Archbishop Raymond Burke: Voting the Golden Rule--Protecting the Unborn

God bless Archbishop Burke!

~ For more wise counsel from Archbishop Burke, click here. ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen. 

Archbishop Raymond Burke on the Spiritual Legacy of Fr. John Hardon, S.J.

Prayer for the Beatification and Canonization of Father John Hardon

Almighty God, You gave Your servant,

Father John Anthony Hardon of the Society of Jesus,

the grace of consecration as a religious dedicated to the

apostolate and the grace of consecration as an ordained priest,

after the Heart of Your Divine Son, our Good Shepherd.

Through Father Hardon,

You provided for your Flock an extraordinary teacher of the faith.

You entrusted Father Hardon into the loving

care of the Blessed Virgin Mary

whose counsel, "Do whatever he tells you" (Jn 2:5)

he faithfully followed and whose intercession he unceasingly invoked.

If it be Your holy will, please grant the request I now make,

calling upon the help of Father Hardon,

so that his heroic sanctity may be recognized in the whole Church.

I ask this through Your Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who

with You and the Holy Spirit, is one God forever and ever.

Amen.

Starting at about 11 minutes Archbishop Burke shares information about Fr. Hardon and his cause for canonization.

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

St. Jean Vianney: The Power of the Priest

When the bell calls you to church, if you were asked, "Where are you going?" you might answer, "I am going to feed my soul." If someone were to ask you, pointing to the tabernacle, "What is that golden door?" "That is our storehouse, where the true Food of our souls is kept." "Who has the key? Who lays in the provisions? Who makes ready the feast, and who serves the table?" "The priest." "And what is the Food?" "The precious Body and Blood of Our Lord." O God! O God! how You have loved us! See the power of the priest; out of a piece of bread the word of a priest makes a God. It is more than creating the world.... Someone said, "Does St. Philomena, then, obey the Cure of Ars?" Indeed, she may well obey him, since God obeys him.

~ St. Jean Vianney, from his Catechism on the Priesthood ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Bishop Frederic Baraga, the Snowshoe Priest: Cause for Canonization

The cause for Bishop Frederic Baraga’s sainthood is moving forward to new territory. Documents sent to Rome concerning a possible miracle attributable to the Snowshoe Priest have been opened by The Congregation for Causes of Saints.

The October 11 opening has spurred additional movement in the cause. Bishop Alexander Sample said he has been told the positio – the written documentation of Bishop Baraga’s life – is on the fast track for examination by the congregation.

“The fact now that we have a promising miracle over in Rome at the congregation, and that they are going to take up a formal examination of our miracle over there, is what has now suddenly moved the positio on the other track,” Bishop Sample said. “Where we have been stalled for 12 years, now we’re told we’re in the top 10 on the list to be examined.”

“I think there’s a great need for renewal in the priesthood and among the bishops, and I think Bishop Baraga, with his selfless zeal and service to Christ and the people of the Church, can be a great inspiration to priests today. I always say Bishop Baraga spent his entire life and every last ounce of his human strength to serve Jesus and the Church in the Upper Peninsula. We priests need that example and inspiration to do the same ourselves – to really be selfless, to really lay down our life, to spend our life with joy,” Bishop Sample said.

Bishop Sample summarized by saying, “What does this mean to us? It means we have someone we can look to as an inspiration and an example of holiness. We’re all called to holiness. The Second Vatican Council made that point abundantly clear, every person in the Church, every layperson, deacon, priest, religious, bishop, pope — we’re all called to holiness.”

~ Excerpt from here. ~

~ For more information click here ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Cardinal Francis Xavier Van Thuan: The Joy of Celebrating Mass in Prison

"Were you able to say Mass in prison?" is a question I have been asked many, many times. And when I say "Yes", I can foretell the next question, "How did you get the bread and wine?"

I was taken to prison empty-handed. Later on, I was allowed to request the strict necessities like clothing, toothpaste, etc. I wrote home saying "Send me some wine as medication for stomach pains". On the outside, the faithful understood what I meant.

They sent me a little bottle of Mass wine, with a label reading "medication for stomach pains", as well as some hosts broken into small pieces.

The police asked me: "Do you have pains in your stomach?" "Yes." "Here is some medicine for you!"

I will never be able to express the joy that was mine: each day, with three drops of wine, a drop of water in the palm of my hand, I celebrated my Mass.

The six Catholics in my group of 50 prisoners tried to stay together. We lined up the boards we were given as beds; they were about 20 inches wide. We slept close together in order to be able to pray during the night.

At 9.30 every evening when lights out rang everyone had to be lying down. I bent over my wooden board and celebrated Mass, by heart of course, and distributed Communion to my neighbours under their mosquito nets. We made tiny bags from cigarette paper to protect the Blessed Sacrament.

At night, the prisoners took turns and spent time in adoration. The Blessed Sacrament helped tremendously. Even Buddhists and other non-Christians were converted. The strength of the love of Jesus is irresistible. The darkness of the prison turned into light, the seed germinated silently in the storm. (Source)

~ Cardinal Francis Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan ~

~ Previous post on Cardinal Van Thuan ~  

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen. 

Meet the 24 New Cardinals

From: romereports | October 22, 2010
Benedict XVI announced he will appoint 24 new cardinals on November 20th. Among them are two Americans Archbishops: Donald William Wuerl of Washington, D.C., and Raymond Leo Burke, prefect of the Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.

Other noteworthy appointees are the Archbishop of Aparecida, Brazil, Raymundo Damasceno Assis, Archbishop José Manuel Estepa Llaurens of Spain, Archbishop Emeritus of Quito, Ecuador, Raúl Eduardo Vela Chiriboga, and the Pope's current delegate to the Legionaries of Christ, Velasio De Paolis.

In total there are 15 Europeans, ten from Italy alone, four Africans, two Americans, two from Latin America and one from Asia.

Among the new cardinals is the Egyptian Antonios Naguib, Patriarch of Alexandria of the Copts, and the Archbishop of Warsaw, Poland, Kazimierz Nycz.

The Pope has also appointed senior Vatican officials such as the prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints Angelo Amato and the prefect of the Pontifical Council for Culture, Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi.

From the nominees, four are over 80 years old and therefore can not participate in a conclave. They include the Italians Elio Sgreccia and Domenico Bartolucci, the German Walter Brandmuller and Spaniard José Manuel Estepa Llaurens.

After the consistory, set for November 20th, the college of cardinals will hold 122 electors. Today there are 60 cardinals that have been named by Benedict XVI, 50 with voting powers and ten without.

This is the third consistory that Benedict XVI has celebrated in his papacy. The last was held in November 2007 when he named 23 new cardinals.

The new cardinals will receive the red biretta from the Pope on the 20th of November. The next day they will receive the cardinal's ring in a solemn ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica.

Only after completing these ceremonial rites can one enter a conclave.

When a conclave is called to elect a new Pope it is made up of a maximum of 120 cardinals. When a cardinal turns 80 he may retain his title but can no longer participate in a conclave.

Cardinals are identifiable by their red clothing—including their clerical robes the cassock and mozzetta, as well as their hats, the biretta and zucchetto. The color is meant to symbolize the cardinals' willingness "to shed blood for the increase of the Christian faith."

Cardinals are generally appointed to be members of specific Vatican agencies. They participate in consistories for important Church discussions, in addition to conclaves when selecting a new pope.

The pope is generally chosen from members of the College of Cardinals, though technically any unmarried Catholic male could be chosen.

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

St. John of Capistrano, Priest: Defender of the Rights of God

Those who are called to the table of the Lord must glow with the brightness that comes from the good example of a praiseworthy and blameless life. They must completely remove from their lives the filth and uncleanness of vice. Their upright lives must make them like the salt of the earth for themselves and for the rest of mankind. The brightness of their wisdom must make them like the light of the world that brings light to others. They must learn from their eminent teacher, Jesus Christ, what he declared not only to his apostles and disciples, but also to all the priests and clerics who were to succeed them, when he said, "You are the salt of the earth. But what is salt goes flat? How can you restore its flavor? Then it is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot."

Jesus also said: "You are the light of the world." Now a light does not illumine itself, but instead it diffuses its rays and shines all around upon everything that comes into its view. So it must be with the glowing lives of upright and holy clerics. By the brightness of their holiness they must bring light and serenity to all who gaze upon them. They have been placed here to care for others. Their own lives should be an example to others, showing how they must live in the house of the Lord.

~ St. John of Capistrano, from Mirror of the Clergy ~

 From Franciscan Friars of the Immaculate:   St John Capistrano was known as the defender of the rights of God preaching throughout Europe and fought many heresies and led the Christians troops against the invading Muslims.

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests. Amen.

Pope Benedict XVI to Seminarians: "The World Needs Priests"

When in December 1944 I was drafted for military service, the company commander asked each of us what we planned to do in the future. I answered that I wanted to become a Catholic priest. The lieutenant replied: “Then you ought to look for something else. In the new Germany priests are no longer needed”. I knew that this “new Germany” was already coming to an end, and that, after the enormous devastation which that madness had brought upon the country, priests would be needed more than ever. Today the situation is completely changed. In different ways, though, many people nowadays also think that the Catholic priesthood is not a “job” for the future, but one that belongs more to the past. You, dear friends, have decided to enter the seminary and to prepare for priestly ministry in the Catholic Church in spite of such opinions and objections. You have done a good thing. Because people will always have need of God, even in an age marked by technical mastery of the world and globalization: they will always need the God who has revealed himself in Jesus Christ, the God who gathers us together in the universal Church in order to learn with him and through him life’s true meaning and in order to uphold and apply the standards of true humanity. Where people no longer perceive God, life grows empty; nothing is ever enough. People then seek escape in euphoria and violence; these are the very things that increasingly threaten young people. God is alive. He has created every one of us and he knows us all. He is so great that he has time for the little things in our lives: “Every hair of your head is numbered”. God is alive, and he needs people to serve him and bring him to others. It does makes sense to become a priest: the world needs priests, pastors, today, tomorrow and always, until the end of time.

~ Pope Benedict XVI:  Excerpt from his Letter to Seminarians dated October 18, 2010 ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Pope Benedict XVI Announces Names of 24 New Cardinals

BENEDICT XVI NAMES TWENTY-FOUR NEW CARDINALS

VATICAN CITY, 20 OCT 2010 (VIS) - Following today's general audience, the Holy Father announced the names of twenty-four prelates who will be created cardinals in a consistory due to be held on 20 November, eve of the Solemnity of Christ the King. The consistory will be the third of his pontificate.

"Cardinals", said the Pope, "have the task of helping Peter's Successor

carry out his mission as permanent and visible source and foundation of the

Church's unity of faith and communion".

Twenty of the new cardinals, being under the age of eighty, will be electors. Their names are:

- Archbishop Angelo Amato S.D.B., prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

- His Beatitude Antonios Naguib, Patriarch of Alexandria of the Copts, Egypt.

- Archbishop Robert Sarah, president of the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum".

- Archbishop Francesco Monterisi, archpriest of the papal basilica of St. Paul's Outside-the-Walls.

- Archbishop Fortunato Baldelli, penitentiary major of the Apostolic Penitentiary.

- Archbishop Raymond Leo Burke, prefect of the Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura.

- Archbishop Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.

- Archbishop Paolo Sardi, vice chamberlain of Holy Roman Church.

- Archbishop Mauro Piacenza, prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy.

- Archbishop Velasio De Paolis C.S., president of the Prefecture for the Economic Affairs of the Holy See.

- Archbishop Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture.

- Archbishop Medardo Joseph Mazombwe, emeritus of Lusaka, Zambia.

- Archbishop Raul Eduardo Vela Chiriboga, emeritus Quito, Ecuador.

- Archbishop Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya of Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo.

- Archbishop Paolo Romeo of Palermo, Italy.

- Archbishop Donald William Wuerl of Washington, U.S.A.

- Archbishop Raymundo Damasceno Assis of Aparecida, Brazil.

- Archbishop Kazimierz Nycz of Warsaw, Poland.

- Archbishop Albert Malcolm Ranjith Patabendige Don of Colombo, Sri Lanka.

- Archbishop Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising, Germany.

Having pronounced the names of the new cardinal electors, the Pope then indicated that he had also decided to elevate to the dignity of cardinal "two prelates and two priests", all over the age of eighty and hence non-electors, for their "generosity and dedication in the service of the Church." Their names are:

- Archbishop Jose Manuel Estepa Llaurens, military ordinary emeritus of Spain.

- Bishop Elio Sgreccia, former president of the Pontifical Academy for Life.

- Msgr. Walter Brandmuller, former president of the Pontifical Committee for Historical Sciences.

- Msgr. Domenico Bartolucci, former director of the Pontifical Choir.

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

St. Paul of the Cross: "Carry to the altar the needs of the entire world."

"The Mass is the most favorable occasion to speak with the eternal Father,

 because then we offer Him His only Son as a victim for our salvation.

Before celebrating, reflect on the sufferings of your Redeemer,

commune peaceably with Him, even in the midst of dryness;

carry to the altar the needs of the entire world."

~ St. Paul of the Cross ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

North American Martyrs: The Power of Love

"Priests are to preach Christ. And if you want one intention to pray your hearts out for, that priests might preach Christ in their homilies...Pray that priests might preach Jesus."

"Pray that our bishops and priests might have the blood of martyrs in their veins. The single most needed grace in the Catholic Church today is the courage of martyrs in our priests and bishops, barring none."

"I've read and reread over the years the lives and the martyrdom of these fellow Jesuits of mine often enough to be able to tell you what sustained them in their years of ordeal and prepared them for martyrdom was their devotion to Christ in the Eucharist. Be comforted by this yourselves, tell it to others; you're in trial, come before the Eucharist; you've got a problem, come before the Blessed Sacrament; you don't know where to turn, talk to Our Lord in the Sacrament He instituted to give us strength."

~ Servant of God Fr. John Hardon, S.J.: Excerpts from here ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen. 

St. Andre Bessette: God's Doorkeeper

"It is with the smallest brushes that the artist paints the most beautiful pictures."

~ St. André  Bessette ~

January 6th, 1937. It was as if a world leader had died. But it was only the humble, simple Brother from Montreal. Forty-five years later, he is beatified in Rome. Not even 30 years more, on October 17th, 2010, he is canonized. This makes him the first male Canadian-born saint and the first saint of the Congregation of Holy Cross. But Brother André would be the first to laugh about this chain of events. He would say, "I am a man, just like one of you."

Salt + Light Television brings audiences the beauty and inspiration of Brother André Bessette's story, through the documentary God's Doorman: St. André of Montreal. Br. André's life and ministry of compassion still speak to us today. Produced by Mary Rose Bacani and Sébastien Lacroix, this high-definition production features beautiful scenes and interviews from Montreal, Rome, and parts of the United States where Brother André's spirit still lives.

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

St. Margaret Mary Alacoque: All for the Eucharist

"Let every knee bend before Thee, O greatness of my God, so supremely humbled in the Sacred Host.

May every heart love Thee, every spirit adore Thee and every will be subject to Thee!"

"All for the Eucharist; nothing for me,"

~ St. Margaret Mary Alacoque ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

St. Teresa of Avila: Delight and Consolation in the Blessed Sacrament

"In the presence of Jesus in the Holy Sacrament

we ought to be like the Blessed in heaven before the Divine Essence."

~ St. Teresa of Avila ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

The Apostles and Their Successors: The Power of God in His Church

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Pope Benedict Prays For the Miners in Chile

Please pray for the safe rescue of all the miners and their heroic rescuers!

From Rome Reports 10/13/10

From Rome Reports 10/7/10

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Pope Benedict XVI: Changes in the Papal Coat of Arms

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Pope Benedict XVI: Our First Duty--Unceasing Prayer for Vocations

"...While it is undoubtedly true that a worrisome shortage of priests is evident in some regions of the world, and that the Church encounters difficulties and obstacles along the way, we are sustained by the unshakable certitude that the one who firmly guides her in the pathways of time towards the definitive fulfilment of the Kingdom is he, the Lord, who freely chooses persons of every culture and of every age and invites them to follow him according to the mysterious plans of his merciful love.

"Our first duty, therefore, is to keep alive in families and in parishes, in movements and in apostolic associations, in religious communities and in all the sectors of diocesan life this appeal to the divine initiative with unceasing prayer. We must pray that the whole Christian people grows in its trust in God, convinced that the “Lord of the harvest” does not cease to ask some to place their entire existence freely at his service so as to work with him more closely in the mission of salvation. What is asked of those who are called, for their part, is careful listening and prudent discernment, a generous and willing adherence to the divine plan, and a serious study of the reality that is proper to the priestly and religious vocations, so as to be able to respond responsibly and with conviction."
 

~  Excerpt from Message of Pope Benedict XVI,  46th World Day of Prayer for Vocations, May 3, 2009 ~

 

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Fr. Robert Barron: The Sex Abuse Crisis and the Purification of the Church

"We are all meant to be that remnant whose purpose is to renew the Church. 

We're all meant to be those people around whom God is going to rebuild and remake His Church."

~ Fr. Robert Barron ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spiriot's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Fr. Alfred McBride: "A Priest Forever--9 Signs of Renewal and Hope"

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Archbishop Mauro Piacenza: New Prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy

The Pope has named Italian Archbishop Mauro Piacenza as the new prefect of the Congregation for the Clergy, the Vatican department in charge of 400,000 priests worldwide.

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen. 

St. Bruno, Founder of the Carthusian Order: Visiting a Carthusian Monastery

“I believe the sacraments which the Church believeth, and in particular that the bread and wine consecrated on the altar are the true Body of our Lord Jesus Christ; His true Flesh, and His true Blood, which we receive for the remission of our sins, and in the hope of eternal life.”

~ Saint Bruno ~
Quote and more information from here.

"Our life is like that woman who seemingly wastes oil on the feet of Jesus.  When you love you can also do something foolish; the most beautiful and significant follies are done for love."

" We give our life, we waste it for Jesus, for God, because we felt He called us.  It's a calling of love and we reply with love; but with this waste, breaking the vase as the Scriptures say, the perfume is spread in all the house.  I think the perfume of our life spreads in all the Church, in all the world."

~ Words of two Carthusians, from  video 4 ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Secret Life of Priests: The Real Story and True Adventure

Fr. Jeffrey Mickler, SSP reveals some of the crisis moments in the ministry of priests  and how in the quiet they save lives as well as souls.

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests. Amen.

Laity Asked to Fast for Priests on October 23, 2010

”…prayer united with fasting is the most powerful force in human history.”

~  Pope John Paul II ~

The Fifth annual, worldwide Lay Fast for Priests will take place on Saturday, 23 October 2010.

Every lay member of the Body of Christ is invited to join the global fasters from all corners of

the Universal Church who want to lift up our priests to Almighty God for their protection, divine

sustenance and fidelity to the ministry of Holy Orders.

Suggested Format of Fast:

FAST will be from Dawn until 3.00 PM.
Participants can fast from any thing that will allow each to share in some way in the sacrifice of Our Lord. Fasting from Food, Television, Speech,Cigarettes or anything else will be offered for the fast hours on behalf of our priests in the local, national and Universal Church.

~ For more information on Day of Fast for Priests, click here. ~

St. Therese of Lisieux's Prayer for Priests

St. Thérèse’s devotion to the Priesthood is to be found in all its fullness in a prayer which she
used to say daily and which she learnt off by heart; this is all the more remarkable in view of
her known distaste for lengthy set forms of prayer.

"O Holy Father, may the torrents of love flowing from the sacred wounds of Thy Divine Son bring forth priests like unto the beloved disciple John who stood at the foot of the Cross; priests: who as a pledge of Thine own most tender love will lovingly give Thy Divine Son to the souls of men.

May Thy priests be faithful guardians of Thy Church, as John was of Mary, whom he received into his house. Taught bythis loving Mother who suffered so much on Calvary, may they display a mother’s care and thoughtfulness towards Thy children. May they teach souls to enter into close union with Thee through Mary who, as the Gate of Heaven, is specially the guardian of the treasures of Thy Divine Heart.

Give us priests who are on fire, and who are true children of Mary, priests who will give Jesus to souls with the same tenderness and care with which Mary carried the Little Child of Bethlehem.
Mother of sorrows and of love, out of compassion for Thy beloved Son, open in our hearts deep wells of love, so that we may console Him and give Him a generation of priests formed in thy school and having all the tender thoughtfulness of thine own spotless love."

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

Fr. Mark Kirby: Reparation Needed for Offenses Against Jesus in the Eucharist

AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM FATHER MARK KIRBY--

Today I received this message from a friend in the state of New York :

"Four ciboria were sold/given to a local antiques dealer. All of them contained particles of the Most Blessed Sacrament, and one ciborium was from a church that closed in 1996. Imagine, Our Lord was in there for that long."

How and why does this sort of thing happen? It causes me a piercing sorrow because it is emblematic of the widespread loss of faith in the adorable mystery of the Most Holy Eucharist that is a cancer at the heart of the Church.

Adoration in a spirit of reparation is more than ever necessary. Where are the adorers and reparators who will console the Heart of Jesus, wounded by the irreverence, coldness, indifference, and sacrilege that He receives "in the house of them that loved Him," and in the Sacrament of His Love?

~ Excerpts from Fr. Kirby's heartbreaking blog post at Vultus Christi ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.

St. Therese of Lisieux: Powerful Little Acts of Charity

"By our little acts of charity practiced in the shade we convert souls far away,

we help missionaries, we win for them abundant alms;

and by that means build actual dwellings spiritual and material for our Eucharistic Lord."

~ St. Therese of Lisieux ~

Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, Mother of all priests and our Mother, help us respond generously to the Holy Spirit's request, through the voice of His Church, to offer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.