Saint Andrew, Apostle and Martyr

Today is the feast day of Saint Andrew the Apostle. As Our Blessed Mother Mary always leads us to Jesus, Saint Andrew brought others to Jesus.  

Andrew told his brother Simon: We have found the Messiah, the Christ; and he brought him to Jesus. John 1:41-42

When Jesus called Andrew and his brother Simon Peter, he said to them, Come follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. Matthew 4:19 They immediately dropped their fishing nets and followed him. Let us say Yes to Jesus the way Andrew, Simon and Our Blessed Mother Mary did. Let us call on their intercession in our need.

A novena is normally a nine day prayer, the term is sometimes used for any prayer that is repeated over a series of days. This prayer is often called the "Christmas Novena" or the "Christmas Anticipation Prayer," because it is prayed 15 times every day from the Feast of Saint Andrew the Apostle until Christmas. The first Sunday of Advent is the Sunday closest to the Feast of Saint Andrew.

The novena is not actually addressed to Saint Andrew but to God Himself, asking Him to grant our request in the honor of the birth of His Son at Christmas. You can say the prayer all 15 times, all at once; or divide up the recitation as necessary, perhaps five times at each meal. Prayed as a family, the Saint Andrew Christmas Novena is a very good way to help focus the attention of your children on the Advent season.

Saint Andrew Christmas Novena
Hail and blessed be the hour and moment in which the Son of God was born of the most pure Virgin Mary, at midnight, in Bethlehem, in piercing cold. In that hour, vouchsafe, O my God! to hear my prayer and grant my desires, through the merits of Our Saviour Jesus Christ, and of His Blessed Mother. Amen.

Saint Andrew, you gave your life to follow Jesus. Help us offer our lives to follow Him in all we do and in all we say.

Thanksgiving

On this Thanksgiving Day, we give thanks for all your prayers for the babies, little ones and families. We never know how our prayers are used.  The Lord takes our prayers and little offerings and places them where they are needed.

Our Blessed Virgin Mary offered her life and gave her Fiat through her obedience and humble service. This is true worship of God, surrendering to His Will. In heaven, she leads a song of eternal praise, like incense raising up to God.

Catechism of the Catholic Church #1330 
The Eucharist is a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Father, a blessing by which the Church expresses her gratitude to God for all His benefits, for all He has accomplished through creation, redemption, and sanctification.  Eucharist means, first of all, "thanksgiving."

Listen, my faithful children: open up your petals, like roses planted near running waters; send up the sweet odor of incense, break forth in blossoms like the lily.  Send up the sweet odor of your hymn of praise; bless the Lord for all He has done!  Sirach 39:13-14

O give thanks to the Lord for He is good; His love endures forever. Psalm 136:1

Christ the King

The good thief, hanging next to Jesus on the cross said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus replied to him, "Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
Luke 23:42-43

Today we celebrate the Feast Day of Christ, King of the Universe, the conclusion of the Year of Faith and the Church’s journey through the life of Christ and the Gospel message. This Sunday provides a bridge to the new Church Year that begins next Sunday on the first Sunday of Advent, a time of waiting in hope and expectation, a time of longing for the coming of the Kingdom of God amid the darkness of a sinful world. It is through the Virgin Mary that we receive Christ the King into our hearts. She walked with Jesus and always brings us to Him.

“In that first ‘fusion’ with Jesus in Holy Communion, it was my Heavenly Mother again who accompanied me to the altar for it was she herself who placed her Jesus into my soul.”  Saint Therese of Lisieux, Doctor of the Church

"The Virgin Mary, being obedient to His Word, received from an angel the glad tidings that she would bear God."  Saint Irenaeus, Father of the Church

"I am not only the Queen of Heaven, but also the Mother of Mercy."  Our Lady to Saint Faustina

“King” was one of the earliest titles given to the Son of God. The title does not refer to a status of an earthly king, which many of the Jews had been expecting; someone to overthrow the Roman rule and be an earthly king of the Israel. Rather He came to be the spiritual king; His kingdom is in heaven, not confined to the earth alone. It is an eternal Kingdom of light and truth, of holiness and grace, of justice, love and peace.

And this will be made manifest at the proper time by the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords.  1 Timothy 6:15

Mary is the guardian of our life, hidden in Christ. It is through Our Mother Mary's love that we have the knowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord.



Christ, King of Divine Majesty, have mercy on us. Remember us when You come into Your Kingdom. Blessed Mother Mary, Queen of Heaven and Earth, pray for us.

Reflection: Through the eyes of a little child...

Have you ever looked at the sky at night with a little child?  You can hear the wonder and awe in the child's voice.  Have you ever watched a child jump into the arms of a grandparent?  You can see the love and total trust between them.  Have you ever told an imaginary story to a child?  "Once upon a time..."  The story is all about the child.  The little child squeals with delight and wants to hear the story again and again.  Have you ever seen the excitement of a little child at their birthday party?  It is a celebration of pure joy with family and friends! 

Jesus calls us to be like little children in wonder, awe, love, trust, delight and joy!

I have had the blessing of bringing a little child to visit Jesus in Eucharistic Adoration.  The visits are short and beautiful.  Once when we were driving down the street to the little chapel, she said, "I really want to see Jesus."  She said it with such a beautiful yearning and anticipation in her heart.  One day, we arrived before adoration had begun.  She stepped into the chapel and said, "Why is it different?"  Jesus had not been placed on the altar yet.  She noticed and missed His Presence on the altar.  We waited and the priest came and took Jesus out the tabernacle and placed Him on the altar.    She climbed up on the kneeler and talked with Him, as she does at each visit.

Taking a child, He placed it in their midst, and putting His arms around it He said to them, “Whoever receives one child such as this in My name, receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but the One who sent Me.  Mark 9:36-37

What does a little child see in Eucharistic Adoration?  Jesus.  Little children sense His Presence. Jesus wants us to come to Him with that sense of yearning to be in His Presence.  When we come to Him with childlike trust, He fills us with His love and peace.

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux lived each day with complete confidence in God’s love. She wrote, “What matters in life, is not great deeds, but great love.” Saint Thérèse’s spirituality, her Little Way, is the trust of a little child. 

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, The Story of a Soul 

But I will look for some means of going to heaven by a little way which is very short and very straight, a little way that is quite new[...] It is your arms, Jesus, which are the lift to carry me to heaven, And so there is no need for me to grow up. In fact, just the opposite: I must stay little and become less and less.  

Saint Faustina had a great love for the Blessed Sacrament.  She said that only one thing is needed to please God: to do even the smallest things out of great love.

Diary of Saint Faustina 332
When I started the Holy Hour, I wanted to immerse myself in the agony of Jesus in the Garden of Olives. Then I heard a voice in my soul: Meditate on the mystery of the Incarnation. And suddenly the Infant Jesus appeared before me, radiant with beauty. He told me how much God is pleased with simplicity in a soul. Although My greatness is beyond understanding, I commune only with those who are little. I demand of you a childlike spirit.

 

Do you realize that Jesus is there in the Blessed Sacrament expressly for you, for you alone?  He burns with the desire to come into your heart.  Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

 

Jesus is waiting for you.  Come away and rest awhile...

Totus Tuus Totally Yours

Immaculate Conception, Mary, my Mother. Live in me. Act in me. Speak in and through me. Think your thoughts in my mind. Love, through my heart. Give me your dispositions and feelings. Teach, lead and guide me to Jesus. Correct, enlighten and expand my thoughts and behavior. Possess my soul. Take over my entire personality and life. Replace it with yourself. Incline me to constant adoration and thanksgiving. Pray in me and through me. Let me live in you and keep me in this union always.  Blessed Pope John Paul II

We give thanks to Our Blessed Mother Mary.  This prayer ministry is dedicated to her and consecrated to Jesus Christ, Our Divine Healer. It began on May 1, 2010 with a posting of this sweet video for all the precious little ones.



We entrust all the names we have received and all the names we will receive to Our Lady of the Rosary. We thank Jesus for giving His Mother to us.  Jesus we trust in You.

In honor of our Veterans

America, our country is truly blessed; God, through the powerful intercession of Mary, the Immaculate Conception, has shed His grace on America. May He continue to do so from sea to shining sea! Let us reflect and remember all those who have served our country, past and present.

Prayer by Susan Helene Kramer
"You gave for peace with courage that families may be free so children could grow strong and safe they'd ever be.  In giving for the sake of peace, you may have suffered loss. Your body may still show its wounds from taking up the cause.  May remembrance of your time away, your sacrifice for peace spur us on to strive more strongly for freedom, that there'll be release.  From causes that sent some away to fight that we may freely live with gratefulness we thank you,  Veterans, for all you gave and give!"



Blessed Mother Mary, protect our veterans and their families, especially their children. Bring comfort and peace to those who have lost loved ones defending our country. We are honored to have Mary as the patron saint of America because she is the most powerful intercessor. By a decree from the First Council of Baltimore, Mary in her Immaculate Conception, was elected as our principal Patron. A patron is one who has been assigned, or in this case, chosen by election, as a special intercessor before God.

Saint Louis de Montfort, in his renowned manuscript True Devotion to Mary, boldly suggests that Christ is weak in front of his Mother. It’s as if he can’t say “No” to her! The Catechism of the Catholic Church (969) states that the Blessed Virgin is invoked under the title Mediatrix of all grace. While no creature measures up to the one and only Redeemer, we profess that Mary cooperates in a unique way in her Son’s redemptive mission. She knows what is best for her children and so intercedes for us before the very source of all grace, Jesus Christ.


Today is the feast day of Saint Martin of Tours. Martin was in the military, but attempted to live the life of a monk. Though he was entitled to a servant because he was an officer, he insisted on switching roles with his servant, cleaning the servant's boots instead of the other way around! On a bitterly cold winter day, the young tribune Martin rode through the gates, probably dressed in the regalia of his unit, gleaming, flexible armor, ridged helmet, and a beautiful white cloak whose upper section was lined with lambswool. As he approached the gates he saw a beggar, with clothes so ragged that he was practically naked. The beggar must have been shaking and blue from the cold, but no one reached out to help him. Martin, overcome with compassion, took off his mantle. In one quick stroke he slashed the lovely mantle in two with his sword, handed half to the freezing man and wrapped the remainder on his own shoulders. Many in the crowd thought this was so ridiculous a sight that they laughed and jeered but some realized that they were seeing Christian goodness. That night, Martin dreamed that he saw Jesus wearing the half mantle he had given the beggar. Jesus said to the angels and saints that surrounded him, "See! this is the mantle that Martin, yet a catechumen, gave me." When he woke, it was the "yet a catechumen" that spurred Martin on and he went immediately to be baptized. He was eighteen years old.

Saint Martin of Tours, pray for all veterans on this special day in their honor.

In tribute to a special Vietnam veteran, Poppy, grandfather of Lily Grace and Norah.

All for Jesus through Mary

On the Cross, Jesus gave us Mary as our Mother.

Behold, your Mother. John 19:27

The way to be close to Jesus and Mary is by praying and meditating on the mysteries of the Most Holy Rosary.

I will espouse you to me forever: I will espouse you in right and justice, in love and mercy; I will espouse you in fidelity, and you shall know the Lord.
Hosea 2:21-22

We will know the Lord by drawing close to Mary in prayer through the rosary.



Caryll Houselander, British mystic, poet and spiritual teacher
"Mary never resisted the Holy Spirit by whom she had conceived Jesus because she was passionately devoted to the Will of God and because she loved the world. Her values were his values. Their own miracle went on, and it went on as mysteriously as a pure, bright stream running underground. Just as Christ received God's love from Mary in his infancy, He did God's Will in the little acts of obedience that filled the loveliness of their lives in the loss in the Temple and the temptation in the wilderness. That which had been the secret of her strength from the beginning is the secret of the communion between them."

Blessed Mother Mary, hear our prayers and petitions for these babies, little ones and families. We entrust them to you and ask that you intercede and bring their needs to Jesus. We offer our rosaries and Memorares in His Holy Name.

All Souls Day



Today we celebrate All Souls Day. Our Lord dictated the following prayer to Saint Gertrude the Great to release 1,000 Souls from Purgatory each time it is said.

Prayer of Saint Gertrude the Great
"Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in Purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen."

Saint Gertrude's life was the mystic life of the cloister, a Benedictine nun. She meditated on the Passion of Christ, which many times brought a flood of tears to her eyes. She did many penances and Our Lord appeared to her many times. She had a tender love for the Blessed Virgin and was very devoted to the suffering souls in Purgatory. She died in 1334. Her feast day is November 16th.

The Holy Souls Will Repay Us A Thousand Times Over
Now who can be in more urgent need of our charity than the souls in Purgatory? What hunger, or thirst, or dire sufferings on Earth can compare to their dreadful torments? Neither the poor, nor the sick, nor the suffering, we see around us, have such an urgent need of our help, yet we find many good-hearted people who interest themselves in every other type of suffering, but few who works for the Holy Souls. Who can have more claim on us? Among them, there may be our mothers and fathers, our friends and near of kin. When they are finally released from their pains and enjoy the beatitude of Heaven, far from forgetting their friends on earth, their gratitude knows no bounds. Prostrate before the Throne of God, they never cease to pray for those who helped them. By their prayers they shield their friends from many dangers and protect them from the evils that threaten them.

The Holy Souls are those who die in God's grace but are still imperfectly purified. By undergoing purification after death in purgatory, they achieve the holiness necessary to enter heaven. May all the Holy Souls through the mercy of God rest in peace.

The Lord said to me, Enter into Purgatory often, because they need you there. O my Jesus, I understand the meaning of these words which You are speaking to me, but first let me enter the treasury of Your mercy. Diary of Saint Faustina 1738

All Saints Day

Today we honor all the saints. They continually intercede with The Father for us. A saint is a person who reflects the holiness of God by living the virtues in a heroic way and showing boundless charity and total faith in God. The early history of the Church is filled with stories of the heroic faith of these of witnesses to Christ's truth. The stories of these saints, of all ages and all states in life, whose fidelity and courage led to their sanctity or holiness, have provided models for us throughout history.

Many of those especially holy people whose names and stories were known, the Church later canonized or formally recognized that the life of that person was holy, or sanctified. A saint is an example for us. The Church's calendar contains many saint's days, which Catholics observe at Mass, some with special festivities, but there were thousands and thousands of early Christian martyrs, the majority of whose names are known only to God. Throughout the history of the Church, there have been countless others who are saints, who are with God in heaven, even if their names are not on the list of canonized saints.

In order to honor the memory of these unnamed saints and to recall their example, the Church dedicated a special feast day Mass so that we can celebrate the lives and witness of those who have died and gone before us into the presence of the Lord.

Hebrews 12:1-2 Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Holy Mary, all the angels and the communion of saints, we call on you as a cloud of witnesses to help us each day and to pray for us and for all the names we receive through this ministry.