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Friday, May 11, 2018

First Day of Novena to the Holy Spirit

Today, we begin the nine day prayer - a novena - asking for the Holy Spirit and His Seven Gifts.

FIRST DAY (Friday, 6th Week of Easter)

Holy Spirit! Lord of Light! From Your clear celestial height, Your pure beaming radiance give!

The Holy Spirit

Only one thing is important -- eternal salvation. Only one thing, therefore, is to be feared--sin· Sin is the result of ignorance, weakness, and indifference The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Light, of Strength, and of Love. With His sevenfold gifts He enlightens the mind, strengthens the will, and inflames the heart with love of God. To ensure our salvation we ought to invoke the Divine Spirit daily, for "The Spirit helpeth our infirmity. We know not what we should pray for as we ought. But the Spirit Himself asketh for us."

Prayer

Almighty and eternal God, Who hast vouchsafed to regenerate us by water and the Holy Spirit, and hast given us forgiveness all sins, vouchsafe to send forth from heaven upon us your sevenfold Spirit, the Spirit of Wisdom and Understanding, the Spirit of Counsel and fortitude, the Spirit of Knowledge and Piety, and fill us with the Spirit of Holy Fear. Amen.

Our Father and Hail Mary ONCE. Glory be to the Father SEVEN TIMES.

ACT OF CONSECRATION TO THE HOLY SPIRIT On my knees before the great multitude of heavenly witnesses, I offer myself, soul and body to You, Eternal Spirit of God. I adore the brightness of Your purity, the unerring keenness of Your justice, and the might of Your love. You are the Strength and Light of my soul. In You I live and move and am. I desire never to grieve You by unfaithfulness to grace and I pray with all my heart to be kept from the smallest sin against You. Mercifully guard my every thought and grant that I may always watch for Your light, and listen to Your voice, and follow Your gracious inspirations. I cling to You and give myself to You and ask You, by Your compassion to watch over me in my weakness. Holding the pierced Feet of Jesus and looking at His Five Wounds, and trusting in His Precious Blood and adoring His opened Side and stricken Heart, I implore You, Adorable Spirit, Helper of my infirmity, to keep me in Your grace that I may never sin against You. Give me grace, O Holy Spirit, Spirit of the Father and the Son to say to You always and everywhere, "Speak Lord for Your servant heareth." Amen.

To be recited daily during the Novena

PRAYER FOR THE SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT O Lord Jesus Christ Who, before ascending into heaven did promise to send the Holy Spirit to finish Your work in the souls of Your Apostles and Disciples, deign to grant the same Holy Spirit to me that He may perfect in my soul, the work of Your grace and Your love. Grant me the Spirit of Wisdom that I may despise the perishable things of this world and aspire only after the things that are eternal, the Spirit of Understanding to enlighten my mind with the light of Your divine truth, the Spirit of Counsel that I may ever choose the surest way of pleasing God and gaining heaven, the Spirit of Fortitude that I may bear my cross with You and that I may overcome with courage all the obstacles that oppose my salvation, the Spirit of Knowledge that I may know God and know myself and grow perfect in the science of the Saints, the Spirit of Piety that I may find the service of God sweet and amiable, and the Spirit of Fear that I may be filled with a loving reverence towards God and may dread in any way to displease Him. Mark me, dear Lord, with the sign of Your true disciples and animate me in all things with Your Spirit. Amen.

(To be recited daily during the Novena)

Thursday, May 10, 2018

Mothers

This weekend, we honor our mothers. These women are too often the unsung heroes of our communities. Whether they have careers outside the home or their career is the home, they provide the backbone of the formation of our children. Of course, we know that motherhood begins with conception, and from that first moment, the bond between mother and child is formed. For the first 9 months, and perhaps for some time after birth, the mother and child are inseparable. As the child grows and matures, it is more often than not the mother who comforts and nourishes the children. Their role might too easily be taken for granted, overlooked, or even minimized. With that understanding, we as children need to show respect to our mothers more than just one day (and equal for our fathers). Perhaps, this Mother’s Day, we take special note of the hidden ways our mothers have given of themselves, and pledge our love and respect at a deeper level. As a Catholic, however, I cannot help but take this inclination to honor mothers a little further. Not only do we honor mothers this weekend, but we also honor the Blessed Mother Mary this month of May. After all, the first mention of Mary in the scriptures is the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel reveals God’s plan to her, the plan to be the mother of His Son. God the Father chose her, really created her, for this moment. We next hear of Mary taking Jesus in her womb to visit Elizabeth, whose own unborn son recognizes his unborn Savior. These two mothers rejoice in their good fortune: one to be a mother in her old age, her shamed barrenness lifted; the other, the mother of the hope of all for salvation. They rejoice in their mutual maternity. Two millennia later, Mary remains a mother who seeks to introduce her Divine Son to all. We do not worship her, but we do honor her for her role in salvation. We ask her aid, not as a God, but as a mother who had such an intimate union with the Incarnate Word of God, so intimate that she gave Him flesh, clothed Him, feed Him, comforted Him. As a mother, she did so much of our Savior and Lord. To disregard her role in God’s plan is to minimize her Son. Put positively, to honor Mary is to honor her Son, and to understand her role is to worship God! Even Jesus, as a Jew, honored and obeyed her! Mary longs, like a good mother, to help us understand her Son, to know Him and to love Him. All of us, Catholic or Protestant, have recourse to her as a mother who is willing to come to our aid. Like Elizabeth, let us cry out “Who am I that the Mother of my Lord should come to me!”

Monday, May 7, 2018

6th Sunday Easter B '18 - Slaves or Friends

Posted: 06 May 2018 11:38 AM PDT

Christ calls us friends, no longer slaves. How are we living that friendship? Readings are found at http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/050618.cfm Give feedback at https://goo.gl/forms/iG1Tvk4cHTGhdOWz2