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FEAST
OF ST. FAUSTINA
I
give you thanks that I am fearfully,
wonderfully made; wonderful are your works.
Judith, Chapter 11,
Verse 17
Holofernes
and his servants respond to Judith by marveling at her beauty and at her
wisdom. Judith is calm and posed while confronting evil in its lair. She like
John the baptizer confronts evil yet in the story of Judith; Holofernes will
lose his head, while John for the greater glory of God loses his.
John
is the greatest of the prophets and arguably the least confused and wisest of
Christ's disciples, John has the distinction of being the only other person
besides the Blessed Virgin and our Lord whose birthday is celebrated by the
Church.[1]
Feast of St. Faustina[2]
Saint
Faustina was born in the 20th century and canonized in the year 2000. Jesus
chose her to deliver to the modern world a message as old as eternity. It is
the message of his love for all
people, especially sinners. Jesus said to Faustina, "Today I am sending
you with my mercy to the people of the whole world." It is his desire to
heal the aching world, to draw all people into his merciful heart of love. On February 22, 1931, Jesus
appeared to Faustina as the King of Divine Mercy. He asked her to have a
picture painted of him as she saw him — clothed in white, with red and white
rays of light streaming from his heart. The rays represent the blood and water
that flowed from the side of Jesus on the cross. Under the image are the words,
"Jesus, I trust in you." Many people did not believe Faustina at
first. The sisters in her own convent thought that Jesus could not possibly
have selected her for this great favor. After all, she was an uneducated
peasant girl. Her superiors often refused to give her permission to carry out
Jesus' requests. Church theologians, too, doubted her word. Jesus told Faustina
that he loved her obedience and that his will would be done in the end.
Faustina was canonized by the first Polish pope, John Paul II, on April 30,
2000. The first Sunday after Easter was declared Divine Mercy Sunday.
Things to
Do[3]
·
Read a short biography of Sr. Mary Faustina Kowalska from the
Vatican.
·
Read the Holy Father's April 30, 2000, Homily at the solemn Mass
celebrated for the canonization of Sr. Mary Faustina Kowalska.
·
From the Directory on Popular Piety and Liturgy:
Devotion to the Divine Mercy
·
In connection with the octave of Easter, recent
years have witnessed the development and diffusion of a special devotion to the
Divine Mercy based on the writings of Sr. Faustina Kowalska who was canonized
30 April 2000. It concentrates on the mercy poured forth in Christ's death and
resurrection, fount of the Holy Spirit who forgives sins and restores joy at
having been redeemed. Since the liturgy of the Second Sunday of Easter or Divine
Mercy Sunday — as it is now called — is the natural locus in which to express
man's acceptance of the Redeemer's mercy, the faithful should be taught to
understand this devotion in the light of the liturgical celebrations of these
Easter days. Indeed, "the paschal Christ is the definitive incarnation of
mercy, his living sign which is both historico-salvific and eschatological. At
the same time, the Easter liturgy places the words of the psalm on our lips:
"I shall sing forever of the Lord's mercy" (Ps 89[88]: 2).
·
Read more from our Catholic Culture library
about the Divine Mercy devotion, in particular, a short description of The Divine Mercy devotion
·
St. Faustina came from Poland. John Paul II was
also Polish and had a great devotion to the Divine Mercy. He made it a feast
day on the second Sunday after Easter. Find out more about Poland and its
customs. It's a very Catholic country, with deep devotion to Our Lady. A
wonderful book that gives a wonderful understanding of the culture is the
Pope's biography A Witness to Hope by George Wiegel.
·
Try your hand at a Polish dish or two. Perhaps
practice making some of the favorite foods for the Polish Wigilia (Christmas
Eve Dinner) Pierogi (or Pirohi) is one of the most popular Polish foods but do
some research to find other recipes.
·
You can get her diary here:
https://www.saint-faustina.org/diary-full-text/
Catechism of the Catholic
Church
PART TWO: THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN
MYSTERY
SECTION TWO-THE SEVEN
SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH
CHAPTER ONE-THE SACRAMENTS OF CHRISTIAN
INITIATION
Article 3-THE SACRAMENT OF THE EUCHARIST
II. What is This Sacrament Called?
1328 The
inexhaustible richness of this sacrament is expressed in the different names we
give it. Each name evokes certain aspects of it. It is called: Eucharist,
because it is an action of thanksgiving to God. the Greek words
eucharistein and eulogein recall the Jewish blessings that proclaim -
especially during a meal - God's works: creation, redemption, and
sanctification.
1329 The
Lord's Supper, because of its connection with the supper which the Lord took
with his disciples on the eve of his Passion and because it anticipates the
wedding feast of the Lamb in the heavenly Jerusalem.
The Breaking of Bread, because Jesus used this rite, part of a Jewish meat when
as master of the table he blessed and distributed the bread, above all at
the Last Supper. It is by this action that his disciples will recognize
him after his Resurrection, and it is this expression that the first
Christians will use to designate their Eucharistic assemblies; by doing so
they signified that all who eat the one broken bread, Christ, enter into
communion with him and form but one body in him.
The Eucharistic assembly (synaxis), because the Eucharist is celebrated amid
the assembly of the faithful, the visible expression of the Church.
1330 The
memorial of the Lord's Passion and Resurrection.
The Holy Sacrifice, because it makes present the one sacrifice of Christ the
Savior and includes the Church's offering. the terms holy sacrifice of the
Mass, "sacrifice of praise," spiritual sacrifice, pure and holy
sacrifice are also used, since it completes and surpasses all the
sacrifices of the Old Covenant.
The Holy and Divine Liturgy, because the Church's whole liturgy finds its
center and most intense expression in the celebration of this sacrament; in the
same sense we also call its celebration the Sacred Mysteries. We speak of the
Most Blessed Sacrament because it is the Sacrament of sacraments. the
Eucharistic species reserved in the tabernacle are designated by this same
name.
1331 Holy
Communion, because by this sacrament we unite ourselves to Christ, who makes us
sharers in his Body and Blood to form a single body. We also call it: the
holy things (ta hagia; sancta) - the first meaning of the phrase
"communion of saints" in the Apostles' Creed - the bread of angels,
bread from heaven, medicine of immortality, viaticum....
1332 Holy
Mass (Missa), because the liturgy in which the mystery of salvation is
accomplished concludes with the sending forth (missio) of the faithful, so that
they may fulfill God's will in their daily lives.
Thursday Feast
Thursday is the day of the week
that our Lord gave himself up for consumption. Thursday commemorates the last
supper. Some theologians believe after Sunday Thursday is the holiest day of
the week. We should then try to make this day special by making a visit to the
blessed sacrament chapel, Mass or even stopping by the grave of a loved one.
Why not plan to count the blessing of the week and thank our Lord. Plan a
special meal. Be at Peace.
The menu for today comes
from the homeland of today’s saint.
- Polish Vodka
- Nina's Cucumber Salad
- Beef and Beet Borscht
- Sausage and Sauerkraut
- Real NY Jewish Rye Bread
- Kruschicki
Daily
Devotions
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: True
Masculinity
·
Religion
in the Home for Preschool: October
·
Litany of the Most Precious
Blood of Jesus
·
Offering to
the sacred heart of Jesus
·
Rosary
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