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 All people are called to be spouse of Jesus, my priest said, even the married. It depends on whether that person is willing to accept the call . Jesus will not force anyone to accept this offer. Everyone is called to be pure and chaste, especially the Carmelite. Sabbatine privilege: those who wear the brown scapular, observe chastity all their lives, lead a just life, pray five decades of rosary everyday or recite the little office of mary everyday or abstain from meat on wed and sat all their lives, will be released from purgatory on the first Saturday after death. Carmelite emphasizes purity and chastity. I wear a brown scapular everyday. I also pray rosary and lead a good life.

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 Every Saint of the Catholic church has been deeply devoted to the Blessed Sacrament.In fact , there is no sanctity without the Eucharist. From the dawn of Christian history, faith in the Holy Eucharist as the living Christ has been continuous.

Our focus should be on growing in our understanding of the Holy Eucharist.

we receive Him no less than the Apostles did at the Last Supper.

He is present, He offers , He comes.

He is present in order to be near us, with us, next to us, present to us. He wants to show us how much He loves us. He wants to teach us:

- Humility, Patience, Obedience, Silence, Selfless Charity.

He wants us to come to Him. He offers Himself in the Mass in order to give us the graces we need to surrender our wills to His. These are the distinctive graces of the Sacrament of the Mass:

The graces are :

- Self-surrender, Self -abandonment, Self-immolation.

He comes to us in Holy Communion in order to give us the graces of selfless charity. It is not coincidental that Christ did two things at the Last Supper:

1. He gave us the New Commandment: Love one another as He loves us , even unto death.

2. he instituted the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.

These two go together. We cannot practice selfless charity without receiving Holy Commuion. ( Servant of God Fr. John . A. Hardon. SJ)

" The love of God and neighbour , the greatest commandment is expressed in, and the fruit of , Eucharistic worship." St John Paul 2

" You will never be happy if your happiness depends on getting solely what you want. Change the focus. Get a new center. Will what God wills, and your joy no man shall take from you ." ( Venerable Fulton Sheen)

Our Eucharistic Lord gives us grace to surrender our lives to Him ----to seek not our own will , but only His will, no matter what the cost.

Resolve: Pray for the grace to thank God for whatever He sends, for He sends only what is best for our souls.

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 For those who do not love God, either out of pride , apathy , or a disdain for Him and His commandments, the desire to live forever is today being manifested in an evil , demonic way. Transhumanism is a refusal to submit to God, imagining that man's abilities are not derived from God, but rather from our power . Some believe they can construct a creature superior to man by their efforts to combine human beings with technology. It is a great rebellion against God, with an end goal of being able to control humans. Much time and money are being spent on developing what seems like science fiction.

They will market it so that people will come to believe that doing what they propose will make them much more intelligent , will bring great well-being, happiness, security, and anything else that may lure people into the trap that will make them lose their freedom--- and even their free will. Woe to those who consent. Their lot will be misery.

( e.g : believe in reincarnation , tarot)

On the contrary, what wonderful things God has planned for those who love him. For those who persevere, who are faithful to the end, they will be taken into the Kingdom of God, will see Him as He is , and will be like Him , like Almighty God !

" Trust all things to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and to Mary Help of Christians and you will see what miracles are ." St John Bosco.

Resolve: Make a holy hour and pray the rosary for the conversion of sinners.

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 Distractions in prayer:

The imagination is not easily controlled and the devil can assail us with all kinds of representations and may try to allure us even to sin. But we are never to be alarmed when we know our distractions are not voluntary. When we avert to distractions we should turn away from them gently without violence. We are not to conclude that our prayer has been bereft of all value because during most or all of the time we have been subject to distractions . Since we have done our best we must be convinced that God is satisfied with us and our prayer, poor as it may appear to be , will be very profitable. After all , it is a more unselfish act to be content to persevere at our prayer in spite of a weary struggle with distractions than to spend our time in prayer made with sensible sweetness and fervour.It is consequently more meritorious , and we can be certain that perseverance in prayer in spite of distractions, when we are applying the means already indicated to eliminate them, will lead to a prayer free from distractions and to closer union with God. So we must resolve that, no matter how long or weary our struggle with distractions may be, we will persevere in our prayer.

Voluntary distractions are at least serious imperfections, and so every person any way anxious for union with Go will seek to eliminate them.

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 Aridities in prayer:

Another source of difficulty in prayer are aridities. Ariditiy or dryness may test a person devoted to prayer at any stage. But usually with beginners it only lasts for a brief period, and it is especially at the stage that we have reached in our explanations of prayer that aridity of long duration comes to test the fidelity of a soul wishing to love God.Aridity is the incapacity of having any feeling about God or heavenly things. The soul in an arid state has no pleasure or satisfaction in the things of God and will not, or rather, finds she cannot have satisfaction in the things of earth. In a severe state of aridity the soul feels as if she were abandoned by Go or not wanted by God. According to the designs of God on the soul this state is usually accompanied by other trials more or less severe, such as sickness of body , troubles of mind, and misunderstandings with friends or persecutions.

In reality, the soul is not bereft of thought or feeling; there is beneath all a thought and loving longing for God. The thought may be obscure, indeterminate and anxious, the longing frequently painful.The important point is that God is nearer to the soul than ever, and the soul is very dear to God. The explanation of the state is simply that God is detaching the soul from all earthly things to attach it completely to Himself, and is purifying it from its many stains and imperfections to make it purer and more worthy of being completely filled by Himself and of being admitted to the deepest knowledge and sublimest union with Him. The soul is being detached from conceptions and feelings of God which can stand in the way of a truer knowledge and more intimate union.

It is of the utmost importance that the soul will understand the explanation of those severe trials permitted by God and not make the mistake of being discouraged and tempted to give up prayer altogether.

玫瑰經多厲害

 玫塊經:

( From : The secret of the rosary , by st montfort .)

聖母曾說:  我們每唸一遍聖母經, 我們就向她呈上一朵美麗的玫瑰花, 每唸完一串玫瑰經, 就是向她呈上一個花冠. 這花冠是永垂不朽, 直到永遠, 也為我們立下天上的功勞

( 取錄自小冊子: 玫瑰經非常有力的祈禱)

每一遍聖母經就像敲打魔鬼的頭一次

梵蒂岡首席驅魔師加俾厄爾阿莫爾特神父Father Gabriel Amorth寫道:

有一天, 我有一位同事在驅魔時聽到魔鬼說:

“ 每一遍聖母經就像敲打我的頭一次, 如果基督徒知道玫瑰經是如何強而有力, 這會是我的終結者! “

聖母曾對一位聖人說過: “ 你每唸一遍聖母經, 就是加強我所傾注的力量 “

 

玫瑰經是天主給予我們用以摧毀罪惡的特殊強大武器

 

聖母於葡萄牙花地瑪顯現

聖母於花地瑪向其顯現的三位小童之一的聖路濟亞於1957 年的面談中指出:

“ 我們活在末世之中, 聖母對於誦唸玫瑰經賦予新功效.

她賦予的這項功效就是, 無論問題有多困難, 無論是世俗還是靈性上的問題, 無論家庭問題, 世俗中的家庭問題, 教會大家庭問題, 甚至是關乎人命及國家的問題, 沒有問題是玫瑰經解決不到的.

讓我告訴你, 無論問題有多困難, 沒有問題是玫瑰經解決不到的. 透過玫瑰經, 我們將使自己得救, 我們將聖化自己, 使天主感到安慰,並且使許多靈魂得到救贖 ”

Jesus passion 3

 Passion of Jesus 3

Jesus had once said, as a test:

"Come after me

And I will make you fishers of men."

This could only be another such test, a trial of his courage, and at that moment Peter thought he had courage for anything. He would show his Lord that now, as ever, he was constant. He would ask, he would offer himself, be the consequences what they might:

" Peter saith to him

Why cannot I follow thee?

I will lay down my life for thee Lord

I am ready to go with thee

Both into prison and to death."

Poor, brave Peter ! How easy is it to be brave when no danger is near us! How easy to be faithful when there is no temptation to desert, but only sweet attraction to draw us! But not in such a way may those be trained who are destined to guide others. For that end Peter must be allowed his lesson, which only a heavy fall would teach him. In the answer which Jesus gave him there is irony, there is resignation ,there is even hope, there is no less affection;indeed love is the more expressed by the repetition of the name:

" Jesus answered and said to him

Wilt thou lay down your life for me?

Amen Amen I say to thee

Peter

Today even in this night

Before the cock crow twice

Thou shalt deny me thrice."

" Peter!" Before He had said:" Simon , Simon", now it was " Peter!"Then , his ordinary name, now, when his fall is prophesied , he is called " The Rock!" Such is the affectionate irony of Jesus Christ.

There is another thing to be noticed. That night Jesus had to deal with two offenders, Judas and Simon Peter.Judas that night would betray Him but once, Peter would deny Him thrice. Judas had made no special protest of allegiance, Peter had declared his loyalty again and again . Judas had been entrusted merely with the common purse; to Peter had been given the keys , the care of the Universal Church. And yet, after their fall, how differently they were treated ! 

The one repented out of despair, the other , with all his weakness, had never  

ceased to love; and Jesus knew the value of them both.

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 Personal causes for a polluted mind include:

1. a lack of serious thinking and study

2. a love for fads, a desire to remain mainstream and socially acceptable.

3. the darkening effects of sin, which clouds the mind

4. submission to political-commercial propaganda

5.ignorance of truths necessary for developing good habits

6.contempt of truths of the faith

7. distraction, especially a lack of attention to spiritual things.

Christ explains the foundational cause :" Out of the heart come evil thoughts."(Mt 15:19; emphasis added). That is , disordered desires of the heart lead to evil thoughts; evil thoughts likewise produce and strengthen evil desires . Thought and desire are like body and soul, closer than twins, affecting each other in inextricable ways

Evagruis wisely notes that to overcome disordered passions, and memories that stir up our passions, we must tame our bodily desiring and assertive appetites ( concupiscible and irascible ) by means of bodily asceticism, such as fasting, vigils, and sleeping on the ground. However, to overcome bad thoughts, one must cultivate good thoughts:

" Evil thoughts cut off good ones, and in turn evil ones are cut off by good ones."Christian thoughts, derived from faith and enlivened by charity, are remedies for disordered interior thoughts that dwell in our intellects. If they are not cultivated , then evil words will eventually spill from our lips.

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 St Anthony Mary Claret had a particular love for the saints. In his autobiography , he described how the saints powerfully intensified his own good habits, especially the abiding desire he had to be another apostle:

I frequently read the lives of those saints who were distinguished for their zeal in saving souls, and I felt the good effect of it...In the course of meditating on the lives and works of these saints, I used to feel such a burning within me that I could not sit still. I had to get up and run from one place to another, preaching continually. I cannot describe what I felt inside me. Nothing tired me; I was not terrified at the awful calumnies being leveled against me, or afraid of the greatest persecutions . Everything was sweet to me, as long as I could win souls for Jesus Christ and heaven and save them from hell.

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 We see that the God-focused fire of charity is crucial for heroic habits. By uniting us to God as our highest good and best love, charity focuses on everything in our life on God, including our habits, dispositions, and skills. In the words of St. Paul, it is the " bond of perfection". ( Col 3:15). Charity sets our habits aflame with divine love, acting as a furnace in which they are gradually perfected. As charity becomes more perfect, it also comes to take command of all our acts and habits. The gradual perfection of all habits therefore corresponds to the stages of the perfection of charity. Following ancient tradition, Aquinas describes the growth of charity as belonging to three stages: beginners, the proficient, and " the perfect". Here, then , I will merely summarize the stages, which can be compared to the way fire gradually burns wood.

First, fire acts upon green wood by heating it up and expelling all interior moisture. Through this " purgative" process, wood is " purified" of interior moisture. In this process, the wood becomes black with charcoal , similar to how a person sometimes seems worse in the first stages of the spiritual life as he realizes his imperfections. During this stage, it is important for a person to carefully consider his habits in the light of faith , to pray that they be purified by charity,and to let go of any habits by asceticism if they are contrary to holiness. The person might sigh at the pain of being detached from a disordered love for worldly things.

Second, fire sets the wood alight. In this "illuminative" stage, the soul both receives greater light from God and it begins faintly to shine forth to others. Once some of the obstacles of charity have been cleared away by purification, a person will want to focus more on growth in the virtues, actively cultivating them in a way that helps him accomplish the duties of his state of life. One will avoid lukewarmness by feeding his soul with the sacraments and the prayer of contemplation, as well as with works of charity. He will also avoid burdening himself with excessive spiritual activities, for which his love and energy may not be adequate.

Third, fire transforms wood entirely into flame so that only a blaze remains in this " unitive " stage. Those who have been transformed by charity desire " to be dissolved and to be with Christ". In this stage, purifications and illuminations continue but in a higher register as the soul ascends closer and closer to the state which it will enjoy for eternity. Here , human nature remains, though in an elevated state, such that the person radiates the heat and light of God's love and seems to be another Christ. In this stage, as the developing saint experiences greater transforming union with God , the Gifts of the Holy Spirit become more predominant in his life. A person in this stage spends longer hours in prayer, achieves greater apostolic works, and becomes transformd into a sort of divine fire.

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 Exterior corporal works of mercy , such as feeding the poor, caring for the sick, visiting those in prison, and so on are less manifestly enlivened by love for Christ than the spiritual works of mercy , such as counselling the doubtful, teaching the ignorant, correcting those in error, and so on---- acts that more directly stem from faith. Thus, St Teresa of Calcutta insisted that the merciful charity of her religious order was to be well-ordered by the light of faith. The Missionaries of Charity truly exercise charity, she said. They are more than social workers; they bring the love of Christ to the world and see the face of Christ in those they serve.

The greatness of the saints was not in their miracles. It was in their souls , which achieved a heroism appropriate for their condition, time and place.

It bears repeating that the most heroic heroism is heroism of the soul. The battleground of the soul, a person can find true heroism by conquering the warring hordes of evil within himself, overcoming sin, vice, and even the demons who try to overpower his strength and make him their eternal slave. Each person is a microcosm, a little universe, and a person who conquers himself conquers a world: " he who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city."( Proverb 16:32)

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 When the intellect regularly grasps its proper object---- truth --- it becomes habituated to beholding the truth. The mind becomes stamped by the truth, much like the metal of a coin is stamped with the head of a sovereign. This quality of being formed by the truth is good for the intellect. When the intellect has this quality , it is all the stronger for it: a truth-shaped mind can more easily sift through rumor, reject falsehood , discover reality, and so on. Accordingly , the habit of grasping the truth quickly, easily, skillfully, and joyfully is the perfection of the intellect. Seen from the other end of things, when the intellect is properly habituated, it grasps the truth so quickly, easily,etc. that knowledge, insight, understanding , and the rest seem natural to it. The contrary also holds. Falsehood and fantasy weaken the mind, preparing it to wander , darkened, lost in a maze of misshapen mirrors. Gazing into the black hole of unreality destabilizes the intellect and deprives it of the light of truth.

A similar dynamic exists with the will. Its proper object is the authentic good. When the will continually chooses what is truly good, it becomes stronger,more energetic, more stable, more excellent in its choices and loves. Likewise, when the will rejects what is evil and shuns the corruption of immorality, it comes to love and appreciate the good even more.

Fake goods disguised as real goods are to the will as drugs are to the body: at first, they might bring pleasure, but in the long run they destroy the power from within, fostering addiction, weakness, pettiness, and, eventually , hatred of what is truly beneficial.

Our habits take us either downward or upward. When a person's intellect is habituated to what is false, and his will to what is evil, his soul is corrupted.

On the other hand, when a person develops good habits to an extraordinary degree, the soul is perfected.

If by grace one's habits exceed the usual human mode, the soul becomes heroic or even divine by participation in God's own perfection.

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 Gregory the Great argues that " the movements of the flesh" are like beasts, for , " while they gall the mind by prompting conduct contrary to reason, they rise up against us like beasts. But when the heart is bowed down under the Divine Law, even the incitements of the flesh are reduced , so that, though in tempting us they give a low growl, yet they never mount so high as to the execution of the deeds, as to the madness of open biting."He then points to the great apostle to show how everyone is beset by these beasts in some way. St Paul admitted that he suffered from an inner tension as part of himself warred with another part. He said, " I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do ... For I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members.."( Rom 7:19.22-23)

St Paul lamented that his will delighted in God through charity, as his mind was ruled by faith, whereas his animal appetites, which dwelt in his body, were still moved by the law of sin.

St Thomas: 

The inclination to sin is a punishment for the fault of sins... which has taken mastery over the sinner and imposed its law on him, namely , the inclination to sin. 

He notes that a person who turns his back on God falls under the influence of his sensual impulses similar to those of animals. In humans, that inclination-law is often a deviation and insubordination to the law of reason, and thus fights against his nature, strips him of his proper dignity, and makes him a slave of his lower cravings. Adam and Eve gave us the habitual inclination toward selfishness and away from God, which we call original sin. Our personal sins add further bad habits that turn us in on self and away from the highest good.No wonder that we all fell as if we are at war with ourselves. 

La salette Mary : do not work on Sunday

  

La salette Mary about the sabbatical obligation, should rest 

From

Marian shrine of France

By

Francican friars of the immaculate

La Salette Mary said,

" Come to me , my children, "

" Do not be afraid. I am here to tell you something of the greatest importance." She spoke in French, not in their patois.

"If my people will not obey, I shall be compelled to loose my son's arm. It is so heavy,so pressing that I can no longer restrain it . How long I have suffered for you! If my son is not to cast you off , I am obliged to entreat him without ceasing. But you take not the least notice of that. No matter how well you pray in the future, no matter how well you act， you will never be able to make up to me what I have endured for your sake."

"I have appointed six days for your working.The  seventh I have reserved for myself.And no one will give it to me .This is which causes the weight of my son's arm to be so crushing. The cart drivers cannot sweat without bringing in my son's name. These are the two things which make my son's arm so burdensome."

" If the harvest is spoiled, it is your own fault. I warned you last year by means of the potatoes. You paid no heed. Quite the reverse, when you discovered that the potatoes had rotted, you swore, you abused my son's name.They will continue to rot, and by Christmas this year there will be none left . If you have grain , it will do no good to sow it , for what you sow the beasts will devour, and any part of it that springs up will crumble into dust when you thresh it. "

"A great famine is coming. But before that happens, the children under seven years of age will be seized with trembling and die in their parents' arms.The grownups will pay for their sins by hunger. The grapes will rot, and the walnuts will turn bad ."

"If people are converted, the rocks will become piles of wheat , and it will be found that the potatoes have sown themselves."

A pause, and then, with a searching look , " Do you say your prayers well , my children?"

" No , " they ( Melanie and Maximin) murmured, shamefaced. " We say them hardly at all ".

" Ah, my children, it is very important to say them, at night and in the morning. When you don't have time, at least say an Our Father and Hail Mary. And when you can , say more."

" Only a few rather old women go to Mass in the summer. All the rest work every sunday throughout the summer. And in winter, when they don't know what to do with themselves, they go to mass only to poke fun at religion. During Lent they flock to the butcher shops , like dogs."

Another question," My children, haven't you ever seen spoiled grain?"

Maximin answered,. " No , never."

" But my child, you must have seen it once , near Coin , with your papa. The owner of a field said to your papa : come and see my spoiled grain. 

The two of you went. You took two or three ears of grain in your fingers. You rubbed them , and they crumbled to dust. Then you came back from Coin. When you were but a half hour away from Corps, your papa gave you a piece of bread and said: well , my son, eat some bread this year, anyhow. I don't know who will be eating any next year , if the grain goes on spoiling like that ."

La Salette Mary looked earnestly at them . 

" My children, " 

she charged them,

" You will make this known to all my people."

Slowly she turned away,glided along the ravine, paused, and , without facing them , repeated the command,

" You will make this known to all my people."

--------------------------------------------------

https://www.lasalette.org/about-la-salette/apparition/the-story/705-the-message-of-la-salette.html

The unknown Lady now spoke to the children. “We were drinking her words”, they would say later, adding, “she wept all the time she spoke to us”.

 

“Come near, my children, be not afraid; I am here to tell you great news.

 

“If my people will not submit, I shall be forced to let fall the arm of my Son. It is so strong, so heavy, that I can no longer withhold it.

 

“For how long a time do I suffer for you! If I would not have my Son abandon you, I am compelled to pray to him without ceasing; and as to you, you take not heed of it.

 

“However much you pray, however much you do, you will never recompense the pains I have taken for you.

 

“Six days I have given you to labor, the seventh I have kept for myself; and they will not give it to me. It is this which makes the arm of my Son so heavy.

 

“Those who drive the carts cannot swear without introducing the name of my Son. These are the two things which make the arm of my Son so heavy.

 

“If the harvest is spoilt, it is all on your account. I gave you warning last year with the potatoes (‘pommes de terre’) but you did not heed it. On the contrary, when you found the potatoes spoilt, you swore, you took the name of my Son in vain. They will continue to decay, so that by Christmas there will be none left.”

If you have wheat, it is no good to sow it; all you sow the insects will eat, and what comes up will fall into dust when you thresh it.”

 

“There will come a great famine. Before the famine comes, the children under seven years of age will be seized with trembling and will die in the hands of those who hold them; the others will do penance by the famine. The walnuts will become bad, and the grapes will rot.”

 

Here the Beautiful Lady addressed the children separately, confiding to each a secret. She spoke first to Maximin, and though the little shepherd did not perceive that her tone of voice had changed, Melanie at his side could not hear a word, though she still saw the Beautiful Lady's lips moving. Then came Melanie's turn to receive her secret under like conditions. Both secrets were given in French.

 

Again addressing the two children in the idiom familiar to them, the Lady continued: “If they are converted, the stones and rocks will change into mounds of wheat, and the potatoes will be self-sown in the land.

 

“Do you say your prayers well, my children?”, she asked the shepherds. Both answered with complete frankness: “Not very well, Madam”. “Ah, my children”, she exhorted them, “you must be sure to say them well morning and evening. When you cannot do better, say at least an Our Father and a Hail Mary; but when you have time, say more.”

 

“There are none who go to Mass except a few aged women. The rest work on Sunday all summer; then in the winter, when they know not what to do, they go to Mass only to mock at religion. During Lent, they go to the meat-market like dogs.”

 

“Have you never seen wheat that is spoilt, my children?”, the Beautiful Lady then asked them. “No, Madam”, they replied.

 

“But you, my child”, she insisted, addressing the little boy in particular, “you must surely have seen some once when you were at the farm of Coin with your father. (Coin was a hamlet near the town of Corps). The owner of the field told your father to go and see his ruined wheat. You went together. You took two or three ears of wheat into your hands and rubbed them, and they fell into dust. Then you continued home. When you were still half an hour's distance from Corps, your father gave you a piece of bread and said to you: ‘Here, my child, eat some bread this year at least; I don't know who will eat any next year, if the wheat goes on like that’”.

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 We are not to bicker, complain, gossip, or attack. Our priority is to love. It is not a love that turns a blind eye to injustice but it is a love that sees the logs in our own eyes instead of the speck in our neighbour's. It is a love that prays for instead of judging , because the charism of love is more powerful than the office of correction. In fact, the first three spiritual works of mercy belong in a particular way to the ordained :to counsel the doubtful, instruct the ignorant, and admonish the sinner. Even in those rare instances where we must practice these works such as within our homes , it should always be done with love, and by humbly assuming that we are a greater sinner than the one we are correcting. And it is love rather than correction that draws our hearts to His sacred Heart.

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 Abstinence is a form of fasting. Fasting and self-denial are not personal preferences that can be discarded if we find them difficult. Fasting also gives us spiritual authority. Jesus explained in Matthew 17:21 that certain type of evil spirits can only be driven out through prayer and fasting. When we are fasting, we should not put on a sour face or parade around acting pious. It is a hidden thing.

Every Catholic over the age of 14 should abstain from meat on Fridays; during Lent, this is under the pain of sin. Many today present skillfully crafted arguments why they do not have to abstain. " The church no longer requires it." they say. " we can substitute some other form of mortification or do something nice to someone instead." But the church did not abolish Friday abstinence , she decreed that it is no longer a sin not to do so. The reason the church removed the penalty of sin is so that our freely willed mortification would be more efficacious: so that it would produce more grace. Quite the opposite occurred. Hardly a Catholic abstains from meat on Fridays outside of Lent anymore, nor do they acquire the spiritual authority over fallen angels that self-denial affords.

If Sunday is a mini-Easter, then Friday is a mini-Lent. Choosing some other mortification or doing something nice for someone, whatever that means, fails to produce a necessary reality in the Christian life: Spiritual influence. Fasting creates it. 

To increase the austerity of the practice as one accustomed to it, one might eat only the one meal, or partake of only bread and water .( Not suitable for the sick to take only bread and water, eat vegan food on fasting days is enough ). There are many people nowadays who are resorting to extreme fasting for its recently discovered health benefits, and they are doing it for secular reasons. Cannot we, who are doing it for faith reasons, match their intensity?

Sabbatine privilege of brown scapular:

1. Persevered in chastity , observe chastity, the 6 th and the 9th commandment.

2. Everyday recite the Little office of Mary or 

observed the fast days of the Church and abstained from flesh meat on Wednesdays and Saturdays  or

With the permission from your confessor, recite five decades of rosary everyday.

3. Always wear the brown scapular until death.

4. Live a good life.

The privilege:

These people would be released from purgatory on the first Saturday after their death.

Those who cannot fulfill the above requirements but wear a scapular until death:

Mary promises those who wear the brown scapular must not be sent to hell.

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 THE PORTIUNCULA INDULGENCE 

On the night of July, 1216, the great St. Francis was praying in the little church of the Portiuncula devoured by love for God and a thirst to save souls. He prayed for the forgiveness of sins of mankind. 

Suddenly a brilliant light shone all around. In great splendor Jesus and Mary appeared in the midst of a dazzling cloud surrounded by a multitude of radiant Angels. Out of fear and reverence, St. Francis adored Our Lord prostrate upon the ground. Then Jesus said to him:

*"Francis you are very zealous for the good of souls. Ask me what you want for their salvation."*

”St. Francis was rapt in ecstasy before Jesus. When he regained his courage he said:

*"Lord, I a miserable sinner beg You to concede an indulgence to all those who enter this church, who are truly contrite and have confessed their sins. And I beg Blessed Mary, your Mother, intercessor of man, that She intercede on behalf of this grace."*

"Our Lady at once began to beseech Her Son on behalf of Francis. 

Jesus answered:

"It is a very great thing that which you ask Me; but you are worthy of even greater things, Friar Francis, and greater things you will have. So I accept your request, but I want you to go to My Vicar, to whom I have given the power to bind and loose in Heaven and on earth, to ask him on my behalf for this indulgence."

"With one of his companions, St. Francis hastened to Pope Honorius III and prostrate implored him to proclaim that every one visiting the church and confessing their sins with a contrite heart would be as pure from all sin and punishments as he was immediately after baptism.

The Pope granted this petition. *This indulgence has been extended to all parish churches throughout the world.*

The date was set from evening of August 1st until sundown on August 2nd, the Feast of Our Lady of the Angels.*

It is said that St. Francis was given this day by Our Lord because the Feast of the Chains of St. Peter celebrated on August first is the day Peter was released from prison and his chains removed. This is an extraordinary demonstration of God’s mercy in removing the chains of sin from those who devoutly and faithfully seek to gain the indulgence by completing its requirements.

Tell everyone of the magnitude of this gift. Once again, we see the unfathomable Divine Mercy of God. In the words of St. Francis:

"O my Brothers and Sisters, I want you all to go to Heaven.”

#ToInformIsToFraternalize #OFSFilipinas 

(source: The Racolta 698)

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Professed Carmelites observe a limited silence, normally from bedtime until waking, or from the end of night prayer until morning prayer. But for those of us who live in the world, we should observe that which prudence suggests in our circumstances . We must seek out pools of silence in the landscape of our day. The greatest reason why is that without silence, we cannot be recollected. And without recollection, we cannot achieve deep communion with God or approach contemplation. God dwells in silence. If we live in noise, we cannot hear Him. 

God dwells in sacred silence.We must meet Him there. That is why it is important to have a quiet place to go and pray. 

Another important reason why we should practice silence more often is because it is very easy for us to sin with our tongues. When we hear these passages read at Mass or read them for ourselves, we often gloss over them and ignore them. But we do so to our own injury.

Jesus tells us in Matthew 12:35-37 that on the day of judgment we will have to give an account for every idle word we ever spoke. He said that a good man brings forth good things from his stores, and an evil man brings forth evil things, and that we will be justified or condemned based not only on our deeds, but on what we have said. 

St Paul in Colossians3:8-9 tells us that as followers of Christ we must set aside anger, malice,insults,foul language and lies. There are no exceptions.

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 A Religious having wounded charity in regard to St . Louis Bertrand , received a terrible chastisement after death. He was plunged into the fire of purgatory , which he had to endure until he had made satisfaction to divine Justice;nay, more, he could not be admitted into the abode of the elect until he had accomplished an act of exterior reparation,which should serve as an example to the living. The fact is thus related in the Life of the saint:

When St. Louis Bertrand ,of the order of St. Dominic, resided at the convent of Valencia, there was a young religious in the community who attached too much importance to profane science. Doubtless letters and erudition have their value, but, as the Holy Spirit declares, they should yield to the fear of God and the science of the saints. Non super timentem Dominum ---- " There is none above him that feareth the Lord." ( Ecclus.23:13)  This science of the saints, which Eternal Wisdom came to teach us , consists in humility and charity . The young religious of whom we speak, while little advanced in Divine science, allowed himself to reproach Father Bertrand with his little knowledge , and said to him," One can see, Father, that you are not very learned!" " Brother," replied the saint with meek firmness, " Lucifier was very learned, and yet he was damned."

The brother who had committed this fault did not think of repairing it. Nevertheless he was not a bad religious, and some time after , falling dangerously sick, he received the Last Sacrament in very good dispositions, and expired peacefully in the Lord. A considerable time elapsed, and meanwhile Louis was nominated Prior. One day, having remained in choir after Matins, the deceased appeared to him enveloped in flames, and prostrating humbly before him, said, " Father , pardon me the offensive words which I formerly addressed to you . God will not permit me to see His face until you shall have pardoned my fault and offered Holy Mass for me. " The saint willingly forgave him , and the next morning celebrated Mass for the repose of his soul. The following night , being again in choir, he saw the deceased brother reappear , but radiant with glory and going up to Heaven.

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 From St Peter de Alcantara to St Teresa  of Jesus:

..... And if your zeal and fervor draw you to embrace the counsels of Jesus Christ, observe them with the greatest integrity and perfection that you possibly can, seeing they were equally given to both sexes. It cannot be, but the same merit and reward will be rendered unto you as to others that have truly observed them. And if there be seen any want or necessity in the monasteries of poor religious women, it is because they are poor against their wills, and not through fault of their vow of poverty or following of Evangelical counsels. For I account not much of their simple poverty ,but of their patient sufferance of the same for the love of God. But I more esteem that poverty which is desired ,procured , and embraced for the same love. And if I should think or determinately believe otherwise , I should not hold myself a good catholic. I believe in this, and in all other things taught by our Blessed Savior , and that His counsels are good and profitable , as proceeding from God, and though they oblige not to sin, they bind, nevertheless, that man to be more perfect that follows them than if he had not undertaken them at ail. I hold them poor in spirit who are poor in will, as our Savior has said, and myself proved; however, I believe more from God than of my own experience that those who, by the grace of God, are with all their hearts poor lead a life most happy, as confiding and hoping in him alone. His divine majesty give you light to understand this truth and to practice it . Believe not those that shall tell you the contrary , for want of light and understanding , or for not having tasted how sweet our Lord is to those that fear and love Him, renouncing for His sake all unnecessary things of this world, for they are enemies of the cross of Christ, not believing the glory which accompanies the same. ...... in the end reward to those who hope in Him and not in rents and goods of the Earth.

From Avila, this fourteenth day of April 1562

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 How profound and far-reaching was the influence that the example of St. Anthony the patriarch of the monastic life exercised on Society! If ever there was a man who dominated history ,dictated to the future, molded the lives of generations yet unborn, it was surely this man. Intent at first only upon the salvation of his own soul, he initiated one of the most amazing movement that history records.

There were certainly hermits before his time. But he is their recognized leader, and the monks of the desert , who at one time numbered hundreds of thousands , looked upon his as the father of monasticism . Indeed he is the father of the technical religious life in every shape and form. That is to say, no Christian name has inspired greater heroism or been productive of deeper and lasting results.

In the calendar of the saints we find a multitude whose very names are suggestive of momentous events, who were real makers of history and of large-scale history at that. A fourteenth-century chronicler says of St. Bridget of Sweden that on the day of her birth, a priest heard a supernatural voice saying, " Tonight there will be born a child to whose words the whole world will one day listen." Equally momentous was the nativity of many other saint.

St Augustine, for example, embodies in his own person that disturbed , uneasy period when paganism and Christianity were engaged in final conflict.

St Telemachus by his heroic sacrifice put an end to an abuse which was the scandal of Christendom. 

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 Let there be no contention among you ---or, at least, put an end to it as quickly as possible-----lest a little anger grow into hatred, and so make of a mote a beam, and render the soul guilty of murder; for you read ," whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer."( 1 John iii. 15)

Whosoever wounds another by offensive language , by wishing her evil, or reproaching her with her faults , should be mindful to make satisfaction as soon as possible; and she who was injured must pardon without many words.

But if both have been offended they must forgive each other . The reason of this is that you may be duly disposed for prayer , which , the more frequent it is, the more holy it should be.

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 But one who is often tempted to anger, and as speedily asks pardon of the one she acknowledges she has injured , is better than one not so soon moved to anger, and yet less inclined to ask pardon. She that will not forgive her sister, must not hope to obtain of God what she asks in her prayers.

If there is anyone who will never ask pardon, or does not ask it from her heart, though she is not put out of the convent, yet her religious life is useless .

" Beware, therefore , of hard words".

Yet, should they chance to escape one's mouth, let the tongue that has caused the wound apply the cure.

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 Passion of Jesus

The deed had been done, the signal had been given; Jesus could now submit to whatever was to follow. The plan of Judas had succeeded; Jesus had clearly been deceived. His success gave the rabble courage; Judas now could disappear and leave the rest to them. At once the silence of the night was broken; the mob that till then had been held in check, first by Judas, then by Jesus, now resumed its noisy clamour, that clamour that turns cowards into mock heroes. They came up and pressed upon Jesus of Nazareth; they laid their hands upon Him, and this time He showed no inclination to escape. At last His magic power was gone; the kiss of the traitor had undone Him, as the caresses of Delilah had undone the mighty Samson. Now in His presence they could be very brave indeed:

" They then came up

And laid hands on Him

And held Him."

But for the companions of Jesus this was indeed a new situation. Let it be remembered that, for most of them at least, the action of Judas need not have appeared as anything strange. He had gone out from the supper-room, as they had presumed ,upon an errand, some commission given to him by Jesus. He had come back to them here in the garden;he had gone to salute his Master, and tell Him the commission had been done,nay more, he had owned Him before this threatening crowd. It was a noble act , a good act, a brave act; as before they had always tended to follow the lead of Judas, so they would follow it now. They , too, would renew their courage and be brave. Now they remembered that at the Supper Jesus had forewarned them that they should have swords in readiness for what was to happen that night; and they had said that they would go with Him even to death. Against all these odds they would fight for their Master. On other occasions He had tested their courage , and blamed for their want of faith and trust ; it might be that He was only testng them now. Simon Peter especially; he had been tried before as none of the others , rewarded for his faith and trust as none of them. That night he had committed himself further than the rest, protesting that he would not deny his Lord, that he would die with Him; he must be their leader in courage now.

" And they that were about him 

Seeing what would follow

Said to him

Lord

Shall we strike with the sword ?

Then one of them that was with Jesus

Simon Peter

Stretching forth his hand

Drew his sword

 And striking the servant of the High Priest

Cut off his right ear

And the name of the servant was Malchus."

A few hours before, in the supper-room, the disciples had been discussing among themselves who should  be the foremost in the kingdom;during all that week, since  the Sunday 's triumphal

march, they had been telling themselves that at last the kingdom was at hand. Now was their opportunity to show their prowess; kingdom must be won by battle. It was true they had but two swords among them.

Simon Peter drew the first sword. He struck, it did not matter how or where; he struck one in the vanguard of the crowd , and official in the high priest's household. The blow was partly averted; it cut off the man's right ear.We are told that the man's name was Malchus; if we may judge from other cases, we may conclude that m

Malchus was later a disciple of Peter, a member of the Christian Church.

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 Maria Goretti

If it is true that in the martyrdom of Maria Goretti there stands out above everything else her purity, it is also true that in her and with her the other Christian virtues are not less glorified . For in her virtue of purity, we have the most basic and significant confirmation of the perfect dominion of her spirit over gross matter. In her act of supreme heroism, which was not something unprepared, we see an evidence of her tender and docile love, at once obedient and practical , towards the parents of her flesh. There was also the sacrifice she had made in her difficult daily labor. There was the evangelical poverty to which she freely submitted and in which she was sustained by her confidence in heavenly Providence. There was her religion , to which she tenaciously clung and which she desired to understand better with the passing of every day----which she nourished by the practice of her prayers and which thus became for her a veritable treasure in her life. There was her ardent longing to receive Jesus in the Eucharist. Finally, as the crown of her charity, there was the heroic pardon which she granted to the man who had murdered her.A rustic garland of flowers in the field---- these virtues but ever so dear to God, for they adorned the white veil of her first communion, and shortly after, her martyrdom. 

During the past fifty years, coupled with what was often a weak reaction on the part of decent people, there has been a conspiracy of evil practices , propagating themselves in books and illustrations, in theatres and radio programs, in styles and clubs and on the beaches, trying to work their way into the heart of the family and society, and doing their worst damage among the youth ,even among those of the tenderest years, in whom the possession of virtue is a natural inheritance.

Dearly beloved youth, young men and women, who are the special object of the love of Jesus and of Us, tell me, are you resolved to resist firmly,with the help of divine grace, every attempt made to violate your chastity?

You fathers and mothers, tell me, before the image of this young virgin St Maria Goretti,in the presence of her mother who educated her to martyrdom and who, as much as she felt the bitterness of the outrage, never complained about her daughter's death --- tell me , are you ready to assume the solemn duty laid upon you to watch, as far as in you lies, over your sons and daughters, to preserve and defend them against so many dangers that surround them, and to keep them always far away from places where they might learn the practices of impiety and of moral perversion?

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 HOW TO GIVE EUCHARISTIC ADORATION ACCORDING TO AN EXORCIST FATHER

An exorcist priest from Canada gave a lecture explaining the importance of worshiping the Holy One at least one hour a week.

And for people who suffer from severe illnesses or have problems with some of their family members, he said that going to worship half an hour or an hour a day, not only heals; it transforms everything. It's the max. Father also said what is the best way to worship...

Example:

The first 15 minutes go before Jesus in the Eucharist, show us in front of Him and tell Him that you come to love Him and that you want to let yourself be Loved by Him.

In the next 15 minutes. 

Thank him for everything:

For the life.

For the home.

For what we have to eat

For work or business

By the water we have to bathe Etc...

Many, he said, we won't be grateful anymore because we don't value what we have, but we always look at what we don't have.

After 15 minutes of repair

Repairing and delivering for our relatives who don't know him, don't love him..

Reparation for the terrible things happening in the world: Abortion, idolatry, killings, adultery, etc...

And the last 15 minutes is to place the orders

He mentioned that he gave the 15 minutes as a guide, but it doesn't necessarily have to be those times.

He also said that whoever has a disease like cancer, if they go to the Holy One to worship, they will not lose weight, no hair loss, or will feel severe pain. He said that out of an exposed Holy One comes rays of Jesus and people are healing and set free.

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 Whosoever therefore fixes her eyes upon a man and seeks to be beheld by him, must not imagine she is not seen by others; she is certainly seen and even by those she least suspects.

( in case the woman is married, and the man is someone she does not know)

But suppose she is not seen by any creature, what can she do to hide her fault from the sight of Him from whom nothing can be concealed? Can she think that He sees it not because He considers it with as much patience as wisdom?

Whenever , therefore, you are together in the church or elsewhere in the presence of men be very careful to help one another to guard modesty and religious chastity.

If you perceive in any of your companions this liberty of sight of which I speak, prudently admonish her of it, to the end that a speedy correction may hinder her from going on in what she had begun.

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 Passion of Jesus meditation:

The capture of Jesus:

Away by Caesarea Philippi, not a year before, Judas had heard Simon proclaim,in the name of them all:

" Thou art the Christ

The Son of the living God".

and he had not protested. Jesus could not say of him, as later He could make himself say of His executioners:

" Father forgive him

For he knows not what he does."

He could warn him; He had done so again and again, during the whole of that last year. He could use all manner of endearments to win him from his evil way; He could keep him closer with Him than others, He could trust him as He had not trusted them, he could give him counsel all his own, He could wash his feet, He could call him not a servant but a friend, and allow him to call Him the same, He could give him the power of miracles, send him to preach in His name, see to it that men were won by his preaching,that he shared all honour with the rest of His chosen Twelve.But He could do no more  . If the will of Judas would not bend, if he would abide by his choice, if malice could so possess him, Jesus must let things take their course; it were better for Judas had he never been born.Still even then would Jesus not condemn; condemnation belonged to the Father. He was there to save, not to destroy; He would yield not one tittle of His saving right, not even under such provocation. Judas, traitor as he now was, was still His own, one of those " whom He had chosen Himself", whom the Father had given Him out of the world, who had once stood with Him in His temptations; whom having loved He would love to the end. Whatever Judas did to Him, Jesus would not annul that friendship. He would make a last appeal, even at this eleventh hour. Secretly , as He had done before; affectionately , as He could not but always do; with that love which sought not its own,which endured all things, He answered Judas . While the hands of betrayal still clung about Him, while the sense of the indignity surged within Him, while all nature seemed to cry out against the deed of shame that was being done, Jesus whispered to Judas, the last words he was ever to hear from His lips:

" And Jesus said to him

Friend,

whereto art thou come?

Judas 

Dost thou 

Betray the Son of man 

with a kiss?"

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 "If one member suffer anything, all the members suffer with it; or if one member glory, all the members rejoice with it," says the Apostle. For this reason, since we are one body, we should rejoice with the saints in Heaven, and sympathize with the suffering in Purgatory. But let us also be mindful that because of the communion of saints we are sharers of all merits stored up in the treasury of the Church , as it is called. Unbounded are the graces merited for us by Christ, innumerable those merited by the Queen of Saints and the other saints. It is from this treasury that the Church draws when it offers indulgences. Let us, therefore draw from this treasury as much as we please . But we should endeavour too , as much as possible, always to increase this spiritual treasury by our zeal for virtue and sanctity , bearing humbly whatever God sends us , following the example of St. Paul , who says," Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up those things that are wanting of the sufferings of Christ, in my flesh, for His body, which is the Church.".

Therefore, Let us not, I beseech you , be dead members in the body of Christ and in so holy a company; but let us make every effort to live, and to live perfectly the life which Christ has procured for us by His death. In striving after sanctity we shall be a source of profit to all the faithful and a joy to all the Saints. Let nothing sordid enter into our soul, lest we bring disgrace to the Church, for which Christ offered himself that it might be holy and without blemish.

 

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 Jesus openly foretold that His chosen ones would travel with Him by the way of the Cross:

If you had been of the world, the world would love his own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world , therefore the world hateth you . Remember My word that I said to you : the servant is not greater than its master . If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you ...Amen, amen I say to you , that you shall lament and weep, but the world shall rejoice ; and you shall be made sorrowful, but your sorrow shall be turned into joy.

In fact , we see the Church suffering persecution and battling against the powers of the darkness from its beginning to our own times. So it will continue to the last day. This is characteristics of the true church of Christ. Hence our Lord has consoled us , " Fear not ,little flock, for it hath pleased your Father to give you a kingdom ." The more loyal sons of the Church we are , the more we shall greive over this persecution and suffering, and the more certainly we shall share it. Especially priests and religious cannot expect anything else, since it is their wish to be chosen soldiers of the church.

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 It is the duty of every one who feels himself called to the state of perfection , to prove himself and to choose the Order he finds most suitable for himself. Here St.Paul's word also applies: Now there are diversities of ministries, but the same Lord; and there are diversities of operations, but the same God, who worketh all in all. And the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man unto profit... But all these things one and the same Spirit worketh, dividing to every one according as he will ( 1 Cor. 12, 4-11)

He, who promptly follows the lead of the Holy Spirit in choosing the religious state, acts very wisely and will accomplish much for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.

Certainly prayer and the interior life should be most intensively cultivated in the orders of the mixed life, and provision made that all , before they are permitted to undertake the active life, be sufficiently imbued with the love and practice of prayer and the interior life,lest among the dangers and distractions of the active life, their spiritual life may ere long collapse . Unless such caution is taken, the foundations collapse , and those apostolic laborers will seek not God or souls but themselves , although they may not be aware of this defect or wish to confess it.

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 The concupiscence of the eyes is nothing else than the cursed hunger for gold or that avarice and desire for riches, concerning which the Apostle says," The desire of money is the root of all evils, which some coveting have erred from faith , and have entangled themselves in many sorrows .(1 TIM.6,10). Our Lord gives the warning : " Take heed , and beware of all covetousness."( Luke 12,15) " For they that will become rich , fall into temptation,and into the snare of the devil, and into many unprofitable and hurtful desires, which drown men into destruction and perdition.( 1. Tim 6,9).

He wishes to possess nothing as his own,not even the slightest thing, and , following the example and teaching of our Lord,to require as few things as possible for life.

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 The object of the virtue is more extensive than that of the vows, because the nature of the virtue is different from that of the vow . For the vow, is the promise of a determined thing, action or renunciation. Thus , the object of the vow is necessarily contained within well-defined limits . The virtue , on the other hand, tends to properly regulate the will and direct it toward God and in this sense it cannot be held within limits.

He who observes the vow accurately and carefully , will easily attain the height of the virtue.

The virtue can be injured without injury of the vow: e.g he who being bound by the vow of poverty cherishes voluntary affections for superfluities or for worldly riches, fails against the vow of poverty. He does not, however , commit a sin against the vow of poverty so long as he does not retain such riches or dispose of anything of pecuniary value without permission. But we should know that the vow of perfect chastity is co-extensive with the virtue of chastity; for thoughts and desires are also forbidden by the vow since the precept of chastity already forbids these. Therefore , whoever in any way sins against the virtue or precept of chastity, also sin against his vows and so commits two sins.

Although the vow is a means toward obtaining the virtue , yet it is also true, that unless we also strive after the virtue we shall not long persevere in fulfilling the vow.

Therefore, if you wish to safeguard the vows , expend the greatest care possible upon the virtues . It is for the virtue that you will make the vows if you have not already made them.

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 By the vow of poverty we renounce external goods in order to seek everlasting ones; by the vow of chastity we renounce the delights of the flesh, in order to cling to God spiritually .

Usually men think that the more riches they acquire the happier they will be .

But the inspired writer also confesses:" I saw in all things vanity..."

Such a man is not a ruler, but a slave, and he never enjoys true peace and tranquility.

It is the office of the virtue of chastity, therefore, to curb the flesh so that what has been implanted in the human body for a good end, may serve only this end, and that every pleasure not according to the Divine law, be suppressed.

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Rosa Mystica 1947-1966

It was in 1531 that the Mother of God appeared to Juan Diego in Tepeyac Hill in Mexico and performed "the miracle of the roses" as proof to Bishop Zumarraga of her presence. Roses never grew on that rocky terrain, and certainly not in December. Moreover, when, in their surprise, the bishop's attendants tried to pick and take some of them from his tilma, they could not do so because they became, as one author put it, "not roses that they touched, but as if they were painted or embroidered." Indeed, they were "mystical roses" from the hands of the Mystical Rose herself.

The Litany of Loreto lists many of her titles, but there is a flower amongst them; the Mystical Rose. Truly, the rose is the queen of all the flowers, and there is something in the Heavenly arrangement of Its petals and Its coloring, there Is something In Its scent and symmetry, In the modesty of its green leaves, which makes it very special. It is the flower which captures the heart at nearly every stage of its growth, even when a bud. While It grows, Its petals gradually unfold as a token, as It were, of the blossoming of the lover's love for his loved one.

Mary, the most beautiful of God's creation, is indeed "the Incarnate Rose," especially chosen for God's garden. She is the "rose of Sharon and the lily of the valleys" [Song 2:1]. There is no rose comparable to her and she has made Paradise ever so much more beautiful.

But if you call her a rose, white is the color of her purity; gold, the tint of her royalty; red, the hue of her suffering. The rose grows out from a stem of thorns and in the heart of this flower, the red of the Cross of her son was forming. Indeed, without thorns a rose is not a rose, and without the thorn of great suffering, Mary could not have become the Mystical Rose of God's Paradise.

THE BEGINNING OF THE APPARITIONS AT MONTICHIARI IN 1947

Mary Appears as the "Rosa Mystica" In Montichiari

Montichiali with its suburb Fontanelle is a small town in Northern Italy, twenty kilometers from Brescia, the bishop's town. It is situated in front of the Italian Alps in the fertile plain of the river Po. The name means in English, "Bright Mountains." On a hill lies the old castle of St. Mary and the venerable Church of San Pancrazio.

First Apparition

Pierina Gilli was born on August 3, 1911, at Montichiari and worked as a nurse in the hospital there. The first time, the dear Mother of Christ appeared to her in a room of the hospital, in the spring of 1947. Our Lady, a beautiful woman, wore a violet dress and a white veil around her head. She was very sad, her eyes were filled with tears which fell to the floor. Her breast was pierced by three big swords. Our Lady said, "Prayer-Penitence-Expiation" and was silent.

Second Apparition

On June 13, 1947, Our Lady appeared again in the hospital early one Sunday. morning. This time she was dressed in white and instead of the three swords she had three roses: a white one, a red one, and a golden one. Pierina Gilli asked her, "Please tell me who you are." The Lady answered, smiling, "I am the Mother of Jesus and the Mother of all of you."

Here she paused, then she went on, "Our Lord sends me to bring a new Marian devotion for all male and female institutes, religious orders, and secular priests. I promise those religious institutes, orders, and secular priests who venerate me in this special way my special protection, an increase of spiritual vocations, fewer betrayed vocations, and great sanctity among the servants of God. I wish the 13th of each month to be celebrated as the day of Mary. On the twelve preceding

days, special prayers of preparation should be said."

With an expression of great joy, she went on, "On this day I shall send to these religious institutes, members of orders, and secular priests who have honored me in this way, a superabundance of graces and great sanctity. I wish the 13th of July of each year to be celebrated in honor of the 'Rosa Mystica,' the Mystical Rose."

Pierina asked whether she would perform a miracle. Our Lady answered, "The most evident miracle will be the godly souls, who for some time, especially during the last war, became lukewarm, so that they were unfaithful or even betrayed their vocation, will cease to offend Our Lord gravely. By their great offenses, they brought punishment and persecution upon the Church-----as we experience it in our days-----but then the original spirit of their holy founders will blossom again."

With these words the conversation ended. Now Our Lady explained to Pierina the meaning of the three swords and the three roses. A moving explanation which is to taken quite seriously!

The first sword means loss of the vocation as a priest or a monk. The second sword means priests, monks, and nuns who live in deadly sin. The third sword means priests and monks who commit the treason of Judas. While giving up their vocation, they often lose also their faith, their eternal beatitude, and become enemies of the Church.

The white rose means the spirit of prayer. The red rose means the spirit of expiation and sacrifice. The yellow or golden rose means the spirit of penitence.

Third Apparition on October 22, 1947

The beautiful woman appeared again, this time in the chapel of the hospital in Montichiari during the service. Many employees of the hospital, some physicians, and people from the town were present.

Our Lady asked for the realization of the devotion she had recommended and said among other things, "My Divine Son, tired of the continuing offenses, wanted to act according to His justice. So I placed myself as a Mediatrix between Him and the human race, especially the specially consecrated souls."

Pierina thanked her for that in the name of all who were present. Our Lady took leave with a beautiful thought for Pierina saying, "Vivi d'amore!" which means, "Live for love-----for charity!"

 

Fourth Apparition on November 16, 1947

Our Lady appeared publicly in the parish church of Montichiari in the presence of some people, among whom were also several priests. Among other things she said, "Our Lord, my Divine Son, is tired of the many offenses, the severe offenses, the sins against holy purity . . . " Here she paused and then went on, "He wants to send another flood of punishment.  . . ."  Here she stopped again for some moments and then went on, "I have interceded that He may be merciful once more. Therefore I ask for your prayer and penitence to expiate these sins."

Pierina said, "Yes!" and agreed to these wishes of Our dear Lady. The conversation went on, "I ardently ask the priests to admonish the people in love that they do not commit these sins any more." Pielina asked, "Will He then pardon us?" Our Lady answered, "Yes, so long as one does not commit them any more." With these words she went away.

Fifth Apparition on November 22, 1947

Our Lady appeared again in the parish church in the presence of several persons. First she told Pierina Gilli to make four crosses with her tongue on the floor just in the middle of the church, exactly under the dome. (A humiliating act of expiation!) Then she descended on the crosses and said, "I descend on this place because it is here that great conversions will occur." Somewhat sadly she went on, "Today specifically, there are Christians of your Italian nation who most offend our Lord, my Divine Son Jesus, by their sins against holy purity. Therefore, the Lord demands, prayer, great sacrifices, and penitence." Pierina asked, "What have we to do to fulfill your wish for prayer and penitence?" Our Lady answered mildly, "Prayer" (here she was silent for some moments and continued), "Penitence means acceptance of the little daily crosses and also doing one's work in the spirit of penitence."

And in all her majesty she gave a promise with the following words, "On December 8th, at noon, I shall appear here again in the parish church and it will be the hour of grace." Pierina Gilli asked, "Please, explain to me! What does it mean, the hour of grace?" Our Lady replied, "The hour of grace-----great and numerous conversions will occur." Here she paused again for some moments and continued, "Souls, totally hardened, cold as this marble, will be touched by Divine grace and become faithful and God-loving again."

This was the only time that Our dear Lady predicted a future appearance. All the other apparitions happened unexpectedly.

Sixth Apparition on December 7, 1947

This time when Our Lady appeared again in the parish church there were only three persons present. Among them was the Reverend Confessor of the seer. Our Lady, as "Rosa Mystica," wore a white cloak. This was held at the right side by a boy, at the left side by a girl. Both were also dressed in white.

Our Lady said, "Tomorrow I shall show you my Immaculate Heart which human beings know so little." Here she paused and then went on, "In Fatima I spread the dedication to my Immaculate Heart." With heartfelt expression she went on, "In Bonate I tried to introduce this devotion into Christian families." (Bonate, where Our Lady appeared during the war, is situated near Bergamo.)

Here she made a somewhat longer pause, then continued, "Here in Montichiari I wish the devotion of the 'Rosa Mystica,' together with the veneration of my Immaculate Heart, to be increased in the religious institutes and the monastic communities, in order that these souls dedicated to God may receive more graces from my motherly Heart."

Then Our Lady told Pierina a mystery and promised that she herself would let her know when she had to reveal it. Pierina asked, "Who are the two children at your side?"

Our Lady answered, "Jacinta and Francesco. They will be your companions in all your afflictions. They too have suffered, though they were much younger than you. Look, this is how I would like you to be-----simple and good-----as these children used to be." Our Lady extended her arms protectingly, looked up to Heaven and exclaimed, "Sia benedetto il Signore!" which means, "Praised be the Lord!" Then she disappeared.

Seventh Apparition on December 8, 1947

On this great feast of St. Mary, some thousand people had gathered from everywhere. Pierina Gilli had great difficulty in getting into the overcrowded parish church. She knelt down on the spot where the other appearances had taken place. While people were praying the Rosary, she exclaimed, "Oh, La Madonna!" (Our Lady).

At once, there was a great silence. The pastor, Monsignore Abate Francesco Rossi, reported that many participants told him later, (though thousands of people were in the overcrowded church), it had become so still that one could hear the humming of a single fly. Our Lady appeared on a big white staircase which was decorated on both sides with white and yellow and red roses. Our dear Lady smiled and said, "I am the Immaculate Conception." And with great majesty, descending, she said, "I am Mary of Grace, that is, the Full of Grace, Mother of my Divine Son Jesus Christ."

 Descending farther she continued, "I come here to Montichiari because it is my wish to be appealed to and venerated as 'Rosa Mystica.' I wish people to celebrate each year on December 8th at noon the hour of grace for the whole world. With this exercise, one will receive numerous spiritual and bodily graces. Our Lord, my Divine Son Jesus, will be abundantly merciful so long as good men go on praying for their fellow men. As soon as possible, let the Supreme Shepherd of the Church, Pope Pius XII, know it is my wish that this hour of grace be publicized and spreadthroughout the whole world. If someone cannot go to church at this time, he is to pray at noon at home, and he will receive graces from me. He who prays on these bricks and sheds tears of repentance will find a secure ladder to Heaven and get protection and graces from my Motherly Heart."

With these words Our beautiful and radiant Lady showed Pierina her Heart and burst into the following words, "Look at this Heart which loves human beings so very much, though most of them overwhelm it with abuses!" Here she paused a moment, and then went on, "When good people and bad people unite in prayer, they will receive mercy and peace from this Heart. At present the Lord has been merciful to the good ones because of my intercession. This has delayed a great judgment of God." Smiling, she went on, "Very soon, one will know how important this hour of grace is."

Pierina noticed that she was about to leave and said, "Oh beautiful, dear Saint Mary, I thank you! Please bless my homeland Italy, bless the whole world, especially the Holy Father, the priests, the monks and nuns, and the sinners." Our Lady answered, "I have an abundance of graces ready for all those children who hear my voice and take my wishes to heart." With these words the vision ended. Also during this vision Our Lady confided to Pierina a secret and promised to come again and tell her when the moment would come for revealing it.

Miraculous Healings During this Apparition

Parents brought to the church a boy of about five or six years who was suffering from polio and could not stand or walk. Other parents brought their daughter, about twenty-six years old, who suffered since she was twelve years old from severe tuberculosis. She had not been able to utter a single word for the last nine years.

In the same moment both were completely healed. The girl who had not been able to speak a word for the past nine years now sang a song of praise with a full voice. Since then she has been able to sing and speak without any difficulty.

The parents of the boy carried him in their arms into the church, now he could stand and walk. Later on he was shown in public from a balcony to the rejoicing crowd in the big square in front of the church. The whole crowd was deeply stirred when they saw the child jump up and down. He declared, "I have seen Our Lady in the church and she smiled at me benevolently." Since that time both have been in good health. The boy married some years ago and the girl has become a pious God-fearing nun who is living only to expiate for the religious orders and priests.

A Third Miracle

The third miracle happened during the time of the appearance of Our Lady, not in the church of Montichiari, but in a private home of the town. A woman of about thirty-six years was healed at home during the time of the apparition. From childhood on she was not normal but also not completely mentally disturbed. She could not speak, but the worst thing was that she had no control over her bodily functions. Her sister-in-law had to stay with her at home while her father went to the cathedral to the anticipated appearance of Our Lady. Her sister-in-law prayed the holy Rosary at the time of the appearance and exclaimed spontaneously, "Our dear Lady, if you are really present in the Church of Montichiari, please heal this poor sick girl!" In the same moment the sick person was healed completely. She was healed forever! Loud and full of joy she prayed with her sister-in-law the holy Rosary to the end. When the father came home from the church, he was astonished and full of joy upon seeing his daughter healed.

This miracle especially caused a sensation and was later declared to be the most important one by several physicians. As in this case, any mass suggestion had to be excluded. The healing was lasting. The girl died some years later, but one of her brothers is still alive and can witness to all this.

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 Chastity of the married lay catholics :

It is plain that if the eyes be fixed upon those of the other sex, we render ourselves hateful in the sight of God, whom alone it is our duty to please. He , from whom we should have received reward, will mete out to us chastisement instead. Wherefore, if divine love fails to release us from our sins, fear must restrain us. And if the joys of heaven do not attract us, then let the thought of unending torments deter us. So one begins to break away from evil when one fears to give displeasure to his Maker.

If anyone asks, how shall I attain to this fear of God? I answer: If you will fear God, call to mind that He sees all things. If an evil conscience seduces you , think that God looks down upon you. 

" The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom." ( Eccles.i. 16)

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 Chastity

The result of chastity is that our heavenly Spouse becomes enamoured of us through its beauty. No soul can please God, on the other hand, unless it be chaste and stainless, for whilst it is a slave to impurity and sensuality it is hateful and rejected of God. Chastity has a charm in the sight of both God and man. Hence the old enemy of our race envies us the possession of this virtue and never ceases his assaults against it. Many a one does this instigator of all uncleanness and impurity corrupt, for he spares none, even the cleric of the sanctuary or the monk in his solitude, and , sad to say, he sometimes gets the better of those who were well known for their religion and virtue. 

We see, then, how needful it is to use all vigilance to assist one another to preserve this virtue. Losing this , we lose all that we have, and ourselves as well: we lose God, we lose our souls, and all that we are.

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 ⭐ ⭐💗12 Promises of THE SACRED HEAD, given to Teresa Helena Higginson of  England, by Our Lord Jesus Christ, to be specially adored as The Seat of Divine Wisdom. (1880 - 1883) 💗⭐⭐

💥 Our Lord told her that "the sufferings of His body are but like a drop in the ocean compared with what His Soul endured".

Imprimatur: Edm. Can. Surmont, V.G.: England, September 2, 1926

🌷"Anyone who shall assist in furthering this Devotion shall be blessed a 1,000 fold; but woe to him that shall reject or go against My wish in this respect, for they shall be scattered in my wrath and shall know their place no more." (June 2, 1880)

🌷Our Lord "would crown and clothe with a peculiar glory all those who further this devotion" to the Sacred Head. "He would clothe with glory before angels and men in the courts of heaven those who clothed Him in glory on earth and would crown them in everlasting bliss." (Sept. 10, 1880)

🌷"We render a great homage to the ever Blessed Trinity by adoring our dear blessed Lord's Sacred Head as the 'Seat of divine wisdom'." (Annunciation 1881)

🌷Our Lord would bless "all who practice or further this devotion in any way." (July 16, 1881)

🌷"Untold blessings are promised to those who shall try to furher our Lord's wishes in spreading the Devotion." (Juni 2, 1880)

🌷"The more we practice devotion to the Sacred Head the more we must see of the working of the Holy Spirit of God in the human soul, and the better we will know and love the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost." (Juni 2, 1880)

🌷The "devotion and love to His Sacred Heart should be bestowed a hundred fold upon those who practice devotion to the Seat of divine Wisdom." (May, 1883)

🌷"Our blessed Lord said that all that He had promised to those who should worthily love and honor His Sacred Head should be poured out upon those who honoured it themselves or were the means of others doing so. Oh Sacred Head, may Thy Wisdom ever guide us, and the sacred tongue ever bless us and plead for mercy and pardon, and may we never hear the curse pronounced against those who shall hinder or despise this Devotion." (June 2, 1880)

🌷"To them that honor Me I will give of my might and I will be their God and they shall be My children and I will place my sign upon their foreheads and My seal upon their lips." (June 2, 1880)

🌷He gave me to understand that this wisdom and Light was the seal that marked the number of His elect and they shall see His Face and His Name shall be on their foreheads. (May 23, 1880)

🌷Our Lord gave her to understand that St. John referred to His Sacred Head of the Seat of Divine Wisdom "in the last two Chapters of Revelations and with this mark were sealed the numbers of His elect." (May 23, 1880)

🌷Our Lord shows her the great blessings and graces he has in store for all who shall further His divine Will to this end. (May 9, 1880)

Information given by Our Lord 1880 - 1883)

💕"I wish the first Friday after the feast of my Sacred Heart to be set apart as a festive day in honour of my Sacred Head as the Seat of Divine Wisdom, and that public adoration be offered to Me for all the outrages and sins which are continually being committed against Me." "It should be dedicated as a festive day in its honor, and special reparation and atonement be then offered to Him." (Juni 2, 1880)

💕"The Sacred Head was in a special manner the dwelling place of the Holy Ghost." Our Lord "wished the great mystery of the Incarnation to be made very clear (or taught very carefully) to the children." (Whitsuntide 1881)

💕Our Lord impressed upon her - His Soul is not known, His Soul is not loved, and tells me not, by actual words." (Juni 1883)

💕"Our Blessed Lord wishes His Sacred Head to receive special adoration." (Aug. 17, 1882)

💕"Those who shall try by words or means to hinder or reject it, shall be as glass that is cast down, or as an egg that is thrown to the wall, that is that they shall be shattered and become as naught, and shall be dried up and wither as grass on the housetop." (April 9, 1880)

💕"Even the devotion to the Sacred Heart is incomplete without this devotion to His Sacred Head. (Juni 2, 1880)

💕"He would wish now to be crowned and acknowledged as the Wisdom of the Father, the true King of Kings." (Juni 15, 1880)

💕"This morning at holy Mass when the Sacred Host was raised at the elevation, I saw as it were the whole court of heaven in prostrate adoration." (May 27, 1880)

💕Our dear Blessed Lord wishes His Sacred Head to be honored as the "Shrine of the powers of His holy Soul'. (Nov. 11, 1880)

💕"Around His Sacred Head shone a light of indescribable brilliancy and beauty: as it were a sun in which sparkled 12 magnificent crystal stones reflecting all the colours of the rainbow." (May 23, 1880)

💕"It will be the great devotion of the church in time to come." (July 16, 1881)

💕"The crucifix is the Book of books and to me the Tree of Life and contains never ending volumes." (June, 1880)

💕"It makes me tremble with terror at the dread punishments He has in store for all who shall hinder, or try to hinder the furtherance of this heavenly devotion, for their jaws He says shall be locked as were those of the lions in the den into which Daniel was cast, they shall be shattered and become as naught." (May 9, 1880)

💕The Sacred Head is the shrine of the powers of the Soul. "The Head is also the center of all the senses of the body, and that this devotion is the completion, not only of the devotion of the Sacred Heart, but the crowning and perfection of all devotions; and he showed me how the adorable Trinity at His baptism revealed to the world this special devotion for His Sacred Humanitiy is the tabernacle of the thrice Holy Trinity; and that St. John has specially spoken of this devotion for the Most High revealed to him that he should be thus worshipped before the end of the world." (April 9, 1880)

💐💐Litany of the Sacred Head💐💐

Lord have mercy on us,

Lord have mercy on us.

Christ have mercy on us,

Christ have mercy on us.

Lord have mercy on us,

Lord have mercy on us.

Christ hear us,

have mercy on us.

God the Father of heaven,

have mercy on us.

God the Son, Redeemer of the world,

have mercy on us.

God the Holy Spirit,

have mercy on us.

Holy Trinity, One God,

have mercy on us.

Sacred Head of Jesus Formed by the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Substantially united to the Word of God,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Temple of Divine Wisdom,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Hearth of eternal clarities,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Sanctuary of infinite intelligence,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Providence against error,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Sun of heaven and earth,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Treasure of science and pledge of faith,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Beaming with beauty, justice and love,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Full of grace and truth,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Living lesson of humility,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Reflection of God's infinite majesty,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Object of the delights of the heavenly Father,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who received the caresses of the Blessed Virgin Mary,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus On whom the Holy Spirit reposed,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who allowed a reflection of Thy Glory to shine on Tabor,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who had no place on earth to lay,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus To whom the perfumed ointment of Magdalen was pleasing,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who deigned to tell Simon

that he did not anoint Thy Head when Thou entered his house,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Bathed in a sweat of blood in Gethsemane,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who wept over our sins,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Crowned with thorns,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Disgracefully outraged during the passion,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Consoled by the loving gesture of Veronica,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Which thou inclined towards the earth at the moment Thou saved us

by the separation of Thy Soul from Thy Body on the cross,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Light of every man coming into this world,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Our Guide and our Hope,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who knows all our needs,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who dispenses all graces,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who directs the movements of the Divine Heart,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who governs the world,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who will judge all our actions,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who knows the secrets of our hearts,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus That we want to make known and adored by the whole world,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus Who ravishes the angels and the saints,

Guide us in all our ways.

Sacred Head of Jesus That we hope to contemplate one day, unveiled,

Guide us in all our ways.

We adore Thy Sacred Head, oh Jesus,

And we submit ourselves to all the decrees of Thine infinite Wisdom.

Let us pray.

Oh Jesus, Who deigned to reveal to Thy servant Teresa Higginson Thine immense desire to see Thy Sacred Head adored, grant us the joy to make it known and honoured; let fall on our souls a ray of Thy light, in order that we may advance from clarity to clarity, conducted by Thine adorable Wisdom

to the recompense promised to Thine elect.

Amen.

⭐🙏🙏Prayers of Teresa Helena Higginson🙏🙏⭐

"Oh Wisdom of the Sacred Head guide us in all our ways."

"May the wisdom of the Sacred Head guide us in all our ways and the love of the Sacred Heart consume us with its fire."

Blessed be the most holy and undivided Trinity now and forever. Amen."

3 Glory Be's in honor of the Divine Will, Memory, and Understanding.

"O Seat of Divine Wisdom and guiding Power, which governs all the motions and love of the Sacred Heart, may all minds know Thee and hearts love Thee and all tongues praise Thee now and for evermore."

✨ASPIRATIONS OF TERESA HIGGINSON TO THE SACRED HEAD OF OUR BLESSED LORD✨

O WILL, which was always in meek subjection to Thy Heavenly Father's, control me in all things, as thou didst govern all the affections and motions of the Sacred Heart of the God made Man.

O UNDERSTANDING, which knows all things, ever guide me with Thy Light.

O MEMORY, in which past, present and future are at once reflected, which is ever mindful of me and always seems studying some new means of giving fresh favours, force me to love Thee more and more.

SOUL OF JESUS, sorrowful unto death would that I could console Thee in Thy bitter anguish and grief.

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 Great love from God

St John urges effective love, when he says ," My children let us not love in word , nor in tongue , but in deed, and in truth." Our Lord urged the same in these words," Not everyone that saith to me, Lord , Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doth the will of my Father Who is in Heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of Heaven. " The further, therefore, we have departed from sin the more perfectly we fulfill the commandments of God; the more readily we follow also the Divine counsels and the holy inspirations of the Holy Spirit, the more genuine and the more perfect will our charity be. In this way we can judge the degree of our charity.

Charity is proved by good will. It is impossible not to wish or desire the greatest good for him whom we truly love. 

We must especially observe the teaching of our Lord," He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me."

Charity tends toward union. That is why the Apostle says that he has the desire to be dissolved and to be with Christ. Although this desire can be perfectly fulfilled only in the next life, still the soul wounded with love removes everything that may stand in the way of this union, renounces all things for God's sake , and suffers all in order to merit to arrive at such union.In the meanwhile , it unites itself , as often as permitted , to God Incarnate through the sacrament of the Most Holy Eucharist and by thought and desire dwells in its eternal home .Thus it more or less feels that it is not far from its Beloved , but that it lives in Him and by Him.

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 There is scarcely a religious to be found who would not be animated to endure hardships and difficulties in the way of the Lord , if he but directed his mind toward that heavenly glory which is prepared for him and if he attentively contemplated what great things our Lord Jesus christ has suffered for him, and most of all if he remembered the reward he will receive from God.

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 Meditation

meditation has three parts. Each part corresponds to one of the three faculties of the soul that enter into prayer. First the matter must be assembled and presented to the intellect as the object on which it is to occupy itself in thought. This pertains to the memory. Secondly , we consider , dwell upon and digest the matter. This pertains to the intecllect . Finally , we resolve by our will to carry out in practice the obligations we have learned. Thus, the memory suggests , the intecllect meditates and is enlightened , the will is filled with holy affections, good desires and resolutions concerning the practice of virtue.

1.  Preparation :

  Remote preparation : 

     1. Avoidance of sin and of voluntary imperfections.

     2. A great love for solitude and silence.

     3. Freedom of the heart from all earthly affections.

     4. Avoidance of anxiety and disturbances.

    Proximate preparation :

        1. Prayer for the proper understanding of the matter.

        2. Attentive assimilation of the matter into the soul

       3. Determination in a general way of the affections and resolutions.

2.Introduction

      Introduction:

          1. Vivid recollection of God's presence

          2. Act of contrition

          3. Prayer asking for help to meditate well

3. Meditation proper

         1. Memory 

             Memory presents the material to the intellect.

         2. The intellect dwells upon the event , virtue or truth and derives conclusions therefrom

              a. who , what , where?

              b. By what means? why? How ? When? 

              c. Especially however: What does this mean to me?

How have I observed it in the past?

What should i do about it in the future?

What obstacles are to be removed and what dangers avoided? What means are to be used?

         

        3. During the meditation the will tends toward particular affections: Sorrow , contrition, horror, humility, love, fervor, gratitude , fear , joy, compassion, admiration..etc.

And at the end towards more general affections:

1. Good resolutions 

2.thanksgiving

3.oblation

4. petition

4 . Conclution:

end of the meditation:

1. a thought or pious ejaculation.

2. final prayer, thanksgiving for graces received and a plea for forgiveness for faults committed.

3. Reflection: was it a good meditations or not ? Why?