Acts, Chapter 27, verse 22-25
22 I urge you now to keep up your courage; not
one of you will be lost, only the ship. 23 For last night an angel of the God to whom
(I) belong and whom I serve stood by me 24 and said, ‘Do not be afraid, Paul.
You are destined to stand before Caesar; and behold, for your sake, God has
granted safety to all who are sailing with you.’ 25 Therefore, keep up your courage, men; I trust in God that it will turn
out as I have been told.
God
calls all peoples to the one covenant whether they be Jew, Muslim, and Catholic
or in this case roman pagans. Courage only the ship will be lost. As men
we make ourselves ships; ships which are the symbol of our values and our
idealism. If our values and idealism is not in compliance with the covenant our
ship will break up.
Jeremiah
31:31-34: "Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a
new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant
which I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out
of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was their husband,
says the LORD. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of
Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I
will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my
people. And no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and each his brother,
saying, `Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to
the greatest, says the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will
remember their sin no more."
Love endures
Today
is my 14th wedding anniversary. On the marriage of my oldest son his
little brother was asked to say something at the reception. Vincent got up (he
is 6’6”) and while all eyes were on him stated, “First Chris called Kate and
there was the telephone ring: then there was a bond establish and the trust
ring began: then after some time came the engagement ring: and naturally
followed the wedding ring: but Chris I have to warn you that after today there
is one more ring; for now, begins the suffer ring. Pope Francis tells us about
“Love” in marriage.
Love grows from the
path of fidelity and mutual self-giving and thus encourages the growth,
strengthening and deepening of conjugal and family love. Indeed, the grace of
the sacrament of marriage is intended before all else “to perfect the couple’s
love.” Love is experienced and nurtured in the daily life of couples and their
children. Daily love strives to accomplish what Paul describes in his letter to
the Corinthians. “Love is patient, love is kind; love is not jealous or
boastful; it is not arrogant or rude. Love does not insist on its own way, it
is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrong but rejoices in the
right. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures
all things” (1 Cor 13:4-7). Love is patient which is expressed in the quality
of one who does not act on impulse and avoids giving offense. We find this
quality in the God of the Covenant, who calls us to imitate him also within the
life of the family. God’s “patience”, shown in his mercy towards sinners, is a
sign of his real power. Being patient does not mean letting ourselves be
constantly mistreated, tolerating physical aggression or allowing other people
to use us. Unless we cultivate an understanding and patience of others; we will
always find excuses for responding angrily. We will end up incapable of living
together, antisocial, unable to control our impulses, and our families will
become battlegrounds. Patience takes root when I recognize that other people
also have a right to live in this world, just as they are. Love is always at
the service of others. Paul wants to make it clear that “patience” is not a
completely passive attitude, but one accompanied by activity, by a dynamic and
creative interaction with others. The word indicates that love benefits and
helps others. For this reason, it is translated as “kind”; love is ever ready
to be of assistance. Love is more than a mere feeling. Rather, it should be
understood along the lines of the Hebrew verb “to love”; it is “to do good” for
the other.
Although Saint Anne is
not mentioned in the Bible, she is the holy mother of Mary and grandmother of
Jesus. When we pray the St. Anne Novena, we are asking help from our Blessed
Mother’s mother! Saint Anne’s feast day is on July 26th, so the St. Anne Novena
is traditionally started on July 17th — but you can pray it anytime. Devotion
to St. Anne began early in the history of the Catholic Church. As she was
favored by God to become the mother of the holy Virgin Mary, she is often
invoked as the Patron of mothers as well as for relationships, among other
things.
Daily Prayer to Saint Ann
O glorious St. Ann, you are filled with compassion for those
who invoke you and with love for those who suffer! Heavily burdened with the
weight of my troubles, I cast myself at your feet and humbly beg of you to take
the present intention which I recommend to you in your special care.
Please recommend it to your daughter, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and place it before the throne of Jesus, so that He may bring it to a happy issue. Continue to intercede for me until my request is granted. But, above all, obtain for me the grace one day to see my God face to face, and with you and Mary and all the saints to praise and bless Him for all eternity. Amen.
Please recommend it to your daughter, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and place it before the throne of Jesus, so that He may bring it to a happy issue. Continue to intercede for me until my request is granted. But, above all, obtain for me the grace one day to see my God face to face, and with you and Mary and all the saints to praise and bless Him for all eternity. Amen.
Our Father, . . . Hail Mary . . .
O Jesus, Holy Mary, St. Ann, help me now and at the hour of
my death. Good St. Ann, intercede for me.
Dear St. Ann, though I
am but a prodigal child, I appeal to you and place myself under your great
motherly care. Please listen to my prayers and grant my requests. See my
contrite heart and show me your unfailing goodness.
Deign to be my advocate
and recommend me to God’s infinite mercy. Obtain for me forgiveness of my sins
and the strength to begin a new life that will last forever.
Blessed St. Ann, I also
beg of you the grace to love, to serve, and to honor your daughter, the most
holy Virgin Mary. Please recommend me to her and pray to her for me. She
refuses none your requests but welcomes with loving kindness all those for whom
you intercede.
Good Jesus be merciful
to the faithful servants of Your grandmother St. Ann.
Take
care you remain tranquil and do not fear
"Read
these counsels slowly. Pause to meditate on these thoughts. They are things
that I whisper in your ear-confiding them-as a friend, as a brother, as a
father. And they are being heard by God. I won't tell you anything new. I will
only stir your memory, so that some thought will arise and strike you; and so
you will better your life and set out along ways of prayer and of Love. And in
the end you will be a more worthy soul."
15.
You say that you can’t do more?
Could it not be that…you can’t do less?
Daily Devotions
·
Please
pray for me and this ministry
·
Please
Pray for Senator
McCain and our country; asking Our Lady of Beauraing to
intercede.
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