One Ave and Prayer, O Domina Mea! for Victory in Temptations, especially those against Chastity

 

1 Ave Maria

O Domina Mea

O My Queen! my Mother! I give thee all myself, and, to show my devotion to thee, I consecrate to thee this day my eyes, ears, mouth, heart, my entire self. Wherefore, O loving Mother, as I am thy own, keep me, defend me, as thy property and possession.

(Indulgence 100 days--Pius IX)

Ejaculations most powerful and efficacious when tempted by impure thoughts. 

✤Mother most pure, pray for me. 

✤Mother most chaste, pray for me. 

✤Mother inviolate, pray for me. 

✤Mother undefiled, pray for me.

  

Prayer of the Most Holy Virgin Mother of the Incarnate Word

 

Most holy Virgin, Mother of the incarnate Word, A treasure house of grace, and refuge of us wretched sinners, with lively faith we have recourse to thy motherly love, and ask of thee the grace of ever doing God's will and thine. In thy most holy hands we place our hearts, and of thee we ask health of body and soul; and, as we have the sure hope that thou, our most loving Mother, wilt hear us, we say to thee with lively faith:

Hail Mary, three times.

Let us pray:

Defend, we beseech thee, O Lord! through the intercession of the blessed Mary, ever virgin, Thy servants from all infirmity; and mercifully deign to guard them, prostrate in the sincerity of their hearts before Thee, against the snares of the enemy. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

(Indulgence of 100 days, once a day. Leo XII, Aug. n, 1824.)

March 25 – The Annunciation of the Ever Blessed Virgin

 

This is a great day, not only to man, but even to God himself; for it is the anniversary of the most solemn event that time has ever witnessed. On this day, the Divine Word, by which the Father created the world, made made flesh in the womb of a Virgin, and dwelt among us. We must spend it in joy. While we adore the Son of God who humbled himself by thus becoming Man, let us give thanks to the Father, who so loved the world, as to give his Only Begotten Son; let us give thanks to the Holy Ghost, whose almighty power achieves the great mystery. We are in the very midst of Lent, and yet the ineffable joys of Christmas are upon us: our Emmanuel is conceived on this day, and nine months hence, will be born in Bethlehem, and the Angels will invite us to come and honor the sweet Babe.

During Septuagesima Week, we meditated upon the fall of our First Parents, and the triple sentence pronounced by God against the serpent, the woman, and Adam. Our hearts were filled with fear as we reflected on the divine malediction, the effects of which are to be felt by all generations, even to the end of the world. But, in the midst of the anathemas then pronounced against us, there was a promise made us by our God; it was a promise of salvation, and it enkindled hope within us. In pronouncing sentence against the serpent, God said, that his head should one day be crushed, and that, too, by a Woman.

The time has come for the fulfillment of this promise. The world has been in expectation for four thousand years; and the hope of its deliverance has been kept up, in spite of ail its crimes. During this time, God has made use of miracles, prophecies, and types, as a renewal of the engagement he has entered into with mankind. The blood of the Messias has passed from Adam to Noah; from Shem to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; from David and Solomon to Joachim; and now it flows in the veins of Mary, Joachim’s Daughter. Mary is the Woman by whom is to be taken from our race the curse that lies upon it. God has decreed that she should be Immaculate; and, thereby, has set an irreconcilable enmity between her and the serpent. She, a daughter of Eve, is to repair all the injury done by her Mother’s fall; she is to raise up her sex from, the degradation into which it has been cast; she is to co-operate, directly and really, in the victory which the Son of God is about to gain over his and our enemy.

A tradition, which has come down from the Apostolic Ages, tell us that the great Mystery of the Incarnation was achieved on the twenty-fifth day of March. It was at the hour of midnight, when the most Holy Virgin was alone and absorbed in prayer, that the Archangel Gabriel appeared before her, and asked her, in the name of the Blessed Trinity, to consent to become the mother of God. Let us assist, in spirit, at this wonderful interview between the Angel and the Virgin: and at the same time, let us think of that other interview, which took place between Eve and the serpent. A holy Bishop and Martyr of the 2^nd century, Saint Ireneus—who had received the tradition from the very disciples of the Apostles—shows us that Nazareth is the counterpart of Eden.

In the garden of delights, there is a virgin and an angel; and a conversation takes place between them. At Nazareth, a virgin is also spoken to by an angel, and she answers him; but the angel of the earthly Paradise is a spirit of darkness, and he of Nazareth is a spirit of light. In both instances, it is the Angel that has the first word. Why, said the serpent to Eve, why hath God commanded you, that you should not eat of every tree of Paradise? His question implies impatience and a solicitation to evil; he has contempt for the frail creature to whom he addresses it, but he hates the image of God which is upon her.

See, on the other hand, the Angel of light; see with what composure and peacefulness he approaches the Virgin of Nazareth, the new Eve; and how respectfully he bows himself down before her: Hail full of grace! The Lord is with thee! Blessed art thou among women! Such language is evidently of heaven: none but an Angel could speak thus to Mary.

Eve imprudently listens to the tempter’s words; she answers him; she enters into conversation with one that dares to ask her to question the justice of God’s commands. Her curiosity urges her on. She has no mistrust in the serpent; this leads her to mistrust her Creator.

Mary hears what Gabriel has spoken to her; but this Most Prudent Virgin is silent. She is surprised at the praise given her by the Angel. The purest and humblest of Virgins has a dread of flattery; and the heavenly Messenger can get no reply from her until he has fully explained his mission by these words: Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God. Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bring forth a Son: and thou shalt call his name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of David his father: and he shall reign in the house of Jacob forever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end.

What magnificent promises are these which are made to her in the name of God! What higher glory could she, a daughter of Juda, desire? knowing too, as she does, that the fortunate Mother of the Messias is to be the object of the greatest veneration! And yet it tempts her not. She has forever consecrated her virginity to God, in order that she may be the more closely united to him by love. The grandest possible privilege, if it is to be on the condition of her violating this sacred vow, would be less than nothing in her estimation. She thus answers the Angel: How shall this be done? because I know not man.

The first Eve evinces no such prudence or disinterestedness. No sooner has the wicked spirit assured her that she may break the commandment of her divine benefactor and not die; that the fruit of her disobedience will be a wonderful knowledge, which will put her on an equality with God himself—than she immediately yields; she is conquered. Her self-love has made her at once forget both duty and gratitude: she is delighted at the thought of being freed from the two-fold tie, which binds her to her Creator.

Such is the woman that caused our perdition! But how different is she that was to save us! The former cares not for her posterity; she looks but to her own interests: the latter forgets herself to think only of her God, and of the claims he has to her service. The Angel, charmed with this sublime fidelity, thus answers the question put to him by Mary, and reveals to her the designs of God: The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee. And therefore also the Holy which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God. And behold thy cousin Elizabeth, she also hath conceived a son in her old age; and this is the sixth month with her that is called barren; because no word shall be impossible with God. This said, he is silent, and reverently awaits the answer of the Virgin of Nazareth.

Let us look once more at the virgin of Eden. Scarcely has the wicked spirit finished speaking than Eve casts a longing look at the forbidden fruit: she is impatient to enjoy the independence it is to bring her. She rashly stretches forth her hand; she plucks the fruit; she eats it, and death takes possession of her: death of the soul, for sin extinguishes the light of life; and death of the body, which, being separated from the source of immortality, becomes an object of shame and horror, and finally crumbles into dust.

But let us turn away our eyes from this sad spectacle, and fix them on Nazareth. Mary has heard the Angel’s explanation of the mystery; the will of heaven is made known to her, and how grand an honor it is to bring upon her! She, the humble maid of Nazareth, is to have the ineffable happiness of becoming the Mother of God, and yet the treasure of her Virginity is to be left to her! Mary bows down before this sovereign will, and says to the heavenly Messenger: Behold the handmaid of the Lord: be it done to me according to thy word.

Thus, as the great St. Ireneus and so many of the Holy Fathers remark, the obedience of the second Eve repaired the disobedience of the first: for no sooner does the Virgin of Nazareth speak her fiat—be it done—than the Eternal Son of God (who, according to the divine decree, awaited this word) is present, by the operation of the Holy Ghost, in the chaste womb of Mary, and there he begins his human life. A Virgin is a mother, and Mother of God; and it is this Virgin’s consenting to the divine will that has made her conceive by the power of the Holy Ghost. This sublime Mystery puts between the Eternal Word and a mere woman the relations of Son and Mother; it gives to the Almighty God a means whereby he may, in a manner worthy of his Majesty, triumph over Satan, who had hitherto seemed to have prevailed against the divine plan.

Never was there a more entire or humiliating defeat, than that which was this day gained over Satan. The frail creature, over whom he had so easily triumphed at the beginning of the world, now rises and crushes his proud head. Eve conquers in Mary. God would not choose man for the instrument of his vengeance; the humiliation of Satan would not have been great enough; and therefore she who was the first prey of hell, the first victim of the tempter, is selected as the one that is to give battle to the enemy. The result of so glorious a triumph is that Mary is to be superior not only to the rebel angels, but to the whole human race, yea, to all the Angels of heaven. Seated on her exalted throne, she, the Mother of God, is to be the Queen of all creation. Satan, in the depths of the abyss, will eternally bewail his having dared to direct his first attack against the woman, for God has now so gloriously avenged her; and in heaven, the very Cherubim and Seraphim reverently look up to Mary, and deem themselves honored when she smiles upon them, or employs them in the execution of any of her wishes, for she is the Mother of their God.

Therefore is it that we the children of Adam, who have been snatched by Mary’s obedience from the power of hell, solemnize this day of the Annunciation. Well may we say of Mary those words of Debbora, when she sang her song of victory over the enemies of God’s people: The valiant men ceased, and rested in Israel, until Debbora arose, a Mother arose in Israel. The Lord chose new wars, and he himself overthrew the gates of the enemies. Let us also refer to the holy Mother of Jesus these words of Judith, who, by her victory over the enemy, was another type of Mary: Praise ye the Lord our God, who hath not forsaken them that hope in him. And by me, his handmaid, he hath fulfilled his mercy, which he promised to the house of Israel; and he hath killed the enemy of his people by my hand this night … The Almighty Lord hath struck him, and hath delivered him into the hands of a woman, and hath slain him.

FIRST VESPERS

When the Annunciation falls on any other day than Monday, the First Vespers of this Feast are sung before mid-day, according to the rule prescribed for Fast-days of Lent: but when it falls on a Monday, this Office is celebrated at the ordinary time of Vespers, and only a commemoration is made of the Sunday by the Magnificat Antiphon and the Prayer.

The Office of First Vespers is always the commencement of a Feast. The Antiphons of the Vespers, at which we are going to assist, are taken from the Gospel of St. Luke, where the Evangelist reveals to us the sublime interview between the angel and the Virgin. The psalms are those which tradition has consecrated to the celebration of Mary’s glories. We have elsewhere (Dec. 8 – Advent Vespers) shown how each of the five refers to the Mother of God.

ANT. The Angel Gabriel was sent to Mary, a Virgin, espoused to Joseph.

The Lord said to my Lord, his Son: Sit thou at my right hand, and reign with me.

Until, on the day of thy last coming, I make thy enemies thy footstool.

O Christ! the Lord thy Father, will send forth the scepter of thy power out of Sion: from thence rule thou in the midst of thy enemies.

With thee is the principality in the day of thy strength, in the brightness of the Saints: for the Father hath said to thee: From the womb, before the day-star, I begot thee.

The Lord hath sworn, and he will not repent: he hath said, speaking of thee, the God-Man: Thou art a Priest forever, according to the order of Melchisedech.

Therefore, Father, the Lord, thy Son, is at thy right hand: he hath broken kings in the clay of his wrath.

He shall also judge among nations, he shall fill the ruins of the world: he shall crush the heads in the land of many.

He cometh now in humility: he shall drink, in the way, of the torrent of sufferings: therefore, shall he lift up the head.

ANT. The Angel Gabriel was sent to Mary, a Virgin, espoused to Joseph.

ANT. Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: Blessed art thou among women.

Reading of PSALM 112

ANT. Hail, Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee: Blessed art thou among women.

ANT. Fear not, Mary; thou hast found grace with God: behold thou shalt conceive, and shalt bring forth a Son.

Reading of PSALM 121

ANT. Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found grace with God: behold thou shalt conceive, and shalt bring forth a Son.

ANT. And the Lord shall give unto him the throne of David his father, and he shall reign forever.

Reading of PSALM 126

ANT. And the Lord shall give unto him the throne of David his father, and he shall reign forever.

ANT. Behold the handmaid of the Lord: be it done to me according to thy word.

Reading of PSALM 147

ANT. Behold the handmaid of the Lord: be it done to me according to thy word.

CAPITULUM (Is. VII.)

Behold a Virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel. He shall eat butter and honey, that he may know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good.

HYMN – Ave, Maris Stella

Hail, Star of the Sea! Blessed Mother of God, yet ever a Virgin! O happy gate of heaven!

Thou that didst receive the Ave from Gabriel’s lips, confirm us in peace, and so let Eva be changed into an Ave of blessing for us.

Loose the sinner’s chains, bring light to the blind, drive from us our evils, and ask all good things for us.

Show thyself a Mother, and offer our prayers to Him, who would be born of thee, when born for us.

O incomparable Virgin, and meekest of the meek, obtain us the forgiveness of our sins, and make us meek and chaste.

Obtain us purity of life, and a safe pilgrimage; that we may be united with thee in the blissful vision of Jesus.

Praise be to God the Father, and to the Lord Jesus, and to the Holy Ghost: to the Three one self-same praise. Amen.

℣. Hail, Mary, full of grace.

℟. The Lord is with thee.

ANTIPHON OF THE MAGNIFICAT

The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, O Mary, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee.

LET US PRAY

O God, who wast pleased that thy Word, when the angel delivered his message, should take flesh in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary, give ear to our humble petitions, and grant, that we who believe her to be truly the Mother of God, may be helped by her prayers. Through the same, etc.

Mass.—The Church has taken most of the chants of today’s Mass from the Forty-fourth Psalm, wherein the Royal Prophet celebrates the mystery of the Incarnation. In the Introit, she greets Mary as the Queen of the human race, to whom every creature should pay respectful homage. It was her Virginity that fitted Mary to become the Mother of God. This virtue will be imitated in the Church, and each generation will produce thousands of holy Virgins, who will walk in the footsteps of her that is their Mother and their model.

Read More at Sensus Fidelium

Prayer to ask Our Lady's Blessing

 

Bless me, O Daughter of the Eternal Father, and to obtain for me the grace never to offend my God by my thoughts. Bless me, O Mother of the Eternal Son, and pray that I may never offend my God by my words. Bless me, O Spouse of the Eternal Spirit, and by thy intercession obtain for me that I may never offend my God by my actions or omissions. Bless me, O Sanctuary of the Most Holy Trinity! Pray for me that I may love and serve my God with my whole heart and soul, and that I may enjoy Him forever hereafter. O Mary, receive me as thy child for the sake of Jesus, who confided me to thy care in his agony on the cross. Amen." Sweet Heart of Mary, be my salvation.

(Indulgence: 300 days)

Saint Gabriel, the Archangel

 

(Father Prosper Gueranger 1870)

So far in the Church's Calendar, we have not met with any Feast in honour of the Holy Angels. Amidst the ineffable joys of Christmas Night, we mingled our timid but glad voices with the Hymns of these heavenly Spirits, who sang around the Crib of our Emmanuel. The very recollection brings joy to our hearts, saddened as they now are by penitential feelings and by the near approach of the mournful anniversary of our Jesus' Death. Let us, for a moment, interrupt our sadness, and keep the Feast of the Archangel Gabriel. Later on, we shall have Michael, Raphael, and the countless host of the Angel Guardians; but today, it is just that we should honor Gabriel. Yes, a day hence, and we shall see this heavenly Ambassador of the Blessed Trinity coming down to the Virgin of Nazareth; let us, therefore, recommend ourselves to him, and beseech him to teach us how to celebrate, in a becoming manner, the grand Mystery of which he was the Messenger.

Gabriel is one of the first of the Angelic Kingdom. He tells Zachary, that he stands before the face of God (St. Luke, i. 19.). He is the Angel of the Incarnation, because it is in this Mystery, which apparently is so humble, that the power of God is principally manifested: and Gabriel signifies the strength of God. We find the Archangel preparing for his sublime office, even in the Old Testament. First of all, he appears to Daniel, after this Prophet had had the vision of the Persian and Grecian Empires; and such was the majesty of his person that Daniel fell on his face trembling (Dan. vii.17). Shortly afterwards, he appears again to the same Prophet, telling him the exact time of the coming of the Messias: Know thou and take notice: that from the going forth of the word to build up Jerusalem again, unto Christ the Prince, there shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks (Ibid. ix. 25), that is, sixty-nine weeks of years.

When the fulness of time had come, and Heaven was about to send the last of the Prophets, he, who after preaching to men the approach of the Messias, is to show him to the people, saying: Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, Gabriel descends from heaven to the temple of Jerusalem, and prophesies to Zachary the birth of John the Baptist (St. Luke, i. 13), which was to be followed by that of Jesus Himself.

Six months later on, the holy Archangel again appears on the earth; and this time it is Nazareth that he visits. He brings the great message from heaven. Angel as he is, he reveres the humble Maid, whose name is Mary; he has been sent to her by the Most High God, to offer her the immense honour of becoming the Mother of the Eternal Word. It is Gabriel that receives the great Fiat, the consent of Mary; and when he quits this earth, he leaves it in possession of Him, for whom it had so long prayed in those words of Isaias: Drop down Dew, O ye Heavens (Is. xlv. 8.)!

The hour at length came, when the Mother of the Emmanuel was to bring forth the Blessed Fruit of her virginal Womb. Jesus was born amidst poverty; but Heaven willed that his Crib should be surrounded by fervent adorers. An Angel appeared to some Shepherds, inviting them to go to the Stable near Bethlehem. He is accompanied by a multitude of the heavenly army, sweetly singing their hymn: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will! Who is this Angel that speaks to the Shepherds, and seems as the chief of the other blessed Spirits that are with him? In the opinion of several learned writers, it is the Archangel Gabriel, who is keeping up his ministry as Messenger of the Good Tidings (St. Luke, ii. 10).

Lastly, when Jesus is suffering His Agony in the Garden of Gethsemani, an Angel appears to Him, not merely as a witness of His suffering, but that He might strengthen Him under the fear his Human Nature felt at the thought of the Chalice of the Passion He was about to drink (Ibid. xxii. 42, 43.). Who is this Angel? It is Gabriel, as we learn not only from the writings of several holy and learned authors, but also from a Hymn which the Holy See has permitted to be used in the Liturgy, and which we give below.

These are the claims of the great Archangel to our veneration and love; these are the proofs he gives of his deserving his beautiful name, the Strength of God. God has employed him in each stage of the great work, in which he has chiefly manifested his power, for Jesus, even on his Cross, is the Power of God (1 Cor. i. 21.), as the Apostle tells us. Gabriel prepares the way for Jesus. He foretells the precise time of his Coming; he announces the birth of his Precursor; he is present at the solemn moment when the Word is made Flesh; he invites the Shepherds of Bethlehem to come to the Crib, and adore the Divine Babe; and when Jesus, in his Agony, is to receive Strength from one of His own creatures, Gabriel is found ready in the Garden of Gethsemani, as he had been at Nazareth and Bethlehem.

O holy Angel who didst strengthen Jesus Christ our Lord,
come and strengthen us also; come and tarry not!

An indulgence of 300 day

Let us, then, honour the Angel of the Incarnation. For this purpose, let us recite in his praise some of the pieces which liturgical piety has composed for his Feast. The two following Hymns are from the Franciscan Breviary.

HYMN I

Let us all exult with joyous hearts, and strike the tuneful lyre; 'tis the great Gabriel that comes in all his brightness from the high heavens.

This is the feast of the glorious Virgin's Messenger, and with him comes the whole host of Angels, singing in varied hymns the praises of Christ.

Let our choir, therefore, sing the praises of Gabriel the Prince, for he is one of the Seven that stand before the Lord, and do his biddings.

Gabriel cheerfully descends whithersoever God wills, for he is the Messenger of heaven, nay the Mediator that reveals to the world the secret decrees of the Omnipotent God.

Be thou, O Gabriel, we beseech thee, Messenger to us of the special gift of eternal peace, wherewith we may finally reach heaven, and everlastingly rejoice.

May the Godhead ever blessed of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, whose glory is proclaimed through the whole world, grant us this our prayer. Amen.

HYMN II

'Tis the midnight hour: quickly arise, and sing your new canticles to the Lord; for it was at this hour that was sent the most welcome messenger of life to the world.

It was at this hour that the Virgin's womb brought forth our Lord, for the salvation of mankind: and it was at the same, that He arose from the grave, having defeated his enemies.

Let us, then, arise, and in our humble choral prayers, make supplication to the heavenly Spirits; let us pray especially to the God Who gave us an Angel to guard us.

What tongue of man could tell the blessings brought by Gabriel to the world? He it is that leads holy souls to heaven, there to contemplate our Lord.

We beseech thee, therefore, great Prince, pray for us miserable sinners. Propitiate Him that can do all things, and obtain for us His pardon. Amen

The Dominican breviary contains this beautiful Hymn in honor of the Holy Archangel.

HYMN III

Gabriel, Angel of light, and Strength of God! whom our Emmanuel selected from the rest of the heavenly Princes, that thou shouldst expound unto Daniel the mystery of the savage goat.

Thou didst joyfully hasten to the Prophet as he prayed, and didst tell him of the sacred Weeks, which were to give us the birth of the King of Heaven, and enrich us with plenteous joy.

'Twas thou didst bring to the parents of the Baptist the wondrous and gladsome tidings, that Elizabeth, though barren, and Zachary, though old, should have a son.

What the Prophets had foretold from the beginning of the world, this thou didst announce in all the fulness of the mystery to the Holy Virgin, telling her that she was to be the true Mother of God.

Thou, fair spirit, didst fill the Bethlehem Shepherds with joy, when thou didst tell them the heavenly tidings; and with thee a host of Angels sang the praises of the New Born God.

As Jesus was in prayer on that last night, when a bloody sweat bathed His limbs, thou didst leave heaven to be near Him, and offer Him the Chalice that His Father willed Him to drink.

O Blessed Trinity! strengthen Catholic hearts with the heavenly gift of Faith. Give us grace, as we to thee give glory for ever. Amen.

Prayer:

The whole human race is indebted to Thee, O Gabriel! and, on this day, we would fain pay thee the honour and gratitude we owe thee. Thou wast moved to holy compassion when seeing the miseries of the world; for all flesh had corrupted its way, and the forgetfulness of God increased with each new generation of men. Then did the Most High commission thee to bring to the world the good tidings of its Salvation. How beautiful thy steps, O Prince of the heavenly court, as thou camest down to this our humble sphere! How tender and fraternal is thy love of man, whose nature, though so inferior to thine own, was to be raised, by the mystery of the Incarnation, to union with God Himself! With what respectful awe didst thou not approach the Virgin, who surpassed all the Angels in holiness!

Blessed Messenger of our Redemption! whom God selects as his Minister when He would show His power, we beseech thee, offer the homage of our gratitude to Him that thus sent thee. Help us to pay the immense debt we owe to the Father, Who so loved the world, as to give it his Only Begotten Son (St. John, iii. 16.); to the Son, Who emptied himself, taking the form of a servant; and to the Holy Ghost, who rested on the Flower that sprang up out of the root of Jesse (Is. xi. 1).

'Twas thou, O Gabriel! that taughtest us the salutation wherewith we should greet Mary full of grace. Thou wast the first to pronounce these sublime words, which thou broughtest from heaven. The children of the Church are now, day and night, repeating these words of thine; pray for us that we may say them in such a manner, as that our Blessed Mother may find them worthy of her acceptance.

Angel of Strength, Friend of Mankind! relent not in thy ministry of aiding us. We are surrounded by terrible enemies; our weakness makes them bold: come to our assistance, get us courage. Pray for us during these days of conversion and penance. Obtain for us the knowledge of all we owe to God in consequence of that ineffable mystery of the Incarnation, of which thou wast the first witness. We have forgotten our duties to the Man-God, and we have offended Him: enlighten us, that so, henceforth, we may be faithful to His teachings and examples. Raise up our thoughts to the happy abode where thou dwellest; assist us to merit the places left vacant by the fallen Angels, for God has reserved them for his elect among men.

Pray, O Gabriel, for the Church Militant, and defend her against the attacks of hell. The times are evil; the spirits of malice are let loose, nor can we make stand against them, unless with God's help. It is by His Holy Angels that he give victory to His Spouse. Be thou, O Strength of God! foremost in the ranks. Drive heresy back, keep schism down, foil the false wisdom of men, frustrate the policy of the world, arouse the well-minded from apathy; that thus, the Christ Whom thou didst announce, may reign over the earth He has redeemed, and that we may sing together with Thee and the whole angelic choir: Glory be to God! Peace to men!

St. Benedict, Abbot

 

Put Christ before everything. Do not place absolutely anything before Christ–From The Rule of Saint Benedict

by Fr. Prosper Gueranger

Forty days after the white dove of Cassino had mounted to heaven, Benedict, her glorious Brother, ascended by a bright path to the blissful abode, where they were to be united for ever. Both of them reached the heavenly country during that portion of the year, which corresponds with the holy Season of Lent. It frequently happens, however, that St. Scholastica's feast is kept before Lent has begun; whereas St . Benedict's day, the twenty-first of March, always comes during the Season of penance. God, Who is the Sovereign Master of time, willed that the Faithful, whilst practising their exercises of penance, should always have before their eyes a Saint, whose example and intercession should inspire them with courage.

With what profound veneration ought we not to celebrate the Festival of this wonderful Saint, who, as St. Gregory says, " was filled with the spirit of all the Just!" If we consider his virtues, we find nothing superior in the annals of perfection presented to our admiration by the Church. Love of God and man, humility, the gift of prayer, dominion over the passions, form him into a master-piece of the grace of the Holy Ghost. Miracles seem to constitute his life: he cures the sick, commands the elements, casts out devils, and raises the dead to life. The spirit of prophecy unfolds futurity to him; and the most intimate thoughts of men are not too distant for the eye of his mind to scan. These superhuman qualifications are heightened by a sweet majesty, a serene gravity, and a tender charity, which shine in every page of his wonderful Life; and it is one of his holiest children who wrote it, St. Gregory the Great. It is this holy Pope and Doctor, who had the honour of telling posterity all the wonders which God vouchsafed to work in his servant Benedict.

Yes, posterity had a right to know the life and virtues of a man, whose salutary influence upon the Church and society has been so observable during the ages of the Christian era. To describe the influence exercised by the spirit of St. Benedict, we should have to transcribe the annals of all the nations of the Western Church, from the 7th century down to our own times. Benedict is the Father of Europe. By his Benedictines, numerous as the stars of heaven and as the sands of the sea-shore, he rescued the last remnants of Roman vigour from the total annihilation threatened by the invasion of Barbarians; he presided over the establishment of the public and private laws of those nations, which grew out of the ruins of the Roman Empire; he carried the Gospel and civilization into England, Germany, and the Northern countries, including Slavonia; he taught agriculture; he put an end to slavery; and to conclude, he saved the precious deposit of the arts and sciences from the tempest which would have swept them from the world, and would have left mankind a prey to a gloomy and fatal ignorance.

And Benedict did all this by that little book, which we call his "Rule." This admirable code of Christian perfection and prudence disciplined the countless legions of Religious, by whom the Holy Patriarch achieved all these prodigies. During the ages which preceded the promulgation of this "Rule," so wonderful in its simple eloquence, the Monastic Life, in the Western Church, had produced some few saintly men; but there was nothing to justify the hope, that this kind of life would become, even more than it had been in the East, the principal means of the Christian regeneration and civilization of so many nations. This "Rule" once written, and all others gradually give place to it, as the stars are eclipsed when the sun has risen. The West was peopled with Monasteries; and from these Monasteries flowed upon Europe all those blessings, which have made it the privileged quarter of the globe.

An incredible number of Saints, both men and women, who look up to Benedict as their Father, purify and sanctify the world, which had not yet emerged from the state of semi-barbarism. A long series of Popes, who had once been Novices in the Benedictine Cloister, preside over the destinies of this new world, and form for it a new legislation, which, being based exclusively on the moral law, is to avert the threatening prevalence of brutal despotism. Bishops innumerable, trained in the same School of Benedict, consolidate this moral legislation in the provinces and cities over which they are appointed. The Apostles of twenty barbarous nations confront their fierce and savage tribes, and, with the Gospel in one hand, and the "Rule" of their Holy Father in the other, lead them into the fold of Christ. For many centuries, the learned men, the Doctors of the Church, and the instructors of youth, belong, almost exclusively, to the Order of the great Patriarch, who, by the labours of his children, pours forth on the people the purest beauty of light and truth. This choir of heroes in every virtue, of Popes, of Bishops, of Apostles, of holy Doctors, proclaiming themselves as his Disciples, and joining with the universal Church in glorifying that God, Whose holiness and power shine forth so brightly in the life and actions of Benedict, what a corona, what an aureola of glory for one Saint to have!

Let us now read the sketch of his life, as given us in the Liturgy.

Benedict was born of a noble family at Nursia. He was sent to Rome, that he might receive a liberal education; but not long after, he withdrew to a place called Subiaco, and there hid himself in a very deep cave, that he might give himself entirely to Jesus Christ. He passed three years in that retirement, unknown to all save to a Monk, by name Romanus, who supplied him with the necessaries of life. The devil having one day excited him to a violent temptation of impurity, he rolled himself amidst prickly brambles, and extinguished within himself the desire of carnal pleasure by the pain he thus endured. The fame of his sanctity, however, became known beyond the Iimits of his hiding-place, and certain monks put themselves under his guidance. He sharply rebuked them for their wicked lives; which rebuke so irritated them, that they resolved to put poison in his drink. Having made the sign of the Cross over the cup as they proffered it to him, it broke, and he, leaving that monastery, returned to his solitude.

But whereas many daily came to him, beseeching him to take them as his disciples, he built twelve monasteries, and drew up the most admirable rules for their government. He afterwards went to Monte Cassino, where he destroyed an image of Apollo, which was still adored in those parts; and having pulled down the altar and burnt the groves, he built a chapel, in that same place, in honour of St. Martin, and another in honour of St. John. He instructed the inhabitants in the Christian religion. Day by day did Benedict advance in the grace of God, and he also foretold, in a spirit of prophecy, what was to take place. Totila, the King of the Goths, having heard of this, and being anxious to know if it were the truth, went to visit him; but first sent his sword-bearer, who was to pretend that he was the king, and who, for this end, was dressed in royal robes and accompanied by attendants. As soon as Benedict saw him, he said: "Put, off, my son, put off this dress, for it is not thine." But he foretold to Totila, that he would reach Rome, cross the sea, and die at the end of nine years.

Several months before he departed from this life, he foretold to his disciples the day on which he should die. Six days previous to his death, he ordered them to open the sepulchre wherein he wished to be buried. On the sixth day, he desired to be carried to the Church, and there having received the Eucharist, with his eyes raised in prayer towards heaven, and held up by his disciples, he breathed forth his soul. Two monks saw it ascending to heaven, adorned with a most precious robe, and surrounded by shining lights. They also saw a most beautiful and venerable man, who stood above the saint's head, and they heard him thus speak: "This is the way, whereby Benedict, the beloved of the Lord, ascended to heaven."

The Benedictine Order celebrates the praises its illustrious Patriarch in these three Hymns:

Hymn I.

Let the Faithful give forth their songs of praise; let our Temples echo with solemn hymns: for on this day, Benedict ascended to the highest heavens.

When a boy, and in the flower of youth, he left his sweet home, and hid himself from the sight of all in a lonely cave.

He conquered the passions of youth by rolling amidst nettles and prickly thorns. After this, he wrote a beautiful Rule of a holy life.

He destroyed a brazen statue of the vile Apollo, and a grave that was sacred to Venus: and on the holy mount, he built an oratory in honour of the Baptist.

Now he dwells in the happy land above, amidst the burning Seraphim: he looks down on those that invoke him, and refreshes their hearts with a nectar of sweetness.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son that is Begotten of him! To thee, also, O Spirit of Love, co-equal with them, One God, be glory for endless ages. Amen.

Hymn II.

All that the ancient Prophets preached, and all that the books of the Divine Law tell us of holiness, is contained in the life of the great Patriarch, which we are now extolling.

Moses was celebrated for his meekness; Abraham, for his being Father of all believers; Isaac for the beauty of his Spouse, and his obedience to the trying commands of his father.

The sublime Patriarch of our Family was richly laden with every virtue; and in his single self, represented Isaac, Moses, and Abraham.

May he have a loving care of those whom he has delivered from this stormy world, and lead them with prosperous gales to the port, where there is no fear that can ruffle Peace and repose.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son that is Begotten of him! To thee, also, O Spirit of Love, co-equal with them, One God, be glory for endless ages. Amen.

The third Hymn was composed by the celebrated Peter the Venerable, Abbot of Cluny, and friend of St. Bernard.

Hymn III.

Amidst the Saints that glitter with the crowns they have won in the holy contest, thou, O Benedict, shinest resplendent with thy sublime merits.

Thy boyhood was graced with the holy gravity of old age; the pleasures of the worid had no hold on thee, and its flowers seemed but as withered weeds to a soul like thine, that was fixed on heavenly things.

Therefore didst thou fiee from the world, leaving thy country and thy parents, and becamest a fervent solitary. Thou didst tame the rebellion of the flesh, and by sharp mortification, thou didst bring it into subjection to Christ.

But thy fond hope of concealment was to be cut short; thy holy miracles betrayed thee, and the glorious fame of thy sanctity swiftly spread through the world.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son that is Begotten of him! To thee, also, O Spirit of Love, co-equal with them, One God, be glory for endless Amen.

Prayer

O Benedict! thou Vessel of Election! thou Palm of the Wilderness! thou Angel of Earth! we offer thee the salutation of our love! What man was ever chosen to work on the earth more wonders than thou hast done! The Saviour has crowned thee as one of his principal co-operators in the work of the salvation and sanctification of men. Who could count the millions of souls, who owe their eternal happiness to thee? thy immortal Rule having sanctified them in the Cloister, and the zeal of thy Benedictines having been the means of their knowing and serving the great God, Who chose thee.

Around thee, in the realms of glory, a countless number of the Blessed acknowledge themselves indebted to thee, after God, for their eternal happiness; and, upon the earth, whole nations profess the true faith, because the Gospel was first preached to them by thy disciples.

O Father of so many people! look down upon thine inheritance, and once more bless this ungrateful Europe, which owes everything to thee, yet has almost forgotten thy name! The light, which thy Children imparted to it, has become dimmed; the warmth they imparted to the societies they founded, and civilized by the Cross, has grown cold; thorns have covered a large portion of the land into which they sowed the seed of salvation. Come and forward thine own work; and, by thy prayers, keep in its expiring life. Give firmness to what has been shaken. May a new Europe, a Catholic Europe spring up in place of that which heresy and false doctrines have formed.

O Patriarch of the Servants of God! look down from heaven on the Vineyard, which thy hand hath planted, and see into what a state of desolation it has fallen. There was a time, when thy name was honoured as that of a Father in thirty thousand Monasteries, from the shores of the Baltic to the borders of Syria, and from the green Erin to the steppes of Poland. Now, alas! few and feeble are the prayers that ascend to thee from the whole of that immense patrimony, which the faith and gratitude of the people had once consecrated to thee. The blight of heresy and the rapaciousness of avarice have robbed thee of these harvests of thy glory. The work of sacrilegious spoliation is now centuries old, and unceasingly has it been pursued; at one time, having recourse to open violence, and at another, pleading the urgency of political interests. Sainted Father of our Faith! thou hast been robbed of those thousands of sanctuaries, which, for long ages, were fountains of life and light to the people. The race of thy children has become almost extinct: watch over them that still remain, and are labouring to perpetuate thy Rule. An ancient tradition tells us how our Lord revealed to thee, that thy Order would last to the end of the world, and that thy children would console the Church of Rome and confirm the faith of many in the last great trials: deign to protect, by thy powerful intercession, the remnants of that Family, which still calls thee its Father. Raise it up again; multiply it; sanctify it: let the Spirit, which thou hast deposited in thy Holy Rule, flourish in its midst, and show, by thus blessing it, that thou art ever "Benedict," the servant of God. Support the Holy Church by thy powerful intercession, dear Father! Assist the Apostolic See, which has been so often occupied by Disciples of thy School. Father of so many Pastors of the people! obtain for us Bishops like those sainted ones, whom thy Rule has formed. Father of so many Apostles! ask for the countries, which have no faith, preachers of the Gospel, who may convert the people by their blood and by their words, as did those who went out Missioners from thy Cloisters. Father of so many holy Doctors! pray that the science of sacred literature may revive, to aid the Church and confound error. Father of so many sublime Ascetics! rekindle the zeal for Christian perfection, which has grown so cold among the Christians of our days. Patriarch of the Religious Life in the Western Church! bless all the Religious Orders, which the Holy Spirit has given successively to the Church; they all look on thee with admiration, as their venerable predecessor: do thou pour out upon them the influence of thy fatherly love.

Lastly, O Blessed favorite of God! pray for all the Faithful of Christ, during these days which are consecrated to thoughts and works of penance. It was in the midst of the holy austerities of Lent that thou didst mount to the abode of everlasting delight; ah! help us Christians, who are, at this very time, in the same campaign of penance. Rouse our courage by thy example and precepts. Teach us to keep down the flesh, and subject it to the spirit, as thou didst. Obtain for us a little of thy blessed spirit, that turning away from this vain world, we may think on the eternal years. Pray for us, that our hearts may never love, nor our thoughts ever dwell, on joys so fleeting as are those of time.

Catholic piety invokes thee as one of the patrons, as well as one of the models, of a dying Christian. It loves to tell men of the sublime spectacle thou didst present at thy death, when standing at the foot of the Altar, leaning on the arms of thy disciples, and barely touching the earth with thy feet, thou didst give back, in submission and confidence, thy soul to its Creator. Obtain for us, dear Saint! a death courageous and sweet as was thine. Drive from us, at our last hour, the cruel enemy, who will seek to ensnare us. Visit us by thy presence, and leave us not, till we have breathed forth our soul into the bosom of the God, Who has made thee so glorious a Saint.

A Staircase That Elevates The Soul

Written by: America Needs Fatima

A miraculous Staircase

The early history of the American Southwest is marked by sublime and truly heroic adventures of ardent souls seeking to expand the Kingdom of Christ. The intensity of their faith and efforts is made manifest in the convents, chapels, and schools they founded—and sometimes in miracles God worked on their behalf. One such miracle, a permanent one, took place in what is now the state of New Mexico.

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The Sisters of Loretto and their chapel

After three grueling months of travel by river and rail from Kentucky, four religious of the congregation of the Sisters of Loretto at the Foot of Cross reached Santa Fe in 1853. There, at the request of the bishop of Sante Fe, John Baptiste Lamy, they opened a school for girls. This seed, sprouting and flourishing, exerted a great influence on the life and history of the city.

Miraculous Stairs built by St Joseph

By 1873, to better accommodate their community, the sisters undertook construction of a new chapel, dedicated to Our Lady of Light. With its lancet arches and stained glass windows, it was to be reminiscent of the luminous Gothic splendor that arose in medieval Europe under the inspiration of the same Catholic Faith that the nuns were fostering in New Mexico.

But as construction neared completion, the sisters faced a problem.

Relative to its length of 75 ft. and breath of the 25ft., the chapel was high at 85 ft, so a staircase to the choir-loft could not be built according to the customary patterns. One of the architects directing the project had died, and the original plans could not be found. Various carpenters and other building specialists consulted for a solution did not know what to propose.

There was even talk of pulling down the choir loft. But nuns are known for their dauntless faith and trusting recourse to heaven when natural means fail. They decided to make a novena to Saint Joseph, the carpenter of Nazareth.

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A carpenter knocks

No sooner was the novena completed than a man knocked at the convent door. He had heard of their predicament, he explained, and, being a carpenter, came to offer his help.

The sisters immediately accepted his offer.

With the few primitive tools, a saw, a hammer and a T-square, which he brought with him on his donkey, he set to work. Some sisters also remembered some tubs of water to soak the wood to make it pliable.

Laboring quietly and diligently, the unknown carpenter soon completed a beautiful spiral staircase. Made entirely of wood held together with wooden pegs, having neither nails nor screws, it ascends to the choir loft in two complete 360-degree turns with no central axis for support.

When he had finished the essential part of the staircase—everything except a handrail—the carpenter departed before the sisters could pay him, and never returned. The Mother Superior tried to locate him in the area, but looked and inquired in vain. No one knew him at all. She visited the local lumber yard to pay for the wood but they knew nothing of such an order. The grateful sisters, though disappointed that the carpenter had slipped away, were not surprised; had they not prayed to Saint Joseph?

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Puzzled Experts

But architects, carpenters, and the like were certainly mystified. They came in increasing numbers to examine the technique that allowed such a tall staircase, with two complete turns, to stand with no central axis! They marveled further on hearing that the stairs were being regularly used by the sisters and pupils. According to the professionals, the spiral should have collapsed the minute the first person tried to climb it! And so the stairway continued to be used for a century.

The experts also admired the geometric perfection of its design, obtained solely with manual skill and rudimentary tools. They were no less perplexed at the wood used, unknown to them and the area.

One aspect of the staircase may have added to the musings of the specialists or may have been overlooked, but the sisters noticed and understood it completely. The staircase has 33 steps, significantly corresponding to the “perfect age” at which Our Lord expired on the cross for our redemption.

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Silent Witness to this Day

In 1968, due in part to the crisis occasioned by progressivism, then already taking a serious toll on the Church’s religious communities, the Sisters of Loretto reduced their activities in Santa Fe. The School of Our Lady of Light closed its doors. Its building, sold three years later, was remodeled and opened as a hotel.

The chapel remains intact, but now a museum. Visitors, who must purchase tickets to enter the chapel, can listen to a recorded history as they contemplate its interior. While curiosity and analysis lead many to admiration and piety, skeptics are left in silent perplexity.

In 1984 Professor Mary J. Straw published a comprehensive study on the chapel entitled, Loretto, the Sisters, and their Santa Fe Chapel. And tourist guides still point to the chapel as the site of a miraculous staircase.

Whatever the present status of the chapel, the staircase stands in silent and admirable witness to the faith and efforts of those pioneering sisters who dedicated their lives to raising hearts and minds to God.

Saint Joseph the Worker, pray for us!

Powerful prayer to Saint Joseph for difficult and urgent causes

 

Prayer of St. Francis de Sales to St. Joseph:

(Very effective in solving problems and needs

difficult, impossible, lost causes,

and any matter that is very important

and it seems to us that it has no solution or is a hopeless case). 

Glorious St Joseph, spouse of Mary, grant us thy paternal protection, we beseech thee by the heart of Jesus Christ. O thou, whose power extends to all our necessities and can render possible for us the most impossible things, open thy fatherly eyes to the needs of thy children.

(Mention with great faith the request_________).

In the trouble and distress which afflicts us, we confidently have recourse to thee. Deign to take under your charitable charge this important and difficult matter, cause of our worries. Make its happy outcome be for God’s glory and for the good of His devoted servants. Amen.

Pray 7 Our Fathers, Holy Mary, Glory Be