aeternus

“The Lord said to St. Catherine: “The heart of man ought truly to be pierced and melted by considering, among the benefits bestowed by Me, the exceeding benefit of the holy and venerable Eucharist. But this is to be looked upon with the eye of the intellect and of faith, not only with the eye of the body: for the eye of faith discerns, under the insignificant species of bread, the true God and true Man. how great is the excellence and dignity of receiving in a state of grace this admirable and ineffable Sacrament! For It is the Bread of Life and the Food of Angels. He who fitly receives It, abideth in Me, and I in him. My incomprehensible charity provideth for you this salutary food, 247that in this life, in which you are wayfarers and pilgrims, you may hence derive solace and refreshment, and that the memory may remain with you of the Passion and Precious Blood of My only begotten Son.”

It is, therefore, laudable to abstain sometimes from the sacramental reception of the Eucharist through humility and holy fear or reverence; but it is much better to receive it frequently through charity, and desire for the glory of God and the common good, or out of special devotion. Assuredly, since this most excellent Sacrament is the fountain of all grace, and the medicine of the soul, no one ought lightly to absent himself from its reception, because, perchance, he does not feel spiritual sweetness and consolation, or because he is afflicted with grievous and importunate temptations. For he who communicates piously and humbly reaps great benefit, not only for himself, but also for others, living and dead. But he who, being impeded by hatred of his neighbour, or by any other grievous crime, fears not to receive the Holy Eucharist, incurs eternal damnation [1 Cor. xi. 29]. Such a one is inevitably lost, unless he be reconciled to God by penance.”

– Spiritual Works of Louis of Blois

** photo of John’s farm road in Krakow, MO

DEEP in the dark I hear the feet of God,
He walks the world ; He puts His holy hand
On every sleeper,- only puts his hand
Within it benedictions for each one;
Then passes on, but ah ! whene’er He meets
A watcher waiting for Him, He is glad.
(Does God, like man, feel lonely in the dark?)
He rests His hand upon the watcher s brow,
But more than that, He leaves His very breath
Upon the watchers soul, and more than this,
He stays for holy hours where watchers pray,
And more than that He oftimes lifts the veils
That hide the Visions of the world unseen.
The brightest sanctities of highest souls
Have blossomed into beauty in the dark.
How extremes meet! the very darkest crimes,
That blight the souls of men, are strangely born
Beneath the shadows of the holy night.

Deep in the dark I hear His holy feet,
Around Him rustle Archangelic wings;
He lingers by the Temple where His Christ
Is watching in His Eucharistic sleep ;
And where poor hearts in sorrow cannot rest
He lingers there to soothe their weariness.
Where mothers weep above the dying child
He stays to bless the mothers bitter tears,
And consecrates the cradle of her child,
Which is to her her spirit s awful cross.
He shudders past the haunts of sin, yet leaves
E’er there a mercy for the wayward hearts.
Still as a shadow through the night he moves
With hands all full of blessings, and with heart
All full of everlasting love; ah me!
How God does love this poor and sinful world!

The stars behold Him as he passes on
And arch His path of mercy with their rays.
The stars are grateful, He gave them their light,
And now they give Him back the light He gave.
The shadows tremble in adoring awe;
They feel His Presence and they know His Face.
The shadows, too, are grateful, could they pray,
How they would flower all His way with prayers !
The sleeping trees wake up from all their dreams,
Were their leaves lips, ah me ! how they would sing
A grand Magnificat as His Mary sang.
The lowly grasses and the fair-faced flowers
Watch their Creator as he passes on
And mourn they have no hearts to love their God,
And sigh they have no souls to be beloved.
Man, only man the image of his God
Lets God pass by when He walks forth at night.

– Fr. Abram J. Ryan  1879

** photo St. Gertrude cemetery - Krakow, Missouri

A prayer for the Year of the Priest as proclaimed by Pope Benedict XVI as he encourages “striving for spiritual perfection”.

Dear Lord,

we pray that the Blessed Mother
wrap her mantle around your priests
and through her intercession
strengthen them for their ministry.
We pray that Mary will guide your priests
to follow her own words,
“Do whatever He tells you” (Jn 2:5).
May your priests have the heart of St. Joseph,
Mary’s most chaste spouse.
May the Blessed Mother’s own pierced heart
inspire them to embrace
all who suffer at the foot of the cross.
May your priests be holy,
filled with the fire of your love
seeking nothing but your greater glory
and the salvation of souls.

Amen.

Saint John Vianney, pray for us.

** You can purchase Holy Cards through the Knights of Columbus.

** Icon by Iconographer Marek Czarnecki of Seraphic Restorations.

It is that special 9 days which comes every June.  It is the annual novena to the Sacred Heart of Jesus at the Pink Sisters.  It usually ends on the feast of the Sacred Heart but this year it started on that day.  It fills my heart to be there every night.  The Holy Spirit is absolutely tangible in that beautiful chapel!!

Here is a short prayer/quote for the day  to share.

“May the darkness of sin and the night of unbelief vanish before the light of the word and the spirit of grace.”

“And may the heart of Jesus live in the hearts of ALL! Amen.”

– Prayer Motto of St. Arnold Janssen

Saint Arnold Janssen had a profound devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus which is no doubt why the Pink Sister’s (whom he founded) have a most special Novena to the Sacred Heart each year at their Monastery at Mount Grace.  The service of these beautiful nuns is a mission to maintain an uninterrupted adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, praying day and night for the church and especially for the other two active missionary congregations.

I found the most wonderful book to help ready the soul for the feast of the Sacred Heart.  It is called the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus, Readings for the month of June.  I will include the reading for today below.  First though, is a clip from the introduction of the book and a prayer to the Sacred Heart from Saint Gertrude.

“THE month of June contains two feasts which appeal in a special manner to all devout souls. They are the feasts of Corpus Christi and the Sacred Heart. One is the complement of the other…the two feasts seem to breathe the same spirit.”

“The Sacred Heart and the Eucharist can never be disassociated. Devotion toward the one increases love for the other. These pious thoughts will help souls to know the Heart of Our Saviour better and, consequently, will foster love for the Sacred Humanity of Jesus Christ residing in the Most Blessed Sacrament.”  - J. CARDINAL GIBBONS, Archbishop of Baltimore.

THE PRAYER OF ST. GERTRUDE TO THE SACRED HEART.

Hail, O Sacred Heart of Jesus, living and quickening source of eternal life, infinite treasury of the Divinity, burning furnace of divine love! Thou art my refuge and my sanctuary. O my amiable Saviour, consume my heart with that burning fire with which Thine is ever inflamed! Pour down on my soul those graces that flow from Thy love, and let my heart be so united to Thine that our wills may be one, and mine in all things conformed to Thine. May Thine be the standard and rule of my desires and actions! Amen.

Meditation for June 19^th.

OBEDIENCE, THE GLORIOUS HOMAGE OF THE EUCHARISTIC HEART. ADORATION.

“THE Son of God, obedience personified: “lived only to love, to cultivate, and to satisfy the demands of obedience. During the thirty years of humble labor at Nazareth, He was subject to them. During the three years of His apostolate, His bread that which He loved above everything else and upon which He lived, was to accomplish the will of God who sent Him.  During His Passion, on the terrible eve of that most agonizing last day of His life, to which He gave Himself up to testify to the world with what love He would fulfill the Father’s commands, He clung to obedience:”That the world may know that I love the Father, and as the Father hath given Me commandment, so do I. Arise, let us go hence!”

Lastly, to perpetuate here below under the humiliating yoke of human masters and in conditions of dependence and abasement which surpass all that He endured during His mortal life, to perpetuate an obedience which in heaven is all glory and felicity, He delivered Himself to His Apostles and gave to every priest full power over His Body and Blood by binding Himself in the fetters of the sacramental state. Every day of the world, even to the very last, shall we see this almighty God, this King of the nations, crowned with glory, “obeying the voice of a man,” laboring and suffering for the good of a redeemed people.

Is obedience, then, so great, so noble, so beautiful as to have power to allure, to conquer, to captivate the Son of God to such a degree? Ah! it is to God the most glorious homage that He can receive from His creatures. It is the homage of their intelligent will, the spiritual sacrifice of their immortal soul, the free gift of their meritorious life, offered by love to His good pleasure: It is for man true sanctity and consummate perfection:  “Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is all man”.  Beholding Jesus Christ rendering obedience to all priests whether good or bad says Blessed Margaret Mary,” and placing Himself in their hands to die mystically, concealing Himself in the Host that, with out showing any resistance, He may be immolated and sacrificed according to their designs, I am prompt at the call of obedience. Like a host of immolation, I place myself in the hands of my superiors for whatever they may command that, dying to my own will, to my passions, inclinations, and aversions, they may dispose of me as they please without my allowing the repugnance I may feel to appear. “And the violence I shall have to do myself will be to honor that which Jesus does Himself on entering souls sullied by sin. He has such horror for these souls that every time He enters them, He there renews the mortal agony of the Garden of Olives.

THANKSGIVING.

At the moment in which He offered Himself freely to suffer for the crimes of all and to assume their burden, He recalled the Father s promise: “If He shall lay down His life for sin, He shall see a long-lived seed  Of His sufferings and His obedience, mingled with His Blood, He formed remedies to cure us of the evil of independence and all the disorders it brings with it.

By His bruises we are healed.”In His obedience, He multiplied the most perfect acts, examples the most sublime of all the virtues, in order to induce us to imitate them and to teach us obedience sanctified and perfect: Christ also suffered for us, leaving you an example that you should follow in His steps.  Lastly, in this rude school of obedience, and tried by all kinds of sorrows, He formed for Himself a Heart of infinite compassion to bear with all our difficulties, struggles, and even falls, in the fulfillment of the perpetual and universal duty of obedience, which is the very foundation of man s life here below: “He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. And now, become by His sacramental state obedience consummated, mercifully continuing before our eyes the lessons of the humblest, the meekest, the most heroic, and the most persevering obedience, He gives Himself as the food, the strength, the consolation, and the pledge of infinite reward to all who, in order to reign with Him, bind themselves to Him till death in the bonds of Christian charity: “And being consummated, He became to all that obey Him, the cause of eternal salvation”.

Once when Blessed Margaret Mary had some difficulty in submitting to obedience, the Divine Master let her see His sacred Body covered with the wounds that He had received for her love. He reproached her with ingratitude and with tepidity in over coming herself for love of Him. “What dost Thou will me to do, O My God,”she asked, “since my will is stronger than I?” Jesus told her that, if she would place it in the wound of His Sacred Side, she would have no trouble in surmounting self. “O my Saviour,”she exclaimed, “do Thou place it therein so deeply and shut it up so securely that it can never come out!”  She tells us that from that moment everything appeared to her so easy that she never again had any difficulty in overcoming herself.

REPARATION

Man, alas! disdains to receive from the Most High the light to guide him in his way. He pretends to have, like God Him self, the knowledge of good and evil ; there fore choosing death by despising the divine commandment, he is condemned to darkness and torture for time and eternity. It is just that, refusing to obey God willingly, he should be chained in spite of himself under the murderous yoke of the leader of all revolts. It is just that, not having wished to accomplish the noble commands of the Lord and of His Church, he should be obliged to submit to the cruel and ignominious caprices of the demons and to the reprobate. The confession they are then obliged to make, can do them no good: “For we have not obeyed Thy commandments, therefore are we delivered to spoil and to captivity and to death, and are made a fable and a reproach to all nations! It is true that every disobedience is not opposed to the absolute will of the Creator, and does not carry with it a total revolt of the human will. A great number of these acts of disobedience regard things not imposed upon us as necessary. Respecting the substance of the precepts, some souls violate only the accidental circumstances; others only half comprehend or half will. These are slight disobediences, partial or venial. God punishes them with temporal pains during life or after, in order to pardon them in the end. But whatever they be, they displease His Heart. If He at once casts the gravely disobedient into the abyss of death, He declares His Heart turned away from those tepid souls that disobey in all things. He threatens to “vomit them out of His mouth”.  Let us seriously examine ourselves upon this capital point of the Christian life. Let us remember that the most deeply rooted inclination of fallen nature, the most impetuous, the most difficult to destroy or even to repress, is the passion of independence, of resistance to authority, and tendency to disobedience. Let us listen to the severe admonitions on this subject given by the Sacred Heart to the most intimate confidante of Its thoughts, Blessed Margaret Mary: “My Divine Master having ordered me to rise every night between Thursday and Friday, in order to recite five Pater and Ave prostrate on the ground, I replied to Him: My Lord, Thou knowest that I am not my own, and that I shall do what my superioress orders me. I do not intend it otherwise,” replied my Lord; “for, all powerful as I am, I desire nothing from thee but in dependence on thy superioress.  Hearken to these words from the mouth of Truth: All religious disunited and separated from their superiors, must be looked upon as vessels of reprobation, in whom ah good liquors are changed into corruption, and upon whom the Divine Sun of Justice darting His rays, produces the same effect as the sun shining upon mire. Such souls are so utterly rejected by My Heart that, the more they try to approach Me by the Sacraments, prayer, and other exercises, the more I withdraw from them in horror. They will fall from one hell to another, for it is this disunion that has lost so many, and that will lose so many more. Since every superior holds My place, be he good or bad, the inferior who injures him wounds his own soul in the same measure. It is vain for him after so doing to weep at the door of My mercy.  He shall not be heard”

PETITION.

Lastly, humility, that perfect form of the religious fear of God, will bow our neck under the yoke of obedience, will bend our will to that of superiors, so that we shall even prefer the non-success of obedience to the success of revolt. Like the proud, alas! have in our excitement and eagerness, preferred the present and deceitful satisfactions of disobedience. Lacking humility, we have not sought the conscientious and lasting observance of the divine commandments: “Fear God and keep His commandments.” Therefore it is that, wishing to propose the yoke of His law, sweet but inevitable, the Divine Master manifested His meek and humble Heart to all men crushed under the weight of inexorable obligations, that they may seek in It, as in an inexhaustible source, humility, meekness, and sweetness, without which it is impossible for obedience to be sincere or lasting: “Learn that I am meek and humble of Heart: “take up My yoke upon you, for My yoke is sweet and My burden light.” After having earnestly implored grace of the most obedient Heart of Jesus, which we adore in the consummation of obedience in the Blessed Sacrament, let us take the resolution to obey, each in his own state, every law to which we are subject, every superior who has authority over us. Let us obey all the general obligations of the Christian who has authority over us. Let us obey all the general obligations of the Christian contained in the Gospel, in the commandments of God and of the Church, in the liturgical laws. Let us render obedience to all the Decrees, all the directions of the Sovereign Pontiff, the universal Pastor, and to the lawful ordinances of diocesan Bishops. Let us, each in what concerns him, obey the laws that regulate particular states; for instance, the laws of marriage, of trade, of public functions, of the priesthood, and of the religious state. Let us render obedience to those that have a right to exact it; wives to their husbands, children to parents, servants to masters, employees and workmen to employers, subjects to the legitimate laws and to magistrates, parishioners to their pastors, penitents to confessors, religious to superiors, vicars to rectors, priests to their Bishop. It is at this price that notable victories of the spirit over the flesh are gained, of humility over pride, and the public ascendency of Christians over the enemies of their Faith: “The obedient man shall speak of victories “Lord, give to Thy servant a docile heart”. Ask Our Eucharistic Lord to increase your spirit of recollection. Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament, pray for us. (300 days Indulgence, when said before the Blessed Sacrament)

– Father Albert Tesnière, 1847-1909

*** photo from the Shrine of Good Saint Anne, Hecktown, PA.

Now the holy Maiden calls me,
Bids me sing her wondrous story.
Son Divine, be thou my helper,
With thy gifts my harp enriching,
So that I may sing thy Mother,
Paint her picture full of beauty.
See, the Maiden womb conceiveth;
See, the Maiden breast is fruitful;
Wonder far surpassing nature
Mother’s milk and Maiden brightness,
All at once, in one pure body.
Wonders that no tongue can utter
See, her Son the Virgin beareth.
Lo, she gives her milk to feed him,
Food to him who feedeth all things.
See, her tender knees support him
Him whose power upholdeth all things.
Still a Maid and still a Mother,
What is there, we may not call her?
Fair in soul, in body holy;
Pure her mind and clear her judgment;
And her thoughts exceeding perfect.
She is chaste and she is prudent;
Fair in form and full of beauty.
Maidens all, rejoice in Mary,
Glad that she, a Maid, conceiveth,
Bearing him who beareth all things;
And in him the race of Adam
From its bondage is delivered.
Let him too rejoice in Mary
Adam, whom the serpent wounded.
Lo, she brings a Fruit, and feeds him,
And he tramples on the serpent ;
For that Fruit gives strength, and heals him
From the serpent’s deadly wounding.
Priests, rejoice in her, the blest One,
Bearing our great Priest and Victim,
Freeing you from sacrifices.
He himself becomes our Victim,
Reconciles us to his Father.
Prophets all, rejoice in Mary;
For in her your songs are ended,
All your prophecies are perfect,
All your words are proved and strengthened.
Patriarchs all, rejoice in Mary;
See, she takes your promised blessing;
In her Son, she makes you perfect
Priests and saints and seers he hallows.
For the bitter fruit our mother
Plucked from off the tree of knowledge,
See, the sweet Fruit Mary gives us,
Wherewith all the world is sweetened.
Now the Tree of Life, once hidden
In the midst of Eden’s garden,
Grows in Mary, springeth from her,
Far and wide its sweet fruits sending;
And the whole creation resteth
In the shadow of its branches.
Mary weaves the robe of glory,
Gives it to her father Adam,
Who mid Eden’s trees was naked,
Clothing him with peace and beauty.
Whom the wife o’erthrew the Daughter
Lifteth, and his heart is gladdened.
Eve and Satan leagued together
Dug the pit for Adam’s ruin.
Mary with the angel speaketh,
And from out the deep, they lift him,
By the mystery hid for ages,
Come to light for Adam’s healing.
Now the Virgin-Vine hath borne us
Grapes, that make the Wine of sweetness,
Where our parents, Eve and Adam,
Find true comfort in their sorrow,
Taste the drink of life and healing,
And their woes are lost in gladness.

– St. Ephrem, the Syrian, Hymn to our Lady. 4thc.

What a most blessed, blessed day!  I hope everyone had the opportunity to honor our Eucharistic Lord today in a special way.  I would like to share some photos from our day in St. Louis and also this wonderful quote on Corpus Christi by Cardinal Newman.  I hope they will inspire you hearts.

“There is no feast, no season in the whole year which is so intimately connected with our religious life, or shows more wonderfully what Christianity is, as that which we are now celebrating. There is a point of view in which this doctrine [of the Body and Blood of Christ] is nearer to our religious life than any other. And now I will explain what I mean.

How almighty love and wisdom has met this. He has met this by living among us with a continual presence. He is not past, He is present now. And though He is not seen, He is here. The same God who walked the water, who did miracles, etc., is in the Tabernacle. We come before Him, we speak to Him just as He was spoken to 1800 years ago, etc.

Nay, further, He [does] not [merely] present Himself before us as the object of worship, but God actually gives Himself to us to be received into our breasts. Wonderful communion. Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

This [is] how He counteracts time and the world. It [the Blessed Sacrament] is not past, it is not away. It is this that makes devotion in lives. It is the life of our religion. We are brought into the unseen world.”

– Sermon notes of John Henry cardinal Newman, 1849-1878

** photos above Procession with the Blessed Sacrament at the Oratory of Ss. Gregory and Augustine on the campus of the Benedictine Abbey.   Procession of the Blessed Sacrament exits the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis.  Archbishop Robert Carlson holds the monstrance under the canopy.  An altar boy swings his censor of incense.  Procession to the first outside altar.  Leaving the Cathedral at the start of the Procession.  I will share some more later this week…

It was said that our Saint of the day, Anthony of Padua taught how “love penetrates where exterior knowledge cannot reach”.  What a simple and profound statement.  It seems an easy task to accomplish and maintain in our lives and, yet it is one that is so very difficult to train ourselves to do!

Today I will ask dear Anthony not to help me find my lost car keys, but will ask him to help me find all the love I am missing to share…

Here is a quotation from the Office of Readings…

“We should speak, then, as the Holy Spirit gives us the gift of speech. Our humble and sincere request to the Spirit for ourselves should be that we may bring the day of Pentecost to fulfillment, insofar as he infuses us with his grace, by using our bodily senses in a perfect manner and by keeping the commandments. Likewise we shall request that we may be filled with a keen sense of sorrow and with fiery tongues for confessing the faith, so that our deserved reward may be to stand in the blazing splendour of the saints and to look upon the triune God.”

– St. Anthony of Padua

Well, I’ve just crawled my way back home after a most glorious (grueling) day of photographic wonderment at the Installation mass of the new Archbishop of St. Louis, the Most Reverend Robert Carlson.  It is good timing for all the events to be drawing to a close as the sky is about to shower us down with water from above and St. Louis is under a tornado watch till after midnight!  Yipes!

I really wanted to upload some of my photos today but they are actually for now on the hard drive at the paper.  I’ll have to wait to do my own editing until tomorrow but for now you can go and see what we did today at the St. Louis Review online.  I was on the upper level for the mass so any that look like a “birds eye view” would be from my camera.  There was another photographer for the paper there too and he did a great job with the ground level.  It was a privilege to work with him and quite a few others today who are just TOPS at their jobs.  There was live updating on the website of the photos as they were taken so the online community could be as up to date as possible.  (You can see that Blogger Rocco Palmo at Whispers in the Loggia used our photos and had his stories posted sooner than anyone else.)  And, if you can believe this, when Mass ended there were actually paperboys waiting outside the front of the Cathedral to hand out copies of the Newspaper with photographs shot during the mass!  Now that is co-ordinated and practiced effort!  Super job!

I think I had most fun photographing afterwards with our former Bishops and Archbishops and also photographing with the Carmelite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus and the Missionaries of Charity.  As I said last night, their smiles are just so gigantic that it is like heaven smiling down on the world!

Most of all I am thankful for this day as it has really gotten me back to my “Photowoman” days of old (like when I was 20 years younger and could carry a 40lb camera bag on my shoulder up and down an 8 story buildings without blinking or breaking a sweat!)  I am thankful for the trust given to me that I have begun to work in this capacity again.  To merge the passion of my faith with the passion I have for photography is a tremendous gift.

Praise be Jesus Christ, Now and FOREVER!

Oh, but I can not leave this post without offering some spiritual fruits for meditation…

A new friend sent me a wonderful meditation that I took with me for confidence this day (that I would not miss any important shots).  I am sure he would not mind me sharing it with you all…

“If we make God our first concern, God will look after our affairs much better than we ever can. Let us acknowledge humbly that our natural tendency is to be too attached to our activities, to allow ourselves to be carried away by them till they fill our minds completely. This won’t change until we acquire the wise habit of abandoning all activities, even the most urgent and important ones, in order to give freely to God.”
Jacques Philippe - Time for God

Walking into the doors of the Cathedral here in St. Louis is always a moment of wonder.  As many times as I have gone through them, I still get a little shock somewhere deep inside at the beauty which envelops me.  It really is a most spectacular place and certainly there is much beauty in this place of worship which helps to lift a soul’s heart and mind to Heaven.  Praise God for those who Holy Souls who lay the first cornerstone and for all those talented artisans and builders who labored for the benefit of all humanity!

I (among MANY others) was here tonight to recite Evening Prayer with our Archbishop Elect, Bishop Robert Carlson.  The Cathedral was a buzz and there were so many wonderful little things to see.  I was happy to spot the Carmelites of St. Louis (there are two Carmelite Nuns in St. Louis - the cloistered Discalced and the active group) and their smiles were as large as they ever are.  I guess really they just must wear permanent smiles.  There were also tons of other folks from the Benedictine Monks to the Dominicans and Fransicans galore to the Ladies and Knights of Malta, the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem , Knights of Columbus. There were many more religious groups who I didn’t even recognize — God bless them!

Taking a kneeler it was a little difficult not to be distracted in meditation because the Cathedral was so full of happy folks that I guess they could not contain their excitement. The usual quiet environment was replaced by a cacophony of happy chatter.  Nevertheless, I am sure there were many faithful who were able to tune out the background noise.  It is quite easy to do because if one just looks upon that most spectacularly white marble crucifix upon the altar they can not help but become silenced!  That lowest moment of humanity’s existence when our Lord hung in His great agony.  Surrounded only by the few who stayed at His feet, they were helpless to offer Him any comfort but their own agony. Gosh!

O.K.  I guess it is apparent just how much my heart loves that particular crucifix..

Let me finish giving a quick play by play and then I must get off to bed…

The procession into the Cathedral while not as long and large as it will be tomorrow, was still resplendent with beauty.  I was happy to see my favorite altar boy amongst the processors and all those lovely young seminarians who honor our Archdiocese with their vigor and excitement.  There were also many other Bishops in attendance, many of whom have come from St. Louis including Kansas City’s Bishop Finn and Kansas City Kansas’ Archbishop Nauman.  Also we were happy to be able to see Justin Cardinal Rigali who is now in Philadelphia and Archbishop Raymond Burke in from his home in Rome.  I am certainly leaving names out, please excuse, there will be more in attendance tomorrow…

The choir (another most overwhelmingly wonderful addition to the beauty of any mass or prayer in this holy space) then chanted/sung Vespers and Bishop Carlson gave a homily.  I liked that he talked about our duty as Catholics in contemporary society.  I’ll end this posting with his words of inspiration.  He said:

“The Gospel calls us to preach a heavenly wisdom that is pure and peaceful and reasonable. Our message is one that rejoices in the truth and offers hope and leads the way to Christ.

At the same time I am keenly aware that we are not only preaching to the choir.   The Church must also be willing to engage the culture and this gives us the trouble when our teaching conflicts with the wisdom of the day.  But it is also our duty to be a moral voice in the community. Think about the values of contemporary culture and compare them with the values of the Gospel.

Perhaps there was a time when the culture supported the values of the culture, or at least appeared to do so.  But we now live in a culture that is not particularly friendly and is sometimes actively hostile to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Gospel it invites us to choose life.  But the the culture tells us that death is an equally legitimate choice.

The Gospel tells us that Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life and the culture tells us that there are are many other equally valid ways and truths and lifestyles.

Jesus Himself tells us that the path to heaven is narrow while  the path to hell is broad in Mathew chapter 7.  And the culture tells us that the path to heaven is broad while the path to hell is narrow.

Now not everything in our culture is hostile to the values of the Gospel but at the same time the list of contradictions could be multiplied.

So let us go to the bottom line.

If we can point to a number of issues on which the values we live by differ from the values of our culture than we have to wonder about the depth of our commitment to the teachings of Jesus Christ.

“I believe that our witness to the faith in word and deed can win the day.  And this is why I pray so often, May the Holy Spirit get the last word…”

The homily continued to be wonderful…  but that it is late and time to finish writing! I believe the church in St. Louis to be blessed yet again…  Goodnight!

It was wonderful to read the words of Saint Ephrem this morning.  He prayerfully inspires us to unite ourselves to God through a sacramental life and says “May your resurrection, Jesus, bring the true greatness to our spiritual self and may your sacraments be the mirror wherein we may know that self.” The sacraments are such a treasure for us and gosh I wish that everyone could come to know and love and appreciate them.  They are absolutely PRICELESS!  I’ll share one more little prayerful nugget from Ephrem.  He is using a kind of “light” motif which Athanasius used the other day and which as a photographer I appreciate so well…

“Lord, shed upon our darkened souls the brilliant light o your wisdom so that we may be enlightened and serve you with renewed purity.  Sunrise marks the hour for men to begin their toil, but in our souls, Lord, prepare a dwelling for the day that will never end.  Grant that we may come to know the risen life and that nothing may distract us from the delights you offer.  Through our unremitting zeal for your, Lord, set upon us the sign of your day that is not measured by the sun.”

Wow!

It is an exciting week here in St. Louis as we are readying ourselves for the installation mass of our new Archbishop tomorrow.   I’m VERY excited and so will even admit that I will be on assignment tomorrow for the event.  I will share a couple of photos when I can but you will be able to see them all live at the St. Louis Review Newspaper On-line. They are going to be posting images as they happen so if you are not watching EWTN on your television or the Archdiocese Live online feed you can instead visit the Review for some wonderful photography (May it be His Holy Will!)  There is a Mass Program in PDF here. And also, there will be a Twitter feed but since I’m not up for this technology (in fact there is something I really don’t like about it… who knows why.)

My little friend took a trip to see her husband’s mother a little while back.  It was a big deal and I really wanted to sneak into their suitcase because the Mother lives in Avila!  (Yes, as in Avila, Spain where the city still is circled like a medieval fortress with stone walls and towers where my favorite spiritual friend once lived, St. Teresa!)

Well, I didn’t get to tag along (this time) but was happy to see a gift she brought back from the Carmel of St. Joseph there and gave to our Carmelites of St. Joseph here.  What a treasure…

Here are two prayerful writings for dear St. Teresa.

Regis Superni Nuntia

GOD’S messenger, Theresa,

Thou leav’st Thy father’s home

To bring mankind to Jesus,

Or gain sweet Martyrdom.

But milder death awaits thee,

And fonder pains are thine,

God’s blessed angel wounds thee

With fire of love divine.

Sweet virgin, love’s pure victim,

So fire our souls with love,

And lead thy trusting people

Safe to the realms above

Give glory to the Father,

The Spirit and the Son,

One Trinity, one Godhead,

While endless ages run.

Hymn for Vespers and Matins on 15 October, feast of Saint Theresa. It was written by Pope Urban VIII

******

Haec est Dies

BEHOLD the blessed morning,
When, like a snow-white dove,
Thy soul arose, Theresa,
To join the choirs above.

Happy feast of the Blessed Trinity (and if it were not Sunday, Carmelite feast of Bl. Anne of St. Bartholomew).  If you do not know this lovely Carmelite you can have a little listen to some meditations from her which come from a book by a “Carmelite Nun from the Carmel of St. Joseph” here in St. Louis.

I was so excited today praying the Office of Readings this morning with that wonderful passage from a letter of St. Athanasius.  He was writing to explain about the mystery of the Holy Trinity and explained it through the metaphor of light.  I was sure my daughter (who many times comes to me with a squirreled look upon her face and blurts out — that Holy Trinity is a big darn mystery MaMa!)  would appreciate hearing Athanasius’ explanation and so I will share it with you too.  It seems a great way to explain the Trinity to children (and adults!)

This is a nugget of what Saint Athanasius writes:

“For where the light is, there also is the radiance; and where the radiance is, there too are its power and itsresplendent grace.”

AWESOME!

Now, you must first imagine in your mind a source of a light (which would be God the Father).  He is the source and power which begets the source of  light.  Then there is the actual “flame of the light” (which would be the Son).  The Son (sun?) is the rays of light which come forth from the source of the light.  As humans, we can physically see this light and how it falls upon its subject matter.  The specularity of highlights interplays with contours of space and and the emptiness of  shadow which becomes apparent from the lack of such wonderful light.   This light defines and gives shape and form to everything it touches.  It blankets all in a warm and soft (and sometimes harsh) glow.  This light penetrates all of the physical world and we as physical beings can see this light with our eyes.  But there is yet another way to experience this light-  with our other senses.  There exists the invisible heat and presence which is felt by the flame or rays of light.  This is the power of the invisible Holy Spirit.  We can not “see the heat” but we can sure feel its effects!  The warmth of a fire, the happiness of the sun felt on our face.  WoW!  How spectacular!  Shout it out people!  Didn’t I say it was AWESOME!

Here is something else quite awesome in a different way…

I think I know who might be to blame/thank for this (your name begins with a T, mom)  But I have just been alerted that the Aeternus Blog was nominated for the best spiritual blog at the Catholic New Media Awards.  Gosh, that is amazing.  I can’t hardly believe that.  I hope it is not a giant slip into pride if I mention the award nomination!!!

I started this blog so long ago as a way to share with others what fruitful gifts I was finding in my daily study of our faith and prayer.  I rather thought it to be a hidden little adventure but it has certainly changed over the years.  I really enjoy being able not only to share the words of spiritual masters but to write a bit about my Catholic Mom life. Also now illustrating the blog with just my own photographs has been a hidden grace.  It is fun to share them and also has gotten me back into taking my camera everywhere with me again!  I forgot how much fun I used to have making pictures in my former photojournalist life!  Now it seems the old life and the new life are merging back together in some kind of crazy middle years adventure.  It is allowing me to make some great photos like the hands in the photo above — (guess which holy hands they are).  Anyway, all I can say is: Praise God for His wonderful humor in my life!!!! He is waking me up again to another phase of this soul’s existence…

So, meekly and sheepishly I will put a button below here which will take you over to the Catholic New Media Awards page…There are lots of great blogs featured over there including many from the aeternus blogroll so support your favorite bloggers.  Oh, and don’t forget to tick off a vote for the “Meditations from Carmel” podcast.

Have we gotten Confirmation on that? Yes, we have Confirmation on that!

It all started this year with a new schools and new schedules for the family.  I could not make my morning “mom bus” run to drop off my Junior High School son and have enough time to turn around and get back for mass at the Carmelite Monastery.  At first I thought this to be the most terrible thing on earth but was quickly shown the error of my thoughtless ways as I was alerted to a Traditional mass prayed each morning on the school/parish/Abbey grounds.  (I have written about this a bit before so bear with me if you already know these details!)

As the story goes, I learned to very much appreciate the mass prayed in its Traditional way (Extraordinary way) and found my soul to be so appreciative of the silence and solemnity of the mass.  When our Junior School boy started having trouble in Latin class I prescribed a treatment of a Latin Mass Novena which he was more than eager to perform.  By the end of the Novena he was asked to learn to serve the mass and a couple of weeks later made his debut.  So, why am I re-telling this story?  Well, just to explain how it is that at the end of the school year our young server was asked to join the first class of Confirmed souls at the Oratory of Sts. Gregory and Augustine.  How awesome!

Some 23 young souls knelt before the Bishop last evening and the Holy Spirit imparted an indelible seal on their little souls.  While the Oratory is a small lower level room at the moment (they are eager to build their own church) it was joyful for it to be filled with the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit which poured down from Heaven into it.  Wisdom,Understanding, Counsel, Fortitude, Knowledge, Piety, and Fear of the Lord filled the small room as did the sounds of many young families and the music of lots of babies.  With so many parishoners (and the numbers growing so quickly) the small room will not hold for much longer!

The sacramental ceremony begins with the Bishop being led to the altar as he is seated on his chair.  The Deacons and Subdecons then change the Bishop into his special vestments.  He then sits and addresses the young aspirants.

Our Bishop is such a wonderful man — his humor and love flowing from a deep care for souls.  What a blessing he is!   The Bishop  jested with the children and also instructed them how the sacrament would fill their souls with a new appreciation for the love of Christ and knowing His forgiveness, mercy and love in a new and powerful way.

After talking to the children the Bishop was ready to Confirm the children so each on in turn took his kneeling position at the Bishop’s feet.  He diped his thumb into the Holy Chrism oil and traced the Sign of the Cross onto the forehead of the candidate.  He prays:

“Signo te signo Cru cis et confírmo te Chrísmate salútis. In nómine Pa tris, et Fí lii, et Spíritus Sancti.”

(I seal thee with the sign of the Cross and I confirm thee with the Chrism of salvation. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.) The confirmed responds:”Amen.” The bishop lightly taps the confirmed upon the cheek, saying: “Pax tecum” (Peace be with thee).

It was a beautiful ceremony and I was happy to see my son kneeling on the small altar.  He was flanked by his sponsor, a Benedictine Brother of the community who taught him theology (and much more) this year.  (Our son thinks this world of this young Monk and so do his parents!)  Auspiciously he chose Benedict as his name of Confirmation in the Holy Spirit and so perhaps I will refer to him under this new name on the blog from now on…

The night was beautiful and he was such a happy lad, his eyes all lit up with happiness and joy.  Many little things came together on this night to make it quite memorable and I can only praise the Holy Spirit for His marvelous actions and amazing ways.  He was a literal chatterbox of stories as we drove home late last night.  His excitement not letting him fall asleep well into this new day.  God bless this sweet boy.

Now, in case you are in St. Louis and may like to visit, here is more about the Oratory…

The Oratory of Sts. Gregory and Augustine began its young life only 18 months ago when it was established by His Grace Archbishop Burke. It is a non-territorial parish of the Archdiocese of St. Louis that celebrates all the Church’s Sacraments in their extraordinary form for the pastoral good of the faithful according to the 1962 Missale Romanum. Archbishop Burke entrusted it to the the pastoral care of the Benedictine Monks of St. Louis Abbey and Father Bede Price, OSB was appointed Rector of the Oratory.  You can learn more by visiting their website here.

Reporting from the little town of Bethlehem (Pennsylvania that is…)

The family is on the move and has traveled Eastward in our Bi-annual pilgrimage to the “larger family” which exists in a constant state of activity in the Philadelphia-”ish” area.  Our little lives in St. Louis, Missouri are blessed and full of soulful companionship but it is hard to live away from brothers and sisters and Nannas, Grandmas and Pappys.  The good news is though, when you come for a visit, it is a cherished time and everyone is on their best behavior and ready for fun and excitement!

Our traveling this year co-insides with my husbands youngest nephew’s wedding.  While I would have loved to see them united in holy matrimony in a beautiful mass ceremony it was instead a wedding on the beach in Delaware.  I know it is a special place for them and that both are naturalists and quite “green” (in fact the bride is a Ranger in the National Park system) but certainly as they love and appreciate the beauty of “Creation” I know that by default they must indeed also love the “Creator of the creation”.  They are Christians and have a great love for our Lord.  My prayer, however,  is that that little by little they will come to know and love God through His almighty works and He will shower down His graces on them from above.  Perhaps then they will desire a Sacramental life with Him.  Certainly the couple are both sincere in their love.  This was witnessed by all on the beach as the couple were so sweet in saying their wedding vows that they were hardly able to say them as tears streamed down their faces!  It was also wonderful later at the wedding reception when the groom took up his troubadour guitar and sang a song he composed for his bride.  The best line was “I can’t wait to have lots and lots of babies and they will all be like you”.  Now dear reader, I must admit that I hope if my children get married one day it will be a prayerful and sacramental event.  Having said that, I also admit that it is also a blessing to witness the true good, happiness and joy of love when ever and where ever it may be found.  I pray that their love will continue to grow and come to reflect the Blessed Trinity in their new lives as man and wife (and hopefully as they are excited for, lots and lots of babies).

On the way back from the wedding we decided to take a short cut and use the Cape May Ferry.  That was a great experience too.  I made my way back to the stern and pulled my iPhone out of my pocket to launch up iBreviary for Vespers.  (In case you don’t know about iBreviary it is a most wonderful tool for your iPhone.  It is a program developed by an Italian Priest which loads up the Daily Office including Lauds, Daytime, Vespers and Compline at the users request.  It is so great because now I don’t worry if I do not have my own “hard copy” Breviary if I am out of my daily routine.  I am pretty well certain to have my phone with me.)

Anyway, as I stood on the third deck a stern and looked out onto the churned up waters which were left in the big vessels wake I could not help but remember the final scene of one of my most favorite teenage years movies - Yentle.  I used to LOVE that film!  I guess even then I had a fascination with my religious heritage and on top of writing High School term papers on the Talmud I also fell in love with that film and all its beautiful cinematic beauty.  So I really had to laugh when I was able to recall and sing the entire final song of the movie as I stood on the deck!  I am no Barbara Streisand for sure and so my outburst allowed the children another opportunity to be embarrassed by their mother (even though no other person was in the stern with us) and so they exited my location to explore and I was left to pray vespers as the sun set on the Delaware Bay.  You can see a glimpse of my vision in the photo above as when I was through praying they appeared in perfect composition for an iPhone photo (darn it that I didn’t have my Nikon with me at the time!)

My husband sidled up to me a few minutes later and I thought maybe he was also inspired by the beauty of the evening sunset.  I hoped he  thought his wife looked like she might want a loving arm around her as he remembered his own wedding day so MANY years ago.  However, he just wanted my iPhone.  Not to pray Vespers mind you, but just to have a look at Google maps to see if it would track our location in the middle of the Bay.  It did.  He was happy.  And that is the story of our day.  Oh, except our dog “texted” us from her location at our friend’s house in St. Louis to say she missed us.  Well, perhaps it was our dogs minder and not her own paws which did the actual texting.

O.K.  This is a crazy techno world!

History:

This Traditional Pentecost Novena to the Holy Ghost comes from a 1912 version from the Holy Ghost Fathers.  These Fathers are also known by the title of the Spiritians, a community founded in Paris by Claude Francis Poullart des Places, an affluent businessman and lawyer.  Poullart’s life changed direction when he developed relationships with and began assisting the homeless and poor chimney sweeps of Paris.  In 1703 the Spiritians were born for the purpose of preparing missionaries for the most abandoned souls. In 1848 the Spiritians merged with the Congregation of the Holy Ghost Fathers and the Congregation of the Holy Heart of Mary and together, with the aid of St. Katherine Drexel’s Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament founded Duquesne University.

The novena in honor of the Holy Ghost is the oldest of all novenas since it was first made at the direction of Our Lord Himself when He sent His apostles back to Jerusalem to await the coming of the Holy Ghost on the first Pentecost. It is still the only novena officially prescribed by the Church. Addressed to the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity, it is a powerful plea for the light and strength and love so sorely needed by every Christian.

MANNER OF PRAYING THE NOVENA

Each day the meditation and prayer for the particular day is said, followed by one (1) Our Father, one (1) Hail Mary and seven (7) Glory be to the Fathers, the Act of Consecration and the Prayer for the Seven Gifts.

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE HOLY GHOST

On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses I offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. / I adore the brightness of Your purity the unerring keenness of Your justice and the might of Your love. You are the Strength / and Light of my soul. In You I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace and I pray with all my heart! To be kept from the smallest sin against You. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light: and listen to Your voice and follow Your gracious inspirations. I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You / by Your compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and looking at His Five Wounds / and trusting in His Precious Blood and adoring His opened Side and stricken Heart / I implore You / Adorable Spirit I Helper of my infirmity, so to keep me in Your grace that I may never sin against You. Give me grace O Holy Ghost, Spirit of the Father and the Son to say to You always and everywhere / “Speak Lord for Your servant heareth.” Amen.

PRAYER FOR THE SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY GHOST

O Lord Jesus Christ Who, before ascending into heaven did promise to send the Holy Ghost to finish Your work in the souls of Your Apostles and Disciples deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me that He may perfect in my soul / the work of Your grace and Your love. Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and aspire only after the things that are eternal the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of Your divine truth / the Spirit on Counsel that I may ever choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining heaven, the Spirit of Fortitude, that I may bear my cross with You I and that I may overcome with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know God find know myself and grow perfect in the science of the Saints the Spirit of Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable / the Spirit of Fear that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God and may dread in any way to displease Him. Mark me, dear Lord with the sign of Your true disciples / and animate me in all things with Your Spirit. Amen.

FIRST DAY OF THE NOVENA

Holy Spirit! Lord of Light!
From Your clear celestial height,
Your pure beaming radiance give!

The Holy Ghost

Only one thing is important — eternal salvation. Only one thing, therefore, is to be feared — sin. Sin is the result of ignorance, weakness, and indifference The Holy Ghost is the Spirit of Light, of Strength, and of Love. With His sevenfold gifts He enlightens the mind, strengthens the will, and inflames the heart with love of God. To ensure our salvation we ought to invoke the Divine Spirit daily, for “The Spirit helpeth our infirmity. We know not what we should pray for as we ought. But the Spirit Himself asketh for us.”

Prayer

Almighty and eternal God, Who hast vouchsafed to regenerate us by water and the Holy Ghost, and hast given us forgiveness all sins, vouchsafe to send forth from heaven upon us your sevenfold Spirit, the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding, the Spirit of Counsel and fortitude, the Spirit of Knowledge and Piety, and fill us with the Spirit of Holy Fear. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father 7 TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

SECOND DAY OF THE NOVENA

Come. Father of the poor.
Come treasures which endure
Come, Light of all that live!

The Gift of Fear

The gift of Fear fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread nothing so much as to offend Him by sin. It is a fear that arises, not from the thought of hell, but from sentiments of reverence and filial submission to our heavenly Father. It is the fear that is the beginning of wisdom, detaching us from worldly pleasures that could in any way separate us from God. “They that fear the Lord will prepare their hearts, and in His sight will sanctify their souls.”

Prayer

Come, O blessed Spirit of Holy Fear, penetrate my inmost heart, that I may set you, my Lord and God, before my face forever, help me to shun all things that can offend You, and make me worthy to appear before the pure eyes of Your Divine Majesty in heaven, where You live and reign in the unity of the ever Blessed Trinity, God world without end. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father 7 TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

THIRD DAY OF THE NOVENA

Thou, of all consolers best,
Visiting the troubled breast,
Dost refreshing peace bestow.

The Gift of Piety

The gift of Piety begets in our hearts a filial affection for God as our most loving Father. It inspires us to love and respect for His sake persons and things consecrated to Him, as well as those who are vested with His authority, His Blessed Mother and the Saints, the Church and its visible Head, our parents and superiors, our country and its rulers. He who is filled with the gift of Piety finds the practice of his religion, not a burdensome duty, but a delightful service. Where there is love, there is no labor.

Prayer

Come, O Blessed Spirit of Piety, possess my heart. Enkindle therein such a love for God, that I may find satisfaction only in His service, and for His sake lovingly submit to all legitimate authority. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father 7 TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

FOURTH DAY OF THE NOVENA

Thou in toil art comfort sweet,
Pleasant coolness in the heat,
solace in the midst of woe.

The Gift of Fortitude By the gift of Fortitude the soul is strengthened against natural fear, and supported to the end in the performance of duty. Fortitude imparts to the will an impulse and energy which move it to under take without hesitancy the most arduous tasks, to face dangers, to trample under foot human respect, and to endure without complaint the slow martyrdom of even lifelong tribulation. “He that shall persevere unto the end, he shall be saved.”

Prayer

Come, O Blessed Spirit of Fortitude, uphold my soul in time of trouble and adversity, sustain my efforts after holiness, strengthen my weakness, give me courage against all the assaults of my enemies, that I may never be overcome and separated from Thee, my God and greatest Good. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

FIFTH DAY OF THE NOVENA

Light immortal! Light Divine!
Visit Thou these hearts of Thine,
And our inmost being fill!

The Gift of Knowledge

The gift of Knowledge enables the soul to evaluate created things at their true worth–in their relation to God. Knowledge unmasks the pretense of creatures, reveals their emptiness, and points out their only true purpose as instruments in the service of God. It shows us the loving care of God even in adversity, and directs us to glorify Him in every circumstance of life. Guided by its light, we put first things first, and prize the friendship of God beyond all else. “Knowledge is a fountain of life to him that possesseth it.”

Prayer

Come, O Blessed Spirit of Knowledge, and grant that I may perceive the will of the Father; show me the nothingness of earthly things, that I may realize their vanity and use them only for Thy glory and my own salvation, looking ever beyond them to Thee, and Thy eternal rewards. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

SIXTH DAY OF THE NOVENA

If Thou take Thy grace away,
nothing pure in man will stay,
All his good is turn’d to ill.

The Gift of Understanding

Understanding, as a gift of the Holy Ghost, helps us to grasp the meaning of the truths of our holy religion BY faith we know them, but by Understanding we learn to appreciate and relish them. It enables us to penetrate the inner meaning of revealed truths and through them to be quickened to newness of life. Our faith ceases to be sterile and inactive, but inspires a mode of life that bears eloquent testimony to the faith that is in us; we begin to “walk worthy of God in all things pleasing, and increasing in the knowledge of God.”

Prayer

Come, O Spirit of Understanding, and enlighten our minds, that we may know and believe all the mysteries of salvation; and may merit at last to see the eternal light in Thy Light; and in the light of glory to have a clear vision of Thee and the Father and the Son. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

SEVENTH DAY OF THE NOVENA

Heal our wounds–our strength renew;
On our dryness pour Thy dew,
Wash the stains of guilt away.

The Gift of Counsel

The gift of Counsel endows the soul with supernatural prudence, enabling it to judge promptly and rightly what must done, especially in difficult circumstances. Counsel applies the principles furnished by Knowledge and Understanding to the innumerable concrete cases that confront us in the course of our daily duty as parents, teachers, public servants, and Christian citizens. Counsel is supernatural common sense, a priceless treasure in the quest of salvation. “Above all these things, pray to the Most High, that He may direct thy way in truth.”

Prayer

Come, O Spirit of Counsel, help and guide me in all my ways, that I may always do Thy holy will. Incline my heart to that which is good; turn it away from all that is evil, and direct me by the straight path of Thy commandments to that goal of eternal life for which I long.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

EIGHTH DAY OF THE NOVENA

Bend the stubborn heart and will,
melt the frozen warm the chill.
Guide the steps that go astray!

The Gift of Wisdom

Embodying all the other gifts, as charity embraces all the other virtues, Wisdom is the most perfect of the gifts. Of wisdom it is written “all good things came to me with her, and innumerable riches through her hands.” It is the gift of Wisdom that strengthens our faith, fortifies hope, perfects charity, and promotes the practice of virtue in the highest degree. Wisdom enlightens the mind to discern and relish things divine, in the appreciation of which earthly joys lose their savor, whilst the Cross of Christ yields a divine sweetness according to the words of the Savior: “Take up thy cross and follow me, for my yoke is sweet and my burden light.

Prayer

Come, O Spirit of Wisdom, and reveal to my soul the mysteries of heavenly things, their exceeding greatness, power and beauty. Teach me to love them above and beyond all the passing joys and satisfactions of earth. Help me to attain them and possess them for ever. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

NINTH DAY OF THE NOVENA

Thou, on those who evermore
Thee confess and Thee Adore,
in Thy sevenfold gift, Descend;

Give Them Comfort when they die;
Give them Life with Thee on high;
Give them joys which never end. Amen

The Fruits of the Holy Ghost

The gifts of the Holy Ghost perfect the supernatural virtues by enabling us to practice them with greater docility to divine inspiration. As we grow in the knowledge and love of God under the direction of the Holy Ghost, our service becomes more sincere and generous, the practice of virtue more perfect. Such acts of virtue leave the heart filled with joy and consolation and are known as Fruits of the Holy Ghost. These Fruits in turn render the practice of virtue more attractive and become a powerful incentive for still greater efforts in the service of God, to serve Whom is to reign.

Prayer

Come, O Divine Spirit, fill my heart with Thy heavenly fruits, Thy charity, joy, peace, patience, benignity, goodness, faith, mildness, and temperance, that I may never weary in the service of God, but by continued faithful submission to Thy inspiration may merit to be united eternally with Thee in the love of the Father and the Son. Amen.

(Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES. Act of Consecration, Prayer for the Seven Gifts)

Mary, maiden of pity,
All pity is thine. Have pity on me.

Gracious and fair in our sight,
Mother and maid our light,
Full moon new risen in our night,
Sweet Lady, hearken to me.

O lily of fragrant breath,
Thy sweetness whispereth
Our law ; Christ beckoneth
Us, for His love of thee.

Thou dost not turn away
Thy face, our hope, our stay,
Our fountain at midday,
Our fruitful olive tree.

Mother and bride of the King
Men not disdaining,
In heaven is holy dancing,
We will tread a measure with thee.

O Mary, path to the skies,
Gateway of Paradise,
Let love be strong as our cries
That we may come unto thee.

Up thy high stair we wind.
Grant now that heaven we find.
Lady gentle and kind,
Call us now unto thee.

Go, ballad, out from me,
And humbly greet
Her, rose of all roses sweet,
Queen and mother and maid.
Our Lady everywhere is she.
Hail her with duty meet.
So, all men may entreat
Her potent royal aid.

Lost on the sea, or in the dark road strayed,
Long be the way or short,
She the safe guide, and she the friendly port.
Mary, now pray we for thy comfort
In our so anxious day.

Fine rose in flower,
Thy womb was sheltering bower
For the Pilgrim Divine.

Wert beyond bearing blest,
When He chose thee for His nest,
And fed upon thy breast,
Thy Son Divine ?

Didst thou near pass away
As near thy heart He lay,
Taking thy kisses ? Say,
O heart so fond and fine!

– Jacopone da Todi, lay brother of St. Francis of Assisi

To celebrate his day here are a few quotes I found from St. Bernadine… (my favorite is the last one…)

“Prayer is the best preparation for Holy Communion. Prayer is the raising of the mind to God. When we pray we go to meet Christ Who is coming to us. If our Creator and Savior comes from heaven with such great love, it is only fitting that we should go to meet Him. And this is what we do when we spend some time in prayer.”

“There is a general rule concerning all special graces granted to any human being.  Whenever the divine favor chooses someone to receive a special grace, or to accept a lofty vocation, god adorns the person chosen with all the gifts of the Spirit needed to fulfill the task at hand.”

“All gifts, virtues, and graces of the Holy Ghost are administered by the hands of Mary to whomsoever she desires, when she desires, and in the manner she desires, and to whatever degree she desires. ”

‘Every grace granted to man has three degrees in order: for by God it is communicated to Christ, from Christ it passes to the Virgin, and from the Virgin it descends to us.’

– St. Bernadine of Sienna

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Old Ascension parish church in Chesterfield, Mo

Here is the rest of the Novena to Mary Queen of Apostles…

DAY TWO

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,  and the power of the Most High will overshadow you;  therefore the child to be born will be holy;
He will be called Son of God” (Lk 1:35).  The grace in a soul is like a root  from which a plant develops with its branches,  leaves, flowers and fruits.

Virtues grow in a soul in proportion to grace.  Thus, we understand why  Mary reached the highest degree of virtue and holiness:  because she was full of grace.  She possessed the theological,  cardinal and moral virtues,  the beatitudes  and the fruits of the Holy Spirit  to an eminent degree. Mary is full of grace,  the creature most intimate with God,  the Blessed Mother  who gives Jesus to us  and helps us to love him.  She makes us conceive a great fear of sin  and of dangerous occasions.  She inspires in us the desire for purity and for sacrifice.

Reflection and Resolution Prayer:

O God, you sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles as they were united in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. May the Queen of Apostles, the same Mother of us all, help us to serve your majesty faithfully, and to spread the glory of Your Name by word and example. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Our Father…”

“Hail Mary…”

“Glory be…”

Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

DAY THREE

“She gave birth to her firstborn Son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn” (Lk 2:7). Mary fulfills her apostolate: to give Jesus to the Father, to humanity, to heaven. She presented Jesus to the Gentiles, represented by the Magi who came to the crib in Bethlehem. Mary always gives Jesus. She is like a fruitful branch. She always carries Jesus and offers him to us: the Way, the Truth and the Life of humanity. Let us pray to Mary, the Mother of the infant Jesus, that through her maternal intercession we may all welcome the message from the crib: ”Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favours!” (Lk 2:14).

Reflection and Resolution Prayer:

O God, you sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles as they were united in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. May the Queen of Apostles, the same Mother of us all, help us to serve your majesty faithfully, and to spread the glory of Your Name by word and example.  Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Our Father…”

“Hail Mary…”

“Glory be…”

Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

DAY FOUR

“This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed… and a sword will pierce your own soul too” (Lk 2:34-35). Jesus Christ saw Mary at the foot of his cross, sharing in His passion. The Christian possesses an inexhaustible strength and is able to endure great sufferings without breaking. In suffering, a person can attain great nobility of character; indeed, suffering becomes a real apostolate.

Let us always trustfully invoke Mary: ”Pray for us, now and at the hour of our death.” All to Mary, from Mary, with Mary. She shows everyone on earth her Son. Let us pray: ”After this our exile, show to us the blessed fruit of your womb, Jesus.”

Reflection and Resolution Prayer:

O God, you sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles as they were united in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. May the Queen of Apostles, the same Mother of us all, help us to serve your majesty faithfully, and to spread the glory of Your Name by word and example. Through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

“Our Father…”

“Hail Mary…”

“Glory be…”

Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

DAY FIVE

“His mother treasured all these things in her heart” (Lk 2:51). The presentation of the Lord enlightens us to live in holiness, detachment from worldly things, and purity of thoughts and actions. The child Jesus enters the temple, takes possession of it and will live in the Eucharist until the end of time. Once we have known our vocation, we must follow it and live it faithfully until we are called to heaven.

Reflection and Resolution Prayer:

O God, you sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles as they were united in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. May the Queen of Apostles, the same Mother of us all, help us to serve your majesty faithfully, and to spread the glory of Your Name by word and example. Through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

“Our Father…”

“Hail Mary…”

“Glory be…”

Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

DAY SIX

“Standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene” (Jn 19:25). Let us look at Jesus, He sacrificed himself on the cross. Let us look at Mary, she shared Christ’s mission and passion with Him. The essence of the redemption is on Calvary, Jesus offers himself; Mary offers herself and her Son, whom she loves more than herself. Jesus is the Redeemer; Mary, the co-redemptrix.

Reflection and Resolution Prayer:

O God, you sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles as they were united in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. May the Queen of Apostles, the same Mother of us all, help us to serve your majesty faithfully, and to spread the glory of Your Name by word and example. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Our Father…”

“Hail Mary…”

“Glory be…”

Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

DAY SEVEN

“When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, ’Woman, here is your son.’ Then He said to the disciple, ’Here is your mother’” (Jn 19:26-27). When human perversity had reached its height and had brought about the death of our Lord; when the Shepherd was smitten and the entire flock of apostles and faithful were dispersed, Jesus Christ offered hope, salvation, his Mother: ”Here is your mother” (Jn 19:26).

Reflection and Resolution Prayer:

O God, you sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles as they were united in prayer with Mary, the Mother of Jesus. May the Queen of Apostles, the same Mother of us all, help us to serve your majesty faithfully, and to spread the glory of Your Name by word and example. Through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

“Our Father…”

“Hail Mary…”

“Glory be…”

Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

DAY EIGHT

“All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer,  together with certain women,  including Mary the mother of Jesus,  as well as his brothers” (Acts 1:14). It is clear that we have to consider  and follow Mary as our model.  She is the most holy Virgin,  the co-redemptrix and the Queen of Apostles.  She offered Jesus on Calvary,  and together with the apostles  she prayed in the cenacle to obtain the Holy Spirit. She took care of the Church,  newly born and already persecuted.  As Mother of the Church,  she became the outstanding member  of the Mystical Body of Christ.

Reflection and Resolution Prayer:

O God, you sent the Holy Spirit upon the apostles  as they were united in prayer with Mary,  the Mother of Jesus.  May the Queen of Apostles,  the same Mother of us all,  help us to serve your majesty faithfully,  and to spread the glory of Your Name  by word and example.  Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Our Father…”

“Hail Mary…”

“Glory be…”

Queen of Apostles, pray for us.

DAY NINE

“Mary Immaculate,  the ever-virgin Mother of God,  having finished the course of her earthly life,  was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory” (Pius XII, November, 1950). After the death of her Son, Jesus,  Mary took care of the apostles,  especially St. John, the youngest.  She accompanied them with her prayers,  good example and maternal comfort.  Thus, Jesus willed that Mary  be with them during their first years of evangelization,  as she had accompanied him.  After her earthly pilgrimage,  her mission fulfilled,  she was assumed into heaven.  Let us think about the last day of the world.  All the elect will gloriously enter heaven,  body and soul;  thus they will have an eternal reward.

Reflection and Resolution