Catholic Caucus: Daily Mass Readings, 05-17-16

USCCB.org/RNAB ^ | 05-17-16 | Revised New American Bible

[Salvation]

May 17, 2016

Tuesday of the Seventh Week of Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Jas 4:1-10

Beloved:
Where do the wars and where do the conflicts among you come from?
Is it not from your passions that make war within your members?
You covet but do not possess.
You kill and envy but you cannot obtain;
you fight and wage war.
You do not possess because you do not ask.
You ask but do not receive, because you ask wrongly,
to spend it on your passions.
Adulterers!
Do you not know that to be a lover of the world means enmity with God?
Therefore, whoever wants to be a lover of the world
makes himself an enemy of God.
Or do you suppose that the Scripture speaks without meaning when it says,
The spirit that he has made to dwell in us tends toward jealousy?
But he bestows a greater grace; therefore, it says:
God resists the proud,
but gives grace to the humble.

So submit yourselves to God.
Resist the Devil, and he will flee from you.
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
Cleanse your hands, you sinners,
and purify your hearts, you of two minds.
Begin to lament, to mourn, to weep.
Let your laughter be turned into mourning
and your joy into dejection.
Humble yourselves before the Lord
and he will exalt you.

Responsorial Psalm PS 55:7-8, 9-10a, 10b-11a, 23

R. (23a) Throw your cares on the Lord, and he will support you.
And I say, “Had I but wings like a dove,
I would fly away and be at rest.
Far away I would flee;
I would lodge in the wilderness.”
R. Throw your cares on the Lord, and he will support you.
“I would wait for him who saves me
from the violent storm and the tempest.”
Engulf them, O Lord; divide their counsels.
R. Throw your cares on the Lord, and he will support you.
In the city I see violence and strife,
day and night they prowl about upon its walls.
R. Throw your cares on the Lord, and he will support you.
Cast your care upon the LORD,
and he will support you;
never will he permit the just man to be disturbed.
R. Throw your cares on the Lord, and he will support you.

Alleluia Gal 6:14

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
May I never boast except in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mk 9:30-37

Jesus and his disciples left from there and began a journey through Galilee,
but he did not wish anyone to know about it.
He was teaching his disciples and telling them,
“The Son of Man is to be handed over to men
and they will kill him,
and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise.”
But they did not understand the saying,
and they were afraid to question him.

They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house,
he began to ask them,
“What were you arguing about on the way?”
But they remained silent.
For they had been discussing among themselves on the way
who was the greatest.
Then he sat down, called the Twelve, and said to them,
“If anyone wishes to be first,
he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.”
Taking a child, he placed it in their midst,
and putting his arms around it, he said to them,
“Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me;
and whoever receives me,
receives not me but the One who sent me.”

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From: James 4:1-10

The Source of Discord

---

[1] What causes wars, and what causes fightings among you? Is not your pas-
sions that are at war in your members? [2] You desire and do not have; so you
kill. And you covet and cannot obtain; so you fight and wage war. You do not
have, because you do not ask. [3] You ask and do not receive because you ask
wrongly, to spend it on your passions. [4] Unfaithful creatures! Do you not know
that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be
a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. [5] Or do you suppose it is
in vain that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit which He has
made to dwell in us”? [6] But He gives more grace; therefore it says, “God oppo-
ses the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” [7] Submit yourselves therefore to
God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. [8] Draw near to God and He will
draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you
men of double mind. [9] Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be
turned to mourning and your joy to dejection. [10] Humble yourselves before the
Lord and He will exalt you.

*********************************************************************************************
Commentary:

1. “Wars” and “fighting” are an exaggerated reference to the contention and dis-
cord found among those Christians. “Passions”, as elsewhere in the New Testa-
ment, means concupiscence, hedonism, pleasure-seeking (cf. verse 3; Luke 8:
14; Titus 3:3; 2 Peter 2:13).

St. James points out that if one fails to fight as one should against one’s evil in-
clinations, one’s inner disharmony overflows in the form of quarreling and fighting.
The New Testament often refers to the good kind of fight, which confers inner free-
dom and is a prerequisite for salvation (cf., e.g., Matthew 11:12; Romans 7:14-25;
1 Peter 2:11).

“How can you be at peace if you allow passions you do not even attempt to con-
trol to drag you away from the ‘pull’ of grace?

“Heaven pulls you upwards; you drag yourselves downwards. And don’t seek ex-
cuses — that is what you are doing. If you go on like that, you will tear yourself
apart” (St. J. Escriva, “Furrow”, 851).

2-3. St. James is describing the sad state to which free-wheeling hedonism (spe-
cifically, greed for earthly things) leads.

“You do not receive, because you ask wrongly”: “He asks wrongly who shows no
regard for the Lord’s commandments and yet seeks Heavenly gifts. He also asks
wrongly who, having lost his taste for Heavenly things, seeks only earthly things
— not for sustaining his human weakness but to enable him to indulge himself”
(St. Bede, “Super Iac. Expositio, ad loc.”).

4-6. The sacred writer warns that inordinate love of the world, which stems from
ambition, is incompatible with the love of God. “World” here has the meaning of
“enemy of God”, opposed to Christ and His followers (cf. note on 1:26-27). The
teaching contained in these verses echoes that of our Lord: “No one can serve
two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devo-
ted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon”
(Matthew 6:24).

The Saints have frequently reminded us—by their lives as well as their teachings
— that inordinate love of the world is incompatible with the love of God: “Worldly
society has flowered from a selfish love which dared to despise even God, where-
as the communion of saints is rooted in a love of God that is ready to trample on
self” (St. Augustine, “The City of God”, 14, 28).

“Unfaithful creatures!”: the original Greek simply says, “Adulterers” (feminine)
and the New Vulgate, “Adulterers” (masculine). This echoes the symbol the pro-
phets often use (cf., e.g. Hosea 1:2ff; Jeremiah 3:7-10; Ezekiel 16:1ff) of the mar-
riage of God and His people sealed by the Covenant. St. James, therefore, is not
referring to the sin of adultery; he is berating those whose excessive love for the
things of this world makes them unfaithful to God.

5. The original Greek is open to various interpretations and the quotation as given
here is not to be found in the Bible. Translated word for word it means: “Jealously
he loves the spirit which dwells in us.” It is not clear who “loves”— God or the spi-
rit; and “the spirit” may mean the soul or the Holy Spirit; moreover, the jealousy
can be either something good or something bad (like envy). It might perhaps be
translated as “The Spirit who dwells in us jealously loves us” (which is how the
New Vulgate translates it).

Although this sentence does not appear literally in the Bible, St. James may be
referring not so much to a specific passage as to an idea which often occurs in
the Bible when it depicts God as a jealous lover (cf., e.g., Exodus 20:5; 34:14;
Zechariah 1:14; 8:2), who expects His love to be returned wholeheartedly; this ve-
ry human kind of language is a most moving evocation of God’s immense love for
man. St. Alphonsus teaches: “Since He loves us with infinite love, He desires all
our love; that is why He is jealous when He sees others having a share in hearts
which He wants entirely for His own. ‘Jesus is jealous’, St. Jerome said (Epistle
22), in the sense that He does not want us to love anything that is outside Him-
self. And if He sees that some creature has a part of your heart, He is in a sense
envious of it, as the Apostle James writes, because He tolerates no rival for our
love; He wants to have all our love” (”The Love of Jesus Christ”, Chapter 11).

6. The sacred writer foresees the possibility that some may draw back from this
“jealous” love God expects to be reciprocated: but God never expects the impos-
sible; He gives us all the grace we need to do what He asks: “All my hope is
naught,” St. Augustine exclaims, “save in Your great mercy. Grant what You
command, and command what You will” (”Confessions”, 10, 29).

However, only people who are humble are given this grace, and have it bear fruit.
The proud, who are full of self-love, even fail to realize that they need grace, and
so they do not ask for it, or do not ask for it properly. The second part of the
verse is a literal quotation from Proverbs 3:34 (according to the Septuagint
Greek): it is an example of the “poetic” form, with the characteristic antithetical
parallelism of Hebrew verse. St. Augustine, in his explanation of the fact that
the Bible refers in places to the sins of prominent men, urges his readers to be
humble, commenting that “there is scarcely a page in the sacred books which
does not echo the fact that ‘God resists the proud and gives grace to the hum-
ble’” (”De Doctrina Christiana”, 3, 23).

7-10. Some ways of countering pride are identified here: basically what is requi-
red is a sincere and deep conversion, which must begin with the humility of re-
cognizing that we are sinners and in need of purification. The tone of these
verses is reminiscent of the way the Old Testament prophets upbraid the people
of Israel for the unfaithfulness to Yahweh.

To draw near to God the sinner needs purification. “Cleaning your hand” should
not be understood as referring to the physical ablutions of the Jews (cf. Exodus
30:19-21; Mark 7:1-5); but should be taken in a moral sense—purification from
sins, and upright actions (e.g., Isaiah 1:15-17; 1 Timothy 2:8). Of all the possible
ways of being purified and converted (for example, the penitential rite at Mass, a
visit to a shrine, or fasting), “none is more significant,” Bl. John Paul II reminds
us, “more divinely efficacious or more lofty and at the same time easily accessi-
ble as a rite than the Sacrament of Penance [...]. For a Christian, “the sacra-
ment of Penance is the ordinary way of obtaining forgiveness and the remission
of sins committed after Baptism” (”Reconciliatio Et Paenitentia”, 28 and 31).

7. When someone resists the devil’s temptations, the devil leaves him alone: he
cannot force a man to commit sin. The “Shepherd of Hermas” (a work by an ano-
nymous Christian writer, around the middle of the Second Century) elaborates on
the same idea: “Be converted, you who walk in the commandments of the devil,
commandments that are hard, bitter, cruel and foul. And do not fear the devil ei-
ther, because he has no power against you [...]. The devil cannot lord it over
those who are servants of God with their whole heart and who place their hope
in Him. The devil can wrestle with, but not overcome them. So, if you resist him,
he will flee from you in defeat and confusion” (”Eleventh Commandment”, 4, 6
and 5,2).

9. “Be wretched”: “To acknowledge one’s sin—penetrating still more deeply into
the consideration of one’s own personhood—”to recognize oneself as a sinner”,
capable of sin and inclined to commit sin, is the essential first step in returning
to God” (”Reconciliatio Et Paenitencia”, 13).

Mourning and weeping are the external expression of sincere repentance (cf. Mat-
thew 5:4 and note; Tobias 2:6; Amos 8:10): “You are crying? Don’t be ashamed
of it. Yes, cry: men also cry like you, when they are alone and before God. Each
night, says King David, I soak my bed with tears. With those tears, those burning
manly tears, you can purify your past and supernaturalize your present life” (St.
J. Escriva, “The Way”, 216).

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

[Salvation]

From: Mark 9:30-37

Second Prophecy of the Passion

---

[30] They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And He (Jesus) would
not have any one know it; [31] for He was teaching His disciples, saying to them,
“The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him;
and when He is killed, after three days He will rise.” [32] But they did not under-
stand the saying, and they were afraid to ask Him.

Being the Servant of All

---

[33] And they came to Capernaum; and when He was in the house He asked
them, “What were you discussing on the way?” [34] But they were silent; for on
the way they had discussed with one another who was the greatest. [35] And He
sat down and called the Twelve; and He said to them, “If any one would be first,
he must be last of all and servant of all.” [36] And He took a child, and put him
in the midst of them; and taking him in His arms, He said to them, [37] “Who-
ever receives one such child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me,
receives not Me but Him who sent Me”.

*********************************************************************************************

Commentary:

30-32. Although moved when He sees the crowds like sheep without a shepherd
(Matthew 9:36), Jesus leaves them, to devote time to careful instruction of the
Apostles. He retires with them to out-of-the-way places, and there He explains
points of His public preaching which they had not understood (Matthew 13:36).
Here, specifically, for a second time, He announces His death and resurrection.

In His relationships with souls Jesus acts in the same way: He calls man to be
with him in the quiet of prayer and there He teaches him about His more intimate
plans and about the more demanding side of the Christian life. Later, like the
Apostles, Christians were to spread this teaching to the ends of the earth.

34-35. Jesus uses this argument going on behind his back to teach His disciples
about how authority should be exercised in His Church — not by lording it over
others, but by serving them. In fulfilling His own mission to found the Church
whose head and supreme lawgiver He is, He came to serve and not to be served
(Matthew 20:28).

Anyone who does not strive to have this attitude of self-forgetful service, not only
lacks one of the main pre-requisites for proper exercise of authority but also runs
the risk of being motivated by ambition or pride. “To be in charge of an apostolic
undertaking demands readiness to suffer everything, from everybody, with infinite
charity” (St. J. Escriva, “The Way”, 951).

36-37. To demonstrate to His Apostles the abnegation and humility needed in
their ministry, He takes a child into His arms and explains the meaning of this
gesture: if we receive for Christ’s sake those who have little importance in the
world’s eyes, it is as if we are embracing Christ Himself and the Father who sent
Him. This little child whom Jesus embraces represents every child in the world,
and everyone who is needy, helpless, poor or sick—people who are not naturally
attractive.

*********************************************************************************************
Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.

Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.

[Salvation]

Scripture readings from the Jerusalem Bible by Darton, Longman & Todd

Readings at Mass

Liturgical Colour: Green.

---

First reading	James 4:1-10 ©

Where do these wars and battles between yourselves first start? Isn’t it precisely in the desires fighting inside your own selves? You want something and you haven’t got it; so you are prepared to kill. You have an ambition that you cannot satisfy; so you fight to get your way by force. Why you don’t have what you want is because you don’t pray for it; when you do pray and don’t get it, it is because you have not prayed properly, you have prayed for something to indulge your own desires.

  You are as unfaithful as adulterous wives; don’t you realise that making the world your friend is making God your enemy? Anyone who chooses the world for his friend turns himself into God’s enemy. Surely you don’t think scripture is wrong when it says: the spirit which he sent to live in us wants us for himself alone? But he has been even more generous to us, as scripture says: God opposes the proud but he gives generously to the humble. Give in to God, then; resist the devil, and he will run away from you. The nearer you go to God, the nearer he will come to you. Clean your hands, you sinners, and clear your minds, you waverers. Look at your wretched condition, and weep for it in misery; be miserable instead of laughing, gloomy instead of happy. Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up.

---

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 54:7-11,23 ©

Entrust your cares to the Lord and he will support you.

O that I had wings like a dove

  to fly away and be at rest.

So I would escape far away

  and take refuge in the desert.

Entrust your cares to the Lord and he will support you.

I would hasten to find a shelter

  from the raging wind,

from the destructive storm, O Lord,

  and from their plotting tongues.

Entrust your cares to the Lord and he will support you.

For I can see nothing but violence

  and strife in the city.

Night and day they patrol

  high on the city walls.

Entrust your cares to the Lord and he will support you.

Entrust your cares to the Lord

  and he will support you.

He will never allow

  the just man to stumble.

Entrust your cares to the Lord and he will support you.

---

Gospel Acclamation	Jn14:23

Alleluia, alleluia!

If anyone loves me he will keep my word,

and my Father will love him,

and we shall come to him.

Alleluia!

Or	Ga6:14

Alleluia, alleluia!

The only thing I can boast about is the cross of our Lord,

through whom the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.

Alleluia!

---

Gospel	Mark 9:30-37 ©

After leaving the mountain Jesus and his disciples made their way through Galilee; and he did not want anyone to know, because he was instructing his disciples; he was telling them, ‘The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men; they will put him to death; and three days after he has been put to death he will rise again.’ But they did not understand what he said and were afraid to ask him.

  They came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you arguing about on the road?’ They said nothing because they had been arguing which of them was the greatest. So he sat down, called the Twelve to him and said, ‘If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of all.’ He then took a little child, set him in front of them, put his arms round him, and said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in my name, welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’

[Salvation]

Pray for Pope Francis

[Salvation]

It's time to kneel down and pray for our nation (Sacramental Marriage)

[Salvation]

Perpetual Novena for the Nation (Ecumenical)

[Salvation]

Prayers for The Religion Forum (Ecumenical)

[Salvation]

7 Powerful Ways to Pray for Christians Suffering in the Middle East

[Salvation]

Pray the Rosary!

Why Boko Haram and ISIS Target Women
Report reveals scale of Boko Haram violence inflicted on Nigerian Catholics
Military evacuating girls, women rescued from Boko Haram
Echos of Lepanto Nigerian bishop says rosary will bring down Boko Harm
After vision of Christ, Nigerian bishop says rosary will bring down Boko Haram (Catholic Caucus)
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[Salvation]

 

Jesus, High Priest

 

We thank you, God our Father, for those who have responded to your call to priestly ministry.

Accept this prayer we offer on their behalf: Fill your priests with the sure knowledge of your love.

Open their hearts to the power and consolation of the Holy Spirit.

Lead them to new depths of union with your Son.

Increase in them profound faith in the Sacraments they celebrate as they nourish, strengthen and heal us.

Lord Jesus Christ, grant that these, your priests, may inspire us to strive for holiness by the power of their example, as men of prayer who ponder your word and follow your will.

O Mary, Mother of Christ and our mother, guard with your maternal care these chosen ones, so dear to the Heart of your Son.

Intercede for our priests, that offering the Sacrifice of your Son, they may be conformed more each day to the image of your Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Saint John Vianney, universal patron of priests, pray for us and our priests

This icon shows Jesus Christ, our eternal high priest.

The gold pelican over His heart represents self-sacrifice.

The border contains an altar and grapevines, representing the Mass, and icons of Melchizedek and St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney.

Melchizedek: king of righteousness (left icon) was priest and king of Jerusalem.  He blessed Abraham and has been considered an ideal priest-king.

St. Jean-Baptiste Vianney is the patron saint of parish priests.

[Salvation]

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POPE FRANCIS FOR YEAR OF MERCY GRANTS THAT SSPX PRIESTS CAN VALIDLY ABSOLVE!
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Pope: Church Must Be 'Oasis of Mercy,' Not Severe Fortress

[Salvation]

Pray a Rosary each day for our nation.

1. Sign of the Cross: In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

2. The Apostles Creed: I BELIEVE in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell; on the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father Almighty; from there He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

3. The Lord's Prayer: OUR Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

4. (3) Hail Mary: HAIL Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now, and in the hour of our death. Amen. (Three times)

5. Glory Be: GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

6. Fatima Prayer: Oh, my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of your mercy.

Announce each mystery, then say 1 Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, 1 Glory Be and 1 Fatima prayer. Repeat the process with each mystery.

End with the Hail Holy Queen:
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve! To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears! Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus!

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary! Pray for us, O holy Mother of God, that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Final step -- The Sign of the Cross

The Mysteries of the Rosary By tradition, Catholics meditate on these Mysteries during prayers of the Rosary. The biblical references follow each of the Mysteries below.

The Sorrowful Mysteries

(Tuesdays and Fridays)

1. The Agony in the Garden (Matthew 26:36-46, Luke 22:39-46) [Spiritual fruit - God's will be done]
2. The Scourging at the Pillar (Matthew 27:26, Mark 15:15, John 19:1) [Spiritual fruit - Mortification of the senses]
3. The Crowning with Thorns (Matthew 27:27-30, Mark 15:16-20, John 19:2) [Spiritual fruit - Reign of Christ in our heart]
4. The Carrying of the Cross (Matthew 27:31-32, Mark 15:21, Luke 23:26-32, John 19:17) [Spiritual fruit - Patient bearing of trials]
5. The Crucifixion (Matthew 27:33-56, Mark 15:22-39, Luke 23:33-49, John 19:17-37) [Spiritual fruit - Pardoning of Injuries]

[Salvation]

St. Michael the Archangel

~ PRAYER ~

St. Michael, the Archangel, defend us in battle
Be our protection against the wickedness
and snares of the devil;
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God,
Cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits
who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen
+

[Salvation]

From an Obama bumper sticker on a car:
"Pray for Obama. Psalm 109:8"

PLEASE JOIN US - Evening Prayer
Someone has said that if people really understood the full extent of the power we have available through prayer, we might be speechless.
Did you know that during WWII there was an advisor to Churchill who organized a group of people who dropped what they were doing every day at a prescribed hour for one minute to collectively pray for the safety of England, its people and peace?

There is now a group of people organizing the same thing here in America. If you would like to participate: Every evening at 9:00 PM Eastern Time (8:00 PM Central) (7:00 PM Mountain) (6:00 PM Pacific), stop whatever you are doing and spend one minute praying for the safety of the United States, our troops, our citizens, and for a return to a Godly nation. If you know anyone else who would like to participate, please pass this along. Our prayers are the most powerful asset we have. Please forward this to your praying friends.

[Salvation]

May Devotion: Blessed Virgin Mary

Since the 16th century Catholic piety has assigned entire months to special devotions. Toward the end of the eighteenth century a zealous Jesuit priest, Father Lalomia, started among the students of the Roman college of his Society the practice of dedicating May to Our Lady. The devotion, which others had promoted in a small way, soon spread to other Jesuit Colleges and to the entire Latin church and since that time it has been a regular feature of Catholic life.

INVOCATIONS

Thou who wast a virgin before thy delivery, pray for us. Hail Mary, etc.
Thou who wast a virgin in thy delivery, pray for us. Hail Mary, etc.
Thou who wast a virgin after thy delivery, pray for us. Hail Mary, etc.

My Mother, deliver me from mortal sin.
Hail Mary (three times).

Mother of love, of sorrow and of mercy, pray for us.

Remember, O Virgin Mother of God, when thou shalt stand before the face of the Lord, that thou speak favorable things in our behalf and that He may turn away His indignation from us.
Roman Missal

Thou art my Mother, O Virgin Mary: keep me safe lest I ever offend thy dear Son, and obtain for me the grace to please Him always and in all things.

FOR THE HELP OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

May we be assisted, we beseech Thee, 0 Lord, by the worshipful intercession of Thy glorious Mother, the ever-Virgin Mary; that we, who have been enriched by her perpetual blessings, may be delivered from all dangers, and through her loving kindness made to be of one heart and mind: who livest and reignest world without end. Amen.
Roman Missal

THE SALVE REGINA

Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, hail, our life, our sweetness, and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve! To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears! Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus! O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!
Roman Breviary

PRAYER TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY

O blessed Virgin Mary, who can worthily repay thee thy just dues of praise and thanksgiving, thou who by the wondrous assent of thy will didst rescue a fallen world? What songs of praise can our weak human nature recite in thy honor, since it is by thy intervention alone that it has found
the way to restoration? Accept, then, such poor thanks as we have here to offer, though they be unequal to thy merits; and, receiving our vows, obtain by thy prayers the remission of our offenses. Carry thou our prayers within the sanctuary of the heavenly audience, and bring forth from it the antidote of our reconciliation. May the sins we bring before Almighty God through thee, become pardonable through thee; may what we ask for with sure confidence, through thee be granted. Take our offering, grant us our requests, obtain pardon for what we fear, for thou art the sole hope of sinners. Through thee we hope for the remission of our sins, and in thee, 0 blessed Lady, is our hope of reward. Holy Mary, succour the miserable, help the fainthearted, comfort the sorrowful, pray for thy people, plead for the clergy, intercede for all women consecrated to God; may all who keep thy holy commemoration feel now thy help and protection. Be thou ever ready to assist us when we pray, and bring back to us the answers to our prayers. Make it thy continual care to pray for the people of God, thou who, blessed by God, didst merit to bear the Redeemer of the world, who liveth and reigneth, world without end. Amen.
Saint Augustine

PETITION TO MARY

Most holy Virgin Immaculate, my Mother Mary, to thee who art the Mother of my Lord, the queen of the universe, the advocate, the hope, the refuge of sinners, I who am the most miserable of all sinners, have recourse this day. I venerate thee, great queen, and I thank thee for the many graces thou hast bestowed upon me even unto this day; in particular for having delivered me from the hell which I have so often deserved by my sins. I love thee, most dear Lady; and for the love I bear thee, I promise to serve thee willingly for ever and to do what I can to make thee loved by others also. I place in thee all my hopes for salvation; accept me as thy servant and shelter me under thy mantle, thou who art the Mother of mercy. And since thou art so powerful with God, deliver me from all temptations, or at least obtain for me the strength to overcome them until death. From thee I implore a true love for Jesus Christ. Through thee I hope to die a holy death. My dear Mother, by the love thou bearest to Almighty God, I pray thee to assist me always, but most of all at the last moment of my life. Forsake me not then, until thou shalt see me safe in heaven, there to bless thee and sing of thy mercies through all eternity. Such is my hope. Amen.
Saint Alphonsus Liguori

Magnificat Prayer
My being proclaims the greatness of the Lord, my spirit finds joy in God my savior,
For he has looked upon his servant in her lowliness; all ages to come shall call me blessed.
God who is mighty has done great things for me,
holy is his name; His mercy is from age to age on those who fear him. He has shown might with his arm; he has confused the proud in their inmost thoughts. He has deposed the mighty from their thrones and raised the lowly to high places. The hungry he has given every good thing, while the rich he has sent empty away. He has upheld Israel his servant, ever mindful of his mercy; Even as he promised our fathers, promised Abraham and his descendants forever.
(Lk 1:46-55) 

TO MARY, REFUGE OF SINNERS
Hail, most gracious Mother of mercy, hail, Mary, for whom we fondly yearn, through whom we obtain forgiveness! Who would not love thee? Thou art our light in uncertainty, our comfort in sorrow, our solace in the time of trial, our refuge from every peril and temptation. Thou art our sure hope of salvation, second only to thy only-begotten Son; blessed are they who love thee, our Lady! Incline, I beseech thee, thy ears of pity to the entreaties of this thy servant, a miserable sinner; dissipate the darkness of my sins by the bright beams of thy holiness, in order that I may be acceptable in thy sight.

FOR THE GRACE OF LOVE
O Mary, my dear Mother, how much I love thee! And yet in reality how little! Thou dost teach me what I ought to know, for thou teachest me what Jesus is to me and what I ought to be for Jesus. Dearly beloved Mother, how close to God thou art, and how utterly filled with Him! In the measure that we know God, we remind ourselves of thee. Mother of God, obtain for me the grace of loving my Jesus; obtain for me the grace of loving thee!
Cardinal Merry del Val

TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY FOR MAY

O most august and blessed Virgin Mary! Holy Mother of God! glorious Queen of heaven and earth! powerful protectress of those who love thee, and unfailing advocate of all who invoke thee! look down, I beseech thee, from thy throne of glory on thy devoted child; accept the solemn offering I present thee of this month, specially dedicated to thee, and receive my ardent, humble desire, that by my love and fervor I could worthily honor thee, who, next to God, art deserving of all honor. Receive me, 0 Mother of Mercy, among thy best beloved children; extend to me thy maternal tenderness and solicitude; obtain for me a place in the Heart of Jesus, and a special share in the gifts of His grace. 0 deign, I beseech thee, to recognize my claims on thy protection, to watch over my spiritual and temporal interests, as well as those of all who are dear to me; to infuse into my soul the spirit of Christ, and to teach me thyself to become meek, humble, charitable, patient, and submissive to the will of God.

May my heart bum with the love of thy Divine Son, and of thee, His blessed Mother, not for a month alone, but for time and eternity; may I thirst for the promotion of His honor and thine, and contribute, as far as I can, to its extension. Receive me, 0 Mary, the refuge of sinners! Grant me a Mother's blessing and a Mother's care, now, and at the hour of my death. Amen.

TO OUR LADY

Saint John Vianney, better known as the Cure of Ars, when asked how long he had loved Mary, said: "I loved her almost before I could know her." In this prayer he expresses that love.
O thou most holy virgin Mary, who dost evermore stand before the most holy Trinity, and to whom it is granted at all times to pray for us to thy most beloved Son; pray for me in all my necessities; help me, combat for me, and obtain for me the pardon of all my sins. Help me especially at my last hour; and when I can no longer give any sign of the use of reason, then do thou encourage me, make the sign of the cross for me, and fight for me against the enemy. Make in my name a profession of faith; favor me with a testimony of my salvation, and never let me despair of the mercy of God. Help me to overthrow the wicked enemy. When I can no longer say: "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I place my soul in your hands," do thou say it for me; when I can no longer hear human words of consolation, do thou comfort me. Leave me not before I have been judged; and if I have to expiate my sins in purgatory, oh! pray for me earnestly; and admonish my friends to procure for me a speedy enjoyment of the blessed sight of God. Lessen my sufferings, deliver me speedily, and lead my soul into heaven with thee: that, united with all the elect, I may there bless and praise my God and thee for all eternity. Amen.
Saint John Vianney

ACT OF REPARATION

O blessed Virgin, Mother of God, look down in mercy from heaven, where thou art enthroned as Queen, upon me, a miserable sinner, thine unworthy servant. Although I know full well my own unworthiness, yet in order to atone for the offenses that are done to thee by impious and blasphemous
tongues, from the depths of my heart I praise and extol thee as the purest, the fairest, the holiest creature of all God's handiwork. I bless thy holy name, I praise thine exalted privilege of being truly Mother of God, ever virgin, conceived without stain of sin, co-redemptrix of the human race. I bless the Eternal Father who chose thee in an especial way for His daughter; I bless the Word Incarnate who took upon Himself our nature in thy bosom and so made thee His Mother; I bless the Holy Spirit who took thee as His bride. All honor, praise and thanksgiving to the ever-blessed Trinity, who predestined thee and loved thee so exceedingly from all eternity as to exalt thee above all creatures to the most sublime heights. 0 Virgin, holy and merciful, obtain for all who offend thee the grace of repentance, and graciously accept this poor act of homage from me thy servant, obtaining likewise for me from thy divine Son the pardon and remission of all my sins. Amen.

Prayer Source: Prayer Book, The by Reverend John P. O'Connell, M.A., S.T.D. and Jex Martin, M.A., The Catholic Press, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, 1954

Memorare of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Remember O Most Gracious Virgin Mary!
That never was it known
That anyone who fled to thy protection,
Implored thy help or sought thy intercession
Was left unaided. 

Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto Thee!
O Virgin of virgins, My Mother!

To Thee I come before Thee I stand,
Sinful and Sorrowful,
Oh Mother of the Word Incarnate,
Despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy,
Hear and answer me.

Amen

Who Is Our Lady of Laus? "My name is Mary" (CATHOLIC CAUCUS)
What Happened to the Virgin Mary After Pentecost? [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus)
Saint Thomas Aquinas on the Hail Mary (Catholic Caucus)
Yes, Mary DOES Know
How Can Mary Hear Thousands Simultaneously?
Fr Paul Schenck: Immaculate Conception Tells us Who Mary Is and Who We Are (Catholic Caucus)
Mary,Our Lady of Quatlasupe,She who crushes the head of the serpent, is leading...(Catholic Caucus)
MARY, MOTHER OF EVANGELIZATION [Cath-Orth caucus]
On Mary, Model of Faith, Charity and Union with Christ [Weekly Audience]
Why Don't You honor Mary?
Columbus and the Virgin Mary [Catholic Caucus]

Pope Francis: Mary's faith unties the knot of sin
Pope consecrates world to immaculate heart of Mary
Mary, Mother of God
Mary 'can only bring us to God,' expert says as entrustment nears
Pope Francis: "Mary, look upon us" (Mass in Cagliari)
Devotion to the Most Holy Name of Mary [Catholic/Orthodox Caucus]
Pope Francis: contemplate the "suffering humanity" of Jesus and the sweetness of Mary
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Veneration of Mary in Luke 11:27-28
Pope at Mass: Learning from Mary to keep the Word of God

Pope: Mary is always in a hurry to help us (first pastoral visit to a diocese in Rome)
Catholic Word of the Day: MARY'S SINLESSNESS, 04-01-13
Letter #47: To Mary (Pope Francis prays at (tomb of Pope St. Pius V) [Catholic Caucus]
Catholic Word of the Day: MARY'S VIRGINITY, 02-26-13
Mariaphobic Response Syndrome: Part Two
Mariaphobic Response Syndrome: Part One
A Mother's Love, The Blessed Virgin Mary Saying YES To God
Chesterton on devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary [Ecumenical]
The Perpetual Virginity of Blessed Mary
A Comparison is Instituted Between the Disobedient and Sinning Eve and the Virgin Mary..

Magnificat: The Hymn of the Blessed Virgin Mary [Catholic Caucus]
The Blessed Virgin Mary's Role in the Celibate Priest's Spousal... (Pt 2) (CATHOLIC CAUCUS)
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Give it all to Mary [Catholic Caucus]
JESUS LIVING IN MARY: HANDBOOK, SPIRITUALITY OF ST. LOUIS DE MONTFORT, ROSARY [Ecumenical]
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Hail Mary
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[Salvation]

May 2016

Pope's Intentions

Universal: That, rejecting the culture of indifference, we may care for our neighbours who suffer, especially the sick and the poor

Evangelization: That Mary's intercession may help Christians in secularized cultures be ready to proclaim Jesus.

[Salvation]

Daily Gospel Commentary

Tuesday of the Seventh week in Ordinary Time

Commentary of the day
Aphrahat (?-c.345), monk and Bishop near Mosul
Demonstrations, no.6 (SC 349)

Follow him who is the last of all and servant of all

My friend, let us take on the likeness of him who gives us life. Although he was rich, he made himself poor. Although he was exalted, he humbled his greatness. Although he dwelt in the heights, he had nowhere to lay his head. Although he is to come on the clouds, he mounted an ass to enter Jerusalem. Although he is God and Son of God, he bears the likeness of a slave.

He who is rest for every effort has been worn out by the difficulty of the way. He who is the spring that quenches thirst was thirsty and asked for water to drink. He who is the repletion that satisfies our hunger was hungry when he fasted in the desert to be tempted. He who is the unsleeping watchman fell asleep and lay down in the boat in the middle of the sea. He who is served in his Father’s tent allowed himself to be served at the hands of men. He who is the doctor of all the sick had his hands pierced by nails. He whose mouth spoke prudence was given gall to drink. He who did no wrong nor harmed anyone has been struck with blows and bore insult. He who gives life to all the dead surrendered himself to the death of the cross.

Our Lifegiver himself has given proof of all this humility; let us humble ourselves, my friends.

(Biblical references: 2Cor 8,9 ; Ph 2,6-8 ; Mt 8,20 ; Dn 7,13 ; Mt 26,64 ; Jn 12,14-15 ; Ph 2,7 ; Jn 4,6 ; Jn 6,7 ; Mt 4,2 ; Ps 121,4 ; Mt 8,24 ; Ps 49,4 ; Ps 69,22 ; Mt 27,34)

[Salvation]

'In God's Name! The soldiers will fight, and God will give the victory.'

St. Joan of Arc