Saturday, November 18, 2023
This novena is focused on letting God reign supreme -- among all nations, among all people, and most especially within us.
To start, we would like to pray for your personal intentions. You can share those with us all here.
Perhaps there is one particular area of your life that you can hand over to God during this novena.
We're praying for you!
P.S. Our online Advent Retreat begins in just two weeks. You can learn more & sign up for it here.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Christ, our Savior and our King, renew in me allegiance to Your Kingship.
I pray for the grace to place You above the powers of this world in all things.
O Prince of Peace, may Your reign be complete in my life and in the life of the world. Christ, my King, please answer these petitions if they be in accordance with Your Holy Will…
[Mention your intentions here]
As I reflect on Your second, glorious coming and the judgment of all mankind, I beg You to show me mercy and give me the grace to become a great saint. I pray that not only will I spend eternity with You but that You may use me – a sinner – to bring others into Your Kingdom for Your glory.
Christ the King, Your Kingdom come!
Amen.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Luke, Chapter 18, Verse 1-8
1
Then he told them a parable about the necessity for
them to pray always without becoming weary. He said, 2
“There
was a judge in a certain town who neither FEARED
God nor respected any human being. 3
And a widow in that
town used to come to him and say, ‘Render a just decision for me against my
adversary.’ 4
For a long time the
judge was unwilling, but eventually he thought, ‘While it is true that I
neither fear God nor respect any
human being, 5 because
this widow keeps bothering me I shall deliver a just decision for her lest she
finally come and strike me.’” 6
The Lord said, “Pay
attention to what the dishonest judge says. 7 Will not God then secure the rights
of his chosen ones who call out to him day and night? Will he be slow to answer
them? 8
I tell you, he will
see to it that justice is done for them speedily. But when the Son of Man
comes, will he find faith on earth?”
Will
the Son of Man find faith on earth when he comes? We must remain faithful to
the gospel of Christ and stand with the Holy Catholic Church. We must continue
to ask Him to come to our assistance against the Philistines of our age. We
must not fail to call out to Him night and day to save us from the wicked and
to pray for their conversion and for the souls of the Martyrs of freedom that
they have made. Our enemy is not men but the devil and those are in his
control. We must never become to weary or afraid to take the gospel to those
places that are most devoid of faith, hope and love.
“Only those that see the invisible can do the impossible.” Tyrese
Novena to the Holy Face
In anticipation of the Feast of Jesus Christ King of the Universe, I propose to pray with my readers the Novena to the Holy Face to honor our King whom we will pledge our allegiance on the Day of the Feast of our King.
O Lord Jesus, we believe most firmly in Thee, we love Thee. Thou art the Eternal Son of God and the Son Incarnate of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Thou art the Lord and Absolute Ruler of all creation. We acknowledge Thee, therefore, as the Universal Sovereign of all creatures. Thou art the Lord and Supreme Ruler of all mankind, and we, in acknowledging this, Thy dominion, consecrate ourselves to Thee now and forever…
NOVENA TO THE HOLY FACE
[1]The Golden Arrow
(as dictated by Our Lord to Sister Marie of St. Peter)
May the most holy, most sacred, most adorable, most
incomprehensible and ineffable Name of God be forever praised, blessed, loved,
adored and glorified in Heaven, on Earth, and under the Earth by all the
creatures of God and by the Sacred Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Most
Holy Sacrament of the Altar. Amen.
Eternal Father, I offer Thee the adorable Face of Thy Beloved Son for the honor
and glory of Thy Name, for the conversion of sinners and the salvation of the
dying. Amen.
All those who honor My
Face in a spirit of reparation will by so doing perform the office of the pious
Veronica. According to the care they take in making reparation to My Face,
disfigured by blasphemers, so will I take care of their souls which have been
disfigured by sin. My Face is the seal of the Divinity, which has the virtue of
reproducing in souls the image of God.
- Those who by
words, prayers or writing defend My cause in this Work of Reparation I
will defend before My Father, and will give them My Kingdom.
- By offering
My Face to My Eternal Father, nothing will be refused, and the conversion
of many sinners will be obtained.
- By My Holy
Face, they will work wonders, appease the anger of God, and draw down
mercy on sinners.
- Those who on
earth contemplate the wounds of My Face shall in Heaven behold it radiant
with glory.
- They will
receive in their souls a bright and constant irradiation of My Divinity,
that by their likeness to My Face they shall shine with particular
splendor in Heaven.
- I will
defend them, I will preserve them and I assure them of Final Perseverance.[2]
Novena in Honor of
the Most Holy Face of Jesus
"I firmly wish that my
face reflecting the intimate pains of my soul, the suffering and love of my
heart, be more honored! Whoever gazes upon me already consoles me." (Our
Lord Jesus Christ to Sister Pierina)
DAILY PREPARATORY PRAYER
O Most Holy and Blessed
Trinity, through the intercession of Holy Mary, whose soul was pierced through
by a sword of sorrow at the sight of the passion of her Divine Son, we ask your
help in making a perfect Novena of reparation with Jesus, united with all His
sorrows, love and total abandonment.
We now implore all the Angels
and Saints to intercede for us as we pray this Holy Novena to the Most Holy
Face of Jesus and for the glory of the most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy
Spirit. Amen.
(Start novena)
"All those who,
attracted by my love, and venerating my countenance, shall receive, by virtue
of my humanity, a brilliant and vivid impression of my divinity. This splendor
shall enlighten the depths of their souls, so that in eternal glory the celestial
court shall marvel at the marked likeness of their features with my divine
countenance." (Our Lord Jesus Christ to St. Gertrude)
First Day
(Console
Holy Face and recite Daily Preparatory Prayer)
Psalm 51, 3-4.
Have mercy on me, O God in your goodness,
in your great tenderness wipe away my faults; wash me clean of my guilt, purify
me from my sin.
O most Holy Face of Jesus,
look with tenderness on us who are sinners. You are a merciful God, full of
love and compassion. Keep us pure of heart, so that we may see Thee always.
Mary, our Mother, intercede for us; Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Through the merits of your
precious blood and your Holy Face, O Jesus, grant us our petition, Pardon and
Mercy.
Prayer to Our Almighty Father
Almighty
Father come into our hearts, and so fill us with your love that forsaking all
evil desires, we may embrace you, our only good. Show us, O Lord our God, what
you are to us. Say to our souls, I am your salvation, speak so that we may
hear. Our hearts are before you; open our ears; let us hasten after your voice.
Hide not your Face from us, we beseech you, O Lord. Open our hearts so that you
may enter in. Repair the ruined mansions, that you may dwell therein. Hear us,
O Heavenly Father, for the sake of your only Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, who
lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever Amen.
Pray one (1) Our Father, (3) Hail Mary’s,
(1) Glory Be,
O Bleeding Face, O Face Divine, be every adoration Thine. (Three
times)
St. Michael Helper of the Sick and Dying[3]
Saint Michael the Archangel was
the protector of Israel and is also traditionally known as “The Medicine of
God.” Saint Michael as the military captain of the church of God has a great
interest in the happenings of his people, their calamities and he does not
overlook their calls for his aid. Let us therefore have recourse to him in
times of sickness. He will most certainly come to our assistance bringing the
healing graces of the Redeeming Blood. Yet, if it is the will of the father
that we depart from this world Saint Michael does not abandon us for he is
especially our advocate at our hour of death and assists at every deathbed for
it is part of his office to receive the souls of the elect on their quitting
the flesh. When the last hour of our earthly career draws near, we are
confronted by that awful moment when our soul must leave the body which it has
loved so much, to pass through the narrow portal of death, satanic hosts like
raving lions will make a last attack upon our souls. But we need not fear (but
be at peace) if during life we have had devotion to the Precious Blood and have
been faithful in venerating St. Michael and imploring his aid. He will cover us
with his strong shield and lead us safely through the midst of our enemies.
Catechism of the Catholic
Church
PART TWO: THE CELEBRATION OF THE CHRISTIAN
MYSTERY
SECTION TWO-THE SEVEN
SACRAMENTS OF THE CHURCH
CHAPTER THREE-THE SACRAMENTS AT THE SERVICE OF
COMMUNION
Article 7-THE SACRAMENT OF MATRIMONY
I. Marriage in God's Plan
1602 Sacred Scripture begins
with the creation of man and woman in the image and likeness of God and
concludes with a vision of "the wedding-feast of the
Lamb." Scripture speaks throughout of marriage and its
"mystery," its institution and the meaning God has given it, its
origin and its end, its various realizations throughout the history of
salvation, the difficulties arising from sin and its renewal "in the
Lord" in the New Covenant of Christ and the Church.
Marriage in the order of
creation
1603 "The intimate
community of life and love which constitutes the married state has been
established by the Creator and endowed by him with its own proper laws.... God
himself is the author of marriage." The vocation to marriage is written
in the very nature of man and woman as they came from the hand of the Creator.
Marriage is not a purely human institution despite the many variations it may
have undergone through the centuries in different cultures, social structures,
and spiritual attitudes. These differences should not cause us to forget its
common and permanent characteristics. Although the dignity of this institution
is not transparent everywhere with the same clarity, some sense of the
greatness of the matrimonial union exists in all cultures. "The well-being
of the individual person and of both human and Christian society is closely
bound up with the healthy state of conjugal and family life."
1604 God who created man out of
love also calls him to love the fundamental and innate vocation of every human
being. For man is created in the image and likeness of God who is himself
love. Since God created him man and woman, their mutual love becomes an
image of the absolute and unfailing love with which God loves man. It is good,
very good, in the Creator's eyes. and this love which God blesses is intended
to be fruitful and to be realized in the common work of watching over creation:
"and God blessed them, and God said to them: 'Be fruitful and multiply,
and fill the earth and subdue it.'"
1605 Holy Scripture affirms
that man and woman were created for one another: "It is not good that the
man should be alone." The woman, "flesh of his flesh,"
i.e., his counterpart, his equal, his nearest in all things, is given to him by
God as a "helpmate"; she thus represents God from whom comes our
help. "Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves
to his wife, and they become one flesh." The Lord himself shows that
this signifies an unbreakable union of their two lives by recalling what the
plan of the Creator had been "in the beginning": "So they are no
longer two, but one flesh."
Marriage under the regime of
sin
1606 Every man experiences evil
around him and within himself. This experience makes itself felt in the
relationships between man and woman. Their union has always been threatened by
discord, a spirit of domination, infidelity, jealousy, and conflicts that can
escalate into hatred and separation. This disorder can manifest itself more or
less acutely, and can be more or less overcome according to the circumstances
of cultures, eras, and individuals, but it does seem to have a universal
character.
1607 According to faith the
disorder we notice so painfully does not stem from the nature of man and woman,
nor from the nature of their relations, but from sin. As a break with God, the
first sin had for its first consequence the rupture of the original communion
between man and woman. Their relations were distorted by mutual
recriminations; their mutual attraction, the Creator's own gift, changed
into a relationship of domination and lust; and the beautiful vocation of
man and woman to be fruitful, multiply, and subdue the earth was burdened by
the pain of childbirth and the toil of work.
1608 Nevertheless, the order of
creation persists, though seriously disturbed. To heal the wounds of sin, man
and woman need the help of the grace that God in his infinite mercy never
refuses them. Without his help man and woman cannot achieve the union of
their lives for which God created them "in the beginning."
Marriage under the pedagogy of
the Law
1609 In his mercy God has not
forsaken sinful man. the punishments consequent upon sin, "pain in
childbearing" and toil "in the sweat of your brow," also
embody remedies that limit the damaging effects of sin. After the fall, marriage
helps to overcome self-absorption, egoism, pursuit of one's own pleasure, and
to open oneself to the other, to mutual aid and to self-giving.
1610 Moral conscience
concerning the unity and indissolubility of marriage developed under the
pedagogy of the old law. In the Old Testament the polygamy of patriarchs and
kings is not yet explicitly rejected. Nevertheless, the law given to Moses aims
at protecting the wife from arbitrary domination by the husband, even though
according to the Lord's words it still carries traces of man's "hardness
of heart" which was the reason Moses permitted men to divorce their wives.
1611 Seeing God's covenant with
Israel in the image of exclusive and faithful married love, the prophets
prepared the Chosen People's conscience for a deepened understanding of the
unity and indissolubility of marriage. The books of Ruth and Tobit bear
moving witness to an elevated sense of marriage and to the fidelity and
tenderness of spouses. Tradition has always seen in the Song of Solomon a
unique expression of human love, a pure reflection of God's love - a love
"strong as death" that "many waters cannot quench."
Marriage in the Lord
1612 The nuptial covenant
between God and his people Israel had prepared the way for the new and
everlasting covenant in which the Son of God, by becoming incarnate and giving
his life, has united to himself in a certain way all mankind saved by him, thus
preparing for "the wedding-feast of the Lamb."
1613 On the threshold of his
public life Jesus performs his first sign - at his mother's request - during a
wedding feast. The Church attaches great importance to Jesus' presence at
the wedding at Cana. She sees in it the confirmation of the goodness of
marriage and the proclamation that thenceforth marriage will be an efficacious
sign of Christ's presence.
1614 In his preaching Jesus
unequivocally taught the original meaning of the union of man and woman as the
Creator willed it from the beginning permission given by Moses to divorce one's
wife was a concession to the hardness of hearts. The matrimonial union of
man and woman is indissoluble: God himself has determined it "what
therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder."
1615 This unequivocal
insistence on the indissolubility of the marriage bond may have left some
perplexed and could seem to be a demand impossible to realize. However, Jesus
has not placed on spouses a burden impossible to bear, or too heavy - heavier
than the Law of Moses. By coming to restore the original order of creation
disturbed by sin, he himself gives the strength and grace to live marriage in
the new dimension of the Reign of God. It is by following Christ, renouncing
themselves, and taking up their crosses that spouses will be able to
"receive" the original meaning of marriage and live it with the help
of Christ. This grace of Christian marriage is a fruit of Christ's cross,
the source of all Christian life.
1616 This is what the Apostle
Paul makes clear when he says: "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved
the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her,"
adding at once: "'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one. This is a great
mystery, and I mean in reference to Christ and the Church."
1617 The entire Christian life
bears the mark of the spousal love of Christ and the Church. Already Baptism,
the entry into the People of God, is a nuptial mystery; it is so to speak the
nuptial bath which precedes the wedding feast, the Eucharist. Christian
marriage in its turn becomes an efficacious sign, the sacrament of the covenant
of Christ and the Church. Since it signifies and communicates grace, marriage
between baptized persons is a true sacrament of the New Covenant.
Virginity for the sake of the
Kingdom
1618 Christ is the center of
all Christian life. The bond with him takes precedence over all other bonds,
familial or social. From the very beginning of the Church there have been
men and women who have renounced the great good of marriage to follow the Lamb
wherever he goes, to be intent on the things of the Lord, to seek to please
him, and to go out to meet the Bridegroom who is coming. Christ himself
has invited certain persons to follow him in this way of life, of which he
remains the model:
"For
there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have
been made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves
eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. He who is able to receive this,
let him receive it."
1619 Virginity for the sake of
the kingdom of heaven is an unfolding of baptismal grace, a powerful sign of
the supremacy of the bond with Christ and of the ardent expectation of his
return, a sign which also recalls that marriage is a reality of this present
age which is passing away.
1620 Both the sacrament of
Matrimony and virginity for the Kingdom of God come from the Lord himself. It
is he who gives them meaning and grants them the grace which is indispensable
for living them out in conformity with his will. Esteem of virginity for
the sake of the kingdom and the Christian understanding of marriage are
inseparable, and they reinforce each other:
Whoever
denigrates marriage also diminishes the glory of virginity. Whoever praises it
makes virginity more admirable and resplendent. What appears good only in
comparison with evil would not be truly good. the most excellent good is
something even better than what is admitted to be good.
Daily
Devotions/Practice
·
Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them
in fasting: Today's Fast: Absent
Fathers (Physically & Spiritually)
·
Saturday
Litany of the Hours Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary
·
Rosary. Fast too today is “Occult Day”
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