Let Freedom Ring: Freedom from Predation
At a word from You the devil and his minions flee in terror.
You are the source of all truth. You are the source of all strength.
By the power of your Cross and Resurrection, we beseech You, O Lord
To extend Your saving arm and to send Your holy angels
To defend us as we do battle with Satan and his demonic forces.
Exorcise, we pray, that which oppresses Your Bride, The Church,
So that within ourselves, our families, our parishes, our dioceses, and our nation
We may turn fully back to You in all fidelity and trust.
Lord, we know if You will it, it will be done.
Give us the perseverance for this mission, we pray.
Amen
St. Joseph...pray for us
St. Michael the Archangel...pray for us
(the patron of your parish )... pray for us
(your confirmation saint)...pray for us
__ Daily reflection and prayers
__ Litany of the day
__ Pray a Rosary
__ Divine Mercy Chaplet
__ Spiritual or corporal work of mercy
__ Fast/abstain (according to level)
__ Exercise (according to level/ability)
__ Refrain from conventional media (only 1 hr. of social)
__ Examination of conscience (confession 1x this week)
Saturday after Ash Wednesday
FRANCISCO AND JACINTA MARTO
Leviticus, Chapter 25, Verse 17
Do not deal unfairly with one
another, then; but stand in FEAR of
your God. I, the LORD, am your God.
Fairness is a word that
means physical beauty. In a sense God is asking us to not do those things that
mar the physical beauty of another. This means in essence that we need to
nourish each other and to give to share with other the gifts we receive from
God. This means to respect each person as a person, physically, mentally, and
emotionally; to provide for their welfare.
Saturday after Ash Wednesday
EPISTLE. Isaias Iviii. 9-14.
THUS, saith the Lord God: If thou wilt
take away the chain out of the midst of thee, and cease to stretch out the
finger, and to speak that which is good for nothing. When thou shalt pour out
thy soul to the hungry, and shalt satisfy the afflicted soul, then shall thy
light rise up in darkness, and thy darkness shall be as the noonday. And the
Lord will give thee rest continually, and will fill thy soul with brightness,
and deliver thy bones, and thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a
fountain of water whose waters shall not fail. And the places that have been
desolate for ages shall be built in thee: thou shalt raise up the foundations
of generation and generation: and thou shalt be called the repairer of the
fences, turning the paths into rest. If thou turn away thy foot from the
Sabbath, from doing thy own will in My holy day, and call the Sabbath
delightful, and the holy of the Lord glorious, and glorify Him, while thou dost
not thy own ways, and thy own will is not found, to speak a word : then shalt
thou be delighted in the Lord, and I will lift thee up above the high places of
the earth, and will feed thee with the inheritance of Jacob thy father. For the
mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
GOSPEL. Mark vi. 47-56.
At that time: When it was late, the ship was in the midst
of the sea, and Jesus alone on the land. And seeing them laboring in rowing
(for the wind was against them), and about the fourth watch of the night He
cometh to them walking upon the sea, and He would have passed by them. But they
seeing Him walking upon the sea, thought it was an apparition, and they cried
out. For they all saw Him, and were troubled. And immediately He spoke with
them, and said to them: Have a good heart, it is I, fear ye not. And He went up
to them into the ship, and the wind ceased: and they were far more astonished
within themselves: for they understood not concerning the loaves; for their
heart was blinded. And when they had passed over, they came into the land of
Genesareth, and set to the shore. And when they were gone out of the ship,
immediately they knew Him: and running through that whole country, they began
to carry about in beds those that were sick, where they heard He was. And
whithersoever He entered, into towns or into villages or cities, they laid the
sick in the streets, and besought Him that they might touch but the hem of His garment:
and as many as touched Him were made whole.
Prayer.
May Thy faithful, O Lord, be confirmed by Thy gifts, that,
receiving them, they may seek them, and seeking may receive them forever.
Through Christ,
Doing Small Things Well[1]
First, while it is true that fasting
is not the most important thing in the world, this does not make fasting
irrelevant or unimportant. There are, certainly, more urgent things to abstain
from than food or drink, such as maliciousness, backbiting, grumbling, etc. But
a person is mistaken to conclude that he therefore does not need to fast. He
should not believe that he can ignore fasting and instead abstain in more
important matters. Rather, fasting and avoiding those other vices go hand in
hand. Fasting must accompany efforts to abstain in greater matters. For one
thing, fasting teaches a person how to abstain in the first place.
Moreover, it is presumptuous for a
person to try to practice the greater virtues without first paying attention to
the smaller ones. As Our Lord says, "He who is faithful in a very little
is faithful also in much"1
and so can be trusted with greater things. Therefore, if a person wants to be
able to abstain in greater matters he must not neglect to abstain in smaller
matters, such as through fasting.
Finally, there is a subtle form of
pride present in the person who says that because something is not very
important, he does not need to do it. Whoever makes such a claim implies that
he does only important things. But the average person is rarely called to do
very important things. Accordingly, each person is more likely to be judged on
how he did the little, everyday things. Even when, rarely, a person is called
to do a great work, how often does he fall short? All the more reason, then,
for a person to make sure that he at least does the small things well.
Furthermore, if he truly loves the Lord, he will gladly do anything—big or small—for
him. So, in the end, saying that fasting is not the most important thing is not
a good excuse for avoiding it.
What, then, is the reason for fasting?
To answer this let us first clarify what fasting entails. It involves more than
the occasional fast, such as on Good Friday. To be effective, fasting requires
disciplined eating habits all the time. There are certainly days when a person
should make a greater effort at abstaining from food and drink. These are what
we usually consider days of fasting and they must be practiced regularly. But,
still, there are never days when a person is allowed to abandon all restraint.
A person must always practice some restraint over his appetites, or those
periodic days of fasting are valueless. Always keeping a check on his desires,
a person develops good habits, which foster constancy in his interior life. So,
in addition to practicing days of fasting on a regular basis, a person should
continuously restrain his desires, such as those that incline him to eat too much,
to be too concerned with what he eats, or to eat too often.
We might, then speak of the discipline
of fasting in order to avoid the impression that fasting is sporadic. The
operative principle behind the discipline of fasting is simple: to limit yourself
to only what is necessary for your physical and psychological health—no more,
no less. St. Augustine puts it concisely when he teaches: "As far as your
health allows, keep your bodily appetites in check by fasting and abstinence
from food and drink." So, fasting is meant only to keep a person's
unnecessary wants in check. A person is not— nor is he permitted—to deny
himself what is necessary for his health. The discipline of fasting instead
asks a person to check his desires for what is superfluous and not necessary.
Sts. Francisco & Jacinta Marto[2]
Between May 13 and October 13, 1917,
three children, Portuguese shepherds from Aljustrel, received apparitions of
Our Lady at Cova da Iria, near Fatima, a city 110 miles north of Lisbon. At
that time, Europe was involved in an extremely bloody war. Portugal itself was
in political turmoil, having overthrown its monarchy in 1910; the government
disbanded religious organizations soon after. At the first appearance, Mary
asked the children to return to that spot on the thirteenth of each month for
the next six months. She also asked them to learn to read and write and to pray
the rosary “to obtain peace for the world and the end of the war.” They were to
pray for sinners and for the conversion of Russia, which had recently
overthrown Czar Nicholas II and was soon to fall under communism. Up to 90,000
people gathered for Mary’s final apparition on October 13, 1917. Less than two
years later, Francisco died of influenza in his family home. He was
buried in the parish cemetery and then re-buried in the Fatima basilica in
1952. Jacinta died of influenza in Lisbon, offering her suffering for
the conversion of sinners, peace in the world and the Holy Father. She was
re-buried in the Fatima basilica in 1951. Their cousin, Lucia dos Santos,
became a Carmelite nun and was still living when Jacinta and Francisco were
beatified in 2000. Sister Lucia died five years later. The shrine of Our Lady
of Fatima is visited by up to 20 million people a year.
This prayer was given by the Angel
of Fatima to Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta.
Prayer:
Oh Most Holy Trinity,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
I adore Thee profoundly.
I offer Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity
of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world,
in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and
indifferences by which He is offended.
By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus
and the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I beg the conversion of poor sinners.
Amen.
In light of the fact that both Francisco and Jacinta
died of influenza let us pray for our lady’s intercession in the coronavirus.
The Devil and Temptations[3]
There are many and varied
ways in which sin and evil are presented to us in an attractive way.
Hypnotism
·
Although
hypnotism is now used sometimes by respectable doctors, dentists and
therapists, it was linked in the past with the occult and with superstition.
·
Even
when it is legitimate, there are certain real dangers that must be very
carefully considered. In hypnotism, one surrenders for a time his own capacity
to reason; there is a dependence of the one hypnotized on the will of the
hypnotist; also, there can be unfortunate aftereffects that result from this
technique.
·
Except
for a very serious reason, avoid submitting to a hypnotist; never do it for the
purpose of entertainment.
Music
In our day, hard rock
music played by "satanic" musical groups presents additional
problems. This music often glorifies Satan and also, at times, awakens desires
to commit suicide, to use drugs, and to misuse sex. The music is also known to
encourage physical violence. Even hell is proposed as a desired end of life.
The evil is found in the musical combination of words, rhythm and noise.
Records or tapes of this kind should not be kept in the home but should be
destroyed, even if they have cost a considerable amount of money. Choose the
Kingdom of God!
Devil
Worship
·
It
goes without saying that praying to the devil, worshipping Satan, reading the
Satanic bible, or taking part in a Black Mass which mocks the crucifixion of
Jesus and the Eucharist are among the most serious sins that one can commit.
·
In
some Satanic worship, there is at times sacrifice to Satan by a horrible killing
of animals, and even the murder of human infants. The secrecy surrounding this
activity enables the "Church of Satan" to obtain a certain
respectability in our society. It has the same legal standing as any other
church.
·
Do
not be deceived; being involved in this false church is a very serious matter.
Catholics who wish to repent must resign from the false religion at whatever
cost, renounce Satan and their sin in all their heart, and confess this sin in
the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Daily Devotions
·
Saturday Litany of the Hours
Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary
·
Manhood of
the Master-week 1 day 4
·
Offering
to the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Make
reparations to the Holy Face
·
Rosary
·
Mass
[1]https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=2721
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