From the writings of St. Margaret Mary Alocoque

“It seems to me that our Lord’s earnest desire to have His Sacred Heart honored in a special way is directed towards renewing the effects of redemption in our souls. For the Sacred Heart is an inex-haustible fountain and Its sole desire is to pour itself out into the hearts of the humble so as to free them and prepare them to lead lives according to His good pleasure. From this Divine Heart three streams flow endlessly. The first is the stream of mercy for sinners; It pours into their hearts sentiments of contrition and repentance. The second is the stream of charity which helps all in need and especially aids those seeking perfection to find the means of surmounting their difficulties. From the third stream flow love and light for the benefit of His friends who have attained perfection; these He wishes to unite to Himself so that they may share His knowledge and commandments and, in their individ-ual ways, devote themselves wholly to advancing His glory. This Divine Heart is an abyss of all blessings, and into it the poor should submerge all their needs. It is an abyss of joy in which all of us can immerse our sorrows. It is an abyss of lowliness to counter-act our foolishness, an abyss of mercy for the wretched, an abyss of love to meet our every need. Therefore, you must unite yourselves to the Heart of our Lord Jesus Christ, both at the beginning of your conversion in order to obtain proper dispositions, and at its end in order to make reparation. Are you making no progress in prayer? Then you need only offer God the prayers which the Savior has poured out for us in the Sacrament of the Altar. Offer God His fervent love in reparation for your slug-gishness. In the course of every activity pray as follows: “My God, I do this or I endure that in the Heart of your Son and according to His holy counsels. I offer it to You in reparation for anything blameworthy or imperfect in my actions.” Continue to do this in every circumstance of life. And every time that some punishment, affliction or injustice comes your way, say to yourself: “Accept this as sent to you by the Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ in order to unite yourself to Him.” But above all preserve peace of heart. This is more valuable than any treasure. In order to preserve it there is nothing more useful than renouncing your own will and substituting for it the Will of the Divine Heart. In this way His Will can carry out for us whatever contributes to His glory, and we will be happy to be His subjects and to trust entirely in Him.”

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Prayer to the Queen of the Most Holy Rosary

O Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, and tender Mother of all people, I consecrate myself to your Immaculate Heart, and recommend to you my family, my country, and the whole human race. Please accept my consecration, dearest Mother, and use me as you wish, to accomplish your designs upon the world. O Immaculate Heart of Mary, Queen of Heaven and earth, rule over me, and teach me how to allow the Heart of Jesus to rule and triumph in me and around me, as It has ruled and triumphed in you. Amen.

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From an instruction by St. Jane Frances de Chantal: 

In prayer we should freely unburden ourselves to God, telling Him, our Lord and Master, in the most familiar and confidential way everything, great and small, of Heaven or of earth, much or little. Opening our heart and pouring it all out to Him without reserve, recounting its burdens, its sins, its aspirations. Revealing our whole self, seeking repose in His company as with a friend on whom one relies and to whom one makes known alike the good and the bad. This is what Holy Scripture calls pouring out his heart like water in the Divine Presence, manifesting not only what is of importance but the least thing.

Seeing that Divine Providence governs all and that we can do nothing without Its aid, it is wise to confer with God, for whatever good comes to us in any way it comes from Him. Let there be no timidity in our supplications. He does not like it….

The hour of prayer having come, the soul who with holy impatience awaits that happy moment ought straightaway to answer the signal and hasten to receive the honor about to be conferred on her. She should then invoke the Holy Spirit, the Blessed Virgin, her good angel and such saints as she may choose to help her in her prayer and to remain with her while she is before God. She should gather together all her powers and say to herself: My soul, you are about to appear before God to hold converse with Him, a truce to all else.

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A Prayer for Trust and Confidence in God’s Mercy by St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Feast day on Sept. 23)

O Lord, we ask for a boundless confidence and trust in Your Divine Mercy, and the courage to accept the crosses and sufferings which bring immense goodness to our souls and that of Your Church. Help us to love You with a pure and contrite heart, and to humble ourselves beneath Your Cross, as we climb the mountain of holiness, carrying our Cross that leads to Heavenly Glory. May we receive You with great Faith and Love in Holy Communion, and allow You to act in us as You desire for your greater Glory. O Jesus, most adorable Heart and eternal fountain of Divine Love, may our prayer find favor before the Divine Majesty of Your heavenly Father.

 

 

Reflection from a Spiritual Conference by St. Thomas Aquinas

The Cross exemplifies every virtue

Why did the Son of God have to suffer for us? There

was a great need, and it can be considered in a twofold

way: in the first place, as a remedy for sin, and secondly, as an

example of how to act.

It is a remedy, for, in the face of all the evils which we incur on

account of our sins, we have found relief through the Passion of

Christ. Yet, it is no less an example, for the Passion of Christ completely

suffices to fashion our lives. Whoever wishes to live perfectly

should do nothing but disdain what Christ disdained on the

Cross and desire what He desired, for the Cross exemplifies every

virtue.

If you seek the example of love: “Greater love than this no man

has, than to lay down his life for his friends.” Such a man was

Christ on the Cross. And if He gave His Life for us, then it should

not be difficult to bear whatever hardships arise for His sake.

If you seek patience, you will find no better example than the

Cross. Great patience occurs in two ways: either when one patiently

suffers much, or when one suffers things which one is able to

avoid and yet does not avoid. Christ endured much on the Cross,

and did so patiently, because when He suffered He did not threaten;

He was led like a sheep to the slaughter and He did not open

His mouth. Therefore Christ’s patience on the Cross was great. In

patience let us run for the prize set before us, looking upon Jesus,

the Author and Perfecter of our Faith who, for the joy set before

Him, bore His Cross and despised the shame.

If you seek an example of humility, look upon the Crucified One,

for God wished to be judged by Pontius Pilate and to die.

If you seek an example of obedience, follow Him who became obedient

to the Father even unto death. For just as by the disobedience

of one man, namely, Adam, many were made sinners, so by the

obedience of one Man, many were made righteous.

If you seek an example of despising earthly things, follow Him who

is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, in Whom are hidden all

the treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge. Upon the Cross He was

stripped, mocked, spat upon, struck, crowned with thorns, and given

only vinegar and gall to drink.

Do not be attached, therefore, to clothing and riches, because “they

divided My garments among themselves.” Nor to honors, for He

experienced harsh words and scourgings. Nor to greatness of rank,

for “weaving a crown of thorns they placed it on My head.” Nor to

anything delightful, for “in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to

drink.”

 

 

 

Reflection from a homily by St. Gregory the Great, Pope

It is our holy Church that is compared to a net. The Church has been entrusted to fishermen, and draws all people out of the turbulent waters of the present age to the eternal Kingdom lest we drown in the depths of endless death. It gathers all kinds of fish because it calls to the forgiveness of sins the wise and foolish, free and slave, rich and poor, strong and weak. The psalmist says to God, every human being will come to You!... Twice in the Gospel we read that the Lord told His disciples to let down their nets while they were fishing, once before His Passion, and once after His Resurrection. Before our Redeemer suffered and rose, He ordered them to let down their net, but did not say whether they were to cast it on the right side of the boat or on the left. When He appeared to His disciples after His Resurrection, He ordered them to let down their net on the right side. In the earlier catch they took so many fish that their net was torn, but in the later, even though they took an enormous number of fish, the net was not broken…

The first catch of fish, in which no directions were given regarding where the net should be cast, represents the Church in this present age. The Church encompasses both the good and the bad… The later catch, however, coming after the Lord’s Resurrection, takes place only on the right side of the boat, because [it is] the gathering of the Chosen at the end of time, when they behold God’s Glory… In the first catch, the net was broken because of the huge number of fish it took in. In the present age the ranks of the unjust coexist side by side with the virtuous in professing the Faith… We live, so to speak, in the middle, in the midst of people belonging to both. The Church admits us all now, without distinguishing us, but she will separate us later when we leave this life… Flowers spring up amidst briars. A fragrant rose growsalongside a piercing thorn… My friends, before your time on earth is over, recall these examples.

 

 

From a treatise on the admirable Heart of Jesus by St. John Eudes, priest (Feast: August 19)

“I ask you to consider that our Lord Jesus Christ is your true Head and that you are a member of His Body. He belongs to you as the head belongs to the body. All that is His is yours: Breath, Heart, Body, Soul and all His Faculties. All of these you must use as if they belonged to you, so that in serving Him you may give Him praise, love and glory. You belong to Him as a member belongs to the head. This is why He earnestly desires you to serve and glorify the Father by using all your faculties as if they were His. He belongs to you, but more than that, He longs to be in you, living and ruling in you, as the head lives and rules in the body. He desires that whatever is in Him may live and rule in you: His Breath in your breath, His Heart in your heart, all the Faculties of His Soul in the faculties of your soul, so that these words may be fulfilled in you: Glorify God and bear Him in your body, that the Life of Jesus may be made manifest in you.

You belong to the Son of God, but more than that, you ought to be in Him as the members are in the head. All that is in you must be incor-porated into Him. You must receive Life from Him and be ruled by Him. There will be no true life for you except in Him, for He is the one source of true Life. Apart from Him you will find only death and destruction. Let Him be the only source of your movements, of the actions and the strength of your life. He must be both the source and the purpose of your life, so that you may fulfill these words: None of us lives as his own master and none of us dies as his own mas-ter. While we live, we are responsible to the Lord, and when we die, we die as His servants. Both in life and death we are the Lord’s. That is why Christ died and came to life again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

Finally, you are one with Jesus as the body is one with the head. You must, then, have one breath with Him, one soul, one life, one will, one mind, one heart. And He must be your breath, heart, love, life, your all. These great gifts in the follower of Christ originate from Baptism. They are increased and strengthened through Confirmation and by making good use of other graces that are given by God. Through the holy Eucharist they are brought to perfection.”

 

Prayer to Mary, our Immaculate Queen

O Mary Immaculate Queen, look down upon this dis-tressed and suffering world. Thou knowest our misery and our weakness. O Thou who art our Mother, saving us in the hour of peril, have compassion on us in these days of great and heavy trial. Jesus has confided to thee the treasure of His Grace, and through Thee He wills to grant us pardon and mercy. In these hours of anguish, therefore, thy chil-dren come to Thee as their hope. We recognize thy Queenship and ardently desire thy triumph. We need a Mother and a Mother's Heart. Thou art for us the luminous dawn which dissipates our darkness and points out the way to life. In thy clemency obtain for us the courage and the confidence of which we have such need. Most Holy and Adorable Trinity, Thou Who didst crown with glory in Heaven the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Savior, grant that all her children on earth may acknowledge her as their Sovereign Queen, that all hearts, homes, and nations may recognize her rights as Mother and as Queen. Amen.

 

 

Prayer to the Virgin Mary: My Queen, my Mother, I give myself entirely to you, and to show my devotion to you, I consecrate to you this day my eyes, my ears, my mouth, my heart, my entire self without reserve. As I am your own, my good Mother, guard me and defend me as your property and possession. Amen.

 

 

A Prayer for the Transfiguration of our Lord

At the Transfiguration, Father, You showed Jesus in glory, a glimpse of what His disciples would see in His risen life. Bless us in our humanity, with an awareness of Your presence, leading us to share in Your Divine Life even in our daily struggle. Help us to deepen our knowledge of the Law and the Prophets, channels of Your grace throughout history, and signposts for our journey. Amen.

 

Reflection from the life of Saint Ignatius of Loyola

(Feast: July 31) from his own words by Luis Gonzalez

Ignatius was passionately fond of reading worldly books of fiction

and tales of knight-errantry. When he felt he was getting better,

he asked for some of these books to pass the time. But no

book of that sort could be found in the house; instead they gave

him a life of Christ and a collection of the lives of saints written

in Spanish.

By constantly reading these books he began to be attracted to

what he found narrated there. Sometimes in the midst of his reading

he would reflect on what he had read. Yet at other times he

would dwell on many of the things which he had been accustomed

to dwell on previously. But at this point our Lord came to

his assistance, insuring that these thoughts were followed by others

which arose from his current reading.

While reading the life of Christ our Lord or the lives of the saints,

he would reflect and reason with himself: “What if I should do

what Saint Francis or Saint Dominic did?” In this way he let his

mind dwell on many thoughts; they lasted a while until other

things took their place. Then those vain and worldly images

would come into his mind and remain a long time. This sequence

of thoughts persisted with him for a long time.

But there was a difference. When Ignatius reflected on worldly

thoughts, he felt intense pleasure; but when he gave them up out

of weariness, he felt dry and depressed. Yet when he thought of

living the rigorous sort of life he knew the saints had lived, he not

only experienced pleasure when he actually thought about it, but

even after he dismissed these thoughts, he still experienced great

joy. Yet he did not pay attention to this, nor did he appreciate it

until one day, in a moment of insight, he began to marvel at the

difference. Then he understood his experience: thoughts of one

kind left him sad, the others full of joy. And this was the first

time he applied a process of reasoning to his religious experience.

Later on, when he began to formulate his spiritual exercises, he

used this experience as an illustration to explain the doctrine he

taught his disciples on the discernment of spirits.

 

HOLY FAMILY PRAYER

Heavenly Father, you have given us the model of family life in the Holy Family of Nazareth. Help us, O Loving Father, to make our family another Nazareth where love, peace and joy reign. May it be deeply contemplative, intensely Eucharistic and full of joy. Help us to live united in joy and sorrow through fami-ly prayer. Teach us to see Jesus in the members of our family, especially in His distressing disguise hidden in suffering and rejection. May the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus make our hearts humble like His and help us to carry out our family duties in a holy way. May we love one another as God loves each one of us, more and more each day, and forgive each other's faults as You forgive our sins. Help us, O Loving Father, to accept whatever you give and let go of whatever you take with a big smile.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, cause of our joy, pray for us. St. Joseph, pray for us. Holy Guardian Angels, be always with us, guide and protect us. Amen.

 

 

Prayer for Priests : by St. Therese of Lisieux, Carmelite

O Jesus, eternal Priest, keep you priests within the shelter of Your Sacred Heart, where none may touch them. Keep unstained their anointed hands, which daily touch Your Sacred Body. Keep unsullied their lips, daily purpled with Your Precious Blood. Keep pure and unearthly their hearts, sealed with the sublime mark of the Priesthood. Let Your holy Love surround them and shield them from the world’s contagion. Bless their labors with abundant fruit and may the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation here and in Heaven their beautiful and everlasting crown. Amen

 

 

Prayer to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Devotion for the month of August

O Immaculate Heart of Mary, Heavenly beauty and splendor of the Father, You are the most valued Heavenly treasure. New Eve, immaculate in soul, spirit and body. Created of the godly seed by the Spirit of God, you are the spiritual Mother of mankind. Pure Virgin, full of grace then and now, your whole being was raised Heavenly in full glory, to be elevated above all the hosts within the Kingdom of God. O Heavenly Mother, Queen of Heaven and earth, I recognize the glory of your highest title,

The Immaculate Heart of Mary! Loving Mother, dispenser of endless blessings, you who continuously intercede on our behalf, please present my need before your loving Son Jesus. (make your request here) O Immaculate Heart of Mary, I know that you are now presenting my need before Jesus, for you have never turned away those in dire need. Mother dearest, I await your favorable answer, submitting myself to the Divine Will of the Lord, for all glories are His forever and ever. Amen.

Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!

 

 

Prayer for Priests : by St. Therese of Lisieux, Carmelite

O Jesus, eternal Priest, keep you priests within the shelter of Your Sacred Heart, where none may touch them. Keep unstained their anointed hands, which daily touch Your Sacred Body. Keep unsul-lied their lips, daily purpled with Your Precious Blood. Keep pure and unearthly their hearts, sealed with the sublime mark of the Priest-hood. Let Your holy Love surround them and shield them from the world’s contagion. Bless their labors with abundant fruit and may the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation here and in Heaven their beautiful and everlasting crown. Amen

 

 

 

Prayer to Our Lady Mount Carmel (Feast: July 16)

O most beautiful flower of Mount Carmel, fruitful vine; splendor

of Heaven, Blessed Mother of the Son of God, Immaculate Virgin,

assist me in this my necessity (name intention). O star of

the sea, help me and show me herein you are my Mother.

O holy Mary, Mother of God, Queen of Heaven and earth,

I humbly beseech you from the bottom of my heart, to aid me in my need;

there are none that can withstand your power.

O show me herein you are my Mother.

O Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee. (3x)

Sweet Mother, I place this cause in your hands. (3x)

 

Prayer for Priests

by St. Therese of Lisieux, Carmelite

O Jesus, eternal Priest, keep you priests within the shelter of Your

Sacred Heart, where none may touch them. Keep unstained their

anointed hands, which daily touch Your Sacred Body. Keep unsullied

their lips, daily purpled with Your Precious Blood. Keep pure

and unearthly their hearts, sealed with the sublime mark of the Priesthood.

Let Your holy Love surround them and shield them from the

world’s contagion. Bless their labors with abundant fruit and may

the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation here and

in Heaven their beautiful and everlasting crown. Amen

 

 

Prayer for the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul (Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, apostles June 29th )

God, who on the Solemnity of the Apostles Peter and Paul give us the noble and holy joy of this day, grant, we pray, that your Church may in all things follow the teaching of those through whom she received the beginnings of right religion. 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.https://prayers4reparation.wordpress.com/2012/06/28/prayer-for-the-solemnity-of-saints-peter-and-paul/

 

Prayer for Priests by St. Therese of Lisieux, Carmelite

O Jesus, eternal Priest, keep you priests within the shelter of Your Sacred Heart, where none may touch them. Keep unstained their anointed hands, which daily touch Your Sacred Body. Keep unsullied their lips, daily purpled with Your Precious Blood. Keep pure and unearthly their hearts, sealed with the sublime mark of the Priesthood. Let Your holy Love surround them and shield them from the world’s contagion. Bless their labors with abundant fruit and may the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation here and in Heaven their beautiful and everlasting crown. Amen

 

Prayer for Vocations: 

Oh God, we earnestly beseech Thee to bless this Archdiocese with many priests, brothers, and sisters who will love Thee with their whole strength and gladly spend their entire lives to serve Thy Church and to make Thee known and loved. Bless our families. Bless our children. Choose from our homes those who are needed for Thy work. Mary, Queen of the Clergy, pray for us. Pray for our priests and religious. Obtain for us many more. Amen

 

Prayer to the Mother of our Lord for all mothers

Dear Mary, on this day when we honor all mothers, we 

turn to you. We thank our Lord, whom you serve, for the

great gift of motherhood. We place our trust in you:

never has it been known that anyone who sought your

intercession was left unaided by grace. Dear Mother,

thank you for your ‘Yes’ to the invitation of the angel which brought

Heaven to earth and changed human history. You opened yourself to

God’s word and the Word, Jesus Christ, was made flesh and dwelt

among us. Dear Mother, intercede for all of our mothers. Ask your

Divine Son to give them the grace of surrendered love so that they

can join with you in giving their own ‘Fiat’. May they daily find

strength to say yes to the call to give themselves in sacrificial lovethe

very heart of the vocation of motherhood. May their love

and witness be a source of great inspiration for all who are called to

follow your Son. On this Mothers day, Mother of the Word

Incarnate, pray for us who have recourse to you! Amen.

 

Prayer in honor of St. Gianna

God our Father we praise You and we bless You because in Saint Gianna, You have given us one who witnessed to the Gospel as a young woman, as a wife, as a mother, and as a doctor. We thank You because through the gift of her life we can learn to welcome and honor every human person. You, Lord Jesus, were for St. Gianna a splendid example. She learned to recognize You in the beauty of nature. As she was questioning her choice of vocation she went in search of You and the best way to serve You. Through her married love she became a sign of Your love for the Church and for humanity. Like You, the Good Samaritan, she cared for everyone who was sick, small or weak. Following Your example, out of love she gave herself entirely, generating new life.

Holy Spirit, Source of every perfection, give us wisdom, intelligence, and courage so that, following the example of St. Gianna and through her intercession, we may know how to place ourselves at the service

of each person we meet in our personal, family and professional lives, and thus grow in love and holiness. Amen.

 

Prayer to our Blessed Mother:

My Queen, my Mother, I give myself

entirely to you, and to show my devotion to you, I consecrate to

you this day my eyes, my ears, my mouth, my heart, my entire self

without reserve. As I am your own, my good Mother, guard me and

defend me as your property and possession. Amen.

 

PRAYER IN HONOR OF THE MOST HOLY AND ADORABLE NAME OF JESUS

JESUS! O Name of Jesus! Sweet Name! Delightful Name! Consoling Name!

For what else is Jesus than Savior! Therefore, O Jesus, for Thy sweet Name's sake,

be to me a Jesus, and save me. Suffer me not to be eternally lost. O good Jesus!

Let not my iniquities destroy me, whom Thy bounty made. O sweet Jesus!

Recognize in me what is Thine, and efface all that is not Thine.

O sweet Jesus! Show mercy now in the time of mercy, and condemn me not in the day of justice.

What profit to Thy Precious Blood, or what honor will my destruction give Thy Holy Name, O Jesus!

"The dead shall not praise Thee, O Lord Jesus! Nor all they that go down to Hell."

Most amiable Jesus! Most meek, most loving Jesus! O Jesus, Jesus,

Jesus!

Admit me to the number of Thy elect.

O Jesus, salvation of those who believe in Thee! Comfort of those who fly to Thee!

O Jesus, Son of the Virgin Mary! Give me grace, wisdom, charity,

purity, and humility, that I may love Thee perfectly, praise Thee, enjoy Thee, serve Thee, and be glorified in Thee, with all those who call upon Thy Name,

Thy Holy Name, Thy Sweet name-----Jesus. Amen.

 

Prayer for Vocations:

Oh God, we earnestly beseech Thee to bless this Archdiocese with many priests, brothers, and sisters who will love Thee with their whole strength and gladly spend their entire lives to serve Thy Church and to make Thee known and loved. Bless our families. Bless our children. Choose from our homes those who are needed for Thy work. Mary, Queen of the Clergy, pray for us. Pray for our priests and religious. Obtain for us many more. Amen.

 

 

"We are facing an enormous and dramatic clash between good and evil, death and life, the "culture of death" and the "culture of life." We find ourselves not only "faced with" but necessarily "in the midst of" this conflict: we are all involved and we all share in it, with the inescapable responsibility of choosing to be unconditionally pro-life." (#28)

 

“The blood of Christ, while it reveals the grandeur of the Father’s love, shows how precious man is in God’s eyes and how priceless the value of his life. . . . Furthermore, Christ’s blood reveals to us that his greatness, and therefore his vocation, consists in the sincere gift of self... Whoever in the Sacrament of the Eucharist drinks this blood and abides in Jesus (cf. Jn 6:56) is drawn into the dynamism of his love and gift of life, in order to bring to its fullness the original vocation to love which belongs to everyone.” (cf. Gen 1:27; 2:18-24) (#25)