Posted on 08/16/2018 9:46:59 PM PDT by Salvation
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From: Ezekiel 16:1-15, 60, 63
Jerusalem, the unfaithful wife
[6] “And when I passed by you, and saw you weltering in your blood, I said to you
in your blood, ‘Live, [7] and grow up like a plant of the field.’ And you grew up and
became tall and arrived at full maidenhood; your breasts were formed, and your
hair had grown; yet you were naked and bare.
[8] “When I passed by you again and looked upon you, behold, you were at the
age for love; and I spread my skirt over you, and covered your nakedness: yea, I
plighted my troth to you and entered into a covenant with you, says the Lord GOD,
and you became mine. [9] Then I bathed you with water and washed off your blood
from you, and anointed you with oil. [10] I clothed you also with embroidered cloth
and shod you with leather, I swathed you in fine linen and covered you with silk.
[11] And I decked you with ornaments, and put bracelets on your arms, and a
chain on your neck. [12] And I put a ring on your nose, and earrings in your ears,
and a beautiful crown upon your head. [13] Thus you were decked with gold and
silver; and your raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and embroidered cloth; you ate
fine flour and honey and oil. You grew exceedingly beautiful, and came to regal
estate. [14] And your renown went forth among the nations because of your beau-
ty, for it was perfect through the splendor which I had bestowed upon you, says
the Lord GOD. [15] “But you trusted in your beauty, and played the harlot be-
cause of your renown, and lavished your harlotries on any passer-by.
[60] [Y]et I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I
will establish with you an everlasting covenant. [63] that you may remember and
be confounded, and never open your mouth again because of your shame, when
I forgive you all that you have done, says the Lord GOD.”
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Commentary:
16:1-19:14. In these chapters Ezekiel announces the sentence passed on Israel
and Judah on account of the transgressions and sins they have been piling up.
He does this by imagining a formal trial (rib) in which the charges are described
by a series of allegories. First there is the story of the unfaithful and evil wife, who
stands for Israel (chap. 16); then comes the allegory of the eagles, symbolizing
the deportation: Nebuchadnezzar seems to destroy everything before him, but
the Lord comes on the scene and sets about reassembling the broken pieces
(chap. 17); thirdly, the metaphor of the father and son is used to reiterate tea-
ching about personal responsibility (chap. 18); thirdly, the metaphor of the father
and son is used to reiterate teaching about personal responsibility (chap. 18);
and finally, comes the allegory of the lioness and her cubs — a lament over the
plight of the Exiles in Babylon (chap. 19).
16:1-43. The prophet Hosea was the first to use the metaphor of the wanton wife
to charge Israel with her infidelity (Hos 1-3); Jeremiah uses the imagery of mar-
riage to describe the Covenant and how Israel came to break it (Jer 2:2). Ezekiel,
here and in chapters 20 and 23, is the one who develops the metaphor most. The
wife is Jerusalem, depicted with negative features from her birth onwards (vv. 1-5)
and then completely transformed into the most beautiful of princesses (vv. 6-14).
However, she proved unfaithful and committed the most vile sins of adultery with
the empires round about (vv. 15-34). All this, a mixture of fact and metaphor,
paves the way for the sentence that must be passed: “I will judge you as women
who break wedlock” (v. 38); she will become the prey of the nations that she adu-
lated (vv. 35-41). But the end is not destruction (vv. 42-43), as one would have ex-
pected; it is the start of a new phase (cf. 16:59-63). Ezekiel, who is addressing
the exiles, once again opens the door to hope in an ultimate restoration (vv. 42-
43).
16:1-5. “Your father was an Amorite, and your mother a Hittite” (v. 3). Jerusalem
had, in fact, belonged to the Canaanites until David conquered it; these would
have included the Amorites, a Semitic people (cf. Num 21:13), and the Hittites,
who had come from Asia Minor (cf. Gen 23:16). Ezekiel is not so much con-
cerned about historical accuracy (cf. Deut 7:1 and par.) as in pointing out the pa-
gan origins of the holy city, to make it clear that all its qualities and all its digni-
ty derive solely from the Lord. The practices mentioned in v. 4 were ancient cus-
toms to do with the care of newborn babies. The point being made is that in addi-
tion to having an obscure origin, Jerusalem began life utterly alone.
16:6-34. The charge of infidelity against Jerusalem lies in the endowments it re-
ceived from God (vv. 6-14) and its history of wickedness — evidence of the fact
that it has persistently abused God’s gifts (vv. 15-34). Although the charge has
historical basis, the passage is not meant to be a detailed catalogue; the point
being made is that the city had a history of sin and infidelity.
“I passed by you” (v. 6): when God passes by, he brings salvation; here he turns
an abandoned child into the most beautiful of women, the envy of all her peers.
St John of the Cross will apply this to what happens when the Lord passes by
the soul (”Spiritual Canticle”, 23, 6) and the things said here help us to see the
relationship between the soul and God as a love story. St Thérèse of Lisieux men-
tions Ezekiel in this connexion: “I was at the most troubling age for girls. But the
Lord passed by, and did for me as he said he would do, in the words of the pro-
phet Ezekiel: ‘When he passed by me, Jesus saw that I was at the age for love.
He pledged his troth to me, and I became his
He wrapped his cloak about me,
and anointed me with perfume; he dressed me in embroidered cloth and silk, and
gave me gold and silver and precious jewels to wear ... He gave me fine flour and
honey and oil to eat ... and I grew more and more beautiful, until I was like a
queen ...’ (cf. Ezek 16:6-13). Jesus did all these things for me. I could repeat,
again, all the words that I have just written, and show how he has fulfilled each,
one by one, in me. But all the graces that I have referred to elsewhere are proof
enough” (”Autobiographical Writings”, 5, 47, r).
“You trusted in your beauty, and played the harlot” (v. 15): breaking away from
God, particularly the sin of idolatry, was called prostitution by the prophets who
used marriage as a metaphor for the Covenant (cf. Hos 2:18-25; Jer 2:2-3). Ezek-
iel accentuates the features of this sin by pointing out that, instead of being paid
for her harlotry, Jerusalem took the initiative: she gave herself over to her lovers,
that is, other gods, and, worse still, presented to them the finery that the Lord
had bestowed on her (v. 33): that was how Jerusalem behaved towards Egypt (v.
26), Assyria (v. 28) and Babylon (v. 29). The prophet shows that, since Jerusa-
lem’s history could not have been worse, it would be difficult to devise a punish-
ment fitted to such a crime. However, while spelling out the whole charge, Eze-
kiel is able to see the wonderful rehabilitation that will take place once her pu-
nishment is over.
Some of the things he says have been read as a prophecy about Christ: “The
Daughter of Sion did not repay the Lord for the gifts she received from his bounty.
The Father washed her clean with his blood; she covered his son with spittle. He
dressed her in the purple robes of kings; she wrapped him in a rag woven from
jibes and jeers. He crowned her with glory; she crowned him with thorns. He gave
her milk and honey to eat; she gave him gall to drink. He poured out pure wine for
her; she handed him a sponge dipped in vinegar. He made her welcome in his ci-
ties; she cast him out into the wilderness. He clothed her feet in sandals; she
made him limp barefoot to Golgotha. He gave her a sapphire brooch to wear on
her breast; she pierced his side with a spear. When she committed outrages a-
gainst the servants of God and killed the prophets, and endured exile in Babylon
as a punishment, he led her home to freedom when the day of her chastisement
was ended” (St Ephraem of Nisibi, “Commentarii in Diatessaron”, 18, 1).
Pseudo-Macanus, for his part, applies this text of Ezekiel to every Christian soul
that has been unfaithful to divine grace. After quoting and making a précis of 16:
6-15, he exclaims: “Thus does the Spirit reprove the soul who, by his grace, had
come to know God; the soul who had been forgiven all his past sins, and adorned
with the precious gifts of the Holy Spirit, and given divine and heavenly food to eat;
the soul who, in spite of his knowledge of the Lord, turned his back on righteous
living, and was cast out of the life in which he had once rejoiced because his
deeds were not just, and he was judged lacking in love for Christ, his heavenly
spouse” (”Homiliae spirituals”, 15, 4).
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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.
From: Matthew 19:3-12
Marriage and Virginity
[10] The disciples said to Him, “If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is
not expedient to marry.” [11] But He said to them, “Not all men can receive this
precept, but only those to whom it is given. [12] For there are eunuchs who have
been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by men,
and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the
Kingdom of Heaven. He who is able to receive this, let him receive it.”
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Commentary:
4-5. “Marriage and married love are by nature ordered to the procreation and edu-
cation of children. Indeed children are the supreme gift of marriage and greatly
contribute to the good of the parents themselves. God Himself said: ‘It is not good
that man should be alone’ (Genesis 2:18), and ‘from the beginning (He) made them
male and female’ (Matthew 19:4); wishing to associate them in a special way with
his own creative work, God blessed man and woman with the words: ‘Be fruitful
and multiply’ (Genesis 1:28). Without intending to underestimate the other ends
of marriage, it must be said that true married life and the whole structure of family
life which results from it is directed to disposing the spouses to cooperate valiant-
ly with the love of the Creator and Savior, who through them will increase and en-
rich His family from day to day” (Vatican II, “Gaudium Et Spes”, 50).
9. Our Lord’s teaching on the unity and indissolubility of marriage is the main
theme of this passage, apropos of which St. John Chrysostom comments that
marriage is a lifelong union of man and woman (cf. “Hom. on St. Matthew”, 62).
On the meaning of “except for unchastity”, see the note on Matthew 5:31-32).
11. “Not all men can receive this precept”: our Lord is fully aware that the de-
mands involved in His teaching on marriage and His recommendation of celiba-
cy practised out of love of God run counter to human selfishness. That is why
He says that acceptance of this teaching is a gift from God.
12. Our Lord speaks figuratively here, referring to those who, out of love for Him,
renounce marriage and offer their lives completely to Him. Virginity embraced for
the love of God is one of the Church’s most precious charisms (cf. 1 Corinthians
7); the lives of those who practise virginity evoke the state of the blessed in Hea-
ven, who are like the angels (cf. Matthew 22:30). This is why the Church’s Magis-
terium teaches that the state of virginity for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven is
higher than the married state (cf. Council of Trent, “De Sacram. Matr.”, can. 10;
cf. also Pius XII, “Sacra Virginitas”). On virginity and celibacy the Second Vati-
can Council teaches: “The Church’s holiness is also fostered in a special way by
the manifold counsels which the Lord proposes to His disciples in the Gospel for
them to observe. Towering among these counsels is that precious gift of divine
grace given to some by the Father (cf. Matthew 19:11; 1 Corinthians 7:7) to de-
vote themselves to God alone more easily in virginity or celibacy [...]. This per-
fect continence for love of the Kingdom of Heaven has always been held in high
esteem by the Church as a sign and stimulus of love, and as a singular source
of spiritual fertility in the world” (”Lumen Gentium”, 42; cf. “Perfectae Caritatis”,
12). And, on celibacy specifically, see Vatican II’s “Presbyterorum Ordinis”, 16
and “Optatam Totius”, 10.
However, both virginity and marriage are necessary for the growth of the Church,
and both imply a specific calling from God: “Celibacy is precisely a gift of the
Spirit. A similar though different gift is contained in the vocation to true and faith-
ful married love, directed towards procreation according to the flesh, in the very
lofty context of the sacrament of Matrimony. It is obvious that this gift is funda-
mental for the building up of the great community of the Church, the people of
God. But if this community wishes to respond fully to its vocation in Jesus Christ,
there will also have to be realized in it, in the correct proportion, that other gift,
the gift of celibacy ‘for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven’” (Bl. John Paul II,
“Letter To All Priests”, 1979).
*********************************************************************************************
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.
Liturgical Colour: Green.
First reading |
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Ezekiel 16:1-15,60,63 © |
I clothed you with my own splendour but you made yourself a prostitute |
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Alternative First reading |
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Ezekiel 16:59-63 © |
I will renew my covenant with you and you will learn that I am the Lord |
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Responsorial Psalm | Isaiah 12 © |
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The rejoicing of a redeemed people |
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Gospel Acclamation | Ps110:7,8 |
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Or: | cf.1Th2:13 |
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Gospel | Matthew 19:3-12 © |
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Husband and wife are no longer two, but one body |
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Matthew | |||
English: Douay-Rheims | Latin: Vulgata Clementina | Greek NT: Byzantine/Majority Text (2000) | |
Matthew 19 |
|||
3. | And there came to him the Pharisees tempting him, and saying: Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? | Et accesserunt ad eum pharisæi tentantes eum, et dicentes : Si licet homini dimittere uxorem suam, quacumque ex causa ? | και προσηλθον αυτω οι φαρισαιοι πειραζοντες αυτον και λεγοντες αυτω ει εξεστιν ανθρωπω απολυσαι την γυναικα αυτου κατα πασαν αιτιαν |
4. | Who answering, said to them: Have ye not read, that he who made man from the beginning, Made them male and female? And he said: | Qui respondens, ait eis : Non legistis, quia qui fecit hominem ab initio, masculum et feminam fecit eos ? Et dixit : | ο δε αποκριθεις ειπεν αυτοις ουκ ανεγνωτε οτι ο ποιησας απ αρχης αρσεν και θηλυ εποιησεν αυτους |
5. | For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they two shall be in one flesh. | Propter hoc dimittet homo patrem, et matrem, et adhærebit uxori suæ, et erunt duo in carne una. | και ειπεν ενεκεν τουτου καταλειψει ανθρωπος τον πατερα [αυτου] και την μητερα και προσκολληθησεται τη γυναικι αυτου και εσονται οι δυο εις σαρκα μιαν |
6. | Therefore now they are not two, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let no man put asunder. | Itaque jam non sunt duo, sed una caro. Quod ergo Deus conjunxit, homo non separet. | ωστε ουκετι εισιν δυο αλλα σαρξ μια ο ουν ο θεος συνεζευξεν ανθρωπος μη χωριζετω |
7. | They say to him: Why then did Moses command to give a bill of divorce, and to put away? | Dicunt illi : Quid ergo Moyses mandavit dare libellum repudii, et dimittere ? | λεγουσιν αυτω τι ουν μωσης ενετειλατο δουναι βιβλιον αποστασιου και απολυσαι αυτην |
8. | He saith to them: Because Moses by reason of the hardness of your heart permitted you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. | Ait illis : Quoniam Moyses ad duritiam cordis vestri permisit vobis dimittere uxores vestras : ab initio autem non fuit sic. | λεγει αυτοις οτι μωσης προς την σκληροκαρδιαν υμων επετρεψεν υμιν απολυσαι τας γυναικας υμων απ αρχης δε ου γεγονεν ουτως |
9. | And I say to you, that whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, committeth adultery: and he that shall marry her that is put away, committeth adultery. | Dico autem vobis, quia quicumque dimiserit uxorem suam, nisi ob fornicationem, et aliam duxerit, mchatur : et qui dimissam duxerit, mchatur. | λεγω δε υμιν οτι ος αν απολυση την γυναικα αυτου μη επι πορνεια και γαμηση αλλην μοιχαται και ο απολελυμενην γαμησας μοιχαται |
10. | His disciples say unto him: If the case of a man with his wife be so, it is not expedient to marry. | Dicunt ei discipuli ejus : Si ita est causa hominis cum uxore, non expedit nubere. | λεγουσιν αυτω οι μαθηται αυτου ει ουτως εστιν η αιτια του ανθρωπου μετα της γυναικος ου συμφερει γαμησαι |
11. | Who said to them: All men take not this word, but they to whom it is given. | Qui dixit illis : Non omnes capiunt verbum istud, sed quibus datum est. | ο δε ειπεν αυτοις ου παντες χωρουσιν τον λογον τουτον αλλ οις δεδοται |
12. | For there are eunuchs, who were born so from their mother's womb: and there are eunuchs, who were made so by men: and there are eunuchs, who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven. He that can take, let him take it. | Sunt enim eunuchi, qui de matris utero sic nati sunt : et sunt eunuchi, qui facti sunt ab hominibus : et sunt eunuchi, qui seipsos castraverunt propter regnum cælorum. Qui potest capere capiat. | εισιν γαρ ευνουχοι οιτινες εκ κοιλιας μητρος εγεννηθησαν ουτως και εισιν ευνουχοι οιτινες ευνουχισθησαν υπο των ανθρωπων και εισιν ευνουχοι οιτινες ευνουχισαν εαυτους δια την βασιλειαν των ουρανων ο δυναμενος χωρειν χωρειτω |
Pray for Pope Francis.
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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.
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]
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
+
August Devotion -- The Immaculate Heart [of Mary]
Since the 16th century Catholic piety has assigned entire months to special devotions. The month of August is traditionally dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. The physical heart of Mary is venerated (and not adored as the Sacred Heart of Jesus is) because it is united to her person: and as the seat of her love (especially for her divine Son), virtue, and inner life. Such devotion is an incentive to a similar love and virtue.
This devotion has received new emphasis in this century from the visions given to Lucy Dos Santos, oldest of the visionaries of Fatima, in her convent in Tuy, in Spain, in 1925 and 1926. In the visions Our Lady asked for the practice of the Five First Saturdays to help make amends for the offenses given to her heart by the blasphemies and ingratitude of men. The practice parallels the devotion of the Nine First Fridays in honor of the Sacred Heart.
On October 31, 1942, Pope Pius XII made a solemn Act of Consecration of the Church and the whole world to the Immaculate Heart. Let us remember this devotion year-round, but particularly through the month of August.
INVOCATIONS
O heart most pure of the Blessed Virgin Mary, obtain for me from Jesus a pure and humble heart.
Sweet heart of Mary, be my salvation.
ACT OF CONSECRATION
Queen of the most holy Rosary, help of Christians, refuge of the human race, victorious in all the battles of God, we prostrate ourselves in supplication before thy throne, in the sure hope of obtaining mercy and of receiving grace and timely aid in our present calamities, not through any merits of our own, on which we do not rely, but only through the immense goodness of thy mother's heart. In thee and in thy Immaculate Heart, at this grave hour of human history, do we put our trust; to thee we consecrate ourselves, not only with all of Holy Church, which is the mystical body of thy Son Jesus, and which is suffering in so many of her members, being subjected to manifold tribulations and persecutions, but also with the whole world, torn by discords, agitated with hatred, the victim of its own iniquities. Be thou moved by the sight of such material and moral degradation, such sorrows, such anguish, so many tormented souls in danger of eternal loss! Do thou, O Mother of mercy, obtain for us from God a Christ-like reconciliation of the nations, as well as those graces which can convert the souls of men in an instant, those graces which prepare the way and make certain the long desired coming of peace on earth. O Queen of peace, pray for us, and grant peace unto the world in the truth, the justice, and the charity of Christ.
Above all, give us peace in our hearts, so that the kingdom of God may spread its borders in the tranquillity of order. Accord thy protection to unbelievers and to all those who lie within the shadow of death; cause the Sun of Truth to rise upon them; may they be enabled to join with us in repeating before the Savior of the world: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will."
Give peace to the nations that are separated from us by error or discord, and in a special manner to those peoples who profess a singular devotion toward thee; bring them back to Christ's one fold, under the one true Shepherd. Obtain full freedom for the holy Church of God; defend her from her enemies; check the ever-increasing torrent of immorality; arouse in the faithful a love of purity, a practical Christian life, and an apostolic zeal, so that the multitude of those who serve God may increase in merit and in number.
Finally, even as the Church and all mankind were once consecrated to the Heart of thy Son Jesus, because He was for all those who put their hope in Him an inexhaustible source of victory and salvation, so in like manner do we consecrate ourselves forever to thee also and to thy Immaculate Heart, O Mother of us and Queen of the world; may thy love and patronage hasten the day when the kingdom of God shall be victorious and all the nations, at peace with God .and with one another, shall call thee blessed and intone with thee, from the rising of the sun to its going down, the everlasting "Magnificat" of glory, of love, of gratitude to the Heart of Jesus, in which alone we can find truth, life, and peace. Pope Pius XII
IN HONOR OF THE IMMACULATE HEART
O heart of Mary, mother of God, and our mother; heart most worthy of love, in which the adorable Trinity is ever well-pleased, worthy of the veneration and love of all the angels and of all men; heart most like to the Heart of Jesus, of which thou art the perfect image; heart, full of goodness, ever compassionate toward our miseries; deign to melt our icy hearts and grant that they may be wholly changed into the likeness of the Heart of Jesus, our divine Savior. Pour into them the love of thy virtues, enkindle in them that divine fire with which thou thyself dost ever burn. In thee let Holy Church find a safe shelter; protect her and be her dearest refuge, her tower of strength, impregnable against every assault of her enemies. Be thou the way which leads to Jesus, and the channel, through which we receive all the graces needful for our salvation. Be our refuge in time of trouble, our solace in the midst of trial, our strength against temptation, our haven in persecution, our present help in every danger, and especially) at the hour of death, when all hell shall let loose against u its legions to snatch away our souls, at that dread moment; that hour so full of fear, whereon our eternity depends. An,; then most tender virgin, make us to feel the sweetness of thy motherly heart, and the might of thine intercession with Jesus, and open to us a safe refuge in that very fountain of mercy, whence we may come to praise Him with thee in paradise, world without end. 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
Sacred Heart Of Jesus |
Immaculate Heart of Mary |
Blessed be the Most Loving Heart and Sweet Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the most glorious Virgin Mary, His Mother, in eternity and forever. Amen. ....Only the Heart of Christ who knows the depths of his Father's love could reveal to us the abyss of his mercy in so simple and beautiful a way ----From the Catechism. P:1439 From the depth of my nothingness, I prostrate myself before Thee, O Most Sacred, Divine and Adorable Heart of Jesus, to pay Thee all the homage of love, praise and adoration in my power. The prayer of the Church venerates and honors the Heart of Jesus just as it invokes his most holy name. It adores the incarnate Word and his Heart which, out of love for men, he allowed to be pierced by our sins. Christian prayer loves to follow the way of the cross in the Savior's steps.-- >From the Catechism. P: 2669 |
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Novena Prayer to Sacred Heart of Jesus Prayer to the Wounded Heart of Jesus Act of Consecration to the Sacred Heart |
Novena Prayer to the Immaculate Heart of Mary A Solemn Act of Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary The Daily Offering to the Immaculate Heart of Mary |
The first is that we ought to love and honor whatever God loves and honors, and that by which He is loved and glorified. Now, after the adorable Heart of Jesus there has never been either in heaven or on earth, nor ever will be, a heart which has been so loved and honored by God, or which has given Him so much glory as that of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. Never has there been, nor will there ever be a more exalted throne of divine love. In that Heart divine love possesses its fullest empire, for it ever reigns without hindrance or interruption, and with it reign likewise all the laws of God, all the Gospel maxims and every Christian virtue.
This incomparable Heart of the Mother of our Redeemer is a glorious heaven, a Paradise of delights for the Most Holy Trinity. According to St. Paul, the hearts of the faithful are the dwelling place of our Lord Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ Himself assures us that the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost take up Their abode in the hearts of those who love God. Who, therefore, can doubt that the Most Holy Trinity has always made His home and established the reign of His glory in an admirable and ineffable manner in the virginal Heart of her who is the Daughter of the Father, the Mother of the Son, the Spouse of the Holy Ghost, who herself loves God more than all other creatures together?
How much then are we not obliged to love this exalted and most lovable Heart?
St. John Eudes
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