At the end of the 17th century Our Lord appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alocoque (1647-1690) and asked her to spread devotion to His Most Sacred Heart. In a letter written to her Mother Superior in May 1688, St. Margaret Mary set out what is called The Great Promise Our Lord made regarding the Nine First Fridays and what we must do to earn it:
“On Friday during Holy Communion, He said these words to His unworthy slave, if I mistake not: ‘I promise you in the excessive mercy of My Heart that Its all-powerful love will grant to all those who receive Holy Communion on nine first Fridays of consecutive months the grace of final repentance; they will not die under My displeasure or without receiving their sacraments, My divine Heart making Itself their assured refuge at the last moment.'”
First Friday Requirements: To meet the requirements for the First Friday Devotion a person must, on each First Friday for nine consecutive months:
1. Attend Holy Mass 2. Receive Communion 3. Go to Confession*
*Some Catholic resources on this devotion say that Confession is not strictly required unless you need the sacrament in order to receive a worthy Communion, in other words, you need to go to Confession so you can be in the state of grace before you can receive Our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. Other sources say you must go to Confession with in eight days before or after the Friday. Even if you are in the state of grace. If in doubt, consult your spiritual director. The more prevalent view prescribes the latter
The communicant should have the intention, at least implicitly, of making reparation to the Sacred Heart of Jesus for all the sinfulness and ingratitude of men.
Our Lord made these promises to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque regarding those who practice the Nine First Fridays and have a deep devotion to His Sacred Heart. The Twelve Promises listed below includes the “Great Promise” (number 12).
1. I will give them all of the graces necessary for their state of life.
2. I will establish peace in their homes.
3. I will comfort them in all their afflictions.
4. I will be their strength during life and above all during death.
5. I will bestow a large blessing upon all their undertakings.
6. Sinners shall find in My Heart the source and the infinite ocean of mercy.
7. Tepid souls shall grow fervent.
8. Fervent souls shall quickly mount to high perfection.
9. I will bless every place where a picture of my heart shall be set up and honored.
10. I will give to priests the gift of touching the most hardened hearts.
11. Those who shall promote this devotion shall have their names written in My Heart, never to be blotted out.
12. I promise you in the excessive mercy of My Heart that My all-powerful love will grant all to those who communicate on the First Friday in nine consecutive months the grace of final penitence; they shall not die in My disgrace nor without receiving their sacraments; My Divine Heart shall be their safe refuge in this last moment.
The fast of Lent
begins on Ash Wednesday and lasts till Easter Sunday. During this time
there are forty-six days, but as we do not fast on the six Sundays
falling in this time, the fast lasts for forty days. For that reason it
is called the forty days of Lent. In the Latin language of the Church it
is called the Quadragesima, that is, forty. St. Peter, the first Pope,
instituted the forty days of Lent. During the forty-six days from Ash
Wednesday to Easter, we are to spend the time in fasting and in penance
for our sins, building up the temple of the Lord within our hearts,
after having come forth from the Babylon of this world by the rites and
the services of the Septuagesima season. And as of old we read that the
Jews, after having been delivered from their captivity in Babylon, spent
forty-six years in building their temple in place of the grand edifice
raised by Solomon and destroyed by the Babylonians, thus must we rebuild
the temple of the Holy Ghost, built by God at the moment of our
baptism, but destroyed by the sins of the past year. Again in the Old
Testament the tenth part of all the substance of the Jews was given to
the Lord (Exod. xxli. 29). Thus we must give him the tenth part of our
time while on this earth. For forty days we fast, but taking out the
Sundays of Lent, when there is no fast, it leaves thirty-six days,
nearly the tenth part of the three hundred and sixty-five days of the
year. According to Pope Gregory from the first Sunday of Lent to Easter,
there are six weeks, making forty-two days, and when we take from Lent
the six Sundays during which we do not fast, we have left thirty-six
days, about the tenth part of the three hundred and sixty-five days of
the year. The forty days of fasting comes down to us from the Old Testament, for we read that Moses fasted forty days on the mount (Exod. xxiv. et xxxiv. 28). We are told that Elias fasted for forty days (III. Kings xix. 8), and again we see that our Lord fasted forty days in the desert (Math. iv.; Luke ix). We are to follow the example of these great men of the old law. But in order to make up the full fast of forty days of Moses, of Elias and of our Lord, Pope Gregory commanded the fast of Lent to begin on Ash Wednesday before the first Sunday of the Lenten season. Christ began his fast of forty days after his baptism in the Jordan, on Epiphany, the twelfth of January, when he went forth into the desert. But we do not begin the Lent after Epiphany, because there are other feasts and seasons in which to celebrate the mysteries of the childhood of our Lord before we come to his fasting, and because during these forty days of Lent we celebrate the forty years of the Jews in the desert, who, when their wanderings were ended, they celebrated their Easter, while we hold ours after the days of Lent are finished. Again, during Lent, we celebrate the passion of our Lord, and as after His passion came His resurrection, thus we celebrate the glories of His resurrection at Easter. During the services of Lent we read so often the words: "Humble your heads before the Lord," and "let us bend our knees," because it is the time when we should humble ourselves before God and bend our knees in prayers. After the words, "Let us bend our knees," comes the word, "Arise." These words are never said on Sunday, but only on week days, for Sunday is dedicated to the resurrection of our Lord. Pope Gregory says: "Who bends the knee on Sunday denies God to have risen." We bend our knees and prostrate ourselves to the earth in prayer, to show the weakness of our bodies, which are made of earth; to show the weakness of our minds and imagination, which we cannot control; to show our shame for sin, for we cannot lift our eyes to heaven; to follow the example of our Lord, who came down from heaven and prostrated himself on the ground in the garden when in prayer (Matt. xxvi. 39); to show that we were driven from Paradise and that we are prone towards earthly things; to show that we follow the example of our father in the faith, Abraham, who, falling upon the earth, adored the Lord (Gen. xviii. 2). This was the custom from the beginning of the Christian Church, as Origen says: "The holy prophets when they were surrounded with trials fell upon their faces, that their sins might be purged by the affliction of their bodies." Thus following the words of St. Paul: "I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (Ephes. iii. 14)," we prostrate ourselves and bend our knees in prayer. From Ash Wednesday to Passion Sunday the Preface of Lent is said every day, unless there comes a feast with a Preface of its own. That custom was in vogue as far back as the twelfth century. At other times of the year, the clergy say the Office of Vespers after noon, but an ancient Council allowed Vespers to be commenced after Mass. This is when the Office is said altogether by the clergy in the choir. The same may be done by each clergyman when reciting privately his Office. This cannot be done on the Sundays of Lent, as they are not fasting days. The "Go, the dismissal is at hand," is not said, but in its place, "Let us bless the Lord," for, from the earliest times the clergy and the people remained in the church to sing the Vesper Office and to pray during this time of fasting and of penance. We begin the fast of Lent on Wednesday, for the most ancient traditions of the Church tell us that while our Lord was born on Sunday, he was baptized on Tuesday, and began his fast in the desert on Wednesday. Again, Solomon began the building of his great temple on Wednesday, and we are to prepare our bodies by fasting, to become the temples of the Holy Ghost, as the Apostle says, "Know you not that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you (I. Cor. iii. 16)?" To begin well the Lent, one of the old Councils directed all the people with the clergy to come to the church on Ash Wednesday to assist at the Mass and the Vesper Offices and to give help to the poor, then they were allowed to go and break their fast. The name Ash Wednesday comes from the ceremony of putting ashes on the heads of the clergy and the people on this day. Let us understand the meaning of this rite. When man sinned by eating in the garden the forbidden fruit, God drove him from Paradise with the words: "For dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return (Gen. iii. 19)." Before his sin, Adam was not to die, but to be carried into heaven after a certain time of trial here upon this earth. But he sinned, and by that sin he brought upon himself and us, his children, death. Our bodies, then, are to return to the dust from which God made them, to which they are condemned by the sin of Adam. What wisdom the Church shows us when she invites us by these ceremonies to bring before our minds the dust and the corruption of the grave by putting ashes on our heads. We see the great men of old doing penance in sackcloth and ashes. Job did penance in dust and ashes (Job ii. 12). By the mouth of His prophet the Lord commanded the Jews "in the house of the dust sprinkle yourselves with dust (Mich. i. 10)." Abraham said, "I will speak to the Lord, for I am dust and ashes (Gen xviii. 27)." Joshua and all the ancients of Israel fell on their faces before the Lord and put dust upon their heads (Joshua vii. 6). When the ark of the covenant was taken by the Philistines, the soldier came to tell the sad story with his head covered with dust (I Kings iv. 12). When Job's three friends came and found him in such affliction, "they sprinkled dust upon their heads toward heaven (Job ii. 12)." "The sorrows of the daughters of Israel are seen in the dust upon their heads (Lam. ii. 10)." Daniel said his prayers to the Lord his God in fasting, sackcloth and ashes (Dan. ix. 3). Our Lord tells us that if in Tyre and Sidon had been done the miracles seen in Judea, that they had long ago done penance in sackcloth and ashes (Matt. xi. 21; Luke x. 13). When the great city will be destroyed, its people will cry out with grief, putting dust upon their heads (Apoc. xviii. 19). From these parts of the Bible, the reader will see that dust and ashes were used by the people of old as a sign of deep sorrow for sin, and that when they fasted they covered their heads with ashes. From them the Church copied these ceremonies which have come down to us. And on this day, when we begin our fast, we put ashes on our heads with the words, "Remember, man, that thou art dust, and into dust thou shalt return (Gen. iii. 19)." In the beginning of the Church the ceremony of putting the ashes on the heads of the people was only for those who were guilty of sin, and who were to spend the season of Lent in public penance. Before Mass they came to the church, confessed their sins, and received from the hands of the clergy the ashes on their heads. Then the clergy and all the people prostrated themselves upon the earth and there recited the seven penitential psalms. Rising, they formed into a procession with the penitents walking barefooted. When they came back the penitents were sent out of the church by the bishop, saying : "We drive you from the bosom of the Church on account of your sins and for your crimes, as Adam, the first man was driven from Paradise because of his sin." While the clergy were singing those parts of Genesis, where we read that God condemned our first parents to be driven from the garden and condemned to earn their bread by the sweat of their brow, the porters fastened the doors of the church on the penitents, who were not allowed to enter the temple of the Lord again till they finished their penance and came to be absolved on Holy Thursday (Gueranger, Le Temps de la Septuagesima, p. 242). After the eleventh century public penance began to be laid aside, but the custom of putting ashes on the heads of the clergy became more and more common, till at length it became part of the Latin Rite. Formerly they used to come up to the altar railing in their bare feet to receive the ashes, and that solemn notice of their death and of the nothingness of man. In the twelfth century the Pope and all his court came to the Church of St. Sabina, in Rome, walking all the way in his bare feet, from whence the title of the Mass said on Ash Wednesday is the Station at St. Sabina. _______________________________ The Mystery of Lent from the Liturgical Year, 1870 Lent is filled with mystery. During the Septuagesima Time the number seventy recalls to our minds the seventy years of the captivity of the Jews in Babylon, where, after having purified themselves from their sins by penance, they returned again to their country and to their city of Jerusalem, then they celebrated their Easter. Now the holy Church, our Mother, brings before our minds the severe and mysterious number forty, that number which, as St Jerome says, is always filled with self-denial and with penance (In Ezech., c. xxix). When the race became corrupt, God wiped out the sin of man by the rain of forty days and forty nights upon the world, but after forty days Noah opened a window in the ark and found the water gone from the earth. When the Hebrews were called from the land of Egypt for forty years they fasted on manna, wandering in the desert, before they came to the promised land. When Moses went up the Mount of Sinai, for forty days and nights he fasted from food before he received the law graven on tablets of stone. When Elias came near to God, on Horeb, for forty days and nights he fasted (St. Augustine Sermon). Thus these two, the greatest men of old, whom the hand of the Lord hath raised up to do His mighty will, Moses on Mount Sinai, Elias on Mount Horeb, what do they figure but the law and the prophecy of the Old Testament pointing to the fast of forty days and nights of our Lord in the desert? Like shadowy forms they prefigured the Son of God, Who first established Lent when the Christians, His disciples, fast, following the example of our Master, when they keep the Lenten Services of the Church. Let us follow our Lord in His Lent in the desert. "At that time," says the Gospel. When? The moment after his baptism, to show that the Christian after baptism must prepare for a life of self denial. When? Thirty years before, on the same day, the three Magi adored him, a little child in the manger. When? One year from that day, at his mother's request, he changed the water into wine. At that time, by contact with his most holy body, the waters of the earth received the power of washing the souls of men from sin in baptism. St. John the Baptist had preached penance from the banks of the Jordan. Now Christ was to preach penance from the sands of the desert. John had lived in fasting on locusts and wild honey from his twelfth year (Math. iii. 4). He alone was worthy of baptizing our Lord. Now Christ is led by the Spirit into the desert. By what spirit? By the Holy Spirit, to show that those who fast and do penance during Lent are led by the Holy Ghost. To show that the Church was led by the Holy Ghost in commanding all her children to fast during Lent. Into the desert He is led by the Holy Spirit, with the burning sun of Judea above His head by day, and the parched sands beneath His limbs by night; into the desert He is led, where the hot air burns His hallowed cheek, and the burning sands give way beneath His feet; into the desert He is led, where below Him stretches the Dead Sea, beneath whose stagnant, slimy waters lie the remains of Sodom, Gomorrah, Salem and the cities of the plains destroyed by God for their sins. Here comes our Lord to do penance and to fast for the sins of mankind. Here comes our Savior to keep the first Lent.
Not far from the banks of the Jordan rises a mountain harsh and savage in its outlines, which tradition calls the Lenten mountain (Gueranger, Le Careme, p. 46). From its rugged heights flow down the streams which water the plains of Jericho. From its rocky sides is seen the valley of the
Dead Sea. From its inhospitable crags stretches out the gloomy expanse of that spot where once the five smiling cities of the plains sat amid the fertile land, but now, of all places of the earth, marked with the curse of God for the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah. There came the Son of God to establish Lent. There came the Savior to show by penance how to gain our everlasting crown by fasting for our sins. There, deep amid the desert fastness, in a cave formed by the ancient upheaval of the mountain, there He found a home. There He fasted forty days and forty nights. No water cooled His burning tongue, no food repaired His weakening strength. The wild beasts of the wilderness were His companions. The heat of the simoon from the burning desert poisoned the air He breathed. The hot sands burned His feet. The rocks became His bed. Such was the beginning of the Christian Lent.
"After He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards He
was hungry;" for His nature was human, like ours. "And the tempter came." He prepared Himself for temptation by fasting, to show us that we must prepare ourselves by fasting for the temptations of this life, to show that by fasting and by penance we are to overcome the enemies of our salvation. He was not hungry till at the end of His forty days of fasting, to show that He was God, for no one can fast for that time without being hungry. At the end of forty days He was hungry, to show that He was man, with all the weakness of our nature. Our nature had been badly hurt by Adam eating the forbidden fruit. Christ came to restore our nature to its lost inheritance in heaven, and He begins His public life by fasting. And now, at the end of that fast, the devil, who was the cause of our fall, found Him weak and hungry. He came to tempt Him in the desert, as he came to tempt our first parents in the garden. Let us draw near and see the temptation of our Lord.
The devil had seen Him baptized in the Jordan, he had heard the words of the holy Baptist point Him out as the "Lamb of God." He had heard the words of the Father in heaven call Him His beloved Son. He had seen the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove, with outspread wings overshadow Him. He says to himself, "Can this be the Son of God, this weak and hungry Man?" The demon is in doubt. He comes near to the person of Jesus Christ. He could not enter into His members as he can in ours, and tempt Him. He could only tempt Him from without, as he tempted our first parents from without. Coming near, he says, "If Thou be the Son of God, command these stones to be made bread." Mark well the words. It is a temptation of pride. "If thou be the Son of God," here is a chance to show your power. Long before the same demon came to our Mother Eve, and said, "In what day soever you shall eat thereof ... you shall be as gods." The temptation of pride. Thus He was tempted by being asked to eat, like our parents in the garden. Thus He was tempted by pride, as our mother Eve was tempted of old.
This life is a continual battle against temptation, and the Church, made up of the clergy and of the people, is like a great and powerful army in ceaseless battle array against our enemies. For that reason Lent is called the fighting time of the Church. For that reason, in the offices of the breviary we say the psalms, wherein is recalled that battle of the Christian against his old enemies, the powers of hell.
We are coming near to the sad sight of the death of our Lord. We are to see that rage of the Jews against Him which ended by His death on the cross. The Church prepares us beforehand, by celebrating certain feasts on each of the Fridays of Lent, which are like so many preparations for the tragedy of Good Friday. The Friday following the first Sunday of Lent we celebrate the memory of the holy Lance and Nails which pierced His Sacred Flesh; or, in some cases, the feast of the Crown of Thorns He wore upon His head. The Friday of the second week we say the office of the Linens, which Joseph and Nicodemus wrapped around His body when dead and laid in the tomb. On the third Friday we commemorate the memory of the five Wounds of our Lord; while the offices of the fourth Friday are devoted to the memory of the most precious Blood shed for our redemption (Brev. Rom.).
During the early ages of the Church, Lent was the time when the catechumens, that is, the newly converted Christians, prepared for baptism by fasting and by penance, before they were washed from their sins by the waters of regeneration on Holy Saturday. For many months they had been instructed for that holy rite by the saints of old, and in the Lenten Season they redoubled their penance and their prayers. Again, Lent was the time when the public penitents, those who were guilty of great sins, purged themselves from their crimes by public penance. From Ash Wednesday, when they were driven from the church, like Adam from Paradise, in sackcloth and in ashes, in tears and in fasting, they wept at the doors of the churches, till received again into the bosom of their mother, the Church, by confession and Communion on Holy Thursday. Because the people are no more saints like those of the early ages, although the Church in her motherly indulgence has changed these laws, still their traces are found in the ceremonies and the services of the Latin Rite.
Prayer
O my God! Who art all
love, I thank Thee for having established the fast of Lent to purify my
conscience, to strengthen my virtue, and to make me worthy of
approaching Thy holy table. Grant me the grace to keep the fast as a
Christian. I am resolved to love God above all things, and my neighbor
as myself for the love of God; and, in testimony of this love, I will
join fasting with prayer and alms. Amen
The History of the Five First Saturday’s of the Month
On the 13th May 1917, Our Lady first mentioned devotion to her Immaculate Heart to the children of Fatima saying “You have seen hell, where souls of poor sinners go. To save them God wishes to establish in the world devotion to my Immaculate Heart. If what I say to you is done, many souls will be saved and there will be peace.”
On the 10th December 1925, Our Lady appeared to Lucia detailing how devotion to her Immaculate Heart was to be practiced. These words are from Sr Lucia’s own account:
“… by her side, elevated on a luminous cloud, was a child. The most holy Virgin rested her hand on her shoulder, and as she did so, she showed her a heart encircled by thorns, which she was holding in her other hand. At the same time, the Child said:
“Have compassion on the Heart of your most holy Mother, covered with thorns, with which ungrateful men pierce it at every moment, and there is no one to make an act of reparation to remove them.”
Then the most holy Virgin said: “Look, my daughter, at my Heart, surrounded with thorns with which ungrateful men pierce me every moment by their blasphemies and ingratitude. You at least try to console me and say that I promise to assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation, all those who, on the first Saturday of five consecutive months, shall confess, receive Holy Communion, recite five decades of the Rosary, and keep me company for fifteen minutes while meditating on the fifteen mysteries of the Rosary, with the intention of making reparation to me.”
How to Practice the Five First Saturday’s Devotion
1) Confession: Make a good confession during the 8 days prior to the first Saturday with the intention of offering reparation for the offences against Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart.
2) Communion. You should attend Holy Mass and receive Holy Communion with the intention of offering reparation for the offences against Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart
3) The Communion should be received on the first Saturday of the month.
4) The confession must be repeated for 5 consecutive months, without interruption, otherwise you must recommence from the beginning.
5) Recite 5 decades of the Holy Rosary with the intention of making reparation to Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart
6) 15 minutes meditation on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary. Accompany Our Lady by meditating on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary.
Accompany Our Lady by meditating on the mysteries of the Holy Rosary. This can be done by reading the biblical texts of the mysteries of the Holy Rosary slowly thinking of their content. You could meditate on one mystery for 15 minutes at the end of the prayer as Sr Lucia did. This meditation is in addition to the recitation of the Rosary.
7) Say the prayer to the Immaculate Heart of Mary to conclude the devotion.
Why five Saturdays?
Our Lord told Sr Lucia that the 5 Saturdays represent the offences against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
“My daughter, the reason is simple. There are five types of offenses and blasphemies committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary:
1. Blasphemies against the Immaculate Conception;
2. Blasphemies against Her Virginity;
3. Blasphemies against Her Divine Maternity, in refusing at the same time to recognize Her as the Mother of men;
4. The blasphemies of those who publicly seek to sow in the hearts of children, indifference, or scorn or even hatred of this Immaculate Mother;
5. The offenses of those who outrage Her directly in Her holy images. Here, my daughter, is the reason why the Immaculate Heart of Mary inspired Me to ask for this little act of reparation. . (May 29,1930)
Confession
Sister Lucia clarified what should be done if confession cannot be made on the first Saturday of the month:
“My Jesus! Many souls find it difficult to confess on Saturday. Will Thou allow a confession within eight days to be valid He replied:
Yes. It can even be made later on, provided that the souls are in the state of grace when they receive Me on the First Saturday and that they had the intention of making reparation to the Sacred Heart of Mary. – My Jesus!
And those who forget to form this intention?
They can form it at the next confession, taking advantage of their first opportunity to go to confession. (February 15, 1926)”
Communion
Grace and Misericordia
During a revelation by Our Lord on the 29th May 1930, Sr Lucia clarified what one should do if all the conditions for the devotion, like the receipt of Holy Communion, could not be fulfilled on the first Saturday.
Our Lord said: “The practice of this devotion will be equally accepted on the Sunday following the first Saturday, when, for just reasons, My priests will allow it.”
Spiritual Attitude towards the devotion
Our Lady promised that She would “assist at the hour of death, with the graces necessary for salvation” the souls who make the first five Saturdays. However, it is important that the desire to console Our Lady’s Immaculate Heart by making reparation and growing in holiness is the main motivation for the practice. To underline this fact, Our Lord told Sr Lucia:
“It is true, my daughter, that many souls begin the First Saturdays, but few finish them, and those who do complete them do so in order to receive the graces that are promised thereby. It would please me more if they did Five with fervour and with the intention of making reparation to the Heart of your heavenly Mother, than if they did Fifteen, in a tepid and indifferent manner…” (15th February 1926)
The Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes in southern France is the most visited pilgrimage site in the world -- principally because of the apparent healing properties of the waters of the spring that appeared during the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to a poor, fourteen-year-old girl, Bernadette Soubiroux.
The first apparition occurred February 11, 1858. There were eighteen in all; the last took place July 16, of the same year. Bernadette often fell into an ecstasy during these apparitions, as was witnessed by the hundreds who attended the later visions, though no one except Bernadette ever saw or heard the apparition.
The mysterious vision Bernadette saw in the hollow of the rock Massabielle, where she and friends had gone to gather firewood, was that of a young and beautiful lady. "Lovelier than I have ever seen" said the child. She described the Lady as clothed in white, with a blue ribbon sash and a Rosary hanging from her right arm. Now and then the apparition spoke to Bernadette.
One day, the Lady told the girl to drink of a mysterious fountain within the grotto itself, the existence of which was unknown, and of which there was no sign. But Bernadette scratched at the ground, and a spring immediately bubbled up and soon gushed forth. On another occasion the apparition bade Bernadette go and tell the priests she wished a chapel to be built on the spot and processions to be made to the grotto. At first the clergy were incredulous. The priest said he would not believe it unless the apparition gave Bernadette her name. After another apparition, Bernadette reported that the Lady told her, "I am the Immaculate Conception". Though the girl was unfamiliar with the term, the Pope had declared the doctrine of the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary in 1854.
Four years after Bernadette's visions, in 1862, the bishop of the diocese declared the faithful "justified in believing the reality of the apparition" of Our Lady. A basilica was built upon the rock of Massabielle by M. Peyramale, the parish priest. In 1873 the great "national" French pilgrimages were inaugurated. Three years later the basilica was consecrated and the statue solemnly crowned. In 1883 the foundation stone of another church was laid, as the first was no longer large enough. It was built at the foot of the basilica and was consecrated in 1901 and called the Church of the Rosary. Pope Leo XIII authorized a special office and a Mass, in commemoration of the apparition, and in 1907 Pius X extended the observance of this feast to the entire Church; it is now observed on February 11.
World Day of the Sick, an observation introduced by Pope John Paul II as a way for believers to offer prayers for those suffering from illnesses. The day coincides with the commemoration of Our Lady of Lourdes and is an important opportunity for those who serve in Catholic health ministry to reflect on caring for those who are sick as well as those who provide care to them.
Entrusting Oneself to the Merciful Jesus like Mary:
“Do whatever he tells you” (Jn 2:5)
God of all goodness,
Look with mercy on all who suffer any kind of infirmity, sickness or injury,
that they may be comforted.
Let Your hand of healing and protection be upon them.
When they are fearful, ease their fear and anxieties.
When they are afraid, give them strength and courage.
When they feel alone, send them someone to listen and to care.
When they are confused, provide reassurance and direction.
When they are in pain, ease their suffering.
When they despair, give them hope.
May they experience Your healing presence
in the comfort of a caregiver's calm gaze and tender touch.
God of compassion and comfort,
Help caregivers to see Your Face in the faces
of those who suffer illness, pain or infirmity.
May they reach out with compassionate hearts and capable hands.
May they have the ability to calm those who are anxious.
May they be present to those who feel alone.
May they offer hope to those in despair.
May they bring comfort where there is pain.
May they provide reassurance amidst confusion and doubt.
O Lord, enclose all who are sick and those who care for them in Your healing Embrace.
We pray through the intercession of Mary, Our Lady of Lourdes.
Amen.
Shortly into my daily 3pms a few years back, this came to me and I felt inspired to write it down and decided to share it.
Humility is a treasure. Strive to be humble. Whether it seems so or not at the time, it's generally pride that encourages us to behave in ways that bring regret and remorse. Down the road, this turns into guilt that can eat us alive and debilitate us in ways that are not only detrimental and hurtful to ourselves but to our loved ones and anyone we encounter. It can keep up from living productive lives and even more importantly from the one remedy that can set us free and shower us with mercy, love, hope and peace .... Don't let pride keep you from Confession ... the Door or Mercy is closing quickly ... this is a once in a lifetime opportunity .... it's JESUS in that Confessional using the priest to confer the Sacrament of MERCY! If we only realized how IMPORTANT it is to maintain a state of grace in our souls, we'd all run to Confession DAILY! Our God is MERCY & LOVE .... but those that reject this path, must face His JUDGEMENT. I beg of you choose the Door of Mercy NOW!! He awaits you with open Arms, a tender Smile and a Sacred Heart full of LOVE!
Don't forget holy water can remit venial sins with the prayer: "BY THIS HOLY WATER AND BY THY PRECIOUS BLOOD WASH AWAY ALL MY SINS, O LORD."
The priest acts in Persona Christi - the Person of Christ - so you're not just confessing to 'a man'.
So many don't realize how very important this really IS. Eternity is very long time to kick yourself in the pants for something that could have been easily remedied on Earth. God is merciful and there's nothing that's too big for Him to forgive as long as our heart is truly sorry and we resolve not to continue in the sin.
The days in which we now live make Sodom and Gomorrah look like a tea party. How long do you think God's going to let this go on? TODAY is a good day to repent and get back into the state of grace.
Another year slips away and our hope and expectations for a bright, safe and healthy New Year quickly approach. Many are planning, and will be attending, parties with family and friends enjoying ostentatious festivities laden with good food, gleeful song & fine spirits.
Not everyone will be a participant in these joyful festivities. No. There are many, for a myriad of reasons, that will find themselves alone this night. Many experienced a solemn Christmas as well; which lends to an even emptier New Year's Eve.
This is a time to be grateful for all the things God has blessed you with. Do you have a roof over your head? Do you have food on the table? Do you have clothes to wear and a bed to sleep in? Don't take it for granted because there's many who don't have these things.
All of us who are alone should use this time well and pray to do what we can for those who have less than we do. There's many homeless on the streets in all cities. Many people who have lost loved ones this past year and are trying to cope.
At the moment of conception, we were given a guardian angel, we may not see our angel, but just as we can't see the air that sustains us, so too our angels are with us whether we realize it or not.
There's so much to pray for these days. Of course pray for peace in the world & in our hearts. That folks come to the realization that eternity is forever and our lives are just a fleeting moment in time.
We were born into this time period for an express purpose. Some are granted knowledge of this but most of us our purpose is known only by God. Everyone has an important part in God's Plan. Some are called to be peacemakers. Some are called to be helpers. Someone called to be leaders and some are called to be followers. It matters not what your calling is, it matters that you fulfill it to the best of your ability with God's grace and help.
It has been said that it is better to give than receive. This is especially true of our time and talents. There are many in nursing homes, there are many homebound and bedridden, perhaps these folks can contribute even more through their heartfelt prayers and reaching out to raise spirits of even strangers that seem downtrodden. Helping others in all forms and areas, as your station and life permits, is one of the most uplifting and joyful things anyone can do. Even if you're stuck in a bed you could go online and try to give hope; and help people who are depressed during the holidays or anytime!
Remember what He said: "Whatsoever you do for the least of My brethren that you do unto ME."
Most importantly don't let the devil steal your peace. He loves to see us depressed, he loves to keep us in the past or worried about the future because he knows these things will keep us from prayer.
So if you are lonely or depressed during the holidays, just thank God for your next breath. Thank God that you're alive and able to help others - however small it may be. Thank God for His Promises, especially that He will never abandon us.
Let us all pray for an increase in Faith Hope and Love while remembering that the greatest of these is LOVE!
As the new year approaches, let us fill our hearts with hope overflowing into the hearts of all we encounter!
And let us pray that all come to know the Truth that IS Jesus and the Joy
Our Lady of Guadalupe - Guadalupe, Mexico (1531) Patroness of the Americas
Feast Day in the USA - December 12th
The opening of the New World brought with it both fortune-seekers and religious preachers desiring to convert the native populations to the Christian
faith. One of the converts was a poor Aztec Indian named Juan Diego. On
one of his trips to the chapel, Juan was walking through the Tepayac hill
country in central Mexico. Near Tepayac Hill he encountered a beautiful
woman surrounded by a ball of light as bright as the sun. Speaking in
his native tongue, the beautiful lady identified herself: "My dear little son, I love you. I desire you to know who I am.
I am the ever-virgin Mary, Mother of the true God who gives life and maintains
its existence. He created all things. He is in all places. He is Lord
of Heaven and Earth. I desire a church in this place where your people
may experience my compassion. All those who sincerely ask my help in their
work and in their sorrows will know my Mother's Heart in this place. Here
I will see their tears; I will console them and they will be at peace.
So run now to Tenochtitlan and tell the Bishop all that you have seen
and heard."
Juan, age 57, and who had never been to Tenochtitlan, nonetheless immediately
responded to Mary's request. He went to the palace of the Bishop-elect
Fray Juan de Zumarraga and requested to meet immediately with the bishop.
The bishop's servants, who were suspicious of the rural peasant, kept
him waiting for hours. The bishop-elect told Juan that he would consider
the request of the Lady and told him he could visit him again if he so
desired. Juan was disappointed by the bishop's response and felt himself
unworthy to persuade someone as important as a bishop. He returned to
the hill where he had first met Mary and found her there waiting for him.
Imploring her to send someone else, she responded: "My little son, there are many I could send. But you are the one
I have chosen."
She then told him to return the next day to the bishop and repeat the
request. On Sunday, after again waiting for hours, Juan met with the bishop
who, on re-hearing his story, asked him to ask the Lady to provide a sign
as a proof of who she was. Juan dutifully returned to the hill and told
Mary, who was again waiting for him there, of the bishop's request. Mary
responded: "My little son, am I not your Mother? Do not fear. The Bishop shall
have his sign. Come back to this place tomorrow. Only peace, my little
son."
Unfortunately, Juan was not able to return to the hill the next day. His
uncle had become mortally ill and Juan stayed with him to care for him.
After two days, with his uncle near death, Juan left his side to find
a priest. Juan had to pass Tepayac Hill to get to the priest. As he was
passing, he found Mary waiting for him. She spoke: "Do not be distressed, my littlest son. Am I not here with you who
am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Your uncle
will not die at this time. There is no reason for you to engage a priest,
for his health is restored at this moment. He is quite well. Go to the
top of the hill and cut the flowers that are growing there. Bring them
then to me."
While it was freezing on the hillside, Juan obeyed Mary's instructions
and went to the top of the hill where he found a full bloom of Castilian
roses. Removing his tilma, a poncho-like cape made of cactus fiber, he
cut the roses and carried them back to Mary. She rearranged the roses
and told him: "My little son, this is the sign I am sending to the Bishop. Tell
him that with this sign I request his greatest efforts to complete the
church I desire in this place. Show these flowers to no one else but the
Bishop. You are my trusted ambassador. This time the Bishop will believe
all you tell him."
At the palace, Juan once again came before the bishop and several of his advisers. He told the bishop his story and opened the tilma letting the
flowers fall out. But it wasn't the beautiful roses that caused the bishop
and his advisers to fall to their knees; for there, on the tilma, was
a picture of the Blessed Virgin Mary precisely as Juan had described her.
The next day, after showing the Tilma at the Cathedral, Juan took the
bishop to the spot where he first met Mary. He then returned to his village
where he met his uncle who was completely cured. His uncle told him he
had met a young woman, surrounded by a soft light, who told him that she
had just sent his nephew to Tenochtitlan with a picture of herself. She
told his uncle: "Call me and call my image Santa Maria de Guadalupe".
It's believed that the word Guadalupe was actually a Spanish mis-translation
of the local Aztec dialect. The word that Mary probably used was Coatlallope
which means "one who treads on snakes"! Within six years of
this apparition, six million Aztecs had converted to Catholicism. The
tilma shows Mary as the God-bearer - she is pregnant with her Divine Son.
Since the time the tilma was first impressed with a picture of the Mother
of God, it has been subject to a variety of environmental hazards including
smoke from fires and candles, water from floods and torrential downpours
and, in 1921, a bomb which was planted by anti-clerical forces on an altar
under it. There was also a cast-iron cross next to the tilma and when
the bomb exploded, the cross was twisted out of shape, the marble altar
rail was heavily damaged and the tilma was ... untouched! Indeed, no one
was injured in the Church despite the damage that occurred to a lae
part of the altar structure.
In 1977, the tilma was examined using infrared photography and digital enhancement techniques. Unlike any painting, the tilma shows no sketching or any sign of outline drawn to permit an artist to produce a painting. Further, the very method used to create the image is still unknown. The image is inexplicable in its longevity and method of production. It can be seen today in a large cathedral built to house up to ten thousand worshipers. It is, by far, the most popular religious pilgrimage site in the Western Hemisphere.
The 8th of December is an important day - the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is also the day on which in 1947 Our Blessed Mother gave us the Hour of Grace.
Our Lady said as follows: "It is my wish that every year, on 8th December, at noon, the HOUR OF GRACE FOR THE WORLD be celebrated. Many divine and bodily graces will be received through this devotion. Our Lord, my Divine Son Jesus, will send His overflowing mercy if good people will pray continuously for their sinful brother.... it is my wish that the HOUR OF GRACE FOR THE WORLD be made known and spread throughout the world. If anyone is unable to visit his church, yet will pray at home, he will also receive graces through me.... will find a secure heavenly ladder and receive protection and grace through my motherly heart."
Our Lady promised she will hear any prayer we make at this time.
THE REQUEST OF OUR BLESSED MOTHER FOR THE HOUR OF GRACE:
Day and time of the Hour of Grace: December 8th, Feast of the Immaculate Conception, to be started at 12:00 noon and continuing until 1:00 p.m. for one full hour of prayer.
During this hour, the person making the Hour of Grace either at home or at church must put away all distractions (do not answer the telephones, or answer any doors, or do anything but totally concentrate on your union with God during this special Hour of Grace).
Begin the Hour of Grace by praying three times the 51st Psalm with out-stretched arms. (Psalm 51 appears below).
The rest of the Hour of Grace may be spent in silent communication with God meditating upon the Passion of Jesus, saying the Holy Rosary, praising God in your own way, or by using favorite prayers, singing hymns, meditating upon other psalms, etc.
Please copy and distribute this message. Remember to pray for your country during this hour. The Blessed Virgin has requested that her important message be sent throughout the entire world. Please help her Mission: that all souls be drawn to God, and that Jesus will be loved in every heart. This is the perpetual song of her heart. Let it also be yours.
Have mercy on on me, God, in Your goodness; in Your abundant compassion blot out my offense.
Wash away all my guilt; from my sin cleanse me. For I know my offense; my sin is always before me. Against You alone have I sinned; I have done such evil in Your sight that You are just in Your sentence, blameless when You condemn. True, I was born guilty, a sinner, even as my mother conceived me. Still, You insist on sincerity of heart; in my innermost being teach me wisdom. Cleanse me with hyssop, that I may be pure; wash me, make me whiter than snow. Let me hear sounds of joy and gladness; let the bones You have crushed rejoice. Turn away Your Face from my sins; blot out all my guilt. A clean heart create for me, God; renew in me a steadfast spirit. Do not drive me from Your Presence, nor take from me Your Holy Spirit. Restore my joy in your salvation; sustain in me a willing spirit. I will teach the wicked Your ways, that sinners may return to You. Rescue me from death, God, my saving God, that my tongue may praise Your healing power. Lord, open my lips; my mouth will proclaim Your praise. For You do not desire sacrifice; a burnt offering You would not accept. My sacrifice, God, is a broken spirit; God, do not spurn a broken, humbled heart. Make Zion prosper in Your good pleasure; rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Then You will be pleased with proper sacrifice, burnt offerings and holocausts; then bullocks will be offered on Your altar.
Few doctrines of the Catholic Church are as misunderstood as the dogma of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which Catholics celebrate every year on December 8. Many people, including many Catholics, think that the Immaculate Conception refers to the conception of Christ through the action of the Holy Spirit in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. That event, though, is celebrated at the feast of the Annunciation of the Lord (March 25, nine months before Christmas). What is the Immaculate Conception?
The Development of the Doctrine of the Immaculate Conception
Fr. John Hardon, S.J., in his Modern Catholic Dictionary, notes that "Neither the Greek nor Latin Fathers explicitly taught the Immaculate Conception, but they professed it implicitly." It would take many centuries, though, for the Catholic Church to recognize the Immaculate Conception as a doctrine—as something which all Christians must believe—and many more before Pope Pius IX, on December 8, 1854, would declare it a dogma—that is, a doctrine that the Church teaches was revealed by God Himself.
The Declaration of the Dogma of the Immaculate Conception In the Apostolic Constitution Ineffabilis Deus, Pope Pius IX wrote that "We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the human race, was preserved free from all stain of original sin, is a doctrine revealed by God and therefore to be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful."
As Father Hardon further writes, the Blessed Virgin's "freedom from sin was an unmerited gift of God or special grace, and an exception to the law, or privilege, which no other created person has received."
The Immaculate Conception Anticipates Christ's Redemption of All Mankind
Another misconception people have is that Mary's Immaculate Conception was necessary to ensure that Original Sin would not be passed on to Christ. This has never been a part of the teaching on the Immaculate Conception; rather, the Immaculate Conception represents Christ's saving grace operating in Mary in anticipation of His redemption of man and in God's foreknowledge of Mary's acceptance of His Will for her.
In other words, the Immaculate Conception was not a precondition for Christ's act of redemption but the result of that act. It is the concrete expression of God's love for Mary, who gave herself fully, completely, and without hesitation to His service.
For more on the development of the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, see the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.
The Feast of Christ the King is celebrated on November 24. This was created by Pope Pius XI in 1925 because people were living as if Jesus Christ didn't exist. The feast proclaims how Jesus Christ is Royalty above people, communities, nations, and governments. Christ's kingdom in heaven is for everybody who wants to be with Him; and it's endless.
The feast establishes the titles for Christ's royalty over men:
1) Christ is God and holds high power over everything; 2) Christ is our Redeemer, He made us His by His blood and now we belong to Him; 3) Christ is Head of the Church, 4) God bestowed upon Christ the nations of the world as His special possession and dominion
~Today more than ever this world lives as if Jesus was just 'someone' in history rather than the King of everything, including ETERNITY! Many can't even see beyond this world to realize that there truly IS another life and that it is WITHOUT END for those who love our glorious Triune God.
"Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the mind of man what God has prepared for those who love Him."
Our Lady of Guadalupe - Guadalupe, Mexico (1531)
