For your reading, reflection, faith-sharing, comments, questions, discussion.

Alleluia Ping!

If you aren’t on this ping list NOW and would like to be,

please Freepmail me.

From: Colossians 2:6-15

A Warning About Empty Philosophies

[6] As therefore you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so live in him,
[7] rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as
you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

[8] See to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty
deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental
spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ.

Defense of Sound Teaching in the Face of Heresy

[9] For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, [10] and you
have come to fullness of life in him, who is the head of all rule and
authority. [11] In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision
made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the
circumcision of Christ; [12] and you were buried with him in baptism,
in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of
God, who raised him from the dead. [13] And you, who were dead in
trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive
together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, [14] having
canceled the bond which stood against us with its legal demands; this
he set aside, nailing it to the cross. [15] He disarmed the principalities
and powers and made a public example of them, triumphing over them
in him.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

4-8. These verses reveal the Apostle’s pastoral solicitude for the
faithful of Colossae. Although physically absent, he is with them in
spirit. He rejoices and gives thanks to God for their steadfastness,
but he leaves them in no doubt about the dangers which threaten their
faith. Clearly he is referring to those who were adulterating the
Colossians’ faith by intruding erroneous ideas. By sophistry and deceit
they were trying to convince the faithful that it was better to have
recourse to angels rather than to Christ, arguing that angels were the
chief mediators between God and men.

The Christian faith is not opposed to human scholarship and science, it
rejects only vain philosophy, that is, philosophy which boasts that it
relies on reason alone and which fails to respect revealed truths.

Over the centuries, people have often tried to adapt the truths of faith
to the philosophies or ideologies which happen to be in vogue. In
this connection Leo Xlll said: “As the Apostle warns, ‘philosophy and
empty deceit’ can deceive the minds of Christians and corrupt the
sincerity of men’s faith; the supreme pastors of the Church, therefore,
always see it as part of their role to foster as much as they can
sciences which merit that name, and at the same time to ensure by
special watchfulness, that human sciences are taught in keeping with
the criteria of Catholic faith—particularly philosophy, because proper
methodology in the other sciences is largely dependent on [correctness
in] philosophy” (”Aeterni Patris”, 1).

“The elemental spirits of the universe”: see the note on Gal 4:3.

9. This is such an important verse that it deserves close analysis.
“Dwell”: the Greek word means a stable way of living or residing, as
distinct from a transitory presence: in other words, the union of
Christ’s human nature with his divine nature is not just something
which lasts for a while; it is permanent. “Deity”: the Greek word can
also be translated as “divinity”; in either case, the sentence means
that God has taken up a human nature, in such a way that, although
it was only the second divine Person, the Son, who became incarnate,
by virtue of the unity of the divine essence, where one divine person is
present the other two persons are also present.

This verse enunciates the profound mystery of the Incarnation in a
different way to John 1:14: “And the word became flesh and dwelt among
us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory; glory as of the
only Son from the Father” (cf. also 1 in 1:1-2).

When the sacred text says that in Christ “the whole fullness of deity
dwells bodily”, it means, St John of Avila explains, “that it does not
dwell in him merely by grace-as in the case of the saints (men and
angels both), but in another way of greater substance and value, that
is, by way of personal union” (”Audi, “Filia”, 84).

In Jesus Christ, then, there are two natures, divine and human, united
in one person, who is divine. This “hypostatic union” does not prevent
each nature from having all its own proper characteristics, for, as St
Leo the Great defined, “the Word has not changed into flesh, nor has
flesh changed into Word; but each remains, in a unity” (”Licet Per
Nostros”, 2).

10. Since Christ is head of angels and men, the head of all creation
(cf. Eph 1:10) and especially head of the Church (cf. Col 1:18), all
fullness is said to reside in him (cf. note on Col 1:19). Hence, not
only is he pre-eminent over all things but “he fills the Church, which
is his body and fullness, with his divine gifts (cf. Eph 1:22-23), so
that it may increase and attain to all the fullness of God (cf. Eph
3:19)” (Vatican II, “Lumen Gentium”, 7).

Union with Christ makes Christians sharers in his “fullness”, that is,
in divine grace (of which he is absolutely full and we have a partial
share), in a word, in his perfections.

That is why the members of the Church who “through the sacraments
are united in a hidden and real way to Christ” (”Lumen Gentium”, 7)
can attain the fullness of the Christian life.

It was very appropriate for St Paul to be instructing the Colossians in
these truths at this time, because it put them on their guard against
preachers who were arguing for exaggerated worship of angels, to the
detriment of Christ’s unique, pre-eminent mediation.

11-12. This is a reference to another error which the Judaizers were
trying to spread at Colossae and which was already treated in detail
in the letters to the Galatians and the Romans—the idea that it was
necessary for Christians to be circumcised. Physical circumcision
affects the body, whereas what the Apostle, by analogy, calls “the
circumcision of Christ”, that is, Baptism, puts off the “body of flesh”
(an expression which seems to refer to whatever is sinful in man). “We,
who by means of (Christ) have reached God, have not been given fleshly
circumcision but rather spiritual circumcision [...]; we receive it by
the mercy of God in Baptism” (St Justin, “Dialogue with Trypho”, 43,
2). “By the sacrament of Baptism, whenever it is properly conferred in
the way the Lord determined and received with the proper dispositions
of soul, man becomes truly incorporated into the crucified and
glorified Christ and is reborn to a sharing of the divine life, as the
Apostle says: [Col 2:12 follows]” (Vatican II, “Unitatis
Redintegratio”, 22).

As on other occasions (cf. Rom 6:4), St Paul, evoking the rite of
immersion in water, speaks of Baptism as a kind of burial (a sure sign
that someone has died to sin), and of resurrection to a new life, the
life of grace. By this sacrament we are associated with Christ’s death
and burial so as to be able to rise with him. “Christ by his resurrection
signified our new life, which was reborn out of the old death which
submerged us in sin. This is what is brought about in us by the great
sacrament of Baptism: all those who receive this grace die to sin [...]
and are reborn to the new life” (St Augustine, “Enchiridion”, 41-42).

13-14. This is one of the central teachings of the epistle—that Jesus
Christ is the only mediator between God and men. The basic purpose
of his mediation is to reconcile men with God, through the forgiveness
of their sins and the gift of the life of grace, which is a sharing in God’s
own life.

Verse 14 indicates how Christ achieved this purpose—by dying on the
Cross. All who were under the yoke of sin and the Law have been set
free through his death.

The Mosaic Law, to which the scribes and Pharisees added so many
precepts as to make it unbearable, had become (to use St Paul’s
comparison) like a charge sheet against man, because it imposed heavy
burdens but did not provide the grace needed for bearing them. The
Apostle very graphically says that this charge sheet or “bond” was set
aside and nailed on the Cross—making it perfectly clear to all that
Christ made more than ample satisfaction for our crimes. “He has
obliterated them,” St John Chrysostom comments, “not simply crossed
them out; he has obliterated them so effectively that no trace of them
remains in our soul. He has completely canceled them out, he has nailed
them to the Cross [...]. We were guilty and deserved the most rigorous
of punishments because we were all of us in sin! What, then, does the
Son of God do? By his death on the Cross he removes all our stains and
exempts us from the punishment due to them. He takes our charge-sheet,
nails it to the Cross through his own person and destroys it” (”Hom. on
Col, ad loc.”).

15. Jesus is the only mediator between God and man. The angelic
principalities and powers are insignificant by comparison with him: God
has overpowered them and publicly exposed them through the death of
his Son. The sentence seems to evoke the idea of the parade of a
victorious general complete with trophies, booty and prisoners.

Some scholars interpret this passage differently; the “public spectacle”,
according to their interpretation, would refer to the fact that the good
angels had been mediators in the revelation of the Mosaic Law (cf.
Gal 3:19) and were being venerated by some contemporary Jews
(among them some converts from Colossae) with a form of worship
bordering on superstition. God would have caused them to become
“a public spectacle” when they acted as a kind of escort in Christ’s
victory parade. Thus, both interpretations lead to the conclusion that
angels, who are Christ’s servants, should not be rendered the worship
due to him alone, even though they do play an important part in God’s
plan of salvation. One of the missions entrusted to them is that of
continually interceding on behalf of mankind.

At the time this epistle was being written there was need to emphasize
first that Jesus Christ is the only mediator. The mediation of angels
depends on him (it is something revealed in fact in the Old Testament:
cf. Tob 12:3, 12ff; Dan 9:2ff; 10:13; Ezek 49:3; Zech 1:9; etc.). The
Blessed Virgin Mary’s mediation, also subordinate to that of Christ, is
something which becomes clearer as the events of the New Testament
unfold. Mary’s mediation is, however, on a higher level than that of
the angels. Pope Pius XII says this, echoing earlier teachings: “If, as
he does, the Word works miracles and infuses grace by means of the
human nature he has taken on, if he uses the sacraments, and his
Saints, as instruments for the saving of souls, how could he not use
the office and action of his most blessed Mother to distribute the
fruits of the Redemption?

“With a truly maternal spirit (our predecessor Pius IX of immortal
memory says), having in her hands the business of our salvation, she
concerns herself with all mankind, for she has been made by the Lord
Queen of heaven and earth and is raised above all the choirs of Angels
and all the degrees of the Saints in heaven; she is there at the right
hand of her only Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, in most effective
supplication, obtaining whatever she asks; she cannot but be heard”
(”Ad Caeli Reginam”, 17).

“Principalities and powers”: see the note on Eph 6:12.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

rom: Luke 6:12-19

The Calling of the Apostles

[12] In these days He (Jesus) went out into the hills to pray; and all night He con-
tinued in prayer to God. [13] And when it was day, He called His disciples, and
chose from them twelve, whom He named Apostles: [14] Simon, whom He named
Peter, and Andrew, his brother, and James and John, and Philip and Bartholomew,
[15] and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who
was called the Zealot, [16] and Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who
became a traitor.

The Sermon on the Mount

[17] And He came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd
of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem and
the sea coast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and to be healed of their
diseases; [18] and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured. [19]
And all the crowd sought to touch Him, for power came forth from Him and healed
them all.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

12-13. The evangelist writes with a certain formality when describing this impor-
tant occasion on which Jesus chooses the Twelve, constitu- ting them as the
apostolic college: “The Lord Jesus, having prayed at length to the Father, called
to Himself those whom He willed and ap- pointed twelve to be with Him, whom
He might send to preach the Kingdom of God (cf. Mark 2:13-19; Matthew 10:
1-42). These Apostles (cf. Luke 6:13) He constituted in the form of a college or
permanent assembly, at the head of which He placed Peter, chosen from among
them (cf. John 21:15-17). He sent them first of all to the children of Israel and
then to all peoples (cf. Romans 1:16), so that, sharing in His power,they might
make all peoples His disciples and sanctify and govern them (cf. Matthew 28:
16-20; and par.) and thus spread the Church and, administering it under the
guidance of the Lord, shepherd it all days until the end of the world (cf. Matthew
28:20). They were fully confirmed in this mission on the day of Pentecost (cf.
Act 2:1-26) [...]. Through their preaching the Gospel everywhere (cf. Mark 16:20),
and through its being welcomed and received under the influence of the Holy Spi-
rit by those who hear it, the Apostles gather together the universal Church, which
the Lord founded upon the Apostles and built upon Blessed Peter their leader,
the chief cornerstone being Christ Jesus Himself (cf. Reve- lation 21:14; Matthew
16:18; Ephesians 2:20). That divine mission, which was committed by Christ to
the Apostles, is destined to last until the end of the world (cf. Matthew 28:20),
since the Gospel, which they were charged to hand on, is, for the Church, the
principle of all its life for all time. For that very reason the Apostles were careful
to appoint successors in this hierarchically constituted society” (Vatican II,
“Lumen Gentium”, 19-20).

Before establishing the apostolic college, Jesus spent the whole night in prayer.
He often made special prayer for His Church (Luke 9:18; John 17:1ff), thereby
preparing His Apostles to be its pillars (cf. Galatians 2:9). As His Passion ap-
proaches, He will pray to the Father for Simon Peter, the head of the Church,
and solemnly tell Peter that He has done so: “But I have prayed for you that
your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:32). Following Christ’s example, the Church
stipulates that on many occasions liturgical prayer should be offered for the
pastors of the Church (the Pope, the bishops in general, and priests) asking
God to give them grace to fulfill their ministry faithfully.

Christ is continually teaching us that we need to pray always (Luke 18:1). Here
He shows us by His example that we should pray with special intensity at impor-
tant moments in our lives. “`Pernoctans in oratione Dei. He spent the whole
night in prayer to God.’ So St. Luke tells of our Lord. And you? How often have
you persevered like that? Well, then....” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 104).

On the need for prayer and the qualities our prayer should have, see the notes on
Matthew 6:5-6; 7:7-11; 14:22-23; Mark 1:35; Luke 5:16; 11:1-4; 22:41-42.

12. Since Jesus is God, why does He pray? There were two wills in Christ, one
divine and one human (cf. “St. Pius X Catechism”, 91), and although by virtue of
His divine will He was omnipotent, His human will was not omnipotent. When we
pray, what we do is make our will known to God; therefore Christ, who is like us
in all things but sin (Hebrews 4:15), also had to pray in a human way (cf. “Sum-
ma Theologiae”, III, q. 21, a. 1). Reflecting on Jesus at prayer, St. Ambrose
comments: “The Lord prays not to ask things for Himself, but to intercede on my
behalf; for although the Father has put everything into the hands of the Son, still
the Son, in order to behave in accordance with His condition as man, considers
it appropriate to implore the Father for our sake, for He is our Advocate [...]. A
Master of obedience, by His example He instructs us concerning the precepts
of virtue: `We have an advocate with the Father’ (1 John 2:1)” (”Expositio Evan-
gelii sec. Lucam, in loc.”).

14-16. Jesus chose for Apostles very ordinary people, most of them poor and
uneducated; apparently only Matthew and the brothers James and John had so-
cial positions of any consequence. But all of them gave up whatever they had,
little or much as it was, and all of them, bar Judas, put their faith in the Lord,
overcame their shortcomings and eventually proved faithful to grace and became
saints, veritable pillars of the Church. We should not feel uneasy when we realize
that we too are low in human qualities; what matters is being faithful to the grace
God gives us.

19. God became man to save us. The divine person of the Word acts through
the human nature which He took on. The cures and casting out of devils which
He performed during His life on earth are also proof that Christ actually brings
redemption and not just hope of redemption. The crowds of people from Judea
and other parts of Israel who flock to Him, seeking even to touch Him, anticipate,
in a way, Christians’ devotion to the holy Humanity of Christ.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

Readings at Mass

First reading

Colossians 2:6-15 ©

You must live your whole life according to the Christ you have received – Jesus the Lord; you must be rooted in him and built on him and held firm by the faith you have been taught, and full of thanksgiving.

Make sure that no one traps you and deprives you of your freedom by some second-hand, empty, rational philosophy based on the principles of this world instead of on Christ.

In his body lives the fullness of divinity, and in him you too find your own fulfilment, in the one who is the head of every Sovereignty and Power.

In him you have been circumcised, with a circumcision not performed by human hand, but by the complete stripping of your body of flesh. This is circumcision according to Christ. You have been buried with him, when you were baptised; and by baptism, too, you have been raised up with him through your belief in the power of God who raised him from the dead. You were dead, because you were sinners and had not been circumcised: he has brought you to life with him, he has forgiven us all our sins.

He has overridden the Law, and cancelled every record of the debt that we had to pay; he has done away with it by nailing it to the cross; and so he got rid of the Sovereignties and the Powers, and paraded them in public, behind him in his triumphal procession.

Psalm

Psalm 144:1-2,8-11 ©

How good is the Lord to all.

I will give you glory, O God my king,

I will bless your name for ever.

I will bless you day after day

and praise your name for ever.

How good is the Lord to all.

The Lord is kind and full of compassion,

slow to anger, abounding in love.

How good is the Lord to all,

compassionate to all his creatures.

How good is the Lord to all.

All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,

and your friends shall repeat their blessing.

They shall speak of the glory of your reign

and declare your might, O God.

How good is the Lord to all.

Gospel Acclamation

Ph2:15-16

Alleluia, alleluia!

You will shine in the world like bright stars

because you are offering it the word of life.

Alleluia!

Or	cf.Jn15:16

Alleluia, alleluia!

I chose you from the world

to go out and bear fruit,

fruit that will last,

says the Lord.

Alleluia!

Gospel

Luke 6:12-19 ©

Jesus went out into the hills to pray; and he spent the whole night in prayer to God. When day came he summoned his disciples and picked out twelve of them; he called them ‘apostles’: Simon whom he called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot who became a traitor.

He then came down with them and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of his disciples with a great crowd of people from all parts of Judaea and from Jerusalem and from the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon who had come to hear him and to be cured of their diseases. People tormented by unclean spirits were also cured, and everyone in the crowd was trying to touch him because power came out of him that cured them all.

The Light of Faith (Lumen Fidei)[Catholic Caucus]

Year of Faith: Does God Command Evil Actions in the Bible? Part II (Part I linked
Francis "Lights" Up – Pope's First Encyclical Due Friday
Pope: Homily at Mass for Evangelium Vitae Day [full text]
Adoration with Pope energizing Catholics worldwide
Parishes Worldwide Prepare for Eucharistic Adoration Hour (June 2 at 11 am ET)
Pope [Francis] at Pentecost: Newness, harmony and mission
Audience: Do not be ‘part-time’ Christians
Pope Francis: Regina caeli
Pope to welcome 70,000 youths, confirm 44 (this Sunday) [Catholic Caucus]
Pope Francis’ General Audience focused on women. Feminists aren’t going to be happy

Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio's "Letter On the Year of Faith" (Crossing Threshold of Faith)
Pope Francis – the real deal – has Audience with Cardinals
Benedict XVI's Final General Audience
On Ash Wednesday
On God As Creator of Heaven and Earth
On Abraham's Faith
On Christ As Mediator Between God and Man
On the Incarnation
On God the Almighty Father
Year of Faith: Indulgences and Places of Pilgrimage [Ecumenical]
On the Identity of Jesus

On the Faith of Mary, the Virgin Mother of Christ
Father Cantalamessa's 1st Advent Sermon (Catholic Caucus)
On The Unfolding of God's Self-Revelation
On the Beauty of God's Plan of Salvation
On Bearing Witness to the Christian Faith
On the Splendor of God's Truth
On the Knowledge of God
Archbishop Chaput says Year of Faith holds solution to relativism
Following the Truth: The Year Of Faith – 10 Things You Should Know [Catholic Caucus]
Papal Encyclical on Faith Announced

On the Desire for God
On the Ecclesial Nature of Faith
On the Nature of Faith
Catechism's benefits explained for Year of Faith (Catholic Caucus)
A Life of Faith: Papal Theologian Speaks on the Grace of Faith
ASIA/LAOS - "Year of Faith" amid the persecutions of Christians forced to become "animists"
From no faith to a mountain-top of meaning: Father John Nepil (Catholic Caucus)
Living the Year of Faith: How Pope Benedict Wants You to Begin [Catholic Caucus]
Share Your Faith in This Year of Faith: Two keys to help you do it.
On A New Series of Audiences for The Year of Faith

Pope will deliver year-long teaching series on restoring faith
Pope Benedict XVI Grants Plenary Indulgence to Faithful [Catholic Caucus]
Pope, at Marian shrine, entrusts Year of Faith, synod to Mary (Catholic Caucus)
Catholic Church Calls for Public Prayers in Offices on Fridays
Highlights in the Plan for Year of Faith: Traditional Events Will Take on Special Perspective
Catholic Church calls for public prayers in offices on Fridays
Vatican Unveils Logo for Year of Faith [Catholic Caucus]
Miami Prelate Recalls Pope's Visit to Cuba, Looks to Year of Faith [Catholic Caucus]
The World-Changing Year of Faith [Catholic Caucus]
Vatican to Issue Recommendations for Celebrating Year of Faith

Perpetual Novena for the Nation (Ecumenical)

Prayers for The Religion Forum (Ecumenical)

Jesus, High Priest

We thank you, God our Father, for those who have responded to your call to priestly ministry.

Accept this prayer we offer on their behalf: Fill your priests with the sure knowledge of your love.

Open their hearts to the power and consolation of the Holy Spirit.

Lead them to new depths of union with your Son.

Increase in them profound faith in the Sacraments they celebrate as they nourish, strengthen and heal us.

Lord Jesus Christ, grant that these, your priests, may inspire us to strive for holiness by the power of their example, as men of prayer who ponder your word and follow your will.

O Mary, Mother of Christ and our mother, guard with your maternal care these chosen ones, so dear to the Heart of your Son.

Intercede for our priests, that offering the Sacrifice of your Son, they may be conformed more each day to the image of your Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Saint John Vianney, universal patron of priests, pray for us and our priests

This icon shows Jesus Christ, our eternal high priest.

The gold pelican over His heart represents self-sacrifice.

The border contains an altar and grapevines, representing the Mass, and icons of Melchizedek and St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney.

Melchizedek: king of righteousness (left icon) was priest and king of Jerusalem. He blessed Abraham and has been considered an ideal priest-king.

St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests.

Pray a Rosary each day for our nation.

Pray the Rosary

1. Sign of the Cross: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

2. The Apostles Creed: I BELIEVE in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

3. The Lord's Prayer: OUR Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

4. (3) Hail Mary: HAIL Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and in the hour of our death. Amen. (Three times)

5. Glory Be: GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Fatima Prayer: Oh, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of your mercy.

Announce each mystery, then say 1 Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, 1 Glory Be and 1 Fatima prayer. Repeat the process with each mystery.

End with the Hail Holy Queen:

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve! To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears! Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus!

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Final step -- The Sign of the Cross

The Mysteries of the Rosary

By tradition, Catholics meditate on these Mysteries during prayers of the Rosary.
The biblical references follow each of the Mysteries below.

The Glorious Mysteries
(Wednesdays and Sundays)
1.The Resurrection (Matthew 28:1-8, Mark 16:1-18, Luke 24:1-12, John 20:1-29) [Spiritual fruit - Faith]
2. The Ascension (Mark 16:19-20, Luke 24:50-53, Acts 1:6-11) [Spiritual fruit - Christian Hope]
3. The Descent of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-13) [Spiritual fruit - Gifts of the Holy Spirit]
4. The Assumption [Spiritual fruit - To Jesus through Mary]
5. The Coronation [Spiritual fruit - Grace of Final Perseverance]

~ PRAYER ~

St. Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle
Be our protection against the wickedness
and snares of the devil;
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God,
Cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits
who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen
+

A Prayer for our Free Nation Under God
God Save Our Country web site (prayer warriors)
Prayer Chain Request for the United States of America
Pray for Nancy Pelosi
Prayer and fasting will help defeat health care reform (Freeper Prayer Thread)
Prayer Campaign Started to Convert Pro-Abortion Catholic Politicians to Pro-Life
[Catholic Caucus] One Million Rosaries
Non-stop Rosary vigil to defeat ObamaCare

From an Obama bumper sticker on a car:

"Pray for Obama. Psalm 109:8"

PLEASE JOIN US -

Evening Prayer
Someone has said that if people really understood the full extent of the power we have available through prayer, we might be speechless.
Did you know that during WWII there was an advisor to Churchill who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every day at a prescribed hour for one minute to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace?

There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America. If you would like to participate: Every evening at 9:00 PM Eastern Time (8:00 PM Central) (7:00 PM Mountain) (6:00 PM Pacific), stop whatever you are doing and spend one minute praying for the safety of the United States, our troops, our citizens, and for a return to a Godly nation. If you know anyone else who would like to participate, please pass this along. Our prayers are the most powerful asset we have. Please forward this to your praying friends.

Our Blessed Lady's Sorrows

Sea of Sorrow

Oh! on what a sea of sorrow
Was the Virgin-Mother cast,
When her eyes with tears o'erflowing
Gazed upon her Son aghast,
From the bloodstained gibbet taken,
Dying in her arms at last.

In her bitter desolation,
His sweet mouth, His bosom too,
Then His riven side beloved,
Then each hand, both wounded through,
Then His feet, with blood encrimsoned,
Her maternal tears bedew.

She, a hundred times and over,
Strains Him closely to her breast
Heart to Heart, arms arms enfolding,
Are His wounds on her impressed:
Thus, in sorrow's very kisses,
Melts her anguished soul to rest.

Oh, dear Mother! we beseech thee,
By the tears thine eyes have shed,
By the cruel death of Jesus
And His wounds' right royal red,
Make our hearts o'erflow with sorrow
From thy heart's deep fountainhead.

To the Father, Son, and Spirit,
Now we bend on equal knee:
Glory, sempiternal glory,
To the Most High Trinity;
Yea! perpetual praise and honor
Now and through all ages be.

Novena Prayer To Our Sorrowful Mother

Most Blessed and afflicted Virgin, Queen of Martyrs, who didst stand generously beneath the cross, beholding the agony of thy dying Son; by the sword of sorrow which then pierced thy soul, by the sufferings of thy sorrowful life, by the unutterable joy which now more than repays thee for them; look down with a mother's pity and tenderness, as I kneel before thee to compassionate thy sorrows, and to lay my petition with childlike confidence in thy wounded heart. I beg of thee, O my Mother, to plead continually for me with thy Son, since He can refuse thee nothing, and through the merits of His most sacred Passion and Death, together with thy own sufferings at the foot of the cross, so to touch His Sacred Heart, that I may obtain my request,
For to whom shall I fly in my wants and miseries, if not to thee, O Mother of mercy, who, having so deeply drunk the chalice of thy Son, canst most pity us poor exiles, still doomed to sigh in this vale of tears? Offer to Jesus but one drop of His Precious Blood, but one pang of His adorable Heart; remind Him that thou art our life, our sweetness, and our hope, and thou wilt obtain what I ask, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Hail Mary
Virgin Most Sorrowful, pray for us
(Seven times each)

Mary, most holy Virgin and Queen of Martyrs, accept the sincere homage of my filial affection. Into thy Heart, pierced by so many swords, do thou welcome my poor soul. Receive it as the companion of thy sorrows at the foot of the Cross, on which Jesus died for the redemption of the world. With thee, O sorrowful Virgin, I will gladly suffer all the trials, contradictions, and infirmities which it shall please Our Lord to send me. I offer them all to thee in memory of thy sorrows, so that: every thought of my mind and every beat of my heart may be an act of compassion and of love for thee. And do thou, sweet Mother, have pity on me, reconcile me to thy Divine Son, Jesus; keep me in His grace and assist me in my last agony, so that I may be able to meet thee in Heaven and sing thy glories.

Most holy Virgin and Mother, whose soul was pierced by a sword of sorrow in the Passion of thy Divine Son, and who in His glorious Resurrection wast filled with never ending joy at His triumph, obtain for us who call upon thee, so to be partakers in the adversities of Holy Church and the Sorrows of the Sovereign Pontiff, as to be found worthy to rejoice with them in the consolations for which we pray, in the charity and peace of the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Litany of the Seven Sorrows

For private use only.

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, etc.
Mother crucified,
Mother sorrowful,
Mother tearful,
Mother afflicted,
Mother forsaken,
Mother desolate,
Mother bereft of thy Child,
Mother transfixed with the sword,
Mother consumed with grief,
Mother filled with anguish,
Mother crucified in heart,
Mother most sad,
Fountain of tears,
Abyss of suffering,
Mirror of patience,
Rock of constancy,
Anchor of confidence,
Refuge of the forsaken,
Shield of the oppressed,
Subduer of the unbelieving,
Comfort of the afflicted,
Medicine of the sick,
Strength of the weak,
Harbor of the wrecked,
Allayer of tempests,
Resource of mourners,
Terror of the treacherous,
Treasure of the faithful,
Eye of the Prophets,
Staff of the Apostles,
Crown of Martyrs,
Light of confessors,
Pearl of virgins,
Consolation of widows,
Joy of all Saints,

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.

Look down upon us, deliver us, and save us from all trouble,
in the power of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Let Us Pray.
Imprint, O Lady, thy wounds upon my heart, that I may read therein sorrow and love
--- sorrow to endure every sorrow for thee, love to despise every love for thee. Amen.

Conclude with the Apostles Creed, Hail Holy Queen, and three Hail Marys,
in honor of the Most Holy Heart of Mary.

Stabat Mater Dolorosa

Stabat mater dolorosa
iuxta Crucem lacrimosa,
dum pendebat Filius.

Cuius animam gementem,
contristatam et dolentem
pertransivit gladius.

O quam tristis et afflicta
fuit illa benedicta,
mater Unigeniti!

Quae maerebat et dolebat,
pia Mater, dum videbat
nati poenas inclyti.

Quis est homo qui non fleret,
matrem Christi si videret
in tanto supplicio?

Quis non posset contristari
Christi Matrem contemplari
dolentem cum Filio?

Pro peccatis suae gentis
vidit Iesum in tormentis,
et flagellis subditum.

Vidit suum dulcem Natum
moriendo desolatum,
dum emisit spiritum.

Eia, Mater, fons amoris
me sentire vim doloris
fac, ut tecum lugeam.

Fac, ut ardeat cor meum
in amando Christum Deum
ut sibi complaceam.

Sancta Mater, istud agas,
crucifixi fige plagas
cordi meo valide.

Tui Nati vulnerati,
tam dignati pro me pati,
poenas mecum divide.

Fac me tecum pie flere,
crucifixo condolere,
donec ego vixero.

Iuxta Crucem tecum stare,
et me tibi sociare
in planctu desidero.

Virgo virginum praeclara,
mihi iam non sis amara,
fac me tecum plangere.

Fac, ut portem Christi mortem,
passionis fac consortem,
et plagas recolere.

Fac me plagis vulnerari,
fac me Cruce inebriari,
et cruore Filii.

Flammis ne urar succensus,
per te, Virgo, sim defensus
in die iudicii.

Christe, cum sit hinc exire,
da per Matrem me venire
ad palmam victoriae.

Quando corpus morietur,
fac, ut animae donetur
paradisi gloria. Amen.

Prayer To Our Lady of Sorrows, by St. Bridget

O Blessed Virgin Mary, Immaculate Mother of God, who didst endure a martyrdom of love and grief beholding the sufferings and sorrows of Jesus! Thou didst cooperate in the benefit of my redemption by thine innumerable afflictions and by offering to the Eternal Father His only begotten Son as a holocaust and victim of propitiation for my sins. I thank thee for the unspeakable love which led thee to deprive thyself of the Fruit of thy womb, Jesus, true God and true Man, to save me, a sinner. Oh, make use of the unfailing intercession of thy sorrows with the Father and the Son, that I may steadfastly amend my life and never again crucify my loving Redeemer by new sins, and that, persevering till death in His grace. I may obtain eternal life through the merits of His Cross and Passion. Amen.

Mother of love, of sorrow and of mercy, pray for us.

Saint Alphonsus Liguori's Prayer To The Mother Of Sorrows

O, my Blessed Mother, it is not one sword only with which I have pierced thy heart, but I have done so with as many as are the sins which I have committed. O, Lady, it is not to thee, who art innocent, that sufferings are due, but to me, who am guilty of so many crimes. But since thou hast been pleased to suffer so much for me, by thy merits, obtain me great sorrow for my sins, and patience under the trials of this life, which will always be light in comparison with my demerits; for I have often deserved Hell.
Amen.

Stabet Mater Dolorosa (catholic/orthodox caucus)
[CATHOLIC/ORTHODOX CAUCUS] Spirituality: Our Lady of Sorrows
The Seven Swords Rosary Of Our Lady Of Sorrows [Catholic Caucus] Prayer and Meditation
The Rosary of the Seven Sorrows [Catholic Caucus] Prayer/Devotion
Our Lady of Sorrows, part I: "Her Martyrdom was longer and greater than that of all the martyrs"

Lists Every Catholic Should be Familiar With: The 7 Sorrows (Dolours) and 7 Joys of Our Lady
The Seven Dolors (Sorrows) of Mary [Catholic/Orthodox Devotional]
Apparition in Africa: Our Lady of Sorrows [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Feast of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary [Catholic Caucus Devotional]
Feast of Our Lady/Mother of Sorrows
Homilies on Our Lady of Sorrows
Starkenburg:Pilgrimage to Our Lady of Sorrows Shrine
Our Mother of Sorrows
ST. ALPHONSUS LIGUORI, OF THE DOLOURS OF MARY, The Glories [Sorrows] of Mary
Our Lady of Sorrows - Sep 15

September 2013

Pope's Intentions

Value of Silence. That people today, often overwhelmed by noise, may rediscover the value of silence and listen to the voice of God and their brothers and sisters.

Persecuted Christians. That Christians suffering persecution in many parts of the world may by their witness be prophets of Christ's love.

Daily Gospel Commentary

Tuesday of the Twenty-third week in Ordinary Time

Commentary of the day
Blessed Teresa of Calcutta (1910-1997), founder of the Missionary Sisters of Charity
No Greater Love, p. 10

"He spent the night in prayer to God"

We cannot find God in noise or agitation.... In silence He listens to us; in silence He speaks to our souls. In silence we are granted the privilege of listening to His voice:
Silence of our eyes.
Silence of our ears.
Silence of our mouths.
Silence of our minds.
In the silence of the heart
God will speak.

Silence of the heart is necessary so you can hear God everywhere - in the closing of the door, in the person who needs you, in the birds that sing, in the flowers, in the animals. If we are careful of silence it will be easy to pray. There is so much talk, so much repetition, so much carrying on of tales in words and in writing. Our prayer life suffers so much because our hearts are not silent. I shall keep the silence of my heart with greater care, so that in the silence of my heart I hear His words of comfort and from the fullness of my heart I comfort Jesus in the distressing disguise of the poor.

Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Weekday

First Reading:
Psalm:
Gospel:

Colossians 2:6-15
Psalm 145:1-2, 8-11
Luke 6:12-19

The first step of humility is unhesitating obedience, which comes naturally to those who cherish Christ above all.

-- St. Benedict (Rule of St. Benedict 5:1-2)

Just A Minute (Listen)
Some of EWTN's most popular hosts and guests in a collection of one minute inspirational messages. A different message each time you click.

The Angelus

The Angel of the Lord declared to Mary:
And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Behold the handmaid of the Lord: Be it done unto me according to Thy word.

Hail Mary . . .

And the Word was made Flesh: And dwelt among us.

Hail Mary . . .

Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Let us pray:

Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ, Thy Son, was made known by the message of an angel, may by His Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of His Resurrection, through the same Christ Our Lord.

Amen.

Information: St. Nicholas of Tolentino

Feast Day: September 10

Born: 1246 AD

Died: 1305 AD

Canonized: 5 June (Pentecost) 1446 by Pope Eugene IV

Patron of: animals; babies; boatmen; dying people; mariners; sailors; sick animals; souls in purgatory; watermen

Interactive Saints for Kids

St. Nicholas of Tolentino

Feast Day: September 10
Born: 1245 / Died: 1305

Nicholas was born in Ancona, Italy after his parents had waited a long time for a child. Nicholas was the answer to prayer and a pilgrimage they made to the shrine of St. Nicholas of Bari. His parents were so grateful to the saint that they named their baby after him.

When Nicholas grew up, he wanted to become a priest. He prayed a lot and wanted to live close to God. Friends of his family wanted him to be a priest in a rich parish where Nicholas would be promoted.

Nicholas didn't say anything, but quietly prayed to God for direction. One day he slipped into a church where Father Reginald, a fervent Augustinian priest was giving a sermon. He said: "Don't love the world or the things of this world because this world is passing away."

These words went deep into Nicholas' heart and he realized how God had used that preacher to touch his own life. He knew now the importance of preaching God's Word.

He decided to join the Augustinian Friars when he was just eighteen years old and Father Reginald became his novice master. Then he began his studies for the priesthood and became a priest around 1270.

Father Nicholas spread God's word with love in many parishes. Then while praying in church one day, he seemed to hear a voice saying: "To Tolentino, to Tolentino. Stay there." Soon afterward, he was sent to the town of Tolentino.

He spent the remaining thirty years of his life there. There was great political trouble in those times and many people did not come to church to hear the Word and to worship the Lord.

The friars of St. Augustine decided that street-preaching was necessary. St. Nicholas willingly preached in gathering places where people listened and many repented of their sins and lack of caring and began to lead better lives.

Father Nicholas spent hours in the slum areas of Tolentino. He visited the lonely, brought the sacraments to the sick and dying. He took care of the needs of children and visited prisoners.

Miracles were reported while St. Nicholas was still alive. He touched a diseased child and said, "May the good God make you well," and the child was cured. St. Nicholas of Tolentino was sick for about a year before he died on September 10, 1305.