This blog is based on references in the Bible to fear. God wills that we “BE NOT AFRAID”. Many theologians state that the eighth deadly sin is fear. It is fear and its natural animal reaction to fight or flight that is the root cause of our failings to create a Kingdom of God on earth. By “the power of the Holy Spirit” we can be witnesses and “communicators” of a new and redeemed humanity “even to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:7 8). This blog is dedicated to Mary the Mother of God.
Saturday, November 21, 2020
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DAY 13 - MOTHER OF OUR CREATOR, PRAY THAT WE RECEIVE THE GIFT OF KNOWLEDGE!
GOD'S WORD
"An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge." (Proverbs 18:15)
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." (Proverbs 1:7)
HEROES' WORDS
"We judge all things according to the divine truth." -St. Augustine
"A scrap of knowledge about sublime things is worth more than any amount about trivialities." -St. Thomas Aquinas
"There are some who desire knowledge merely for its own sake; and that is shameful curiosity. And there are others who desire to know, in order that they may themselves be known; and that is vanity, disgraceful too. Others again, desire knowledge in order to acquire money or preferment by it; that too is a discreditable quest. But there are also some who desire knowledge, that they may build up the souls of others with it and that is charity. Others, again, desire it that they may themselves be built up thereby; and that is prudence. Of all these types, only the last two put knowledge to the right use." -St. Bernard
MEDITATION
The Gift of Knowledge: One of the seven infused gifts. By the illuminating action of the Holy Spirit it perfects the virtue of faith. It gives a person the ability to judge everything from a supernatural viewpoint. The object of this gift is the whole spectrum of created things insofar as they lead one to God. Through infused knowledge the faithful can see the providential purpose of whatever enters their lives, and they are able to put creatures to the right use according to God's will for themselves and for others. Sometimes called "the science of the saints," it enables those who have the gift to discern easily and effectively between the impulses of temptation and the inspirations of grace. (Fr. John Hardon, Modern Catholic Dictionary).
PRAY A ROSARY
Choose either:
Rosary of the Day: Joyful Mysteries
Traditional 54 Day Rotation: Joyful Mysteries
PRAYERS FOR TRADITIONAL 54 DAY NOVENA
THE JOYFUL MYSTERIES OF THE HOLY ROSARY
Prayer before the recitation: Sign of the cross. Hail Mary.
In petition (first 27 days): Hail, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, my Mother Mary, hail! At thy feet I humbly kneel to offer thee a Crown of Roses, snow white buds to remind thee of thy joys, each bud recalling to thee a holy mystery, each 10 bound together with my petition for a particular grace. O Holy Queen, dispenser of God's graces, and Mother of all who invoke thee, thou canst not look upon my gift and fail to see its binding. As thou receivest my gift, so wilt thou receive my petition; from thy bounty thou wilt give me the favor I so earnestly and trustingly seek. I despair of nothing that I ask of thee. Show thyself my Mother!
In thanksgiving (last 27 days): Hail, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, my Mother Mary, hail! At thy feet I gratefully kneel to offer thee a Crown of Roses snow white buds to remind thee of thy joys each bud recalling to thee a holy mystery; each ten bound together with my petition for a particular grace. O Holy Queen, Dispenser of God's graces. and Mother of all who invoke thee! thou canst not look upon my gift and fail to see its binding. As thou receivest my gift, so wilt thou receive my thanksgiving; from thy bounty thou hast given me the favor I so earnestly and trustingly sought. I despaired not of what I asked of thee, and thou hast truly shown thyself my Mother.
Say: The Apostles' Creed, Our Father, 3 Hail Marys, Glory Be.
The Annunciation - Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, Glory Be.
Concluding Prayer: I bind these snow-white buds with a petition for the virtue of humility and humbly lay this bouquet at thy feet.
The Visitation - Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, Glory Be.
Concluding Prayer: I bind these snow-white buds with a petition for the virtue of charity and humbly lay this bouquet at thy feet.
The Nativity - Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, Glory Be.
Concluding Prayer: I bind these snow-white buds with a petition for the virtue of detachment from the world and humbly lay this bouquet at thy feet.
The Presentation - Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, Glory Be.
Concluding Prayer: I bind these snow-white buds with a petition for the virtue of purity and humbly lay this bouquet at thy feet.
Finding the Child Jesus in the Temple - Our Father, 10 Hail Marys, Glory Be.
Concluding Prayer: I bind these snow-white buds with a petition for the virtue of obedience to the will of God and humbly lay this bouquet at thy feet.
Say: The Hail Holy Queen.
Spiritual Communion: My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot at this moment receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.
In petition (first 27 days): Sweet Mother Mary, I offer thee this spiritual communion to bind my bouquets in a wreath to place upon thy brow. O my Mother! Look with favor upon my gift, and in thy love obtain for me (specify request, see below). Hail Mary ...
In thanksgiving (last 27 days): Sweet Mother Mary, I offer thee this Spiritual Communion to bind my bouquets in a wreath to place upon thy brow in thanksgiving for (specify request, see below) which thou in thy love hast obtained for me. Hail, Mary, etc.
PETITION: May truth be revealed, and may America and the Catholic Church become strong in God's power. - Ephesians 6:10
Please consider adding these prayers, until the election is called (more information HERE):
Fr. Ripperger's Recommended Prayers for
Breaking Oppression and Sending Back Evil
Until the Election is Called
Consecration of One's Exterior Goods to the Blessed Virgin Mary
(This prayer is particularly useful for breaking various forms of oppression. By relinquishing what belongs to us into the hands of the Blessed Virgin, Satan cannot touch them. This is a strong prayer of protection on you and yours):
I; (Name), a faithless sinner, renew and ratify today in thy hands the vows of my Baptism; I renounce forever Satan, his pomps and works; and I give myself entirely to Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Wisdom, to carry my cross after Him all the days of my life, and to be more faithful to Him than I have ever been before. In the presence of all the heavenly court, I choose thee, O Mary, this day for my Mother and Mistress. Knowing that I have received rights over all my exterior goods by the promulgation of the Natural Law by the Divine Author, I deliver and consecrate to thee, as thy slave, all of my exterior goods, past, present and future; I relinquish into thy hands, my Heavenly Mother, all rights over my exterior goods, including our President, the fairness, honesty and accuracy of the outcome of the election, and our country and I retain for myself no right of disposing the goods that come to me but leave to thee the entire and full right of disposing of all that belongs to me, without exception, according to thy good pleasure, for the greater glory of God in time and in eternity. As I now interiorly relinquish what belongs to me exteriorly into thy hands, I entrust to thee the protection of those exterior goods against the evil one, so that, knowing that they now belong to thee, he cannot touch them. Receive, O good and pious Virgin, this little offering of what little is, in honor of, and in union with, that subjection which the Eternal Wisdom deigned to have to Thy maternity; in homage to the power which both of You have over this poor sinner, and in thanksgiving for the privileges with which the Holy Trinity has favored thee. Trusting in the providential care of God the Father and thy maternal care, I have full confidence that thou wilst take care of me as to the necessities of this life and will not leave me forsaken. God the Father, increase my trust in Thy Son's Mother; Our Lady of Fair Love, give me perfect confidence in the providence of Thy Son. Amen.
Sending Evil Back
(Fr. Chad Ripperger comments that the following prayer may appear harsh, in that it seems to seek evil befall on another, yet it is meant to expose evil and to teach that evil does not win. And, in fact, choosing evil will, eventually, lead to bad repercussions)
Jesus and Mary, I ask that if it be Your Holy Will, that any curses or evil sent against the President or the election process be sent back from whence they came.
All of the daily Novena Prayers and Reflections are also posted at usgraceforce.com
The earth is indeed
blessed among all the planets in our solar system because of our heaven. As the
heavens have made the earth a garden rich with life like so is God’s grace over
those who are faithful and love Him. Never forget our Lord asked Peter if he loves Him three times.One time for each of the times Peter denied
our Lord on the eve of His crucifixion thus nullifying Peter’s denials and
restoring him. Christ asks Peter with each affirmation to 1) feed His lambs 2)
tend His sheep and 3) feed His sheep.
First Christ asked Peter
if he loves Him more than the others thus establishing Peters leadership on love.
Next Christ tells Peter to feed His lambs to give them a core of strength. If
we wish to develop strength in ourselves and others it is imperative that we
give hope, confidence, a work ethic, resilience, self-control and courage to
the lambs in our charge.
Secondly Christ asks
Peter to “tend His sheep” or that is to give a firm purpose to direct their
efforts to create the Kingdom of God.
Lastly Christ asks Peter
to “Feed His sheep” by having an understanding heart and to be
compassionate, faithful, merciful, tolerant, forgiving and generous.
THE Blessed Virgin was presented in
the temple at Jerusalem by her pious parents, Joachim and Ann, there to be
educated in the service and the law of the Lord in order that she might be
guarded against the defilements of the world. From this we learn:
Joachim and Ann offered to the Lord
their only and most beloved child and gave her up entirely to His service.
Great as the sacrifice was, they yet made it. The preservation of the innocence
of their daughter was to them above all else. Parents, God requires of you that
you should not merely offer your children to Him in the temple, but that you
should take care to keep them pure and holy, as living temples which have been
consecrated in Baptism.
Mary gives and dedicates herself to
God as soon as she is capable of serving Him, and that without any reservation,
for all time, and irrevocably.
·When
then, shall we give ourselves in earnest to God? True, we have been given to
Him in holy Baptism, we have been consecrated as His temples, we have renounced
the devil and the world, we have vowed to live only for God, and this vow we
have, perhaps, often renewed; but have we kept it?
·What
we gave with one hand have we not taken it away with the other? Have we not
denied the temple of our hearts by shameful lusts, lived for the world and
vanity more than for God? Ah, when shall we give ourselves up to God sincerely
and forever? Perhaps when we are old! But will God accept our offering then?
·Will
He be pleased that we begin to serve Him only when we can no longer serve the
world? That we first begin to live for Him when our life is soon to cease? No;
God is a jealous Lord and is not pleased with a heart divided between Him and
creatures. He requires us to love Him with all our heart and all our soul, and
to serve Him with all our powers. Let us, then, do this, and do it from our
youth; let us keep ourselves in body and soul undefiled for the Lord; such
love, and such love only, will He reward as perfect.
Prayer.
O God, Who wast pleased that the
blessed Mary, ever virgin, the habitation of the Holy Ghost, should oh this day
be presented in the temple, grant, we beseech Thee, that by her intercession we
may deserve to be presented in the temple of Thy glory.
EPISTLE. Ecclus.
xxiv. 14-16.
From the beginning, and before the
world, was I created, and unto the world to come I shall not cease to be, and
in the holy dwelling-place I have ministered before Him. And so was I
established in Sion, and in the holy city likewise I rested, and my power was
in Jerusalem. And I took root in an honorable people, and in the portion of my
God His inheritance, and my abode is in the full assembly of saints.
GOSPEL. Luke xi.
27, 28.
And
it came to pass, as He spoke these things, a certain woman from the crowd
lifting up her voice said to Him: Blessed is the womb that bore Thee, and the
paps that gave Thee suck. But He said: Yea rather, blessed are they who hear
the word of God and keep it.
Explanation.
By His answer Jesus would have us
understand that His Mother was not to be blessed merely because she bore Him,
the Son of God, but rather because she at all times endeavored to keep the word
of God in her heart and to observe it in her life. If you would be blessed,
learn to be not only a hearer, but a doer, of the word of God.
·Meditate
on the mystery of Mary's temporary dwelling in the sanctuary of the Old
Covenant as a preparation for the approaching season of Advent.
·Locate
the order of contemplative nuns closest to you and visit their monastery (you
may want to request their prayers and you might consider supporting them
financially), they are the privileged souls who, by the grace of their
vocation, are even here below dwellers in the house of the Lord.
·Spend
30 minutes reading the Bible.
·Learn
more about Mary in the
Byzantine Liturgy and say one of the beautiful
prayers of the Eastern liturgy in honor of Mary.
World
Television Day celebrates the daily value of television as a symbol of
communication and globalization. Television is one of the single greatest
technological advances of the 20th century, serving to educate, inform,
entertain and influence our decisions and opinions. It is estimated that
approximately 90% of homes around the world have televisions; however, with the
introduction of internet broadcasting, the number is declining in favor of
computers. World Television Day was proclaimed by the United Nations
in 1996. It is celebrated annually on November 21.
World
Television Day Facts & Quotes
·TV
stimulates the economy by providing countless avenues for jobs. Over 1.2
million people in the European Union alone are employed in the media sector
·In
France, 63% of children
between the age of 0 and 15 live in a household with 4 screens (TV, computer,
tablet etc.).
·Television
creates authority. When something is shown on TV it has a particular authority
about it because you know that you and millions of other people are seeing it
and that professionals have produced it.
·In
Canada, nearly 95% of people aged 18-34 watch TV each month, which results in
12 and a half hours of weekly TV watching.
·Television
is a medium because anything well done is rare. - Fred Allen, American comedian
and radio show host
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