Tuesday, December 31, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 31st Day


I offer myself to Thee, O Lord, to suffer all things with a quiet mind, cheerfully and without complaint.  


Monday, December 30, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 30th Day


I desire, O Lord Jesus, that as often as I draw in my breath I may beathe Thee into me with heartfelt devotion, so that all my thoughts, words, and works may be united with Thy thoughts, words, and works, and thus may be offered to God the Father to His greater glory.

(Ascensiones in Corde,   Mowbray & Co., - 1912)

Thursday, December 26, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 26th Day

Be they small or large, all must be allowed to learn of Jesus in his crèche.
The holy Virgin has led us to the dear Crib.  The most beautiful of the Daughters of men has brought us to the most beautiful among the Sons of men.  And the Blessed among women to Him that is Blessed above all.  She tells us . . . that now the veils of prophecy are drawn aside, and the counsel of God is accomplished.  

(St. Peter Damian)


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Wednesday, December 25, 2013

CHRISTMAS DAY - EVENING SIGH


     Thou hast, then, come down even unto me, O my Sovereign Lord!  and art reposing in my heart, as in a Crib, which thou hast vouchsafed to choose for thyself, O Infant God!  My heart is now become like a new Bethlehem, O Bread of Angels!  I most devoutly adore thee, thee the great God thus humbling thyself to such an abyss of lowliness.  To the hymn of the Angels, Glory be to God in the highest, I must needs add, Glory be to thee, my God, in the depth of my misery and weakness, whither thou hast so mercifully come!  Oh!  who will teach me, my sweetest Infant Guest!  who will teach me how to give thee a worthy welcome of homage?  Mary, thy most pure and Blessed Mother, having given thee birth, and placed thee in the Crib, prostrated herself before thee as thy humble handmaid, and adored thee.  Never had this guilty earth witnessed a homage so sublime as this:  and thou didst deign to accept it, as the noblest thou hadst ever received. Permit me to imitate this thy beloved Mother, and adore thee as she did, O thou my Sovereign Lord!  I humbly beseech thee to accept her homage to supply for the unworthiness of mine;  for she is my Mother, and thou hast willed that all her riches and merits should belong to her children.  I offer thee, likewise, the adorations of that Just Man, the chaste Spouse of Mary, the admirable Joseph, who had been admitted into the divine secret of Nazareth, and is now made a witness of the touching mystery of Bethlehem.  Oh!  that I might share in the devoted respect and love of this glorious Saint, so grand because so simple, and so favored above all mortals in that he was chosen to protect thy Infancy!  I also adore thee in company with the Angels, the Shepherds and the Magi;  with Simeon and Anna, and all the Church of heaven and earth, which contemplates in glade amazement the sublime miracle of this abasement of thy divine Majesty.  

THE LITURGICAL YEAR, Volume 2,  by Dom Gueranger O.S.B. (19th century)


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Tuesday, December 24, 2013

CHRISTMAS EVE - 25 Day


          Thus have passed before us, in succession, all the generations of the world.  Each of them is asked if it have see Him whom we are expecting, and each is silent;  until the name of Mary is pronounced, and then is proclaimed the Nativity of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, made Man.  St. Bernard, speaking of this announcement, says:  'The voice of joy has gone forth in our land, the voice of rejoicing and of salvation is in the tabernacles of the just.  There has been heard a good word, a word that gives consolation, a word that is full of gladsomeness, a word worthy of all acceptance.  Resound with praise, ye mountains, and all ye trees of the forests clap you hands before the face of the Lord, for He is coming.  Hearken, O ye heavens, and give ear, O earth!  be astounded and give praise, O all ye creatures!  but thou, O man, more than all they!  Jesus Christ, The Son Of God, is Born in Bethlehem of Juda!  Who is there that is so hard of heart, that this word does not touch him?  Could anything be told us sweeter than this?  Could any news delight us like this?  Was such a thing ever heard, or anything like it ever told to the world?  JESUS CHRIST THE SON OF GOD, IS BORN IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDA!  O brief word of the Word abridged!  and yet how full of heavenly beauty!  The heart, charmed with the honeyed sweetness of the expression, would fain diffuse it and spread it out into more words;  but no, it must be given just as it is, or you spoil it:  JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF GOD, IS BORN IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDA!

THE LITURGICAL YEAR, Volume 1,  by Dom Gueranger O.S.B. (19th century)




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Monday, December 23, 2013

CHRISTMAS EVE - 25th Day


Thus have passed before us, in succession, all the generations of the world.  Each of them is asked if it have see Him whom we are expecting, and each is silent;  until the name of Mary is pronounced, and then is proclaimed the Nativity of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, made Man.  St. Bernard, speaking of this announcement, says:  'The voice of joy has gone forth in our land, the voice of rejoicing and of salvation is in the tabernacles of the just.  There has been heard a good word, a word that gives consolation, a word that is full of gladsomeness, a word worthy of all acceptance.  Resound with praise, ye mountains, and all ye trees of the forests clap you hands before the face of the Lord, for He is coming.  Hearken, O ye heavens, and give ear, O earth!  be astounded and give praise, O all ye creatures!  but thou, O man, more than all they!  Jesus Christ, The Son Of God, is Born in Bethlehem of Juda!  Who is there that is so hard of heart, that this word does not touch him?  Could anything be told us sweeter than this?  Could any news delight us like this?  Was such a thing ever heard, or anything like it ever told to the world?  JESUS CHRIST THE SON OF GOD, IS BORN IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDA!  O brief word of the Word abridged!  and yet how full of heavenly beauty!  The heart, charmed with the honeyed sweetness of the expression, would fain diffuse it and spread it out into more words;  but no, it must be given just as it is, or you spoil it:  JESUS CHRIST, THE SON OF GOD, IS BORN IN BETHLEHEM OF JUDA!

THE LITURGICAL YEAR, Volume 1,  by Dom Gueranger O.S.B. (19th century)




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Friday, December 20, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 20th Day


V.  O God, make speed to save me;
R.  O Lord, make haste to help me.
V.  Glory be to the Father, etc.
R.  As it was, etc. 

Immaculate Virgin, who being conceived without sin, didst direct every movement of thy most pure heart toward God, and wast always submissive to His divine will;  obtain for me the grace to hate sin with all my heart and to learn from thee to live in perfect resignation to the will of God.

Our Father once and Hail Mary seven times.

(Prayers & Responses number 357, The Raccolta, 1944) 


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Thursday, December 19, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 19th Day

Our Lady's Chapel, Sisters of Charity Convent, Rome, October 2013

Heart of love, I put all my trust in Thee;  for I fear all things from my own weakness, but I hope for all things from Thy goodness.  

(St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, The Raccolta, 1944)


Hail Mary . . . 

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Tuesday, December 17, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 17th Day

Our Lady's Chapel, Sisters of Charity Convent, Rome, October 2013

Before light's parting beam doth fade,
Maker of all, we ask thine aid,
That of thy wonted clemency
Our guard and keeper thou wilt be.

Let evil dreams from every heart,
And phantoms of the night,
depart;
Be strong against our ancient foe,
That so our flesh no stain
may know.

Almighty Father and adored,
Grant this through Jesus Christ our Lord,
Who with the Holy Ghost 
and Thee
Doth reign to all eternity.
Amen.  

(The Inner Court - Burnes Oates, London, 1924)


Hail Mary . . . 

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Saturday, December 14, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 14th Day


I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord, Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and was born of the Virgin Mary.


Hail Mary . . . 

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Friday, December 13, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 13th Day



I believe in God the Father Almighty, 
Creator of Heaven and earth.

Mary, My Mother, who art after God the single hope of my soul's salvation, grant me to rest this night under the shadow of thy protection;  that I may arise at the due time safe and rejoicing with thanksgiving, and serve more fervently thy Son and thee.  Amen.


Hail Mary . . . 

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Thursday, December 12, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 12th Day


Our Lady of Guadalupe

Our Lady of Guadalupe, mystical rose, make intercession for holy Church, protect Pope Francis, help all those who invoke you in their necessities, and since you are the ever Virgin Mary and Mother of the true God, obtain for us from your most holy Son the grace of keeping our faith, sweet hope in the midst of the bitterness of life, burning charity and the precious gift of final perseverance.  Amen.

Hail Mary . . . 

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Amazing Documentary
On the Miraculous Image of 
Our Lady of Guadalupe

Wednesday, December 11, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 11th Day



Amen

Mary, My Mother, I love you with all my heart.  But let me prove my love by imitating you.  The temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil afflict my soul, but you are my faithful helper.  Guard me from sin.  Under your protection I can overcome temptation and the evil inclinations of my heart.  Teach me to follow your example, that through you I may find Jesus, and through Jesus I may reach our Father in heaven, O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary!  Amen. . . . 


Hail Mary . . . 

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Tuesday, December 10, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 10th Day



And At The Hour Of Our Death

Mary, My Mother, stand at my bedside;  may the light of your presence banish the evil spirits.  May the gentle touch of your holy hand and the sweet sound of your voice comfort me.  In loving resignation to God's holy Will, and in humble but confident hope of a favorable judgment and a blissful eternity, may I go to meet my Judge.  


Hail Mary . . . 

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Monday, December 9, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 9th Day


Pray For Us Sinners Now

Mary, My Mother, I need the aid of your prayers at all times.  I have three powerful enemies:  the world, the flesh, and the devil.  I want your aid especially at the hour of my death, the hour of my greatest need, because on it hangs an eternity of bliss or woe.  

For the love of Jesus, help me at my last moments, shield me from the enemy, and obtain for me a happy death, a favorable judgment, and the glory of heaven.  Amen.


Hail Mary . . . 

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Sunday, December 8, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 8th Day




Holy Mary, Mother of God

Holy Mary, Mother of God and my Mother, there is no sin in you;  in you there is only God's grace - His light, His splendor, His love, His unspeakable delight.

Hail Mary . . . 

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Saturday, December 7, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 7th Day



And Blessed Is The Fruit of Thy Womb Jesus

Mary, My Mother, through this birth, the Divine Majesty lost nothing of Its splendor, and you became the Mother of God and yet remained a virgin.  This mystery and your dignity amaze heaven and earth.    

Hail Mary . . . 

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Friday, December 6, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 6th Day




Blessed Art Thou Amongst Women

Mary, My Mother, your divine maternity is such a sublime privilege that no creature, not even you yourself, can understand it fully.  To understand your dignity as Mother of God in all its fullness, we would have to understand fully the dignity of the Son of God Whose Mother you are.  

Hail Mary . . . 

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Thursday, December 5, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 5th Day





The Lord is With Thee

Mary, My Mother, during all eternity it will be one of our greatest joys to admire the infinite love of God for you whose Son He willed to be, just as He is in all truth the Son of the Father.  

Hail Mary . . . 

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Wednesday, December 4, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 4th Day



Hail, Full of Grace

Mary, My Mother, as I cannot grasp the depth of your sanctity, I cannot understand the measure of your grace.  It is beyond the understanding of men and even of angels.  

Hail Mary . . . 

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Tuesday, December 3, 2013

EVENING SIGH - 3rd Day


The Holy Name of Jesus

Mary, My Mother, teach me ever to love and praise the holy name of Jesus.  May that name be ever on my lips and in my heart during life, and may it be my last word at death!

Hail Mary . . . 

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