Solemnity - Nativity of St. John the Baptist

O glorious Saint John the Baptist, greatest prophet among those born of woman (Luke 7, 28), although thou wast sanctified in thy mother's womb and didst lead a most innocent life, nevertheless it was thy will to retire into the wilderness, there to devote thyself to the practice of austerity and penance; obtain for us of thy Lord the grace to be wholly detached, at least in our hearts, from earthly goods, and to practice Christian mortification with interior recollection and with the spirit of holy prayer.

Prayer source Sue

Solemnity of All Saints

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy
Catholic Church, the Communion of Saints

Picture source Michael Journal

Ascension Thursday

Even though here in Hawaii we will be celebrating this Solemnity on Sunday, Fr. Dave did celebrate the Mass for Ascension Thursday today.

Solemnity - Feast of the Annunciation

The Annunciation by Philippe de Champaigne

IMMACULATE MARY AND BERNADETTE SOUBIROUS

150 Years after the Definition and Lourdes Apparitions
Brother John M. Samaha, S.M. and used with permission.

In these months we are honoring two special vocations in God’s plan of salvation -- the immaculately conceived Virgin Mary and one of her special proteges, Bernadette Soubirous.

The solemnity of Mary’s Immaculate Conception is celebrated on December 8, and honors the conception of Mary in the womb of her mother, St. Anne, without original sin. February 11 is the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, the date of the first appearance of Our Lady to Bernadette. April 16 is the feast day of St. Bernadette.

In 2008 we celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Blessed Virgin’s apparitions at Lourdes, where she identified herself to St. Bernadette as the Immaculate Conception. In 2004 we observed the 150th anniversary of Blessed Pope Pius IX’s solemn definition of this dogma on December 8, 1854. Blessed Pius IX explained that Mary was preserved from original sin by a “singular grace and privilege” given her by God “in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, “ Redeemer of the human race. Mary, like every other human being, needed the redemptive benefits of Christ. But in anticipation of what God did for all through Christ, she alone was preserved from original sin “from the first moment of her conception.” As one writer asserted, hers was a “redemption by exemption.” By her Immaculate Conception she was conceived in the fullness of grace, in the state of closest possible union with God in view of her future role as the Mother of the Redeemer.

The feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary was celebrated already in the seventh century in Palestine as the Conception by St. Anne of the Theotokos (Mother of God) on December 9. The doctrine is understood differently by some Eastern Christian Churches because of a variance in their theological understanding of original sin. The observance spread West from Constantinople. Still called the Conception of St. Anne and observed on December 8, it was prominent in Naples in the ninth century; in English monasteries in the eleventh century, when it was called the feast of the conception of Our Lady; and in France in the twelfth century.

When the feast was introduced in France, St. Bernard of Clairvaux opposed it, igniting a controversy that endured for three centuries. Most Scholastic theologians, including St. Anselm of Canterbury, St. Albert the Great, St. Thomas Aquinas, and St. Bonaventure opposed the doctrine on the grounds that it detracted from the universality of the redemption by Christ. But it was defended and explained with theological clarity in the thirteenth century by Blessed John Duns Scotus, a Franciscan. In 1263 the Franciscans adopted the feast.

The opponents of this feast and doctrine had argued that Mary had to be touched by original sin for at least an instant, even though she was sanctified in her mother’s womb. John Duns Scotus resolved these objections by explaining that Christ can save and redeem in two ways: he can rescue from sin those already fallen; or he can preserve one from being touched by sin even for an instant. Mary was granted “redemption by exemption.”

The Council of Basel in 1439 affirmed this belief. Ten years later the Sorbonne in Paris required all its degree candidates to pledge an oath to defend the Immaculate Conception of Mary. Pope Sixtus IV in 1476 approved the feast with its proper Mass and Office, and in 1708 Pope Clement IX extended the feast to the universal Church and made it a holyday of obligation.

Later the Council of Trent (1545-1563) explicitly declared that Mary was exempt from the taint of original sin. From then on the belief was embraced generally and defended by all schools of theology. Many Catholic thinkers and founders of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries promoted and expounded Mary’s Immaculate Conception with special interest and verve, and this doctrine became an important part of many Marian spiritualities. One such exponent was Blessed William Joseph Chaminade (1761-1850), founder of the Marianist Family.

At the First Council of Baltimore in 1846 the Catholic bishops of the United States of America chose Mary under the title of her Immaculate Conception as the patron saint of the nation. This deepened interest in the vast new country.

The apparition of Mary Immaculate to St. Catherine Laboure in 1830 at Paris had also advanced this devotion. At that time Mary asked the young nun to produce the Miraculous Medal, which honored the Immaculate Conception. And the solemn definition in 1854 was the culmination of this development. Like an additional seal of approval on the definition four years later Mary appeared to the uneducated and sickly youngster, St. Bernadette Soubirous, at Lourdes. When Bernadette asked the Virgin Mary on March 25, 1858, to identify herself, Mary replied, “I am the Immaculate Conception.”

In 1863 a new Mass and Office were composed for the feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. This feast is also celebrated as the
Conception of Mary by the Church of England. Among the Eastern Christian Churches the feast of the Conception by St. Anne of the Most Holy Theotokos continues to be observed on December 9. The date set for the feast is nine months before the Birth of Mary on September 8.

To celebrate the centenary of the definition of Mary’s Immaculate Conception, Pope Pius XII, a devout apostle of Mary, declared 1954 a Marian Year -- the first.
Now, 150 years later, we are privileged to mark the sesquicentennial of that solemn definition and its recognition by Mary Immaculate at Lourdes.

“O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to you.”

Happy New Year - Solemnity Mary, the Mother of God

Hau'oli Makahiki Hou Everyone!

Even though it is not a Holy Obligation in Hawaii, I know there will be many people at all our Masses to tomorrow in honor of our Blessed Mother.

We fly to thy patronage,
O holy Mother of God;
despise not our petitions in our necessities,
but deliver us always from all dangers,
O glorious and blessed Virgin. Amen.

from this Site

Mary, the Mother of God

Before this Solemnity is over, I wanted to share with you what Brother John, a Marianist brother, shared with me:

Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and Octave of Christmas

May we always profit from the prayers of the Virgin Mother Mary.
May her prayer, the gift of a mother's love, be our joy throughout this new year.

We proclaim the Virgin Mary to be the Mother of Christ and the Mother of the Church.

* * *

The birth of Christ is the source of life for the Christian people, and the birthday of the head is the birthday of the body.

--Pope St. Leo the Great

Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception

The Immaculate Conception with Saint Joachim and Saint Anne Circa 1638 - 1640, Francisco de Zurbarán

The Virgin Mary appears on a pedestal of cherubs' heads above a crescent moon, bathed in golden light. The figures below are her parents, Saints Joachim and Anne. The subject of the Immaculate Conception refers to the Virgin's own miraculous conception in her mother Anne's womb, not to the conception of Christ. It was a popular subject in Seville, but the inclusion of the Virgin's parents is unusual. Since Saints Joachim and Anna were particularly venerated by Carthusian monks this painting may have been made for a Carthusian monastery. There is, however, no other evidence to confirm this.

Source: The National Gallery of Art

The following is from St. Michael Center for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Please be sure to visit their site for more prayers, novenas, etc.

On December 8, the Catholic church celebrates the Solemnity of Immaculate Conception of Mary- the patronal feast of the United States. It is one of the few Holy days of obligation on the Church calendar -- that is, all Catholics are obligated to attend Mass on this day. As this feast occurs early in Advent, it is a perfect time to consider Mary and her important role in the celebration of Christmas.

The Immaculate Conception of Mary is a solemn dogma declared by Pope Pius IX in 1854 which proclaimed that Mary was conceived free from the stain of original sin. This privilege of Mary derives from God's having chosen her as Mother of the Savior; thus she received the benefits of salvation in Christ from the very moment of her conception. This great gift to Mary, an ordinary human being just like us, was fitting because she was destined to be Mother of God. The purity and holiness of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a model for all Christians.

"The most Blessed Virgin Mary was, from the first moment of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege of almighty God and by virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, Savior of the human race, preserved immune from all stain of original sin.”
-Pius IX, Ineffabilis Deus, 1854.

The Immaculate Conception Prayer

Prayer for a Holy Life

Virgin Immaculate,
Mother of God and my Mother,
from your throne in heaven
turn your merciful eyes upon me.
With full confidence in your goodness and power,
I beg you to help me in this journey of life,
which is strewn with dangers for my soul.

I entrust myself completely to you,
that I may never be the devil's slave through sin,
but may always live a humble and pure life.
I consecrate, my heart to you forever,
since my sole desire is to love your divine Son Jesus.
O Mary,
since none of your devoted servants has ever perished,
let me too attain salvation.

From New Saint Joseph People's Prayer Book, Catholic Book Publishing

Solemnity of Christ the King

Christ's reign will last until all his enemies are made subject to him - 1 Corinthians 15:25

The Lord says to my lord:
"Sit at my right hand,
till I make your enemies your footstool."
The Lord sends forth from Zion your mighty scepter.
Rule in the midst of your foes!
Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day you lead your host upon the holy mountains.
From the womb of the morning
like dew your youth will come to you.
The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind,
"You are a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek."
The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head.
Psalm 110: 1-5, 7 (RSV)

Source: Christ the King Sunday Prayers and New Saint Joseph People's Prayer Book, Catholic Book Publishing.

Solemnity of All Souls

We commemorate the feast of All Souls. Traditionally, the entire month of November is devoted to the Holy Souls in Purgatory. It is a wonderful opportunity to help them get into Heaven.

The following are some ways.

“INVOCATION

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord; and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.


FOR THE SOULS IN PURGATORY

My Jesus, by the sorrows Thou didst suffer in Thine agony in the Garden, in Thy scourging and crowning with thorns, in the way to Calvary, in Thy crucifixion and death, have mercy on the souls in purgatory, and especially on those that are most forsaken; do Thou deliver them from the dire torments they endure; call them and admit them to Thy most sweet embrace in paradise. Our Father, Hail Mary, Eternal rest, etc.


FOR ALL THE DECEASED

By Thy resurrection from the dead, O Christ, death no longer hath dominion over those who die in holiness. So, we beseech Thee, give rest to Thy servants in Thy sanctuary and in Abraham's bosom. Grant it to those, who from Adam until now have adored Thee with purity, to our fathers and brothers, to our kinsmen and friends, to all men who have lived by faith and passed on their road to Thee, by a thousand ways, and in all conditions, and make them worthy of the heavenly kingdom. Byzantine Liturgy


DE PROFUNDIS

The psalmist is crying out here from the depression that grips him because of his sense of sin. He tells God that no man could be forgiven should strict justice be demanded; but, since God is forgiving and merciful, the psalmist (Israel) will hope for redemption from iniquities. We, who know the mercy of God far better than the g Israelites, may pray this psalm with even greater trust in God. The Church uses this psalm in the liturgy as her official prayer for the souls in Purgatory. Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord; Lord, hear my, voice! Let Your ears be attentive to my voice in supplication: If You, O Lord, mark iniquities, Lord, who can stand? But with You is forgiveness, that You may be revered. I trust in the Lord; my soul trusts in His word. My soul waits for the Lord more than sentinels wait for the dawn. More than sentinels wait for the dawn, let Israel wait for the Lord, For with the Lord is kindness and with Him is plenteous redemption; And He will redeem Israel from all their iniquities. Psalm 130

Source: St. Michael's Center for the Blessed Virgin Mary where you can find more prayers.

Visiting a Cemetery

"An indulgence is granted the Christian faithful who devoutly visit a cemetery and pray, if only momentarily, for the dead. This indulgence is applicable only to the souls in purgatory. This indulgence is a plenary one from November 1 through November 8 and can be gained on each one of these days. One the other days of the year this indulgence is a partial one.

It is therefore, a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sin."

from the Pieta Prayer Book

Prayer of St. Gertrude the Great

Our Lord showed St. Gertrude the Great that the following prayer would release a vast number of souls from purgatory each time it is said.

Eternal Father, I offer Thee the most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the Holy Souls, In purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.

Solemnity - The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven Body and Soul

The Assumption completes God's work in her since it was not fitting that the flesh that had given life to God himself should ever undergo corruption. The feast is also God's crowning of His work as Mary ends her earthly life and enters eternity. The feast turns our eyes in that direction, where we will follow when our earthly life is over. The Assumption looks to eternity and gives us hope that we, too, will follow Our Lady when our life is ended

From St. Michael's Center for the Blessed Virgin Mary

"The Immaculate Mother of God, the ever-virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heaven."

- Pope Pius XII, Munificentissimus Deus

For more detailed information on this glorious feast day, be sure to visit Women for Faith and Family

Father Donald Calloway's Meditation on the Assumption

If you have ever read the Diary of St. Faustina Kowalska you know that she was deeply in love with the Blessed Virgin Mary. There were so many ways that St. Faustina expressed her love for the Virgin Mary; through praying the rosary, celebrating Mary’s privileges, titles and liturgical feasts, through Marian novenas and Marian consecrations, and by other various forms of Marian devotion.

One of the most interesting aspects of the Diary of St. Faustina is that she especially loved and wrote about the privileges of Mary’s Immaculate Conception and her Assumption. Concerning the Assumption, St. Faustina made four specific entries on the actual day of the Solemnity of the Assumption in the years 1934-1937. These entries can help us to grow in our love and devotion to Mary as we prepare to celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption.

Click HERE top read the rest of Fr. Calloway's meditation.

More on Divine Mercy

The 3 o'clock Prayer

You expired, O Jesus,
but the source of life gushed forth for souls
and an ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world.
O Fount of Life,
unfathomable Divine Mercy,
envelop the whole world
and empty Yourself out upon us.
O Blood and Water,
which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus
as a fount of mercy for us,
I trust in You.

Amen.

The following is from St. Michael's Center for the Blessed Virgin Mary Please visit their site for more details.

Canon Ignacy Rozycri, Doctor of Dogmatic Theology appointed by Pope John Paul II to examine the revelations to Blessed Faustina, came to the conclusion that the extraordinary grace promised by Jesus on the Feast of Mercy is a gift of grace equalled only by the grace of Holy Baptism. This means that on this day your soul can be renewed as on the day of baptism, so that if you died immediately after receiving this grace you would go straight to heaven with no purgatory to serve at all. (In other words, so far as that matter is concerned He raised it (the Holy Communion on the Feast of Mercy) to the rank of a "second Baptism". "The soul that will go to confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain complete forgiveness of sins and punishment" (II.138).

Jesus asked that the Feast of the Divine Mercy be preceded by a Novena to the Divine Mercy which would begin on Good Friday. He gave St. Faustina an intention to pray for on each day of the Novena, saving for the last day the most difficult intention of all, the lukewarm and indifferent of whom He said:

"These souls cause Me more suffering than any others; it was from such souls that My soul felt the most revulsion in the Garden of Olives. It was on their account that I said: 'My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass Me by.' The last hope of salvation for them is to flee to My Mercy."

In her diary, St. Faustina wrote that Jesus told her:

"On each day of the novena you will bring to My heart a different group of souls and you will immerse them in this ocean of My mercy ... On each day you will beg My Father, on the strength of My passion, for the graces for these souls."

Jesus Christ is Risen Today - Alleluia

Gefroh Family Rosary Picture Collection

A very happy and blessed Easter to all of you and your families.
Esther and Family

"Jesus Christ is risen today, Alleluia!
Our triumphant holy day, Alleluia!
Who did once upon the cross, Alleluia!
Suffer to redeem our loss. Alleluia!"

The following is from George Frederic Handel's

"MESSIAH"

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

for the Lord God Omnipotent reigneth.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

The kingdom of this world is become
the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and of His Christ;
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever

King of Kings,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
and Lord of Lords,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

King of Kings,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
and Lord of Lords,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

King of Kings,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!
and Lord of Lords,
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

King of Kings, and Lord of Lords,
and He shall reign for ever and ever
and He shall reign for ever and ever

King of Kings
for ever and ever. Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

and He shall reign for ever and ever,
for ever and ever,
King of Kings,
and Lord of Lords,
King of Kings,
and Lord of Lords,
and He shall reign for ever and ever,

King of Kings,
and Lord of Lords.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

The Feast of the Annunciation - Including a Pro-Life Novena

Picture from the Gefroh Family Collection of Rosary pictures.

Because this solemnity falls on a Sunday, it will be celebrated on Monday March 26th.

The following is from St. Michael Center for the Blessed Virgin Mary
H/T to Mary Ann S for the Novena.

Annunciation Prayer

O Holy Mary, Queen of Virgins, through the mystery of the Incarnation
of your beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, by which our salvation was so happily begun, obtain for us light to understandthe benefit He has bestowed on us vouchsafing to become our brother, and in giving us you, His own most beloved Mother, to be our Mother also. Amen.

The Angelus

The angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
And she conceived of the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary, ...

Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
Be it done unto me according to Thy word.
Hail Mary, ...

And the Word was made Flesh.
And dwelt among us.
Hail Mary, ...

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

Please join St. Stephens Respect Life Committee in praying a
Novena for Preborn Babies
beginning on Sunday, March 25th, the traditional Feast of the Annunciation, and
ending nine days later, on Monday, April 2nd.

The Prayer asking Our Lady of Guadalupe's intercession in protecting the preborn babies is attached. Please say it March 25th through April 2nd.

There is also a wealth of information AND an invitation to add names of preborn babies and their mothers to the American Life League's prayer intentions on their site… American Life League . Scroll down to the link
"Pray for preborn babies on Feast of the Annunciation."

Our Lady of Guadalupe, Mother of Life

O Mary,
Bright dawn of the new world,
Mother of the living,
To you do we entrust the cause of life:
Look down, O Mother,
Upon the vast numbers
Of babies not allowed to be born,
Of the poor whose lives are made difficult,
Of men and women
Who are victims of brutal violence,
Of the elderly and the sick killed
By indifference or out of misguided mercy.
Grant that all who believe in your Son
May proclaim the Gospel of life
With honesty and love
To the people of our time.
Obtain for them the grace
To accept that Gospel
As a gift ever new,
The joy of celebrating it with gratitude
Throughout their lives
And the courage to bear witness to it
Resolutely, in order to build,
Together with all people of good will,
The civilization of truth and love,
To the praise and glory of God,
The Creator and lover of life.
Amen.

The Presentation of the Lord - Candlemas

Artwork by Fra Angelico

Taken from the Gospel of the day:

Luke 2:22-40

“Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, which you prepared in the sight of all the peoples: a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and glory for your people Israel.”

Prayer

Our Lord and Master, may our eyes always see your salvation and be renewed in it day by day.
We hope in you who will bring to us the day of perfect union with your perfect love.
We ask this through you Son, Jesus, Our Salvation and Our Joy!
by Easter Almuena

In Hawaii, some churches continue the tradition of the blessings of the candles at the Mass.

It is customary to bring candles from home to be blessed -- at least 51% beeswax candles that one uses for devotional purposes (candles for the family altar, Advent candles, etc.) -- so they can be lit after dusk on All Saints' Day (1 November), during the Sacrament of Unction, and during storms and times of trouble. A bit of very old poetry summarizes the use of blessed candles to ward off troubles:

To learn more about this feast day of our Lord, please visit Fisheaters

Solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God

The following is from St. Michael's Center for the Blessed Virgin Mary

On January 1, the Church commemorates the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God- the greatest title of Mary. This feast in the oldest Marian feast of the church of Rome and it celebrates Mary's vocation to be the mother of Jesus Christ. Through Mary, Jesus Christ entered this world, taking on human flesh and a human soul. Jesus is true God and true man. In His person are united both a divine nature and a human nature. Mary is in every history with Jesus and by her intercession
we obtain all necessary graces to our life. Besides, being the Mother of God, Mary assumed the mother of all humanity working and helping all those who seek her. So when we look at the image of the Virgin Mary we felt an encouragement in our heart which fortifies our spirituality and comfort our soul. It is the fragrance of the immense and grandiose love.


Prayer for Mary, Mother of God

God our Father, may we always profit by the prayers of the Virgin Mother Mary, for you bring us life and salvation through Jesus Christ her Son who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.