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PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20)

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PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (TUESDAY, OCTOBER 20)

Saint Paul of the Cross

Prayer for the Morning

 

Let us proclaim God’s works!

Let us speak of his splendor and glory!

 

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning,

is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia!

 

HYMN

 

Surely it is God who saves me;

I shall trust and have no fear.

For the Lord defends and shields me

And his saving help is near.

So rejoice as you draw water

From salvation’s healing spring;

In the day of your deliverance

Thank the Lord, his mercies sing.

 

Make God’s deeds known to the peoples:

Tell out his exalted Name.

Praise the Lord, who has done great things;

All his works God’s might proclaim.

Zion, lift your voice in singing;

For with you has come to dwell,

In your very midst the great and

Holy One of Israel.

 

PSALM 145:1-9, 21

 

Good is the Lord to one who waits for him,/ to the soul that seeks him. (Lam 3:25)

 

It’s a common mistake to think that God’s “works” and “mighty deeds” are told only in Scripture. Every person’s life is God’s work of art, an expression of his creative love, his goodness, his compassion. A little thought can personalize this psalm for everyone who prays it.

 

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.

The Lord is great, highly to be praised,

his greatness cannot be measured.

 

Age to age shall proclaim your works,

shall declare your mighty deeds,

shall speak of your splendor and glory,

tell the tale of your wonderful works.

 

They will speak of your terrible deeds,

recount your greatness and might.

They will recall your abundant goodness;

age to age shall ring out your justice.

 

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.

 

Let me speak the praise of the Lord,

let all mankind bless his holy name

for ever, for ages unending.

 

Glory to the Father….

 

Word of God (Isaiah 63:7)

 

The favors of the Lord I will recall,/ the glorious deeds of the Lord,/ Because of all he has done for us;/ for he is good to the house of Israel,/ He has favored us according to his mercy/ and his great kindness.

 

All good giving and every perfect gift is from above.

(Jas 1:17)

 

CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH

 

The Lord is good,/ a refuge on the day of distress;/ He takes care of those who have recourse to him. (Nah 1:7)

 

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;

he has come to his people and set them free.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior,

born of the house of his servant David.

 

Through his holy prophets he promised of old

that he would save us from our enemies,

from the hands of all who hate us.

 

He promised to show mercy to our fathers

and to remember his holy covenant.

 

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:

to set us free from the hands of our enemies,

free to worship him without fear,

holy and righteous in his sight

all the days of our life.

 

You, my child, shall be called the prophet

of the Most High;

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

to give his people knowledge of salvation

by the forgiveness of their sins.

 

In the tender compassion of our God

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

to shine on those who dwell in darkness

and the shadow of death,

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

 

Glory to the Father…

 

INTERCESSIONS

 

God’s inventive love is without limit. With confidence, let us pray:

 

R/You are kind and full of compassion.

 

Your greatness is without measure:

– look down with mercy upon those whose prayer is hindered by a crippling sense of unworthiness. R/

 

Your works are wonderful:

– inspire all creative artists, whose gift is to reveal your beauty to the world. R/

 

Your goodness embraces all that you have made:

– lead us to seek goodness rather than fault in all our sisters and brothers. R/

 

(Personal intentions)

 

Our Father….

 

O God of glory and compassion, you rule over the powerful of the earth and you gather up the sparrow when it falls. Grant us wisdom to see your works in our daily lives and to praise you at every turn, through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (MONDAY, OCTOBER 19)

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PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (MONDAY, OCTOBER 19)

Prayer for the Morning

 

Here is our God:

let us bow down in worship!

 

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning,

is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia!

 

HYMN

 

Sing praise for all the martyrs

who carried Jesus’ cross.

They followed in his footsteps;

they counted gain as loss.

Our heroines and heroes,

their blood the Church’s seed,

Whose witness to the Gospel

led to their dying deed.

 

Saints John and Isaac served you,

with voice and mind and hand,

To spread the holy Gospel

across a vast new land.

With eager zeal they traveled

to spread the faith abroad,

To baptize to salvation

and shed their blood for God.

 

All praise to God the Father,

who made the martyrs be,

And praise the Holy Spirit,

their fount of charity.

All praises to Christ Jesus,

let crowns before him fall,

Exemplar of the martyrs:

their Joy, their Love, their All.

 

PSALM 30:9-13

 

The apostles rejoiced that they had been found worthy to suffer ­dishonor for the sake of the name. (cf. Acts 5:41)

 

For the North American martyrs whom we honor today, the pain of exile, torture, and even death was transformed into joy by their love for Christ and for the peoples to whom they were sent to proclaim his Good News.

 

To you, Lord, I cried,

to my God I made appeal:

“What profit would my death be, my going to the grave?

Can dust give you praise or proclaim your truth?”

 

The Lord listened and had pity.

The Lord came to my help.

For me you have changed my mourning into dancing,

you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy.

So my soul sings psalms to you unceasingly.

O Lord my God, I will thank you for ever.

 

Glory to the Father….

 

Word of God (Ephesians 3:8-12)

 

To me, the very least of all the holy ones, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the inscrutable riches of Christ, and to bring to light [for all] what is the plan of the mystery hidden from ages past in God who created all things, so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the ­principalities and authorities in the heavens. This was according to the eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness of speech and confidence of access through faith in him.

 

We do not preach ourselves

but Jesus Christ as Lord. (2 Cor 4:5)

 

CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH

 

He came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. (Eph 2:17)

 

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;

he has come to his people and set them free.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior,

born of the house of his servant David.

 

Through his holy prophets he promised of old

that he would save us from our enemies,

from the hands of all who hate us.

 

He promised to show mercy to our fathers

and to remember his holy covenant.

 

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:

to set us free from the hands of our enemies,

free to worship him without fear,

holy and righteous in his sight

all the days of our life.

 

You, my child, shall be called the prophet

of the Most High;

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

to give his people knowledge of salvation

by the forgiveness of their sins.

 

In the tender compassion of our God

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

to shine on those who dwell in darkness

and the shadow of death,

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

 

Glory to the Father…

 

INTERCESSIONS

 

The martyrs bear witness to the cost and the reward of living according to the Gospel. Through their intercession, let us pray:

 

R/Make your people steadfast in faith, O Lord.

 

For the Church throughout the world,

– that we may live the Gospel faith for which the martyrs died. R/

 

For those who suffer persecution for the Gospel’s sake,

– that they may find strength in the Holy Spirit. R/

 

For all missionaries as they work to build communities of faith at home and abroad,

– that they may share the courage of the North American martyrs. R/

 

For the Church in North America,

– that our lives may be a light to our neighbors. R/

 

(Personal intentions)

 

Our Father….

 

O God of the martyrs, you called and strengthened Saints Isaac, John, and their companions to preach the Gospel by their steadfastness in fidelity, even unto death. Through their example and their intercession, strengthen us in faithfulness to live the Good News of salvation, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pope Francis: God is supreme

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Pope Francis: God is supreme

– Catholics, by virtue of their baptism, must affirm to the world God’s primacy in human life and in history, Pope Francis said Sunday.

 

In his weekly Angelus address Oct. 18, the pope explained that “to pay taxes is a duty of citizens, as is complying with the just laws of the state. At the same time, it is necessary to affirm God’s primacy in human life and in history, respecting God’s right over all that belongs to him.”

“Hence the mission of the Church and Christians,” he stated, “to speak of God and bear witness to him to the men and women of our time.”

 

Before leading pilgrims in praying the Angelus in Latin, Pope Francis reflected on the day’s Gospel reading from St. Matthew.

In the passage, the Pharisees try to trap Jesus in speech by asking him what he thinks about the lawfulness of paying the census tax to Caesar.

 

Jesus replied: “Why are you testing me, you hypocrites? Show me the coin that pays the census tax.” When they handed him the Roman coin with the image of Emperor Caesar, “then Jesus replies: ‘Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s,’” Pope Francis recounted.

 

In his reply, Jesus “acknowledges that the tribute to Caesar must be paid,” the pope said, “because the image on the coin is his; but above all he recalls that each person carries within him another image — we carry it in our heart, in our soul — that of God, and therefore it is to him, and to him alone, that each person owes his or her existence, his or her life.”

 

Jesus’ line gives “clear guidelines,” he said, “for the mission of all believers of all times, even for us today,” explaining that “everyone, by baptism, is called to be a living presence in society, inspiring it with the Gospel and with the lifeblood of the Holy Spirit.”

 

This requires humility and courage, he noted; a commitment to building “the civilization of love, where justice and fraternity reign.”

 

Pope Francis concluded his message by praying that Mary Most Holy will help everyone to “flee from all hypocrisy and to be honest and constructive citizens. And may she sustain us disciples of Christ in the mission to bear witness that God is the center and the meaning of life.”

 

After praying the Angelus, the pope pointed out the Church’s celebration of World Mission Day. The theme this year, he said, is “Here I am, send me.”

 

“Weavers of fraternity: it is beautiful, this word ‘weavers,’” he said. “Every Christian is called to be a weaver of fraternity.”

Francis asked everyone to support the Church’s priest, religious, and lay missionaries, “who sow the Gospel in the great field of the world.”

 

“Let’s pray for them and give them our concrete support,” he said, adding his gratitude to God for the release last week of Fr. Pierluigi Maccalli, an Italian Catholic priest who was kidnapped by a jihadist group in Niger two years ago.

The pope asked for an applause to greet Fr. Macalli and for prayers for all those who are kidnapped around the world.

 

Pope Francis also encouraged a group of Italian fishermen, who have been detained in Libya since the beginning of September, and their families. The two fishing crews, which came from Sicily and include 12 Italians and six Tunisians, have been detained in the northern African country for over a month and a half.

A Libyan warlord, General Khalifa Haftar, has reportedly said he will not release the fishermen until Italy frees four Libyan soccer players convicted of human trafficking.

 

The pope asked for a moment of silent prayer for the fishermen and for Libya. He also said he is praying for the discussions happening at the international level regarding the situation.

He urged those involved “to stop all forms of hostility, promoting dialogue that leads to peace and stability, and to the unity of the country.”

Act of Adoration and Reparation to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament

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Act of Adoration and Reparation to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament

I ADORE Thee profoundly, O my Jesus,

in Thy sacramental form;

I acknowledge Thee to be true God and true Man,

and by this act of adoration

I intend to atone for the coldness

of so many Christians who pass before Thy churches

and sometimes before the very Tabernacle

in which Thou art pleased to remain at all hours

with loving impatience to give Thyself to Thy faithful people,

and do not so much as bend the knee before Thee,

and who, by their indifference

proclaim that they grow weary of this heavenly manna,

like the people of Israel in the wilderness.

I offer Thee in reparation for this grievous negligence,

the Most Precious Blood which Thou didst shed from Thy five wounds,

and especially from Thy sacred Side,

and entering therein,

I repeat a thousand times with true recollection of spirit:

 

O Sacrament most holy!

O Sacrament divine!

All praise and all thanksgiving

be every moment Thine.

 

Our Father…

Hail Mary…

Glory Be…

A very short Way of the Cross

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A very short Way of the Cross

This Way of the Cross can be prayed in 5 minutes (or less).

One of the most powerful prayers during Lent is the Way of the Cross, which invites us to retrace the events that led up to Jesus’ crucifixion on Mount Calvary. However, it’s not always easy to find the time to pray the pious devotion.The good news is that there is no single way to pray the Way of the Cross, and while some versions may take longer, there are other options that take considerably less time.

 

One option is a method reportedly used by Franciscan friars when they went out on missions. Franciscans have always had a close link to the Way of the Cross as they have had a constant presence in the Holy Land since the 14th century.

 

Here is their short Way of the Cross that can be prayed in about 5 minutes, depending on how long you meditate on each station.

 

First Station
Jesus Condemned to Death

O Jesus! So meek and uncomplaining, teach me resignation in trials.

 

Second Station
Jesus Carries His Cross

My Jesus, this Cross should be mine, not Thine; my sins crucified Thee.

 

Third Station
Our Lord Falls the First Time

O Jesus! By this first fall, never let me fall into mortal sin.

 

Fourth Station
Jesus Meets His Mother

O Jesus! May no human tie, however dear, keep me from following the road of the Cross.

 

Fifth Station
Simon the Cyrenean Helps Jesus Carry His Cross

Simon unwillingly assisted Thee; may I with patience suffer all for Thee.

 

Sixth Station
Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus

O Jesus! Thou didst imprint Thy sacred features upon Veronica’s veil; stamp them also indelibly upon my heart.

 

Seventh Station
The Second Fall of Jesus

By Thy second fall, preserve me, dear Lord, from relapse into sin.

 

Eighth Station
Jesus Consoles the Women of Jerusalem

My greatest consolation would be to hear Thee say: “Many sins are forgiven thee, because thou hast loved much.”

 

Ninth Station
Third Fall of Jesus

O Jesus! when weary upon life’s long journey, be Thou my strength and my perseverance.

 

Tenth Station
Jesus Stripped of His Garments

My soul has been robbed of its robe of innocence; clothe me, dear Jesus, with the garb of penance and contrition.

 

Eleventh Station
Jesus Nailed to the Cross

Thou didst forgive Thy enemies; my God, teach me to forgive injuries and forget them.

 

Twelfth Station
Jesus Dies on the Cross

Thou art dying, my Jesus, but Thy Sacred Heart still throbs with love for Thy sinful children.

 

Thirteenth Station
Jesus Taken Down from the Cross

Receive me into thy arms, O Sorrowful Mother; and obtain for me perfect contrition for my sins.

 

Fourteenth Station
Jesus Laid in the Sepulcher

When I receive Thee into my heart in Holy Communion, O Jesus, make it a fit abiding place for Thy adorable Body. Amen.

“Jesus, Mary, I love You, save souls.”

PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18)

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PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (SUNDAY, OCTOBER 18)

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Prayer for the Morning

 

Through the greatness of God’s love, we have access to his house: let us give thanks and praise!

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the

beginning,

is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia!


HYMN

 

Father, who didst fashion me

Image of thyself to be,

Fill me with thy love divine,

Let my every thought be thine.

Holy Jesus, may I be

Dead and buried here with thee;

And, by love inflamed, arise

Unto thee a sacrifice.

Thou, who dost all gifts impart,

Shine, sweet Spirit, in my heart;

Best of gifts thyself bestow;

Make me burn thy love to know.

God, the blessèd Three in One,

Dwell within my heart alone;

Thou dost give thyself to me;

May I give myself to thee.

 

Canticle. Ephesians 1:3-10

 

I have called you by your name. (Is 45:4)

God has laid claim to us in love, creating us in his image, calling us personally by our names and the name of Christian, choosing us to be his servants in Jesus Christ.

Praised be the God and Father

of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has bestowed on us in Christ

every spiritual blessing in the heavens.

God chose us in him

before the world began

to be holy

and blameless in his sight.

He predestined us

to be his adopted sons through Jesus Christ,

such was his will and pleasure,

that all might praise the glorious favor

he has bestowed on us in his beloved.

In him and through his blood, we have been

redeemed,

and our sins forgiven,

so immeasurably generous

is God’s favor to us.

God has given us the wisdom

to understand fully the mystery,

the plan he was pleased

to decree in Christ.

A plan to be carried out

in Christ, in the fullness of time,

to bring all things into one in him,

in the heavens and on earth.

 

Word of God Isaiah 40:26

Lift up your eyes on high/ and see who has created these:/ He leads out their army and numbers them,/ calling them all by name./ By his great might and the strength of his power/ not one of them is missing!
They will look upon his face,
and his name will be on their foreheads.
(Rv 22:4)

 

Canticle of Zechariah

 

If we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. (Rom 14:8)

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
he has come to his people and set them free.
He has raised up for us a mighty savior,
born of the house of his servant David.
Through his holy prophets he promised of old
that he would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember his holy covenant.
This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear,
holy and righteous in his sight
all the days of our life.
You, my child, shall be called the prophet
of the Most High;
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
In the tender compassion of our God
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness
and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Glory to the Father…
Intercessions
Beloved of God, we pray:
R/We bear your name, O Lord!
We belong to you, O God:
– let us worship no other god but you. R/
We are called to rest in you on this holy day:
– let us know the joy of gathering in your name for worship. R/
We praise you for your love:
– let us love one another as you have loved us. R/

Personal intentions

 

Our Father….

 

O God our Father and our Maker, you have made us in your image and called us by our names; you have made us your own in Jesus Christ, our Lord, in whose cross we glory on this holy day when we honor his dying and rising in the Eucharist. Make us holy as he is holy, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God for ever and ever. Amen.

10 Short and powerful prayers to pray during the day

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10 Short and powerful prayers to pray during the day

Don’t have any time? Try these powerful prayers that only take seconds to pray.

 

 

Have you ever been moved to a silent or vocal burst of prayer? “Lord, help me!” is the short, powerful prayer phrase we probably use most often. But the Church has a long tradition of easily memorized short prayers of praise and contrition — called aspirations — that can be brought to our minds and our lips at any time during the day. They may have developed in response to St. Paul’s admonition to “pray without ceasing.”Our daily lives don’t always allow for worship. We might not be able to make it to daily Mass, or to give time to the Lord in Eucharistic Adoration. But we can pray short, powerful prayers of adoration, praise, and penance any time, anywhere.

 

The beauty of this kind of prayer is that it allows a person to turn to God during work, school or any other activity. Aspirations are easily memorized and don’t require anything else besides a heart open to God’s love. When prayed in faith, they can raise a person’s soul from the mundane cares of life to the spiritual heights of grace. And this practice has the potential to sanctify your life.

 

Because these are prayers from your heart — prayed spontaneously when you are moved to worship — they need not be formalized in any way. In Henry Morton Robinson’s classic novel The Cardinal, Dennis Fermoyle — the trolley motorman and father of the book’s priest-protagonist — drove a route that took him past churches. Every time he passed one, he would tip his hat and utter an aspiration such as  “Blessed be Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar,” or “Praised be the Holy Family!”

 

Below are 10 short prayers that can be easily memorized. If you are new to aspirations (which your grandparents might have called “ejaculations,” from the Latin for bursting forth), you might write a few of your favorites on a card to keep in your pocket or purse as a reminder, until you get accustomed to praying this way. After a few weeks you’ll find that it is almost second nature for you to pour out a bit of praise and raise your heart to God.

 

1. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.

2. Sacred Heart of Jesus, I trust in Thee.

3. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I give you my heart and my soul.

4. Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.

5. My God, and my all!

6. Jesus, my God, I love Thee above all things.

7. Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, on fire with love of us, inflame our hearts with love of Thee.

8. Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like unto thine.

9. Blessed be God.

10. Heart of Jesus burning with love of us, inflame our hearts with love of Thee.

PRAYER FOR THIS EVENING (SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17)

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PRAYER FOR THIS EVENING (SATURDAY, OCTOBER 17)

Prayer for the Evening

 

Vigil of the Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

 

Christ is the image of the invisible God:

come, let us adore!

 

Glory to the Father…. Alleluia!

 

HYMN

 

Baited, the question rose

From somewhere in the crowd:

“Teacher, you truly know God’s way;

Is paying tax allowed?”

Jesus perceived their trap:

“Why do you test me so?

Bring here the coin the tax requires,

And see what it will show.”

 

“Whose image does it bear,

Whose name and titles tell?”

“Caesar’s, of course,” they smugly said,

And thought they answered well.

“Give Caesar what is his;

God, what is God’s alone.”

Strong words, convincing and profound,

Like truth already known.

 

May we discern, O God,

Your daily gifts of grace;

Show us your image freshly coined

In every heart and face.

Help us fit tribute yield

Through prayers and hymns we raise,

But most of all by deeds of love

To give you thanks and praise.

 

CANTICLE (Colossians 1:12-18)

 

Whose image is this? (Mt 22:20)

 

What bears God’s image belongs to God. We are all made in the image and likeness of God. That image is Jesus Christ, through whom and for whom we were created.

 

Let us give thanks to the Father

for having made you worthy

to share the lot of the saints

in light.

 

He rescued us

from the power of darkness

and brought us

into the kingdom of his beloved Son.

Through him we have redemption,

the forgiveness of our sins.

 

He is the image of the invisible God,

the first-born of all creatures.

In him everything in heaven and on earth was created,

things visible and invisible.

 

All were created through him;

all were created for him.

He is before all else that is.

In him everything continues in being.

 

It is he who is head of the body, the church!

he who is the beginning,

the first-born of the dead,

so that primacy may be his in everything.

 

Word of God (Colossians 3:9-10)

 

Stop lying to one another, since you have taken off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed, for knowledge, in the image of its creator.

For in the image of God/ has man been made. (Gn 9:6)

 

CANTICLE OF MARY

 

Then God said: “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” (Gn 1:26)

 

My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord,

my spirit rejoices in God my Savior

for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant.

 

From this day all generations will call me blessed:

the Almighty has done great things for me,

and holy is his Name.

 

He has mercy on those who fear him

in every generation.

 

He has shown the strength of his arm,

he has scattered the proud in their conceit.

 

He has cast down the mighty from their thrones,

and has lifted up the lowly.

 

He has filled the hungry with good things,

and the rich he has sent away empty.

 

He has come to the help of his servant Israel

for he has remembered his promise of mercy,

the promise he made to our fathers,

to Abraham and his children for ever.

 

Glory to the Father…

 

INTERCESSIONS

 

As children of God, created in his image, let us pray:

 

R/Rescue us from the power of darkness!

 

You have made us in your likeness:

– may we repay you with lives lived after the pattern of Jesus Christ: R/

 

You have made us your children:

– may we honor you with our loving obedience to your will: R/

 

You have purchased our lives with the Blood of Christ:

– may we offer you always the living coin of our gratitude: R/

 

(Personal intentions)

 

Our Father….

 

May Jesus Christ be always our way, our truth, and our life! Amen. (cf. Jn 14:6)

 

MARIAN ANTIPHON

 

Antiphon for the Memorial of

Our Lady of the Rosary,

October 7

 

The daughters of Zion saw her flourishing

in blossoms of roses,

and pronounced her most blessed.

 

 

 

Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae;

vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve.

Ad te clamamus, exsules filii Evae.

Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentes

in hac lacrimarum valle.

 

Eia ergo, advocata nostra,

illos tuos misericordes oculos

ad nos converte.

Et Iesum, benedictum fructum ventris tui,

nobis post hoc exsilium ostende.

O clemens, O pia, O dulcis Virgo Maria.

 

 

Hail, holy Queen, mother of mercy,

our life, our sweetness, and our hope.

To you do we cry,

poor banished children of Eve.

To you do we send up our sighs,

mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.

Turn then, O most gracious advocate,

your eyes of mercy toward us,

and after this our exile

show unto us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.

 

V/ Pray for us, O holy Mother of God,

R/ That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Discover 4 elements of honest prayer from Jesus himself

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Discover 4 elements of honest prayer from Jesus himself

Ever wondered why the Apostles asked him, ‘Lord teach us to pray’? This is why.

 

 

Since Jesus was like us in all things but sin, he models prayer that is spiritually and psychologically healthy.He himself will teach us how to pray, how to talk to him, giving us his own example. That is why the Apostles asked him, “Lord, teach us to pray.”

 

Lent is supposed to be a time to deepen our prayer life, but have we? Or do we need still to go deep and get real with the Lord? Perhaps we just don’t know how. Christ doesn’t need our babbling, our many words (cf Matthew 6:7). He needs, wants, the real me.

 

We can learn how to truly be present in prayer from Jesus crucified. On the cross, he teaches us how to be vulnerable before the Lord, to give him access to our hearts — for our transformation and his glory.

 

In his darkest moment, when he is near death, he cries to his Father, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mt. 27:46).

 

With this single phrase, Jesus teaches four elements of “honest prayer.”

 

He articulates

Jesus says what He thinks, which beats dancing around an issue as if the Lord can’t handle our honesty. Transparency is safe because what happens in our lives really matters to the Lord. The Lord eagerly waits for us to accept and articulate our thoughts, feelings, and circumstances. While it can be difficult to figure out what is going on inside of us, the Lord loves it when we pray the truth of our lives. Facing our sin, fears, pain, and brokenness allows Him to meet us where we are at in order to lift us up. It’s the enemy who would like believers to be in a shallow, pseudo relationship as if the Lord doesn’t care, listen, or respond. Yes, Jesus bothers His Father with what is on His mind and in His heart, without feeling any need to “impress” Him.

 

 

He feels

Jesus recognizes what He feels and includes this in His prayer. Rather than repress or unleash, Jesus teaches us to channel (constructively manage) our feelings. (a) Feelings are part of a normal psychology, every human existence, and a good indicator of how deeply something affects us. It’s healthy to be aware of, accept, and label feelings. (b) Feelings are neutral: positive if leading to fullness of life with God and others and negative if dragging us down. Awareness and reflection bring understanding. What is going on in and around us? Where is this coming from?  Is this taking us to or away from the Lord? (c) Feelings are handled with right action. We accept (go along with) feelings that correspond to reality/truth and reject (let go of) feelings that correspond to lies/illusions. Indeed, Jesus models a healthy integration of feelings in His prayer and life.

 

 

He questions

Jesus talked with and listened to His Father regularly. If God is real and prayer is heartfelt dialogue, then why not? Interactive prayer is not just for great saints with fantastic missions, but for each of us in our daily lives. Yet, to question is to risk. The Lord may respond with: silence, inviting us to wait; unanswered prayer, because “no” is really best; or with a “yes,” offering affirmation and instruction. While He communicates uniquely with each of us (through Scripture, our spouse, our circumstances, nature, an image, etc.), we all recognize His Word in the depths of our being. The Lord is not abstract and distant but we often keep Him at arm’s length by failing to ask. Like us, Jesus questions His Father because He needs individual direction and reassurance.

 

 

He surrenders

The cry of Jesus on the cross, while expressing His thoughts, feelings, and questions of abandonment, is the beginning of Psalm 22, which ends with words of trust! For Jesus, the night was dark, the mystery was incomprehensible, and death was looming. Yet, He knew that He had to pass through to the other side. While there are times to fix things, there are also times to accept what is. Honestly, we aren’t God – so, right relationship with Him means attentive listening, radical trust, and patient obedience when it matters most. Paraphrased, this sounds like, “OK, Lord, I know you see the big picture and have this under control. It doesn’t make sense to me and feels like a ‘dying’ right now, but You are my God and I trust you to work through this.” Isn’t resistance itself often a great source of pain? Jesus’ teaching on honest prayer is that of surrender in the moment, resting in the Lord Whose ways are superior to our own in every way.

How to keep from worrying too much

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How to keep from worrying too much

If you have difficulty with worrying about everything, take the advice of a holy priest.

 

 

It is relatively easy to worry, especially when you take a look at the news. Every day something happens that can bring us added anxiety.However, Jesus would often say to his disciples, “Do not worry about your life” (Matthew 6:25).

 

How can we avoid worrying?

 

Fr. Francis Xavier Lasance, in his early 20th century book My Prayer Book, explains that Catholics should always be the ones who do not worry.

 

[F]or there can be no doubt that the best “don’t worry club” in the world is the Catholic Church, because she directs her members to lead a pure and holy life, to do their duty, to rejoice in the Lord always, and to preserve their peace of soul by a simple, childlike confidence in the providence of Our Father in heaven.

 

That is more easily said than done, yet Fr. Lasance goes on to explain the key to this attitude.

 

St. Francis de Sales, knowing that all the accidents of life, without exception, happen by the order of Providence, reposed in Him with the greatest tranquility, like a child on the bosom of its mother. This gentle saint was filled with so great a confidence in God that in the midst of the greatest disasters nothing could disturb the peace of his soul. “I can not but be persuaded,” he often said, “that he who believes in an infinite Providence, which extends even to the lowest worm, must expect good from all that happens to him.”

 

The ability to not worry is based entirely on a trusting abandonment to God’s providence. It means we trust that God has our ultimate good in mind and that even in the worst of sufferings, he has good in store for us.

 

In the same spirit, St. Vincent de Paul exhorts us: “Let us place our confidence in God and establish ourselves in an entire dependence on Him. Then fear not what men may say or do against us, all will turn to our advantage. Yes, if all the earth should rise up against us, nothing will happen but as God pleases, in whom we have established our hopes.”

 

This trusting attitude in God was a common theme among all the saints, especially St. Francis of Assisi.

 

“Happy is the man,” says the dear St. Francis of Assisi, “who does not worry, nor grieve himself, about anything in this world, but leads a holy life, without any inordinate attachment, and abandons himself cheerfully to the will of God.”

 

If you want to reduce your worry in the world, place your trust in God, not in any human power this world has to offer. We can’t place our ultimate trust in health, political officials, or anyone else in leadership.

 

What we can do is trust God.

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We accept and share ALL God has revelead and try to explain them to others. We will never go against the Church now or in the future because we know She is Mother and Teacher. Thank You, Jesus!!!

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