The Holy Family

Today is the Feast Day to honor the Holy Family, the name given to the family unit of Jesus: The Divine Son of God Jesus, his mother Mary, and his foster father Joseph. The Feast of the Holy Family is not just about the Holy Family, but about our own families too. The main purpose of the Feast is to present the Holy Family as the model for all Christian families, and for domestic life in general. Our family life becomes sanctified when we live the life of the Church within our homes. This is called the "domestic church" or the "church in miniature." St. John Chrysostom urged all Christians to make each home a "family church," and in doing so, we sanctify the family unit by making Christ and his Church the center of family and individual life by reading scripture regularly, praying daily, attending Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation and imitating the actions of the Holy Family, all done together as a family unit.



"May the Holy Family, who had to overcome many painful trials, watch over all the families in the world, especially those who are experiencing difficult situations. May the Holy Family also help men and women of culture and political leaders so that they may defend the institution of the family, based on marriage, and so that they may sustain the family as it confronts the grave challenges of the modern age! During this Year of the Eucharist may Christian families find the light and strength to be united and to grow as the 'domestic church' especially in their diligent participation in the celebration of the Eucharist on Sunday." Pope John Paul II Prayer from Angelus Message for the Feast of the Holy Family 2004

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church 533-534
The hidden life at Nazareth allows everyone to enter into fellowship with Jesus by the most ordinary events of daily life:

The home of Nazareth is the school where we begin to understand the life of Jesus - the school of the Gospel. First, then, a lesson of silence. May esteem for silence, that admirable and indispensable condition of mind, revive in us. . . A lesson on family life. May Nazareth teach us what family life is, its communion of love, its austere and simple beauty, and its sacred and inviolable character... A lesson of work. Nazareth, home of the "Carpenter's Son", in you I would choose to understand and proclaim the severe and redeeming law of human work. . . To conclude, I want to greet all the workers of the world, holding up to them their great pattern their brother who is God.

The finding of Jesus in the temple is the only event that breaks the silence of the Gospels about the hidden years of Jesus. Here Jesus lets us catch a glimpse of the mystery of his total consecration to a mission that flows from his divine sonship: "Did you not know that I must be about my Father's work?" Mary and Joseph did not understand these words, but they accepted them in faith. Mary "kept all these things in her heart" during the years Jesus remained hidden in the silence of an ordinary life.

1 John 3:1-2 See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God's children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

We entrust all the names we receive through this baby ministry into the loving arms of the Holy Family. Jesus, Mary and Joseph, pray for us.

Mary Mother of God

The child's father and mother were amazed at what was said about him; and Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, "Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be contradicted and you yourself a sword will pierce so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed."
Luke 2:33-35

God’s sign is simplicity. God’s sign is the baby. God’s sign is that he makes himself small for us. This is how he reigns. He does not come with power and outward splendor. He comes as a baby, defenseless and in need of our help. He does not want to overwhelm us with his strength. He takes away our fear of his greatness. He asks for our love: so he makes himself a child. He wants nothing other from us than our love, through which we spontaneously learn to enter into His feelings, His thoughts and His Will. We learn to live with Him and to practice with Him that humility of renunciation that belongs to the very essence of love.
Pope Benedict XVI Homily Saint Peter's Basilica December 24, 2006

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 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. This is the original version of the Memorare.

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.

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 with Mary by praying the Memorare.

The Holy Innocents, Martyrs

Today is the Feast Day of the Holy Innocents, the patron saints of babies. These innocent little children were the first martyrs for Jesus Christ.

Herod, king of Judea, was unpopular with his people because of his connections with the Romans and his religious indifference. He was insecure and fearful of any threat to his throne. He was a master politician and a tyrant capable of extreme brutality. He killed his wife, his brother and his sister’s two husbands, to name only a few.

Matthew 2:12-18
And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way. When they had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, "Rise, take the child and his mother, flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you. Herod is going to search for the child to destroy him." Joseph rose and took the child and his mother by night and departed for Egypt. He stayed there until the death of Herod, that what the Lord had said through the prophet might be fulfilled, "Out of Egypt I called my son." When Herod realized that he had been deceived by the magi, he became furious. He ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had ascertained from the magi. Then was fulfilled what had been said through Jeremiah the prophet: "A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more." Herod was “greatly troubled” when astrologers from the east came asking the whereabouts of “the newborn king of the Jews,” whose star they had seen. They were told that the Jewish Scriptures named Bethlehem as the place where the Messiah would be born. Herod cunningly told them to report back to him so that he could also “do him homage.” They found Jesus, offered him their gifts and, warned by an angel, avoided Herod on their way home. Jesus escaped to Egypt.

Herod became furious and ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under. The horror of the massacre and the devastation of the mothers and fathers led Matthew to quote Jeremiah: “A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children...” Rachel was the wife of Jacob. She is pictured as weeping at the place where the Israelites were herded together by the conquering Assyrians for their march into captivity.

They have been ransomed as the firstfruits of the human race for God and the Lamb. Revelation 14:4



Beloved, now this is the message that we have heard from Jesus Christ and proclaim to you: God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all. 1 John 1:5

The Holy Innocents are few, in comparison to the genocide of abortion today. The greatest treasure God put on the earth is a baby, destined for eternity and graced by the birth, death and resurrection of Jesus. Lord, you give us life. We pray that ALL LIFE will be protected, in Your Holy Name, through the powerful intercession of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Unborn.

Happy Birthday Jesus

Luke 2:1-14
In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that the whole world should be enrolled. This was the first enrollment, when Quirinius was governor of Syria. So all went to be enrolled, each to his own town. And Joseph too went up from Galilee from the town of Nazareth to Judea, to the city of David that is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. While they were there, the time came for her to have her child, and she gave birth to her firstborn son. She wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Now there were shepherds in that region living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock. The angel of the Lord appeared to them and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were struck with great fear. The angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Christ and Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was a multitude of the heavenly host with the angel, praising God and saying: "Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."



Heavenly Father, bless us as we contemplate the newborn Baby Jesus, all holy, full of innocence, the Son of God. May we realize on this Christmas day, the absolute dignity of each human person who is "fearfully and wonderfully made" in Your "image and likeness."

Sweet baby Jesus, we rejoice on this day of Your birth. Come into our hearts and bring Your peace and love. We entrust to You all the names we receive through this baby ministry and we ask Our Lady of the Rosary to always be Our Comforter and Our Most Powerful Intercessor.

Silent Night Holy Night

For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord. Luke 2:11



For a child is born to us, a son is given us; upon his shoulder dominion rests. They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:5

Jesus came as a baby because babies are irresistible and adorable. May the baby Jesus come into your heart and fill you with His love and peace this Christmas season.

The Heart of Mary

The Virgin’s love conceived first in her heart and then in her womb. Saint Augustine stated this when commenting on the Gospel of the Annunciation: “The angel announces; the Virgin listens, believes and conceives. Christ is believed and conceived through faith. The Virgin Mary first conceived in her heart, and then fruitfulness came to the Mother’s Womb”.

A promise of love can only be fulfilled in love! The sign that God chose to give humanity to reveal the promise of his presence in history, as John Paul II taught us, found its full meaning in the mystery of the Incarnation of the Word. The sign was a virgin’s heart, receiving with love the Heart of God who is Love. A Virgin’s love will conceive, a Virgin’s heart will receive the fullness of life and give birth to the Life of the World!

“Therefore, the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive and bear a son and shall name him Emmanuel” Isaiah 7:14

A Virgin, a pure and humble heart, dedicated totally to loving God, completely available and generously disposed to His designs, was the one to cooperate, with her fiat, in the fulfillment of the plan of salvation. In the Virgin’s undivided, prayerful, generous and pure human heart a miraculous conception, a miraculous fecundity, took place. A love so pure, so total, and so unconditional became so powerfully life-giving. The pure, immaculate love of a human heart was the soil, the perfect soil, to bear the child and thus, to be the sign of the presence of God among men. This is the great sign promised by Isaiah: love, pure, unconditional love is so powerful that it gives life. Only love creates, said St. Maximilian Kolbe, because love is the force, the powerful force, that calls forth life.



O Mary, the Mighty One has done great things for you and Holy is His Name. Help us, Mother Mary, to prepare our hearts for the baby Jesus. Help us to be a sign of love to those we meet. We entrust all the names we receive through this baby ministry to you, Mary, Queen of the Most Holy Rosary. Protect them and bring them to the baby Jesus.

O Come O Come Emmanuel

The O Antiphons
In the final week of Advent, our attention is fixed on the messianic promises proclaimed by the ancient prophets of Israel. A distinctive feature of the Liturgy of the Hours in this week preceding the Christmas vigil is the antiphon sung at Vespers (evening prayer) before and after the recitation of the Magnificat. Originally in the monastic office in the Middle Ages, these antiphons, often called the "Greater Antiphons" or the "O Antiphons", are also echoed in the daily lectionary as the verse for the gospel acclamation during this week.

The O Antiphons have been described as "a unique work of art and a special part of the pre-Christmas liturgy, filled with the Spirit of the Word of God." They "create a poetry that fills the liturgy with its splendor" and their composer shows "a magnificent command of the Bible's wealth of motifs". The antiphons are a collage of Old Testament types of Christ. Jesus is invoked by various titles, mainly taken from the prophet Isaiah. The sequence progresses from the beginning, before creation, to Bethlehem.

In their structure, each of the seven antiphons follows the same pattern, resembling a traditional liturgical prayer. Each O Antiphon begins with an invocation of the expected Messiah, followed by praise of him under one of his particular titles. Each ends with a petition for God's people, relevant to the title by which he is addressed, and the cry for him to "Come".

The seven titles attributed to Jesus in the antiphons are Wisdom (Sapientia in Latin), Ruler of the House of Israel (Adonai), Root of Jesse (Radix), Key of David (Clavis), Rising Dawn (Oriens), King of the Gentiles (Rex). and Emmanuel. In Latin the initials of the titles make an acrostic which, when read backwards. means: "Tomorrow I will be there." "ERO CRAS". This was a reference to the approaching Christmas vigil.

December 17th:
O Sapientia (Is. 11:2-3; 28:29): "O Wisdom, you come forth from the mouth of the Most High. You fill the universe and hold all things together in a strong yet gentle manner. O come to teach us the way of truth."
December 18th:
O Adonai (Isaiah 11:4-5; 33:22): "O Adonai and leader of Israel, you appeared to Moses in a burning bush and you gave him the Law on Sinai. O come and save us with your mighty power."
December 19th:
O Radix Jesse (Isaiah 11:1, 10): "O stock of Jesse, you stand as a signal for the nations; kings fall silent before you whom the peoples acclaim. O come to deliver us, and do not delay."
December 20th:
O Clavis David (Isaiah 9:6; 22:22): "O key of David and scepter of Israel, what you open no one else can close again; what you close no one can open. O come to lead the captive from prison; free those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death."
December 21st:
O Oriens (Isaiah 9:1): "O Rising Sun, you are the splendor of eternal light and the sun of justice. O come and enlighten those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death."
December 22nd:
O Rex Gentium (Isaiah 2:4; 9:5): "O King whom all the peoples desire, you are the cornerstone which makes all one. O come and save man whom you made from clay."
December 23rd:
O Emmanuel (Isaiah 7:14) : "O Emmanuel, you are our king and judge, the One whom the peoples await and their Savior. O come and save us, Lord, our God."

Today the O Antiphons are most familiar to us in the hymn "O come, O come Emmanuel". Each verse of the hymn parallels one of the antiphons. In addition to their use in the Liturgy of the Hours and the gospel acclamation, they have been popularly incorporated into church devotions and family prayer.



Matthew 1:18-25
Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins." All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel," which means "God is with us." When Joseph awoke, he did as the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took his wife into his home. He had no relations with her until she bore a son, and he named him Jesus.

O Come O Come Emmanuel Jesus, help us to prepare our hearts for Your birth. Blessed Mother Mary, bring comfort and peace. We ask the intercession of the Holy Family for all those for whom we pray.

Away in a manger

The cherished tradition of the Christmas Crib and the Nativity scene was begun by Saint Francis od Assisi. On Christmas Eve in 1223, Saint Francis so longed to see with his own eyes the circumstances of Jesus' coming to Bethlehem, that he arranged to have the scene recreated in a cave at Greccio, using live people and animals. During the solemnities of the Mass being offered there, a little child was seen lying in the manger. From that celebration began the custom of the Christmas crib or crèche."



Pope Benedict XVI spoke on the tradition of the Christmas Crib during an Advent Angelus address 2005

"Following a beautiful and firmly rooted tradition, many families set up their crib immediately after the feast of the Immaculate Conception, to set up the crib at home can be a simple but effective way of presenting the faith and transmitting it to one's children. The manger helps us to contemplate the mystery of God's love who revealed himself in the poverty and simplicity of the Bethlehem cave.

Saint Francis of Assisi was so overwhelmed by the mystery of the Incarnation that he wanted to present it again in Greccio with the living manger, thus becoming the initiator of a long popular tradition which still keeps its value for evangelization today.

The crib can help us, in fact, to understand the secret of the true Christmas, because it speaks of humility and the merciful goodness of Christ, who "though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor". 2 Corinthians 8:9 His poverty enriches those who embrace it and Christmas brings joy and peace to those who, as the shepherds, accept in Bethlehem the words of the Angel: "And this will be a sign for you: you will find an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in a manger". Luke 2:12 It continues to be a sign also for us, men and women of the 21st century. There is no other Christmas."

May our own Nativity scenes which rest under our Christmas trees be a visible reminder of that night when our Savior was born. May we never forget to see in our hearts the the Holy Family, Mary and Joseph and the little Babe of Bethlehem, who came to save us from sin. May we always remember that the wood of the manger that held Him so securely would one day give way to the wood of the cross. May we too embrace Jesus with all of our love as did Saint Francis.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph, pray for us and all the names we receive through this baby ministry.

Our Lady of Guadalupe

Patroness of the Unborn
Today is the feast day of Our Lady of Guadalupe. A poor Indian Juan Diego was a 57-year-old widower who lived in a small village near Mexico City. On Saturday morning December 9, 1531, he was on his way to attend Mass in honor of Our Lady. He was walking by a hill called Tepeyac when he heard beautiful music like the warbling of birds. A radiant cloud appeared and within it a young Native American maiden dressed like an Aztec princess. The lady spoke to him in his own language and sent him to the bishop of Mexico, a Franciscan named Juan de Zumarraga. The bishop was to build a chapel in the place where the lady appeared.

The picture is Our Lady of Guadalupe at the Shrine of the Holy Innocents at the National Shrine of Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. This shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe is a beautiful place to remember a child who was lost. It is a place of healing and hope.

Mary to Juan Diego: “My dearest son, I am the eternal Virgin Mary, Mother of the true God, Author of Life, Creator of all and Lord of the Heavens and of the Earth...and it is my desire that a church be built here in this place for me, where, as your most merciful Mother and that of all your people, I may show my loving clemency and the compassion that I bear to the Indians, and to those who love and seek me.”

The bishop told Juan Diego to have the lady give him a sign. About this same time Juan Diego’s uncle became seriously ill. Poor Diego was to try to avoid the lady. The lady found Diego and assured him that his uncle would recover and she provided roses for Juan to carry to the bishop in his cape or tilma. Juan Diego told his story to the Spanish bishop, who instructed him to return and ask the Lady for a miraculous sign to prove her claim. The Virgin told Juan Diego to gather some flowers from the top of Tepeyac Hill. It was winter and no flowers bloomed, but on the hilltop Diego found flowers of every sort, and the Virgin herself arranged them in his tilma, or peasant cloak. When Juan Diego opened his tilma in the bishop’s presence, the roses fell to the ground and the bishop sank to his knees. On Juan Diego’s tilma appeared an image of Mary miraculously imprinted exactly as she had appeared at the hill of Tepeyac. It was December 12, 1531.



Our Lady's apparition was an event of great significance for Native Americans. Nine million Indians became Catholic in a very short time. Our Lady of Guadalupe shows us God's love for the poor and for the unborn that stems from the Gospel itself.

The Image on the Tilma
The imprint of Mary on the tilma is striking, and the symbolism was primarily directed to Juan Diego and the Aztecs. Mary appears as a beautiful young Indian maiden with a look of love, compassion, and humility, her hands folded in prayer in reference to the Almighty God. Her rose dress, adorned with a jasmine flower, eight petal flowers, and nine heart flowers symbolic to the Aztec culture, is that of an Aztec princess. Her blue mantle symbolized the royalty of the gods, and the blue color symbolized life and unity. The stars on the mantle signified the beginning of a new civilization. La Morenita appeared on the day of the winter solstice, considered the day of the sun's birth; the Virgin's mantle accurately represents the 1531 winter solstice! Mary stands in front of and hides the sun, but the rays of the sun still appear around her, signifying she is greater than the sun god, the greatest of the native divinities, but the rays of the sun still bring light. Twelve rays of the sun surround her face and head. She stands on the moon, supported by an angel with wings like an eagle: to the Aztec, this indicated her superiority to the moon god, the god of night, and her divine, regal nature. Most important are the black maternity band, a jasmine flower, and a cross that are present in the image. Mary wore a black maternity band, signifying she was with child. At the center of the picture, overlying her womb, is a jasmine flower in the shape of an Indian cross, which is the sign of the Divine and the center of the cosmic order to the Aztec. This symbol indicated that the baby Mary carried within her, Jesus Christ, the Word made Flesh, is Divine and the new center of the universe. On the brooch around her neck was a black Christian cross, indicating she is both a bearer and follower of Christ, the Son of God, our Savior, who died on the Cross to save mankind. The image signified Mary bringing her Son Christ to the New World through one of their own.

Mary to Juan Diego: Am I not here, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the fountain of your joy?

Our Lady of Guadalupe, we entrust all the names we receive through this baby ministry to you, our most loving and merciful Mother.

I am the voice of one crying out in the desert

Isaiah 61:1-3, 10-11 The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me; He has sent me to bring good news to the afflicted, to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, release to the prisoners, To announce a year of favor from the LORD and a day of vindication by our God; To comfort all who mourn; to place on those who mourn in Zion a diadem instead of ashes, To give them oil of gladness instead of mourning, a glorious mantle instead of a faint spirit. I will rejoice heartily in the LORD, my being exults in my God; For he has clothed me with garments of salvation,and wrapped me in a robe of justice, Like a bridegroom adorned with a diadem, as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. As the earth brings forth its shoots, and a garden makes its seeds spring up, so will the Lord GOD make justice spring up, and praise before all the nations.



John 1: 23-28 The testimony of John the Baptist
“I am the voice of one crying out in the desert. Make straight the way of the Lord,” as Isaiah the prophet said.” Some Pharisees were also sent. They asked him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah or Elijah or the Prophet?” John answered them, “I baptize with water; but there is one among you whom you do not recognize, the one who is coming after me, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to untie.” This happened in Bethany across the Jordan, where John was baptizing.

As John the Baptist came to prepare the way of the Lord, let us prepare our hearts for the coming of the birth of the baby Jesus. Let us ask Jesus and Mary to love, comfort and protect us and all those for whom we pray. Come Lord Jesus.

Saint Juan Diego

A Model of Humility
On December 9, 1531, Our Lady appeared to Juan Diego at Tepeyac, which is near Mexico City today. She sent him to request of Bishop Zumárraga the building of a shrine there, where she promised to pour out her grace upon those who invoked her. The bishop asked Juan Diego to present proof of the apparition. On December 12, Our Lady sent Juan Diego to gather roses atop the hill at Tepeyac. Despite the cold of winter, he found roses in bloom and gathered them within his cloak, or tilma. Our Lady arranged the roses and sent them with Juan Diego to the bishop as proof. Opening his tilma, the roses fell to the ground and there remained impressed upon the tilma the image of Our Lady, the apparition at Tepeyac. With the grace of enlightenment, Juan Diego dedicated himself to prayer, as well as the practice of virtue and boundless love of God and neighbor.

Blessed Virgin Mary talked to him in his language, Nahuatl. She called him "Juanito, Juan Dieguito," "the most humble of my sons," "my son the least," "my little dear." Juan Diego said to the Blessed Virgin Mary: "I am a nobody, I am a small rope, a tiny ladder, the tail end, a leaf."

After the miracle of Guadalupe and with the Bishop's permission, Juan Diego moved to a room attached to the chapel that housed the sacred image, after having given his business and property to his uncle, spending the rest of his life as a hermit. There he cared for the church and the first pilgrims who came to pray to the Mother of Jesus, and propagating the account of the apparitions to his countrymen. He was 57 years old when Our Lady appreared to him, an old age in a time and place where the male life expectancy was barely above 40. He died on May 30, 1548, at the age of 74.

Juan Diego deeply loved the Holy Eucharist, and by special permission of the Bishop he received Holy Communion three times a week, a highly unusual occurrence during those times. Pope John Paul II praised Juan Diego for his simple faith nourished by catechesis and pictured him as a model of humility for all of us.



Prayer to Saint Juan Diego
You who were chosen by Our Lady of Guadalupe as an instrument to show your people and the world that the way of Christianity is one of love, compassion, understanding, values, sacrifices, repentance of our sins, appreciation and respect for God’s creation, and most of all one of humility and obedience; You whom we know is now in the Kingdom of the Lord and close to our Mother; Be our angel and protect us, stay with us as we struggle in this modern life often not knowing where to set our priorities; Help us to pray to our God to obtain the gifts of the Holy Spirit and use them for the good of humanity and the good of our Church, through the Heart of Our Lady of Guadalupe to the Heart of Jesus. Amen

Our Lady of Guadalupe spoke these words to Juan Diego. She speaks these words to us.

Am I not here, who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not the fountain of your joy? Are you not in the fold of my mantle, in the cradle of my arms?

Saint Juan Diego, pray for us, for all the little ones and all the names for whom we pray.

The Immaculate Conception

Today we celebrate the Feast Day of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception. On this day, we honor the Blessed Virgin Mary, who was conceived without sin. The Immaculate Conception refers to the condition that the Blessed Virgin Mary was free from Original Sin from the very moment of her conception in the womb of her mother, Saint Anne. We celebrate the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on September 8; nine months before is December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. Today is the Patronal Feast Day of the United States of America. May Our Lady bless our country and protect and guide us.

You are all beautiful, my beloved, and there is no blemish in you. Song of Solomon 4:7

Mary, the one who is "full of grace" and the one whom "all generations will called 'blessed'" has been viewed as unique since the earliest days of the Christian faith. Just as Christ has been called the "new Adam," the Church Fathers, especially Saint Justin in 150AD and Saint Irenaeus 180AD, saw Mary as the "new Eve," who humbly obeyed God, even though Eve disobeyed. The Church Fathers also called Mary the "new ark of the covenant" and theotokos, God-bearer. It is from these titles that the doctrine of Mary's Immaculate Conception and sinlessness unfolded. Saint Ephrem, the Syrian, in 373AD spoke of Mary as without stain or blemish, calling her "all pure, all immaculate, all stainless, all undefiled, all incorrupt, all inviolate." Saint Augustine left open the possibility of Mary's sinlessness, even using language similar to the Catholic dogma of the Immaculate Conception.



Heavenly Father, You prepared the Virgin Mary to be the worthy mother of your Son. You let her share beforehand in the salvation Christ would bring by His death and kept her sinless from the first moment of her conception. Help us by her prayers to live in Your presence without sin. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, Your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee.

All you need is love

Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; For Love is strong as Death, longing is fierce as Sheol. Its arrows are arrows of fire, flames of the divine. Deep waters cannot quench love, nor rivers sweep it away. Were one to offer all the wealth of his house for love, he would be utterly despised.
Song of Solomon 8: 6-7



When a child is born with special needs, nothing much changes, except for the need of a little more love and acceptance of a few more challenges, but that same commitment is made when any child is born, regardless of special needs.

Today we celebrate the feast day of Saint Andrew, Apostle and Martyr. 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

A novena is normally a nine day prayer. The term is sometimes used for any prayer that is repeated over a series of days. "The Christmas Novena" or the "Christmas Anticipation Prayer," 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. It is a great gift to give our families, the message of "All you need is love."

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.

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.

Saint Andrew was crucified on a cross shaped as an X because he said he was unworthy to die the way Jesus died. To lay down his life for the Lord was an act of TRUE LOVE.

No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13

Saint Andrew led others to Jesus and he gave his life for Jesus. Let us be LOVE to our families and our friends and all those who we encounter. Let us follow Jesus with His love. May we offer our lives to Jesus in all we do and in all we say. Let us say Yes to Jesus the way Andrew, Simon and Our Blessed Mother Mary did. All we need is love, a love like their love. Let us call on their intercession for our needs.

Advent with Mary

Today is the First Sunday of Advent. Over these special weeks preceding Christmas, we gather and give thanks. We pray and sing together, inviting the coming of the Lord into our lives, our homes, the Church and into the world which God loves so much that He sent His Beloved Son.



The best way to prepare for Christmas is to spend Advent with Mary. Let us reflect on the Annunciation and Mary's yes, her Fiat to God when the Angel appeared to her. She heard the Word of God and she believed. Mary was still. She pondered God's Word. She invites us to be still and to listen as God speaks to us during this beautiful season of Advent, as we prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus.

The heart of the message of Advent is to bring light into a world of darkness. The Advent candles we will light symbolize Jesus Christ, the True Light of the world. It is He who can dispel darkness of those who have lost hope. The Lord is always coming for those who seek Him! Let us seek Him through the eyes of Mary.

Luke 1:26-31 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin's name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, "Hail, favored one! The Lord is with you." But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.



Luke 1:38 Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word."

O Mary, help us to ponder God's Word as you did. Help us to prepare our hearts for the birth of Jesus. Pray for all the babies and little ones for whom we pray. Protect them and cover them with your Motherly Mantle.

In thanksgiving to Jesus and Mary

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

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



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.

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

Litany of Humility

"Humility," says Saint Bernard, "is the foundation and guardian of virtues" for without it no other virtue can exist in a soul. Should she possess all virtues, all will depart when humility is gone. Saint Francis de Sales wrote to Saint Jane Frances de Chantal, "God so loves humility, that whenever He sees it, He is immediately drawn thither." This beautiful and so necessary virtue was unknown in the world; but the Son of God Himself came on earth to teach it by His Own example that we would imitate Him. Learn from Me, because I am meek and humble of heart. Mary, being the first and most perfect disciple of Jesus Christ in the practice of all virtues, was the first also in that of humility, and by it merited to be exalted above all creatures. The first virtue in which the Blessed Mother particularly exercised herself, from her very childhood, was that of humility.



Litany of Humility
Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930)
Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X

O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed,

Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being extolled ...
From the desire of being honored ...
From the desire of being praised ...
From the desire of being preferred to others...
From the desire of being consulted ...
From the desire of being approved ...
From the fear of being humiliated ...
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of suffering rebukes ...
From the fear of being calumniated ...
From the fear of being forgotten ...
From the fear of being ridiculed ...
From the fear of being wronged ...
From the fear of being suspected ...

That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I ...
That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease ...
That others may be chosen and I set aside ...
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ...
That others may be preferred to me in everything...
That others may become holier than I, provided
that I may become as holy as I should…

O Mary, Mother of Mercy, help us to imitate Jesus, your Beloved Son who taught us, "Learn from Me, because I am meek and humble of heart."

Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

The Magnificat
The Canticle of Mary

And Mary said: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and Holy is his Name. Luke 1:46-49



Chosen Lady: Grace, mercy, and peace will be with us from God the Father and from Jesus Christ the Father's Son in truth and love. I rejoiced greatly to find some of your children walking in the truth just as we were commanded by the Father. But now, Lady, I ask you, not as though I were writing a new commandment but the one we have had from the beginning: let us love one another. For this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, as you heard from the beginning, in which you should walk. 2 John 4-6

Blessed Virgin Mary, on this day we celebrate the Feast of your Presentation in the Temple, we ask you to intercede for all these little ones for whom we pray. We thank you for being Our Loving Mother.

The Real Presence

Blessed John Paul II identified the Eucharist as the Presence Sacrament. Christ is on earth. He wants to perform miracles of His grace, especially miracles of conversion in what is becoming a Christ-less age. The key to tapping the resources of His grace is our deep faith in Christ's living presence among us in the Blessed Sacrament.



Today is the Feast Day of Saint Rose Philippine Duschene, a religious of the Society of the Sacred Heart. She began missionary work with the Native Americans. She was called the ”Woman Who Prays Always.” She was born in 1769, died in 1852 and was canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1988.

She was the Foundress of the first Catholic school for girls west of the Mississippi. She said, "As soon as we could, we taught our Indians the prayers of the Church, and especially the Litany of the Blessed Virgin, as it is sung on Sundays after Vespers."

The Sisters suffered during the severe winters. Sr. Rose had many infirmities which became worse. She visited the sick and helped the Indian girls but was not able to do much else. She lived a life of prayer and sacrifice. The Indians called her “Woman Who Prays Always” because she spent so much time in the church praying. She knelt motionless in prayer for long periods in the Church before the Blessed Sacrament. If she could not work at the mission, she would forward the success of the mission by her prayers. She would spend the last ten years of her life there praying for long hours before the Blessed Sacrament.

May we have the great love for Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament as Saint Rose did. May we spend time in Eucharistic Adoration praying for all the intentions we receive through this baby prayer ministry. Jesus, we love and adore You.

Saint Joseph Protector of the Family

God chose Saint Joseph to be the Head of the Holy Family. He watched over and protected Jesus and Mary while they were on earth. Joseph was a man of faith, obedient to whatever God asked of him without knowing the outcome. When the angel came to Joseph in a dream and told him the truth about the child Mary was carrying, Joseph immediately and without question or concern, took Mary as his wife. When the angel came again to tell him that his family was in danger, he immediately left everything and fled to a strange country with his young wife and baby. He waited in Egypt without question until the angel told him it was safe to go back. Saint Joseph is a model for all fathers and protector of families.

Prayer To Saint Joseph
O St. Joseph whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the Throne of God, I place in thee all my interests and desires. O St. Joseph do assist me by thy powerful intercession and obtain for me from thy Divine Son all spiritual blessings through Jesus Christ, Our Lord; so that having engaged here below thy Heavenly power I may offer my Thanksgiving and Homage to the Loving of Fathers. O St. Joseph, I never weary contemplating thee and Jesus asleep in thy arms. I dare not approach while He reposes near thy heart. Press him to my name and kiss His fine Head for me, and ask Him to return the Kiss when I draw my dying breath. St. Joseph, Patron of departing souls, pray for us. Amen
Say for nine consecutive mornings for anything you may desire. It has seldom been known to fail.

Glorious Saint Joseph, spouse of the Immaculate Virgin, obtain for us pure, humble,and loving minds and hearts. May we always seek God's Divine Will. Be our guide, our father, and our model through life that we may merit to die as you did in the arms of Jesus and Mary.

In Honor of Our Veterans

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.

St 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.

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!"


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 the 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 and little ones. 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.

All Saint's 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.

Our Lady of the Eucharist

Our Blessed Mother Mary was the first tabernacle for the baby Jesus. She is Our Lady of the Eucharist. May we always run to meet Jesus by receiving Him in the Eucharist and adoring Him in Eucharistic adoration. It is in the Eucharist where Jesus heals us.

Our Lady of Fatima said we must pray these prayers daily for the conversion of souls and for those who do not believe. This will lead to peace in our world and in our hearts.

Morning Offering:
My God, I believe, I adore, I hope and I love you! I beg pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love you! Angel of Peace 1916

Apostolate of Reparation:
Make of everything you can a sacrifice, and offer it to God as an act of reparation for the sins by which He is offended, and in supplication for the conversion of sinners. You will thus draw down peace upon your country.
Angel of Peace, 1916

Oh my Jesus, I accept and bear with submission whatever suffering God will send me today, for love of You, for the conversion of sinners, and in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Our Lady of Fatima, July 13, 1917

When Our Lady came for the first time in her many modern-day apparitions at Rue du Bac in Paris in 1830, she told Saint Catherine Laboure to come to the foot of the altar where great graces would be bestowed on all who ask for them. Our Lady asked that a church be built on the site of her apparitions at Lourdes, which of course indicates that she wanted the Eucharistic Sacrifice to be celebrated there as well as Christ's Presence in the tabernacle.



In every one of Mary's great sanctuaries, Mary brings all the pilgrims to the foot of the altar where they may gain great graces from her Divine Son. This is particularly true at Fatima and Lourdes, as it is at these great Marian sanctuaries that there are large processions in which the Eucharist is carried, and in which a bishop, as a rule blesses the sick. On these occasions tremendous miraculous cures are brought about, both physical and spiritual. Tens of thousands of cures have taken place over the years.

At Fatima, it is a well known fact that an Angel of Peace came first to Francisco, Jacinta and Lucia in 1916. He prepared the way for the later apparitions of Mary Immaculate. When he appeared the third time in dazzling beauty before the three seers, he held in his left hand a chalice, and in his right over the chalice, a host form which drops of blood could be seen falling into the chalice. Leaving the host and the chalice suspended in mid-air, he prostrated himself touching the ground with his forehead. Then he said the following prayer three times:

"Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Ghost, I adore you profoundly. I offer you the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for all the outrages, sacrileges and indifferences by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart and through the intercession of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I pray for the conversion of poor sinners."

The Angel then rose and took the chalice and host into his hands. He communicated the host to Lucy, the contents of the chalice he gave to Jacinta and Francisco, saying: "Take and drink the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, horribly outraged by ungrateful men. Make reparation for their sins and console your God." How seriously Francisco took these words to heart is illustrated in the remaining years of his life. When the seers were sent to school, Francisco realizing that he had but a short time to live, did not have any desire to go to school, but told his sister and cousin to go ahead and he would remain in church where he could make reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifferences by which our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament is offended. So penetrated was Francisco with the love of what he called "the hidden God," that he often spent many hours on his knees in silent adoration before the tabernacle.

Our Lady of the Eucharist, pray for us and all those for whom we pray through this ministry.

Blessed John Paul II

“Do not be afraid. Open wide the doors for Christ.”

On October 22, 1978, the late Pope John Paul II began his pontificate with these words. This is a call to a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. His beatification on Sunday, May 1, 2011 was an opportunity to remind ourselves, and others about the witness of John Paul II's life and message.



The witness of the life of this great man, and the words he spoke in his many homilies, speeches, and encyclicals are more relevant today than ever, especially to today's teenagers, who may be too young to remember or recognize John Paul II's influence on the Church and on the world. Today let us pray to Blessed John Paul II for our priests, who were so dear to his heart. Many vocations were revealed to men through the powerful witness of Pope John Paul II.

PRAYER TO THE BLESSED MOTHER FOR PRIESTS
O Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ and Mother of priests,
accept this title which we bestow on you to celebrate your motherhood and to contemplate with you the priesthood of, your Son and of your sons, O holy Mother of God.

O Mother of Christ, the Messiah, to priests you gave a body of flesh through the anointing of the Holy Spirit for the salvation of the poor and contrite of heart. Guard priests in your heart and in the Church, O Mother of the Savior.

O Mother of Faith, you accompanied to the Temple the Son of Man, the fulfillment of the promises given to the fathers; give to the Father for his glory the priests of your Son, O Ark of the Covenant.

O Mother of the Church, in the midst of the disciples in the upper room you prayed to the Spirit for the new people and their shepherds; obtain for the Order of Presbyters a full measure of gifts, O Queen of the Apostles.

O Mother of Jesus Christ, you were with him at the beginning of his life and mission and you sought the Master among the crowd, you stood beside him when he was lifted up from the earth consumed as the one eternal sacrifice, and you had John, your son, near at hand; accept from the beginning those who have been called, protect their growth, in their life ministry accompany your sons, O Mother of Priests. Amen.

Blessed John Paul II, on your feast day today, we ask you to bless and protect our priests and keep them holy. Blessed Mother Mary, watch over our priests and wrap your mantle around them. We ask you to pray for our priests who bring us the Eucharist, the source of all life and love.

Our Lady of Fatima

Prayer to Our Lady of Fatima
Dearest Mother, Queen of the Holy Rosary, who came to Fatima to reveal to all mankind the Divine plan for true Christian peace, of prayer, penance, and consecration, grant an abundance of grace, strength, and guidance to the members of Thy Fatima Crusade, here present and throughout the world. Inspire us to great zeal, oh great Mediatrix of All Graces, that we may be effective instruments in spreading devotion to Thy Rosary; that we may be faithful in wearing Thy scapular; that we may inspire our brothers in Christ to a life of sacrifice, penance, and modesty, and finally, that we may help to bring about that wonderful day when all men, through consecration to Thy Immaculate Heart, shall be one in Christ. Amen.



O Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most Precious Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in Tabernacles throughout the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifferences by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in union with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg the conversion of poor sinners.

O Most Holy Trinity, I adore Thee! My God, my God, I love Thee in the Most Blessed Sacrament! O my Jesus, it is for love of Thee, in reparation for the offenses committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary, for the conversion of poor sinners, for our Holy Father, and for all of our special intentions and petitions.

Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of Fatima, during this special month of October, devoted to you, we seek your comfort and protection for all the names we receive through this baby ministry. We aks for your powerful intercession to Jesus, your Beloved Son.

Saint John of the Cross and Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary

Today is the feast day of Saint John of the Cross. His devotion to the Passion of Jesus would not be complete without its counterpart, devotion to the Dolors or Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin. He cherished a tender filial devotion to Mary, and honored her particularly under the titles of Our Mother of Sorrows, and Our Mother of Holy Hope. He began everything with her blessing. Nearly all his greatest favors were received on her feasts and he was blessed with many surprising visions of her glory. He never pronounced the name of Mary without bowing his head or taking off his cap. The mystery of her life which had the greatest attraction for him was her sufferings at the foot of the Cross. He used to say, "Whoever goes to our crucified Lord will find His Mother with Him; where the Son is, there is the Mother."

During the last months of his life, he was troubled with some scruples about the confessions he had heard. The Blessed Virgin, with the infant Jesus in her arms, appeared surrounded by rays of glory. The saint cast himself upon his knees and our Lady said to him: "Son, ask me for graces." Saint Paul asked for the salvation of his soul. Mary answered: "Be in Peace; the grace is granted."



Saint John of the Cross, pray for us and all those for whom we pray.

Our Lady of Czestochowa and Saint Luke

Today is the feast day of Saint Luke the Evangelist. He is well known as the writer of one of the four books of the Gospels. It is less known that he was a painter. Legend attributes the painting of Our Lady of Czestochowa to Saint Luke, the Evangelist. It is thought that the original and first Black Madonna to be made into an icon came after Saint Luke the Evangelist experienced an apparition of the Blessed Virgin Mary and painted her. While painting the image, it is said that the Holy Virgin related to Saint Luke the life of Jesus which he later incorporated into the Gospel of Saint Luke in the New Testament. He painted a portrait of Our Lady of Czestochowa on the cedar wood table at which she had taken her meals. Saint Helena, the Queen-Mother of Emperor Constantine was said to have located the portrait during her visit to the Holy Land and to have brought it to Constantinople in the fourth century. After remaining there for five centuries, it was transferred in royal dowries until it made its way to Poland, and the possession of Saint Ladislaus in the fifteenth century.

The legend continues: During Ladislaus' time, the image was damaged during a siege, by a Tartar arrow, "inflicting a scar on the throat of the Blessed Virgin." In 1430, Hussites stole and vandalized the precious image, breaking it into three pieces. Adding insult to injury, one of the robbers drew his sword, struck the image and inflicted two deep gashes. While preparing to inflict a third gash, he fell to the ground and writhed in agony until his death. The two slashes on the cheek of the Blessed Virgin, together with the previous injury to the throat, have always reappeared, despite repeated attempts to repair them. Many miracles were worked by Our Lady of Czestochowa. In more recent times, the Czestochowa Madonna has also been acknowledged for her protection of and cooperation with the Polish nation. Pope John Paul II of Poland had a personal devotion and prayed often before her.

Saint Luke and Our Lady of Czestochowa, pray for us.

Saint Teresa of Jesus

Saint Teresa of Jesus was born in Avila, Spain in 1515. She was a mystic, contemplative, writer, Carmelite nun and Doctor of the Church. Today we celebrate her feast day. Teresa of Avila was charming, imperious, irreverent, and impossible. There is little doubt that Teresa’s extraordinary courage and wisdom were rooted in a very special relationship with God. Of all her characteristics, Teresa’s most captivating quality is what the Spanish call duende. Duende is that raw, primitive, tempestuous energy that is more frequently associated with gypsies, bullfighters and flamenco dancers than with saints. Duende has been described as fiery, wild, and utterly original. Teresa was something of a wild card for her time. She was wild as a child, wild as she grew from an adolescent into a ravishing young woman, and wildest of all when she reached middle age and set out on her quixotic adventures throughout her native Spain. Vibrant, alive, dynamic, a natural leader and a flamboyant beauty, Teresa captivated everyone around her.

Teresa saw prayer as a garden made for God. She said we are the gardeners and we must tend the plants and water them. God’s job is to pull the weeds so the good seed can grow. She believed there are four ways to water the plants, or four stages of praying. With each stage, we do less and less of the work until we reach a place of perfect union with God where He becomes the Gardener.



Drawing from a Well
The first stage of prayer is like drawing the water from a well because it requires the most effort. Here, those who are just learning how to pray must consciously remove themselves from distractions and engage the mind in meditation. At this stage we are trying to communicate with God with words from our hearts. The goal should be to stay close to God, ask Him to meet our needs, rejoice with Him, and tell Him our troubles. Teresa believed, “This practice of carrying Christ in our consciousness is beneficial at all phases of the spiritual path, especially in the first degrees of prayer.” She encouraged people not to worry if they didn’t “experience” anything during their prayer time, but just to trust in God’s perfect timing. She also warned not to attempt to shut down the mind while praying, but rather yield it completely to God. During this stage it is important to be confident in prayer and not hold back the desires of your heart. It is also helpful to have a spiritual director to offer counsel, although Teresa advised to be very careful whom you choose, as bad counsel can cause much harm.

The Waterwheel
This stage of prayer is also called the Prayer of Quiet. Here, communion with God is not attained through the efforts of the person praying. Only the person’s will is engaged; all other faculties are suspended. At this place, the desire for the mundane things of the world falls away because we realize that nothing can compare to God’s joy while in this state. It’s imperative that we see ourselves as nothing, totally dependent on God. We must allow Him to prune whatever He wants so our gardens can be fully cultivated. The Prayer of Quiet produces contentment, calmness, and joy. To reap its full benefits, the mind must be kept quiet and free of distractions. Intelligence is irrelevant during this contemplative praying; in fact, theological concepts may actually hinder God’s love reaching into the soul. God is the one who begins and ends this state of prayer. It is not of our own will. When He induces it, the soul has no need for producing feelings of unworthiness. God offers true humility, which gives us the sudden awareness that we are nothing. This humility brings about a freedom from self-interest as well as a hunger for spiritual transformation.

Water Flowing through a Stream
In this third stage of prayer, the soul simply wants to rejoice in God’s greatness and glory. It wants only to praise God and have others share in the rejoicing. This is a place of near death to all earthly things. The soul’s faculties are almost completely united with God, yet they are still functioning. Their only power, however, is to completely surrender to God’s will. Words cannot express the joy felt in this state. The person praying reaches a realization that the soul no longer belongs to itself. In this place God can accomplish more in a moment’s time than what could be accomplished after years of intellectual efforts. Teresa expressed to God what she felt in this place of prayer: “This servant of yours can no longer bear the trial of seeing herself without you. All she wants is to be free. She no longer desires to live in herself but only to live in you.” The third stage of prayer is different from the second in that here the soul is more like Mary’s, wanting to be totally still before the Lord. Here, it is like Martha’s, leading an active and contemplative life simultaneously. The person praying can continue with normal tasks but is no longer in charge of himself. In this state of prayer, the soul’s appetite is completely satisfied and doesn’t desire anything else. It is not interested in anything the world has to offer.

Water from the Rain
This fourth state of prayer is also known as the Prayer of Union. In the previous stage, although the soul has died to the things of the world, it is not completely dead because it still has its senses. But in this place of prayer, the senses are so occupied with joy, they are not free to express anything else. The joy found here is much greater than in any of the others stages, yet it is much harder for the soul to express the magnitude of it. Here, the entire soul is drawn into a place of union with God, and all faculties are suspended. God Himself becomes the Gardener in this stage of prayer. Before, the soul was still laboring for the water. But now, God provides all the water for the garden abundantly, and there is no labor on the part of the one who prays. This fourth water is so abundant, it saturates the entire garden. Teresa believed, “This water from heaven often comes when the gardener least expects it. Yet… in the beginning stages of the spiritual path the heavenly rain almost always falls after a long period of contemplative prayer.” From Teresa’s experiences, even though it sometimes seems the soul can remain in this state of union for a long time during the Prayer of Union, it is actually a very short period. In asking God to explain to her what exactly her soul was going through during these times, she believed God told her the following: “The soul utterly dissolves...so that it can fully unite with me...It is no longer the soul that lives, but I.”

Blessings of the Fourth Water
Even after the experience of the Prayer of Union has ended, its effects linger. Teresa noted several blessings that come as a result of being in this state with God. For one, the soul becomes courageous and its boldness initiates many resolutions and promises for God. The person praying also gains a new depth of humility as he realizes he had nothing to do with God uniting him to Himself in this way. Additional blessings include a strong contempt for the things of the world and a clear revelation of God’s great glory. These blessings can be lost, however, if the person praying does not maintain a heart of gratefulness for God’s gifts, thereby allowing her garden to get choked with thorns. The important thing is to not get discouraged and become careless in tending the garden. The person praying should never trust herself to not fall from the heights she has attained in God.

Excerpt from one of her writings, The Interior Castle:
"When once you have learned how to enjoy this Castle, you will always find rest, however painful your trials may be, in the hope of returning to your Lord, which no one can prevent. Although I have only mentioned seven mansions, yet each one contains many more rooms, above, below, and around it, with fair gardens, fountains, and labyrinths, besides other things so delightful that you will wish to consume yourself in praising the great God for them, Who has created the soul in His own image and likeness. If you find anything in the plan of this treatise which helps you to know Him better, be certain that it is sent by His Majesty to encourage you, and whatever you find amiss in it is my own."

In the Interior Castle, she unveils a profound spiritual vision in which the soul is a castle made of a single diamond. The diamond is surrounded by six mansions that the soul must pass through on its journey to the center of the castle and union with God. The six mansions represent Humility, Prayer, Meditation, Quiet, Illumination, and the Dark Night. In each of the mansions readers will experience a deepening desire to know God more intimately by conforming their wills to His will.

Saint Teresa of Avila, pray for us and all those for whom we pray.

I am the Lady of the Rosary

Our Lady of Fatima
The Blessed Mother appeared to the children in Fatima from May to October, 1917. The news of Fatima spread more, and people learned that a miracle was to happen. The children began to speak of the miracle which was to happen. On October 13, 1917, seventy to one hundred thousand pilgrims came to the Cova da Iria. It was pouring down rain and everything was very muddy. The children's families were very uncertain and feared that if the miracle did not take place, the people would want to kill the three children. Once there, moved by an interior impulse, one of the children, Lucia, asked the people to shut their umbrellas and pray a Rosary. Soon after that there was a flash of light, and Our Lady appeared above the oak tree.

"What do you want of me?" asked Lucia.

"I want to tell you that a chapel is to be built here in my honor.

I am the Lady of the Rosary.

Continue always to pray the Rosary every day. The war is going to end, and the soldiers will soon return to their homes."

Lucia said: "I have many things to ask you: the cure of some sick persons, the conversion of sinners, and other things . . . "

"Some yes, but not others. They must amend their lives and ask forgiveness for their sins." Looking very sad, Our Lady said: "Do not offend the Lord our God any more, because He is already so much offended."

Then, opening her hands, she made them reflect onto the sun, and as she ascended, the reflection of her own light continued to be projected on the sun itself.

Lucia cried out to the people to look at the sun. Her aim was not to call their attention to the sun, because she was not even aware of their presence. She was moved to do so under the guidance of an interior impulse.

After Our Lady had disappeared into the distance, Saint Joseph appeared with the Child Jesus and Our Lady was robed in white with a blue mantle, beside the sun. Saint Joseph and the Child Jesus appeared to bless the world, for they traced the Sign of the Cross with their hands. When this apparition disappeared, Our Lord and Our Lady appeared; it seemed that it was Our Lady of Sorrows. Our Lord appeared to bless the world in the same manner as Saint Joseph had done. This apparition also vanished, and Our Lady appeared once more, this time resembling Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, holding the child Jesus in one hand and the brown scapular in the other hand.

The rain stopped and a thick mass of clouds broke. The sun looked like a disc of dull silver, and began dancing wildly. The people shouted out: "MIRACLE!" It seems that the majority of the people saw the sun trembling and dancing, whirling around; it descended almost low enough to burn the earth with its rays. It shone with an intensity never before seen, but was not blinding. This lasted only an instant. Then the immense ball began to "dance". The sun began to spin rapidly like a gigantic circle of fire. Then it stopped momentarily, only to begin spinning again. Its rim became scarlet; whirling, it scattered red flames across the sky. Their light was reflected on the ground, on the trees, on the bushes, and on the very faces and clothing of the people, which took on brilliant hues and changing colors.

After performing a zigzag bizarre pattern three times, the globe of fire seemed to tremble, shake, and then plunge in a zigzag toward the terrified crowd. All this lasted about ten minutes. Finally, the sun zigzagged back to its original place and once again became still and brilliant, shining with its everyday brightness. The cycle of the apparitions had ended. Many people noticed that their clothes, soaking wet from the rain, had suddenly dried. The miracle of the sun was also seen by numerous witnesses up to twenty-five miles away from the place of the apparition. Many thought the end of the world had come, as the sun seemed to fall upon them. People reported color changes in objects on earth, caused by the rays of the sun. Some expressed sorrow for their sins aloud. Some who had come to ridicule now believed.

This was the great Miracle of the Sun which Our Lady had performed so that all may believe. Our Lady of Fatima, Our Lady of the Rosary, we consecrate this baby prayer ministry to you. Pray for us and all those for whom we pray.

Our Lady of the Rosary

The feast of “Our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary” is celebrated today. The month of October is dedicated to the "Most Holy Rosary."

Miracle of the rosary
On Sunday, October 7, 1571, the Christian and Turkish fleets met in Lepanto Gulf, off the coast of Greece. The bitter battle finished with a brilliant victory of the Christians who where vastly outnumbered. That very evening Pope Saint Pius V had at Rome a clear knowledge of this success. The same afternoon, the Confraternities of the Rosary, particularly in Rome, had marched through the streets in procession reciting the Rosary. This victory put an end to the naval power of the Turks and saved Christian Europe. To this day this victory has been attributed to the praying of the Rosary.



The Power of the Rosary
The most holy Virgin in these last times in which we live has given a new efficacy to the recitation of the Rosary to such an extent that there is no problem, no matter how difficult it is, whether temporal or, above all, spiritual, in the personal life of each one of us, of our families, of the families of the world, or of the religious communities, or even of the life of peoples and nations, that cannot be solved by the Rosary. There is no problem, I tell you, no matter how difficult it is, that we cannot resolve by the prayer of the holy Rosary. With the holy Rosary, we will save ourselves; we will sanctify ourselves; we will console our Lord, and obtain the salvation of many souls. Conversation between Sr. Lucy of Fatima and Fr. Fuentes, Dec. 26, 1957

"The Rosary is a powerful weapon to put the demons to flight and to keep oneself from sin…If you desire peace in your hearts, in your homes, and in your country, assemble each evening to recite the Rosary. Let not even one day pass without saying it, no matter how burdened you may be with many cares and labors."
Pope Pius XI

"Among all the devotions approved by the Church, none has been so favored by so many miracles as the Rosary devotion." Pope Pius IX

"The Rosary is the most excellent form of prayer and the most efficacious means of attaining eternal life. It is the remedy for all our evils, the root of all our blessings. There is no more excellent way of praying." Pope Leo XIII

"The rosary is a magnificant gift of God to humanity because through this prayer, we attain extraordinary graces. With the rosary in your hand, you will not be discouraged and you will have clarity of mind and extraordinary freedom in your heart." Mother Elvira Petrozzi, Foundress of the Cenacolo Community in Medjugorje, with fifty-six houses in fifteen countries, welcoming the lost and desperate.

Saint Dominic prayed to Our Lady that she would force the devils who possessed a man to reveal the truth about devotion to her. The devils were forced by Our Lady to reveal: "Now that we are forced to speak we must also tell you this: Nobody who perseveres in saying the Rosary will be damned, because she obtains for her servants the grace of true contrition for their sins and by means of this they obtain God's forgiveness and mercy."

The development of the rosary has a long history. First, a practice developed of praying 150 Our Fathers in imitation of the 150 Psalms. Then there was a parallel practice of praying 150 Hail Marys. Soon a mystery of Jesus' life was attached to each Hail Mary. Though Mary's giving the rosary to Sant Dominic is recognized as a legend, the development of this prayer form owes much to the followers of Saint Dominic. One of them, Alan de la Roche, was known as "the apostle of the rosary." He founded the first Confraternity of the Rosary in the 15th century. In the 16th century, the rosary was developed to its present form, with the 15 mysteries: joyful, sorrowful and glorious. In 2002, Pope John Paul II added the Luminous Mysteries to this devotion.

The purpose of the rosary is to help us meditate on the great mysteries of our salvation. Pius XII called it a compendium of the Gospel. The main focus is on Jesus, his birth, life, death and resurrection. The Our Fathers remind us that Jesus' Father is the initiator of salvation. The Hail Marys remind us to join with Mary in contemplating these mysteries. They also make us aware that Mary was and is intimately joined with her Son in all the mysteries of his earthly and heavenly existence. The Glorys remind us that the purpose of all life is the glory of the Trinity. The rosary appeals to many. It is simple. The constant repetition of words helps create an atmosphere in which to contemplate the mysteries of God. We sense that Jesus and Mary are with us in the joys and sorrows of life. We grow in hope that God will bring us to share in the glory of Jesus and Mary.



Our Lady of the Rosary, we entrust to you all the babies and names we receive on this baby prayer ministry, John 10:10. Keep them under your protective mantel and always in your loving care.