My prayer concerns this day

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In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti.

Today my special intention in my private prayer is for Stanislaw Cardinal Dziwisz, Archbishop of Krakow, Poland. Perhaps you will join me in praying for the man who served St. John Paul II so very well.

Say a Paternoster, Ave Maria, and Gloria Patri.

Today I am spending time throughout the day with Blessed Mother of Calcutta through her teachings.

Rumination or Contemplation
The Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta said:
"Jesus is God, therefore His love, His Thirst, is infinite. He the creator of the universe, asked for the love of His creatures. He thirsts for our love… These words: ‘I Thirst’ – Do they echo in our souls?”

Divine Safety
In my prayer today I have been called on to invite others to join with me in prayer ... (1)First, for the refugee Christians of Syria, Iraq, and elsewhere who are being denied entry into the USA and other nations.  (2)Second, for divine safety for the people of Earth and to pray that the Blessed Trinity keep us and our world safe from any interstellar harm.  

If you are moved to pray with me please do so according to your custom.

As for me I will pray the Memorare nine times with absolute confidence in Our Blessed Mother who sits right beside God the Word-made-flesh, her Son the Lord Jesus Christ, for she will convey our prayer to God without fail.

THE MEMORARE
Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.  Amen.

After praying The Memorare for nine times, then say a 10th Memorare in thanksgiving for having been heard.
Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me.  Amen.

Using St. Bernard's Memorare this way was Blessed Mother Teresa's method, and I gladly encourage you to pray in this way whenever there is urgent need and no time to rally the forces of God in a Novena.

May God be merciful to us and bless us and shine the light of His countenance upon us. Amen.

Our Lady of Kibeho, Mother of the Word, pray for us.

St. Bernard of Clairvaux, pray for us.

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, pray for us.

In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti.

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Oh, the usual, Mandaeism, Werner von Braun, ISIS, the Parousia

The Coptic New Martyrs of Egypt and Libya
who died at the hand of the evil Islamist ISIS.

Parousia is a Greek word in the New Testament  that (at the least) refers to the Second Coming of Christ and at the most refers to everything from the Sunday of the Resurrection of Christ  to His Return called the Day of the Lord  or the Day of Christ.

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This morning I had some time to reread parts of Lidzbarski, Mandaische Liturgien, Berlin (1920).  I tried to explain what I was reading to a friend recently who said, "Please stop. Stop!  You are hurting my brain!"  And so we laughed and talked of puppies and posies and pretty things.

If I had the academic portion of my life to do over again, I would have studied the communities that have connexions to the cult of the First Temple, the Temple of Solomon.  My list of those that must be considered may have included the Ebionites, Mandaeans, Knanya Christians, and Nasrani.  And, were I to feel more daring, I would have ventured to include the Knights Templar and the communities that claim descent from them.

I shared this thought with an old friend who laughed and having a bit of fun said, 'You have always been looking at the heretics asking the question 'What have we lost?"  He reminded me of a t-shirt that friends had made for me when I once made a rather passionate defence of Tertullian and the Montanists in a debate.  The t-shirt said "Future Montanists of America".

I used to enjoy such joking and having a little bit of fun with each other. There was an understanding of satire as well that has been completely lost.  And now everyone everywhere is 'offended' and throws fire-bombs of various forms at each other.

Such is the way of the world anticipating as it does a world consumed in fire.  I find myself praying very deeply that the Pope's upcoming "Year of Mercy" is indeed a Jubilee of Mercy rather than the Falling of Judgement.  But at the moment things seem to be lining up on the Judgement side rather quickly.

Dr. Werner von Braun
Dr. Werner von Braun is a name I have discovered that people under 30 years of age in most English speaking countries know nothing about.  This is incomprehensible to me, but the 'dumbing down' of children not in the upper echelon of society is a thing that has been going on for at least the last fifty years from New Zealand to the USA, from Canada to the UK, and on...  But I digress...

Dr. Werner von Braun, before dying, conveyed to his assistant Dr. Carol Rosin the plans of the upper echelon of society for the rest of humanity via a project to seize total control over the people of the world.  In his list of actions and events to come there would be terrorists, real or manufactured, to put terror into the hearts of ordinary folk so that they would be willing to surrender their freedoms for security promised by the Government with a capital "G".

Next there would come "asteroids' either real, imagined, or "created" by the nameless and faceless behind the scenes at the top of world power.  Many have followed from his comments to show how easy it would be to fake an asteroid impact using nuclear weaponry in the waters of various oceans and seas.  A bit of space junk falling through the sky and then BOOM with mega-tsunamis to follow.

Dr. von Braun then told Dr. Rosin that the final plan of these wretched monsters was to simulate a fake alien invasion from space in order to force the union of all the nations of the world and the complete surrender of rights guaranteed to individual human beings and their families.  As was once said of the television programme featuring the Bionic Man, in order to fake such an invasion "We have the technology."

In light of such cheerful thoughts I contemplate the message and faith of the First Temple which so informs Christian origins and the very teaching of Jesus himself.  God is real.  This world and what we do here matters.  But the world to which we belong is above, and the Way of Wisdom given by God will lead us home.  When we belong to God, God will not forsake us.  But if we forsake God and what the Lord has taught us, the Lord will allow us to receive what we have chosen i.e., a nation or a world without divine presence or divine protection.

However, for the faithful there is holy protection in the Way of Jesus Christ which is an articulation and expansion of the Way of Wisdom embraced by that First Temple. If we follow where Jesus and Mary walked, we will learn what we need to know from this life.  

For some terribly wrong reason today we need to see our enemies and strangers as convenient scapegoats for everything.  Should we not go along with the scapegoating, then we must not love our country.  This is a lie, but it is a convenient lie for those who try to steer nations and societies by their will to power.  

As for us, it is a lie we must confront and powerfully deny.  We must see God at work in and through our enemies asking for eyes of faith to see the Lord Jesus when we encounter him in the guise of the enemy or the stranger.  Instead of asking God, "Why are we here at this point of confrontation, Lord?", our nations are simply willing to power on through till those that oppose them are dead or destroyed.

We who love Jesus know that all of life will lead to the Garden of Gethsemane and a Cross for all of us at some point, but the promise we have from the Lord is that like His life for those of us who are in Him this life like His will lead on through death to rising from the dead, ascension, and entrance into the fulness of the Kingdom of Heaven in the presence of Christ Jesus our Living Lord and Saviour.  

So, when all we hear is bad news — of wars and rumours of wars — let us remember that our eternal security is in the Rock which is Christ Jesus and cling to him when tempests rage and days of darkness are upon us.  Be at peace and remember this:

Jesus says to you and to me, 

"Behold, I make all things new."

COME, Holy Ghost, fill the hearts of Thy faithful, and kindle in them the fire of Thy love. Send forth Thy Spirit, and they shall be created; And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth. 

Cardinal Manning's Prayer

O GOD the Holy Spirit, Whom I have ignored, grieved and resisted from my childhood until the present day, reveal to me Thy personality, Thy presence, Thy power. Let me recognise Thy Sevenfold Gifts-----the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding, of Counsel and Fortitude, of Knowledge, Piety, and Fear of the Lord. 

O Thou Who art the Spirit of the Father and the Son, O Thou Who dost baptise with fire and infuse Thy love into our hearts ——one thing, O Lord, have I asked of Thee, one thing will I seek: not riches, rank, power, earthly home and happiness, but one ray of that holy light, one spark of that holy fire which will inflame me and plunge me into the fire of Divine Love! 

Let this sacred fire flame up in me and destroy in me every remnant of sin which defiles my body or soul. Cleanse me in a sevenfold manner with Thy Gifts. Transform me into a sacrifice consumed by fire, holy and entirely pleasing to Thee. Inflame me with zeal so that I may live the life and die the death of a repentant sinner, deeply penetrated by Thy Divine Love. Amen.

"The Righteous Judge is Coming"

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PSALM 79

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         A Psalm of Asaph.

    79   O God, the heathen have come into thy inheritance;
                they have defiled thy holy temple;
                   they have laid Jerusalem in ruins.
       2  They have given the bodies of thy servants
               to the birds of the air for food,
                   the flesh of thy saints to the beasts of the earth.
       3  They have poured out their blood like water
               round about Jerusalem,
                   and there was none to bury them.
       4  We have become a taunt to our neighbors,
                   mocked and derided by those round about us.
       5  How long, O Lord? Wilt thou be angry for ever?
                   Will thy jealous wrath burn like fire?
       6  Pour out thy anger on the nations
               that do not know thee,
                   and on the kingdoms
                   that do not call on thy name!
       7  For they have devoured Jacob,
                   and laid waste his habitation.
       8  Do not remember against us the iniquities of our forefathers;
               let thy compassion come speedily to meet us,
                   for we are brought very low.

       9  Help us, O God of our salvation,
               for the glory of thy name;
                   deliver us, and forgive our sins,
                   for thy name’s sake!
       10  Why should the nations say,
                   “Where is their God?”
                   Let the avenging of the outpoured blood of thy servants
                         be known among the nations before our eyes!
       11  Let the groans of the prisoners come before thee;
                   according to thy great power 
                          preserve those doomed to die!
       12  Return sevenfold into the bosom of our neighbors
                   the taunts with which they have taunted thee, O Lord!
       13  Then we thy people, the flock of thy pasture,
                   will give thanks to thee for ever;
                   from generation to generation we will recount thy praise.

Revised Standard Version 

Catholic Edition 

(RSVCE)

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost:

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, 

world without end. Amen.

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A Litany for the Pope

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Today I am sharing the riches via the internet and e-mail.  The provenance of the Litany  found below is from Silverstream Priory in Stamullen, Ireland.  As indicated it is only for private recitation.

The Pope needs every prayer that we can offer up for him.

Click on each page to see a larger image.

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Jesus Speaks to the Boy from Kibeho

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This is the first message that the Lord Jesus Christ gave to Segatashya to share with the world while he was still a young boy in his native Rwanda in Africa:

“Jesus Christ sent me here today to tell you, 

and all men to renew your hearts. 

The day is coming 

when things will really get hard for humanity. 

You must change your heart while there is still time. 

Soon those who have refused to repent 

will not be able to do so. 

Let those who know that I set foot on earth, 

know that I am on my way back 

to take those who have worked well for Me 

to heaven for their eternal reward.”

Messages from Segatashya:

Jesus Speaks to the Boy from Kibeho

Neither Segatashya nor his parents had ever been in a school or a church. While not yet approved by the Catholic Church, I am a firm believer in the veracity of Emmanuel Segatashya and all that he said and did in his too short life.

Emmanuel Segatashya

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Day of Wrath

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In a day when much of the Church in the West has the spiritual vitality of a torch/flashlight without a battery, here is something to remind us of what is coming.  So buck up and go to confession.  Stop complaining and get to work.  The time is short.

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Nativity of Mary, Daughter of Saints Anne & Joachim

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Dear Reader, I am re-posting this for the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, 8 September A.D. 2015.  May God give you a glorious feast day with Our Lady on her birthday.

The Birth of Mary, c. 1470
by the hand of the MASTER of the Life of Mary

Previously I posted a phrase from the saintly Thomas Traherne that I thought worth committing to memory on the Solemnity of the Assumption and the octave following.  Today, dear Reader, please allow me to share a bit more of this mid-seventeenth century Anglican Priest-Poet's praise of God for the Holy Virgin.  

Keep in mind that this is written by an Anglican priest in the Church of England a number of centuries ago,  but is it not an expression of praise at the very heart of the teachings of the Apostolic, Catholic, and Orthodox Church of those early centuries after the Out-Pouring and Indwelling of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost?  Is it not one with the same heart of devotion as found in the writings of St. Ephrem, the prayerful petitions of the Litany of Loreto, and the praises of the Akathist Hymn to the Theotokos?


Thomas Traherne writes:

"And first, O Lord, I praise and magnify thy Name

For the Most Holy Virgin-Mother of God,

who is the Highest of thy Saints.

The most Glorious of thy Creatures.

The most Perfect of all thy Works.

The nearest unto Thee in the Throne of God.

Whom thou didst please to make

Daughter of the Eternal Father,

Mother of the Eternal Son.

Spouse of the Eternal Spirit,

Tabernacle of the most Glorious Trinity.

Mother of Jesus.

Mother of the Messias.

Mother of him who was the Desire of all Nations.

Mother of the Prince of Peace.

Mother of the King of Heaven.

Mother of our Creator.

Mother and Virgin.

Mirror of Humility and Obedience.

Mirror of Wisdom and Devotion.

Mirror of Modesty and Chastity.

Mother of Sweetness and Resignation.

Mirror of Sanctity.

Mirror of all Virtues.

The most illustrious Light in the Church,

wearing over all her beauties the veil of Humility

to shine the more resplendently in thy Eternal Glory ..."

Assumption of the Mother of God by Francesco Botticini

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Summit Dominicans in the NY Times

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It is no secret to my friends that I dearly love the Summit Dominicans.  The cloistered order of Dominican Nuns (Dominican Monastery of Our Lady of the Rosary in Summit, New Jersey) brought forth one of the finest Catholic hymnals to have come into print.  Also, they make marvellous soap and other such products.

I was delighted to see a beautifully photographed and very sensitive article on the New York Times website that I can share with you, dear Reader.  I suggest you go directly to the link below, and read about how Millennials are being drawn to religious life.  Who'da thunk it?  Wow.  Laus Deo!

Link to the NY Times website

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Tikey Zes: 'Soma Christou'

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Soma Christou Virtual Choir from AXIOS Music on Vimeo.

"During the midnight Easter Liturgy, scores of Orthodox choirs sing Tikey Zes's arrangement of the Paschal communion hymn, “Soma Christou.” As a tribute to Tikey Zes and his music, choir members from around the United States helped AXIOS Music create the first-ever Orthodox virtual choir. We chose to record “Soma Christou” because of its singular place in the annals of Greek Orthodox choral music in the United States.

"Translation from first published score of "Soma Christou": 

Receive ye the Body of Christ; taste of the Fount of Immortality. Alleluia.

"AXIOS Music

www.axios-music.com"

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Called to be Holy Novena Book

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Earlier this year in May during the Called to be Holy novena, Antonia Lyn and Scott Anderson prepared for the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham an excellent novena book drawn from English spiritual writers with mostly original collects by themselves.  The effort was outstanding in my opinion and shows well how the Anglican patrimony can be employed for devotional and sanctifying use in the Catholic Church.

In mentioning this wee book recently to an American friend in the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, her response was that "it was over".  I understood her meaning as it had been prepared for a particular period of time that was now past.

But I would express the opinion that the Called to be Holy Novena Book prepared by Lyn and Anderson should be used with some sort of regular or annual use.  I view it as a very important development alongside the creation of the various liturgical resources for the Ordinariates now arising such as the new (and exceptionally beautiful) Divine Worship Missal.

Perhaps those elsewhere in the world would prefer to take inspiration from the idea of their work and prepare new novena booklets drawn from the Anglican patrimony brought with us into the Catholic Church. ... That would indeed be wonderful to see.

For my part I live far from any celebration of the Ordinariate Mass, and I find much consolation in a little novena book like this.  

For those interested, the novena book may be downloaded in .PDF file format at this link.

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Joseph Martin Kronheim's Scriptural Art

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The Sunday at Home: A Family Magazine for Sabbath Reading, 1880 [collected volume]

There was a time when many Christians in northern Europe and the British Empire cherished such prints of Sacred Scripture.  They appeared in the magazines of the 19th century and early 20th century, and many families would frame these prints to adorn the walls in the family home.  These were often the icons of devout Protestant homes.

The electronic scan of such an artwork by Joseph Martin Kronheim (found above) does not fully communicate the beauty of the print using the George Baxter process.  And yet even in this form one can see that it is beautifully rendered (even if it isn't one's cup of tea).  

The quotation from The Revelation to St. John in the Authorised Version (King James) translation was given an artistic treatment that invites the reader to contemplate the scripture "in a different voice" from the plain text in the normative printing of the Holy Bible.  The scripture itself becomes a thing of Beauty.

If you like, dear Reader, you may click on the image above, and 'God willing and the creek don't rise' you will open up a larger version.  And perhaps you will want to adorn the 'wall' of your computer screen background image with this Kronheim print.  God bless!

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The Four Ends of the Mass

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