The feast day of Bl. Herman the Cripple is celebrated on September 25. He is the patron saint of the unborn child and the disabled.
Bl. Herman was the son of the Earl of Altshausen in southern Germany. He was born with a cleft palate, cerebral palsy and possibly spina bifida. The doctors told his parents he would not live past five years of age. He lived to be 41.
Herman had trouble with both moving and speaking. His parents cared for him until the age of seven. He was then given to the Abbey of Reichenau to be cared for. The monks raised him in the Benedictine monastery where he became interested in theology and the spiritual world. In spite of his disabilities, Bl. Herman was very intelligent. He studied math, astronomy, theology, history, poetry , Arabic, Greek and Latin. He built musical instruments and was known for his poetry. At the age of 20 Herman became a Benedictine monk.
Towards the end of his life Herman suffered from blindness. He began writing hymns. The most famous are the Salve Regina, Hail Holy Queen and Redemptoris Mater. Bl. Herman used prayer and music to grow closer to God.
Bl. Herman died at the age of 41 in 1054. Because so many children with disabilities die because of abortion, Bl. Herman is the saint of the unborn child. He is also the patron saint of the disabled.
Hail Holy Queen
Hail Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy! Our life, our sweetness, and our hope!
To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our exile show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God, That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
On Saturday, Sept. 19, a globe of light opened to reveal a beautiful woman seated on a stone. The woman appeared to two shepherd children in Salette, France. The apparition was approved and is celebrated on September 19.
The children’s names were Melanie Calvat, age 15, and Maiximin Graud, age 11. The woman was gently crying and asking for the people and the priests to repent of their sins. She called for penance.
Our Lady was tall, wearing a pearl studded dress and white shawl with a tiara on her head. A crucifix was hanging from her neck. She seemed to be made of light. As she talked to the children she warned of coming war and famine.
Our Lady asked the children to pray day and night for the salvation of the world.
Our Lady of La Salette warned of chastisements that would fall upon humanity if they didn’t change their ways. Before ascending into heaven she urged the children to pray more and gave each of them a secret that was revealed to Pope Pius IX in 1851 concerning threats to the church and to the world.
While Our Lady’s message focused on conversion and penance she also gave the children a message of hope regarding the power of prayer saying:
“if they are converted, the stones and rocks will change into mounds of wheat, and the potatoes will be self-sown in the land”,
After the apparition many people made amends for the wrongs they had done. Miracles began occurring at the site, as people were cured over various ailments from water from the spring there within weeks of Our Lady’s appearance. The Church officially approved of this apparition (deeming it worthy of belief) after much investigation and debate in 1851. Construction of a church at La Salette began in 1852 and was completed in 1865. It was designated as the Basilica of Our Lady of La Salette in 1879.
Pope John Paul II made the following comment on the Apparition of La Salette:
“In this place, Mary, the loving Mother appeared manifesting her pain for the moral evil caused by humanity. Her tears help us to understand the seriousness of sin and the rejection of God, and at the same time it is a manifestation of the passionate fidelity that her Son has for each person, even though His redemptive love is marked by the wounds of treason and abandonment by men.”
Of all the virtues of the Virgin Mary, the most admirable is her great humility; it is a virtue of which we ourselves have a great need.
Quote of Bl. Alphonsus de Orozco; Feast Day September 19
The feast day of Our Lady of Sorrows is celebrated on September 15. It dates back to the 12th century when it was promoted by the Cistercians and the Servites.
The focus of the devotion to Our Lady of Sorrows is the grief Mary felt during the suffering of her Son, Jesus. As His mother, her heart felt intense pain and sorrow.
Below are the seven sorrows of Mary:
The prophecy of Simeon (Luke 2:25-35)
The flight into Egypt (Matthew 2:13-15)
Loss of the Child Jesus for three days (Luke 2:41-50)
Mary meets Jesus on his way to Calvary (Luke 23:27-31; John 19:17)
Crucifixion and Death of Jesus (John 19:25-30)
The body of Jesus being taken from the Cross (Psalm 130; Luke 23:50-54; John 19:31-37)
The burial of Jesus (Isaiah 53:8; Luke 23:50-56; John 19:38-42; Mark 15:40-47)
As we reflect on the sorrows and suffering Mary experienced as the Mother of God, we can remind ourselves of the human nature of both Jesus and Mary. They felt pain. They felt grief. They felt loss. They wept.
Jesus has two natures: Human and Divine. Mary is not Divine. She is human like you and me. We can only wonder at her strength and holiness as she drank from the bitter cup of suffering.
Giovanni bellini pieta martinengo Public Domain Image
Whoever you are who love the Mother of God, take note and reflect with all your innermost feelings upon her who wept for the Only Begotten as He died…The grief she felt in the Passion of her son goes beyond all understanding.
Quote of St. Amadeus of Lausanne; Feast Day January 28
The feast day of the Most Holy Name of the Blessed Virgin Mary is celebrated on September 12.
On this day we reflect on the titles given to Mary. Why has she become known by so many names? Which name touches you the most when you think about the Blessed Virgin Mary? Mary, Mother of God? Mary, Queen of Saints? The Immaculate Heart of Mary?
Each name tells us something about Mary, who loved and gave birth to Jesus. Our Sorrowful Mother helps us to reflect on the suffering Mary experienced. Some of her titles refer to the place in which she appeared to someone: Our Lady of Lourdes, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel, and Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Other titles refer to her spirituality: Our Lady of the Rosary, Our Lady of Grace, Mystical Rose, Star of the Sea.
The name we are given at birth is important. We are called by that name throughout our life. Each of us has been called to do something specific for God. Perhaps it is prayer. Perhaps it is raising a family with love. Perhaps it is a profession like teaching or medicine, or farming.
Mary was called by God for a very special purpose. She was asked to love and raise Jesus, the Son of God. She became the Mother of God and loved him in a way none of us can.
Today is a day to reflect on the role of Mary in the life of Jesus. We can also reflect on our role in the world. If we honor and imitate the mother of Jesus, we can be certain that we will come to know Jesus better.
Mary is called Queen of Martyrs, for her martyrdom was the lengthiest, most intense, and most loving.
The feast day of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary is celebrated on September 8. On this day the church reflects on the birth of Mary and her role in salvation.
Mary was the only child of St. Anne and St. Joachim. They had been praying for a child and it seemed as if they would be unable to conceive. However, although St. Anne was not young, she conceived and became the mother of the mother of God!
The feast day is celebrated nine months after the celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception on December 8. The Immaculate Conception celebrates the belief that Mary was born without the stain of original sin. She was the “second Eve”. Eve, also was born without original sin but she chose to disobey God. Mary, however, always said “yes” to God.
Reflecting on the life of Mary can take us in many directions. How is it possible to become the Mother of God? How is it possible to become the Grandmother of God as St. Anne did? We know that Mary was chosen for the title of Mother of God. St. Anne and St. Joachim were also chosen…to be the parents of Mary.
We too have been chosen. Where is God leading you? Is your family life holy? What needs to improve in your life to help you grow closer to God? Is your prayer life healthy? Learning to communicate with God leads us to know his will in our life. Just as Mary said “yes”, we too must try to do the will of God.
Each of us is unique in the way we communicate with God. Exploring the different prayer styles can help us to find the type of prayer that suits us best. To understand what God’s will is, we must discover how God is “present” in our life. Making time for prayer is the first step. Admitting that we need guidance (humility) will help us to take the time to listen for the whisper that comes from God.
The Virgin Mother’s heart remained perpetually inflamed with the holy love which she received of her Son.
Quote of St. Francis de Sales; Feast Day January 24
The Feast day of Our Lady of Fatima is celebrated on May 13.
In 1917, an angel and Our Lady appeared six times to three shepherd children in Fatima, Portugal. Jacinta (7 years old) and Francisco (9 years old) were brother and sister. Lucy Dos Santos (14 years old) was their cousin. Jacinta and Francisco both died several years after the apparitions.
Francisco was born on June 11, 1908. During the apparitions Francisco could see but not hear what was being said. He had a great love of praying before the Blessed Sacrament. He also had a great devotion to praying the Rosary. He received his first communion on the day of his death, April 4, 1919.
Jacinta was born on March 11, 1910. Jacinta could both hear and see what was said during the apparitions. She was profoundly affected when Our Lady told her that Jesus was very offended by sin. After seeing a vision of hell, she decided to offer herself completely to the salvation of souls. She offered her sufferingto free souls from the fires of hell. A year after the apparitions she came down with bronchial pneumonia, an abscessed lung and then was diagnosed with tuberculosis. She offered all of her suffering to Jesus. She was rushed to a hospital in Lisbon. The Blessed Virgin visited her their three times. She died without the presence of her parents or Lucy on Feb.20, 1920.
Lucy was born on March 22, 1907. After the apparitions Our Lady told her that her cousins would soon be in heaven and that Lucy should spread the devotion to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Our Lady said “My Immaculate Heart will be your refuge and the way which will lead you to God.” It was Lucy who requested a miracle so people would believe in the apparitions. During the investigations surrounding the apparitions, Lucy was harassed. She entered the Sisters of St. Dorothy as Sister Mary of the Sorrowful Mother. Later she became a Carmelite Sister taking the name Sister Maria Lucia. She had several more visions of Our Lady. Lucy died on Feb. 3, 2005 at the age of 97.
The children saw a brilliant flash of lightning. A beautiful Lady appeared clothed in white and she asked the children to return on the thirteenth of each month. She asked the children to pray the Rosary daily and for devotion to her Immaculate Heart. She also requested prayer for Russia. Our Lady of Fatima spoke of observing the first Saturdays of each month by going to confession and receiving Holy Communion as a devotion to the Hearts of Jesus and Mary.
On the final visit, a dramatic “dance of the sun” took place. It was witnessed by thousands of people. The sun seemed to tumble from the sky.
During the apparitions in Fatima three secrets were revealed to the children.
After being promised they would go to heaven the children saw a vision of hell which was filled with fire and demons.
Mary instructed the children how to save souls from Hell and convert the world to Christianity. She asked them to spread the devotion to the Immaculate Heart and to pray the Rosary. She asked them to pray for Russia.
The children had a vision of the assassination of the Holy Father.
Many believe the third secret was a prophecy of the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II. Pope John Paul II canonized Francisco and Jacinta Marto on May 13, 2000.
Several chapels have been built at the site.
Pope John Paul II gave thanks to Our Lady of Fatima for her intercession after he survived an attempted assassination. He reminded the faithful that “the message of Fatima is a call to conversion and repentance, the nucleus of the message of the Gospel”.
There is no queen like humility to make the King surrender. Humility drew the King from heaven to the womb of the Virgin, and with it, by one hair, we will draw Him to our souls.
Quote of St. Teresa of Avila; Feast day October 15
