Friday, March 22, 2013

Traditional Feast of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary.


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Shared by Mary Jane:


In Honor of the Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Most holy and afflicted Virgin, Queen of Martyrs, you stood
beneath the cross, witnessing the agony of your dying Son.
Look with a mother's tenderness and pity on me, who kneel
before you. I venerate your sorrows and I place my requests
with filial confidence in the sanctuary of your wounded heart.

Present them, I beseech you, on my behalf to Jesus Christ,
through the merits of His own most sacred passion and death,
together with your sufferings at the foot of the cross. Through
the united efficacy of both, obtain the granting of my petition.
To whom shall I have recourse in my wants and miseries if not
to you, Mother of Mercy? You have drunk so deeply of the
chalice of your Son, you can compassionate our sorrows.

Holy Mother, your soul was pierced by a sword of sorrow at
the sight of the passion of your divine Son. Intercede for me
and obtain for me from our Lord {mention your petition}, if
it be for His honor and glory, and for my good. Amen.

LET US PRAY
Pour forth, we beseech Thee, O Lord, Thy grace into our
hearts; that, we to whom the Incarnation of Christ, Thy
Son, was made known by the message of an Angel, may by
His Passion and Cross, be brought to the glory of His
Resurrection. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.


Litany of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows

Lord, have mercy on us
Christ have mercy on us
Lord have mercy on us
Christ hear us
Christ graciously hear us

God, the Father of heaven
Have mercy on us
God the Son, Redeemer of the world
Have mercy on us
God the Holy Ghost
Have mercy on us

Holy Mary, Mother of God pray for us
Holy Virgin of virgins pray for us
Mother of the Crucified pray for us
Sorrowful Mother pray for us
Mournful Mother pray for us

Sighing Mother pray for us
Afflicted Mother pray for us
Forsaken Mother pray for us
Desolate Mother pray for us
Mother most sad pray for us

Mother set around with anguish pray for us
Mother overwhelmed by grief pray for us
Mother transfixed by a sword pray for us
Mother crucified in thy heart pray for us
Mother bereaved of thy Son pray for us

Sighing Dove pray for us
Mother of Dolors pray for us
Fount of tears pray for us
Sea of bitterness pray for us
Field of tribulation pray for us

Mass of suffering pray for us
Mirror of patience pray for us
Rock of constancy pray for us
Remedy in perplexity pray for us
Joy of the afflicted pray for us

Ark of the desolate pray for us
Refuge of the abandoned pray for us
Shield of the oppressed pray for us
Conqueror of the incredulous pray for us
Solace of the wretched pray for us

Medicine of the sick pray for us
Help of the faint pray for us
Strength of the weak pray for us
Protectress of those who fight pray for us
Haven of the shipwrecked pray for us

Calmer of tempests pray for us
Companion of the sorrowful pray for us
Retreat of those who groan pray for us
Terror of the treacherous pray for us
Standard-bearer of the Martyrs pray for us

Treasure of the Faithful pray for us
Light of Confessors pray for us
Pearl of Virgins pray for us
Comfort of Widows pray for us
Joy of all Saints pray for us

Queen of thy Servants pray for us
Holy Mary, who alone art unexampled pray for us.

Pray for us, most Sorrowful Virgin That we may be made
worthy of the promises of Christ

O God, in whose Passion, according to the prophecy of
Simeon, a sword of grief pierced through the most sweet
soul of Thy glorious Blessed Virgin Mother Mary, grant
that we, who celebrate the memory of her Seven Sorrows,
may obtain the happy effect of Thy Passion, Who lives
and reigns world without end. Amen

Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Pope Francis' Installation Mass 2013/03/19

For those of you who may have missed this beautiful inaugural Mass of our Holy Father Pope Franics.

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Feast of St. Joseph, Husband of Mary

Saints Peter and Paul Church, Honolulu
Happy Feast Day of our most loving, dearest and most silent of saints!  The following is a meditation on the death of St. Joseph which is fitting for this day.

The Death of St. Joseph

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Death of St. Joseph -
True Sense of Values
Tradition

1. Joseph, his face bathed in sweat, smiling feebly at Jesus and Mary.

2.  The grace, my Jesus, to live by the sens of values I will have on my deathbed.

"As Jesus grew near to His thirtieth year, St. Joseph become very sick.  Mary did everything she could to make him feel comfortable.  She prepared a soft mat on which he could lie.  She cooked the light brothers that he could keep in his stomach.  And for hours she sat down beside him, whether he was awake or asleep.  She smiled and talked when he wanted to talk; and when he was weary, she was silent.  Jesus, too, took time out from His work to keep him company.  He helped Joseph recite some of the Psalms he love so much.  And when the end came, Jesus and Mary were both at his side, comforting, praying.  In the Heart of Joseph there was nothing but peace.  His work was ended now.  He smiled his appreciation to Jesus and Mary.  With a willing heart he closed his eyes and surrendered his soul to God.

Dear St. Joseph, no wonder Our Holy Mother Church has named you the patron of a  happy death!  You died in the arms of Jesus and Mary, surrounded by their loving care and affection.  And you died with your work accomplished!  Doing His Will had been hard at times, the reasons for it so often difficult to see. But you did His Will.  And what peace it gave you at death!

Dear St. Joseph, how clearly we see life when we are about to leave it!  At that time all riches and honors seem empty.  Sin and neglect loom up as the horrible things they really are.  And faithfulness to duty, struggle against temptations, the effort to do God's Will - what shining jewels, what true values are they!  If only I could live my life in the light of the vision at the time of you death!  This was how you lived, St. Joseph!  Pray for me.  Help me to picture my deathbed each day, and then live by that sense of values all day long - a man of good will.

Source:  My Meditation on the Gospel by the Confraternity of the Precious Blood.

Saint Joseph, Patron of the universal Church

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