aeternus

“Have a great love for Jesus in his divine Sacrament of Love; that is the divine oasis of the desert. It is the heavenly manna of the traveller. It is the Holy Ark. It is the life and Paradise of love on earth.”

– Saint Peter Julian Eymard

“Prayer is the light of the spirit. Prayer and converse with God is a supreme good: it is a partnership and union with God. As the eyes of the body are enlightened when they see light, so our spirit, when it is intent on God, is illumined by his infinite light. I do not mean the prayer of outward observance but prayer from the heart, not confined to fixed times, or periods but continuous throughout the day and night.

Our spirit should be quick to reach out toward God not only when it is engaged in meditation; at other times also, when it is carrying out its duties, caring for the needy, performing works of charity, giving generously in the service of others, our spirit should long for God, and call him to mind, so that these works may be seasoned with the salt of God’s love, and so make a palatable offering to the Lord of the universe. Throughout the whole of our lives we may enjoy the benefit that comes from prayer if we devote a great deal of time to it.

Prayer is the light of the spirit, true knowledge of God, mediating between God and man. The spirit, raised up to heaven by prayer, clings to God with the utmost tenderness; like a child crying tearfully for its mother, it craves the milk that God provides. It seeks the satisfaction of its own desires, and receives gifts outweighing the whole world of nature. 

Prayer stands before God as an honored ambassador. It gives joy to the spirit, peace to the heart. I speak of prayer, not words. It is the longing for God, love too deep for words, a gift not given by man but by God’s grace. The apostle Paul says: “We do not know how we are to pray but the Spirit himself pleads for us with inexpressible longings.” Rom. 8:26.

When the Lord gives this kind of prayer to [someone]; he gives him riches that cannot be taken away, heavenly food that satisfies the spirit. One who tastes this food is set on fire with an eternal longing for the Lord: his spirit burns as in a fire of the utmost intensity. 

Practice prayer from the beginning. Paint your house with the colors of modesty and humility. Make it radiant with the light of justice. Decorate it with the finest gold leaf of good deeds. Adorn it with the walls and stones of faith and generosity. Crown it with the pinnacle of prayer. In this way you will make it a perfect dwelling place for the Lord. You will be able to receive him as in a splendid palace, and through his grace you will already possess him, his image enthroned in the temple of your spirit. “

–  JOHN CHRYSOSTOM

I received an email from a friend concerning the upcoming Presidential Election in the U.S.A. The contents of the email referenced the good and holy works of Fasting. I know that the word and certainly the act of fasting in prayer would be quite easily laughed by most of society, and perhaps even a few good church going people. But I see the act of fasting as so very beautiful, noble and holy. I thought I would share with you the email….

BLESSED THE NATION WHOSE GOD IS THE LORD
Fasting for the Election

As we approach the most crucial election in the history of our country, we must be most
dedicated to protecting Christianity, human life, justice and freedom of religion in America.
A serious situation mandates a serious, persevering and fully committed response. Salvation
history is replete with examples of the efficacy of prayer and fasting. Prayer and fasting
comprise a unit and cannot be separated. Fasting is praying with our bodies, and, if we do not
fast, a whole part of us isn’t praying. Let us not minimize the essential link between the two.

In times of great importance and great danger, the people of God always proclaimed a fast.
A few examples:

• In order to succeed in her intercession to save her people, Queen Esther ordered Mordecai to be told,”Go and gather together all the Jews, whom you shall find in Susa, and pray for me. Neither eat nor drink for three days and three nights”. Of course, Esther did the same and then saved her people.

• A passage in The Book of Judith reads, “And every man of Israel cried out to God with great fervor and they humbled themselves with much fasting…. So the Lord heard their prayers and looked upon their affliction for the people fasted many days.”

• Moses fasted for forty days at the end of which he was given the Ten Commandments. We can see that fasting preceded most important events.

• When Nineveh was threatened with destruction, the people of God proclaimed a fast and Nineveh was saved. Fasting is pleasing to God and most efficacious.

• Jesus fasted for forty days in the desert and this fasting gave Him strength against the temptations of the devil. It also served as preparation for His public life.

• In The Acts of the Apostles, the apostles always prayed and fasted before making important decisions about the early church. They never separated the two. Neither should we do so.

Our beloved Pope Benedict xvi, when he was Cardinal Ratzinger, wrote in 1985 in his
Dialogues Upon Faith, “Fasting means accepting an essential aspect of Christian life. It is
necessary to rediscover the corporal aspect of faith….. to know how to fast periodically is to
testify that Eternal life awaits us.”

Prayer and fasting together are the means, given to us by our loving God, to avert destruction.
There are many ways to fast— bread and water on Wednesdays and Fridays, not eating between
meals, fasting from favorite foods, not using condiments, etc. etc.. Please pray about the
particular way in which the Holy Spirit is calling you to fast and ask your guardian angel to help
you. Our country faces great peril. May we embrace this most loving, merciful and efficacious
gift from God. He will hear our plea.

Prayer and Fasting can overcome!

I am quite confused by the violence against Christians in India right now. It has been going on for awhile and since the news died down I had “hoped” that perhaps peace was restoring itself. This morning though brings news of more violence in Kerela. My ears pricked up upon hearing this part of the country mentioned because we have beautiful Carmelite Sisters of St.Teresa who work at the Seminary here in the city and they are from this area of India.

Today I wish to unite my prayers with others who wish to pray for peace and understanding to come upon this nation and peoples. May the Holy Spirit sweep through the land and inspire souls to love and to work together for the good of all humanity in love of our Heavenly Father.

Here is a prayer from Pope John Paul II. It is called “Prayer for Peace To Mary, The Light of Hope”.

Immaculate Heart of Mary,
help us to conquer the menace of evil,
which so easily takes root in the hearts of the people of today,
and whose immeasurable effects
already weigh down upon our modern world
and seem to block the paths toward the future.
From famine and war, deliver us.
From nuclear war, from incalculable self-destruction, from every
kind of war, deliver us.
From sins against human life from its very beginning, deliver us.
From hatred and from the demeaning of the dignity of the
children of God, deliver us.
From every kind of injustice in the life of society, both national
and international, deliver us.
From readiness to trample on the commandments of God, deliver us.
From attempts to stifle in human hearts the very truth of God,
deliver us.
From the loss of awareness of good and evil, deliver us.
From sins against the Holy Spirit, deliver us.
Accept, 0 Mother of Christ, this cry laden with the sufferings of all individual human beings,
laden with the sufferings of whole societies.
Help us with the power of the Holy Spirit conquer all sin: individual
sin and the “sin of the world,” sin in all its manifestations.
Let there be revealed once more in the history of the world the
infinite saving power of the redemption: the power of merciful love.
May it put a stop to evil.
May it transform consciences.
May your Immaculate Heart reveal for all the fight of hope.
Amen.

I was searching for some poetry to meditate on our Lady of Sorrows today and found a wonderful book online from the Sisters of Mercy at St. Catharine’s Convent, New York City.  I’m not sure if they are still in New York or not but I thank them for their book entitled “Poems for Catholics & Convents: And Plays for Catholic Schools”  It was written in 1874 and they dedicated it “To the Service of the Poor, as it may be promoted by the protection, education and tender care of their defenceless children and young daughters these verses are affectionately inscribed by their devoted servants in Our Lord’s Love. … The Sisters of Mercy”

TO OUR LADY OF SORROWS.


MATER Dolorosa! be my Mother now,


In tears and sorrow at thy feet I humbly bow, 


And ask thine aid life’s every pang to bear


It is but meet that with thee I should share

They weight of woe.

Shield me! the tempest winds blow fierce and cold —


Save me! lest I should stray from His dear fold,


Where suffering borne for Him, with thee, is blest,


E’en though the heart must bleed, for me ’tis best.


Dost thou not know, 


Dost thou not see the struggle?

Stay the tears, 
Upholding, by the memory of the years 


In which thine eyes were dim, thy heart all sore,


For every thorn of His pierced thee still more — 


And led thee on, 


On to the heights where all His love was shed


For souls so wilful. When those words He said 


That made me even then, thine own, thy child,


Did’st thou not claim this heart, so proud and wild,


From Him, thy Son? 


Mother of Sorrows! claim me now, as then,


And take me to thy heart of hearts again, 


Do not reject these wandering words I pray —


Remember, that I must be thine to-day,


And thine alone. 


Sorrowing Heart! shed o’er my life thy grace


And welcome me in suffering’s fond embrace,


Bind to the Cross this shrinking soul and bless


The heart that thirsts for love and tenderness, 


Beneath thy throne.

–Poems for Catholics & Convents: And Plays for Catholic Schools By M. A., Sisters of Mercy, St. Catharine’s Convent (New York, N.Y.). Published by New York Catholic Protectory, 1874

– Image: MATER DOLOROSA  Seated, dressed figure of the Virgin Mary in a vitrine  Spanish, 19^th Century 

“WE SHOULD enjoy much peace if we did not concern ourselves with what others say and do, for these are no concern of ours. How can a man who meddles in affairs not his own, who seeks strange distractions, and who is little or seldom inwardly recollected, live long in peace?

Blessed are the simple of heart for they shall enjoy peace in abundance.

Why were some of the saints so perfect and so given to contemplation? Because they tried to mortify entirely in themselves all earthly desires, and thus they were able to attach themselves to God with all their heart and freely to concentrate their innermost thoughts.

We are too occupied with our own whims and fancies, too taken up with passing things. Rarely do we completely conquer even one vice, and we are not inflamed with the desire to improve ourselves day by day; hence, we remain cold and indifferent. If we mortified our bodies perfectly and allowed no distractions to enter our minds, we could appreciate divine things and experience something of heavenly contemplation.

The greatest obstacle, indeed, the only obstacle, is that we are not free from passions and lusts, that we do not try to follow the perfect way of the saints. Thus when we encounter some slight difficulty, we are too easily dejected and turn to human consolations. If we tried, however, to stand as brave men in battle, the help of the Lord from heaven would surely sustain us. For He Who gives us the opportunity of fighting for victory, is ready to help those who carry on and trust in His grace.

If we let our progress in religious life depend on the observance of its externals alone, our devotion will quickly come to an end. Let us, then, lay the ax to the root that we may be freed from our passions and thus have peace of mind.

If we were to uproot only one vice each year, we should soon become perfect. The contrary, however, is often the case — we feel that we were better and purer in the first fervor of our conversion than we are after many years in the practice of our faith. Our fervor and progress ought to increase day by day; yet it is now considered noteworthy if a man can retain even a part of his first fervor.

If we did a little violence to ourselves at the start, we should afterwards be able to do all things with ease and joy. It is hard to break old habits, but harder still to go against our will.

If you do not overcome small, trifling things, how will you overcome the more difficult? Resist temptations in the beginning, and unlearn the evil habit lest perhaps, little by little, it lead to a more evil one.

If you but consider what peace a good life will bring to yourself and what joy it will give to others, I think you will be more concerned about your spiritual progress.”

[Thomas Haemmerlein, known also as Thomas a Kempis, from his
native town of Kempen, near the Rhine, about forty miles north of
Cologne. Haemmerlein, who was born in 1379 or 1380, was a member
of the order of the Brothers of Common Life, and spent the last
seventy years of his life at Mount St. Agnes, a monastery of
Augustinian canons in the diocese of Utrecht. Here he died on
July 26, 1471, after an uneventful life spent in copying
manuscripts, reading, and composing, and in the peaceful routine
of monastic piety.]

To remember our Mother, the most beautiful and fairest of all women, I thought to post this poem from Gerard Manley Hopkins entitled, “The Blessed Virgin Compared To The Air We Breathe”. His words are so beautiful and far greater than any I could try to write….

Wild air, world-mothering air,
Nestling me everywhere,
That each eyelash or hair
Girdles; goes home betwixt
The fleeciest, frailest-flixed
Snowflake; that ’s fairly mixed
With, riddles, and is rife
In every least thing’s life;
This needful, never spent,
And nursing element;
My more than meat and drink,
My meal at every wink;
This air, which, by life’s law,
My lung must draw and draw
Now but to breathe its praise,
Minds me in many ways
Of her who not only
Gave God’s infinity
Dwindled to infancy
Welcome in womb and breast,
Birth, milk, and all the rest
But mothers each new grace
That does now reach our race—
Mary Immaculate,
Merely a woman, yet
Whose presence, power is
Great as no goddess’s
Was deemèd, dreamèd; who
This one work has to do—
Let all God’s glory through,
God’s glory which would go
Through her and from her flow
Off, and no way but so.

I say that we are wound
With mercy round and round
As if with air: the same
Is Mary, more by name.
She, wild web, wondrous robe,
Mantles the guilty globe,
Since God has let dispense
Her prayers his providence:
Nay, more than almoner,
The sweet alms’ self is her
And men are meant to share
Her life as life does air.

If I have understood,
She holds high motherhood
Towards all our ghostly good
And plays in grace her part
About man’s beating heart,
Laying, like air’s fine flood,
The deathdance in his blood;
Yet no part but what will
Be Christ our Saviour still.
Of her flesh he took flesh:
He does take fresh and fresh,
Though much the mystery how,
Not flesh but spirit now
And makes, O marvellous!
New Nazareths in us,
Where she shall yet conceive
Him, morning, noon, and eve;
New Bethlems, and he born
There, evening, noon, and morn—
Bethlem or Nazareth,
Men here may draw like breath
More Christ and baffle death;
Who, born so, comes to be
New self and nobler me
In each one and each one
More makes, when all is done,
Both God’s and Mary’s Son.

Again, look overhead
How air is azurèd;
O how! nay do but stand
Where you can lift your hand
Skywards: rich, rich it laps
Round the four fingergaps.
Yet such a sapphire-shot,
Charged, steepèd sky will not
Stain light. Yea, mark you this:
It does no prejudice.
The glass-blue days are those
When every colour glows,
Each shape and shadow shows.
Blue be it: this blue heaven
The seven or seven times seven
Hued sunbeam will transmit
Perfect, not alter it.
Or if there does some soft,
On things aloof, aloft,
Bloom breathe, that one breath more
Earth is the fairer for.
Whereas did air not make
This bath of blue and slake
His fire, the sun would shake,
A blear and blinding ball
With blackness bound, and all
The thick stars round him roll
Flashing like flecks of coal,
Quartz-fret, or sparks of salt,
In grimy vasty vault.

So God was god of old:
A mother came to mould
Those limbs like ours which are
What must make our daystar
Much dearer to mankind;
Whose glory bare would blind
Or less would win man’s mind.
Through her we may see him
Made sweeter, not made dim,
And her hand leaves his light
Sifted to suit our sight.

Be thou then, O thou dear
Mother, my atmosphere;
My happier world, wherein
To wend and meet no sin;
Above me, round me lie
Fronting my froward eye
With sweet and scarless sky;
Stir in my ears, speak there
Of God’s love, O live air,
Of patience, penance, prayer:
World-mothering air, air wild,
Wound with thee, in thee isled,
Fold home, fast fold thy child.

–The Poems of Gerard Manley Hopkins | 1918

It has come to my attention, from a most good and faithful source, who happens to be my official “novena reminder” and prayer coach (I love this lady and her beautiful brown scapular!) that starting today we in America can begin a novena for the Presidential Election. If a soul would so wish to dedicate the following Nine Tuesdays to this novena prayer most surely it would have a great efficacious value. Also it was suggested to dedicate this prayer through the intercession of Our Blessed Mother under the title of the Immaculate Conception (Patroness of Our Land). Even if a soul could not remember the entire Novena Prayer and just prayed from their heart “Oh Mary conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee” I’m sure our Mother would find that prayer very pleasing.

The following prayer was written by Fr. John Hardon. S.J. and has found its way into many a vestibule and pew in St. Louis. (Where I found mine.) I thought it would be good to share…

Prayer for the Election

Lord Jesus Christ,

You told us to give Ceasar what belongs to Ceasar
and to God what belongs to God.
Enlighten the minds of our people in America.
May we choose a President of the United States
and other government officials according to
Your Divine Will.

Give our citizens the courage to choose leaders
of our nation who respect the sanctity of unborn human life,
the sanctity of marriage,
the sanctity of marital relations,
the sanctity of the family
and the sanctity of the aging.

Grant us wisdom to give You what belongs to You, our God.
If we do this as a nation, we are confident You will give us
an abundance of Your blessings
through our elected leaders.

Amen.

In commemoration of a blessed event for Carmelites which is celebrated today, the Transverberation (piercing) of the Heart of St. Teresa of Avila, Doctor of our Church in the order of Prayer…

“Our Lord was pleased that I should have at times a vision of this kind: I saw an angel close by me, on my left side, in bodily form. This I am not accustomed to see, unless very rarely. Though I have visions of angels frequently, yet I see them only by an intellectual vision, such as I have spoken of before. It was our Lord’s will that in this vision I should see the angel in this wise. He was not large, but small of stature, and most beautiful—his face burning, as if he were one of the highest angels, who seem to be all of fire: they must be those whom we call cherubim. Their names they never tell me; but I see very well that there is in heaven so great a difference between one angel and another, and between these and the others, that I cannot explain it.

I saw in his hand a long spear of gold, and at the iron’s point there seemed to be a little fire. He appeared to me to be thrusting it at times into my heart and to pierce my very entrails; when he drew it out, he seemed to draw them out also, and to leave me all on fire with a great love of God. The pain was so great, that it made me moan; and yet so surpassing was the sweetness of this excessive pain, that I could not wish to be rid of it. The soul is satisfied now with nothing less than God. The pain is not bodily, but spiritual; though the body has its share in it, even a large one. It is a caressing of love so sweet which now takes place between the soul and God, that I pray God of His goodness to make him experience it who may think that I am lying.

During the days that this lasted, I went about as if beside myself. I wished to see, or speak with, no one, but only to cherish my pain, which was to me a greater bliss than all created things could give me.

I was in this state from time to time, whenever it was our Lord’s pleasure to throw me into those deep trances, which I could not prevent even when I was in the company of others, and which, to my deep vexation, came to be publicly known. Since then, I do not feel that pain so much, but only that which I spoke of before,—I do not remember the chapter, —which is in many ways very different from it, and of greater worth. On the other hand, when this pain, of which I am now speaking, begins, our Lord seems to lay hold of the soul, and to throw it into a trance, so that there is no time for me to have any sense of pain or suffering, because fruition ensues at once. May He be blessed for ever, who hath bestowed such great graces on one who has responded so ill to blessings so great!”

St. Teresa of Avila, The Book of Her Life, Chapter XXIX. Of Visions. The Graces Our Lord Bestowed on the Saint. The Answers Our Lord Gave Her for Those Who Tried Her.

One might accuse Mother’s of being too “harsh” sometimes.  With all the discipline that falls under our domain as educators of our children in their formative years it is easy to criticize her as the one who “always dampens the fun” or “chills the spirit”.  

Mother’s are no censors of fun mind you, we only admonish in love and to teach but when we say “eat your peas or you can not have desert” it seems we are always the bad guys! Now, I am really hopeful that I will not always appear the “bad guy” and dare I imagine that one day they will thank me for loving them so much!  But as I see it, Mothers (and Father’s) will be held accountable for the “deposit of faith” they try to instill in their charges as they rear them in life to deploy them into the world as good little independent souls ready to make their own way to eternity.  

This, I think, was also the philosophy of Blanche.  Mother of Louis, she was devoted to his upbringing and wished him to become a man of upright moral character.  Apparently she used to say to him quite often during his formative years, ”I love you my dear son, as much as a mother can love her child; but I would rather see you dead at my feet than that you should commit a mortal sin.” Now, could we say Blanche was trying to “spoil the fun” of her son or “dampen his spirit”?!  And before you answer, you may also want to know that Blanche was the Queen of France and Louis became Louis IX a King and even more importantly a SAINT!

I wish Blanche had written a book for us.  And maybe St. Monica too.  Surely they would be helpful to us all.  But I suppose we will just have to mutter through and prayerfully try to do the best we can as mothers.  We must just remember to call upon these good ladies in heaven as often as we need them.  Surely they will help us!

So for St. Louis, Missouri it is not just a feast day but a Solemnity to  our City’s Patron.  I’m not sure the local media will mention it but surely we have reason to celebrate him today.  I was truly thankful today at mass (at a new church for me since I am getting into a new routine with my son going to a new school this year… more on this later) this morning.  When I bowed down before receiving the Eucharist, I noticed an inscription on the floor at the altar.  I had only a glance at it but it said something quite like “this church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin and St. Louis, King of France.”  I was happily surprised and thankful for that brief encounter with the Saint’s memory and felt thankful to him for his inspiration.  

For more on St. Louis, I would direct you to a great article at EWTN’s website.  It starts out this way: “In Louis IX of France were united the qualities of a just and upright sovereign, a fearless warrior, and a saint. This crusading king was a living embodiment of the Christianity of the time: he lived for the welfare of his subjects and the glory of God….”

Also, if you have not ever read the letter that St. Louis wrote to one of his own 11 children, please read it here below.  Maybe you would like to print it out for a special “Father” in your life as I am sure it would be an inspirational and perhaps motivational bit of writing for them in their role as spiritual educator.  Its a long letter (a little bit edited) with some “kingly” stuff in it but I am sure you will agree how beautiful and wonderful it is and how he taught much in the same manner his Mother taught him!

“Dear son, since I desire with all my heart that you be  well instructed in all things, it is in my thought to give  you some advice by this writing. For I have heard you  say, several times, that you remember my words better  than those of any one else. 


Therefore, dear son, the first thing I advise is that  you fix your whole heart upon God, and love Him with all your strength, for without this no one can be saved or be of any worth.  

You should, with all your strength, shun everything which you believe to be displeasing to Him. And you ought especially to be resolved not to commit mortal sin, no matter what may happen, and you should permit all your limbs to be hewn off, and suffer every manner of torment, rather than fall knowingly into mortal sin. 


If our Lord send you any adversity, whether illness or other thing, you should receive it in good patience, and  thank Him for it, and be grateful for it, for you ought to believe that He will cause everything to turn out for your good ; and likewise you should think that you have well 
merited it, and more also, should He will it, because you 
have loved Him but little, and served Him but little, and 
have done many things contrary to His will. 


If our Lord send you any prosperity, either health 
of body or other thing, you ought to thank Him humbly 
for it, and you ought to be careful that you are not the 
worse for it, either through pride or anything else, for 
it is a very great sin to fight against our Lord with His 
gifts. 


Dear son, I advise you that you accustom yourself 
to frequent confession, and that you choose always, as 
your confessors, men who are upright and sufficiently 
learned, and who can teach you what you should do and 
what you should avoid. You should so carry yourself 
that your confessors and other friends may dare confidently 
to reprove you and show you your faults. 


Dear son, I advise you that you listen willingly and 
devoutly to the services of Holy Church, and, when you 
are in church, avoid frivolity and trifling, and do not 
look here and there ; but pray to God with lips and heart 
alike, while entertaining sweet thoughts about Him, and 
especially at the mass, when the body and blood of our 
Lord Jesus Christ are consecrated, and for a little time 
before. 


Dear son, have a tender and pitiful heart for the 
poor, and for all those whom you believe to be in misery 
of heart or body, and, according to your ability, comfort 
and aid them with some alms. 


Maintain the good customs of your realm, and put 
down the bad ones. Do not oppress your people and do not burden them with tolls or failles, except under very 
great necessity. 


If you have any unrest of heart, of such a nature 
that it may be told, tell it to your confessor, or to some 
upright man who can keep your secret ; you will be able 
to carry more easily the thought of your heart. 


See to it that those of your household are upright 
and loyal, and remember the Scripture, which says: ” 
Elige viros timentes Deum in quibus sit justicia et qui 
oderint avariciam ; ” that is to say. “Love those who 
serve God and who render strict justice and hate covet- 
ousness ; ” and you will profit, and will govern your kingdom 
well. 


Dear son, see to it that all your associates are upright, 
whether clerics or laymen, and have frequent good 
converse with them ; and flee the society of the bad. And 
listen willingly to the word of God, both in open and in 
secret ; and purchase freely prayers and pardons. 


Love all good, and hate all evil, in whomsoever it 
may be. 


Let no one be so bold as to say, in your presence, 
words which attract and lead to sin, and do not permit 
words of detraction to be spoken of another behind his 
back. 


Suffer it not that any ill be spoken of God or His 
saints in your presence, without taking prompt vengeance. 
But if the offender be a clerk or so great a person that 
you ought not to try him, report the matter to him who is 
entitled to judge it. 


Dear son, give thanks to God often for all the good 
things He has done for you, so that you may be worthy to receive more, in such a manner that if it please the 
Lord that you come to the burden and honor of governing 
the kingdom, you may be worthy to receive the sacred 
unction wherewith the kings of France are consecrated. 


Dear son, if you come to the throne, strive to have 
that which befits a king, that is to say, that in justice and 
rectitude you hold yourself steadfast and loyal toward 
your subjects and your vassals, without turning either to 
the right or to the left, but always straight, whatever may 
happen. And if a poor man have a quarrel with a rich 
man, sustain the poor rather than the rich, until the truth 
is made clear, and when you know the truth, do justice to 
them. 


Love your brothers, and always wish their well- 
being and their good advancement, and also be to them 
in the place of a father, to instruct them in all good. But 
be watchful lest, for the love which you bear to one, you 
turn aside from right doing, and do to the others that 
which is not meet. 


Dear son, I advise you to bestow the benefices of 
Holy Church which you have to give, upon good persons, 
of good and clean life, and that you bestow, them with the 
high counsel of upright men. And I am of the opinion 
that it is preferable to give them to those who hold nothing 
of Holy Church, rather than to others. For, if you 
inquire diligently, you will find enough of those who have 
nothing who will use wisely that entrusted to them.

In conclusion, dear son, I give you all the blessings 
which a good and tender father can give to a son, and I 
pray our Lord Jesus Christ, by His mercy, by the 
prayers and merits of His blessed Mother, the Virgin 
Mary, and of angels and archangels and of all the saints, 
to guard and protect you from doing anything contrary 
to His will, and to give you grace to do it always,so that He may be honored and served by you. And 
this may He do to me as to you, by His great bounty, so 
that after this mortal life we may be able to be together 
with Him in the eternal life, and see Him, love Him, and 
praise Him without end. Amen. And glory, honor, and 
praise be to Him who is one God with the Father and the 
Holy Spirit ; without beginning and without end. 

Amen.”

You can read more of the letter here: From Saint Louis’ Advice to His Son, in Medieval Civilization, trans. and eds. Dana Munro and George Clarke Sellery (New York: The Century Company, 1910), pp. 366 -75.

Photographs are from the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis after yesterday’s mass.

“While we should strive for spiritual perfection of mind, purity and peace in God, it will be found to be not a little beneficial to this that we should return quietly into the inner secret place of the mind in the face of everything said, thought or done to us. There, withdrawn from everything else and completely recollected within ourselves, we can place ourselves in the knowledge of the truth before us and undoubtedly discover and understand that it does us absolutely no good, and rather the contrary, when we are praised or honoured by others while we recognise by the knowledge of the truth about ourselves within that we are blameworthy and guilty. And just as nothing is any help if externally people praise someone if his conscience internally accuses him, in the same way on the contrary it does a man no harm to be despised, maligned and persecuted when he remains internally just as innocent, blameless and without fault. On the contrary he has all the more good reason to rejoice in the Lord with patience, in peace and silence. After all no adversity can do any harm where evil is not in control, and just as no evil goes unpunished, so no good goes unrewarded. Nor should we wish a reward with hypocrites or expect and receive profit from men, but from the Lord God alone, not in the present, but in the future, and not in fleeting time, but in eternity. It is clear therefore that nothing is greater, and nothing better than to enter into the inner secret place of the mind always and in every tribulation and occurrence, and there to call upon the Lord Jesus Christ himself, our helper in temptations and tribulations, and to humble ourselves there by confession of sin, and praise God and Father himself, the giver of correction and the giver of consolation. Above all one should accept everything, in general and individually, in oneself or in others, agreeable or disagreeable, with a prompt and confident spirit, as coming from the hand of his infallible Providence or the order he has arranged. This attitude will lead to the forgiveness of our sins, the deliverance from bitterness, the enjoyment of joy and security, the outpouring of grace and mercy, introduction and establishment into a close relationship with God, abundant enjoyment of his presence, and firm cleaving and union with him. But let us not copy those who from hypocrisy and Pharisaism want to appear better and different from what they are, and to make a better impression and appearance before men of being something special, than they know in truth inside to be so. For it is absolute madness to seek, hunger for and aspire to human praise or renown, from oneself or others, when one is in spite of it all inwardly full of cravings and serious faults. And certainly the good things we have talked about above will flee him who chases such vanities, and he will merely bring disgrace on himself. So always keep your faults and your own incapacity before your eyes, and know yourself, so that you can be humbled and not try to avoid being held as the lowest, vilest and most abject scum by everyone when you are aware of the grave sins and serious faults in yourself. For which reason consider yourself compared to others as dross to gold, weeds to the wheat, chaff to the grain, a wolf to the sheep, Satan to the children of God. And do not seek to be respected by others and given precedence before others, but rather flee with all your heart and soul the poison of this disease, the venom of praise, the concern for boasting and vanity, lest, as the prophet says, The wicked is praised in his own heart’s desires, [Psalm 10.4] and Isaiah, They who speak good of you, deceive you and destroy the way of your feet, [Isaiah 3.12] and the Lord in Luke, Woe to you when men speak well of you! [Luke 6.26].”

–St. Albert the Great  (1193?-1280) - On Cleaving to God

By now perhaps many have already heard of Fr. Thomas Pandippallycmi a Carmelite Priest who was martyred this past week in India.  There has appeared a lovely blog from his friends which I thought I would share.  The prayers for him are from the heart and so very beautiful.  The entry which caught my souls attention started off this way…

“Heavenly Father, as time is no barrier to You, I ask that Your Spirit of love and courage fills and surrounds Fr Thomas in his terrible, lonely, frightening ordeal. Please Jesus let Your presence be real and tangible to him as he goes through physical and mental agony like Your own on Your last terrible day. Let thoughs of love and forgiveness fill his mind and heart. Comfort him Jesus. Let the angels surround and comfort him. Give him overflowing grace to fix his whole heart and soul upon You and for the sake of souls. About him I sing the fourth song of the Suffering Servant. (Isaiah 53)…”

http://frthomaspandippallycmi.blogspot.com/

“But the believing soul longs and faints for God; she rests sweetly in the contemplation of Him. She glories in the reproach of the Cross, until the glory of His face shall be revealed. Like the Bride, the dove of Christ, that is covered with silver wings [Ps. 68.13], white with innocence and purity, she reposes in the thought of Thine abundant kindness, Lord Jesus; and above all she longs for that day when in the joyful splendor of Thy saints, gleaming with the radiance of the Beatific Vision, her feathers shall be like gold, resplendent with the joy of Thy countenance.”

– St. Bernard of Clairvaux “On Loving God”

My dear Novena Secretary has once again come to my rescue to remind me of the Novena which starts today to Our Lady of Czestochowa. I took the photo above when she and I visited the Black Madonna Shrine here a couple of summers ago. I am sure it would be a wonderful time to visit the National Shrine in Doylestown, Pennsylvania and I am just sorry I was not able to make a visit there last month when I was visiting my family.

According to tradition, it is believed that Saint Luke the Evangelist is the original artist of this painting in which Mary is depicted holding the Christ Child. This sacred picture, enshrined and venerated at the renowned Marian Shrine in Poland, was brought from Jerusalem through Constantinople and was bestowed to the Princess of Ruthenia. It was brought to Poland in 1382 through the efforts of Ladislaus of Opole who discovered it in a castle at Belz. To ensure its protection, he invited the Monks of Saint Paul the first Hermit from Hungary to come to Poland to be the guardians of the Picture.

Now, there are several different Novena Prayers to Our Lady of Czestochowa which I found online and you can use. Click here for one and click here for the Pauline Father’s Novena Prayer (they maintain the National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa in Pennsylvania. There is a nice collection of prayers here and a history on the Black Madonna.

Novena Prayer

Under your bejeweled mantle, I seek refuge Most Holy Immaculate Virgin and Mother. How sweet it is for me to venerate you under the title of Our Lady of Czestochowa and Queen of Jasna Gora.

We fly to your patronage, O Holy Mother of God; despise not these our petitions in our necessities, but deliver us always from all danger, O glorious and blessed Virgin.

My most holy Mother, I behold the graces that you have already obtained for me, and the ingratitude that I have shown toward you. The thankless soul is no longer worthy of blessings, but not even on this account will I lose confidence in your mercy. O my mighty advocate have pity on me and obtain, I beseech you, this favor for me if it be for the glory of your Divine Son and the good of my soul.

(Pause and name the favor sought)

Speak for me, Queen of Jasna Gora. Your Son will do whatsoever you shall ask of Him. I beg you, take me under your protection and this is enough for me, to be one of your ever faithful servants. Amen.

Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help, or sought your intercession was left unaided. Inspired
with this confidence, I fly unto you, O Virgin of Virgins my mother; to you I come, before you I stand, sinful and sorrowful; O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions; but in your clemency hear and answer me. Amen

O Mother of the Divine Infant in your arms, through your sacred image in Czestochowa you remind us of the constant presence of your Son and of your own motherly solicitude as a source of strength and courage in our daily trails, difficulties and labors.

we praise you and we love you.

O Queen whose image bears the scars of enemy attacks, you are to us a sign of hope, unity and victory,

we praise you and we love you.

O Virgin Helper, you aid us in ovecoming all evil and weakness,

we praise you and we love you.

When we are oppressed by doubts and temptations against faith,

be our help and our protection.

When we feel lonely, abandoned, and threatened,

be our help and protection.

When we are in danger of yielding to our evil habits and sins,

be our help and protection.

That you may strengthen us in faith and obatin for us the power to renew our lives in the spirit of God’s commandments and the Gospels of Christ,

we beseech you, O Lady of Jasna Gora, our Mother.

That you may continue to reign in our lives, on the personal, family , social and national levels.

we beseech you, O Lady of Jasna Gora, Our Mother

That you may obtain for us from your Son the special grace that we implore in this novena.

we beseech you, O Lady of Jasna Gora, our Mother.

O Almighty and merciful God, You gave the Polish Nation a wondrous help and defense in the most holy Virgin Mary and you honored her sacred image at Jasna Gora with remarkable veneration of the faithful. Grant in your mercy that under her protection, we may struggle confidently throughout our lives and, at the moment of death be victorious over our enemy.

We ask this grace in the name of Jesus, your Son, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever. Amen

Matko, ja kocham Cię
(Mother I love you!)

I never got a chance to post some photos from the Poor Clares Abbey in Belleville, Illinois where the children and I journeyed earlier this week. It is such a big treat to visit these lovely nuns. The chapel, while modern, is able to evoke a sense of mystery in its well tasted design and architecture. The swirling iron grill which separates the public chapel from the sister’s cloister is light and ethereal. It is wonderfully open on the circular interior and so you can pray along with the nuns. They are never rushed and every prayerful word is chanted with a love so deep and strong that it pierces your heart. No doubt, the beautiful Sacred Heart of our Lord is pierced through their devotion too!  There prayer is a testament to the pure beauty of ultimate truth and to pray here with them is pure joy!!!