Sunday May 1, 2016 - Litany Lane Blog: Canonize, Revelations 21:10-23 Psalms 67:2-8, John 14:23-29, Pope Francis's Message, Inspirational Hymns - Gregorian Chants, Our Lady of Medjugorje Monthly Message, Saint Peregrine, May Crowning, Mystical City of God Book 6 Chapter 9 Mary The Heiress of Christs Merits, Catholic Catechism - Part Three - The Life of the Christ - Article 5 Morality of The Passions, RECHARGE: Heaven Speaks to Young Adults

Sunday  May 1, 2016 - Litany Lane Blog:

Canonize, Revelations 21:10-23 Psalms 67:2-8, John 14:23-29, Pope Francis's Message, Inspirational Hymns - Gregorian Chants,  Our Lady of Medjugorje Monthly Message, Saint Peregrine, May Crowning, Mystical City of God Book 6 Chapter 9 Mary The Heiress of Christs Merits, Catholic Catechism - Part Three - The Life of the Christ - Article 5 Morality of  The Passions,  RECHARGE: Heaven Speaks to Young Adults


JESUS I TRUST IN YOU (Year of Mercy). "Always Trust in Jesus, He the beacon of light amongst the darkest clouds" ~ Zarya Parx 2016

P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Serenity Happens). A remarkable way of producing solace, peace, patience, tranquility and of course resolution...God's always available 24/7. ~ Zarya Parx 2015

"Where There is a Will, With God, There is a Way", "There is always a ray of sunshine amongst the darkest Clouds, the name of that ray is Jesus" ~ Zarya Parx 2014

The world begins and ends everyday for someone.  We are all human. We all experience birth, life and death. We all have flaws but we also all have the gift of knowledge, reason and free will, make the most of these gifts. Life on earth is a stepping stone to our eternal home in Heaven. The Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, wonder and awe (fear of the Lord) , counsel, knowledge, fortitude, and piety (reverence) and shun the seven Deadly sins: wrath, greed, sloth, pride, lust, envy, and gluttony...Its your choice whether to embrace the Gifts of the Holy Spirit rising towards eternal light or succumb to the Seven deadly sins and lost to eternal darkness. Material items, though needed for sustenance and survival on earth are of earthly value only. The only thing that passes from this earth to the Darkness, Purgatory or Heaven is our Soul...it's God's perpetual gift to us...Embrace it, treasure it, nurture it, protect it...~ Zarya Parx 2013

"Raise not a hand to another unless it is to offer in peace and goodwill." ~ Zarya Parx 2012

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2016 - YEAR OF MERCY

Pope Francis has declared an Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy. This Holy Year of Mercy began December 8, 2015, the feast of the Immaculate Conception and the 50th anniversary of the closing of the Second Vatican Council. It will close November 20, 2016, the Feast of Christ the King. This year’s motto is “Merciful Like the Father.”

Sometimes, when we think of the word mercy, we picture someone throwing themselves on their knees before a cruel villain, pleading to be spared some punishment. This is not our understanding of God’s mercy. We do not ask for God’s mercy because we are afraid of incurring his wrath as punishment for our sins. Rather, when we call on God to have mercy, we are calling on God in the only way we know him—as one who responds with compassion to those in need. When we show mercy to others, we are responding as God responds, with compassion.

Liturgical Cycle:  C - Gospel of Luke -   6th Sunday in Easter

Daily Rosary
 (MON, SAT) - Joyful Mysteries
(TUES, FRI) - Sorrowful Mysteries
(WED,SUN) -  Glorious Mysteries
(THURS) - Luminous Mysteries

Divine Mercy Chaplet

Chaplet of Saint Michael the Archangel

Chaplet of the Most Precious Blood 

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Inspirational Hymns  

  Illuminations (Gregorian Chants)   Standard YouTube License   Available at Amazon -   (Google Play • AmazonMP3 • iTunes)  

Illumination: Peaceful Gregorian Chants

Contents

**Copyright Disclaimer - Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, allowance is made for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research under the term "fair use", which is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational, and personal use also tips the balance in favor of fair use.

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Our Lady of Medjugorje Monthly Messages

April 25, 2016 message from Our Lady of Medjugorje:

“Dear children! My Immaculate Heart bleeds as I look at you in sin and sinful habits. I am calling you: return to God and to prayer that it may be good for you on earth. God is calling you through me for your hearts to be hope and joy for all those who are far away. May my call be for you a balm for the soul and heart so that you may glorify God, the Creator, who loves you and is calling you to eternity. Little children, life is short; you, make good use of this time and do what is good. Thank you for having responded to my call.” ~Blessed Mother Mary

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 Papam Franciscus
(Pope Francis)

Pope Francis Catechesis:

  April 30, 2016 

JUBILEE AUDIENCE MESSAGE
OF HIS HOLINESS POPE FRANCIS

2016-04-30 L’Osservatore Romano

Pope Francis on Saturday held an extraordinary Jubilee Audience in St. Peter’s Square for thousands of eager pilgrims. The Audience also celebrated the Jubilee for members of the police and armed forces. 

The Holy Father focused in his catechesis on a very important point of mercy: reconciliation, taking the apostle St. Paul’s words in the second letter to the Corinthians 5:20-21 as his guide: “So we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.”

Pope Francis said St. Paul’s words ‘be reconciled to God’ are an invitation for all Christians especially in this Jubilee Year of Mercy. He said God constantly offers us his forgiveness, and our sins can never keep us from God’s mercy.

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

“Often we believe our sins push God away from us: in reality, by sinning we push ourselves away from Him, but He, seeing us in danger, keeps searching for us. God never accepts the possibility that someone could remain estranged from His love, as long as He finds in that person some sign of contrition for the evil committed.”

The Holy Father went on to say that, in our sinfulness, we can only return to God by freely accepting his grace.  For this, he has given us his Son Jesus, whose cross is a bridge leading us back to the Father.

“The sinner sees only himself and thus pretends to be self-sufficient; for this reason, sin distances us ever more from God, and this can become a barrier. However, Jesus comes to look for us like a good shepherd who is not content until he has not found the lost sheep (cf. Luke 15:4-6). He rebuilds the bridge which connects us to the Father and allows us to rediscover our dignity as sons and daughters. With the offer of his life, he has reconciled us to the Father and given us the gift of eternal life (cf. John 10:15). ‘Be reconciled to God!”


Reconciliation brings peace and contributes to society

He said this Holy Year of Mercy is a time for each of us to accept this offer of reconciliation and, in our communities, to bring it to the world around us.  Being reconciled with God not only brings inner healing and peace, but also impels us to work for reconciliation within society at every level, and thus contribute to the building of a global culture of peace, justice and solidarity.

“Let us accept, therefore, the invitation to be reconciled to God to become new creatures and to be able to radiate His mercy among our brothers and sisters.”

After the audience Pope Francis offered a special welcome to the members of the armed forces and police from throughout the world, especially those present at the audience from Canada, Kenya, Korea, the Philippines, and the United States of America.

~ Pope Francis

Reference:  

• Vatican News. From the Pope. © Copyright 2016 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Accessed - 04/30/2016

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Canonization Degreed Confurmed by Pope Francis:  2016

2016-04-27 Vatican Radio

(Vatican Radio) A number of causes for canonization were advanced on Tuesday, including an Italian diocesan priest. A miracle attributed to Blessed Alfonso Maria Fusco clears the way for his canonization.

Another miracle, attributed to the intercession of the Venerable John Sullivan, an Irish Jesuit, was also recognized.

The decrees also recognize the martyrdom of several victims of Communism, including the Servants of God Fr José Antón Gómez, OSB, along with three other Benedictine priests, who were killed during the Spanish civil war; and Archbishop Nikollë Vinçenc Prennushi of Durrës (Durazzo), and 37 companions, killed under the Communist regime in Albania between 1945 and 1974. Pope Francis honoured the martyrs of Albania during his visit to that country in 2014.

Another country recently visited by the the Holy Father also saw one of its sons advanced along the path toward canonization, as the Congregation recognized the heroic virtues of Father Thomas Choe Yang-Eop, a Korean priest.


Below, please find Vatican Radio's translation of the announcement of the promulgation of decrees concerning the Causes of Saints: 
Pope Francis on Tuesday received in private audience Cardinal Angelo Amato, S.D.B., the Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

During the audience, the Holy Father authorized the Congregation to promulgate the following decrees regarding:

• the miracle, attributed to the intercession of Blessed Alfonso Maria Fusco, diocesan Priest, Founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of St John the Baptist; born 23 March 1839, died 6 February 1910;

• the miracle, attributed to the intercession of the Venerable Servant of God John Sullivan, professed Priest of the Society of Jesus; born 8 May 1861, died 19 February 1933;

• the martyrdom of the Servant of God Nikollë Vinçenc Prennushi, of the Order of Friars Minor, Archbishop of Durrës (Durazzo), and 37 companions, killed between 1945 and 1974;

• the martyrdom of the Servant of God José Antón Gómez, and three companions, priests of the Order of St Benedict, killed in 1936;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Thomas Choe Yang-Eop, diocesan Priest; born 1 March 1821, died 15 June 1861;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Sosio Del Prete (né Vincenzo), professed Priest of the Order of Friars Minor, Founder of the Congregation of Little Handmaids of Christ the King; born 28 December 1885, died 27 January 1952;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Venantius Katarzyniec (né Joseph), professed Priest of the Order of Friars Minor Conventual; born 7 October 1889, died 31 March 1921;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Maria Consiglio dello Spirito Santo (née Emilia Pasqualina Addatis), Foundress of the Congregation of Sister Servants of the Sorrowful Mother; born 5 January 1845, died 11 January 1900;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God María de la Encarnación (née Caterina Carrasco Tenorio), Foundress of the Sisters of the Third Order of Saint Francis of the Rebaño de María; born 24 March 1840, died 24 November 1917;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Maria Laura Baraggia, Foundress of the Sisters of the Family of the Sacred Heart of Jesus; born 1 May 1851, died 18 December 1923;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Ilia Corsaro, Foundress of the Little Missionaries of the Eucharist; born 4 October 1897, died 23 March 1977;

• the heroic virtue of the Servant of God María Montserrat Grases García, Laywoman, of the Personal Prelature of the Holy Cross and of Opus Dei; born 10 July 1941, died 26 March 1959

Reference: 

• Vatican News. From the Pope. © Copyright 2016 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Accessed 04/27/2016.

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Today's Word  - canonize  can·on·i·ze  [kan-uh-nahyz]  

Origin:  1350-1400; Middle English. 

verb (used with object), canonized, canonizing.

1.  Ecclesiastical. to place in the canon of saints.

2. To glorify.

3. To make canonical; place or include within a canon, especially of scriptural works: They canonized the Song of Solomon after much controversy.

4. To consider or treat as sacrosanct or holy: They canonized his many verbal foibles and made them gospel.

5. To sanction or approve authoritatively, especially ecclesiastically.

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Today's Old Testament Reading -  Psalms 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8

² Then the earth will acknowledge your ways, and all nations your power to save.
³ Let the nations praise you, God, let all the nations praise you.
⁵ Let the nations praise you, God, let all the nations praise you.
⁶ The earth has yielded its produce; God, our God has blessed us.

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Today's Epistle -  Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23

¹⁰ In the spirit, he carried me to the top of a very high mountain, and showed me Jerusalem, the holy city, coming down out of heaven from God.
¹¹ It had all the glory of God and glittered like some precious jewel of crystal-clear diamond.
¹² Its wall was of a great height and had twelve gates; at each of the twelve gates there was an angel, and over the gates were written the names of the twelve tribes of Israel;
¹³ on the east there were three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates.
¹⁴ The city walls stood on twelve foundation stones, each one of which bore the name of one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
²² I could not see any temple in the city since the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb were themselves the temple,
²³ and the city did not need the sun or the moon for light, since it was lit by the radiant glory of God, and the Lamb was a lighted torch for it.

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Today's Gospel Reading -  John 14: 23-29

The Holy Spirit will help us
understand Jesus’ words
 

John 14,23-29

1. Opening prayer

Shaddai, God of the mountain,
You who make of our fragile life
the rock of your dwelling place,
lead our mind
to strike the rock of the desert,
so that water may gush to quench our thirst.
May the poverty of our feelings
cover us as with a mantle in the darkness of the night
and may it open our heart to hear the echo of silence
until the dawn,
wrapping us with the light of the new morning,
may bring us,
with the spent embers of the fire of the shepherds of the Absolute
who have kept vigil for us close to the divine Master,
the flavour of the holy memory.

2. LECTIO

a) The Gospelt:

23 Jesus answered him, "If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 He who does not love me does not keep my words; and the word which you hear is not mine but the Father's who sent me. 25 "These things I have spoken to you, while I am still with you. 26 But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, 'I go away, and I will come to you.' If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place, you may believe.

b) A moment of silence:
Let us allow the voice of the Word to resonate within us.

3. MEDITATIO

a) Some questions:

- “And we will come to him and make our home with him”: looking in our interior camp, will we find there the tent of the shekinah (presence) of God?
- “He who does not love me does not keep my words: Are the words of Christ empty words for us because of our lack of love? Or could we say that we observe them as a guide on our journey?
- “The Holy Spirit will bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you”: Jesus turns to the Father, but everything which he has said and done remains with us. When will we be able to remember the marvels which divine grace has accomplished in us? Do we receive or accept the voice of the Spirit who suggests in our interior the meaning of all that has taken place, that has happened?
- “My peace I give to you: The peace of Christ is his resurrection”: When will we be able in our life to abandon the anxiety and the mania of doing, which draws us away from the sources of the being? God of peace, when will we live solely from you, peace of our waiting?
- “I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place, you may believe”: Before it takes place... Jesus likes to explain to us beforehand what is going to happen, so that the events do not take us by surprise, unprepared. But, are we ready to read the signs of our events with the words heard from him?

b) Key for the reading:

To make our home. Heaven does not have a better place than a human heart which is in love. Because a dilated heart extends the boundaries and all barriers of time and space disappear. To live in love is equal to live in Heaven, to live in Him who is love, and eternal love.

v. 23. Jesus answered him: If a man loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. In the origin of every spiritual experience there is always a movement forward. Take a small step, then everything moves harmoniously. And the step to be taken is only one: If a man loves me. Is it really possible to love God? And how is it seen that his face is no longer among the people? To love: What does it really mean? In general, to love for us means to wish well to one another, to be together, to make choices to construct a future, to give oneself... to love Jesus is not the same thing. to love him means to do as he did, not to draw back in the face of pain, of death; to love as he did takes us very far... and it is in this love that the word becomes daily bread to eat and life becomes Heaven because of the Father’s presence.

vv. 24-25. He who does not love me does not keep my words; and the word which you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me. If there is no love, the consequences are disastrous. The words of Jesus can be observed only if there is love in the heart, otherwise they remain absurd proposals. Those words are not the words of a man , they come for the Father’s heart who proposes to each one of us to be like Him. In life it is not so much a question of doing things, even if they are very good. It is necessary to be men, to be sons, to be images similar to the One who never ceases to give Himself completely.

vv. 25-26. These things I have spoken to you, while I am still with you. But the Counsellor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things, and will bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. To remember is an action of the Spirit; when in our days the past is seen as something lost forever and the future is there as something threatening to take away our joy today, only the divine Breath in you can lead you to remember it. To remember what has been said, every word coming from God’s mouth for you, and forgotten because of the fact that time has gone by.

v. 27. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. The peace of Christ for us is not absence of conflicts, serenity of life, health... but the plenitude of every good, absence of anxiety in the face of what is going to happen. The Lord does not assure us well-being, but the fullness of son-ship in a loving adherence to his projects which are good for us. We will possess peace, when we will have learnt to trust in that which the Father chooses for us.

v. 28. You heard me say to you, ‘I go away, and I will come to you’. If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I. We come back to the question of love. If you loved me, you would have rejoiced. But what is the sense of this expression pronounced by the Master? We could complete the phrase and say: If you loved me, you would have rejoiced because I go to the Father... but since you think of yourselves, you are sad because I am leaving, going away. The love of the disciples is an egoistic love. They do not love Jesus because they do not think of Him, they think of themselves. Then, the love which Jesus asks, is this love! A love capable of rejoicing because the other will be happy. A love capable of not thinking of self as the centre of all the universe, but as a place in which one feels open to give and to be able to receive: not in exchange, but as the “effect” of the gift received.

v. 29. I have told you before it takes place, so when it does take place, you may believe. Jesus instructs his own because he knows that they will remain confused and will be slow in understanding. His words do not vanish, they remain as a presence in the world, treasures of understanding in faith. An encounter with the Absolute who is always and for always in favour of man.

c) Reflection:

Love: a magic and ancient word as old as the world, a familiar word which is born in the horizon of every man in the moment in which he is called into existence. A word written in his human fibres as origin and end, as an instrument of peace, as bread and gift, as himself, as others, as God. A word entrusted to history through our history of every day. Love, a pact which has always had one name alone: man. Yes, because love coincides with man: love is the air that he breathes, love is the food which is given to him, love is the rest to which he entrusts himself, love is the bond of union which makes of him a land of encounter. That love with which God has seen in his creation and has given: “It is something very good”. And he has not taken back the commitment taken when man made of himself a rejection more than a gift, a slap more than a caress, a stone thrown more than a silent tear. He has loved even more with the eyes and the heart of the Son, up to the end. This man who became a burning torch of sin, the Father has redeemed him, again and solely out of love, in the Fire of the Spirit.

4. ORATIO

Psalm 37,23-31

The steps of a man are from the Lord,
and he establishes him in whose way he delights;
though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong,
for the Lord is the stay of his hand.
I have been young, and now am old;
yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken
or his children begging bread.
He is ever giving liberally and lending,
and his children become a blessing.
Depart from evil, and do good;
so shall you abide for ever.
For the Lord loves justice;
he will not forsake his saints.
The righteous shall be preserved for ever,
but the children of the wicked shall be cut off.
The righteous shall possess the land,
and dwell upon it for ever.
The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,
and his tongue speaks justice.
The law of his God is in his heart;
his steps do not slip.

5. CONTEMPLATION

I see you, Lord, dwelling in my days through your word which accompanies me in my more intense moments, when my love for you becomes courageous, audacious and I do not give up in the face of what I feel that does not belong to me. that Spirit which is like the wind: blows where it wants and his voice is not heard, that Spirit has become space in me, and now I can tell you that he is like a dear fried with whom to remember. To go back to remember the words said, to the lived events, to the presence perceived while on the way, does good to the heart. I feel profoundly this indwelling every time that in silence one of your phrases comes to mind, one of your invitations, one of your words of compassion, your silence. The nights of your prayer allow me to pray to the Father and to find peace. Lord, tenderness concealed in the pleads of my gestures, grant me to treasure all that you are: a scroll which is explained in which it is easy to understand the sense of my existence. May my words be the dwelling place of your words, may my hunger be your dwelling, bread of life, may my pain be the empty tomb and the folded shroud so that everything that you want may be accomplished, up to the last breath. I love you, Lord, my rock.

Reference: Courtesy of Order of Carmelites, www.ocarm.org.

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Saint of the Day:  Saint  Peregrine

Feast Day:  May  1

Patron Saint:  Cancer Patients

Attributes:  one leg covered in a cancerous sore, a staff

Statue in the Peregrine Chapel of the Serra Chapel in Mission San Juan Capistrano

Saint Peregrine (Pellegrino) Laziosi (Latiosi) (1260 – 1 May 1345) is an Italian saint of the Servite Order (Friar Order Servants of Mary). He is the patron saint for persons suffering from cancer, AIDS, or other illness.

Life

Peregrine Laziosi was born around 1260, the only son of an affluent family in Forli, in northern Italy. At that time Forli was part of the Papal States. Peregrine's family supported the anti-papal faction. In 1283 the residents of Forli were under interdict.^[1] St. Philip Benizi, Prior General of the Friar Servants of Saint Mary, was sent to try to reconcile the divided community. While trying to preach in Forli, Philip was heckled and struck by the eighteen year old Peregrine. Philip was driven from the city with insults and violence. Peregrine repented and asked Philip for forgiveness. St. Philip received him with kindness. The moment had a profound effect on Peregrine. Filled with remorse, he began pray more and to channel his energies into good works. A few years later, he joined the Servites in Siena and went on to be ordained a priest.^[2]

After some years he was sent back to Forli, where he founded a new Servite house there and became well known for his preaching and holiness as well as his devotion to the sick and poor. It is said that he miraculously multiplied grain and wine during a severe shortage in his area.^[1] People took to calling him the "Angel of Good Counsel," so grateful were they for his wise advice so freely given.^[3]

One of the special penances he imposed on himself was to stand whenever it was not necessary to sit. When tired he would support himself on a choir stall. As a result of this type of life, at the age of sixty he developed varicose veins which degenerated into cancer of the right leg. His condition deteriorated to the point that the physician decided to amputate his leg.^[2]

The night before the operation Peregrine spent time praying before a fresco of the Crucifixion in the chapter room. He fell into a deep trance-like sleep and seemed to see Jesus descend from the cross to touch his leg.^[2]

The following day, the doctor arrived to perform the amputation and finding no sign of the cancer, spread news of the miraculous cure throughout the town. This only increased the people’s regard for Peregrine. The saint died of a fever about 1345 when he was almost eighty years old. An extraordinary number of people from the town and countryside honored him in death. Some of the sick who came were healed through his intercession.^[1]

Veneration

His body rests in the Servite church of Forlì, the Basilica of Saint Pellegrino Laziosi.^[4]Pope Paul V declared him blessed in 1609 and Pope Benedict XIII canonized him in 1726.^[1] The liturgical feast of Saint Pellegrino/Peregrine is on May 1.

Peregrine is considered the patron saint of those suffering from cancer. The National Shrine of Saint Peregrine is located at Our Lady of Sorrows Basilica in Chicago, Illinois, as a ministry of the Friar Servants of Mary.^[5] There is also a St. Peregrine Shrine at The Grotto, at The National Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother, in Portland, Oregon.^[6]

Legacy

The lesson of Peregrine’s life is not that God worked a miracle, but that a faithful servant placed himself, unconditionally, in the hands of God. Peregrine’s trust in God therefore serves as a model for those dealing with sickness.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Biography of St. Peregrine, The Order of Friar Servants of Mary
2. ^ ^{a b c} Foley OFM, Leonard. Saint of the Day: Lives, Lessons, and Feast (revised by Pat McCloskey OFM), Franciscan Media, ISBN 978-0-86716-887-7
3. ^ "The Story of St. Peregrine", Franciscan Mission Associates
4. ^ Basilica of Saint Pellegrino Laziosi
5. ^ National Shrine of St. Peregrine, Friar Servants of Mary
6. ^ ^{a b} The Grotto, The National Sanctuary of Our Sorrowful Mother

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Today's Snippet I:  Blessed Mother Mary, The Queen of May

May Devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary refers to special Marian devotions held in the Catholic Church during the month of May honoring the Virgin Mary as "the Queen of May". These services may take place inside or outside. May devotions have been a regular feature of Catholic life.^[1]

Origins

The origin of the conventional May devotion is still relatively unknown. Herbert Thurston identifies the seventeenth century as the earliest instance of the adoption of the custom of consecrating the month of May to the Blessed Virgin by special observances.^[2] It is certain that this form of Marian devotion began in Italy. Around 1739, witnesses speak of a particular form of Marian devotion in May in Grezzano near Verona. In 1747 the Archbishop of Genoa recommended the May devotion as a devotion for the home.^[3] Specific prayers for them were promulgated in Rome in 1838.^[4]

According to Frederick Holweck, the May devotion in its present form originated at Rome where Father Latomia of the Roman College of the Society of Jesus, to counteract infidelity and immorality among the students, made a vow at the end of the eighteenth century to devote the month of May to Mary. From Rome the practice spread to the other Jesuit colleges and thence to nearly every Catholic church of the Latin rite.MLA citation.^[5] In Rome by 1813, May devotions were held in as many as twenty churches. From Italy, May devotions soon spread to France. In Belgium the May devotions, at least as a private devotion, were already known by 1803.

May devotions

Some of the devotions are accompanied by pilgrimages. The last devotion on May 31 is often followed by a solemn procession, during which a statue of the Virgin Mary or a portrait is carried back into the church. Some May devotions may take place outside in a forest or a dedicated special place. Before Vatican II, May devotions were more popular.

There is no firm structure as to the content of a May devotion. It includes usually the singing of Marian anthems, readings from scriptures, a sermon, and or presentation by local choirs. The whole rosary is prayed separately and is usually not a part of a Marian devotion, although Hail Mary's are included. The devotion, was promoted by Jesuits and spread to Jesuit Colleges and to the entire Latin church and since that time it has been a regular feature of Catholic life.^[6]

In his 1965 encyclical, Mense Maio, Pope Paul VI identified the month of May as an opportune time to incorporate special prayers for peace into traditional May devotions.^[7]

Family devotions

One particular practice characteristic of May devotions is the May altar, whether in a church or as a "house altar" in the home. The custom of the May altar stems from southern European countries. With the development of May altars in churches, the custom spread to set up this type of "altar" also in the home.^[8]

Marian devotions may take place within the family, around a "May Altar" consisting of a table with a Marian picture decorated with many May flowers. The family would pray together the rosary. This specific devotion has been supported be several popes including Pope Pius XII in his encyclical Ingruentium Malorum:

• The custom of the family recitation of the Holy Rosary is a most efficacious means. What a sweet sight - most pleasing to God - when, at eventide, the Christian home resounds with the frequent repetition of praises in honor of the High Queen of Heaven! Then the Rosary, recited in the family, assembled before the image of the Virgin, in an admirable union of hearts, the parents and their children, who come back from their daily work. It unites them piously with those absent and those dead. It links all more tightly in a sweet bond of love, with the most Holy Virgin, who, like a loving mother, in the circle of her children, will be there bestowing upon them an abundance of the gifts of concord and family peace. ^[9]

Mary, Queen of May

By his encyclical Ad Caeli Reginam, Pope Pius XII, recognizing traditional precedents, proclaimed the "Queenship of Mary".^[10]

While May devotions may differ in various countries, the Marian title Queen of May exists identically in several countries as manifested in Marian songs. In English speaking countries such as England, Ireland and the USA, a Marian hymn uses the following text: Hail Virgin, dearest Mary! Our lovely Queen of May! O spotless, blessed Lady, Our lovely Queen of May. Your children, humbly bending, Surround your shrine ...^[11]

Another well-known Marian "Queen of May" song ends with the words:

• O Mary we crown thee with blossoms today!
• Queen of the Angels and Queen of the May.
• O Mary we crown thee with blossoms today,
• Queen of the Angels and Queen of the May.^[12]

In German-speaking countries, the equivalent word is Maienkönigin: Mary, Queen of May, we come to greet you.You see us at your feet. (Maria Maienkönigin,. wir kommen dich zu grüßen. O holde Freudenspenderin,. sieh uns zu deinen Füßen.) ^[13] Another similar song greets Mary, the queen of May, who is greeted by the month of May.^[14]

May crownings

May crowning is a traditional Roman Catholic ritual that occurs in the month of May of every year. In some countries, it takes place on or about May 1, however, in many United States Catholic parishes, it takes place on Mother's Day. An image or likeness of the Blessed Virgin Mary is ceremonially crowned to signify her as Queen of Heaven and the Mother of God. The practice is also maintained in the same fashion by some Anglo Catholic Anglicans.

A number of traditions link the month of May to Mary. The Coronation of the Virgin became a popular subject in art. Alfonso X, king of Castile wrote in his "Cantigas de Santa Maria" about the special honoring of Mary during specific dates in May. Eventually, the entire month was filled with special observances and devotions to Mary. The tradition of honoring Mary in a month-long May devotion is believed to have originated in Italy, but spread eventually around the Roman Catholic world in the 19th century together with a month-long devotion to Jesus in June and the Rosary in October.

Crowning the icon

In Eastern churches, crowning Mary was associated with adding ornamentation to an icon of Mary, sometimes as simple as adding additional gold trim. Perhaps in homage to this, Pope Clement VIII added two crowns to the icon of Mary with the Infant Jesus in the Saint Mary Major Basilica in Rome. The crowns were eventually lost, but were replaced by Gregory XVI in 1837 in a rite that was to become the standard practice for crowning.

Today, May crownings occur in many Roman Catholic parishes and homes with the crowning of a statue of Mary. The ceremony traditionally takes place with young girls dressed in dresses carrying flowers (traditionally hawthorn) to adorn the statue. One of the girls (often the youngest) carries a crown of flowers or an actual golden crown on a cushion for placement by the May Queen (often the oldest girl) on the statue. The flowers are replaced throughout the month to keep them fresh.

"Flores de Mayo" (Flowers of May)

In the Philippines and other countries, Mary is greeted with the Flores de Mayo (Flowers of May). The Faithful collect colorful flowers to decorate the Parish Church altars and aisles.^[15] "Flores De Mayo" is celebrated in many towns. The communities congregate in the afternoons to pray the rosary, offer flowers to the Virgin Mary, and share homemade delicacies and snacks. Children and adults wearing their Sunday best, sing and dance to welcome the rains that will water the new crops.^[15]

In the Philippines, the celebration is marked with a parade called the Santacruzan, where young ladies are chosen to represent certain historical (such as St. Helena) and traditional figures, called "reynas" (examples of these titles are "Reyna Elena" and "Reyna Emperatriz"). They parade through the town, escorted by young men or boys (for example, St. Helena is escorted by a young Constantine), under mobile arches heavily decorated with local flowers or other decorations meant to denote bounty.

Mary Gardens

Lourdes Grotto

A Mary Garden [16] is a small sacred garden enclosing a statue or shrine of the Virgin Mary, who is known to many Christians as the Blessed Virgin, Our Lady, or the Mother of God. In Christian tradition, Mary is the mother of Jesus of Nazareth. Mary gardens are most common to those Christian denominations which hold the Virgin Mary in special esteem, particularly Roman Catholics and Anglicans.

The practice originated among monasteries and convents in medieval Europe. During the Middle Ages, people saw reminders of Mary in the flowers and herbs growing around them.The Venerable Bede (673-735), Benedictine monk, historian, and scholar, wrote of the white lily as the emblem of the Blessed Virgin; the white petals symbolized the purity of her body and the golden anthers the beauty of her soul. Later, St. Bernard praised the Virgin Mary as "the violet of humility, the lily of chastity, the rose of charity, the Balm of Gilead, and the golden gillyflower of heaven."  The first reference to an actual garden dedicated to Mary is from the life of St. Fiacre, Irish patron saint of gardening, who planted and tended a garden around the oratory to Our Lady he built at his famous hospice for the poor and infirm in France in the 7th Century. The first record of a flower actually named for Mary is that of "seint mary gouldes" (St. Mary's Gold or Marygold) for the Pot Marigold or Calendula, in a 1373 English recipe for a potion to ward off the plague.

Modern revival

The first such garden open to the public in the United States was founded in 1932 at St. Joseph's Church, Woods Hole, Cape Cod, Massachusetts. This garden was founded Mrs. Frances Crane Lillie of Chicago, and a summer resident of Woods Hole. It was Mrs. Lillie's recollection of the symbolic herbs and flowers that she had encountered in England that prompted her to conceive and donate a Mary Garden to St. Joseph's Church.

Inspired by the St. Joseph's Mary Garden in Woods Hole, Edward A. G. McTague and John S. Stokes, Jr. founded "Mary's Gardens" of Philadelphia in 1951 as a project to research flowers identified with Mary, and make available seeds and plant source information for starting Mary Gardens. They also initiated a series of articles in religious publications to encourage the planting of Mary gardens.

Description

A Mary garden may be a single indoor pot, a large plot outdoors, or anything in between. They can be found at parishes, schools, homes, shrines, convents and other institutions.

The statue of Mary, sometimes holding the Infant Christ, is central to the garden. Select flowers, shrubs, and trees associated with the legends around Mary are planted in the garden. Such plants may include laurel trees, strawberries, ladyslippers, lilies of the valley, peonies, violets, irises and roses, all of which are identified as symbolic and significant in the story of Mary as recounted in the Bible and other Christian stories. Gardens may have benches and a facility for lighting votive candles.

It demonstrates devotional commitment through the spiritual practice of designing, building and maintaining the garden and for the attendance, contemplation, and prayers of visitors. Mary gardens are similar to the Zen meditation gardens found in the Buddhist tradition, with the exception that a Mary Garden pays homage to a person, the Virgin Mary, whereas a meditation garden in the East Asian traditions does not focus on a person.

Flowers associated with Mary

More than 30 flowers and herbs are connected to legends about Mary’s life. Mary was associated with this passage from the Song of Songs: "I am the Rose of Sharon, the lily of the valleys." (2:1) A legend from the second century says that when Mary's tomb was opened to show Thomas that her body had been assumed into heaven, it was filled with roses and lilies.

• Columbine: also known as "Our Lady's Shoes", is said to have sprung up wherever Mary’s foot touched the ground on her way to visit her cousin Elizabeth.
• Lavender: “Mary’s Drying Plant” was said to have received its scent after Mary laid Jesus’ clothes on it to dry.
• Madonna Lily: The angel Gabriel is said to have been holding a lily, representing purity, when he appeared to Mary to announce she would bear a child; lilies are often included in artistic renditions of the annunciation.
• The marigold was called "Mary's Gold" by early Christians who placed the flowers around statues of Mary, offering the blossoms in place of coins. A legend says that during the flight into Egypt the Holy Family was accosted by a band of thieves. They took Mary's purse and when they opened it, marigolds fell out.
• The violet is associated with humility and became known as "Our Lady's Modesty". It was said to have blossomed when Mary replied to the Angel Gabriel, "I am the handmaid of the Lord."

References

1. ^ www.catholicculture.org/liturgicalyear/prayers/view.cfm?id=758 -
2. ^ Thurston, Herbert. "Devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 1 May 2013
3. ^ Küppers, Kurt. Marienlexikon, Vol 4, p. 244-246, Augsburg
4. ^ Maiden and Mother: Prayers, Hymns, Devotions by Margaret Miles 2001 ISBN 0-86012-305-7 page 87
5. ^ Holweck, Frederick. "Special Devotions for Months." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 10. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 1 May 2013
6. ^ www.catholicculture.org/liturgicalyear/prayers/view.cfm?id=758
7. ^ Pope Paul VI, Mense Maio, Encyclical Of Pope Paul VI On Prayers During May For Preservation Of Peace, April 29, 1965
8. ^ Küppers, p. 243-244
9. ^ Ingruentium Marlorum 13
10. ^ Pope Pius XII, Ad Caeli Reginam, Encyclical Of Pope Pius XII On Proclaiming The Queenship Of Mary
11. ^ www.chantcd.com/lyrics/hail_virgin_dearest.htm
12. ^ campus.udayton.edu/mary//resources/mayhymns.htm
13. ^ clamu.dyndns.org/klassik/Kirchenlieder/Maria_Maienkonigin.html
14. ^ "Maria, Maienkönigin, dich will der Mai begrüßen. O segne ihn mit holdem Sinn ..." kirchensite.de/?myELEMENT=112087 - 23k
15. ^ www.2camels.com/flowers-of-may.php
16. ^ Stokes, Jr., John. "Mary's Gardens"

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FEATURED BOOK

THE MYSTICAL CITY OF GOD

Mystical City of God, the miracle of His omnipotence and the abyss of His grace the divine history and life of the Virgin Mother of God our Queen and our Lady, most holy Mary expiatrix of the fault of eve and mediatrix of grace. Manifested to Sister Mary of Jesus, Prioress of the convent of the Immaculate Conception in Agreda, Spain. For new enlightenment of the world, for rejoicing of the Catholic Church, and encouragement of men. Completed in 1665.

THE DIVINE HISTORY AND LIFE OF THE VIRGIN MOTHER OF GOD

Venerable Mary of Agreda

Translated from the Spanish by  Reverend George J. Blatter

1914, So. Chicago, Ill., The Theopolitan; Hammond, Ind., W.B. Conkey Co., US..

IMPRIMATUR:  +H.J. Alerding Bishop of Fort Wayne

Translation from the Original Authorized Spanish Edition by Fiscar Marison (George J. Blatter). Begun on the Feast of the Assumption 1902, completed 1912.

This work is published for the greater Glory of Jesus Christ through His most Holy Mother Mary and for the sanctification of the Church and her members.

Book 6, Chapter 9

MARY THE HEIRESS OF THE MERITS OF CHRIST

Of many of the sacraments and mysteries connected with the doings of Christ our Savior on the Cross the Evangelists make no mention; and we as Catholics can only form prudent conjectures founded upon the infallible certainty of our faith. But among those which have been manifested to me in this history, and concerning this part of the Passion, is a prayer, which Christ addressed to his eternal Father before speaking the seven words on the Cross recorded by the Evangelists. I call it a prayer because it was addressed to the Father; but in reality it was a last bequest or testament, which He made as a true and most wise Father in order to consign his possessions to his family, that is, to the whole human race. Even natural reason teaches us, that he who is the head of a family or the lord over many or few possessions, would not be a prudent dispenser of his goods, and inattentive to his office or dignity, if at the hour of his death he would not make known his will in regard to the disposition of his goods and his estate, in order that each one of his family may know what belongs to him and may possess it justly and peacefully without recourse to lawsuits. Although earthly things could not disturb our Savior, since He neither possessed them, nor, if He had possessed any, could He be embarrassed by them in his infinite power; yet it was fitting, that He should in that hour dispose of the spiritual riches and treasures which He had amassed for mankind in the course of his pilgrimage.

Of these eternal goods the Saviour made his last disposition on the Cross, distributing them and pointing out those who should be legitimate heirs and those who should be disinherited, and mentioning the reasons for the one as well as the other. All this He did in conference with his eternal Father, as the supreme Lord and most just Judge of all creatures; for in this testament are rehearsed the mysteries of the predestination of the saints and of the reprobation of the wicked. It was a testament hidden and sealed for mankind; the blessed Mary understood it, because, in addition to her being informed of the operations of the divine Soul of Christ, She was also to be the universal Heiress of all creation. As She was the Coadjutrix of salvation She was also to be the testamentary Executrix. For the Son placed all things in her hands, just as the Father had assigned the whole creation to Him. She was to execute his will and she was to distribute all the treasures acquired and due to her Son as God on account of his infinite merits. This understanding has been given me as part of this history for the exaltation of our Queen and in order that sinners might approach Her as Custodian of all the treasures gained by her Son our Redeemer in the sight of his eternal Father. All help and assistance is in the hands of most holy Mary and She is to distribute it according to her most sweet kindness and liberality.

When the holy wood of the Cross had been raised on mount Calvary, bearing aloft with it the incarnate Word crucified before speaking any of the seven words, Christ prayed interiorly to his heavenly Father and said: “My Father and eternal God, I confess and magnify Thee from this tree of the Cross, and I offer Thee a sacrifice of praise in my Passion and Death; for, by the hypostatic union with the divine nature, Thou hast raised my humanity to the highest dignity, that of Christ, the Godman, anointed with thy own Divinity. I confess thee on account of the plenitude of the highest possible graces and glory, which from the first instant of my Incarnation Thou hast communicated to my humanity, and because from all eternity up to this present hour Thou hast consigned to me full dominion of the universe both in the order of grace and of nature. Thou hast made Me the Lord of the heavens and of elements (Matth. 28, 18), of the sun, the moon and the stars; of fire and air, of the earth and the sea, of all the animate and inanimate creatures therein; Thou hast made Me the Disposer of the seasons, of the days and nights, with full lordship and possession according to my free will, and Thou hast set Me as the Head, the King and Lord of all angels and men (Ephes. 1, 21), to govern and command them, to punish the wicked and reward the good (John 5, 22); Thou hast given Me the dominion and power of disposing all things from highest heavens to deepest abysses of hell (Apoc. 20, 1). Thou hast placed in my hands the eternal justification of men, the empires, kingdoms and principalities, the great and the little, the rich and the poor; and of all that are capable of thy grace and glory, Thou hast Me made the Justifier, the Redeemer and Glorifier, the universal Lord of all the human race, of life and death, of the holy Church, its treasures, laws and blessings of grace: all hast Thou, my Father, consigned to my hands, subjected to my will and my decrees, and for this I confess, exalt and magnify thy holy name.”

“Now, at this moment, my Lord and eternal Father, when I am returning from this world to thy right hand through this death on the Cross, by which I completed the task of the Redemption of men assigned to Me, I desire that this same Cross shall be the tribunal of our justice and mercy. Nailed to it, I desire to judge those for whom I give my life. Having justified my cause, I wish to dispense the treasures of my coming into the world and of my Passion and Death to the just and the reprobate according as each one merits by his works of love or hatred. I have sought to gain all mortals and invited them to partake of my friendship and grace; from the first moment of my Incarnation I have ceaselessly labored for them; I have borne inconveniences, fatigues, insults, ignominies, reproaches, scourges, crown of thorns, and now suffer the bitter death of the Cross; I have implored thy vast kindness upon all of them; I have watched in prayer, fasted and wandered about teaching them the way of eternal life. As far as in Me lay I have sought to secure eternal happiness for all men, just as I merited it for all, without excluding any one. I have established and built up the law grace and have firmly and forever established the Church in which all human beings can be saved.”

“But in our knowledge and foresight We are aware, my God and Father, that on account of their malice and rebellious obstinacy not all men desire to accept our eternal salvation, nor avail themselves of our mercy and of the way I have opened to them by my labors, life and death; but that many will prefer to follow their sinful ways unto perdition. Thou art just my Lord and Father, and most equitable are thy judgments (Ps. 68, 137); and therefore it is right, since Thou hast made Me the Judge of the living and the dead, of the good and the bad (Act 10, 3), that I give to the good the reward of having served and followed Me, and to sinners the chastisement of their perverse obstinacy; that the just should share in my goods, and the wicked be deprived of the inheritance, which they refuse to accept. Now then, my eternal Father, in my and thy name and for thy glorification, I make my last bequest according to my human will, which is conformable to thy eternal and divine will. First shall be mentioned my most pure Mother, who gave Me human existence; Her I constitute my sole and universal Heiress of all the gifts of nature, of grace and of glory that are mine. She shall be Mistress and Possessor of them all. The gifts of grace, of which as a mere creature She is capable, She shall actually receive now, while those of glory I promise to confer upon Her in their time. I desire that She shall be Mistress of angels and men, claim over them full possession and dominion and command the service and obedience of all. The demons shall fear Her and be subject to Her. All the irrational creatures, the heavens, the stars, the planets, the elements with all the living beings, the birds, the fishes and the animals contained in them, shall likewise be subject to Her and acknowledge Her as Mistress, exalting and glorifying Her with Me. I wish also that She be the Treasurer and Dispenser of all the goods in heaven and on earth. Whatever She ordains and disposes in my Church for my children, the sons of men, shall be confirmed by the three divine Persons; and whatever She shall ask for mortals now, afterwards and forever, We shall concede according to her will and wishes.”

“To the holy angels, who have obeyed thy holy and just will, I assign as habitation the highest heavens as their proper and eternal abode, and with it the joys of eternal vision and fruition of our Divinity. I desire that they enjoy its everlasting possession together with our company and friendship. I decree, that they recognize my Mother as their legitimate Queen and Lady, that they serve Her, accompany and attend upon Her, bear Her up in their hands in all places and times, obeying Her in all that She wishes to ordain and command. The demons, rebellious to our perfect and holy will, I cast out and deprive of our vision and company; again do I condemn them to our abhorrence, to eternal loss our friendship and glory, to privation of the vision of my Mother, of the saints and of my friends, the just. I appoint and assign to them as their eternal dwelling place most remote from our royal throne, namely the infernal caverns, the centre of the earth, deprived of light and full of the horrors of sensible darkness (Jude 6). I decree this to be their portion and inheritance as chosen by them in their pride and obstinacy against the divine Being and decrees. In those eternal dungeons of darkness they shall be tormented by everlasting and inextinguishable fire.”

“From the multitudes of men, in the fullness of my good will, I call, select and separate all the just and the predestined, who through my grace save themselves by imitating Me, doing my will and obeying my holy law. These, next to my most pure Mother, I appoint as the inheritors of all my mysteries, my blessings, my sacramental treasures, of the mysteries concealed in the holy Scriptures; of my humility, meekness of heart; of the virtues of faith, hope, and charity of prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance; of my divine gifts and favors; of my Cross, labors, contempt, poverty and nakedness. This shall be their portion and inheritance in this present and mortal life. Since they must choose these in order to labor profitably, I assign to them the trials I have chosen for Myself in this life, as a pledge of my friendship, in order that they may undergo them with joy. I offer them my protection and, defense, my holy inspirations, my favors and powerful assistance, my blessings and my justification, according to each one’s disposition and degree of love. I promise to be to them a Father, a Brother and a Friend, and they shall be my chosen and beloved children, and as such I appoint them as the inheritors of all my merits and treasures without limitation. I desire that all who dispose themselves, shall partake of the goods of my holy Church and of the Sacraments; that, if they should lose my friendship, they shall be able to restore themselves and recover my graces and blessings through my cleansing blood. For all of them shall be open the intercession of my Mother and of the saints, and She shall recognize them as her children, shielding them and holding them as her own. My angels shall defend them, guide them, protect them and bear them up in their hands lest they stumble, and if they fall, they shall help them to rise” (Ps. 90, 11, 12).

“Likewise it is my will that my just and chosen ones shall stand high above the reprobate and the demons, that they shall be feared and obeyed by my enemies; that all the rational and irrational creatures shall serve them; that all the influences of the heavens, the planets and the stars shall favor them and give them life; that the earth, its elements and animals, shall sustain them; all the creatures, that are mine and serve Me shall be theirs, and shall serve also them as my children and friends (I Cor. 3, 22; Wis. 16, 24), and their blessing shall be in the dew of heaven and in the fruits of the earth (Genes. 27, 28). I wish to hold with them my delights (Pros. 8, 31), communicate to them my secrets, converse with them intimately and live with them in the militant Church in the species of bread and wine, as an earnest and an infallible pledge of the eternal happiness and glory promised to them; of it, I make them partakers and heirs, in order that they enjoy it with Me in heaven by perpetual right and in unfailing beatitude.”

“I consent that the foreknown and reprobate (though they were created for another and much higher end), shall be permitted to possess as their portion and inheritance the concupiscence of the flesh and the eyes (John 1, 2–16), pride in all its effects; that they eat and be satisfied with the dust of the earth, namely, riches; with the fumes and the corruption of the flesh and its delights, and with the vanity and presumption of the world. For such possessions have they labored and applied all the diligence of their mind and body; in such occupations have they consumed their powers, their gifts and blessings bestowed upon them by Us, and they have of their own free will chosen deceit, despising the truth I have taught them in the holy law ( Rom. 2, 8). They have rejected the law which I have written in their hearts and the one inspired by my grace; they have despised my teachings and my blessings, and listened to my and their own enemies; they have accepted their deceits, have loved vanity (Ps. 4, 3), wrought injustice, followed their ambitions, sought their delight in vengeance, persecuted the poor, humiliated the just, mocked the simple and the innocent, strove to exalt themselves and desired to be raised above all the cedars of Lebanon in following the laws of injustice” (Ps. 36, 35).

“Since they have done all this in opposition to our divine goodness and remained obstinate in their malice and since they have renounced the rights of sonship merited for them by Me, I disinherit them of my friendship and glory. Just as Abraham separated the children of the slave, setting aside some possessions for them and reserving the principal heritage for Isaac, the son of the freedwoman Sarah (Gen. 25, 5), thus I set aside their claims on my inheritance by giving them the transitory goods, which they themselves have chosen. Separating them from our company and from that of my Mother, of the angels and saints, I condemn them to the eternal dungeons and the fire of hell in the company of Lucifer and his demons, whom they have freely served. I deprive them forever of all hope of relief. This is, O my Father, the sentence which I pronounce as the Head and the Judge of men and angels (Eph. 4, 15; Col. 2, 10), and this is the testament made at my Death, this is the effect of my Redemption, whereby each one is rewarded with that which he has justly merited according to his works and according to thy incomprehensible wisdom in the equity of thy strictest justice” (II Tim. 4, 8). Such was the prayer of Christ our Savior on the Cross to his eternal Father. It was sealed and deposited in the heart of the most holy Mary as the mysterious and sacramental testament, in that through her intercession and solicitous care it might at its time, and even from that moment, be executed in the Church, just as it had before this time been prepared and perfected by the wise providence of God, in whom all the past and the future is always one with the present.

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Catholic Catechism 

 

PART THREE - THE LIFE OF THE CHRIST 

SECTION ONE - MAN'S VOCATION LIFE IN THE SPIRIT

CHAPTER ONE - THE DIGNITY OF THE HUMAN PERSON

ARTICLE FIVE - MORALITY OF THE PASSIONS

ARTICLE 5
THE MORALITY OF THE PASSIONS

1762 The human person is ordered to beatitude by his deliberate acts: the passions or feelings he experiences can dispose him to it and contribute to it. 

I. PASSIONS

1763 The term "passions" belongs to the Christian patrimony. Feelings or passions are emotions or movements of the sensitive appetite that incline us to act or not to act in regard to something felt or imagined to be good or evil.

1764 The passions are natural components of the human psyche; they form the passageway and ensure the connection between the life of the senses and the life of the mind. Our Lord called man's heart the source from which the passions spring.⁴⁰

1765 There are many passions. The most fundamental passion is love, aroused by the attraction of the good. Love causes a desire for the absent good and the hope of obtaining it; this movement finds completion in the pleasure and joy of the good possessed. The apprehension of evil causes hatred, aversion, and fear of the impending evil; this movement ends in sadness at some present evil, or in the anger that resists it.

1766 "To love is to will the good of another."⁴¹ All other affections have their source in this first movement of the human heart toward the good. Only the good can be loved.⁴² Passions "are evil if love is evil and good if it is good."⁴³

 

II. PASSIONS AND MORAL LIFE

1767 In themselves passions are neither good nor evil. They are morally qualified only to the extent that they effectively engage reason and will. Passions are said to be voluntary, "either because they are commanded by the will or because the will does not place obstacles in their way."⁴⁴ It belongs to the perfection of the moral or human good that the passions be governed by reason.⁴⁵

1768 Strong feelings are not decisive for the morality or the holiness of persons; they are simply the inexhaustible reservoir of images and affections in which the moral life is expressed. Passions are morally good when they contribute to a good action, evil in the opposite case. The upright will orders the movements of the senses it appropriates to the good and to beatitude; an evil will succumbs to disordered passions and exacerbates them. Emotions and feelings can be taken up into the virtues or perverted by the vices.

1769 In the Christian life, the Holy Spirit himself accomplishes his work by mobilizing the whole being, with all its sorrows, fears and sadness, as is visible in the Lord's agony and passion. In Christ human feelings are able to reach their consummation in charity and divine beatitude.

1770 Moral perfection consists in man's being moved to the good not by his will alone, but also by his sensitive appetite, as in the words of the psalm: "My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God."⁴⁶

 

IN BRIEF

1771 The term "passions" refers to the affections or the feelings. By his emotions man intuits the good and suspects evil.

1772 The principal passions are love and hatred, desire and fear, joy, sadness, and anger.

1773 In the passions, as movements of the sensitive appetite, there is neither moral good nor evil. But insofar as they engage reason and will, there is moral good or evil in them.

1774 Emotions and feelings can be taken up in the virtues or perverted by the vices.

1775 The perfection of the moral good consists in man's being moved to the good not only by his will but also by his "heart." 

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40 Cf. Mk 7:21.
41 St. Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II,26 4, corp. art.
42 Cf. St. Augustine, De Trin., 8,3,4:PL 42,949-950.
43 St. Augustine, De civ. Dei 14,7,2:PL 41,410.
44 St. Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II,24,1 corp. art.
45 Cf. St. Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II,24,3.
46 Ps 84:2.

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