Picture from Joyce Images and used with permission.The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments has transferred the celebration of the Solemnity of St. Joseph to March 15, since the traditional date of observance—March 19—coincides with Wednesday of Holy Week.ARTICLE
Do you find yourself threatening, repeating your instructions, or raising your voice in an attempt to get your children to obey? Are you frustrated because nothing seems to work? It could be that faulty child-training methods have snared your line of thinking.
A quick bribe or mild threat looks appealing to a parent’s appetite for gaining control of a child, especially in a hurried situation. So, we take the bait -- hook, line, and sinker. It’s not until later that we realize we’re caught in a tangled net of ineffective parenting.
We must remember that our goal is not merely to get children to outwardly obey, but to reach their hearts with the gospel of Christ. When we adopt faulty child-training methods that aim for behavior modification only, we miss the issues of the heart and the point of biblical discipline. Here are a few pitfalls that we must guard against:
"In order to avoid irreverence and imperfections in the house of God, in church - which the divine Master calls the house of prayer - I exhort you in the Lord to practice the following.
- Enter the church in silence and with great respect, considering yourself unworthy to appear before the Lord's Majesty.
- Amongst other pious considerations, remember that our soul is the temple of God and, as such, we must keep it pure and spotless before God and his angels.
: Let us blush for having given access to the devil and his snares many times (with his enticements to the world, his pomp, his calling to the flesh) by not being able to keep our hearts pure and our bodies chaste; for having allowed our enemies to insinuate themselves into our hearts, thus desecrating the temple of God which we became through holy Baptism.
- Then take holy water and make the sign of the cross carefully and slowly.
- As soon as you are before God in the Blessed Sacrament, devoutly genuflect.
- Once you have found your place, kneel down and render the tribute of your presence and devotion to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.
- Confide all your needs to him along with those of others. Speak to him with filial abandonment, give free rein to your heart and give him complete freedom to work in you as he thinks best.
- When assisting at Holy Mass and the sacred functions, be very composed when standing up, kneeling down, and sitting, and carry out every religious act with the greatest devotion.
- Be modest in your glances; don't turn your head here and there to see who enters and leaves.
- Don't laugh, out of reverence for this holy place and also out of respect for those who are near you.
- Try not to speak to anybody, except when charity or strict necessity requests this.
- If you pray with others, say the words of the prayer distinctly, observe the pauses well and never hurry.
- In short, behave in such a way that all present are edified by it and, through you, are urged to glorify and love the heavenly Father.
- On leaving the church, you should be recollected and calm. Firstly take your leave of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament; ask his forgiveness for the shortcomings committed in his divine presence and do not leave him without asking for and having received his paternal blessing.
- Once you are outside the church, be as every follower of the Nazarene should be. Above all, be extremely modest in everything, as this is the virtue which, more than any other, reveals the affections of the heart.
: Nothing represents an object more faithfully or clearly than a mirror. In the same way, nothing more widely represents the good or bad qualities of a soul than the greater or lesser regulation of the exterior, as when one appears more or less modest.
: You must be modest in speech, modest in laughter, modest in your bearing, modest in walking. All this must be practiced, not out of vanity in order to display one's self, nor out of hypocrisy in order to appear to be good to the eyes of others, but rather, for the internal virtue of modesty, which regulates the external workings of the body.
- Therefore, be:
:humble of heart,
:circumspect in words,
:prudent in your resolutions.
:Always be sparing in your speech,
:assiduous in good reading,
:attentive in your work,
:modest in your conversation.
- Don't be disgusting to anybody but be benevolent towards all and respectful towards your elders.
- May any sinister glance be far from you, may no daring word escape your lips, may you never carry out any immodest or somewhat free action; never a rather free action or a petulant tone of voice.
- In short let your whole exterior be a vivid image of the composure of your soul.
- Always keep the modesty of the divine Master before your eyes, as an example;
: this Master who, according to the words of the Apostle to the Corinthians, placing the modesty of Jesus Christ on an equal footing with meekness, which was his one particular virtue and almost his characteristic: "Now I Paul myself beseech you, by the mildness and modesty of Christ" [Douay-Rheims, 2 Cor. 10:1], and according to such a perfect model reform all your external operations, which should be faithful reflections revealing the affections of your interior.
- Never forget this divine model, Annita.
- Try to see a certain lovable majesty in his presence, a certain pleasant authority in his manner of speaking, a certain pleasant dignity in walking, in contemplating, speaking, conversing; a certain sweet serenity of face. Imagine that extremely composed and sweet expression with which he drew the crowds, making them leave cities and castles, leading them to the mountains, the forests, to the solitude and deserted beaches of the sea, totally forgetting food, drink and their domestic duties.
- Thus let us try to imitate, as far as we possibly can, such modest and dignified actions. And let us do our utmost to be, as far as possible, similar to him on this earth, in order that we might be more perfect and more similar to him for the whole of eternity in the heavenly Jerusalem."
From Producer Stephen McEveety (The Passion of the Christ) comes an amazing documentary on the Star of Bethlehem. This presentation has been viewed by tens of thousands in the U.S. and in Europe and this new DVD reveals the evidence for God's existence as seen in the stars above. Presenter Rick Larson walks you through biblical and historical clues revealing the eternal significance of this celestial event as well as the vastness of God's creativity. Discover the secret of the Star...a secret of magnificent beauty.I was happy to hear that now in the works for Mr. McEveety is a movie based on Immaculee Ilibagiza's autobiography Left to Tell.
The feast of the Chair of Saint Peter commemorates the teaching authority - the Magisterium - of the Vicar of Christ who occupies the thrne of saint Peter. The Catechism teaches that "it is the Magisterium's task to preserve God's people from deviations and defections and to guarantee them the objective possibility of professing the true faith without error' so that "the People of God abides in the truth that liberated" (CCC 890).
The exercise of the authority of the Chair of Peter gives rise to the unity that distinguishes the Church. It provides clarity and security in our serach for meaning. "How blessed is the Church of Rome, on which the Apostles poured forth all their doctrine along with their blood!" (Tertullian)
"The Chair represents (the pope's) mission as guide of the entire People of God. Celebrating the 'Chair' of Peter means attributing a strong spiritual significance to it and recognizing it as a privileged sign of the love of God the eternal Good Shepherd, who wanted to gather his whole Church and lead her on the path of salvation." (Pope Benedict XVI).
Guido Reni (November 4, 1575 – August 18, 1642) was a prominent Italian painter of high-Baroque style.- Wikipedia.
"Consider that Jesus suffered, even from the first moment of his life, and all for the love of us. During the whole of his life he had no other object in view, after the glory of God, than our salvation. He as the Son of God, had no need to suffer in order to deserve Paradise; but whatever he suffered of pain, of poverty, of ignominy, he applied it all towards meriting for us eternal salvation.NAS Letter February 2007
"The mere listing of Jesus' sufferings in His Passion seems to exhaust the possibilities of human misfortune. In such agony that He:from a sorrowful mystery mediation by Fr. Patrick Peyton. The Crucifixion.
1. sweated blood;
2. was betrayed;
3. was denied;
4. was deserted;
5. was arrested;
6. was falsely accused;
7. condemned unjustly;
8. blindfolded;
9. spat upon;
10. beaten;
11. ridiculed by Herod;
12. scourged by Pilate;
13. crowned with thorns;
14. loaded with the cross;
15. then nailed to it;
16. enduring utter dereliction of soul in the midst of a terrible thirst;
17. even after death, His side was torn with a lance.
"...They proclaimed: 'Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest.'We also have the passage in John 11:32:35 when Lazarus dies:
Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to him, 'Teacher, rebuke your disciples.'
He said in reply, 'I tell you, if they keep silent, the stones will cry out!'
As he drew near, he saw the city and wept over it, saying, 'If this day you only knew what makes for peace--but now it is hidden from your eyes'..."
When Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died."My poor Jesus, you shed your precious tears while you walked the earth and now you continue to weep for all the pains we cause you by our sins. May I in my small and meager ways try to relieve your sufferings daily by little sacrifices of self-denial.
When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who had come with her weeping, he became perturbed and deeply troubled, and said, 'Where have you laid him?' They said to him, 'Sir, come and see.'
And Jesus wept.
1. For thy salvation, God the Father sends His beloved Son down from heaven.
2. For thy salvation the Holy Spirit changes bread and wine into the true body and blood of Christ.
3. For thy sake the Son of God comes down from heaven and conceals Himself under the form of the sacred host.
4. He even abases Himself to such an extent as to be present in the minutest particle of the sacred host.
5. For thy salvation He renews the saving mystery of the incarnation.
6. For thy salvation He is born anew into the world in a mystic manner whenever holy Mass is celebrated.
7. For thy salvation He performs upon the altar the same acts of worship that He performed when on earth.
8. For thy salvation He renews His bitter passion in order that thou mayest participate in it.
9. For thy salvation He mystically renews His death, and sacrifices for Thee His precious life.
10. For thy salvation He sheds His blood in a mystic manner, and offers it up for thee to the Divine Majesty.
11. With this precious blood He sprinkles thy soul and purifies it from every stain.
12. For thee Christ offers Himself as a true burnt offering, and renders to the Godhead the supreme honor, which is its due.
13. By offering this act of worship to God thou dost make reparation for the glory, which thou hast failed to give Him.
14. For thee Christ offers Himself to God as a sacrifice of praise, thus atoning for thy omissions in praising His holy name.
15. By offering to God this oblation, which Christ offers thou givest Him greater praise than do the holy angels.
16. For thee Christ offers Himself as a perfect sacrifice of thanksgiving, making compensation for all failures on thy part to render thanks.
17. By offering to God Christ's act of thanksgiving thou dost make ample acknowledgment of all the benefits He had bestowed on thee.
18. For thee Christ offers Himself as the all-powerful victim, reconciling thee to the God Whom thou hast offended.
19. He pardons thee all thy venial sins, provided thou art firmly resolved to forsake them.
20. He also makes reparation for many of thy sins of omission, when thou didst leave undone the good thou mightest have done.
21. He removes many of the imperfections attached to thy good deeds.
22. He forgives thee the sins, unknown or forgotten, which thou hast never mentioned in confession.
23. He offers Himself as a victim to make satisfaction for a part at least of thy debts and transgressions.
24. Each time thou hearest Mass thou canst do more to pay the penalty due to thy sins than by the severest work of penance.
25. Christ places to thy credit a portion of His merits, which thou mayest offer to God the Father in expiation of thy offenses.
26. For thee Christ offers Himself as the most efficacious peace offering, interceding for thee as earnestly as He interceded for His enemies on the cross.
27. His precious blood pleads for thee in words as countless as the drops, which issued from His sacred veins.
28. Each of the adorable wounds His sacred body bore is a voice calling aloud for mercy for thee.
29. For the sake of this propitiatory victim the petitions proffered during Mass will be granted far sooner than those that are proffered at other times.
30. Never canst thou pray so well as whilst present at Mass.
31. This is so because Christ unites His prayers to thine, and offers them to His heavenly Father.
32. He aquaints Him with thy needs and the dangers to which thou art exposed, and makes thy eternal salvation His particular concern.
33. The angels also, who are present, plead for thee, and present thy poor prayers before the throne of God.
34. On thy behalf the priest says Mass by virtue of which the evil enemy will not be suffered to approach thee.
35. For thee and for thy everlasting salvation he says Mass, and offers that holy sacrifice to God Almighty.
36. When thou hearest Mass, thou art thyself in spirit a priest, empowered by Christ to offer the Mass both for thyself and others.
37. By offering this holy sacrifice thou dost present to the Blessed Trinity the most acceptable of all oblations.
38. Thou dost offer an oblation precious indeed, of greater value than all things in heaven and earth.
39. Thou dost offer an oblation precious indeed, for it is none other than God himself.
40. By this sacrifice thou dost honor God, as He alone is worthy to be honored.
41. By this sacrifice thou dost give infinite satisfaction to the most Holy Trinity.
42. Thou mayest present this glorious oblation as thine own gift, for Christ Himself gave it unto thee.
43. When thou hearest Mass aright, thou dost perform an act of highest worship.
44. By hearing Mass thou dost pay the most profound reverence, the most loyal homage, to the sacred humanity of Our Lord.
45. It is the best means whereby to venerate the passion of Christ, and obtain a share in its fruits.
46. It is also the best means of venerating the Blessed Mother of God, and increasing her joy.
47. By hearing Mass thou canst give greater honor to the angels and saints than by reciting many prayers.
48. By hearing Mass devoutly thou canst also enrich thy soul more than by aught else in the world.
49. For in this act thou dost perform a good work of the highest value.
50. It is a signal exercise of pure faith, which will receive a great reward.
51. When thou dost bow down before the sacred host and the sacred chalice, thou dost perform a supreme act of adoration.
52. For each time thou dost gaze reverently upon the sacred host thou wilt receive recompense from heaven.
53. Each time thou dost smite thy breast with compunction some of thy sins are remitted to thee.
54. If thou hearest Mass in a state of mortal sin, God offers thee the grace of conversion.
55. If thou hearest Mass in a state of grace, God gives thee an augmentation of grace.
56. In holy Mass thou dost spiritually eat the flesh of Christ, and drink His blood.
57. Thou art privileged to behold with thine eyes Christ hidden under the sacramental veil, and to be beheld by Him.
58. Thou dost receive the priest's benediction, which is confirmed by Christ in heaven.
59. Through thy diligence in hearing Mass thou wilt also obtain corporal and temporal blessings.
60. Furthermore, thou wilt be preserved from many misfortunes that would otherwise befall thee.
61. Thou wilt also be strengthened against temptations which would otherwise have vanquished thee.
62. Holy Mass will also be to thee a means of obtaining the grace of a holy death.
63. The love thou hast shown for Holy Mass wilt secure for thee the special succor of angels and saints in thy last moments.
64. The remembrance of the Masses heard in thy lifetime will be a sweet solace to thee in the hour of death, and inspire thee with confidence in the divine mercy.
65. They will not be forgotten when thou dost stand before the strict Judge and will incline Him to show thee favor.
66. Thou needest not fear a long and terrible purgatory if thou hast already to a great extent atoned for thy sins by frequently assisting at Holy Mass.
67. One Mass devoutly heard will do more to mitigate the pains of purgatory than any act of penance, however difficult of performance.
68. One Mass in thy lifetime will be of greater service to thee than many said for thee after death.
69. Thou wilt attain a high place in heaven, which will be thine to all eternity.
70. Thy felicity in Heaven will, moreover, be increased by every Mass thou hearest on earth.
71. No prayers offered for thy friends will be as efficacious as a single Mass heard and offered on their behalf.
72. Thou canst amply recompense all thy benefactors by hearing Mass for their intention.
73. The best help, the greatest consolation, thou canst afford the afflicted, the sick, the dying, is to hear Mass for them.
74. By this same means thou canst even obtain for sinners the grace of conversion.
75. Thou canst also earn for all faithful Christians saving and salutary graces.
76. For the suffering souls in purgatory thou canst procure abundant refreshment.
77. And if it is not within thy power to have Mass said for thy departed friends thou canst by devout assistance at the holy sacrifice release them from the tormenting flames.
1. Faith is the ability to not panic.
2. If you worry, you didn't pray. If you prayed, don't worry.
3. As a child of God, prayer is kinda like calling home every day.
4. Blessed are the flexible, for they shall not be bent out of shape.
5. When we get tangled up in our problems, be still. God wants us to be still so He can untangle the knot.
6. Do the math. Count your blessings.
7. God wants spiritual fruit, not religious nuts.
8. Dear God: I have a problem. It's me.
9. Silence is often misinterpreted, but never misquoted.
10. Laugh every day - it's like inner jogging.
11. The most important things in your home are the people.
12. Growing old is inevitable, growing up is optional. (Preach it!)
13. There is no key to happiness. The door is always open. Come on in.
14. A grudge is a heavy thing to carry.
15. He who dies with the most toys is still dead.
16. We do not remember days but moments. Life moves too fast so enjoy your precious moments.
17. Nothing is real to you until you experience it; otherwise it's just hearsay.
18. It's all right to sit on your pity pot every now and again. Just be sure to flush when you are done.
19. Surviving and living your life successfully requires courage. The goals and dreams You're seeking require courage and risk-taking. Learn from the turtle, it only makes Progress when it sticks out its neck.
20. Be more concerned with your character than your reputation. Your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are. No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting. Leave gentle fingerprints on the soul of another for the angels to read I don't want to get to the end of my life and find that I lived just the length of it. I want to have lived the width of it as well.
"Jesus is with us always in the Blessed Sacrament. Let us make sure that we recognize Him and love Him before it is too late. Daily say the Rosary and if possible attend daily Mass and receive Christ in Holy Communion."From the NAS (Nocturnal Adoration Society) Letter January 2008
I. I, the Lord, am your God. You shall not have other gods besides Me.For the rest of the 10 Commandments, please visit Sue's blog.
Have I:
1. Remembered to love and adore God each day?
2. Prayed my morning prayers, evening prayers and other prayers of the day with attention and devotion?
3. Studied my religion?
4. Prayed for the suffering souls in Purgatory?
5. Been devoted to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the angels and saints and tried to honor them?
6. Observed Friday as a day of penance?
7. Tried to bring others closer to Jesus by my words and example?
Some Traditional priests who are not in full communion with Rome admonish their congregations not to attend Novus Ordo Masses (NOM) “because NOM is evil.” They preach that, if no Traditional Latin Mass (TLM) is available on a given Sunday, those in their congregations should substitute a rosary for Mass attendance...My goodness! Imagine, substituting praying the Holy Rosary for the Sacrifice of the Mass...the Sacrifice at Calvary!!.
...But let’s get down to basics. What is essential (that is “due”) to a proper liturgy of Mass? It must allow the priest to accomplish just two priestly functions: renew Christ’s Sacrifice on Calvary; and confect the Sacrament of Holy Communion. Period -- Close the book (as Fr. Wolfe, FSSP, says). Those two functions are proper and necessary to the “substance” (in Thomistic terminology) of the Mass; all other elements are devotional “accidents.” Actually, in unusual circumstances (like in unlit dungeons Note: emphasis added by me), priests have said valid Masses with little more liturgy than the words of Consecration. Would anyone dare call such a Mass evil?...The imagery of the Holy Mass being celebrated in a dark dungeon reminds me of how Vietnamese Cardinal Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan was forced to celebrate Holy Mass. He was imprisoned by the Communists. He would celebrate with a tiny piece of bread and a drop of wine on the palm of his hand. That was the way he celebrated the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass...on the palm of his hand. I can't imagine that being considered invalid or worse, evil.
