Friday, April 28, 2023

- April 22, 2023

Friday of the Third Week of Easter

ST. LOUIS DE MONTFORT-ARBOR DAY

Deuteronomy, Chapter 4, Verse 9-10

⁹However, be on your guard and be very careful not to forget the things your own eyes have seen, nor let them slip from your heart as long as you live, but make them known to your children and to your children’s children, ¹⁰that day you stood before the LORD, your God, at Horeb, when the LORD said to me: Assemble the people for me, that I may let them hear my words, that they may learn to FEAR me as long as they live in the land and may so teach their children.

Moses’ use of the word fear here not in the sense of “be terrified,” but rather “manifest reverence or awe.” Christ’s mission of love was to move our hearts from reverence or awe of pure love: A love in which the heart of the beloved longs to do good works secretly in emulation of the God that is good to saint and sinner alike. Our church often instructs us to increase in ourselves Faith, Hope and Charity.

Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve you as you deserve; to give and not to count the cost…to labor and not to ask for reward, except to know that I am doing your will. (Saint Ignatius, Prayer for Generosity)

Lord, let me not fear death with an empty fear, but with a wise and holy fear. An empty fear does not make men any better, but a wise and holy fear urges them to improve their lives. I will prepare for death by trying today to please you more and more in my thoughts, desires, words and actions. If I live this day as You desire, I shall be ready at any moment, and death will be nothing worse than Your loving call. Amen[1]

St. Louis Mary de Montfort[2]

Louis' life is inseparable from his efforts to promote genuine devotion to Mary, the mother of Jesus and mother of the church. Totus tuus (completely yours) was Louis's personal motto; Karol Wojtyla chose it as his episcopal motto. Born in the Breton village of Montfort, close to Rennes (France), as an adult Louis identified himself by the place of his baptism instead of his family name, Grignion. After being educated by the Jesuits and the Sulpicians, he was ordained as a diocesan priest in 1700. Soon he began preaching parish missions throughout western France. His years of ministering to the poor prompted him to travel and live very simply, sometimes getting him into trouble with church authorities. In his preaching, which attracted thousands of people back to the faith, Father Louis recommended frequent, even daily, Holy Communion (not the custom then!) and imitation of the Virgin Mary's ongoing acceptance of God's will for her life. Louis founded the Missionaries of the Company of Mary (for priests and brothers) and the Daughters of Wisdom, who cared especially for the sick. His book, True Devotion to the Blessed Virgin, has become a classic explanation of Marian devotion. Louis died in Saint-Laurent-sur-Sevre, where a basilica has been erected in his honor. He was canonized in 1947.

Excerpted from Saint of the Day, Leonard Foley, O.F.M.

Things to Do

· Read a longer biography of St. Louis de Montfort's life.

· Read some of St. Louis de Montfort's works and/or read articles about his spirituality.

· Consider making the consecration to Mary recommended by St. Louis de Montfort.

· Resolve to pray the rosary daily starting today.

· Learn about the Missionaries of the Company of Mary (Montfort Missionaries) and support their work with your prayers, sacrifices and financial offerings.

· From the Catholic Culture Library The Spiritans and Under the Banner and Protection of Mary.

20 best days of the year to start Consecration to Mary[3]

· Start January 9 to end on February 11, the feast of the Apparation at Lourdes

· Start February 20 (or 21st in a leap year) to end on March 25, the feast of the Annunciation

· Start April 10 to end on May 13, the feast of Our Lady of Fatima

· Start April 21 to end on May 24, the feast of Mary, Help of Christians

· Start April 28 to end on May 31, the feast of the Visitation

· Start May 25 to end on June 27, the feast of Our Lady of Perpetual Help

· Start June 13 to end on July 16, the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel

· Start July 13 to end on August 15, the feast of the Assumption

· Start July 20 to end on August 22, the feast of the Queenship of Mary

· Start August 6 to end on September 8, the feast of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary

· Start August 10 to end on September 12, the feast of the Holy Name of Mary

· Start August 13 to end on September 15, the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows

· Start September 4 to end on October 7, the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary

· Start October 17 to end on November 19, the feast of Our Lady of Divine Providence

· Start October 19 to end on November 21, the feast of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary

· Start October 25 to end on November 27, the feast of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal

· Start November 5 to end on December 8, the feast of the Immaculate Conception

· Start November 9 to end on December 12, the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

· Start November 29 to end on January 1, the feast of Mary, Mother of God

· Start December 31 to end on February 2, the feast of the Presentation of Our Lord.

Arbor Day[4]

Arbor Day is a celebration of trees and their importance to providing shelter, stabilization for the ground, and beauty to the beholder. While Arbor Day is a US holiday, several other countries have adopted similar observances including Japan, Australia, Korea and Yugoslavia. In 1970, President Richard Nixon declared Arbor Day a federal holiday and it is observed the last Friday in April each year.

Arbor Day Facts & Quotes

· The first Arbor Day was celebrated April 10, 1872, in the State of Nebraska. More than 1 million trees were planted in Nebraska as they celebrated the first Arbor Day.

· A single tree can absorb as much as 48 pounds of carbon dioxide per year and can sequester 1 ton of carbon dioxide by the time it reaches 40 years old.

· Newspaper editor, Julius Sterling Morton began Arbor Day to help bring attention to the importance of trees.

· Since the Yellowstone Fires of 1988, the Arbor Day Foundation has partnered with the US Forest Service. Through this partnership, over 25 million Arbor Day Foundation trees have been planted.

· The best time to plant a tree is twenty years ago. The second-best time is now. –Proverb

Arbor Day Top Events and Things to Do

· Plant a tree.

· Visit a nursery and consider buying some plants.

· Organize a neighborhood beautification project.

· Hold a paper drive. Use the recycling proceeds to purchase a special tree.

Catechism of the Catholic Church

PART FOUR: CHRISTIAN PRAYER

SECTION TWO-THE LORD'S PRAYER

Article 2 "OUR FATHER WHO ART IN HEAVEN"

III. "Our" Father

2786 "Our" Father refers to God. the adjective, as used by us, does not express possession, but an entirely new relationship with God.

2787 When we say "our" Father, we recognize first that all his promises of love announced by the prophets are fulfilled in the new and eternal covenant in his Christ: we have become "his" people and he is henceforth "our" God. This new relationship is the purely gratuitous gift of belonging to each other: we are to respond to "grace and truth" given us in Jesus Christ with love and faithfulness.

2788 Since the Lord's Prayer is that of his people in the "endtime," this "our" also expresses the certitude of our hope in God's ultimate promise: in the new Jerusalem he will say to the victor, "I will be his God and he shall be my son."

2789 When we pray to "our" Father, we personally address the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. By doing so we do not divide the Godhead, since the Father is its "source and origin," but rather confess that the Son is eternally begotten by him and the Holy Spirit proceeds from him. We are not confusing the persons, for we confess that our communion is with the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ, in their one Holy Spirit. the Holy Trinity is consubstantial and indivisible. When we pray to the Father, we adore and glorify him together with the Son and the Holy Spirit.

2790 Grammatically, "our" qualifies a reality common to more than one person. There is only one God, and he is recognized as Father by those who, through faith in his only Son, are reborn of him by water and the Spirit. The Church is this new communion of God and men. United with the only Son, who has become "the firstborn among many brethren," she is in communion with one and the same Father in one and the same Holy Spirit. In praying "our" Father, each of the baptized is praying in this communion: "The company of those who believed were of one heart and soul."

2791 For this reason, in spite of the divisions among Christians, this prayer to "our" Father remains our common patrimony and an urgent summons for all the baptized. In communion by faith in Christ and by Baptism, they ought to join in Jesus' prayer for the unity of his disciples.

2792 Finally, if we pray the Our Father sincerely, we leave individualism behind, because the love that we receive frees us from it. the "our" at the beginning of the Lord's Prayer, like the "us" of the last four petitions, excludes no one. If we are to say it truthfully, our divisions and oppositions have to be overcome.

2793 The baptized cannot pray to "our" Father without bringing before him all those for whom he gave his beloved Son. God's love has no bounds, neither should our prayer. Praying "our" Father opens to us the dimensions of his love revealed in Christ: praying with and for all who do not yet know him, so that Christ may "gather into one the children of God." God's care for all men and for the whole of creation has inspired all the great practitioners of prayer; it should extend our prayer to the full breadth of love whenever we dare to say "our" Father.

THIS WE BELIEVE

PRAYERS AND TEACHINGS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH

Act of Faith

O my God, I firmly believe that You are one God in three Divine Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I believe that Your Divine Son became man and died for our sins, and that He will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe these and all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches, because You revealed them, who can neither deceive nor be deceived. Amen.

Fitness Friday

· Try the St. Joseph Universal Man Plan May 1^st is the Feast of St. Joseph the worker.

TODAY IS ALSO Biological Clock Day

Biological Clock Day offers a variety of opportunities to pay respect and attention to our bodies. Perhaps implement some of these ideas in celebration of the day:

Re-Regulate the Body

It might be a good idea to celebrate Biological Clock Day by setting aside some time to re-regulate the body. This will likely take more than a 24-hour period, but the day can perhaps be a good catalyst. Get started by creating a regular bedtime routine that allows plenty of time for relaxing and falling asleep at night.

Limit Artificial Light

One of the most basic ways to observe Biological Clock Day might be to get back to a rhythm the way nature intended it to be. Try unplugging those electronics and turn off the lights at a set time in the evening. Pick up an actual book with pages instead of scrolling through the phone.

See what happens when nature takes its course and there’s no human intervention of technology to hijack the processes the body really needs. It might take a bit of time for the body to detox and reset itself, but the effort will certainly be worth it in the end!

Practice Sleep Hygiene

Need some additional tips on how to get the body to engage with its natural rhythms on Biological Clock Day? Try some of these sleep hygiene ideas:

Go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day
Try to avoid taking naps if they seem to inhibit the ability to fall asleep at the right time at night
Stop eating and exercising at least two hours (or more) before bedtime and avoid chemical stimulants like caffeine and nicotine during these hours
Try wearing glasses that block blue light

Events

· Feast of St. Louis De Montfort

· New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival

· Saint Gianna Beretta Molla:

· Coffee & Cannolis for St. Gianna

View all recipes for St. Gianna here.