Saturday, June 1, 2024

- May 24, 2024

Saints, Feast, Family
- Traditions passed down with Cooking, Crafting, & Caring -
June 1

Saint of the day:
Saint Justin
Patron Saint of philosophers, apologists, and lecturers

JUNE

Wildlife fills our life with joy and refreshment. Songbirds and birds of prey, squirrels and rabbits, butterflies and lightning bugs all carry a message worth discovering in early summer. Do we see and hear them, or do we overlook them, even despise them? Are they simply an annoyance, or do we come to know, love, and even serve these fellow creatures by providing protection and habitat?

June: The Sacred Heart of Jesus – The Sacred Heart of Jesus is the revelation of God’s immense love for us. It is often depicted as a fiery furnace, pierced and broken, but beating with love. The Sacred Heart is also a profound reminder of the humanity of our Lord, for his heart is not a mere symbol, but a true physical reality.

Overview of June[1]

As we begin to feel the warmth of summer, we can reflect that we celebrate the feasts of Corpus Christi (June 2), the Sacred Heart of Jesus (June 7) and the Immaculate Heart of Mary (June 8). God is Love and the Sacred Heart of Jesus — present on earth in the Blessed Sacrament — is the human manifestation of God's Love for men. Appropriately June is considered the month for weddings where human hearts join and cooperate with the Creator in bringing forth new life. The family they create is a human reflection of the Blessed Trinity.

Appropriately June is considered the month for weddings where human hearts join and cooperate with the Creator in bringing forth new life. The family they create is a human reflection of the Blessed Trinity. Appropriately June is considered the month for weddings where human hearts join and cooperate with the Creator in bringing forth new life. The family they create is a human reflection of the Blessed Trinity.

Following Pentecost, the Church begins her slow descent from the great peaks of the Easter Season to the verdant pastures of Ordinary Time, the longest of the liturgical seasons. Like the lush June growth all around us, the green of the liturgical season points to the new life won for us by the Redemption of Jesus Christ, the new life of Charity. For Our Lord came to cast the fire of His love on the earth, and to that end, sent His Holy Spirit at Pentecost in the form of tongues of fire. Ordinary Time is the hour to “go out to all the world and tell the good news.” The feasts of June highlight this expansion of the Church. At least ten times, the Church vests in the red of the martyrs whose blood is the very seed of her growth. She also celebrates the feasts of the apostles Peter and Paul, and the birth of St. John the Baptist, proto-disciple and prophet. We too are called to be witnesses like the apostles and martyrs. May the Heart of Jesus inflame our hearts so that we may be worthy of our Baptismal call to holiness. Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us.

June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart[2]

Since the 16th century Catholic piety has assigned entire months to special devotions. The month of June is set apart for devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. "From among all the proofs of the infinite goodness of our Savior none stands out more prominently than the fact that, as the love of the faithful grew cold, He, Divine Love Itself, gave Himself to us to be honored by a very special devotion and that the rich treasury of the Church was thrown wide open in the interests of that devotion." These words of Pope Pius XI refer to the Sacred Heart Devotion, which in its present form dates from the revelations given to Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque in 1673-75.

The devotion consists in the divine worship of the human heart of Christ, which is united to His divinity and which is a symbol of His love for us. The aim of the devotion is to make our Lord king over our hearts by prompting them to return love to Him (especially through an act of consecration by which we offer to the Heart of Jesus both ourselves and all that belongs to us) and to make reparation for our ingratitude to God.

Prayer:

INVOCATION

O Heart of love, I put all my trust in Thee; for I fear all things from my own weakness, but I hope for all things from Thy goodness. Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque

PRAYER TO THE SACRED HEART

Devotion to the Sacred Heart was the characteristic note of the piety of Saint Gertrude the Great (1256-1302), Benedictine nun and renowned mystic. She was, in fact, the first great exponent of devotion to the Sacred Heart. In our efforts to honor the Heart of Jesus we have this prayer as a model for our own: Hail! O Sacred Heart of Jesus, living and quickening source of eternal life, infinite treasure of the Divinity, and burning furnace of divine love. Thou art my refuge and my sanctuary, Oh my amiable Savior. Consume my heart with that burning fire with which Thine is ever inflamed. Pour down on my soul those graces which flow from Thy love, and let my heart be so united with Thine, that our wills may be one, and mine in all things be conformed to Thine. May Thy divine will be equally the standard and rule of all my desires and of all my actions. Amen. Saint Gertrude

FOR THE CHURCH

O most holy Heart of Jesus, shower Thy blessings in abundant measure upon Thy holy Church, upon the Supreme Pontiff and upon all the clergy; to the just grant perseverance; convert sinners; enlighten unbelievers; bless our relations, friends and benefactors; assist the dying; deliver the holy souls in purgatory; and extend over all hearts the sweet empire of Thy love. Amen.

A PRAYER OF TRUST

O God, who didst in wondrous manner reveal to the virgin, Margaret Mary, the unsearchable riches of Thy Heart, grant that loving Thee, after her example, in all things and above all things, we may in Thy Heart find our abiding home.

ACT OF LOVE

Reveal Thy Sacred Heart to me, O Jesus, and show me Its attractions. Unite me to It forever. Grant that all my aspirations and all the beats of my heart, which cease not even while I sleep, may be a testimonial to Thee of my love for Thee and may say to Thee: Yes, Lord, I am all Thine; pledge of my allegiance to Thee rests ever in my heart will never cease to be there. Do Thou accept the slight amount of good that I do and be graciously pleased to repair all m] wrongdoing; so that I may be able to bless Thee in time and in eternity. Amen. Cardinal Merry del Val

MEMORARE TO THE SACRED HEART Remember, O most sweet Jesus, that no one who has had recourse to Thy Sacred Heart, implored its help, or sought it mercy was ever abandoned. Encouraged with confidence, O tenderest of hearts, we present ourselves before Thee, crushes beneath the weight of our sins. In our misery, O Sacred Heart of Jesus, despise not our simple prayers, but mercifully grant our requests.

Prayer Source: Prayer Book, The by Reverend John P. O'Connell, M.A., S.T.D. and Jex Martin, M.A., The Catholic Press, Inc., Chicago, Illinois, 1954

JUNE TIMETABLE

June Travel?[3]

· Machu Picchu Explore the incredible Inca ruins of Peru’s Machu Picchu, often called “Lost city of the Incas.” Take an adventurous climb to see the Temple of Condor and Sun Gate -- the end point for the Inca Trail. Visit in June to take advantage of the dry season and to avoid the heavy crowds in July and August.

· Whale Watching, Stellwagen Bank—May thru October-- Did winter come and go without you getting a chance to see whales? There’s still time: Between May and September, more than 400 orcas swim in the waters around Canada’s Vancouver Island. Or head to the Azores, the Portuguese archipelago about 1,000 miles from Lisbon, where sperm whales gather from May to October. Closer to home, Stellwagen Bank, a submerged sandbank between Cape Cod and Cape Ann in Massachusetts, attracts the endangered North Atlantic right whale to its waters.

o San Diego Whale Watch

· Chicago Blues Festival-June 6--Chicago is the place to visit in June, especially if you’re a fan of the blues. The Chicago Blues Festival is the largest free blues music festival in the world. Over three days, more than 500,000 people converge on Grant Park to hear well-renown performers perform on the festival’s five stages.

· Dragon Boat Races—June 8-10--Visit Hong Kong to experience the excitement of the Duanwu Festival, celebrated on the fifth day of the fifth month of the lunar calendar. The festival includes dragon boat races in Aberdeen -- one of the first places to host these races in Hong Kong. Fishermen believe that rowing dragon boats during the Duanwu Festival will bring them luck.

· Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival—June 13-16--From indie rock to reggae, the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, draws thousands of fans every year. Previous notable acts include Bob Dylan, Arcade Fire, Bruce Springsteen, Jay-Z, The Beach Boys and The White Stripes. During this four-day music festival, bands, rappers, musicians and singers perform from around noon until 4 a.m. or later at Great Stage Park, which is located on a 700-acre farm.

· Father's Day June 16 Don’t forget about Dad this month. Spend some extra time with your father figure by planning a trip to go fly fishing, rock climbing or skydiving. For a getaway minus the adrenaline-pumping thrills, we have a few Father’s Day travel ideas like a brewery tour in Portland, Oregon, or game of golf in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

o Arizona

Iceman’s Calendar

· June 1^st First Saturday

· June 4^th MASS First Wednesday

· June 6^th D-Day, 1944-Thu

· June 7^th Sacred Heart of Jesus

o First Friday

· June 8^th Immaculate Heart of Mary-Sat

· June 9^th Third Sunday after Pentecost

· June 11^th St. Barnabas-Shavuot begins at sundown-Tue

· June 13^th Orthodox Ascension-Thu

· June 14^th St. Basal-Flag Day-Fri

· June 16^th Fourth Sunday after Pentecost-Father’s Day

· June 19^th Juneteenth National Independence Day-Wed

· June 20^th Summer Solstice-Thu

· June 21^st Full Strawberry Moon-Fri

· June 23^rd Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

· June 24^th Feast of John the Baptist-Mon

o Midsummer Day

· June 29^th Feast of St’s Peter and Paul

· June 30^th Sixth Sunday after Pentecost

JUNE 1 First Saturday

MEMORIAL OF SAINT JUSTIN, MARTYR

Jude, Chapter 1, Verse 22-23

²² On those who waver, have mercy;²³ save others by snatching them out of the fire; on others have mercy with FEAR, abhorring even the outer garment stained by the flesh.

Save others by snatching them out of the fire. Jude is advising us to be prudent when you save others. There is almost no way you can pull others from a fire without being burnt, unless you are wearing protective garments.

You cannot save unbelievers by hanging out in the bar with them or partying with them.

Jude states the even the very garments of the godless are to be abhorred because of their contagion or in more simplistic terms we cannot have the same lifestyle as the godless. No, we must be in the world but not of the world. Christ in His Sermon on the Mount taught us how our lifestyle is to be.

1. Be not afraid but be brave in the world loving even the loveless.

2. Do not become prideful and self-important but show humility; reverence and respect to all: for they are created by the hand of God.

3. Do not envy the wicked; but let your desire be to be kind remembering they must account for themselves before God; respect and be loyal to them.

4. Let your anger be at injustice, showing patience, compassion and forgiveness to the sinner.

5. Be temperate and do all things in moderation; do not greedily take things to yourself but share your wealth with those in need. Remember to show true charity by helping them with their troubles thus empowering them to become greater; to pursue righteousness.

6. Do not become slothful or failing to resist evil but be diligent to build the Kingdom of God; one day and one person at a time: begin with yourself.

7. Do not be gluttonous; avoid excess and exclusivity (the country club mentality) but be temperate sacrifice, give up and surrender to the Spirit of God.

8. Do not look on others as objects to be used for lustful needs but see them as created by the hand of God; your chase purpose is to help them achieve God’s dream for them.

First Saturday-Time to Get Serious About Fatima[4]

The world's gone mad. Take the attacks and outrages perpetrated by men upon their neighbors or the persecutions of the Church in China and North Korea, and the list could go on. But it's pointless to compare tragedies, to try to determine who's most wounded, who is most in pain. Rather, it's time and long past time to apply the solutions we've had all along. I'm talking, of course, about the message of Fatima, specifically Our Lady's calls for the daily Rosary for peace in the world and the Five First Saturday’s devotion.

My fellow Marian Fr. Seraphim Michalenko sometimes tells a story that a priest ministering in Japan shared with him in Rome. This priest was attending an international gathering of Christians from across the world, attended by foreign dignitaries. The ambassador from Japan approached the priest, verified that the priest served in Japan and was a Catholic priest, and then said, "War is your fault." The priest was surprised and asked what the ambassador meant. The ambassador said, "You Catholics, all of you — we do not have peace in the world. It is your fault." The priest said, "Ambassador, why do you blame us?" The ambassador said, "I've read about this. The Lady came to you at Fatima, right? That's what you believe? She told you what to do to secure peace in the world. Well, there's no peace in the world, so obviously you Catholics haven't done it." The priest had to acknowledge that the ambassador was correct, but still tried to protest, saying, "Isn't peace everyone's responsibility?" The ambassador was vehement. "No, she came to you Catholics. Not to Buddhists. Not to Hindus. She came to you, and it is your responsibility."

We've been given the answer. Pray the Rosary daily for peace in the world and invite others to pray with you. At college, there would occasionally be "sit ins for peace." A number of my fellow students, passionately convicted and righteously indignant though they were, would go and sit outside the student center with signs. That was their sit in for peace. It always massively frustrated me because here we were, a Catholic school, armed with a whole host of powerful prayers and devotions, and there they were just sitting. If they'd just bothered to pray the Rosary, their protest would have meant a great deal in this world and the next.

Why not arrange for a Rosary for peace at your colleges and universities, if not every day, then at least every Saturday, traditionally set aside as Our Lady’s Day?

Why not revive the tradition of family and neighborhood Rosaries, offered specifically for the intention of peace in the world?

What about having a regular Rosary for peace at your parish, maybe even before Mass with the permission of your pastor?

• Make the Five First Saturdays devotion
• Consecrate yourself to the Immaculate Heart, and encourage others to do the same.
• Become invested in the Brown Scapular.
• Do penance for your sins and on behalf of poor sinners everywhere.

Don't just sit there — the world is in trouble, and we have the answer.

St. Justin, Apologist and Martyr[5] (c. 100-165), who was one of the most important Christian writers of the second century. Justin himself tells how his study of all the schools of philosophy led him to Christianity, and how he dedicated his life to the defense of the Christian faith as "the one certain and profitable philosophy."

St. Justin is particularly celebrated for the two Apologies which he was courageous enough to address in succession to the persecuting emperors Antoninus and Marcus Aurelius. One of them contains a description of the rites of baptism and the ceremonies of Mass, thus constituting the most valuable evidence that we possess on the Roman liturgy of his day. He was beheaded in Rome in 165. Justin is also referred to as "the Philosopher."

Catechism of the Catholic Church

PROLOGUE

"FATHER... this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent."

"God our Savior desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth." "There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved"- than the name of JESUS.

Apostolic Exhortation[6]

Veneremur Cernui – Down in Adoration Falling

of The Most Reverend Thomas J. Olmsted, Bishop of Phoenix,
to Priests, Deacons, Religious and the Lay Faithful of the Diocese of Phoenix on the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist

My beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Part II

III. Worthy Reception of Holy Communion – Conforming our life with Christ.

61. From the very beginning, the Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, passed down to us in the Didache – one of the oldest writings outside the New Testament – describes this ancient practice in which the priest, just before distributing Holy Communion says: “Whoever is holy, let him approach, whoever is not, let him do penance” (Didache 10). The Church has always stressed this perennial doctrine and discipline: before one receives Jesus Christ in Holy Communion one must be in communion of life, restored often by God’s mercy in the Sacrament of Penance. Otherwise, instead of receiving all the graces from Holy Communion, we are partaking of our own condemnation. Saint Paul declared, “Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord.” In other words, whoever unworthily receives the Eucharist will have to answer for the Lord’s death. The Apostle further warned, “A person should examine himself, and so eat the bread and drink the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself” (1 Cor 11:27-29).

62. Thomas Aquinas painfully but clearly echoed Saint Paul’s warning in the hymn Lauda Sion Salvatorem reminding us that the “Bread of Life” becomes the bread of death for those who consume Jesus in the state of grave sin. “The good partake, the bad partake: with, however, an unequal share of life and death. It is death to the bad, life to the good: behold how unlike is the result of like partaking.” When one receives Holy Communion unworthily, the Sacrament becomes a sacrilege; the spiritual medicine becomes for that person — it is frightful to say — a form of spiritual poison. When we do not really believe in Jesus, when we do not really seek to conform our entire life to Him and receive Jesus even though we know that we have sinned against Him, then this just leads to a greater sin and betrayal.

63. In speaking of the Sacrament of Penance, I wish to gratefully acknowledge the dedication of our priests who generously offer their time to ensure that the faithful can always have the opportunity for confession. In the exercise of their ministry, they are also contributing to helping the faithful prepare worthily for Holy Communion. Pray for your priests who have faithfully made themselves available for this very purpose! Pray also that God may bless us with more vocations to the priesthood!

To be continued…

Vinny’s Corner-Get your Jazz on

Music in the Mountains Concert Series: Nancy Elliott

Catalina State Park Saturday, June 1, 2024 6 p.m.

Come on out to Catalina State Park for a Southwestern Americana performance with Nancy Elliott!

Bob Atkinson, a Tucson, Arizona Poet, describes Nancy this way; “Nancy's feeling for Southwestern Culture gets displayed in each concert she performs. In a mix of historical stories, cultural stories, and contemporary experience, Ms. Elliott displays a warmth on stage few of us can match in daily social interactions. Her guitar and persona create a feeling of being in a room speaking one-on-one with her, even if you're only one of many enjoying her refreshing musical treatment of a polished acoustic/singing/storytelling performance.”

Visit her website at www.NancyElliottMusic.com or Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/nancy.katycreek

Don't forget to bring a chair, picnic dinner, drinks or enjoy a hike in the park before the show starts! Concert is included in all-day admission price of $7.

Please bring a chair and feel free to bring a friend, food, and drinks (no glass). The Concert is held at the Trailhead Stage located at the end of the park road 1.5-miles north of the Ranger Station.

Eat Breakfast!

Daily Devotions

· Unite in the work of the Porters of St. Joseph by joining them in fasting: End to abortion

· Saturday Litany of the Hours Invoking the Aid of Mother Mary

· Litany of the Most Precious Blood of Jesus

· Offering to the sacred heart of Jesus

· Drops of Christ’s Blood

· Universal Man Plan

· Rosary