First Saturday
Ember Day
When
they were emptying their sacks, there in each one’s sack was his moneybag! At
the sight of their moneybags, they and their father were AFRAID.
Why
was Jacob (Israel) and Joseph’s brothers afraid?
As I pondered this thought it occurred to me that they were afraid because they
had no compassion in them. Yes, even Jacob; for was it not Jacob who cheated
his brother out of his birthright and stole Esau’s dying blessing from his own
father Isaac. These men were hard. Yet, God still loved them and blessed them.
Finding the money sacks still in with the grain meant to them that now they
would have to pay for the grain with their lives-for nothing is free! This act
of compassion from Joseph unsettled them. It upset their world; it toppled
their assumptions of the world, and they would never be the same. They were by
this simple gesture being asked to radically change. To think in a new way:
that is to realize that the dignity and loyalty that men seek; is not a
birthright given to the firstborn or something to be gained taken by being the
most powerful of men. That dignity and loyalty are the birthright of all
persons; however, they can be lost by unbridled selfishness. Wisdom teaches us
that in order to retain our dignity and the loyalty of others we must be persons of character and that we
must lose our absorption with ourselves
to contemplate and develop a sincere love for others.
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.
Saturday in the first week of Lent
EPISTLE, i. Thess. v. 14-23.
BRETHREN: We beseech you, rebuke the unquiet, comfort the feeble-minded, support the weak, be patient towards all men. See that none render evil for evil to any man: but ever follow that which is good towards each other, and towards all men. Always rejoice. Pray without ceasing. In all things give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you all. Extinguish not the spirit. Despise not prophecies. But prove all things: hold fast that which is good. From all appearance of evil refrain yourselves. And may the Q-od of peace Himself sanctify you in all things: that your whole spirit, and soul, and body, may be preserved blameless in the coming of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Gospel
and Prayer, the same as those of to-morrow.
EMBER SATURDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF LENT
Station "With St. Peter
And the Lord hath chosen thee this day
to be His peculiar people (1st lesson)
It is Ember Saturday. Oremus, flectamus genna! Let us pray, and in spirit kneel at the tomb of St. Peter, the great priest and supreme shepherd of Christ's flock, and let us listen with reverence to the words of his successor Pius XI "On the Priesthood," for on this day, in hundreds of cathedrals, apostolic hands will be laid on young levites, levites "who have chosen the Lord, this day, to be their God, and to walk in His ways and keep His ceremonies, and precepts and judgments, and obey His commands" (epistle).
"The human race has always felt the need of a priesthood: of men who have the official charge to be mediators between God and humanity, men who should consecrate themselves entirely to this mediation as to the very purpose of their lives; men who are set aside to offer to God public prayers and sacrifices in the name of human society. For human society as such is bound to offer to God public and social worship. It is bound to acknowledge in Him its supreme Lord and first beginning, and to strive towards Him as to its last end, to give Him thanks and to offer Him propitiation.
"The Apostle of the Gentiles perfectly sums up what may be said of the greatness, the dignity and the duty of the Christian priesthood: 'Let a man so account of us as of the ministers of Christ and the dispensers of the mysteries of God.' The priest is the minister of Christ--an instrument, that is to say, in the hands of the divine Redeemer. He continues the work of the redemption in all its world-embracing universality and divine efficacy, that work which wrought so marvelous a transformation in the world. Thus the priest, as is said with good reason, is indeed 'another Christ'; for in some way, he is himself a continuation of Christ. 'As the Father hath sent Me, I also send you,' is spoken to the priest; and hence the priest, like Christ, continue to give 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will.'" (From the Encyclical Letter of His His Holiness Pope Pius XI.)
Let us pray, then, for all who in these days will be raised to this high and responsible position "that the God of peace may sanctify them in all things; that their whole spirit, and soul, and body, may be preserved blameless, for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" (epistle); that the Lord may make them worthy laborers in His vineyard; that the Holy Spirit may fill them with pentecostal fire and apostolic fortitude for the great work of "incorporating all things in Christ."
St. Peter, rock of the Church, bearer of the keys of God's kingdom, great priest of Jesus Christ, holy shepherd of His flock, bless those who are about to become fishers of men.
Prayer
Source: Orate Fratres/Worship: A Review Devoted to the Liturgical Apostolate,
The Liturgical Press
Catechism
of the Catholic Church
PART THREE: LIFE IN CHRIST
SECTION TWO-THE TEN COMMANDMENTS
Chapter 2 “You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.
Article 8-THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT
V.
The Use of the social Communications media
2493 Within modern society the communications media play a
major role in information, cultural promotion, and formation. This role is increasing,
as a result of technological progress, the extent and diversity of the news
transmitted, and the influence exercised on public opinion.
2494 The information provided by the media is at the service of
the common good. Society has a right to information based on truth,
freedom, justice, and solidarity:
The proper exercise of this right demands that the content
of the communication be true and - within the limits set by justice and charity
- complete. Further, it should be communicated honestly and properly. This
means that in the gathering and in the publication of news, the moral law and
the legitimate rights and dignity of man should be upheld.
2495 "It is necessary that all members of society meet the
demands of justice and charity in this domain. They should help, through the
means of social communication, in the formation and diffusion of sound public
opinion." Solidarity is a consequence of genuine and right
communication and the free circulation of ideas that further knowledge and
respect for others.
2496 The means of social communication (especially the mass
media) can give rise to a certain passivity among users, making them less than
vigilant consumers of what is said or shown. Users should practice moderation
and discipline in their approach to the mass media. They will want to form
enlightened and correct consciences the more easily to resist unwholesome
influences.
2497 By the very nature of their profession, journalists have
an obligation to serve the truth and not offend against charity in
disseminating information. They should strive to respect, with equal care, the
nature of the facts and the limits of critical judgment concerning individuals.
They should not stoop to defamation.
2498 "Civil authorities have particular responsibilities
in this field because of the common good.... It is for the civil authority ...
to defend and safeguard a true and just freedom of information." By
promulgating laws and overseeing their application, public authorities should
ensure that "public morality and social progress are not gravely
endangered" through misuse of the media. Civil authorities should
punish any violation of the rights of individuals to their reputation and
privacy. They should give timely and reliable reports concerning the general
good or respond to the well-founded concerns of the people. Nothing can justify
recourse to disinformation for manipulating public opinion through the media.
Interventions by public authority should avoid injuring the freedom of
individuals or groups.
2499 Moral judgment must condemn the plague of totalitarian
states which systematically falsify the truth, exercise political control of
opinion through the media, manipulate defendants and witnesses at public
trials, and imagine that they secure their tyranny by strangling and repressing
everything they consider "thought crimes."
Daily Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: An
increase of the faithful
·
Saturday
Litany of the Hours Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary
·
Total Consecration
to St. Joseph Day 18
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
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