the devotion of the 40 Hours of Adoration:

One night, he was working very late at his desk and fell asleep in his chair. The candle on the desk burnt down and charred some of the papers, but they were still readable. He awoke, surprised and thankful that a fire had not ignited. He fell on his knees to give thanks to God for protection, and heard His voice saying, “As the flames are burning here without consuming or injuring the writing, so shall I pour out my grace in the Blessed Sacrament without prejudice to My honor. Fear no profanation, therefore; hesitate no longer to carry out your design for my glory.”

He introduced the practice of 40 Hours Devotion at the first diocesan synod in April, 1853, and the first devotions began at St. Philip Neri Parish, an appropriate place since that St. Philip had begun that very devotion in the city of Rome. The holy Bishop then introduced the program for the whole diocese, so that each parish would have Forty Hours Devotion during the course of the year. He wrote a booklet for the devotions and obtained special indulgences for the faithful attending them. The Forty Hours Devotion was so successful it spread to other dioceses. At the Plenary Council of Baltimore in 1866, the Forty Hours Devotion was approved for all Dioceses of the United States.

(Let us ask St. John Neumann, lover of the Blessed Sacrament, to pray for us now and that we will again see the 40 Hours Devotion of Adoration grow and flourish in our country and throughout the world, and even to expand to perpetual adoration of Jesus in the most Blessed Sacrament.)

St. John was also most zealous in the promotion of Catholic education and worked diligently to establish parochial schools. Within a year of his becoming Bishop of Philadelphia, the student population in parochial schools increased from 500 to more than 5,000. After two years, it had reached more than 9,000.

St. John Neumann was the fourth bishop of Philadelphia, and held that position from 1852 to 1860. He was the first male canonized saint from the United States. St. John lived from 1811 to 1860. The St. John Neumann feast day is January fifth. Known for a lifetime of pastoral work, especially among poor German immigrants, Bishop John Neumann was the first American man to be named saint.

John Nepomucene Neumann was born on March 28, 1811 in Bohemia, the Czech portion of the present Czechoslovakia. He graduated from a nearby college in Bohemia and then applied to theseminary. John distinguished himself not only in his theological studies, but also in the natural sciences. Besides mastering Latin, Greek and Hebrew, he learned to speak fluently at least eight modern languages, including various Slavic dialects.

On the morning of February 8, 1836, he left his native home and made the trip across Europe on foot. Several months later, he set sail for New York aboard a 210-foot, three-masted ship loaded to capacity with emigrants. Six weeks later, the ship entered the harbor of New York. A few days after arriving in New York, John Neumann sought out and met the bishop, John Dubois. Bishop Dubois had only 36 priests to care for 200,000 Catholics living in all of New York State and half of lower New Jersey. In June of 1836, the bishop ordained John Neumann as a sub-deacon, a deacon, and as a priest, all within on week’s time.

Father John Neumann devoted himself to the pastoral care of all the outlying places in the parish of Buffalo for four years. From his headquarters near Buffalo, he made frequent journeys on foot in all kinds of weather to points ten or twenty miles distant, visiting the settlers on their scattered farms.

Later St. John was attracted to the Redemptorist Order and so was the first novice of the Redemptorists in the United States and, in 1847, he became the head of the American Redemptorists. He also wrote several German Language Catechisms and a German Bible history.

In 1852, he was nominated for the position of Bishop of Philadelphia and he accepted the appointment only because Pope Pius IX commanded him to do so. The Diocese of Philadelphia was at this time the largest in the country, comprising eastern Pennsylvania, western New Jersey, and all of Delaware.

Bishop Neumann was the first in the United States to introduce the Forty Hours Devotion in his diocese. From the beginning, he promoted the establishment of parochial schools. There were only two such schools in 1852, but by 1860 they numbered nearly 100. Through his work with the schools, he helped the Notre Dame Sisters of Munich to become firmly established in the United States.

Though Bishop Neumann had suffered from frequent illnesses, his sudden death, at the age of 48, was wholly unexpected. On January 8, 1860, he went out in the afternoon to attend to some business matters and was walking back when he suffered an apoplectic stroke.

The cause of his beautification was begun in 1886. Ten years later, he received the title of “Venerable.” In February, 1963, Pope John XXIII issued the procamation for his beautification, but the ceremony was delayed by the death of Pope John and Pope Paul VI beautified him on October 13th. His canonization followed in June of 1977.

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I Have Loved You With An Everlasting Love

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 19:00:24 +0000

Ave Maria Meditations

Dearest Jesus: You loved me from all eternity, therefore you created me.

You loved me after You created me, therefore You became Man for me.

You loved me after You became man for me, therefore you lived and died for me.

You loved me after You had died for me therefore You went to prepare a place for me.

You loved me after You had prepared a place for me, therefore You came back to me.

You loved me after You came back to me, therefore you desired to enter into me and be united to me.

This is the meaning of the most Blessed Sacrament : The Mystery of His Love.

(Archbishop Goodier)

…I wish you would be there. We could maybe have adoration everyday and so bring and weave our lives with the Bread of Life. No greater love not even God could give than in giving Himself as Bread of life-to be broken, to be eaten so that you and I may eat and live-may eat and so satisfy our hunger for love. And He seemed yet not satisfied for He too was hungry for love. So He made Himself the hungry One, the Thirsty One, the Naked One, the Homeless [One] and kept on calling: I was hungry, naked, homeless. You did it to Me…The Bread of life and the Hungry One-but one love–only Jesus. His humility is so wonderful. I can understand His majesty, His greatness because He is God, but His humility is beyond my understanding, because He makes Himself Bread of Life so that even a child as small as I can eat Him and live. The greatness of [the] humility of God! Really no greater love-no greater love than the love of Christ.

(from a letter of Mother Teresa to a priest)

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Video – No Apologies #36: Claims of Divinity

apostolate — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 17:08:23 +0000

No Apologies #36 – There is no doubt about Christ’s claims. ( 06min) >>> Play	?
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Ave Maria!

Today we look at 3 ways in which Christ claimed to be divine: By being “one with the Father”, by being the “Supreme Lawmaker”, and by accepting?the adoration of others.

Ave Maria!

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Franciscan Saint of the Confessional: St. Leopoldo Mandic

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 00:00:09 +0000

AVE MARIA MEDITATIONS

July 30^th: St. Leopoldo Mandic

A Saint of the Confessional and a Saint for the Cause of Unity

The august Mother of God is in truth co?redemptress of the human race and source of all grace. In fact on the one hand we have in her the most perfect obedience to God?s laws and, after her Son, the most perfect innocence: He impeccable by His nature, she impeccable by grace. On the other hand we see her as Our Lady of Sorrows, as He was the Man of Sorrows. If, therefore, by eternal decree of God, the Immaculate Virgin was the moral victim of sorrow as her Son was the physical victim, and if God?s avenging justice found no shadow of fault in them, it follows inevit?ably that they were paying the price of the sins of others, that is of mankind.

St. Leopoldo had a great love of Our Lady, a love that sustained him though his life of suffering, was light to his mind and warmth and comfort to his heart. Not even those who lived with him could describe accurately the extent and depth of this love. The tone of when he spoke of her, his expression when he looked at a picture or statue of her, cannot be described: one had to experience them to the ardor of his love

?Fr. Leopoldo,? someone once remarked to him, ?you have heard so much that noth?ing can surprise you now.? ?On the contrary, my son, I am con?stantly astonished by the way people put their immortal souls in jeopardy for the most frivolous and futile reasons,?

Fr. Leopoldo lived the Mass and always tried to instill into others a vivid faith in what he rightly considered to be the source of all grace and blessings. Probably every priest who came to him to confession was frequently exhorted to celebrate Mass well and to make central point of his spiritual life.

?I recommend daily Communion?, he wrote to a penitent, ?You?ll see what a marvelous effect it has.?

Jesus told the Jews that if they kept His commandments they would know the truth, and the truth would set them free. This truth is none other than the grace of the Holy Ghost, the grace promised by Christ to the Samaritan woman under the simile of the living water. Let us therefore approach God, Who is Truth and Light, and we shall be illuminated. Before the splendor of this Light, satan, who is darkness, will be put to flight, and the kingdom of Gad and the Gospel of Christ will be safe within us.

Great was the mystic joy with which Fr. Leopoldo held the Sacred Host in his hands and consumed It. But this did not last long. After Mass he folded his arms across his breast as though trying to retain the treasure of which he had partaken, but before long the Sacramental Species lost their identity and the Real Presence dissolved with them. Jesus, truly present in Body and Blood was, however, not far off: He was always still there in the tabernacle, and it was to the tabernacle that Fr. Leopoldo now turned his attention, never turning it away. Whatever he did during the day, wherever he might go, his heart remained in adoration before God. He was constantly aware of call of the tabernacle and the necessity of it in the spiritual life.

At any time when he was free of other duties, he went immediately to, the Blessed Sacrament altar and plunged into adoration. In spite of acute arthritic pains in his legs, he always knelt upright without the support of the bench, and very often on the bare floor. He remained completely immobile, like a statue, and his face, turned to the tabernacle

Even in his genuflections when passing before the altar, one could see that here was no routine gesture, no everyday acknowledgement of a belief however firmly held, but a genuine, almost spontaneous act of adoration. From his great devotion to the Blessed Sacrament stemmed a desire to ensure that, as far as he was concerned, everything to do with the tabernacle should be perfect.

Aware that in the Holy Eucharist was the inexhaustible source of all good, Fr. Leopoldo, moved .by his ardent charity, did everything in his power to persuade others to approach the Blessed Sacrament. He often included a visit to the Blessed Sacrament in the penances he gave, and was always recommending frequent Communion as a sov?ereign aid to perfection.

As Christ our Redeemer redeemed mankind through His sufferings and cross and death, so He wishes his followers to apply His merits to redeemed mankind by use of the same means of suffering, sorrow and sacrifice, united with and sanctified by His sufferings as priest and eternal victim. Every member of the faithful is called upon to cooperate with the divine plan in this manner for the benefit of mankind, for to all of them was given the command to pray one for another and to be a cause of salva?tion one to another.

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Physically malformed and delicate of health, Bogdan early showed signs of great spiritual strength and integrity. He entered the Capuchin Franciscan Order and was ordained on September 20th, 1884.

He wanted to be a missionary to in Eastern Europe, torn apart by much religious strife, but was denied by his superiors because of his frailty and general ill-health. Posted to Padua, Italy in 1906 where, except for a year spent in a prison camp in World War I because he would not renounce his Croat nationality, he remained for the rest of his life. He became a Confessor and Spiritual Director for almost forty years.

The life of Saint Leopold Mandic is a contrast between his physical frailty and his spiritual strength. Four foot five inches tall, and born physically weak, his health became worse as he grew older. He had a stammer, suffered abdominal pains, and was gradually deformed by chronic arthritis, making his frame stooped, his hands gnarled, and causing much pain. He offered his suffering for unity in the Church and for souls.

His strong faith was communicated to others when they came to Fr. Leopold for spiritual advice. He would exclaim: ?Have faith! Everything will be alright. Faith, Faith!?

He was truly an apostle; though he did not go to the mission territory, his long service in the confessional proved to be his own distinct apostolate. For nearly forty years, twelve hours a day, he received, counselled, and absolved thousands of penitents, working as a herald of God?s love and forgiveness. And his human weakness highlights the gift of spiritual strength which enabled him to carry out this untiring apostolate.

Early in his Capuchin life, Leopold Mandic was asked to surrender his missionary aspirations and personal preference, and to work as Confessor and Spiritual Advisor. Looking back on this decision, he once said: ?I am like a bird in a cage, but my heart is beyond the seas.?

St. Leopoldo was born Mary 12, 1866 at Castelnuovo, Dalmatia (Bosnia-Hercogovina) and died on July 30, 1942 at the Friary in Padua, Italy of esophogial cancer. He was beatified in 1976 and canonized in 1983.

We have in heaven the heart of a mother, The Virgin, our Mother, who at the foot of the Cross suffered as much as possible for a human creature, understands our troubles and consoles us.

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A Week of Eucharistic and Marian Saints

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 20:00:40 +0000

Ave Maria Meditations

A week of Eucharistic and Marian Saints

August 1st: St. Alphonsus Liguori

Bishop and Doctor of the Church

INTRODUCTORY PRAYER (To be said before each Visit to the Most Blessed Sacrament)

My Lord Jesus Christ, I believe that you are really here in this sacrament. Night and day you remain here compassionate and loving. You call, you wait for, you welcome everyone who comes to visit you. Unimportant though I am, I adore you. I thank you for all the wonderful graces you have given me. But I thank you especially for having given me yourself in this sacrament, for having asked your own Mother to mother me, for having called me here to talk to you.

I am here before you today to do three things: to thank you for these precious gifts, to make up for all the dis?respect that you receive in this sacrament from those who offend you, to adore you everywhere in the world where you are present in this living bread but are left abandoned and unloved.

My Jesus, I love you with all my heart. I know I have displeased you often in the past; I am sorry. With your help I promise never to do it again. I am only a miser?able sinner, but I consecrate myself to you completely. I give you my will, my love, my desires, everything I own. From now on do what you please with me. All I ask is that you love me, that you keep me faithful to the end of my life. I ask for the grace to do your will ex?actly as you want it done.

I pray for the souls in purgatory-especially for those who were close to you in this sacrament and close to your Mother Mary. I pray for every soul hardened in sin. My Savior, I unite my love to the love of your di?vine heart, and I offer them both together to your Fa?ther. I beg him to accept this offering in your name. Amen.

FIRST VISIT

You are kneeling before a fountain. From its calm depths a voice whispers: If you are thirsty, come to me. It is Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. From this foun?tain of love he pours out upon the world all the merits of his sufferings. From it the saints drink deeply. The prophet predicted it: You shall drink with joy from the Savior?s fountain.

A Spanish Poor Clare loved to make long visits to the Blessed Sacrament. The other nuns asked what she did during those long silent hours. “I could kneel there forever,” she answered. “And why not? God is there. You wonder what I do in the presence of my God? I marvel, I love, I thank, I beg. What does a tramp do when he meets a millionaire? A sick man when he sees a doctor? A starving man when he sees food? What does a dry-throated hiker do at a drinking fountain?”

My Jesus: You are my Life, my Hope, my Treasure, my soul’s only Love. A cruel death was the price you paid to be here in this sacrament today. And even now you suffer insults from those who ignore you. Yet, you remain because you want our love. Come, my Lord, implant yourself in my heart. Lock its door forever. I want nothing cheap to enter it and take away the love that belongs to you. You alone must run my life. If I swerve from you, steer me straight once more. Make me search for one pleasure: the pleasure of pleasing you. Make me yearn for one joy: the joy of visiting you. Make me crave for one delight: the delight of receiving your body. So many people chase after such hollow things! But all I care about is your love, and I am here to beg it from you today. Let me forget myself and keep you ever be?fore my mind. Amen.

SPIRITUAL COMMUNION (To be said after each Visit)

My Jesus, I believe you are really here in the Blessed Sacrament. I love you more than anything in the world, and I hunger to feed on your flesh. But since I cannot receive Communion at this moment, feed my soul at least spiritually. I unite myself to you now as I do when I actually receive you. Never let me drift away from you.

VISIT WITH MARY

We have another fountain to drink from too … our Mother Mary. Saint Bernard said that Mary is so rich in graces that everybody shares in them: “Of her fullness we have all received.” Mary was literally filled with grace, as the angel said when he greeted her. God filled her with such tremendous riches so that she could share them with her children. Cause of our joy, pray for us!

CONCLUDING PRAYER (To be said each day)

Most Holy Immaculate Virgin and my Mother Mary, to you who are the Mother of my Lord, the Queen of the world, the Advocate, the Hope, the Refuge of sin?ners, I have recourse today-I, who am the most miser?able of all. I render you my most humble homage, 0 great Queen, and I thank you for all the graces you have conferred on me until now, particularly for having de?livered me from hell, which I have so often deserved. I love you, 0 most amiable Lady; and for the love which I bear you, I promise to serve you always and to do all in my power to make others also love you. I place in you all my hopes; I confide my salvation to your care.

Accept me for your servant and receive me under your mantle, 0 Mother of Mercy. And since you are so pow?erful with God, deliver me from all temptations, or rather obtain for me the strength to triumph over them until death. Of you I ask a perfect love for Jesus Christ. From you I hope to die a good death. 0 my Mother, by the love which you bear to God, I beseech you to help me at all times, but especially at the last moment of my life. Leave me not, I beseech you, until you see me safe in heaven, blessing you and singing your mercies for all eternity.

Amen. So I hope. So may it be.

(From Visits to the Most Blessed Sacrament and the Blessed Virgin Mary)

August 2nd: St. Peter Julian Eymard

Founder of the Blessed Sacrament Fathers

THE HIDDEN GOD

We can understand why the Son of God loved man enough to become man Himself; the Creator must have been set on repairing the work of His hands. We can also understand how, from an excess of love, the God-Man died on the Cross. But something we cannot understand, something that terrifies those of little faith and scandalizes unbelievers, is the fact that Jesus Christ, after hav?ing been glorified and crowned, after having com?pleted His mission here below, wanted still to dwell with us, and in a state more lowly and self-abasing than at Bethlehem, than on Calvary itself.

With reverence let us lift the mysterious veil that covers the Holy of Holies, and let us try to under?stand the excess of love which our Savior has for us. This veiled condition of existence is the most

glorious one for the Heavenly Father; for thus Jesus renews and glorifies all the states of His mor?tal life. What He cannot do in the glory of heaven, He does on the altar through His state of self-abase?nent. What looks of complacency must not the Heavenly Father cast upon the earth where He sees His Son, Whom He loves as Himself, in a state of poverty, humility, and obedience!

Our Lord has found the means of perpetuating and renewing unceasingly the sacrifice of Calvary. He wants His Father to have constantly before His eyes the heroic deed by which His Son gave Him infinite glory-when He immolated Himself in order to destroy the kingdom of His enemy, satan.

Jesus Christ continues to wage against pride the war that will vanquish it. As there is nothing so repugnant to God as pride, so there is nothing that glorifies Him so much as humility. His Father’s glory is there, the first reason for the hidden state of our Lord in the Eucharist.

JESUS CHRIST is working in His hidden state at the task of my sanctification. In order to be?come a saint I must conquer pride and replace it with humility. In the Eucharist, Jesus gives me the example and the grace of humility. The hidden state of Jesus strengthens me against my weakness. I may draw near to Him, speak to Him, and look upon Him without fear. If His glory were re?splendent, who would dare speak to Jesus Christ, when even the Apostles fell to the ground terror? stricken for having seen a ray of His glory on Tabor? Jesus veils His power which would frighten man; He veils His sanctity, the sublimity of which would discourage our little virtues. A mother lisps with her child and comes down to his level so as to lift him up to her own. In the same way Jesus makes Himself little with the little in order to lift them up to Himself, and through Himself to God.

The Eucharistic veil perfects our faith. Faith is a pure act of the intellect, unhampered by the senses. In the present case, the senses are of no use; there is nothing they can do. This is the only mystery of Jesus Christ in which the senses must be reduced to absolute silence. In every other mystery, for example, in the Incarnation, in the Re?demption, the senses see God as a child, they see Him as a dying God; but here, nothing save an im?penetrable cloud. Faith alone must act, for it is the realm of faith. This obscurity requires of us a very meritorious sacrifice, the sacrifice of our reason and of our in?tellect. We must believe even against the testimony of our senses, against the ordinary laws of nature, against our own personal experience. We must be?lieve on the mere word of Jesus Christ.

—-

LIFE OF ADORATION IN UNION WITH MARY

In considering attentively the reasons that induced our Lord to leave us His Blessed Mother and so separate Himself from her, it seems to me that He did so be?cause He was distrustful of our weakness and inconstancy. Our Lord feared that men, not knowing how to find and adore Him in His Sacrament, would become dis?couraged and would forget Him. The child, as we know, does not search long for some?thing he wants; if he does not find it at once, he gives up and seeks something else. This is what our Lord feared for us; so He left us His Mother whose mission it is to take us by the hand and lead us to His Tabernacle. The Blessed Virgin, then; became our Mother, in view of the Eucharist. To her is entrusted the task of showing us how to find our Bread of Life, of making us appreciate and desire that Heavenly. Food; it is her mission to form us for adoration.

After our Lord’s Ascension, she gathered about her a community of pious women at Jerusalem; she dwelt with them, sharing with them her treasure of grace and love. Her influence extended to the disciples and to the first Christians. Like a true Mother, she trained her children to be faithful to the duties of their state and to practice virtue. What Mary did then, she will do for us now. She will instruct us, show us our Lord in the Eucharist, causing us to take part in her pious devotion to His Service?for all that a mother possesses belongs to her children. Mary being our Mother, will educate us. Mary will instill into you her method of adoration; she will even make your adoration in and for you, for only she can inspire you with the spirit of true and fervent adoration. It is only a mother’s heart that can make itself perfectly under?stood by her child. The Blessed Virgin will say to you: “Come, adore with me.”

Our Lord has given us Mary to be the bond of union between Him and us. Mary gives us the first attraction to Jesus. Before we knew the Eucharist, we knew the name of our Mother and we already loved her. Mary attracted us to herself: she trained us in the virtues necessary for the Eucharistic life. It was fitting that it should be thus, and it is evi?dent to me that there will be no true voca?tions to the Blessed Sacrament, no real devotion to the Holy Eucharist, except those that have been formed by Mary.

August 4th: St. John Mary Vianney

Patron Saint of Parish Priests

Catechism on the Real Presence

OUR LORD is hidden there, waiting for us to come and visit Him, and make our request to Him. See how good He is! He accommodates Himself to our weakness. In Heaven, where we shall be glorious and triumphant, we shall see him in all His glory. If He had presented Himself before us in that glory now, we should not have dared to approach Him; but He hides Himself, like a person in a prison, who might say to us, “You do not see me, but that is no matter; ask of me all you wish and I will grant it.”

He is there in the Sacrament of His love, sighing and interceding incessantly with His Father for sin?ners. To what outrages does He not expose Him?self that He may remain in the midst of us! He is there to console US; and therefore we ought often to visit Him. How pleasing to Him is the short quarter of an hour that we steal from our occu?pations, from something of no use, to come and pray to Him, to visit Him, to console Him for all the outrages He receives! When He sees pure souls coming eagerly to Him, He smiles upon them. They come with that simplicity which pleases Him so much, to ask His pardon for all sinners, for the outrages of so many ungrateful men. What happiness do we not feel in the pres?ence of God, when we find ourselves alone at His feet before the holy tabernacles!

Ah! If we had the eyes of angels with which to see Our Lord Jesus Christ, who is here present on this altar, and who is looking at us, how we should love Him! We should never more wish to part from Him. We should wish; to remain al?ways at His feet; it would be a foretaste of Heaven: all else would become insipid to us. But see, it is faith we want. We are poor blind people; we have a mist before our eyes. Faith alone can dis?pel this mist. Presently, my children, when I shall hold Our Lord in my hands, when the good God blesses you, ask Him then to open the eyes of your heart; say to Him like the blind man of Jericho, “0 Lord, make me to see!” If you say to Him sincerely, “Make me to see!” you will cer?tainly obtain what you desire, because He wishes nothing but your happiness. He has His hands full of graces, seeking to whom to distribute them.

Catechism on the Blessed Virgin

THE FATHER takes pleasure in looking upon the heart of the most Holy Virgin Mary, as the masterpiece of His hands; for we always like our own work, especially when it is well done. The Son takes pleasure in it as the heart of His Mother, the source from which He drew the Blood that has ransomed us; the Holy Ghost as His tem?ple. The Prophets published the glory of Mary before her birth; they compared her to the sun. Indeed, the apparition of the Holy Virgin may well be compared to a beautiful gleam of sun on a foggy day.

The heart of this good Mother is all love and mercy; she desires only to see us happy. We have only to turn to her to be heard. The Son has His justice, the Mother has nothing but her love. God has loved us so much as to die for us; but in the heart of Our Lord there is justice, which i? an attribute of God; in that of the most Holy Virgin there is nothing but mercy. Her Son being ready to punish a sinner, Mary interposes, checks the sword, implores pardon for the poor criminal. “Mother;’ Our Lord says to her, “I can refuse you nothing. If Hell could repent, you would obtain its pardon.”

The most Holy Virgin places herself between her Son and us. The greater sinners we are, the more tenderness and compassion does she feel for us. The child that has cost its mother most tears is the dearest to her heart. Does not a mother always run to the help of the weakest and the most exposed to danger? Is not a physician in the hospital most attentive to those who are most seri?ously ill? The Heart of Mary is so tender towards us, that those of all the mothers in the world put together are like a piece of ice in comparison to hers

The Ave Maria is a prayer that is never weari?some. The devotion to the Holy Virgin is deli?cious, sweet, nourishing. When we talk on earthly subjects or politics, we grow weary; but when we talk of the Holy Virgin, it is always new. All the saints have a great devotion to Our Lady; no grace comes from Heaven without passing through her hands. We cannot go into a house without speaking to the porter; well, the Holy Virgin is the portress of Heaven. All that the Son asks of the Father is granted Him. All that the Mother asks of the Son is in like manner granted to her. When we have han?dled something fragrant, our hands perfume what?ever they touch: let our prayers pass through the hands of the Holy Virgin; she will perfume them.

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Thoughts on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 19:00:06 +0000

Ave Maria Meditations

Some thoughts on the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass:

The Holy Mass as renewal of the Covenant.

‘Behold, the days are coming?, says the Lord, ‘when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt.? During the Last Supper, Jesus anticipated what shortly thereafter he was to accomplish in his death. He showed his disciples what he was anxious to do, what he was soon to carry out ?the sacrifice of his Body and Blood for everyone. The Last Supper is an anti?cipation of the sacrifice of the Cross. When, twenty-seven years later, Saint Paul would quote these words of Jesus in the First Letter to the Corinthians: ?This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me?.

The word commemoration harkens back to the Hebrew word which signifies the Jewish feast recalling the flight from Egypt and the Covenant made on Mount Sinai. During this feast the Jews not only remember the past event but they continued it generation after generation. When the Lord commands the Apostles, ?Do this in remembrance of me?, he is not just asking them to remember a single moment. He is asking. them to renew

the sacrifice of Calvary. ???????????

This Covenant is renewed each and every day throughout the entire world wherever the Holy Mass is celebrated. The priest performing each Mass re-presents, that is to say, he makes present once again, in a mysterious manner, the same sacrifice which Christ offered on Cal?vary. The work of our Redemption takes place here and now. It is as if the twenty centuries separating us from Cal?vary had disappeared. The New Covenant of the Eucharis?tic Sacrifice becomes especially manifest in the moment of Consecration. It is at this moment that we should make heartfelt acts of faith and love.

Let us take advantage of some guidelines given to pri?ests on how to celebrate the Mass, in order to help us live the sacrifice with ever greater devotion: After uttering the words which bring Christ down upon the altar, look at the sacramental species with the eyes of faith. As you kneel, see the legions of angels which surround Christ and adore him with profound reverence. This sight should make you exceedingly humble. In the elevation, contemplate Christ elevated on the Cross. Ask Him to bring all things to Him?self. Make fervent acts of faith, hope, love, adoration, humility, saying with the mind, ‘Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me! My Lord and my God! ?I love you, my God. I adore you with my whole heart and soul?.

You may also renew the intention of the Mass which you are celebrating, offering up the Eucharist according to its four ends. But when you lift up the chalice, make sure to remember in a very contrite way that the blood of Christ

has been shed for you, even though you have oftentimes despised it. Adore him so as to make up for your?past neglect. We have to fortify our faith and love in these moments of the Consecration.

Love for the Holy Sacrifice.

How lovely is thy dwelling place, 0 Lord of hosts! My soul longs, yea, faints for the courts of the Lord; my heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.

With what love and reverence we should approach Holy Mass! There, in this Holy Sacrifice, is to be found the sublime spring of grace to which every generation will repair for strength as man makes his way towards eternity. There we will find not only grace, but the Author of all grace.

Whenever we prepare to celebrate or participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the altar, we have to do so with an intensity that binds us closer and closer to Jesus Christ, the High Priest. As Saint Paul tells us: ?Have this mind among yourselves, which was in Christ Jesus . We offer the Supreme Sacrifice through him and with him and in him?. We offer up ourselves. ?One detail which will help us foster this union with Jesus Christ in the Mass has to do with our manner of participating in the Liturgy. We need to be serious, pious and active, recollected in spirit, our soul united with our body in prayerful harmony. We have to give our full attention to the readings and the acclama?tions. During the times reserved for silent prayer, we ought to make acts of faith and love. We should ask the Blessed Virgin to teach us how to be lovingly attentive at the moment of the consecration and when we receive Jesus in Communion.? Other details to keep in mind relate to our punctuality and the way we dress.

A man who fails to love the Mass, fails to love Christ!. We must make an effort to ‘live’ the Mass with calm and serenity, with devotion and affection. Those who love acquire a finesse, a sensitivity of soul that makes them notice details that are sometimes very small, but that are important because they express the love of a passionate heart. This is how we should attend the Holy Mass. And this is why I have always suspected that those who want the Mass to be over quickly show, with this insensitive attitude, that they have not yet realized what the sacrifice of the altar means.

Our time of thanksgiving after Mass sums up these very special moments of the day which can have such a decisive influence on our work, on our family life, on our cheerful dealings with others, on our peace and joy. Lived in this fashion, the Mass will never be an isolated event, but instead will serve us as real spiritual nourishment. The Mass will give to our actions an eternal meaning. The Mass will help us to live as children of God and co?redeemers with Christ.

We should try to be at the side of Our Lady during the holy Mass, just as she stood by her Son on Calvary. As we offer up Jesus to the Father, we offer ourselves with him through the intercession of Mary. Most Holy Father, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary I offer you Jesus, your beloved Son. I offer myself through him, with him and in him for all his intentions, in the name of all creatures.

Fr. Francis Fernandez (In Conversation with God)

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O Sacrament Most Holy

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Mon, 01 Sep 2008 19:00:37 +0000

Ave Maria Meditations

A Short Visit to the Blessed Sacrament

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

I place myself in the presence of Him, in whose Incarnate Presence I am

Before I place myself there, I adore Thee, 0 my Savior, present here as God and man, in soul and body, in true flesh and blood.? I acknowledge and confess that I kneel before that Sacred Humanity which was conceived in Mary’s womb and lay in Mary’s bosom; which grew up to man’s estate, and by the Sea of Galilee called the Twelve, wrought miracles, and spoke words of wisdom and peace; which in due season hung on the cross, lay in the tomb, rose from the dead, and now reigns in heaven.

I praise, and bless, and give myself wholly to Him, Who is the true Bread of my soul, and my everlasting joy.

Ven. John Henry Cardinal Newman

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We Adore Thee, O Christ, and We Praise Thee

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 19:00:10 +0000

Ave Maria Meditations

Jesus is very near to us: in Christian countries where there are so many tabernacles we are hardly ever more than a few miles from Him. How difficult it is not to see the walls or at least the spire of some church whether we are in the middle of a crowded city or traveling by road or by train. Christ is there! It is the Lord! ?our faith and our love exclaim. We can say it because Our Lord is present there really and substantially: He is the same one who appeared to the disciples and who has always shown such interest in everybody.

Jesus has remained in the Blessed Sacrament. In this memorial Sacrament He is really, truly and substantially present, his Body and Blood together with his Soul and Divinity and, consequently, the whole Christ. The presence of Christ in the Blessed Eucharist is real and permanent, because once Mass is over, Our Lord remains in each one of the consecrated hosts that has not, been consumed. He who is present is He who was born, died and rose again in Palestine, the one who is at the right hand of God the Father. ?We meet with Him in the tabernacle and He sees us and knows us. We can speak to Him as the Apostles did and tell Him what things we are enthusiastic about and what things are causing us concern. There we always find true peace, of the kind that endures in spite of all sorrow and every obstacle.

The Visit to the Blessed Sacrament.

Eucharistic piety, says Pope John Paul II, should be centered above all on the celebration of the Lord’s Supper, which perpetuates the pouring out of His love on the Cross. But it has a logical prolongation … in the adoration of Christ in this divine Sacrament, in the visit to the Blessed Sacrament in prayer beside the Tabernacle, as well as in those other exercises of devotion both personal and collec?tive, private and public, which you have been practicing for centuries … Jesus waits for us in this Sacrament of Love. Let us not be mean with our time when it comes to going to meet him in adoration, in contemplation that is filled with faith, and disposed to make reparation for the grave faults and crimes of the world.

Jesus is there in the nearest Tabernacle. Perhaps just a few miles away or even perhaps a few yards … How could we not go to see Him, to love Him, to tell Him about our affairs, to ask Him for things? What a lack of consistency on our part if we were not to do this with faith? How easy it is to understand that centuries-old custom of the daily visit to the divine tabernacle. There the Master has been waiting for us these past twenty centuries and we can be together with him like Mary, the sister of Lazarus – the one who chose the better part.

Jesus is waiting for us to visit Him. It is, in a way, a return of His visit to us in Holy Communion, and it is a proof of gratitude, an expression of love, an acknowledge?ment of the Lord’s presence. It is a continuation of our act of thanksgiving for the previous Communion and a preparation for the next. ?When we find ourselves before the tabernacle we can indeed say in all truth and accuracy: God is here! And in the presence of this mystery of faith there is no room for any other attitude except that of adoration – Adoro te devote … 0 hidden God, devoutly I adore You; of respect and astonishment; and, at the same time, of unlimited confidence. Dwelling with Christ Our Lord, the faithful enjoy his intimate friendship and pour out their heart before Him for themselves and their dear ones, and pray for the peace and salvation of the world. They offer their entire lives with Christ to the Father in the Holy Spirit, and receive in this wonderful exchange an increase of faith, hope and charity.. . Thus they nourish those right dispositions which enable them with all due devotion to celebrate the memorial of the Lord and receive frequently the bread given us by the Father.??

Fruits of this act of piety.

The Visit to the Blessed Sacra?ment is an act of piety that only takes a few minutes; nevertheless, what a lot of graces and what fortitude and peace does Our Lord give through it. There we find that our sense of presence of God throughout the day is improved and we gather new strength to take the difficulties of the day in our stride. There our desire to work better is enkindled and we are provided with a good supply of peace and joy to take with us to our family life. Our Lord, who always pays generously, is grateful for the fact that we have gone to visit Him. And as to paying us, he is so careful about this that you need to have no fear He will leave us without our reward if only we raise our eyes to Heaven and remember Him.

In the Visit to the Blessed Sacrament we go to keep Jesus company for a few minutes. It could be that on a par?ticular day not many have gone to visit him even though He was expecting them. Therefore He is all the more pleased to see us there. We shall say some of the usual prayers to Him as well as making the spiritual Communion. We’ll ask Him for help – both spiritual and material; we’ll tell Him what is causing us concern and what we are happy about; we’ll tell Him that, in spite of our miseries, He can count on us for the re-evangelization of the world and we’ll tell Him, perhaps, that we want to bring a friend close to Him. What shall we do, you sometimes ask, in the presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament? Love Him, praise Him, thank Him and ask Him for things.

What does a thirsty person do when he sees a pure clean fountain? ?When we leave the Church after these moments of prayer, we will have in us greater peace, a determination to help others, an eager longing to receive Holy Communion, because the only way that intimate union with Jesus can be fully realized is in the Eucharist. It will effectively have helped us to increase our sense of the presence of God in the course of our work and our daily tasks. It will be easy for us to keep up a relationship of friendship and confidence with him throughout the day.

Once we are in the church, we can easily find out where the tabernacle is – which is the first place we should direct our attention to – because it should be located in a truly prominent place … suited to private prayer. And there the presence of the Blessed Eucharist will be indicated by the small lamp which as the sign of honor to Our Lord, will be continuously burning before it. As we finish our prayer we ask our Mother Mary to teach us how to love Jesus really present in the tabernacle as she loved Him all those years of His life in Nazareth.

from Fr. Francis Fernandez (In Conversation with God)

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Divine Mercy in my Soul

Sr. JosephMary f.t.i. — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 14:37:04 +0000

Ave Maria Mediations

O Blood and Water,

which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus

as a fount of Mercy for us,

I trust in You!

O Blessed Host

O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the testament of God’s mercy for us,

and especially for poor sinners.

O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus

as proof of infinite mercy for us, and especially for poor sinners.

O Blessed Host, in whom is contained life eternal and of infinite mercy,

dispensed in abundance to us and especially to poor sinners.

O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the mercy of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit towards us, and especially towards poor sinners.

O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the infinite price of mercy which will compensate for all our debts, and especially those of poor sinners.???

O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the fountain of living water which springs from infinite mercy for us, and especially for poor sinners.
O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the fire of purest love which blazes forth from the bosom of the Eternal Father, as from an abyss of infinite mercy for us, and especially for poor sinners.
O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the medicine for all our infirmities, flowing from infinite mercy, as from a fount, for us and especially for poor sinners.
O Blessed Host, in whom is contained the union between God and us through His infinite mercy for us and especially for poor sinners.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in all the sufferings and adversities of life.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in the midst of darkness and of storms within and without.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in life and at the hour of our death.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in the midst of adversities and floods of despair.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in the midst of falsehood and treason.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in the midst of the darkness and godlessness which inundate the earth.

O Blessed Host, our only hope in the longing and pain in which no one will understand us.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in the toil and monotony of everyday life.
O Blessed Host, our only hope amid the ruin of our hopes and endeavors.
O Blessed Host, our only hope in the midst of the ravages of the enemy

and the efforts of hell.

O Blessed Host, I trust in You when the burdens are beyond my strength and I find my efforts are fruitless.
O Blessed Host, I trust in You when storms toss my heart about and my fearful spirit tends to despair.
O Blessed Host, I trust in You when my heart is about to tremble and mortal sweat moistens my brow.
O Blessed Host, I trust in You when everything conspires against me and black despair creeps into my soul.
O Blessed Host, I trust in You when my eyes will begin to grow dim to all temporal things and, for the first time, my spirit will behold the unknown worlds.

O Blessed Host, I trust in You when my tasks will be beyond my strength and adversity will become my daily lot.
O Blessed Host, I trust in You when the practice of virtue will appear difficult for me and my nature will grow rebellious.

O Blessed Host, I trust in You when my hostile blows will be aimed against me.
O Blessed Host, I trust in You when my toils and efforts will be misjudged by others.
O Blessed Host, I trust in You when Your judgments will resound over me; it is then that I will trust in the sea of Your mercy.

The year 1937 General Exercises
O Most Holy Trinity! As many times as I breathe, as many times as my heart beats, as many times as my blood pulsates through my body, so many thousand times do I want to glorify Your mercy. I want to be completely transformed into Your mercy and to be Your living reflection, O Lord. May the greatness of all divine attributes, that of Your unfathomable mercy, pass through my heart and soul to my neighbor.

Help me, O Lord, that my eyes may be merciful, so that I may never suspect or judge from appearances, but look for what is beautiful in my neighbors’ souls and come to their rescue.

Help me, that my ears may be merciful, so that I may give heed to my neighbors’ needs and not be indifferent to their pains and meanings.

Help me, O Lord, that my tongue maybe merciful, so that I should never speak negatively of my neighbor, but have a word of comfort and forgiveness for all.

Help me, O Lord, that my hands may be merciful and filled with good deeds, so that I may do only good to my neighbors and take upon myself the more difficult and toilsome tasks.

Help me, that my feet may be merciful, so that I may hurry to assist my neighbor, overcoming my own fatigue and weariness. My true rest is in the service of my neighbor.

Help me, O Lord, that my heart may be merciful so that I myself may feel all the sufferings of my neighbor. I will refuse my heart to no one. I will be sincere even with those who, I know will abuse my kindness. And I will lock myself up in the most merciful Heart of Jesus. I will bear my own sufferings in silence. May Your mercy, O Lord, rest upon me. You yourself command me to exercise the three degrees of mercy. The first: the act of mercy, of whatever kind. The second: the word of mercy – if I cannot carry out a work of mercy, I assist by my words. The third: Prayer – if I cannot show mercy by deeds or words, I can always do so by prayer. My prayer reaches out even there where I cannot reach out physically.

O my Jesus, transform me into Yourself, for You can do all things.

Prayer of St. Faustina to Our Lady
O Mary, my Mother and my Lady, I offer you my soul, my body, my life and my death and all that will come after it. I place everything in your hands, O my Mother, cover my soul with your virginal mantle and grant me the grace of purity of heart, soul and body. Defend me with your power against all enemies and especially against those who hide their malice behind the mask of virtue. Fortify my soul that pain may not break it. Mother of grace, teach me to live by God?s power. O Mary, a terrible sword has pierced your holy soul. Except for God, no one knows of your suffering. Your soul does not break, it is brave, because it is with Jesus. Sweet Mother, unite my soul to Jesus, because it is only then that I will be able to endure all trials and tribulations and only in union with Jesus will my little sacrifices be pleasing to God. Sweetest Mother, continue to teach me about the interior life. May the sword of suffering never break me. O pure Virgin, pour courage into my heart and guard it. Amen.

“My Heart overflows with great mercy for souls, and especially for poor sinners. If only they could understand that I am the best of Fathers to them and that it is for them that the Blood and Water flowed from My Heart as from a fount overflowing with mercy. For them I dwell in the tabernacle as King of Mercy. I desire to bestow My graces upon souls, but they do not want to accept them. You, at least, come to Me as often as possible and take these graces they do not want to accept. In this way you will console My Heart. Oh, how indifferent are souls to so much goodness, to so many proofs of love! My Heart drinks only of the ingratitude and forgetfulness of souls living in the world. They have time for everything, but they have no time to come to Me for graces.”

Oh who will comprehend Your love and Your unfathomable mercy towards us! O Prisoner of Love, I lock up my poor heart in this tabernacle, that it may adore You without cease night and day. I know of no obstacle in this adoration, and even though I be physically distant, my heart is always with You. Nothing can put a stop to my love for You. No obstacles exist for me. O my Jesus, I will console You for all the ingratitude, the blasphemies, the coldness, the hatred of the wicked, the sacrileges. O Jesus, I want to burn as a pure offering and to be consumed before the throne of Your headiness. I plead with You unceasingly for poor dying sinners.

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