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Prayer to Mary, Help of Christians during times of trial

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According to St. John Bosco, Mary, Help of Christians is always there to help us during our difficulties.

 

 

In a dream he had, St. John Bosco saw the Church depicted as a ship tossed about on the sea and under fierce attack. However, one of the pillars that kept the ship anchored had “Mary, Help of Christians” standing on top of it.
He later said, “Only two things can save us in such a grave hour: devotion to Mary and frequent Communion.” The Virgin Mary has always been viewed by Catholics as a refuge in times of distress and is even seen as a “warrior queen” on occasion.

 

Even Jesus gave his “beloved disciple” his mother to care for during the most difficult moment in history.
Below is a prayer to Mary, Help of Christians, invoking her motherly protection and asking her to help all Christians get through times of “trial, temptation and danger.”

 

Most holy and Immaculate Virgin, Help of Christians, we place ourselves under your

motherly protection. Throughout the Church’s history you have helped Christians in times

of trial, temptation and danger. Time and time again, you have proven to be the Refuge of

sinners, the Hope of the hopeless, the Consoler of the afflicted, and the Comforter of the

dying. We promise to be faithful disciples of Jesus Christ, your Son, to proclaim His Good

News of God’s love for all people, and to work for peace and justice in our world. With

faith in your intercession, we pray for the Church, for our family and friends, for the poor

and abandoned, and all the dying.

 

Grant, O Mary, Help of Christians, the graces of which we stand in need. (Mention

your intentions.) May we serve Jesus with fidelity and love until death. Help us and our

loved ones to attain the boundless joy of being forever with our Father in heaven.

Amen.

Mary, Help of Christians, pray for us!

 

Pray this prayer by St. Therese to ask God for humility

Praying for humility is one of the most difficult aspects of the spiritual life, but also the most necessary.

 

Humility can be a scary virtue to pray for. It means that we will be humiliated at some point, with our pride cut down from under us. While it may not be a public event or even noticeable by anyone, our own heart will suffer the loss of our pride and we will understand how much we rely on God.Yet, even though it is a difficult intention, praying for humility is a necessity. If we truly want to become saints, and enter the Kingdom of Heaven, we must imitate as closely as we can the life of Jesus. He humbled himself greatly, allowing himself to be crucified by his creation. It is truly a profound mystery to meditate on and reminds us of the love that God has for us.

 

St. Therese of Lisieux, a Carmelite nun of the 19th century, understood this reality and prayed on a regular basis for humility. It was not easy for her either, but she wanted to become a saint and knew that the road to it was marked with humility. She composed the following prayer, which can become part of our own daily prayers, acknowledging the beauty and majesty of God and our own small role in the world.

 

 

O Jesus! When You were a Pilgrim on earth, You said: “Learn of Me for I am gentle and

humble of heart and you will find rest for your souls.” O Mighty Monarch of Heaven, yes,

my souls finds rest in seeing You, clothed in the form and nature of a slave, humbling

Yourself to wash the feet of Your apostles. I recall Your words that teach me how to

practice humility: “I have given you an example so that you may do what I have done. The

disciple is not greater than the Master … If you understand this, happy are you if you put

them into practice.” Lord, I do understand these words that came from Your gentle and

humble heart and I want to practice them with the help of Your grace.

I beg You, my Divine Jesus, to send me a humiliation whenever I try to set myself above

others. I know, O my God, that You humble the proud soul but to the one who humbles

one’s self You give an eternity of glory. So I want to put myself in the last rank and to

share Your humiliations so as “to have a share with You” in the kingdom of Heaven. But,

You know my weakness, Lord. Every morning I make a resolution to practice humility and

in the evening I recognize that I have committed again many faults of pride. At this I am

tempted to become discouraged but I know that discouragement is also pride. Therefore,

O my God, I want to base my hope in You alone. Since You can do everything, deign to

bring to birth in my soul the virtue I desire. To obtain this grace of Your infinite mercy I will

very often repeat: “O Jesus, gentle and humble of heart, make my heart like Yours!”

 

PRAYER FOR THIS EVENING (THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1)

Prayer for the Evening

 

Let us hope in the Lord now and for evermore!

 

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

 

From clear high mansions of the shining palace

Where you enjoy the light of God’s dear presence,

And plead our causes, mindful of your promise

Show’r down your roses.

 

Roses of faith to shed its light supernal,

Roses of hope when obstacles surround us,

And for our strengthening in daily living

Roses of pure love.

 

Through your own childlike confidence and candor

Send us the rose of quietly discerning

Love of a Father, shining in each happening

Both sweet and bitter.

 

PSALM 131

 

Let all think humbly of others as superior to themselves, each of you looking to others’ interests rather than his own. (cf. Phil 2:3-4)

 

Saint Thérèse recognized unerringly the weakness of pride and the strength of humility. Her way of spiritual childhood is the high road that leads in the footsteps of Christ crucified to the home he has prepared for all who love him and their neighbor as themselves.

 

O Lord, my heart is not proud

nor haughty my eyes.

I have not gone after things too great

nor marvels beyond me.

 

Truly I have set my soul

in silence and peace.

As a child has rest in its mother’s arms,

even so my soul.

 

O Israel, hope in the Lord

both now and for ever.

 

Glory to the Father….

 

Word of God (Romans 12:3, 16)

 

For by the grace given to me I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than one ought to think, but to think soberly, each according to the measure of faith that God has apportioned.

 

Have the same regard for one another; do not be haughty but associate with the lowly; do not be wise in your own estimation.

 

By this shall all know that you are my disciples,

says the Lord. (cf. Jn 13:35)

 

CANTICLE OF MARY

 

With the humble is wisdom. (Prv 11:2)

 

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

 

O Lord, you have guided your Church through the mind and heart of your holy Doctor Saint Thérèse. Through her intercession, we pray:

 

R/Make known your ways; teach me your paths.

 

O Lord, you filled Saint Thérèse with the spirit of wisdom and understanding:

– pour out your gift of wisdom on all those you have called to spiritual leadership. R/

 

O Lord, you drew Saint Thérèse to ponder your hidden mysteries in her heart:

– deepen in all your people the desire to pray. R/

 

O Lord, you inspired Saint Thérèse to teach the wisdom she had learned through prayer and

suffering:

– teach us by her writings and example. R/

 

O Lord, you brought Saint Thérèse at last to contemplate you in your glory at the right hand of the

Father:

– gather into your presence all our dead. R/

 

(Personal intentions)

 

Our Father….

 

May the Lord guard us from all evil./ May he guard our lives. Amen. (cf. Ps 121:7)

 

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.

The inspiring story of how a blind, crippled monk composed the Salve Regina

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Bl. Herman was born with a cleft palate, cerebral palsy and spina bifida, but he also had a brilliant mind.

God often uses weak instruments to bring about a greater good. Such was the case of Bl. Herman of Reichenau. Herman was born with a cleft palate, cerebral palsy and spina bifida. His childhood proved to be extremely difficult, but his parents wanted the best for him. When he was seven years old, they arranged for him to stay at a nearby Benedictine monastery where he would be educated and raised.

Herman flourished at the monastery and it was quickly discovered that while his body was crippled, his mind was extraordinary. He became a scholar in astronomy, theology, math, history and poetry. Herman was also a master of language and became fluent in Arabic, Greek and Latin.

Yet what was even more remarkable was his gentle disposition and devout interior life. He possessed a great joy and despite his physical failings, he always smiled.

Later in life he became blind and this is when he began composing beautiful hymns. Even though his body failed him, his mind and heart were on fire with God’s love and it moved him to create some of the most well-known hymns of all time.

In particular, Herman composed the ever popular Salve Regina (“Hail, Holy Queen”) and Alma Redemptoris Mater (“Loving Mother of the Redeemer”). Both hymns have become incorporated into the Church’s Liturgy of the Hours and are included after the recitation of Night Prayer. The Salve Regina in particular is one of the most well-known Marian hymns of the Church.
When we read or sing both of these hymns after learning about Bl. Herman, they are even more remarkable. The hymns are jubilant songs full of love and devotion, coming from the heart of a man who suffered greatly during his life. It reminds us of the power of faith and how no matter what sufferings we may have to endure, we can still praise God and thank him for the wondrous things he has done for us.

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 to we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.

Turn, then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this, our

exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary

Loving mother of the Redeemer,

gate of heaven, star of the sea,

assist your people who have fallen yet strive to rise again,

To the wonderment of nature you bore your Creator,

yet remained a virgin after as before,

You who received Gabriel’s joyful greeting,

have pity on us poor sinners.

The devil hates this name above all others

Satan flees whenever he hears it uttered with faith.

 

Among the many prayers of an exorcist, there is one prayer that has the most power behind it.What is it?

 

Priests performing exorcisms will always ask God to cast away an evil spirit, “In the name of Jesus.” For Satan, simply the sound of Jesus’ name reminds him of his eternal defeat. The name summarizes God’s goodness and mercy towards humanity, a reality the devil can’t stand.

 

St. Paul explains the power of Jesus’ name in his letter to the Philippians.

 

God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)

 

Jesus’ name implies humility, a virtue Satan does not possess and something many spiritual writers claim was the cause of his fall from Heaven. Satan refused to humble himself and was struck down in his pride.

 

During his life, Jesus proclaimed to his disciples, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons” (Mark 16:17).
If you ever feel the presence of evil in your midst, simply recite the name of Jesus, over and over again with faith and love. The dark cloud will lift and Jesus’ presence will remain.

 

It is through Jesus’ name that we can conquer our spiritual foes and remain rooted to the tree of life.

 

Place yourself under the mantle of the Virgin Mary with this prayer

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Like a loving child, run to your spiritual mother and hide under her mantle for comfort and protection.

 

While hanging upon the cross, Jesus said to John the Apostle (as well as to all of us), “Behold, your mother” (John 19:27). This was not simply a sweet way of Jesus caring for his aging mother, but a bold declaration that all of us are called to share Mary as our true spiritual mother.The Blessed Mother may not be physically present on this earth, but she does remain at the side of her son, Jesus, and listens attentively to the cries of the world. On account of this heavenly position, she can make her presence felt anywhere on earth and can comfort us in our sorrows and rejoice with us in our joys.

 

Many saints over the centuries have urged the Christian faithful to view Mary as a spiritual mother to whom we can run to in our time of need. A helpful image is to imagine ourselves running like a little child and throwing our heads into the lap of the Blessed Mother. Once there, the Virgin Mary will caress our hair and cover us with her soft and warm mantle, ensuring us that all will be well.

 

 

Here is a short prayer that can help internalize this image and call upon Mary as a mother who is ready to help us, no matter what happens.

 

I love thee, most lovable Lady,

By the love which I bear thee,

I promise ever to serve thee,

and to do as much as I can,

that thou be loved by others also.

I put all my hopes in thee,

all my salvation.

Receive me as thy servant

and cover me with the mantle of thy protection,

thou the Mother of mercy!

Amen.

 

 

AND TODAY WE CELEBRATE… Saint of the Day: Thérèse of Lisieux (THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1)

Saint of the Little Way. Carmelite Nun and Doctor of the Church (1873-1897)

Her life

 

+ Thérèse Martin was born into a devout Catholic family and entered the Carmel (the name of a Carmelite monastery for women) in Lisieux, France, when she was fifteen years old. She received the name “Thérèse of the Child Jesus;” she herself would later request that “and of the Holy Face” be added to her religious name.

 

+ After making her vows three years later, she served her community as sacristan and novice-mistress.

 

+ The first sign of the tuberculosis which would claim her life appeared in 1894.

 

+ Taking as her personal motto “Love is repaid by love alone” (Saint John of the Cross), Thérèse found the courage to endure hours and days of spiritual darkness that few saints have suffered. Love for the Father, expressed in childlike simplicity and trust—combined with a deep understanding of the mystery of the Cross—formed the basis of her “Little Way.”

 

+ Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face died in her monastery on September 30, 1897, at the age of twenty-four. She was canonized in 1925 and declared a Doctor of the Church in 1997.

 

+ The parents of Saint Thérèse, Louis and Zelie Martin, were canonized in 2015. She is honored (with Saint Francis Xavier) as the patron saint of foreign missions.

 

For reflection

 

“I saw and realized that love sets off the bounds of all vocations, that love is everything, that this same love embraces every time and every place. In one word, that love is everlasting… O Jesus, my love, at last I have found my calling: my call is love,” she writes. “In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love, and thus I will be all things, as my desire finds its direction.”—Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Spiritual bonus

 

On October 1 we also remember the deacon and hymnwriter Saint Romanus “the Melodist.” Many of his liturgical hymns are still used in the Eastern Church, most especially his great “Akathist Hymn” in honor of the Mother of God. Saint Romanos died in 556 and is honored as a patron of church singers.

 

Vocations

 

The Discalced Carmelite Friars (Province of St. Therese of the Child Jesus): www.caremlitefriarsocd.com

 

The Carmelite Sisters of St. Therese of the Infant Jesus: www.oksister.com

 

The Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of Our Lady and St. Therese (Carmel, CA): www.carmelitesistersbythesea.org

 

The Carmelite Nuns of the Carmel of St. Therese of the Child Jesus (Allentown, PA): www.carmelite-nuns.com

 

The Discalced Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of St. Therese of the Child Jesus (Clinton, Township, MI): www.carmelctwp.org

 

The Discalced Carmelite Nuns of the Carmel of St. Therese of Lisieux (Loretto, PA): www.lorettocarmel.org

 

The Discalced Carmelite Nuns of the Monastery of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and St. Therese of the Child Jesus (Barrington, RI): www.barringtoncarmel.com

 

Prayer

 

O God, who open your Kingdom

to those who are humble and to little ones,

lead us to follow trustingly in the little way of Saint Thérèse,

so that through her intercession

we may see your eternal glory revealed.

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.

 

(from The Roman Missal)

 

Saint profiles prepared by Brother Silas Henderson, S.D.S.

Put yourself in the presence of God with this prayer

The prayer can be prayed before entering into a time of meditation.

 

One of the most helpful exercises to do before meditation or a time set aside for prayer is to put yourself in the presence of God. However, it’s not always easy to do, and our prayers don’t always provide us with an image that is helpful.A prayer found in the St. Vincent’s Manual from 1856 can assist those who are struggling to put themselves in the presence of God. The prayer is described as a “Prayer before Meditation” and guides the mind and heart while trying to achieve this visualization.

 

My God, my Creator, my last End and my All! I firmly believe that thou art here present;—

that I am in thee, and that thou art in me;—that thy eyes are fixed on me, as if I were the

only one in the world. I adore thee, O my God! with the most profound respect of which I

am capable, and unite this adoration to that which thou receivest from thy Angels and

Saints in heaven, and faithful on earth.

 

Adorable Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit! I consecrate to thee my memory,

understanding and will. Grant me, I most humbly beseech thee, the attention, lights and

affections, necessary to profit by this meditation.

 

O my most amiable Savior! Permit me to unite myself to thee, and to pray in thy name. O

my Blessed Virgin Mother, my holy Angel, holy patrons and patronesses, assist me.

 

 

In particular, sit with that one line, envisioning God looking at us “as if I were the only one in the world.”

Stay with that image for a few minutes and then begin your time of meditation.

PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (THURSDAY, OCTOBER 1)

Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus

Prayer for the Morning

 

How great is our God through all the earth!

 

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

 

Let all who lovingly avow

Those gifts the Christ Child came to share

Acclaim Thérèse’s virtues now

And praise her name in song and prayer.

 

Inspired by Jesus to convey

Amazing secrets of his grace,

She taught the world the simple way

Of childhood that the Gospels trace.

 

More like an angel than a child

She gathered virtue’s flowers at will

By whose sweet scent was God beguiled,

Whose tender fragrance charms us still.

 

Yet joy itself could not portray

The surge of her immense desire

Nor cloister walls have strength to stay

A love that swept the world like fire.

 

PSALM 8:2-7, 10

 

Amen, I say to you, whoever does not accept the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it. (Mk 10:15)

 

In a society that idolizes the surface of youth while forcing its children into artificial adulthood, Saint Thérèse might seem foolishly childish, but in fact she teaches the real wisdom of the child: trustful willingness to be led, taught, and raised to true maturity according to God’s plan rather than her own.

 

How great is your name, O Lord our God,

through all the earth!

 

Your majesty is praised above the heavens;

on the lips of children and of babes

you have found praise to foil your enemy,

to silence the foe and the rebel.

 

When I see the heavens, the work of your hands,

the moon and the stars which you arranged,

what is man that you should keep him in mind,

mortal man that you care for him?

 

Yet you have made him little less than a god;

with glory and honor you crowned him,

gave him power over the works of your hand,

put all things under his feet.

 

How great is your name, O Lord our God,

through all the earth!

 

Glory to the Father….

 

Word of God (Isaiah 49:15, 26b)

 

Can a mother forget her infant,/ be without tenderness for the child of her womb?/ Even should she forget,/ I will never forget you.

 

All mankind shall know/ that I, the Lord, am your savior,/ your redeemer, the mighty one of Jacob.

 

So you are no longer a slave but a child,

and if a child then also an heir, through God. (Gal 4:7)

 

CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH

 

God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong. (1 Cor 1:27)

 

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

 

Saint Thérèse promised to spend her heaven doing good on earth. Through her intercession, let us pray for the good of all in need:

 

R/Father, hear your children’s prayer.

 

O Wisdom of God, through you all things were made:

– protect from exploitation all children, created in your image. R/

 

O Wisdom of God, you are the light by which we see:

– enlighten the hearts of all those deceived by false images of maturity. R/

 

O Wisdom of God, you are the truth by which we live:

– grant courage to all missionaries who proclaim your truth. R/

 

O Wisdom of God, you speak through all the wise:

– open the ears of your people to the wisdom of Saint Thérèse for our day. R/

 

(Personal intentions)

 

Our Father….

 

God our Father, you inspired in Saint Thérèse the wisdom that overturns illusions of prowess and power by the Gospel of the cross. Through her intercession, lead all your children to follow the way of Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Anxious about confession? Pray this short prayer of St. Faustina to find courage

St. Faustina didn’t want to go to confession, but her heart was set at ease when she prayed this prayer.

 

Often we don’t want to go to confession. This could be for any number of reasons, but usually it is because we don’t want to reveal to the priest a particular sin we committed. The sin is embarrassing and when we think about telling someone else about it, we immediately become anxious.St. Faustina experienced similar feelings, and one time she nearly didn’t go to confession.

 

She writes in her , “When I began to prepare for confession, strong temptations against confessors assaulted me … to uncover the most secret depths of my heart, to give an account of the action of God’s grace, to speak about God’s every demand, about all that goes on between God and myself … To tell that to a man is beyond my strength.”

 

St. Faustina couldn’t bear the thought of telling the priest, a sinful human being, the depths of her heart. It caused her great anxiety and she couldn’t do it on her own.

 

However, she regained her strength by praying this prayer, “O Christ, You and the priest are one; I will approach confession as if I were approaching, not a man, but You.”

 

This short prayer was a success, and she writes in her , “When I entered the confessional, I began by disclosing my difficulties. The priest replied that the best thing I could have done was to disclose these temptations from the outset. However, after the confession, they took flight, and my soul is enjoying peace.”


St. Faustina reminds us that while the priest is physically there in the confessional, it is Jesus Christ who is the absolver of sins. He is also present in a spiritual way that we do not always comprehend. This is why the seal of the confessional is so important, as it reminds us that the priest is not in charge of the situation, but Jesus Christ. He alone hears our sins and washes them away.

 

If you are feeling anxiety about confession, remind yourself that Jesus Christ is there in the confessional and is ready to receive you with open arms.