Our Lady holding Jesus as He accepts flowers from the shepherd child

Our Lady holding Jesus as He accepts flowers from the shepherd child

Welcome to our intercessory prayer ministry for families, babies, little ones and those who love them.

In our prayers for families, we pray for the sanctity of all life and for vocations to marriage, the priesthood and consecrated life, which are born and nurtured in families.

The
Prayer of Entrustment to Mary was prayed for this ministry at the icon of the Madonna Salus Populi Romani (Salvation of the Roman People, Our Lady of Good Health) in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore (Basilica of Mary Major) in Rome, Italy, in Nossa Senhora do Rosario da Fatima (Basilica of Our Lady of the Rosary) in Fatima, Portugal, in Eglise du Sacre-Coeur (Sacred Heart Parish Church), the site of St. Bernadette's baptismal font, in Lourdes, France and at The National Shrine of The Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Massachusetts at the Shrine of the Holy Innocents before Our Lady of Guadalupe and at Basilica Papale de San Pietro in Vaticano (St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City) at the Tomb of St. John Paul II in Rome, Italy and at the Basílica de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe (Basilica of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe) in Mexico City, Mexico.

This ministry is consecrated to Jesus Christ, Wisdom Incarnate, through the hands of Mary and dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary. In our prayers to Mary, we honor and worship her Son Jesus. When He was on the Cross, He gave His Mother to John and she became our Mother as well. "Behold, your Mother." John 19:27

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
For the greater glory of God

January 29, 2014

Mary Mother of the Eucharist

Mary's body and soul are the heavenly tabernacle of God. She is the incorruptible Host, holy and immaculate. The Madonna and the Holy Eucharist are united inseparably "even to the end of the world."  Matthew 28:20

Prayer to Mary Mother of the Eucharist

Hail Mary, sweet Mother of the Eucharist, with sorrow and much love, You have given us your son Jesus while hanging from the Cross. We, weak creatures, anchor ourselves to You to be worthy sons of this great LOVE and SORROW. Help us to be humble and simple, help us to love all men, help us to live in grace always to be ready to welcome Jesus into our heart.

O Mary, Mother of the Eucharist, we, by ourselves, will never be able to understand this great mystery of love. Gain for us the light of the Holy Spirit, because only in that moment we will be able to perceive even for just one instant, all the infinite love of your Jesus in giving Himself to us. Amen.

When we go before Jesus on the altar, we always find Him "with Mary His Mother," as the Magi did at Bethlehem. Matthew 2:11

Jesus in the sacred Host, from the altar of our hearts, can repeat to each of us what He said to Saint John the Evangelist from the altar of Calvary, "Behold thy Mother." John 19:27

January 26, 2014

Reflection: God delights in you...

What eye has not seen, and ear has not heard, and what has not entered the human heart, what God has prepared for those who love Him, this God has revealed to us through the Spirit.  1 Corinthians 2:9-10 

God delights in you.  Our Father looks upon His children with a love we can not comprehend, a love that is beyond human understanding. God is intimately aware of everything about you, every detail.  He watches over you tenderly.  You are always on His mind.  Do you have a childhood memory of waiting for your father to come home?  I remember waiting at the end of the street with my sisters and brothers, watching and waiting, in anticipation for Daddy to come home from work.  When we caught sight of him, we ran to him and his loving arms were open to us.  Our Father in Heaven is waiting for you to come to Him.  Run to Him.  He is waiting to embrace you in His love.  

O God, how generously Your mercy is spread everywhere, and You have done all this for man.  Oh, how much You must love him, since Your love is so active on his behalf.  O my Creator and Lord, I see on all sides the trace of Your hand and the seal of Your mercy, which embraces all created things.  Diary of Saint Faustina 1749

For the Lord takes delight in his people.  Psalm 149:4



Can any of you by worrying add a single moment to your life-span? Why are you anxious about clothes? Learn from the way the wild flowers grow. They do not work or spin.  But I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was clothed like one of them. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which grows today and is thrown into the oven tomorrow, will he not much more provide for you, O you of little faith?  Matthew 6:27-30

"So it is in the world of souls, the living garden of the Lord. It pleases Him to create great saints, who may be compared with lilies or the rose; but He has also created little ones, who must be content to be daisies or violets nestling at His feet to delight His eyes when He should choose to look at them. The happier they are to be as He wills, the more perfect they are."  Saint Therese, the Little Flower

God delights in the simplicity of these flowers of the field, and by stooping low to them, He shows how infinitely great He is and how precious every soul is to Him.

Be still and know that I am God.  Psalm 46:10  


Meditation:
Find a place where you can be still and quiet your mind.  Imagine you are resting in the arms of your Father in heaven.  He gazes at you with great love.  He holds you close.  No words are exchanged but, in that embrace, you know you are loved.  Stay with Him.  Let Him love you.  As you rest in His arms, ask Him what He wants to say to you.  Ask Him to speak a word to you.  Listen to Him.  You are His beloved child and you are beautiful.  Be still and hear His voice. 

See what love the Father has bestowed on us that we may be called the children of God.  1 John 3:1 

January 25, 2014

Made in the Image and Likeness of God

Then God said: "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and the cattle, and over all the wild animals and all the creatures that crawl on the ground." God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them, saying: "Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that move on the earth." God also said: "See, I give you every seed-bearing plant all over the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food; and to all the animals of the land, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the ground, I give all the green plants for food." And so it happened. God looked at everything he had made, and he found it very good. Evening came, and morning followed, the sixth day.  Genesis 1:26-31

We are made in the image and likeness of God.  We are creative, spiritual, intelligent, relational and moral. We communicate with God and with one another.  Though all humans possess these godlike capacities, each of us has the potential to express them distinctively, because God's image has been imprinted uniquely on each of us.

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.  Ephesians 2:10


January 20, 2014

Image and Likeness of God

You show me the path of life, in Your presence there is fullness of life. Psalm 16:11

Man is set apart because he is a person. Made in the image and likeness of God, he is conscious and responsible. Even in his spiritual dimension, he experiences the succession of different phases, all equally fleeting. Saint Ephrem, the Syrian, liked to compare our life to the fingers of a hand, both to emphasize that its length is no more than a span, and to indicate that each phase of life, like the different fingers, has its particular character, and “the fingers represent the five steps by which man advances.”

With the Sign of the Cross, we send a visible sign to the world and follow the advice of Saint Ephrem of Syria (died A.D. 373):

"Mark all your actions with the sign of the life giving Cross. Do not go out from the door of your house till you have signed yourself with the Cross. Do not neglect that sign whether in eating or drinking or going to sleep, or in the home or going on a journey. There is no habit to be compared with it. Let it be a protecting wall round all your conduct, and teach it to your children that they may earnestly learn the custom."

In one of Saint Ephrem's hymns, he speaks of the pearl as a symbol of the riches and beauty of faith: "I placed the pearl, my brothers, on the palm of my hand, to be able to examine it. I began to look at it from one side and from the other: it looked the same from all sides. Thus is the search for the Son inscrutable, because it is all light. In its clarity, I saw the Clear One who does not grow opaque; and in His purity, the great symbol of the Body of Our Lord, which is pure. In His indivisibility, I saw the truth which is indivisible."

Lord, grant that we may lovingly accept Your Will, and place ourselves each day in Your merciful Hands. Mary, Our Mother, pray for us, “now and at the hour of our death.” Keep us ever close to Jesus, your Beloved Son, the Lord of life and Giver of life. Amen.

January 13, 2014

Reflection: The Unborn...


All human life is sacred.  God creates life from its beginning.  The life of every person is part of God's plan.  This ministry began through the prayers offered for an unborn baby, before and after she was born, praying that she may have abundant life.  She is seven years old now.  She is a precious gift from God, a little miracle who radiates love to everyone she encounters.  

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you.  Jeremiah 1:5  

The Introduction of EVANGELIUM VITAE The Encyclical Letter Gospel of Life Pope John Paul II March 25, 1995

"The Gospel of life is at the heart of Jesus' message. Lovingly received day after day by the Church, it is to be preached with dauntless fidelity as "good news" to the people of every age and culture.

At the dawn of salvation, it is the Birth of a Child which is proclaimed as joyful news: "I bring you good news of a great joy which will come to all the people; for to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord" (Luke 2:10-11). The source of this "great joy" is the Birth of the Saviour; but Christmas also reveals the full meaning of every human birth, and the joy which accompanies the Birth of the Messiah is thus seen to be the foundation and fulfillment of joy at every child born into the world (cf. John 16:21).

When he presents the heart of his redemptive mission, Jesus says: "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (John 10:10). In truth, he is referring to that "new" and "eternal" life which consists in communion with the Father, to which every person is freely called in the Son by the power of the Sanctifying Spirit. It is precisely in this "life" that all the aspects and stages of human life achieve their full significance."  

There is a beautiful sacred place in my parish called Saint Joseph Chapel where many hours of Eucharistic Adoration are offered every week.  It is saturated with the Presence of Jesus.  Our chapel has received two very special blessings from the Holy See: Papal Apostolic Blessings signed by Pope John Paul II for the Unborn and for the Sick and Dying.  These blessings were granted to the Eucharistic Apostles of The Divine Mercy for adoration chapels who pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy for the Unborn and the Sick and Dying.  Many graces will flow from these special blessings.  All the prayers being offered are like incense rising up from the altar to Our Heavenly Father. 

As we approach the tragic anniversary of Roe v. Wade in the United States, let us pray a nine day novena for the Protection of the Unborn. Please pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy beginning today for the next nine days for the Protection of Life in the womb.  January 22nd will be a Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children.  Our Lady of Guadalupe, Protectress of the Unborn, we ask for your powerful intercession.

You formed my inmost being; You knit me in my mother’s womb.  I praise You, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works  Psalm 139:13-14

January 08, 2014

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 John Paul II

At times when Christianity itself seemed under threat, its deliverance was attributed to the power of the Rosary, and Our Lady of the Rosary was acclaimed as the one whose intercession brought salvation.   Pope John Paul II  Rosarium Virginis Mariae, 40  

Prayer for the intercession of Blessed John Paul II
O Holy Trinity, we thank You for having given to the Church Blessed John Paul II, and for having made him shine with Your fatherly tenderness, the glory of the Cross of Christ and the splendor of the Spirit of love.  He, trusting in your infinite mercy and in the maternal intercession of Mary, has shown himself in the likeness of Jesus, the Good Shepherd, and has pointed out to us holiness as the path to reach eternal communion with You.  Grant us, through his intercession, according to Your Will, the grace that we implore, in the hope that he will soon be numbered among your saints.  Amen.

January 03, 2014

The Memorare

Saint Bernard sums up the great spiritual advantage of true devotion to our Blessed Mother.  Let us repeat that wonderful prayer of Saint Bernard, responding to Pope Benedict XVI 's invitation to invite everyone to become a trusting child before Mary, even as the Son of God did. Saint Bernard says, and we say with him, "Look to the star of the sea, call upon Mary … in danger, in distress, in doubt, think of Mary, call upon Mary. May her name never be far from your lips, or far from your heart … If you follow her, you will not stray; if you pray to her, you will not despair; if you turn your thoughts to her, you will not err. If she holds you, you will not fall; if she protects you, you need not fear; if she is your guide, you will not tire; if she is gracious to you, you will surely reach your destination."



Mary, Our Mother, understands the sufferings we carry when our children hurt. Let us bring our children to her and ask for her intercession to her Beloved Son Jesus. Her heart was pierced when she heard Simeon's words, as she held her precious baby. She did not understand, but she kept all these things in her heart. Let us unite our sufferings and those of our children and those for whom we pray with Mary by praying the Memorare.

Mary was petitioned as "Mother of God" at least by the 3rd Century, as is evidenced by the discovery of the Sub Tuum prayer:

This prayer, known in Latin as "Sub tuum Praesidium" and first found in a Greek papyrus, c. 300, is the oldest known prayer to the Virgin.

We turn to you for protection, Holy Mother of God. Listen to our prayers and help us in all our needs. Save us from every danger, glorious and blessed Virgin.

The "Memorare" is a sixteenth-century version of a fifteenth-century prayer that began "Ad sanctitatis tuae pedes, dulcissima Virgo Maria." Claude Bernard (1588-1641) popularized the idea that the "Memorare" was written by Saint Bernard.

Remember, most loving Virgin Mary, never was it heard that anyone who turned to you for help was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, though burdened by my sins, I run to your protection for you are my mother. Mother of the Word of God, do not despise my words of pleading but be merciful and hear my prayer. Amen.

On earth, the Blessed Virgin offered her life in that obedient service which is true worship of God. In heaven, she leads the song of eternal praise which rises like incense before the throne of God.  Let us imitate Mary and ponder everything in our heart.