MAY
Flowers in
Mary's month tie us closely to the reawakening earth. The time of Resurrection
and expectant Pentecost is one of buds, blossoms, wildflowers, and greening of
meadows and lawns. Days lengthen and we welcome the warmth of the sun after the
long winter. Jesus is risen and is present in our midst, and so we rise and
ascend with him.
Overview of May[1]
The month of
May is dedicated to The
Blessed Virgin Mary. The first 23 days fall within the liturgical
season of Easter, which is represented by the liturgical color
white — the color of light, a symbol of joy, purity and innocence (absolute or
restored). The remainder of the month (beginning the Monday after Pentecost) is
in Ordinary Time which is represented by the liturgical
color green. This symbol of hope is the color of the sprouting seed and arouses
in the faithful the hope of reaping the eternal harvest of heaven, especially
the hope of a glorious resurrection.
·
The world is resplendent with Spring's increased
light and new growth. It is Mary’s month in the Easter season and all of nature
rejoices with the Queen of heaven at the Resurrection of the Son she was worthy
to bear. During the remainder of Easter time, let us endeavor through the
prayers of the Holy Liturgy and the Holy Rosary to deepen our gratitude for the
mystery of our Baptismal rebirth in Christ.
·
"The month of May, with its profusion of
blooms was adopted by the Church in the eighteenth century as a celebration of
the flowering of Mary's maidenly spirituality, with its origins in Isaiah's
prophecy of the Virgin birth of the Messiah under the figure of the Blossoming
Rod or Root of Jesse, the flower symbolism of Mary was extended by the Church
Fathers, and in the liturgy, by applying to her the flower figures of the
Sapiential Books-Canticles, Wisdom, Proverbs and Sirach.
·
"In the medieval period, the rose was
adopted as the flower symbol of the Virgin Birth, as expressed in Dante's
phrase, 'The Rose wherein the Divine Word was made flesh,' and depicted in the
central rose windows of the great gothic cathedrals-from which came the
Christmas carol, 'Lo, How a Rose 'ere Blooming.' Also, in the medieval period,
when monasteries were the centers of horticultural and agricultural knowledge,
and with the spread of the Fransiscan love of nature, the actual flowers
themselves, of the fields, waysides and gardens, came to be seen as symbols of
Mary…" – John S. Stokes
·
Pentecost, the birth of the Church, is also
among the celebrations of May. Though sprung from the side of Christ on the
Cross, the Church marks as her birthday the descent of the Holy Spirit on Mary
and the Apostles. At the 'birth' of the world, the Holy Spirit — the Breath of
God — was the "mighty wind [that] swept over the waters" (Gen 1:2);
at the birth of the Church He is present again "like the rush of a mighty
wind" to recreate the world in the image of Christ through His Church
(Acts 2:2).
We, the members of Christ’s Mystical
Body, are the present-day disciples sent by the Holy Spirit to bring Christ to
the world. May we go forth as did Mary, who set out in haste to assist St.
Elizabeth (feast of the Visitation, May 31). Come upon us, O Holy Spirit, so
that, with Mary, we may proclaim the greatness of the Lord who has done great
things for us — for his mercy endures forever!
It is a very old tradition to make pilgrimages during the month of May to shrines dedicated to Mary. Although this author is writing about the country of England, even in America there are shrines, basilicas, cathedrals or churches that one can visit in a pilgrimage.
First Saturday
ST.
JOSEPH THE WORKER-KENTUCKY DERBY-MAY DAY-
Judges, Chapter 6, Verse 23
The Lord answered him: You are
safe. Do not FEAR. You shall not die.
Unlike Gideon, whom this verse is about, most of us do not have an angel appear from heaven to tell us that we will not die and to not be afraid. Yet, we have something greater than an angel here; we have the Lord Jesus Christ telling us-Do not fear.
We are blessed because we are the receivers of the apex of God’s graces through Jesus Christ, His mother and the action of Divine Mercy. If you are afraid to start again or are discouraged by failure it is because you do not understand you can do nothing without Christ. Therefore, if you have sinned go to confession and receive His Body and Blood: being renewed. I remember in 2006 when I and my wife Mary were blessed with being able to make a trip to Israel. I was reflecting upon the graces I had received. I was thanking the Lord for I had touched the spot on the earth where He was born, and I had touched the spot where He had died, and I had touched the spot where He had ascended into heaven. I was prideful and thought how lucky am I. Then my Lord reminded me that a greater grace still awaits me and everyone in the Holy Eucharist. Be honest, humble yourself and make a sincere effort. Leave all else in His hands-saying: Jesus I Trust in You!
Pride
wants immediate success. Be brave as Gideon and renew your intentions, make a
resolution daily to do the will of God and seek to please Him.
First Saturday[1]
In December of 1925, Our Lady appeared to Sister Lucia, giving her the following guaranty of salvation for those who complete the First Five Saturdays Devotion:
“I promise to assist them at the hour of death with all the graces
necessary for the salvation of their souls."
Why Five
Saturdays?
The
five first Saturdays correspond to the five kinds of offenses and blasphemies
committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary:
1) Blasphemies
against the Immaculate Conception
2) Blasphemies
against her virginity
3) Blasphemies
against her divine maternity, at the same time the refusal to accept her as the
Mother of all men
4) Instilling
indifference, scorn and even hatred towards this Immaculate Mother in the
hearts of children
5) Direct
insults against Her sacred images
How to complete
the Five First Saturdays Devotion:
On
the first Saturday of five consecutive months:
1. Go
to confession.
2. Receive
Holy Communion.
3. Say
five decades of the Rosary.
4. Keep
Our Lady company for 15 minutes, meditating on the mysteries of the Rosary.
5. Have
the intention of making reparation to Our Lady for the offenses listed above.
St. Joseph the Worker[2]
"May Day" has
long been dedicated to labor and the working man. It falls on the first day of
the month that is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Pope Pius XII expressed
the hope that this feast would accentuate the dignity of labor and would bring
a spiritual dimension to labor unions. It is eminently fitting that St. Joseph,
a working man who became the foster-father of Christ and patron of the
universal Church, should be honored on this day. The feast of St. Joseph the
Worker was established by Pope Pius XII in 1955 in order to Christianize the
concept of labor and give to all workmen a model and a protector. By the daily
labor in his shop, offered to God with patience and joy, St. Joseph provided
for the necessities of his holy spouse and of the Incarnate Son of God, and
thus became an example to all laborers. "Workmen and all those laboring in
conditions of poverty will have reasons to rejoice rather than grieve, since
they have in common with the Holy Family daily preoccupations and cares"(Leo
XIII).
Things to
Do
·
May 1 is celebrated in Communist countries as
the Day of the International Solidarity of Workers. Today would be a good day
to pray for atheistic Communism's influence to cease and a proper application
of the principles explained by Leo XIII in Rerum
novarum and John Paul II in Centesimus
annus to be the guide used by nations.
Kentucky Derby[3]
The Kentucky Derby is the most popular and oldest horse race in the world. The race is a 1.25-mile long, Grade 1 stakes horse race for three-year-old thoroughbreds on a dirt track. It is held annually at Churchill Downs racetrack in Louisville, Kentucky. The Kentucky Derby, run on the first Saturday in May of every year, is the first leg of the elusive Triple Crown races. It is followed by the Preakness Stakes two weeks later in Baltimore, Maryland and the Belmont Stakes, 3 weeks after the Preakness in Elmont, New York. Meriweather Clark founded the Kentucky Derby, which was first held in 1875. Since then, the Derby has become a day of luxury and fashion and celebrities are often in attendance.
Kentucky Derby Facts & Quotes
·
Over
160,000 spectators come to see the Kentucky Derby every year while millions of
others watch it on TV.
·
In
Kentucky, the equine industry generated 3 billion dollars annually and creates
55,000 jobs.
·
As
of 2015, no woman trainer or jockey has won the Kentucky Derby. Many have run
horses and ridden them, but none have won.
· Only 12 horses have ever been able to win the Triple Crown. The most recent was American Pharaoh in 2015. Prior to 2015, the Triple Crown hadn't been won since 1978.
Kentucky Derby Top Events and Things to Do
·
Attend
the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, Kentucky. Be careful though, tickets are very
expensive and must be purchased far in advance for the event.
·
Enjoy
a good movie about horses and horse racing. Some of our picks are: The
Cup (2011), The
First Saturday in May
(2007), Racing Stripes (2005), Seabiscuit (2003), The
Derby Stallion
(2005), Secretariat
(2010) and Dreamer
(2005).
·
Book
a horseback riding class at a local stable. Try to get a feel for what it would
be like to race that fast.
· Plan a Triple Crown Party. Be sure to send out invitations for the Derby, the Preakness and the Belmont. Pick favorite horses and see who wins the home derby. During the celebration it would be a good idea to also pray for the pope who wears the triple crown of the church. The Triple Crown (the tiara) represents the pope's three functions as "supreme pastor", "supreme teacher" and "supreme priest". The gold cross on a monde (globe) surmounting the tiara symbolizes the sovereignty of Jesus.[4]
Bless the
Animals and the Simple[5]
One day while, Mitch, a Protestant was at the track playing the ponies and all but losing his shirt noticed a Catholic priest who stepped out onto the track and blessed the forehead of one of the horses lining up for the 4th race. Lo and behold, that horse – a very long shot – won the race.
Before the next race, as the horses began lining up, Mitch watched with interest the old priest step onto the track. Sure enough, before the 5th race the horses came to the starting gate. The priest made a blessing on the forehead of one of the horses. Mitch made a beeline for a betting window and placed a small bet on the horse blessed by the priest. Again, even though it was another long shot, the horse the priest had blessed won the race. Mitch collected his winnings, and anxiously waited to see which horse the priest would bless for the 6th race.
The priest again blessed a horse. Mitch bet big on it,
and it won. Mitch was elated. As the races continued the priest kept blessing
long shot horses, and each one ended up coming in first. By and by, Mitch was
pulling in some serious money. By the last race, he knew his wildest dreams
were going to come true. He made a quick dash to the ATM, withdrew all his
savings, and awaited the priest's blessing that would tell him which horse to
bet on. True to his pattern, the priest stepped onto the track for the last
race and blessed the forehead of an old nag that was the longest shot of the
day. Mitch also observed the priest blessing the eyes, ears, and hooves of the
old nag. Mitch knew he had a winner and bet every cent he owned on the old nag.
He then watched dumbfounded as the old nag come in dead last and then dropped
dead. Mitch, in a state of shock, made his way down to the track area where the
priest was. Confronting the old priest, he demanded, 'Father! What happened?
All day long you blessed horses and they all won. Then in the last race, the
horse you blessed lost by a Kentucky mile. Now, thanks to you I've lost every
cent of my savings – all of it!'. The priest nodded wisely and with sympathy.
'Son,' he said, 'that's one of the problems with you Protestants; you can't
tell the difference between a simple blessing and the Sacrament of Last Rites.'
May Day[6]
The
earliest May Day celebrations appeared in pre-Christian times, with the Floralia,
festival of Flora, the Roman goddess of flowers, held on April 27 during the
Roman Republic era, and with the Walpurgis Night celebrations of the Germanic
countries. The day was a traditional summer holiday in many pre-Christian
European pagan cultures. As Europe became Christianized, the pagan holidays lost their
religious character and May Day changed into a popular secular celebration. A
significant celebration of May Day occurs in Germany where it is one of several
days on which St. Walburga, credited with bringing
Christianity to Germany. The secular versions of May Day, observed in Europe
and America, may be best known for their traditions of dancing around the maypole
and crowning the Queen of May. Fading in popularity since the
late 20th century is the giving of "May baskets," small baskets of
sweets or flowers, usually left anonymously on neighbors’ doorsteps. Since the
18th century, many Roman Catholics have observed May – and May Day – with
various May devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary. In works of art, school
skits, and so forth, Mary's head will often be adorned with flowers in a May
crowning.
May
Day Facts & Quotes[7]
·
Roman
Catholics celebrate May as Mary's month, and May Day is celebration of the
Blessed Virgin Mary.
·
May
Day is also recognized as International Worker's Day, or Labor Day. This
day commemorates workers’ rights and the labor movement. One popular
cause that this day commemorates is the eight-hour workday.
·
During
the Haymarket Affair of 1886, more than a dozen people were killed after a
3-day strike and rally. US Labor Unions had agreed upon a general nationwide
strike on May 1, 1886 in support of an eight-hour workday. One such rally, held
outside the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company, Chicago, Illinois, became
violent when police fired into the crowd of striking workers. Outraged, the
worker's organized another rally the next day at Haymarket Square. The
rally became violent when a bomb was thrown into a crowd of police. Seven
officers were killed. A very public trial ensued which ended in the
public hanging of four anarchists.
·
In
France, it is customary to give a sweet-smelling flower called the spring of
lily of the valley (a symbol of springtime) on May 1st. The tradition started in
1561 when King Charles IX of France received a lily of the valley as a lucky
charm.
·
All
labor that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken
with painstaking excellence. – Martin Luther King Jr.
May
Day Top Events and Things to Do
·
Dance
around a Maypole. Decorate a tall pole with garlands of flowers and ribbons.
Have a group of friends each take a ribbon and dance around the pole,
interweaving the ribbons to form a braided affect. The braid can be undone by
retracing one's steps.
·
Have
a picnic outdoors in the sunshine.
·
Attend
a May Day Festival.
·
Visit
a local fresh air market.
·
Watch
a film relating to worker’s rights. Our favorite films on the topic:
1) The Grapes of Wrath (1940)
2) Office Space (1999)
3) Caesar Chavez (2014)
Daily Devotions
·
Saturday Litany of the Hours
Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary
·
Total Consecration
to St. Joseph Day 33
·
Manhood of
the Master-week 11 day 4
·
Offering
to the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Make
reparations to the Holy Face
·
Rosary
[2]http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/liturgicalyear/calendar/day.cfm?date=2017-05-01
Comments
Post a Comment