Friday, February 25, 2011

St. Jean Vianney: The Challenges of His Vocation to the Priesthood

Fr. Galen Bank speaks about St. John Vianney's role in the Church, his Spirituality and the challenge of the Priesthood to become another Christ. He talks about his struggle to become a priest, his own mentor, his holiness, and his astounding gift in the confessional that transformed his parish and the universal church. St. John Vianney, Curé of Ars, is the patron saint of priests (especially honoured during the 'Year for Priests').


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 odffer up to God Eucharistic adoration for priests.  Amen.


Thursday, February 24, 2011

Prayer for the Sanctification of Priests, for Priests in Purgatory, and for Vocations

"If the faithful love Me, if they want to glorify Me as is their duty of love, nothing can be greater for them to do for Me than what they do for My priests, which is as they would have done for Me Myself..."

"The mission of faithful souls lasts, to free priests from that place of purification, to gain for Me the joy of seeing them finally in the bosom of my glory. This will be an act of charity for them and a joy that they will give Me."
~ Jesus to Venerable Concepcion Cabrera de Armida ~

Excerpted Introduction from the book Praying for Our Priests:
There can be no more fruitful investment in the life of Holy Mother Church than time spent in prayer for Her priests and vocations to the priesthood. This project had its origin in the early days of 2006 when Monsignor Peter Dunne, recovering from a long and critical illness, experienced a deepening awareness of the need to pray for his brother priests in Purgatory. (emphasis mine)

At the same time, Vicki Herout, his longtime caregiver, spiritual daughter, and coworker in many projects, began to realize in her own prayers an intense and persistent call to pray for the priesthood. Eventually, they brought together a group that has continued to meet regularly to pray for priests. This booklet, initially compiled as an aid to this prayer group, has been adapted for use by individuals as well as small and large groups in a variety of settings.

The meditations on the priesthood that you will read in this booklet came out of the hearts and prayers of the authors – out of the heart of Monsignor Dunne who has loved and lived his priesthood to the fullest for sixty-five years – and out of the many months his coauthor spent praying, meditating and writing before the Blessed Sacrament. These prayers are meant for all to pray – priests, religious and laity – but they are written with the special purpose of providing insights into the life of a priest and into the mystery of the priesthood itself that will awaken and encourage in the laity a desire to pray for priests and for holy vocations.

As this booklet is about to be published, the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, has announced a special ‘Year for Priests’, emphasizing the centrality of Christ in the “…priestly ministry, without which there would be no Eucharist, no mission, not even the Church.” The Holy Father, in his message for the World Day of Prayer for Vocations in May, 2009, also stressed that “…prayer for vocations should be continuous and trusting.” Dear readers, just as we believe that there is no more fruitful investment in the life of the Church than prayer for Her priests, so we believe that one of the many fruits of a holy priesthood is vocations. We pray that this booklet will be an aid to those who will answer the Holy Father’s call to prayer – throughout the year and beyond.

~ Excerpted from page 4 of Praying for Our Priests. ~

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.

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Pope Benedict XVI: "I Entrust Myself to Your Prayers."

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

"After the great Pope John Paul II, the Cardinals have elected me, a simple and humble labourer in the vineyard of the Lord.

"The fact that the Lord knows how to work and to act even with inadequate instruments comforts me, and above all I entrust myself to your prayers.

"Let us move forward in the joy of the Risen Lord, confident of his unfailing help. The Lord will help us and Mary, his Most Holy Mother, will be on our side. Thank you."


FIRST GREETING OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI

Central loggia of St. Peter's Basilica
Tuesday, 19 April 2005


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.

Friday, February 18, 2011

St. John Eudes and Pope Benedict XVI: The Blessing of Saintly Shepherds

"One of the basic characteristics of a shepherd must be to love the people entrusted to him, even as he loves Christ whom he serves. “Feed my sheep”, says Christ to Peter, and now, at this moment, he says it to me as well. Feeding means loving, and loving also means being ready to suffer. Loving means giving the sheep what is truly good, the nourishment of God’s truth, of God’s word, the nourishment of his presence, which he gives us in the Blessed Sacrament. My dear friends – at this moment I can only say: pray for me, that I may learn to love the Lord more and more. Pray for me, that I may learn to love his flock more and more – in other words, you, the holy Church, each one of you and all of you together. Pray for me, that I may not flee for fear of the wolves. Let us pray for one another, that the Lord will carry us and that we will learn to carry one another."
~ Pope Benedict XVI ~ 

"The most evident mark of God's anger and the most terrible castigation He can inflict upon the world are manifested when He permits His people to fall into the hands of clergy who are priests more in name than in deed, priests who practice the cruelty of ravening wolves rather than the charity and affection of devoted shepherds. Instead of nourishing those committed to their care, they rend and devour them brutally. Instead of leading their people to God, they drag Christian souls into hell in their train. Instead of being the salt of the earth and the light of the world, they are its innocuous poison and its murky darkness....

"When God permits such things, it is a very positive proof that He is thoroughly angry with His people, and is visiting His most dreadful anger upon them. That is why He cries unceasingly to Christians, 'Return, O ye revolting children...and I will give you pastors according to my own heart' (Jer. 3, 14-15) Thus, irregularities in the lives of priests constitute a scourge upon the people in consequence of sin.

"On the other hand, the greatest effect of God's mercy, the most precious grace He bestows upon mankind, is to send worthy priests, men after His own heart, seeking only His glory and the salvation of souls. The greatest blessing that God bestows upon a church, the most single manifestation of divine grace, is to have a saintly shepherd, be he bishop or priest. This is indeed a grace of graces and the most priceless of all gifts for it includes within itself every other blessing and grace. What is a priest after God's heart? He is an inestimable treasure containing an immensity of good things.....

"The [holy] priest is a sun cheering the world by his presence and bearing. He brings heavenly blessings into every heart. He dispels the ignorance and darkness of error and radiates on every side bright beams of celestial light. He extinguishes sin and gives life and grace to the multitudes. He imparts new life to the weak, inflames the lukewarm, fires most ardently those who are aglow with the sacred flame of divine love...."
~ St. John Eudes ~


PLEASE PRAY DAILY FOR OUR HOLY FATHER AND ALL BISHOPS AND PRIESTS!

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.


Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Vatican University Studying How to Improve Training of Seminarians

The increase in the number of men determined to become priests opens many new challenges. The main one is how to prepare them for their vocation, a task for the bishop of each diocese and the directors of the seminaries. Trying to help them is the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross which has created a specialized center to help “train the trainers.” (from Rome Reports)

Msgr. Juan Carlos Dominguez
Rector, International Seminar “Sedes Sapientiae” (Rome)
“This is the raw material: youth, with the same background of people of their age, with a desire to be holy priests, eager to serve the Church and souls. As a trainer, I've spent almost 30 years training seminary priests, we have to help shape this raw material. It is the Holy Spirit who shows the way and we try to interfere as little as possible.”

“You have to help them in the human formation, and the intellectual formation, to know the doctrine of the Church, Philosophy, Theology, and Canon Law. We also help them in liturgical matters, to understand the true meaning of the liturgy, we aid them in the pastoral field. The most important thing, because it's the basis for all others, is to help them to pray.”

Msgr. Salvatore di Cristina
Bishop of Monreale (Italy)
“The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep, and can give his life in many ways. The important thing is to give their life: the total gift of themselves, which is something we do not learn in books or studies, but according to the excellent model of Jesus Christ.”


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.

Monday, February 14, 2011

Please Pray for Seminarian Philip Johnson: His Inspiring and Powerful Witness

"On October 15, 2008, after two years as an officer in the Navy, my life changed when I was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Putting my concerns in the hands of the Blessed Virgin Mary and my trust in Our Lord Jesus Christ, I pray that I may be faithful to the Holy Catholic Faith and serve the Church for the rest of my life."


~ Prayers requested for Philip Johnson:  Vocare Blog ~


~ Philip Gerard Johnson's blog:  In Caritate Non Ficta ~

~ Novena prayer for Philip Johnson ~

~ Video found at Roman Catholic Vocations ~

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.




Sunday, February 13, 2011

Pope John Paul II: The Courage to Follow Christ

"Being a Christian has never been easy, nor is it easy today.

Following Christ demands the courage of radical choices,
which often means going against the stream.

"We are Christ!", St Augustine exclaimed.

The martyrs and witnesses of faith yesterday and today,
 including many lay faithful, show that,
if necessary, we must not hesitate to give even our lives for Jesus Christ."

~ Pope John Paul II, November 26, 2000 ~


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.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Pope Benedict XVI: Responsibility to Promote Vocations in the Local Church

"The work of carefully encouraging and supporting vocations finds a radiant source of inspiration in those places in the Gospel where Jesus calls His disciples to follow Him and trains them with love and care. ... Before calling them, Jesus spent the night alone in prayer, listening to the will of the Father. ... Vocations to the ministerial priesthood and to the consecrated life are first and foremost the fruit of constant contact with the living God and insistent prayer lifted up to the 'Lord of the harvest', whether in parish communities, in Christian families or in groups specifically devoted to prayer for vocations."

"At the beginning of His public life, the Lord called some fishermen on the shore of the Sea of Galilee: 'Follow me and I will make you fishers of men'. ... It is a challenging and uplifting invitation that Jesus addresses to those to Whom He says: 'Follow me!'. He invites them to become His friends, to listen attentively to His word and to live with Him. He teaches them complete commitment to God and to the extension of His kingdom in accordance with the law of the Gospel. ... He invites them to leave behind their own narrow agenda and their notions of self-fulfilment in order to immerse themselves in another will, the will of God, and to be guided by it. He gives them an experience of fraternity, one born of that total openness to God which becomes the hallmark of the community of Jesus".

"It is no less challenging to follow Christ today. It means learning to keep our gaze fixed on Jesus, growing close to Him, listening to His word and encountering Him in the Sacraments; it means learning to conform our will to His. This requires a genuine school of formation for all those who would prepare themselves for the ministerial priesthood or the consecrated life under the guidance of the competent ecclesial authorities. The Lord does not fail to call people at every stage of life to share in His mission and to serve the Church in the ordained ministry and in the consecrated life".

"Particularly in these times, when the voice of the Lord seems to be drowned out by 'other voices' and His invitation to follow Him by the gift of one's own life may seem too difficult, every Christian community, every member of the Church, needs consciously to feel responsibility for promoting vocations. It is important to encourage and support those who show clear signs of a call to priestly life and religious consecration, and to enable them to feel the warmth of the whole community as they respond 'yes' to God and the Church. I encourage them, in the same words which I addressed to those who have already chosen to enter the seminary".

"It is essential that every local Church become more sensitive and attentive to the pastoral care of vocations, helping children and young people in particular at every level of family, parish and associations - as Jesus did with His disciples - to grow into a genuine and affectionate friendship with the Lord, cultivated through personal and liturgical prayer; to grow in familiarity with the sacred Scriptures and thus to listen attentively and fruitfully to the word of God; to understand that entering into God's will does not crush or destroy a person, but instead leads to the discovery of the deepest truth about ourselves; and finally to be generous and fraternal in relationships with others, since it is only in being open to the love of God that we discover true joy and the fulfilment of our aspirations".
 
"The ability to foster vocations is a hallmark of the vitality of a local Church. With trust and perseverance let us invoke the aid of the Virgin Mary, that by the example of her own acceptance of God's saving plan and her powerful intercession, every community will be more and more open to saying 'yes' to the Lord Who is constantly calling new labourers to His harvest".

~ Pope Benedict XVI:  excerpt from VIS 

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.

Friday, February 11, 2011

Msgr. Morgan Rowsome: A Healing at Lourdes, Priesthood, A Grotto in Texas

After a serious illness in 1961 which hospitalized me for three months and after having been told by doctors that I would not live very long and would never be healthy enough to become a priest, some friends gave my mother and I the gift of tickets to the Shrine of Our Lady of Lourdes. Like so many pilgrims, I took the bath in the holy water which started flowing when Mary appeared to Bernadette in 1858. I believe I had a healing which gave me back my health and allowed me to study of the priesthood, and the rest is history.

Needless to say, I am grateful to Our Lady of Lourdes and have returned to the Grotto many times. In 2001, I led a pilgrimage of over 30 people from our parish to Ireland and Lourdes. While celebrating Mass close to where Mary appeared to Bernadette, I seemed to hear a “small voice” saying: “Not everyone can come to Lourdes – why don’t you bring Lourdes to the people?”

~ Msgr. Morgan Rowsome; excerpt from his parish website ~


Prayer to Our Lady of Lourdes

O ever Immaculate Virgin Mother of mercy, health of the sick, refuge of sinners, comfort of the afflicted, you know my wants, my troubles, my suffering, deign to cast upon me a look of mercy. By appearing in the Grotto of Lourdes you were pleased to make it a privileged sanctuary, whence you dispense your favors; and already many sufferers have obtained the cure of their infirmities both spiritual and corporal. I come, therefore, with the most unbounded confidence to implore your maternal intercession. Obtain, O loving Mother, the granting of my requests. Through gratitude for favors, I will endeavor to imitate your virtues that I may one day share your glory. Amen.  (Source)

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.

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Jesuit Martyrs of Virginia

In 2002, the Diocese of Richmond opened the cause for the canonization of the Spanish Jesuit Martyrs of Virginia. This has renewed interest in the fascinating, almost fantastic, tale of a lost Spanish colony in Virginia and the men who died trying to convert the Ajacan Indians. In 1571, Fr. Segura and his seven companions were killed by hostile tribesmen at the St. Mary's mission sited on Virginia's Lower Peninsula, near the Chesapeake Bay. This was close to the spot where the English would permanently settle just thirty years later. Fr. Russell E. Smith is the postulator for the martyrs' canonization and a judge with the diocesan tribunal. Fr. Smith learned about the Jesuit settlement while growing up in historic Williamsburg, Virginia and as a priest he took up the matter with the postulator general for the Society of Jesus, in Rome. The Virginia Historical Society and the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities have also lent their scholarly support for evidence of the Spanish mission. Meanwhile, the Richmond diocese has designated St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in New Kent County as the new Shrine of the Jesuit Martyrs.

~ Matthew M. Anger:  excerpt from Spanish Martyrs for Virginia ~


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.



Monday, February 7, 2011

Seminarian Frank Parater: A Life Consecrated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus

“I have nothing to leave or give but my life
and this I have consecrated to the Sacred Heart to be used as He wills.
I have offered my all for the conversion of non-Catholics in Virginia.
This is what I live for and in case of my death what I die for.
Since my childhood, I wanted to die for God and my neighbor.
But if I go on living, every action of my life here is offered to God
for the spread and the success of the Catholic Church of Virginia.
 I shall be of more service to my diocese in heaven than I can ever be here on earth.”

~ Servant of God Francis J. Parater ~


Loving Father, your servant Frank Parater sought perfection as a student, scout and seminarian.
He offered himself to you completely through the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

Through his intercession,
 may young people answer your call to follow Jesus as priests, deacons and religious.

Grant, as well, the favors I seek,
so that your Church will recognize his holiness and proclaim him Blessed.

Grant this through Christ our Lord.  Amen.
 
Imprimatur:
+Walter F. Sullivan
Bishop of Richmond

 ~ More information about Servant of God Francis J. Parater from the Diocese of Richmond ~

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.



Saturday, February 5, 2011

Prayer for Priests

Jesus, Savior of the world, sanctify Thy priests.

0 Mary, Queen of the clergy, pray for us; obtain for us many and holy priests.



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.

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

St. John Bosco and Venerable Margaret Bosco: A Mother's Love for her Sons

"You are now a priest, and you celebrate Mass. You are, therefore, closer to Jesus Christ. But remember that to begin to say Mass is to begin to suffer. You will not become aware of this immediately, but little by little you will realize that your mother was right. I am sure that you will pray for me every day, whether I be still living or dead, and that is enough for me. From now on you must think only of saving souls; never worry about me."
~ Venerable Margaret Bosco ~


By this time, Margaret's other son, Joseph, was married and had children, and Margaret was very happy living in the Becchi house. Besides, she was enjoying the grandchildren. Life was indeed good.

In the meantime, Don Bosco had begun his work with the homeless and the working boys. He had recovered from a devastating illness which nearly brought him to an early grave. When he had regained his strength, he realized he had to have the help of some discreet, experienced woman, to whom he could confide the care of his humble home and youngsters at the youth center.

Thus, one day Don Bosco took her aside and said, " Mother, I've decided to go back to Turin to my beloved boys, but since I can no longer stay at the Rifugio of the Marchioness Barolo, I need a housekeeper. This presents another problem, because the place where I will live at Valdocco is morally dangerous on account of certain people close by, and I am worried about the situation. I need someone with me who can vouch for me morally and forestall any malicious rumor. You are the only person who can do it. Would you be willing to come and  live with me?"

At this unexpected suggestion, Margaret spent a few minutes in thought, and then replied, "My dear son, you have no idea how sorry I am to leave this house, your brother, and everyone else whom I hold so dear, but if you think that this would please the Lord, then I am ready to go."

Margaret was going to live with her son, not for comfort or recreation, but to share with him privations and sufferings on behalf of several hundred poor, abandoned boys. She was not going because she was lured by money, but because of her love for God and for souls. She knew that the portion of the sacred ministry chosen by her son, far from bringing him any financial gain, would drain him of his own resources and later force him to seek alms. But such considerations did not stop her.

In agreement with his mother, Don Bosco arranged for the sale of some pieces of land and vineyards that they still owned in their native village. Margaret also sent for her bridal trousseau, which she had carefully preserved: dresses, ring, earrings, necklaces. When the trousseau arrived, she sold part of it and used the rest to make vestments for the chapel, which was very poorly furnished. Several of her dresses were turned into chasubles, while her linen provided the material for albs, surplices, purificators, and altarcloths. The money from the sale of Margaret's necklaces helped to buy gold braid and trimmings for the sacred vestments.

It was a real sacrifice to part with these things, but when talking about it later, Margaret said, "When I looked at those things for the last time and was about to sell them or convert them to something else, I felt a little disturbed, but as soon as I became aware of it, I told myself, 'Come now, what better use could they possibly have than providing food and clothing for poor boys, and honoring the heavenly Bridegroom in church?' Afterwards I felt so happy that if I had a hundred trousseaus, I would have given them all up without any regrets."

After the boarding school was well under way, the boys began to call Margaret "Mamma." It stuck. She cooked, mended, made shirts, underwear, and socks. It was her special pride to see her boys properly dressed during the week and especially on Sundays. She made time to teach them good manners and peaceful family living. Whenever the boys needed anything, they turned to her, and if possible, she always satisfied them. She couldn't have done more had they been her own children.

In later years, as soon as the first boy aspiring to the priesthood donned his cassock and was given some authority, Margaret at once regarded him as a superior and refrained from giving him advice, reprimands and orders. In a word, she behaved as a humble subject. Yet the young cleric respectfully continued to call her "Mamma."

 When she was about to be anointed, she said to Don Bosco, "When you were little, I prepared you for confession and Communion. Now it's your turn to help your mother to receive the Sacraments worthily."

~ Excerpts from A Valiant Mother by Phillip J. Pascucci, S.D.B. ~


Prayer for the Canonization of Mamma Margaret

God our Father,
we thank you
for making Mamma Margaret
a strong and wise woman,
a heroic mother
and a wise educator.
Give us the joy of seeing her
raised to the honour of the altars
so that all may
imitate her way of holiness,
lived as daily and humble
service of her neighbor.
Through her intercession
grant us the grace
we request with a trusting heart.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

 
Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priests, 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.