SAINT VINCENT OF SARAGOSSA-ROE vs. WADE
5 He gives food
to those who fear him, he remembers his covenant forever.
This is
probably a reference to the manna in the desert, which elsewhere is seen as a
type of the Eucharist.
I became acquainted with Saint Vincent during a time I was suffering with a half inch burst in the last disk in my back. I was almost paralyzed, and the pain was intense with a burning sensation below the knee on my left leg. I was considering treatment using a VAC-D table that was then a new treatment, yet I was hesitant. After reading the story of St. Vincent I asked for his help with my struggle-it then occurred to me to go get stretched on the rack, which VAC-D resembles as St. Vincent was. After 25 treatments my disk is now been healed and I have recovered to 90% before the rupture. I thank the intersession of St. Vincent.
Vincent of Saragossa was one of the Church's three most illustrious deacons, the other two being Stephen and Lawrence. He is also Spain's most renowned martyr. Ordained deacon by Bishop Valerius of Saragossa, he was taken in chains to Valencia during the Diocletian persecution and put to death. From legend we have the following details of his martyrdom. After brutal scourging in the presence of many witnesses, he was stretched on the rack; but neither torture nor blandishments nor threats could undermine the strength and courage of his faith. Next, he was cast on a heated grating, lacerated with iron hooks, and seared with hot metal plates. Then he was returned to prison, where the floor was heavily strewn with pieces of broken glass. A heavenly brightness flooded the entire dungeon, filling all who saw it with greatest awe.
After this he was placed on a soft bed in the hope that lenient treatment would induce apostasy, since torture had proven ineffective. But strengthened by faith in Christ Jesus and the hope of everlasting life, Vincent maintained an invincible spirit and overcame all efforts, whether by fire, sword, rack, or torture to induce defection. He persevered to the end and gained the heavenly crown of martyrdom.
Roe vs. Wade[2] Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children
January 22 is the anniversary of Roe v. Wade and the day established by the Church of penance for abortion, has been formally named as the “Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children.” On this day your parish, school or religious formation program may celebrate the Mass for Giving Thanks to God for the Gift of Human Life. This Mass, found in our newly-translated Missal, may now be used on occasions to celebrate the dignity of human life. In addition to this special Mass on this day, perhaps your parish, school or religious formation program could encourage traditional forms of penance, host pro-life and chastity speakers, lead informative projects that will directly build up the culture of life, show a pro-life film, raise funds for local crisis pregnancy centers or offer additional prayer services.
WASHINGTON–Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan of New York, chair of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) Committee on Pro-Life Activities, thanked and praised the House of Representatives for passing the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act January 20, 2018 with a bi-partisan vote of 241-183.
"As Chairman of the United States Bishops' Committee, I offer gratitude and praise to the House of Representatives for passing the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act (H.R. 4712). This common-sense legislation offers a simple and widely supported proposition: a child born alive following an abortion should receive the same degree of care to preserve her life and health as would be given to any other child born alive at the same gestational age. I call on the Senate to pass this bill as well and ensure that the lethal mentality of Roe does not claim new victims – vulnerable human beings struggling for their lives outside the womb."
Attend Mass today.
Celebration
of Life Day[3] is when we take a
step back and truly appreciate our children and grandchildren. Granted, some
may do this on an everyday basis, but it’s an opportunity to look at our young
ones’ lives from a different angle, think about what it is that makes them
truly special, and of course, to lavish treats upon them if we so wish, be it
an ice cream or a trip to Disneyland. It can be easy to forget that our
children and grandchildren are people in their own right. You’ve helped them to
discover themselves over the years, but you can’t take all the credit. Their
life choices are ultimately down to them; sometimes they’ll do you proud, and
other times, as is the case with us all, they’ll make mistakes. So be the one
who’s there to offer congratulations, or encouragement to pick themselves up
when they fall. And above all else, as cheesy as it may sound, show that you
love them.
The Love of Life[4]
Love
is not merely a feeling but is rather the desire for the best possible good for
those whom we love. Through our natural intelligence and through Divine
Revelation we become aware of the value of this most basic of all gifts which
is life. Mere reason leads us to comprehend that it is better to be alive than
never have had been in existence. The knowledge of the value of life that comes
through revelation leads us to understand better this gift and to appreciate
it: as a result, we worship and love more and more the Giver of this gift. This
love is what moves us to protect the life of the unborn or any who might be
unjustly treated. We are also led to protect women that might feel tempted or
forced to commit abortion, as we know the devastating consequences that
abortion will have in their lives. Last but not least we have to love, even if
most of them seem to be utterly unlovable, the many perpetrators of abortion:
medical personnel, and pro-abortion activists and politicians. We have to do
everything that we can to convince them of their errors so that they repent and
change their ways, both for their own benefit and for the benefit of society.
All human beings are created in the image and likeness of God. Using a
traditional scholastic term, we can state that He is the exemplary cause of
every human being, in other words, He is the model on which all human beings
are created. He looked upon himself and wished that other beings would share in
His own happiness. So, if we reflect upon ourselves, we can begin to understand
our participation in the greatness of our Creator. This participation on His
greatness leads us to comprehend that He has brought us out of nothing with a
purpose, because knowing His intelligence and His loving nature it is clear
that all His actions are always guided by a magnificent purpose. The first
intention for which He has created us is that we should enjoy for an eternity
His loving company in Heaven. All human persons are called to this eternal and
loving company, no one is excluded, save those who, through their own actions,
exclude themselves. This manner of creation brings us to understand the unique
essential dignity of every human being. A dignity that is not lost for any
deprivation of the many external perfections that we might expect to find in a
human person. A person might be born with a disability, or may suffer
disability through injury or disease, but these deprivations do not affect his
basic dignity. A Christian also has the hope that one day when the doors of
Paradise will be opened for those children, all their human imperfections will
be healed, and they will enjoy forever the beatific vision that we all long
for. We are also created to be collaborators in the salvation of the World. The
Lord normally does not intervene directly in the world; He does it through our
free collaboration in his plans of salvation. He gives to us the saving truths
through Holy Scripture, our natural reason and the mediation of the Church and
we have to manifest them in our daily lives. If we love those truths, we should
be impelled to share them with all whom the Lord places in front of us. So,
when we speak with love and conviction of those truths, we cannot be accused of
carrying out an exaggerated rhetoric when we defend human life from its
biological beginning until natural death. Nobody in his right mind can call it
"vitriolic rhetoric" when we denounce that millions upon millions of
unborn babies have been killed in the womb in the U.S. and in the rest of the
world. It is literally a question of life and death, for the victim, for the
mother of the baby and for the perpetrator of abortion, assisted suicide or
euthanasia. The victim will have his earthly life terminated; the mother will
suffer greatly for her actions, and the perpetrator and the mother will live
under the shadow of the unhappiness of having rejected the loving truths of
their Creator and certainly they will place their eternal salvation in
jeopardy. Our main solidarity has to be always with the victim of the crime,
because if the conscience of the nation is not moved by this growing injustice,
we know that a growing number will be victimized in the future. Our solidarity
is also with the mothers of those babies because often they have been misled or
forced into committing this terrible action.
Last but not least
we wish and pray that all abortionists will understand the terrible
consequences of their actions and be converted.
Bishops weight in
on the wall
“Today more than ever, our societies need
‘artisans of peace’ who can be messengers and authentic witnesses of God the
Father, who wills the good and the happiness of the human family.”[6]
·
Political
leaders must come together to ensure a bipartisan solution is reached which
recognizes the economic struggle that many families are facing including those
dependent on federal workers and those assisted by critical nutrition and
housing programs.
·
We
are encouraged by the President’s openness to providing legislative relief for
Temporary Protected Status (TPS) holders and existing Deferred Action for Childhood
Arrival (DACA) recipients. However, we understand that the President’s proposal
would only provide temporary relief, leaving many in a continued vulnerable
state.
·
We
believe that a permanent legislative solution for TPS holders and for all
Dreamers is vital.
·
Moreover,
the proposal calls for the construction of a wall along the U.S. border with
Mexico, a proposal that our brother bishops on both sides of the U.S. border
with Mexico oppose, and it suggests changes in current law that would make it
more difficult for unaccompanied children and asylum seekers to access
protection.
·
Throughout
our parishes, there are many DACA youth and TPS holders, who have lived
substantial parts of their lives in the U.S. contributing to this country.
·
We
listen and understand the fear and uncertainty they and their families face and
the anguish that they are currently experiencing as their existing immigration
protections hang in the balance and come to an end.
·
Temporary
relief will not ease those fears or quell that anxiety. It is for this reason
that we have long advocated for comprehensive immigration reform; reform that
will provide permanent solutions:
o
including
border security,
o
protection
for vulnerable unaccompanied children
o
and asylum seekers,
o
and
a defined path to citizenship to enable our immigrant brothers and sisters to
fully contribute to our society.
All men are called by God to be husbandmen. Some are
called to the priesthood and they may hear Christ saying to them:
Follow
me, and I will make you fishers of men. (Mt. 4:19)
Others are called to the single life and they may
serve the Lord via their work and there are those who are called to the married
life but all are husbandmen. What makes a good husbandman?
Let us look at St. Joseph as an example of a good
husbandman.
·
St.
Joseph in all his dealings was humble.
·
He
was the provider and protector of Mary and Jesus
·
full
of zeal and great courage,
·
Obedient to the will of
God. Yet he was not rash; and with prudence
pondered
·
His
decisions trusting in divine providence.
·
He
was a model of workers and
·
an
example of married life and chaste love.
·
He
valued prayer and the hidden life.
·
He
was ready for the call of a neighbor
or to the call of God;
·
He
gave an immediate response.
·
His
was a life of sacrifice; his was a life
of simplicity.
To be a good husbandman is to:
“Do the ordinary in an
extraordinary way.”
9 Days for
Life is a "digital pilgrimage" of prayer and action focused on
cherishing the gift of every person's life. A multi-faceted novena highlighting
a different intention each day provides reflections, bonus information, and
suggested actions. Join to receive the novena through the 9 Days for Life
app, daily emails, or daily texts. See below for information on how else you
can get involved! #9DaysforLife
#OurPrayersMatter
Day Nine:
Intercession: May the tragic practice of abortion come
to an end.
Prayers: Our Father, 3
Hail Marys, Glory Be
Reflection: Today,
on this 46th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, we mourn the many children’s
lives ended by abortion and remember in prayer those who suffer the aftermath.
The Church comes together today to pray for the protection of all unborn children
and to make reparation for abortion, trusting that the Lord hears our prayers. Pope
Saint John Paul II wrote, “A great prayer for life is urgently needed, a prayer
which will rise up throughout the world. Through special initiatives and in
daily prayer, may an impassioned plea rise to God, the Creator and lover of
life, from every Christian community, from every group and association, from
every family and from the heart of every believer” (Evangelium vitae,
100). May that prayer arise in our hearts today and each day forward until
every human being is protected in law and welcomed in life.
Acts of Reparation (Choose
one.)
·
Abstain
from snacking today. Eat three meals only.
·
Learn
how to pray the Angelus (www.usccb.org/angelus),
and consider saying it every day for the next week—on awakening, at noon, or at
6 p.m. (or all three times).
·
Offer
some other sacrifice, prayer, or act of penance that you feel called to do for
today’s intention.
Types of Suffering in the Family
95. Original sin is a partial cause of particular
sufferings for the family, including infertility, sickness, disability, and
death. I know that families struggle in their care for ailing children,
spouses, and aging grandparents. I see when parents feel deeply the suffering
of a handicapped child. There are many who long for a child but cannot have one
of their own. Family members grieve deeply when a child or parent is
prematurely called home.
96. Another kind of suffering is felt through the
collective sin of the culture of death. I realize that it is a very real and
difficult struggle for parents to raise faithful, spiritually confident
children in a society steeped in sins against life and authentic love: where
abortion is rampant and support for euthanasia grows, where despair and the
violence it breeds explode in schools and neighborhoods, where consumerism and
materialism enslave, where pornography invades every formerly safe and sacred
aspect of life, where increasing numbers of children are encouraged to question
their sexual identity in the wake of the lie of gender ideology, and where the
damaging and perverse homosexual lifestyle is not only accepted but celebrated.
Families of faith, the Church desires to be your support and guide as you
navigate daily life in the hostility of the post-modern climate.
97. Where the clergy and even elevated shepherds of
the Church have failed you in this, I am truly sorry. In this time of upheaval
in our Church, when stories of abuse and cover-up remind us of the devastation
of sin even within the most sacred of institutions, know that I share your
anger and pain—whether you have been directly or indirectly affected by such
violations of vows and trust. This is a tremendous cross and one we carry
together, with Christ.
98. Today, nearly all families live in a world of
extreme busyness, where countless activities—even good and wholesome ones—sap
energy and time and leave families drained and disconnected. The legitimate
need to provide materially for the family is, for some of you, another source
of suffering. Increasingly, mothers find themselves nearly forced to spend more
time outside the home to help provide for the family. Exhaustion can lead to
difficulty in being not only physically present but also emotionally available
to the family. Single parents especially may find themselves stretched to the
limits of their emotional, physical, and material capability. Military families
struggle with prolonged absences and long stretches of anxiety and loneliness.
99. A related suffering comes from the excessive use
of technology. Increasingly, preoccupation with media finds families exchanging
a relational existence for a virtual one. Addiction to screens severs the bonds
of intimacy and love in the inner circle of the family. Loneliness breeds
loneliness. Left alone, even while home together, family members may find themselves
turning more and more to shallow entertainment. Children and parents are left
lonely in their own homes.
100. St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta challenges us: “Do you know the poor
of your own home first? Maybe in your home there is somebody who is feeling
lonely, very unwanted, very handicapped. Maybe your husband, your wife, or your
child is lonely. Do you know that? Today we have no time even to look at each
other, to talk to each other, to enjoy each other...And so less and less we are
in touch with each other. The world is lost for want of sweetness and kindness.
People are starving for love because everybody is in such a great rush.”
"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."
You are going to punish yourself voluntarily for your weakness and
lack of generosity? Very good: but let it be a reasonable penance, imposed as
it were, on an enemy who is at the same time your brother?
Daily
Devotions
[1]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2017-01-23
[4]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2018-01-22
[5]http://www.usccb.org/news/2019/19-017.cfm
[6]http://www.usccb.org/news/2019/19-014.cfm
[8]http://www.usccb.org/about/pro-life-activities/january-roe-events/nine-days-of-prayer-penance-and-pilgrimage.cfm
[9]https://family.dphx.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/12/2018-Complete-My-Joy-Apostolic-Exhortation-English.pdf
[10]http://www.escrivaworks.org/book/the_way-point-1.htm
No comments:
Post a Comment