Thought of the day

Charity gave me the key to my vocation. I understood that the Church being a body composed of different members, the most essential, the most noble of all the organs would not be wanting to her; I understood that the Church has a heart and that this heart is burning with love; that it is love alone which makes the members work, that if love were to die away apostles would no longer preach the Gospel, martyrs would refuse to shed their blood. I understood that love comprises all vocations, that love is everything, that it embraces all times and all places because it is eternal!

St Therese of the Child Jesus :D

St Therese Novena Day 9

O Heavenly Father, Who hast prepared for us a glorious reward after the labors of this life, and hast promised to crown with honor and glory those who are faithful to the end in Thy love, we beseech Thee to grant us through the intercession of St Therese of the Child Jesus the grace to be faithful to Thy commandments, to those of the Holy Church, and to Thy holy inspirations until the hour of our death.

Father, grant that, after the example of St Therese of the Child Jesus, we may not recoil from labors, that temptations may not keep us from Thee, that trials may not cause us to lose courage. May neither the world, nor the devil, nor our own inclinations separate us from Thee to Whom we desire to belong forever, as we promised Thee on the day of our Baptism and on the day of our First communion.

Perseverance in grace is a grace, we beseech Thee to grant it to us, and in Thy merciful love not to refuse us the grace of graces, that of final perseverance which will unite us to Thee forevermore and will give us to contemplate during all Eternity Thine adorable Fae.

Father, uphold us in the midst of our combats until the day when we shall gain the victory, when Thou Thyself wilt triumph in us.

St Therese of the Child JEsus who persevered throughout your life in exact fidelity o God's grace, you who saw perseverance crowned on the glorious day of your death, obtain for us to be fully faithful to God's law and never to separate ourselves from His holy love. Obtain for us the favors we crave and implore through your powerful intercession Amen.

St Therese Novena day 8

O Heavenly Father, Who hast created all the good things of earth for the use of man and dost measure them out to him with marvelous bounty, we beg Thee through the intercession of St Therese of the Child Jesus to give us all those things of which we have need for the perseveration of our life here below.

Teach us to use these things with the moderation befitting Christians, let us not attach our heart to them; may they serve not to keep us from Tee, the Only True Good to be desired and the Giver of all that is good in this world. Give us, as Thou gavest to Thy faithful handmaiden St These of the Child Jesus, to make a holy use of earthly things and to make them serve on for Thy Glory.

Father, Who doest feed the birds of the air and clothe the lilies of the valley, forsake not the souls of those who trust in Thee.

St Therese of the Child Jesus who ever used the things of this world according to the order willed by God, you made earthly gifts serve to merit those that are heavenly, we ask you to obtain for us all that is necessary for us during our life upon earth. Obtain for us the favors we crave and implore thorugh your powerful intercession. Amen.

Why do we implore Mercy?

In the glossary of the CCC 2nd Edition, there is given a definition of mercy, which is as follows:

The loving kindness, compassion, or forbearance shown to one who offends.

In the Byzantine Church, the priest says "Let us pray to the Lord" (Господу помолимся) and we reply "Lord have mercy" (Господи помилуй, Κυριε ελεισον)

I find it rather interesting during the present pontificate we're speaking of Mercy. But in order for us to speak of it, we need to know what in the world that we're talking about, and whether an action in of itself is merciful.

The one thing I'd like to add to the definition of mercy that I've provided you is that mercy does not always imply kindness. In some situations we have to justly "be mean" in order to be merciful...

It is rather merciful to not allow a person to commit a mortal sin when receiving Communion in particular when this situation has gone public for everyone to know, and to receive would cause scandal amongst the Faithful. This is why the Church has CIC 915, not as a weapon, but rather as the greatest mercy she can provide to the Faithful, to help them not drown themselves further into the abyss. The same goes for the public knowledge of those that have re-married (Separation or Divorce does not exclude one from Communion per se)

At the same token it is merciful to allow people to present their case when they've been accused of a wrong doing. So of course it is positive as well. But Mercy can never be at the exemption of Truth.

Lord have mercy, we beg of Him to have compassion for our weakness...in His compassion for His creation, he gives us free will to serve Him...and so often we fail, and yet He still loves us...and in His mercy allows us another day.

Let us thank the Lord for His mercy, for without it, we're screwed.

Pax Vobis

St Therese Novena Day 7

O Heavenly Father, Who has bestowed upon us so many benefits through the intercession of St Therese of the Child Jesus, and willest that we should honour this lovable saint with a special devotion, we earnestly implore Thee of Thy fatherly loving-kindness the grace o be ever faithful in veneration of her, invoking and imitating her virtues.

It is good for us to pay honor to the Saints. Thou has placed these blessed Saints as powerful mediators between ourselves and Thee, that so Thou mayest bestow upon us more ready and more abundant aids. That which our prayer cannot obtain, theirs will obtain for us.

Thou has willed that the Saints should be our models. They once were what we are; we can with Thy grace become what they are, what they have done, we can do in our turn, Father, give us a true and lasting devotion towards St Therese of the Child Jesus, a devotion well ordered, constant, a devotion that will sanctify us an lead us to Thee o Whom all he homage we pay o the Saints returns.

St Therese of the Child Jesus, placed by the Church upon our altars to be our protectress with God and model in Christian life, obtain for us, we ask of you, ever to have you in honor, to venerate you, to invoke you, to imitate you for the greater glory of God and the greater good of our souls. Obtain for us the favors we crave and implore through your powerful intercession Amen.

St Therese Novena Day 6

O Heavenly Father, Who bestowed upon the Blessed Virgin Mary the greatest and most precious graces and privileges and called her to become the Mother of Thy Son Jesus also giving her to be our Mother, we beseech thee through the intercession of St Therese of the Child Jesus ever so faithful to honor this beloved Virgin, whose radiant countenance and gracious smile she one day beheld to grant us too the inestimable favor of being the very loving children of this Holy Mother.

We need her maternal mediation, for this good Mother is the way that leads to Jesus, and she is the treasurer of all the graces that our Saviour acquired for us by the shedding of His Precious Blood
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We thank Thee, O Father, for having given us the Blessed Virgin to be our Mother; and our guide along our life's path, and we beseech Thee that, like St Therese of the Child Jesus, we may be true imitators of her virtues of her perfect humanity, her immaculate purity, and her ardent love. We look to her for he greatest succor now and at the hour of hour death.

St Therese of the Child Jesus who ever manifested a great love for the One you named the Immaculate Virgin, and from whom you received so many benefits, we ask you to obtain for us the grace to imitate your tender devotion towards her and help us to reproduce her beautiful and admirable virtues even as you yourself did. Obtain for us the favors we crave and implore through your powerful intercession. Amen.

Thought of the day

Sometimes the biggest obstacle to holiness, is the person staring you in the mirror