Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

The link between devotion to Mary's Immaculate Heart and the Sacred Heart of Jesus is shown in the following passage:

"...a short time after Pascal had carried out the first experiments in modern physics and Descartes had perfected the mathematical instruments which would make possible the development of the sciences, Jesus appeared to an obscure nun and, showing her his heart, said to her: 'This is the heart that has so loved men.'

"Then, as men did not listen to the message of Paray-le-Monial and the corruption of the world continued, the Virgin Mary appeared to the children at Fatima; she showed them her heart and said: 'The Lord wishes to establish devotion to my Immaculate Heart in the world. If what I say is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace.'

To read about Devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, click HERE for the Theotokos's site. Thank you Donal!

Prayer Requests

Please keep the following intentions in your prayers:

1. For the people in Zimbabwe. President Mugabe Regime's is accused of using brainwashing techniques on the young men in the army camps. Story in Zenit

2. For the victims of radical Islam and political correctness in the Philippines.
Story here

3. For the Christians in Lebanon, Iraq and all over the Middle East, who are in danger because of their faith.

4. For Father Giancarlo Bossi who has been kidnapped. Story HERE

5. For all of the intentions mentioned on the Catholic Fire Blog. Jean posts intentions on a regular basis. Please join her in praying for those in need.

The Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

Sacred Heart of Jesus, I place my trust in you.

An Act of Consecration

Lord Jesus Christ, I consecrate myself today anew and without reserve to Your divine Heart. I consecrate to You my body with all its senses, my soul with all its faculties, my entire being. I consecrate to You all my thoughts, words and deeds, all my sufferings and labors, all my hopes, consolations and joys. In particular I consecrate to You this poor heart of mine so that it may love only You and may be consumed as a victim in the fire of Your love.

I place my trust in You without reserve and I hope for the remission of mys ins through Your infinite mercy. I place within Your hands all my cares and anxieties. I promise to love You and to honor You till the last moment of my life, and to spread, as much as I can, devotion to Your most Sacred Heart.

Do with me what you will my Jesus. I deserve n o other reward except Your greater glory and Your holy love.

Take this offering of myself and give me a place within Your divine Heart forever.

Amen.

From Apostleship of Prayer.

Side Bar

As you may have noticed, I have revamped my side bar a bit. Thanks to Ramblings of a Catholic's Mom inspiration. In an attempt to make the side bar a little easier to read, I have divided them into a few groups.

I also noticed there were a few blogs that I had inadvertently left off the sidebar. I am not going to say whose those were as you may not have even noticed. ha ha. Seriously, that has been corrected. I am also adding a few new ones so make sure to take a look.

I will be adding others as time goes on.

Happy Feast of the Sacred Heart!

Sacred Heart of Jesus

Picture source St. Silas the Martyr

Jesus, Meek and Humble of Heart
Make My Heart Like Unto Thine.

Our Lady of Fatima - Blue Army Shrine

The Fatima Angel Tabernacle in the Chapel

Apparition - in the Chapel

The Holy House - Blue Army Shrine

The following relics are found here: St. Joseph's cloak, St. Anne, St. Elizabeth Seton, The Holy Cross, Blessed Mother's Veil, Jacinta and Francisco, Fatima Tree, St. Therese, the Little Flower, St. Martin de Porres, St. Margaret Mary, St. Peregrine, St. John Neuman, St. Bernard, St. Julian Eyhard, and St. Gabriel

The Trinity - Interior of the Holy House The Precious
Blood seems to drip into the Chalice that decorates
the Blessed Sacrament's Tabernacle.

The Rosary Garden - Blue Army Shrine

There are two lovely walks you can take at the Blue Army Shrine in Washington, NJ. One is the Stations of the Cross. There is also the Rosary Walk.

Photos by Esther G.

The Annunciation's Archangel Gabriel


The walk itself is very fragrant with the scent of honeysuckle and clover.

Crying Angel next to the Presentation of the Lord

The Rosary Garden walk

What Makes a Saint?

Picture source, Diocese of Buffalo

I thought the following maxims worth sharing. The bishop who gave the imprimatur was the late James A. McNulty, Bishop of Paterson and it was given on April 1, 1958. I do not know who wrote this. If anyone does know, please post it in the comments section. Mahalo.

1. No matter what happens, try to let no displeasure appear.

2. If possible, attend daily Mass and secure God's blessing on your work.

3. Bear daily annoyances in a spirit of resignation in your imitation of the Mother of Sorrows.

4. You are aching to tell a bit of news. Wait an hour; it will keep.

5. Are you in a bad humor? Laugh if possible.

6. When you hear the clock strike, repeat the indulgenced prayers, "Divine Heart of Jesus, convert sinners, save the dying and release souls from purgatory."

7. Have you received a letter? Wait a while before reading it.

8. Do you wish to avoid certain persons? Say a little prayer and put yourself in the way to meet them. God goes before you.

9. Do good to the souls of others by a kind word of encouragement, or a prayer softly breathed.

10. Should you feel inclined to make uncharitable remarks, let your words instead be kind and considerate.

11. You are tempted to eat or drink between meals. Abstain in honor of your mortified Savior.

12. It does not please you to go to a certain place. Go for that reason.

13. You are impelled to speak and act while excited. Wait: let the storm pass.

14. Attend Benediction whenever you can. God's blessing should not be slighted.

15. Make the Stations when you can.

16. Perhaps you are tempted to criticize your neighbor. Say to him, or her, only what is good, or be silent.

17. Are you tempted to anger? Conquer yourself for the love of your meek and gentle Savior.

18. When you have time to spare, go before the Blessed Sacrament and make the holy hour.

19. You are inclined to say your prayers hurriedly. Take time; prolong them.

20. Everything tries and irritates you. Bear all through love.

21. Offer an extra Holy Communion for those who are dear to you.

22. Somebody possesses the happy faculty of irritating you. Keep cool.

23. Bear with the failings of others if you wish Jesus to be patient with you.

24. Is there opportunity for some slight revenge or sharp word? Show yourself polite and obliging.

25. You would like to eat a fruit or taste a dainty. Refrain: Jesus asks this of you.

26. You are disposed to complain when you suffer. Thank Jesus for granting you a splinter of His Cross and endure silently.

27. Are you worried about a loved one? Trust the dear Sacred Heart and all will be well.

28. Often make the Sign of the Cross and use holy water. Give the indulgence to the souls in Purgatory.

29. Present a bouquet of flowers to your sweet Jesus: ten mortifications daily.

30. Hide the faults of others and Our dear Lord will hide yours.

31. Let no day pass without saying a decade of the Rosary for the conversion of Sinners.

32. Have your feelings been injured? Offer the mortification to the Mother of Sorrows.

33. If you feel inclined to brood over past sorrows, call to mind the many graces for which you should be grateful.

34. Win a sweet smile from Jesus by a daily visit to the Blessed Sacrament. Pray for sinners.

35. Practice self-forgetfulness and consider the interests of others.

36. Frequently during the day make a Spiritual Communion - say often: "My God I love Thee and desire to receive Thee into my poor heart."

37. Say a decade of the Rosary for the sick, those in affliction, and for the aching hearts throughout the world.

38. You wish to do something simply because it pleases you. Omit it and give the merit to the souls in Purgatory.

39. Confide to God alone your anxieties, your discouragements regarding your dear ones. Ask Jesus what do do and say.

40. Try to cultivate devotion to Our Lord's Passion. This will give comfort in the sorrows that must come to all.

President Bush and Pope Benedict XVI

"I was talking to a very smart, loving man,...I was in awe, and it was a moving experience."...President George W. Bush

A Letter to Father Ragheed From His Muslim Friend

H/T to Ma Beck who once again has posted a few articles regarding this young priest. Thank you Ma for bringing his story to our attention.

The following is an excerpt from the very moving letter:

"In fact, you returned to Iraq, not only to share the suffering and destiny of your people but also to join your blood to the blood of thousands of Iraqis killed each day. I will never forget the day of your ordination [Oct. 13, 2001] in the [Pontifical] Urbanian University … with tears in your eyes, you told me: "Today, I have died to self" … a hard thing to say..."

The entire letter can be found HERE

Update: Dominican Nuns in Union City, NJ

My thanks to Melanie for keeping us updated on the nuns. They are in continued need of our prayers.

Dear Esther, you may post this in your blog if choose to do so.

Occasional updates have come to you from me, about the community of five Dominican Nuns enclosed in the Monastery of the Perpetual Rosary, in Union City, New Jersey. When my first attempt at contact happened a couple of months ago, I
found that of the five surviving nuns, the Mother Prioress was confined to bed in a nursing care facility outside of the monastery; one sister needed to be hospitalized for inpatient chemotherapy; and the oldest of the nuns was confined to her cell and had to have even her meals carried to her.

Only two Dominican nuns, including the sub-prioress, reported to the monastery refectory for meals every day. In May (last month), my decision to stop in at the monastery during weekday hours proved successful. With only a handful of women, none of the nuns can act as the portress during office hours; instead, when the monastery opens its gift shop, which helps the community to support itself, Sonia, the genial layperson who staffs the shop, does what a monastery portress would
do, answering the doorbell. So Sonia answered my ring, spoke to me at some
length, and then went to the enclosure to tell the nuns that they had an unplanned visitor. The Sub-Prioress, working in the laundry room, stopped what she was doing, and met me in the small parlor which has no grill, for a few minutes, while I asked after the health and well-being of the nuns and after the future of their endangered community.

I must tell you that the Union City Monastery, familiarly known as the Blue Chapel, left an extraordinary impression on me, even though I was there for less than two hours. This is not a dying house. Perhaps its community must be uprooted, transplanted in another location, and absorbed into another Second Order cloister. Nevertheless, over seventy-five years of perpetual prayer in this building, have built up a sort of invisible architecture, a structure of prayer, and this place has got power. The combination of force with deep serenity and peace is nearly unique in my experience.

So, in early June, here is the latest:
Mother Prioress remains in nursing care, in stable condition.

The oldest of her nuns, her health improved, now uses a walker to go from her cell to prayer and worship -- and to meals in the refectory, no more trays to her room.

The sub-prioress and the youngest of the women had a very happy experience
in the last two weeks. They welcomed back to the enclosure, Sister Charlotte who spent a good four weeks in hospital, and was discharged at the conclusion of her inpatient treatment.

In fact it is Sr. Charlotte who took my phone call early this evening -- you would never know from the sound of her deep, steady, musical, vibrant voice that she has been through a major health crisis. Now that there are once again a grand total of four Dominican nuns in the same enclosure, the Sub-Prioress can get away from the telephone and out of the laundry room, and go to prayer more often than before. And now they are four at table for meals every day.

God is merciful!

Please keep the future of this community as a prayer intention. Yours in Christ, Melanie T. on the East Coast US

Message to Supermodel: It Is Not Impossible

If you recall a previous post and article, Brazilian supermodel Giselle said "No one is a virgin when they get married". However, her compatriot Brazilian Futbol star Kaka countered her contention by proving it is possible:

Milan, Jun. 7, 2007 (CWNews.com) - A Brazilian soccer star has contradicted a public statement by supermodel Gisele Bundchen, announcing that he and his wife were virgins when they married.

In an interview for the Italian edition of Vanity Fair, the soccer idol known by the single name Kaka said that he and his wife Caroline had waited until they were married, and "that time was important, as it tested our love."

ARTICLE

Feast of Corpus Christi

"Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you.

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day.

For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him".

John 6:53-56