Monday, August 31, 2015

Union without compare...

"Our present time and the future of the world
are illuminated by Christ's Eucharistic presence and
are desperate for His action." - Bl James Alberione (+1971)

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"Jesus is present and lives in our midst
in the Eucharist. 
Let us listen to Him for He is truth.
Let us look at Him, for He is the face of the Father.
Let us love Him, for He is love giving Himself to His creatures.

He comes to our soul 
so that it may disappear in Him and become divine.
What union, however great, can compare to this?

St Teresa de Los Andes
(+1920)

Sunday, August 30, 2015

Fed with Your Bounty...

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want... Psalm 23:1

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"Lord, I have been
fed with Your bounty,
clothed with Your mercy,
comforted by Your love,
healed by Your grace,
and upheld by Your hand."

Javena Lee
From Prayers for Eucharistic Adoration
Pauline Books and Media

Saturday, August 29, 2015

The Mass in my Life...

“My Jesus, let my heart sing out for joy, for You dwell in it. 
Let my mind be filled with heavenly thoughts
for Your Father desires to reign there. Let my soul be guided
by Your Spirit for He wishes to sanctify it.” - Mother Angelica

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“I am a child of God through Baptism 
and my resemblance to Him 
has grown stronger through Holy Communion. 
May I never forget my last Communion 
and may my heart yearn for the next one.

Somewhere, someplace 
there is a Mass being said –
a Calvary to be present at – a Communion to receive,
either sacramentally or spiritually –
an opportunity to be more like Jesus,
the privilege of helping my neighbor, a time to say ‘I thank You, God’,
a situation to choose Jesus over myself or a chance to make a sacrifice.”


Excerpt from The Mass in my Life
Mother Angelica
Our Lady of the Angels Monastery
Birmingham, Alabama


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Friday, August 28, 2015

God gives His ALL ...

 "To fall in love with God is the greatest of all romances;
to seek Him, the greatest adventure;
to find Him, the greatest human achievement." ~ St Augustine



"God in His omnipotence could not give more,
in His wisdom knew not how to give more,
in His riches had not more to give,
than the Eucharist."

St Augustine
Bishop, Doctor of the Church
Powerful intellect, stirring orator, prolific writer
North Africa ~ 354-430
FEAST DAY - August 28

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“If you believe what you like in the gospel, and reject
what you don't like, it is not the gospel you believe,
but yourself.” - St. Augustine of Hippo 

"In 397, or twelve years after his conversion, Augustine wrote his Confessions, the greatest spiritual autobiography ever written. It is the work of a teacher who explains, a philosopher who thinks, and a theologian who instructs. It is the  work of a poet who achieves chaste beauty in the writing, and a mystic who pours out thanks for having found himself in peace. " - Ven Fulton J. Sheen in St Augustine of Hippo


St Augustine, pray for us!

Thursday, August 27, 2015

May it be said of you and of me...

My heart is steadfast, O God ... - Psalm 108, 1a

 

St Augustine has left us this praise of his mother, St Monica:

"She did not let a day pass
without being present
at the Divine Sacrifice
before Your altar, O Lord."

St Monica
North Africa ~ 333-387
Mother of St Augustine
Patroness of Married women and Mothers
FEAST DAY - August 27


"Nothing is far from God." - St Monica


As recounted by Augustine... before his mother died she told him:

"There was indeed one thing for which I wished to tarry a little in this life, and that was that I might see you a Catholic before I died. My God hath answered this more than abundantly, so that I see you are now made His servant and spurning all earthly happiness. What more am I to do here?"

Prayer for St Monica's intercession
Exemplary mother of the great Augustine, you perseveringly pursued your wayward son not with wild threats but with prayerful cries to heaven.  Intercede for all mothers in our
day so that they may learn to draw their children to God.
Teach them how to remain close to their children, even the prodigal sons and daughters who have sadly gone astray. Amen.

St Monica, pray for us!

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

The Mass is infinite like Jesus...

 "The Mass is the most beautiful thing
this side of Heaven." - Fr Frederick Faber

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"The Mass is infinite like Jesus.  ...
Ask an angel what the Mass is, and he will reply to you in truth,

"I understand what it is and why it is offered,
but I do not, however, understand how much value it has."

One angel, a thousand angels,
all of Heaven know this and think like this."

St Padre Pio of Pietrelcina


Invite someone to attend Mass with you -
and experience its beauty and depth!


ART IMAGE:  Victor Meirelles (1832–1903) ~ "The First Mass in Brazil"

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Christ's word: sufficient!

... so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return
to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire
and achieve the purpose for which I sent it. - Isaiah 55:11 

 

"In the person of St Louis IX were the qualities which form a great king, a hero of romance, and a saint!  With his death, the century of knights ended.  One day a messenger, breathless with haste, burst in upon the king with surprising and exciting news. "Your majesty," he cried, "hasten to the Church!  A great miracle is occurring there.  A priest is saying holy Mass, and after the consecration, instead of the host there is visible on the altar Jesus Himself in His human figure.  Everybody is marveling at it.  Hurry before it disappears."

To the astonishment of the messenger, the saintly monarch calmly replied:

Let them go to see the miracle who have any doubt regarding the Real Presence of our Lord in the Holy Sacrament.  As for me, even if I saw Jesus on the altar in His visible form, and touched Him with my hand, and heard His voice, I should not be more convinced than I now am, that He is present in the consecrated Host.  
The word of Christ is sufficient for me.  
I need no miracle."

Excerpt from Hidden Treasure, the Riches of the Eucharist
Louis Kaczmarek

King St Louis IX
France ~ 1214-1270
Good and generous king, model father
Wife: Margaret of Provence
Father of eleven children
FEAST DAY - August 25

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From St Louis' mother...
"Never forget that sin is the only great evil in the world. No mother
could love her son more than I love you. But I would rather see you lying
dead at my feet than know that you had offended God by one mortal sin."

King St Louis IX, pray for us!

Monday, August 24, 2015

Home sweet Home!

The LORD is near to all who call upon him, 
to all who call upon him in truth. 
- Psalm 145:18  (Today's Responsorial Psalm)

 St John the Baptist Catholic Church ~ Savannah, Georgia ~ USA

“It became obvious why Catholics had built such beautiful cathedrals and churches throughout the world. 
Not as gathering or meeting places for Christians. 
But as a home for Jesus Himself in the Blessed Sacrament. 
Cathedrals house Jesus. 
Christians merely come and visit Him. 
The cathedrals and churches architecturally 
prepare our souls for the beauty of the Eucharist.”


 Allen R. Hunt
Excerpt from: Confessions of a Mega Church Pastor:

Today is the FEAST DAY of St Bartholomew
Nee: Cana
Apostle and Martyr
"Here is a true child of Israel. There is no duplicity in him."
- said of St Bartholomew by Jesus - Gospel of St John 1: 47

 

Among the twelve apostles great…There was Bartholomew…Known also as Nathanael…Among Christ’s chosen few…He too received The Holy Ghost…And he preached everywhere…That every soul might turn to God…And no one might despair…St Philip introduced him to…The Master and The Lord…And thus he came to understand…The goal he struggled toward…Bartholomew proclaimed the faith…Through all the barbarous East…And in the truest Christian sense…He was a holy priest…His death was double martyrdom…As legend now abide…
Condemned to death, Bartholomew…Was flayed and crucified. 

~ James Metcalfe, Poem Portraits of the Saints


St Bartholomew, pray for us!

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Ipse Christus

...my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you,
in a dry and weary land where there is no water.  - Psalm 63:1

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 The divine life is found, par excellence, in the transfigured
bread and wine of the Eucharist.  Aquinas said that the other sacraments contain 
the virtus Christi (the power of Christ), but that the Eucharist contains 
ipse Christus (Christ Himself)What the soul is hungry for, 
finally, is the person of Jesus, the body and blood of Christ.”

Bishop-elect Robert Barron
“Why You Need Spiritual Food” forum 
5 August 2015

Saturday, August 22, 2015

Queenship of Mary

 "I shall sing a hymn to the mother, the Queen, whom I joyously
approach in praise, gladly celebrating her wonders in song. . .
Our tongue cannot worthily praise thee, O Lady; for thou who
hast borne Christ the king art exalted above the seraphim. . .
Hail, O Queen of the world; hail, O Mary, Queen of us all."

-  Axathistos (Byzantine hymn) 

 

Feast of Queenship of Mary ~ August 22*
*Octave of Feast of the Assumption (August 15)

 Feast established - Pope Pius XII - October 11, 1954
Encyclical Letter "Ad Caeli Reginam."
He points out that Mary deserves the title because she is Mother of God, 
because she is closely associated as the New Eve with Jesus’ redemptive work, 
because of her preeminent perfection and because of her intercessory power.

“When she became Mother of the Creator,
she truly became Queen of every creature.”St. John Damascene

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The Coronation of the Virgin, Ridolfo Ghirlandaio (1483-1561)

"Every time the Son of God comes again to us in the “poverty” of the sacramental signs of bread and wine, the seeds of that new history wherein the mighty are “put down from their thrones” and “those of low degree are exalted” (cf. Lk 1:52), take root in the world. Mary sings of the “new heavens” and the “new earth” 
which find in the Eucharist their anticipation and in some sense their programme and plan. The Magnificat expresses Mary's spirituality, and there is nothing greater than this spirituality for helping us to experience the mystery of the Eucharist. The Eucharist has been given to us so that our life, like that of Mary, may become completely a Magnificat!  

Ecclesia de Eucharistia (58)


Mary, then, is a Queen; but for our common consolation, be it known
that she is a Queen so sweet, clement, and so ready to help us
that Holy Church wills that we salute her as Queen of Mercy.  
Mary is Queen of Mercy as Jesus is King of Justice.” 

St. Alphonsus de Liguori - Glories of Mary


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“It is true that Our Lady is Queen of Heaven and earth,
but at the same time she is more Mother than Queen.” - St. Therese of Lisieux

 Mary, our Mother, Queen of Heaven, 
pray for us!

Friday, August 21, 2015

Devotion par excellence

 “Among all these I sought a resting place; 
in whose inheritance should I abide?" - Sirach 24:7

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"The devotion to the Eucharist
is the most noble
because it has God as its object;
it is the most profitable for salvation,
because It gives us the Author of Grace;
it is the sweetest,
because the Lord is Sweetness Itself."

St Pius X
"Pope of the Eucharist"
Italy~ 1835-1914
257th Pope - 1903 to 1914
Papal motto: "To renew all things in Christ"
Extended age of First Communion to age seven.  Advocated frequent 
Communion, continual Cateshesis for all, daily Scripture reading by all. 
Reformed the liturgy, promoted clear and simple homilies,
brought Gregorian chant back, condemned the Modernist heresy.
FEAST DAY - August 21

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Describing Pius X, an historian wrote that he was
“a man of God who knew the unhappiness of the world
and the hardships of life, and in the  
greatness of his heart wanted to comfort everyone.”

Click here: St. Pius X - YouTube (2 mins)

St Pius X, pray for us!

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Finding rest, providing rest...

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.  ...
Trust in him at all times, O People; pour out your hearts to him,
for God is our refuge. - Psalm 62:5,8 

 

"We find rest in those we love,
and we provide a resting place
for those who love us."


St Bernard of Clairvaux
  France ~ 1090 -1153
Cistercian Abbot
Founded 40+ monasteries in lifetime
Eloquent preacher
Mellifluous ("full of honey") Doctor of the Church
FEAST DAY – August 20

Photo image above:  St Paul Catholic Church - Madison, Wisconsin ~ USA 


"There are those who seek knowledge for the sake of knowledge - That is curiosity.
There are those who seek knowledge to be known by others -That is vanity.
There are those who seek knowledge in order to serve - That is love." - St Bernard 

Some of St. Bernard's writings can be downloaded here.



St Bernard of Clairvaux, pray for us!

Wednesday, August 19, 2015

Be the Heart of my heart...

Prayer by St. John Eudes to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

O Heart all lovable and all loving of my Savior, be the Heart of my heart, 
the soul of my soul, the spirit of my spirit, the life of my life and the 
sole principle of all my thoughts, words and actions, of all the faculties 
of my soul, and of all my senses, both interior and exterior. Amen. ~ 

 

"Your most loving Heart, O Jesus,
dwells in this Sacrament
burning with love for us. 
It is there continually performing
thousands of good deeds towards us."


St. John Eudes
France ~ 1601-1680
Priest, gifted preacher and confessor
Encouraged devotions to twin Hearts of Jesus and Mary 
Central theme of his writings: Jesus as the source of holiness, 
Mary as the model of the Christian life.



Dedicated to counsel and defend morally endangered women,
he founded an association of priests (Eudists) and religious -
Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Charity
(later known as Good Shepherd Sisters)
FEAST DAY - August 19



“Our wish, our object, our chief preoccupation must be to form Jesus in ourselves, to make His spirit, His devotion, His affections,
His desires and His disposition live and reign there.
All our religious exercises should be directed to this end.
It is the work which God has given us to do unceasingly.”-

St. John Eudes
The Life and Reign of Jesus in Christian Souls

St John Eudes, pray for us!

Tuesday, August 18, 2015

The perfect reign of Love...

"The soul lives more where it loves than where it lives."
- St John of the Cross (+1591)
 
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"It is now night.
Tomorrow morning is approaching,
and then Jesus will possess me,
and I will possess Jesus!"
 
St Gemma Galgani (+1903)
 

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