Novena for Priests to St. John Vianney Day 6
by VP
Posted on Wednesday July 31, 2024 at 01:00AM in Prayers
St. John Vianney, Model of Purity O holy Priest of Ars, your life was a
model of purity. Your life of
chastity was a source of edification to all. You said that when a soul
is pure all the court of heaven looks upon it with great joy. Today we
are experiencing a great disregard for the virtue of purity; it is
looked upon with ridicule by worldly standards.
O great St. John Vianney, more than ever before, we need your prayers
and help in avoiding sins
of impurity. I ask you to help Father ___ to keep pure in mind and in
body and give good example in his speech, conduct and in his faith.
Obtain for him the strength necessary to combat
temptations against the virtue of purity, which could lead him away from
God. Unite your prayers with
those of Mary Immaculate to implore God that Father ___ be pure in mind
and heart and preserve him from those sins which are so displeasing to
God.
Novena Prayer:
O holy Priest of Ars, St. John Marie Vianney, you loved God and served
Him faithfully as
His Priest. Now you see God face to face in heaven. You never despaired
but persevered in your faith
until you died. Remember now the dangers, fears and anxieties that
surround Father ___ and intercede for him in all his needs and troubles
especially console him in his most difficult moments, grant him serenity
in the midst of crisis, and protect him from evil. O St. John Vianney, I
have confidence in your intercession.
Pray for Father ___ in a special way during this novena.
St. Ignatius of Loyola, CONFESSOR, A.D. 1556.
by VP
Posted on Wednesday July 31, 2024 at 01:00AM in Saints
Peter Paul Rubens: Miracle of Saint Ignatius of Loyola
"It was now, during these last days of a glorious life, that the saint expressed his happiness that, by the holy thought of those Loreto fathers who were on a mission at Macerata, the people had been attracted from an immodest play acting at the theater to the exposition of the Blessed Sacrament in a church which was magnificently decorated for the occasion. This was during the carnival, when mirth often degenerated into excess and sin; and this was the origin of the forty hours' exposition of the Blessed Sacrament, which is now commonly made during the last days of Shrovetide. The saint ordered the practice to be continued in all the houses of the Society. It was one of the last expressions of his will that was to be given to his children." The Life of St. Ignatius of Loyola By Gertrude Parsons
Souls detached from Earth: God takes special care to detach those whom He loves with special predilection from the passing pleasures of this world, by sending them desires after heavenly bliss, and by the Sorrows and bitterness of the present life. (Light from the Altar, p 268)
Patience in sufferings: If God causes you to suffer much, it is a sign that He has great designs for you, and that He certainly intends to make you a saint. And if you wish to become a great saint, entreat Him yourself to give you much opportunity for suffering; for these is no wood better to kindle the fire of holy love than the wood of the cross, which Christ used for His own great sacrifice of boundless charity. (Light from the Altar p 264)
"He was born at Loyola, of a noble family in Spain; and having for some time followed the court, and afterwards the camp, he received a fortunate wound in a siege, which obliged him to retirement. Here it was, that by reading pious books which Providence put into his hands, he began to entertain thoughts of engaging in a better cause. These he improved so far, that throwing up his arms he put on sackcloth, confined himself to bread and water, lay on the ground, and was even cruel to himself in the severity of most rigorous mortification: but these were all sweetened by the refreshment of heavenly comforts.
Pray for all who are engaged in a sinful and worldly life, that God would touch their hearts, and make them sensible of their errors. Accustom yourself to the reading of pious books, and be constant in this exercise. Recommend the same to all under your care; and pray that it may bring forth fruit. Learn from this saint the method of a true conversion. Trust to no signs of repentance, unless they be accompanied with a change of life. And how can this be changed, if you throw not by your arms, and renounce not all the occasions of your sins? Let some mortification follow your repentance: there cannot easily be a true sense of past crimes, if you do not think the offender deserving of punishment. How can your resolutions be sincere of keeping peace with God, if you do not take effectual means for overcoming your passions, and bringing the inward man into subjection? And how can this be without mortification? Rebellious tempers are not to be reduced but by force; first weaken them, and then you may command them.
Being now inflamed with a zeal of doing good to others, and having qualified himself with sufficient learning, beginning with the first rudiments in his riper years, he laid the foundation of the Society of Jesus, with nine companions, men of piety and learning. Thus he declared war against infidelity and error, and with wonderful charity studied by every means to do good to the faithful, in promoting all kinds of instruction, by preaching and catechizing, erecting schools, and making provision for orphans and all others, whose necessitous condition exposed them to danger. In these exercises he spent his life; and having seen his endeavors blessed with unspeakable success in the conversion of nations, and the reformation of great abuses among believers, he was called to the reward of his labors on the last day of July, 1556.
Give thanks to God for the apostolic spirit of this holy man, and pray for all his followers, that the same spirit may rest on them, and the blessing of heaven attend them in all their pious and charitable undertakings." The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother
SS. Abdon and Sennen, MARTYRS, A.D. 250.
by VP
Posted on Tuesday July 30, 2024 at 01:00AM in Saints
Pray for all in persecution and trouble,
that they may be supported with heavenly comforts. And since the suffering of the martyrs is a reproach of all
impatience, confess your weakness in this point, and pray for remedy.
But let your endeavours accompany your prayers, and forget not your duty
in the time of trial. Be watchful against all manner of anger and dejection. These are two mischievous passions, which enslave the mind, darken the understanding, and hinder all the effects of grace.
Make your first opposition against these; and let no deceitful
reasoning flatter you into them. Having gained ground here, you have in
this removed the greatest obstacles, and may hope by degrees to advance, so as to stand constant under the most oppressing evils. This is the constancy of the martyrs: pray for it daily, and on this day especially beseech these holy martyrs to procure it for you." The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother
Novena for Priests to St. John Vianney Day 5
by VP
Posted on Tuesday July 30, 2024 at 01:00AM in Prayers
St. John Vianney, Lover of Sinners O holy Priest of Ars, you spent many
long hours daily in the
confessional. People came to you for forgiveness of their sins from
far-off places. Although you despised sin, you always received the
sinner with much love and forgiveness.
O holy confessor of the
Lord, St. John Vianney, awaken in Father ___ a sense of his sinfulness
before the eyes of God. By your Priestly example, grant him a love of
the reception of the Sacrament of Penance. Obtain for him the
understanding that it is in confessing his sins that Godʼs mercy is
poured out upon him and he draws closer to Christ. Obtain for him a deep
hatred of sin and the grace to resist temptation. Teach him the value
of frequent confession, where he meets Jesus, our Savior, the source
of all mercy and consolation. Contrite and forgiven may all those with
whom he comes in contact act with that same mercy. Pray that Father ___
always love the Sacrament of Penance. Pray that he may call sinners to
repentance with his good example and lives in complete service to our
Lord.
Novena Prayer:
O holy Priest of Ars, St. John Marie Vianney, you loved God and served
Him faithfully as
His Priest. Now you see God face to face in heaven. You never despaired
but persevered in your faith
until you died. Remember now the dangers, fears and anxieties that
surround Father ___ and intercede for him in all his needs and troubles
especially console him in his most difficult moments, grant him serenity
in the midst of crisis, and protect him from evil. O St. John Vianney, I
have confidence in your intercession.
Pray for Father ___ in a special way during this novena.
Saint Martha
by VP
Posted on Monday July 29, 2024 at 01:00AM in Saints
James Tissot: Mary Magdalene at the Feet of Jesus
"She was the sister of Mary Magdalen and Lazarus, who entertained Christ at her house at Bethania, and being busy in making preparation for him, asked that Mary, who sat at the feet of Christ, might be desired to help her. To whom Christ made answer: "Martha, Martha, thou art careful, and art troubled about many things. But one thing is necessary: Mary hath chosen the best part." After Christ's ascension, being seized by the Jews, as it is related in her life, she was forced on board a ship with all belonging to her, and having no other pilot but Providence, arrived at Marseilles, where she spent her days in prayer, and all the exercises of a holy life, and thus waited till death carried her to be his guest, whom, she had before entertained.
Pray for the spirit of Martha in all your labours; that whatever you do may be designed for the entertainment of Christ. This has been the practice of many servants of God,
who being obliged to an active and laborious life, have always
endeavoured to direct and offer all their labours to Christ, in the person of those whom they served, according to his own precept: "Whatsoever you do to any of these little ones, you do it to me." For this end, in all business avoid solicitude, as much as possible. Go on with peace and submission to the will of God, and often remember the one thing necessary. That is a happy family, where Martha calls in Mary to her help; where prayer and the love of retirement sanctify their labours and all exterior employments. For the mind is so easily taken up with these, either through desire of success, or the solicitude of giving satisfaction, or escaping reproof, or seeking the esteem of others,
that if it be not recalled by prayer and seasonable retreats, it will
be wholly dissipated, and so occupied with this world, as to lose the greater concern of the next. Be therefore watchful against this evil, and pray for remedy. Your time in this world is to be short, but your being in the next is to be eternal. Provision must be made for both; but let that which is the greater, be your greater concern: so that being busy about many things, you may still remember the one thing necessary." The Catholic Year, by Fr. John Gother
Novena Prayer to Saint Martha: O admirable Saint Martha, I have recourse to thee and I depend entirely on thy intercession in my trials. In thanksgiving, I promise to spread this devotion everywhere. I humbly beg thee to console me in all my worries and my difficulties. By the immense joy that filled thy soul when thou didst receive the Redeemer of the world at thy home in Bethany, be pleased to intercede for me and my family, in order that we may keep God in our hearts and therefore, deserve to obtain the remedy to our necessities, especially the present situation that overwhelms me. (mention request) I implore thee, O helper in all needs, help us to overcome our difficulties, thou who so victoriously fought the devil. Amen
Say one Our Father, one Hail Mary, one Glory Be and three times the invocation "Saint Martha, pray for us."
Novena for Priests to St. John Vianney Day 4
by VP
Posted on Monday July 29, 2024 at 01:00AM in Prayers
St. John Vianney, Greatly Devoted to Our Blessed Mother O holy Priest of
Ars, your life was
consecrated to the Blessed Mother. You prayed earnestly to her,
entrusting your Priesthood to her care. You begged all the faithful to
pray the rosary, the favorite prayer of Mary, our Mother. You summed up
the reason for your great love of our Lady by saying: We have only to
turn to the Blessed Mother to be heard. Her heart is all love.
O
great John Vianney, I ask you with all my heart through the merits of
Jesus and the intercession of Mary, the Virgin Mother to make Father
___ʼs life patterned after that of our heavenly Mother, full of love for
God and his neighbor. Obtain for him a deeper love for our Lady and a
filial confidence in her. She is the person to whom he can turn in times
of distress when lonely or upset or in times of temptation. Inspire
Father ___ to consecrate his life to his Mother in heaven. May he know
the powerful protection of Maryʼs Mantle all the days of his life.
Novena Prayer:
O holy Priest of Ars, St. John Marie Vianney, you loved God and served
Him faithfully as
His Priest. Now you see God face to face in heaven. You never despaired
but persevered in your faith
until you died. Remember now the dangers, fears and anxieties that
surround Father ___ and intercede for him in all his needs and troubles
especially console him in his most difficult moments, grant him serenity
in the midst of crisis, and protect him from evil. O St. John Vianney, I
have confidence in your intercession.
Pray for Father ___ in a special way during this novena.
SS. Nazarius, Celsus, and Victor, MARTYRS, and Innocent, POPE AND CONFESSOR A.D. about 68, and 201, 417.
by VP
Posted on Sunday July 28, 2024 at 01:00AM in Saints
"THE first two lived soon after the apostles. Nazarius having been baptized by St. Linus, who succeeded St. Peter, and taking with him Celsus, a youth whom he had instructed in the Christian faith, went to Treves, where in the persecution of Nero, they were both cast into the sea, But being miraculously delivered they came to Milan; where, for preaching the gospel,
they were beheaded. Their bodies were found many years after by St.
Ambrose, with their blood yet fresh as if they had been then taken out of the executioner's hands.
Pray for a like zeal for the faith of Christ. Let neither fear nor shame hinder you from doing good to others. To contribute to the salvation of your neighbour, is the most effectual way of securing your own. Be not sparing of your
pains in a cause for which so many have laid down their lives. And
remember, that whilst vice and liberty have so many abettors, you cannot
want opportunities of practising this charity. Others are bold in evil; why should not you be so in all that is good? The devil has many apostles; be you one of Jesus Christ.
Victor, bishop of Rome, was a prelate zealous in maintaining the faith received, and the discipline of the Church. He died in the year 201, after he had sat ten years. It is not certain that he died a martyr, though he is usually styled so; perhaps on account of the continual persecutions which he suffered.
"All Ecclesiastical matters throughout the world are, by divine right, to be referred to the apostolic see, that to St. Peter, the author of its name and honor" Pope Innocent I Source: The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints, Butler
Innocent was bishop of the same holy see in the time of St. Jerome and St. Augustin, who make mention of his great sanctity. Having faithfully discharged all the duties of a good pastor, he made a happy end in the year 417. Pray for the present head of the Church, that God would assist him with all grace necessary for his great charge. Pray for all the pastors in Christ's Church, that being animated with the spirit of the primitive times, they may spend their lives for the good of their flock." The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother
Novena for Priests to St. John Vianney Day 3
by VP
Posted on Sunday July 28, 2024 at 01:00AM in Prayers
St. John Vianney, Adorer of the Blessed Sacrament holy Priest of Ars,
you had such an overwhelming
love for Christ in the Blessed Sacrament that you prayed for hours in
His presence. You said that when our Lord sees them coming eagerly to
visit Him in the Blessed Sacrament, He smiles upon them. They come with
that simplicity which pleases Him so much. O Saint of the Eucharist, may
your example enkindle in Father ___ a deeper love for Jesus in the
Blessed Sacrament. By your prayers, never let him doubt Christʼs Real
Presence, but obtain for him a firm faith rooted in the Eucharist. Help
him not to be afraid to defend or preach Christʼs Real Presence in the
Blessed Sacrament. Obtain for him the grace to approach our Lord with
simplicity of heart as he lays his soulʼs innermost thoughts before
Jesusʼ Sacred Heart. Keep Father ___ under your continual protection,
that he may be supported by your example and assistance and be
faithfully devoted to Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. May his life
reflect the belief of our Lordʼs abiding presence with us. O St. John
Vianney, by the power of your intercession, give us Priests devoted to
the holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Novena Prayer:
O holy Priest of Ars, St. John Marie Vianney, you loved God and served
Him faithfully as His Priest. Now you see God face to face in heaven.
You never despaired but persevered in your faith until
you died. Remember now the dangers, fears and anxieties that surround
Father ___ and intercede for him in all his needs and troubles
especially console him in his most difficult moments, grant him
serenity in the midst of crisis, and protect him from evil. O St. John
Vianney, I have confidence in your intercession.
Pray for Father ___ in a special way during this novena.
HOW TO PRAY
by VP
Posted on Sunday July 28, 2024 at 01:00AM in Sermons
“O God, be merciful to me a sinner.”—LUKE Xviii. 13.
1. One prayed and offended God; the other prayed and was justified. Why?
2. Not that we are as bad as the Pharisee; but it would be better for us to be more like the Publican.
3. Perhaps we resent being classed with him, a sinner. 4. How did the saints pray?
How many of us at times have wondered why our Blessed Lord spoke only of two kinds of prayer, the Pharisee's and the Publican's. Where do we come in —we ordinary, everyday kind of Catholics? Surely we are scarcely as proud and presumptuous as the Pharisee, whose very prayer was turned into sin and offended God; and, on the other hand, perhaps in our own hearts, we almost resent being classed with the Publican. And yet our Lord, divine truth and wisdom, made no reference to such as we think we are --not so bad as either.
Let us not be too complacent. Our Lord describes a man who was well instructed, outwardly irreproachable, a model man as he thought himself, and yet he knew not how to pray. He mistook vainglory, boastfulness, attitudinizing, as prayer; he disdains his neighbour, he praised himself instead of the Almighty! Whereas the other, humble in the consciousness of his sinfulness and frailty, besought the mercy of God. Short was his prayer, but it was from the heart. He found mercy and was justified. It was mercy that he needed; mercy that he longed for and prayed for; and mercy that was granted him.
The Pharisee knew not how to pray, because he did not realize his need of God's mercy, but trusted in his own self-righteousness. The Publican knew his need of God's mercy, prayed for it and obtained it. According, then, to our realizing our need of mercy, our prayer will be acceptable and blessed. If we resent in our hearts being classed with sinners, needy and weak and prone to evil, we are not in the state of humility, which longs for and receives the mercy of our Father from heaven. Without prayer we cannot be saved, and there can be no genuine prayer unless we realize our need of grace and mercy. "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all iniquity" (1 John i. 8, 9). They need not be glaring sins, that the world looks askance at; but whose heart has not been defiled in thought, word, or deed ? Have we never disobeyed a commandment through self-seeking, self-indulgence, or wilful negligence? Then do we not need to pray that such sins should be forgiven, and for grace lest again we relapse and forfeit God's friendship?
Our need of grace and mercy is evident, and the means to obtain every blessing is humble prayer. "By all prayer and supplication, praying at all times,” says St. Paul (Eph. vi. 18). And David teaches us to pray: "Help me, O Lord my God, save me according to Thy mercy" (Ps. cix. 26). Thou art plenteous in mercy to all that call upon Thee" (Ps. xxxv. 5). And God's mercy is not only to forgive, but to keep us safe and strengthen us to be faithful. In answer to prayer there is God's constant watchfulness and the care of a loving Father. Prayer makes us mindful of God's mercy and anxious to correspond to His graces, and be faithful in observance. It makes us grateful for our Father's care and solicitude. And gratitude merits a continuation of God's favours. The kindness of God is revealed to us in prayer. How does the Scripture describe the goodness of God? "Thou, O Lord, art a God of compassion, and merciful: patient, and of much mercy" (Ps. lxxxv. 15). The Lord is gracious, merciful, patient, and plenteous in mercy. The Lord is sweet to all; and His tender mercies are above all His works" (Ps. cxliv. 9).
It is prayer that creates this peace and trustfulness in God; that made the austerities of the saints a foretaste of the joys of heaven. They were wisely humble enough to know that they could not do without the mercy of God, and yet trustful that they could obtain it and every grace if they prayed for it. How different our prayers would be if we realized our need of the mercy of God, and how prayer would always obtain it for us, if we humbly sought it. The saints did, and constant was their earnest, humble prayer. Who are we to dare to be self-sufficient, and imagine we need not pray for forgiveness of the past? Pray to make a good beginning once again; pray to persevere, for without it we cannot hope to persevere, a day or an hour, in doing good.
Let us recall a prayer of St. Gertrude. It reads as if a poor sinner, like the Publican, had composed it; and not a great saint, who was favoured with the gift of miracles, had frequent visions of our Blessed Lord, and who was the first to introduce devotion to the Sacred Heart. This is the prayer: "O sweet mercy of God, full of tenderness and clemency, behold, in the sorrow and pressing need of my heart, I seek safety in Thy loving Will, for Thou art my whole hope and trust. Thou hast never despised one sad and sorrowful. Thou hast never rejected the vilest sinner. Thou hast never abandoned one seeking help. Thou hast never passed by one in grievous trouble without a look of mercy. The needy and poor Thou dost always assist, as a mother her child. To all invoking Thy most holy name Thy loving assistance is given. And even unworthy me, Thou wilt not cast from Thee on account of my sins and my unworthy life" (Exer. c. vii.). Let us implore our Lord to grant us the spirit of such prayer as this. We shall not then be ashamed to use the prayer of the Gospel, "O God, be merciful to me a sinner." Frequently and from our heart let us say it, and we shall be justified in the sight of God." Short Sermons on the Epistles & Gospels of the Sundays of the Year By Rev. Fr. Francis Paulinus Hickey OSB 1922 (10th Sunday after Pentecost)
St. Pantaleon, Martyr, A.D. 303.
by VP
Posted on Saturday July 27, 2024 at 01:00AM in Prayers
"He was physician to the Emperor Galerius Maximianus ; who being converted to the Christian faith, extended his profession to the care of souls as well as of bodies. He fell, however, by a temptation, which is sometimes more dangerous than the fiercest torment; for bad example, if not shunned, insensibly weakens, and at length destroys the strongest virtue. Pantaleon in the midst of an impious and idolatrous court, and deceived by often hearing the false maxims of the world applauded, was unhappily seduced into an apostacy from the faith. But a zealous Christian called Hermolaus, by his prudent admonitions, awakened his conscience to a sense of his guilt, and brought him again into the fold of the Church. The penitent ardently wished to expiate his crime by martyrdom; and to prepare himself for the conflict, when the cruel persecution of Dioclesian broke out at Nicomedia in 303, he distributed all his possessions among the poor. Not long after this action, he was taken up, and after suffering many torments with wonderful constancy, he was at length beheaded under Dioclesian, in the year 303.
Pray for all in persecution and trouble; and beseech God to give you patience in all your trials. What are your trials if compared to those of the martyrs? Why then are you so easily disturbed? Lament your weakness, and beg for strength. Humble yourself, and pray for divine grace. Learn too, that all states are capable of doing good to their neighbour, in helping him into the way of salvation. Be zealous and charitable in this, as far as your circumstances will permit. How often have you given scandal to others by words; and by your bad example discouraged them from seeking the truth? What other reparation can you make, than by edifying them by your zeal, and by seasonable discourses exciting them to the love of virtue and truth?" The Catholic Year by Fr. John Gother
"Lord, he whom Thou lovest is sick."
Prayer to St. Pantaleon for the sick and afflicted (priests): O fortunate penitent! sighing to prove your perfect contrition and love by the heroic shedding of your heart's blood for Him whom your sins had crucified! O happy martyr! I offer my heartfelt thanks to God for the great favors bestowed upon you, and upon all who lovingly drink the chalice of the Lord, and bear His Cross. I now humble come before you to invoke your special prayers on my behalf, and on behalf of those for whom I have been inspired to pray. Oh! prove to us now that the prayers of us, poor exiles, are not despised in the blessed mansions above. As all good Samaritans invoke your aid and blessing, look compassionately on me, and on those sufferers for whom I invoke your aid. O obtain the grant of our humble petitions, and ask them for us in the sacred Name of Jesus. N.N.We likewise invoke your patronage for the spiritual physicians of all erring and afflicted souls, and for all those whom Providence has called to the vocation of the "Good Samaritan". As for the poor "patients", who now undergo the ordeal of spiritual, corporal, or mental infirmities, I earnestly ask relief or perfect cure, and whatever will be most conducive towards securing their eternal salvation, and a higher degree of glory for them in Heaven. If it be God's blessed Will that their trials continues, obtain for them a great spirit of prayer, interior penance, patience, longanimity, and holy joy in embracing every pain, privation, or humiliation that may befall them, for the pure love of Jesus Crucified; and though not actually martyrs for their holy faith and religion, pray, O illustrious penitent, that they may be the happy martyrs of Divine Love by their perfect meekness and conformity to the Will of their heavenly Father, who chastises them in mercy by the penalties for sin, of sickness, desolation, and death. Amen
Source: The Fervent Adorer, Or, Practice of Perpetual Adoration of the Sacred Heart of Jesus 1867
