O sorrowful Mother Mary, thou art great and sublime in Thy deep sorrow; for it has its source in the holy and ardent love of Thy Heart which knew no other love than the love of God. Ah, my beloved Mother, this love is so wanting in me. I would so gladly be attached with the most perfect love to Thy Divine Son, our Supreme Good. I thank thee sincerely for the exalted example of the love of God which Thou hast given me in Thy unutterable sorrow; but the mere example will not be sufficient for me to attain[…]

Our times with many social, cultural and geophysical catastrophes are often described as “apocalyptic”. Perhaps so, but certainly they are diabolic. It would be well to pray for one another, our priests, our Chapel and school, often, daily, that the lot of us be protected from evil forces seeking our confusion and destruction. Follows is a short “binding prayer” seeking heavenly protection from the evils of the day: “Lord Jesus Christ, I pray that Thou wouldst cover us, our families, friends, communities, those who pray for us and their families and all our properties and possessions with Thy love and[…]

The “Crown of the Twelve Stars of the Blessed Virgin” is recited in honor of the 12 stars in Our Lady’s heavenly crown, as mentioned in Revelation 11:19-12:1. “And the temple of God was opened in heaven: and the ark of his testament was seen in his temple, and there were lightnings, and voices, and an earthquake, and great hail.And a great sign appeared in heaven: A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars” Saint Hippolytus of Rome (c. 170-c.235), clearly states, that the Evangelist John meant[…]

Psalm 2: 1 Why have the gentiles raged, and the people devised vain things? 2 The kings of the earth stood up, and the princes met together, against the Lord, and against his Christ. 3 Let us break their bonds asunder: and let us cast away their yoke from us. 4 He that dwelleth in heaven shall laugh at them: and the Lord shall deride them. 5 Then shall he speak to them in his anger, and trouble them in his rage. 6 But I am appointed king by him over Sion his holy mountain, preaching his commandment. 7 The[…]

Saint Joseph has two feast days on the liturgical calendar. March 19, the Feast of St. Joseph is in Western Christianity the principal feast day of Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He is the foster-father of Jesus Christ.  At the same time, Pope Pius XII established an additional Feast of “St. Joseph the Worker”, to be celebrated on 1 May, in order to coincide with the celebration of International Workers’ Day (May Day) in many countries.  ST. JOSEPH of the royal blood of David, was a mechanic [carpenter] in Nazareth of Galilee, where he was espoused to[…]

Invocations to Our Lady of Lourdes O EVER Immaculate Virgin, Mother of mercy, health of the sick, refuge of sinners, comfort of the afflicted, you know my wants, my troubles, my sufferings; deign to cast upon me a look of mercy. By appearing in the Grotto of Lourdes, thou wert pleased to make it a privileged sanctuary, whence thou dispenses thy favors, and already many sufferers have obtained the cure of their infirmities, both spiritual and corporal. I come, therefore, with unbounded confidence, to implore thy maternal intercession. Obtain, O loving Mother, the grant of my requests. I will endeavor[…]

O Virgin, full of every grace, wholly radiant and serene! You are the sacred and blessed resting place for the Son of God, resplendent in gold and dazzling in loveliness and glory! In the first place in your magnificent crown I shall place a topaz, excelling the sparkle of all other stones. This I do hoping to reflect the praise and glory of your singular excellence. This topaz is well suited to be an ornament of your crown, O most sweet Mistress; for just as you excel all women in the beauty of your flesh, so also you surpass all[…]

The Feast of the Epiphany has, for centuries, been a traditional time for Christian families to bless their homes. This tradition likely came about because the Three Wise Men visited the home that the Holy Family had established in Bethlehem. The visit from the Wise Men blessed the home of the Holy Family because they came in humility to honor and pay homage to the Christ Child and because they were the first to not only seek Jesus, but also to recognize Him as the Messiah. From Scripture, we know that whatever God created was good, but with “the Fall”,[…]

O glorious Apostle of the Gentiles, Saint Paul, who with such zeal didst busy thyself in destroying at Ephesus those books which thou knewest well would have perverted the minds of the faithful: turn upon us thy gracious eyes also at this present day. Thou seest how an unbelieving and licentious press is attempting to rob our hearts of the precious treasure of faith and spotless morals. Enlighten, we beseech Thee, O holy Apostle, the minds of so many perverted writers, that they may cease once for all to do harm to souls with their evil doctrines and lying insinuations;[…]

The use of lights as an adjunct to worship goes back to the beginning of the Church, and even farther. Among the Jews and in many pagan rites the use of lights had long been looked upon as appropriate in connection with public homage to their God or gods. It is probable that among Christians they were first employed simply to dispel darkness, when the sacred mysteries were celebrated before dawn, as was the custom, or in the gloom of the catacombs; but the beautiful symbolism of their use was soon recognized by the writers’ of the early Church. The[…]