The feast day of the Guardian Angels is celebrated on October 2. The feast day was added to the Church Calendar in the year 1615 by Pope Paul V.
References to angels occur frequently in the bible. Jesus himself refers to angels saying:
“See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly father. ( Matthew 18:10)
An angel is mentioned at least 17 times in the New Testament. Two incidents which would indicate a guardian angel are the angel who delivered St. Peter from prison (Acts 5:19) and the angel who ministered to Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. (Luke 22:39)
THE ANGEL WITH ST. PETER
19 But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors, brought them out, and said, “Go, stand in the temple and tell the people the whole message about this life.” When they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and went on with their teaching.
CHRIST PRAYING IN GARDEN OF GETHSEMANE
39 He came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples followed him. When he reached the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not come into the time of trial.” Then he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, knelt down, and prayed, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.” Then an angel from heaven appeared to him and gave him strength.
The function of the guardian angels is to strengthen,lead and guide us to the Kingdom of Heaven.
“Are not all angels spirits in the divine service went to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation? “(Hebrews 1:14)
The Catechism of the Catholic Church declares in section 336 about guardian angels: “From infancy to death, human life is surrounded by their watchful care and intercession. Beside each believer stands an angel as protector and shepherd leading him to life.”
All of us at some time in our life need guidance and help during times of suffering and confusion. We turn to Jesus in prayer to lead us to everlasting life. Mary and the saints pray for us and are our role models. But we should also turn to our guardian angel and be grateful for all the unknown times we have been led down the correct path.
Guardian Angel with Children
The angels rejoice and celebrate with Christ over the return of the Lord’s sheep…He sought us on earth; let us seek Him in heaven.
The feast day of the Stigmata of St. Francis is celebrated on September 17.
What is a stigmata? A stigmata is the spontaneous appearance of the wound marks of Jesus Christ on a person’s body. St. Francis is the first known saint to receive the stigmata.
St. Francis was born in 1181 in Assisi, Italy. His father was Pietro di Bernardone, a wealthy cloth salesman. Francis was indifferent to school. He enjoyed good times with his friends. He was attracted to the military and was a prisoner of war for two years. After returning home he experienced a profound conversion after having a dream. Christ appeared and spoke to St. Francis in a vision in the chapel at San Damiano. He said
“Francis go out and build up My house, for it is nearly falling down.”
St. Francis took these words literally and began to repair the old chapel. St. Francis embraced poverty, founding the Order of St. Francis after living for a time as a hermit. He had a strong devotion to the cross and to the Eucharist. He served the poor and the sick, caring for the lepers who were suffering at that time.
On Sept. 14, 1224, St. Francis was just beginning the second month of a retreat in honor of St. Michael the Archangel. He was fasting for 40 days. Near the Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross, St. Francis experienced a vision in which a seraph with six wings appeared. The figure not had wings but also showed signs of being crucified. While contemplating the crucifixion of Christ, St. Francis experienced joy mingled with pain. The vision of Christ nailed to a cross touch his soul with compassion. The vision vanished but St. Francis was left with marks on his own body as if had been crucified. His hands and feet now had nail wounds. His right side had a wound as if it had been pierced and frequently it bled.
At first St. Francis tried to conceal the wounds which were real and painful. Eventually he revealed them publicly, saying;
“Nothing gives me so much consolation as to think of the life and passion of our Lord.”
While St. Francis of Assisi was the first saint to receive the stigmata, currently 62 Saints and Blesseds have been known to receive the stigmata. St. Catherine of Siena(1380) and Padre Pio (1918) are only two of the many who have received this grace.
The stigmata is a considered a supernatural sign that a person has united their suffering with that of Christ. The suffering of Christ during His Passion is called redemptive suffering. When we join our suffering to His (no matter how small our suffering is in comparison) we are participating in the Passion of Our Lord. Our suffering can be beneficial to the salvation of others. The sign of the stigmata shows us that our suffering has a purpose. It unites us to Our Lord Jesus Christ.
May I feel in my soul and in my body, as much as possible, that pain which You, dear Jesus, sustained in the hour of Your most bitter Passion. May I feel in my heart, as much as possible, that excessive love with which You, O Son of God, were inflamed in, willingly enduring such suffering for us sinners.
The Feast of the Exaltation of the Cross is celebrated on September 14.
This feast day actually celebrated two events.
In the year 320, the actual cross on which Jesus was crucified was discovered by St. Helena, the mother of Emperor Constantine. Constantine then had a shrine and basilica built in 335. The Basilica, named Martyrium and the shrine named The Calverium were destroyed by the Persians in the year 614.
On a more personal level, we celebrate how we are saved by the cross. It is the suffering and crucifixion of Jesus which redeems us. As Christians, we must be willing to suffer for the faith, looking to Jesus in moments of weakness.
The suffering of Jesus on the cross is calledRedemptive Suffering. In today’s world it is hard to understand the meaning of suffering. Does anything good come from suffering?
Our salvation came from the suffering of Jesus who died for our sins.
One way that helps me to understand suffering is to think about the meaning of love. When two people love each other and promise to be there for each other they believe they are in love. The test of true love is what happens when the going gets tough? It is only when we are willing to suffer for another that we know we are loving them.
Willingness to suffer defines love! Jesus is not the only one who is capable of redemptive suffering. We too, can offer our suffering for the good of another. Think of all the times you have suffered in silence because to complain would not help the situation. Give your suffering to God. You will grow in virtue and love.
Remember… God is Love. He showed us he loved us by suffering and dying on the cross for us.
On this feast day reflect on the suffering in your life. Can you name the cross you are carrying? Give all your suffering to God and you will come closer to Him who is called Love.
Suffering is a sign that we have come so close to Jesus on the cross that He can kiss us; that He can show that He is in love with us by giving us an opportunity to share in His Passion.
Mother Teresa will soon be officially declared a saint!
The day before the feast day of Bl. Mother Theresa Pope Francis will proclaim that she is a saint. Her feast day is celebrated on Sept. 5. The world remembers her as a “living saint”.
Bl. Teresa of Calcutta was born to parents Nikola and Drana Bojaxhiu on August 26, 1916 in Skopje of Macedonia and named Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu. She was baptized on August 17, 1910 in Macedonia. She was the third child in her family, following sister Aga and a brother, Lazar. Her father, Nikola died, when she was eight years old. Her father was a traveler, an extrovert, and a businessman who spoke five languages. Her mother, Drana, was extremely pious, adopting several orphans. She was known as Gonxha (pronounced gon’KHA) which means “flower bud”.
Gonxha desired early to become a missionary. At the age of eighteen, she joined the Sisters of Loreto. Here she took the name of Sister Mary Teresa after St. Therese of Lisieux. She was sent to Calcutta, India to teach at St. Mary’s High School for Girls, which was run by the Sisters of Loreto. On May 24, 1937, she took her final Profession of Vows to a life of poverty, chastity, and obedience. She then became known as Mother Teresa. In 1944, she became principal of the school.
Mother Teresa received a second calling while on a train. Christ spoke to her, asking her to work in the slums of Calcutta, caring for the sickest and poorest of the people.Pursuing this calling changed her life forever. In one year, she received approval to do the work she was being called to do. After six months of basic medical training she went to the slums to aid the needy and dying. Mother Teresa founded the Missionaries of Charitywith 12 members, most of them students from St. Mary’s. She established a leper colony, an orphanage, a mission house, and several health clinics.
In 1971, Mother Teresa visited New York City, where she opened a soup kitchen and a home to care for HIV/AIDS sufferers. In 1979, she received the Nobel Peace Prize.
In 1983, Mother Teresa suffered her first heart attack. After suffering from lung, kidney and heart problems for several years, she died on Sept. 5, 1997, which is now her feast day. At the time of her death her Missionaries of Charity numbered over 4,000. She had 610 foundations in 123 countries.
Mother Teresa was beatified on October 19, 2003, after confirmation of her first miracle. The miracle was reported that a woman who had a large and very visible tumor, had stayed with the Missionaries of Charity. After she and the Sisters had prayed for Mother Teresa’s intercession, the growth, six to seven inches in length, had disappeared within several hours. Finding no other medical explanation for the sudden cure it was declared her first miracle. Over 3500 other reports are being investigated as possible miracles.
After accepting a second miracle, Pope Francis cleared the way for Mother Teresa to be declared a saint. Pope Francis signed a decree declaring that the inexplicable 2008 recovery of a Brazilian man who suddenly woke from a coma caused by a viral brain infection was due to the intercession of the Albanian nun, who died in 1997.
The Rev. Brian Kolodiejchuk, the postulator spearheading Mother Teresa’s canonization case, stated that the man fully recovered following his wife’s prayers and he has since returned to work as a mechanical engineer. The couple also have had two children.
In 2003, Mother Teresa’s private correspondence revealed she had experienced a “dark night of the soul”… feeling abandoned by God and lacking in faith. This lasted unusually long; for fifty years. Many saints have experienced such feelings, described by John of the Cross, in his book Dark Night of the Soul. She was filled with loneliness, and torture, due to this lack of consolation from God.
Each image in the following list is accompanied by a quote or prayer of Mother Teresa. The images are all public domain images.
As we celebrate the sainthood and feast day of St.Teresa of Calcutta on Sept. 5, let’s remember the remarkable things she did and said.
Sisters of Charity
Prayer of Mother Teresa of Calcutta
Dear Jesus, help us to spread your fragrance
everywhere we go.
Flood our souls with your spirit and life.
Penetrate and possess our whole being so utterly
that our lives may only be a radiance of yours.
Shine through us and be so in us
that every soul we come in contact with
may feel your presence in our soul.
Let them look up and see no longer us, but only Jesus.
Stay with us and then we shall begin to shine as you shine,
so to shine as to be light to others.
The light, O Jesus, will be all from you.
None of it will be ours.
It will be you shining on others through us.
Let us thus praise you in the way you love best
by shining on those around us.
Let us preach you without preaching,
not by words, but by our example;
by the catching force –
the sympathetic influence of what we do,
the evident fullness of the love our hearts bear to you.
Amen
Mother Teresa with Child/Associated Press
Mother Teresa: Smile
“Let us always meet each other with a smile for the smile is the beginning of love.”
“Peace begins with a smile.”
“Every time you smile at someone it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa: God and Faith
“We are nothing without God, but if we put our lives in God’s hands miracles happen.”
“Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.”
“Faith in action is love, and love in action is service. Byt transforming that faith into living acts of love, we put ourselves in contact with God Himself, with Jesus our Lord.”
“I know God will not give me anything I can’t handle. I just wish He didn’t trust me so much.”
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa with Pope John Paul II
Mother Teresa: Prayer
The fruit of silence is prayer.
The fruit of prayer is faith.
The fruit of faith is love.
The fruit of love is service.
The fruit of service is peace.”
Mother Teresa
Young Mother Teresa
Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhju (Mother Teresa)
Life is an opportunity, benefit from it.
Life is beauty, admire it.
Life is a dream, realize it.
Life is a challenge, meet it.
Life is a duty, complete it.
Life is a game, play it.
Life is a promise, fulfill it.
Life is sorrow, overcome it.
Life is a song, sing it.
Life is a struggle, accept it.
Life is a tragedy, confront it.
Life is an adventure, dare it.
Life is life, fight for it.
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa: Abortion
“Any country that accepts abortion, is not teaching its people to love but to use any violence to get what it wants.”
“It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish.”
“There are two victims in every abortion: a dead baby and a dead conscience.”
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa: Love and Forgiveness
“It is not how much we do, but how much love we put into the doing.It is not how how much we give, but how much love we put in the giving.”
“I have found the paradox that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, only more love.”
“If we really want to love we must learn to forgive.”
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa: Helping the Sick
“Let us touch the dying, the poor, the lonely, and the unwanted according to the graces we have received and let us not be ashamed or slow to do the humble work.”
“Yesterday is gone, tomorrow has not come, we have only today. Let us begin.”
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa in service
Mother Teresa: Service
“If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish ulterior motives; be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will win some false friends and true enemies; succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank people may cheat you; be honest and frank anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous, be happy anyway.
You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God, it was never between you and them anyway.”
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa Praying
Mother Teresa: Prayer
“Love to pray. Feel often during the day the need for prayer and take trouble to pray Prayer enlarges the heart until it is capable of containing God’s gift of Himself. Ask and seek, and your heart will grow big enough to receive Him and keep Him as your own.”
“Prayer is not asking. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at His disposition and listening to His voice in the depth of our hearts.”
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa: Silence
“We need to find God and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature; trees, flowers, grass, grows in silence. See the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence. We need silence to be able to touch souls.”
The feast day of The Queenship of Mary is celebrated on August 22.
Why is Mary called a Queen? What other title would you give to the mother of the Prince of Peace? A prince grows up to become a King. Jesus is often referred to as our Lord and King. The mother of a King is given the title of Queen.
The title of Queen began as early as the sixth century. Mary has been referred to as Queen in several hymns since the 11th century. The prayer Hail Holy Queen is the prayer which finalizes the Rosary which was begun by St. Dominic.
When we think of Mary as the Mother of Jesus, our King, we should also reflect on our spiritual family as well. We are all children of God, Our Creator. The Holy Family, Jesus, Mary and Joseph did not wear earthly crowns, but they reveal to us a kingdom of another kind…the kingdom of God. In the Our Father, we pray…thy kingdom come. We are meant to be a part of this kingdom. As children of God, we are royal children. Our relationship with God is meant to be that of a family. God is our Father, Lord and King. Mary is our Queen Mother and we are called to be royal children who will live in the kingdom of God.
Communication is the key to a happy family. Prayer is how we communicate with our spiritual family. We are not alone! Not only can God hear our prayers, but the angels and saints can also hear our prayers. When we join our prayers together they become much stronger. Mary’s prayers especially have special meaning and power. After all, she is the Queen mother!
As we journey through this earthly kingdom, let us strive to earn a place in the kingdom of God…where the virtues of humility and love are seen in everyone.
Hail Holy Queen
Hail, holy Queen enthroned above, O Maria.
Hail, Queen of mercy and of love, O Maria.
Triumph, all ye cherubim,
Sing with us, ye seraphim,
Heaven and earth resound the hymn:
Salve, salve, salve Regina!
+
Our life, our sweetness, here below,O Maria!
Our hope in sorrow and in woe, O Maria!
Triumph, all ye cherubim,
Sing with us, ye seraphim,
Heaven and earth resound the hymn:
Salve, salve, salve Regina!
+
To thee we cry, poor sons of Eve, O Maria!
To thee we sigh, we mourn, we grieve, O Maria!
Triumph, all ye cherubim,
Sing with us, ye seraphim,
Heaven and earth resound the hymn:
Salve, salve, salve Regina!
+
Turn then most gracious Advocate, O Maria!
Toward us thine eyes compassionate, O Maria!
Triumph, all ye cherubim,
Sing with us, ye seraphim,
Heaven and earth resound the hymn:
Salve, salve, salve Regina!
+
The cause of joy to men below, O Maria!
The spring through which all graces flow, O Maria!
Angels, all your praises bring,
Earth and heaven, with us sing,
All creation echoing:
Salve, salve, salve Regina!
Who can appraise the jewel that adorn Mary’s crown?
The Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary will be celebrated on August 15. While this is a belief which goes back to the apostolic age, it was proclaimed dogma on Nov. 1, 1950 by Pope Pius XII.
The word assumption means “to take up.” It is believed that Mary was assumed into heaven by the power of God. This is not the same as the Ascension of Jesus. Jesus ascended into heaven by His own power. The assumption of Mary into heaven gives glory to God by whose power she was taken into heaven.
Pope Pius XII in the papal document, Munificentimus Deus gives four reasons why we believe in the dogma of Assumption of Mary. He explained that the uninterrupted tradition about Mary’s death and assumption began in the first century. The belief is expressed in all the ancient liturgies of the Church. He added that the negative evidence is the absence of veneration of a tomb of Mary while most of the apostles have tombs.
In the Old Testament there is the possibility of bodily assumption in the cases of Enoch (Gen. 5:24), Moses (Deut. 34:5) and Elijah (IIKg. 2:1)
The theological reasons for believing in the Assumption of Mary are twofold.
First; Mary was “immaculately conceived”. This means she was born without the consequence of “original sin” and is exempted from the postmortem decay of the body. She is sometimes referred to as “The Second Eve“.
Second; Mary received the fullness of grace and holiness as the mother of Jesus. Her place is with her son Jesus, the redeemer in heaven.
Good Lady, bearer of our good Lord,
watch over us…lead us to the safe harbor
of God’s will.
Quote of St. John Damascene; Feast day December 4The Assumption of Mary in Art
