NATIONAL PRO_LIFE T_SHIRT WEEK!

Tue, 28 Apr 2009 16:18:09 GMT

http://www.nationalprolifetshirtday.com/ Please go to this site to find out all about a good way to promote our pro.life cause!

SOME GOOD CARMELITE PICTURES!

Mon, 20 Apr 2009 15:29:49 GMT

http://www.carmelitaniscalzi.com/capitulo/indexgaleria.php

the Pope's handbook for Holy Week

Thu, 09 Apr 2009 15:10:51 GMT

A Handbook for Holy Week

An introduction to each moment of the sacred Triduum, given personally
by Joseph Ratzinger, pope and theologian. The catechesis he addressed to
the faithful at the general audience on Wednesday, April 8, 2009

by Benedict XVI

Dear brothers and sisters, Holy Week, which for us Christians is the
most important week of the year, offers us the opportunity to be
immersed in the central events of Redemption, to relive the Paschal
Mystery, the great mystery of the faith. Beginning tomorrow afternoon,
with the Mass "In Coena Domini," the solemn liturgical rites will help
us to meditate in a more lively manner on the Passion, Death and
Resurrection of the Lord in the days of the Holy Paschal Triduum,
fulcrum of the entire liturgical year. May divine grace open our hearts
to comprehend the inestimable gift that salvation is, obtained for us by
Christ's sacrifice.

We find this immense gift wonderfully narrated in a famous hymn
contained in the Letter to the Philippians (cf. 2:6-11), on which we
meditated several times in Lent. The Apostle reviews, both in an
essential and effective manner, the whole mystery of the history of
salvation referring to Adam's pride who, not being God, wanted to be
like God. And he contrasts this pride of the first man, which all of us
feel a bit in our being, with the humility of the true Son of God who,
becoming man, did not hesitate to take upon himself all the weaknesses
of the human being, except sin, and pushed himself to the profundity of
death. This descent to the last profundity of the Passion and Death is
then followed by his exaltation, the true glory, the glory of the love
that went all the way to the end. And that is why it is right -- as Paul
says -- that "at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and
on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ
is Lord!" (2:10-11). With these words, St. Paul refers to a prophecy of
Isaiah where God says: I am the Lord, to me every knee shall bow in
heaven and on earth (cf. Isaiah 45: 23). This -- says Paul -- is also
true for Jesus Christ. He really is, in his humility, in the true
greatness of his love, the Lord of the world and before him every knee
truly bows.

How marvelous, and at the same time amazing, is this mystery! We can
never meditate this reality sufficiently. Jesus, though being God, did
not want to make of his divine prerogatives an exclusive possession; he
did not want to use his being God, his glorious dignity and power, as an
instrument of triumph and sign of distance from us. On the contrary, "he
emptied himself" assuming our miserable and weak human condition -- in
this regard, Paul uses a quite meaningful Greek verb to indicate the
"kenosis", this descent of Jesus. The divine form (morphe) is hidden in
Christ under the human form, namely, under our reality marked by
suffering, poverty, human limitations and death. The radical and true
sharing of our nature, a sharing in everything except sin, leads him to
that frontier that is the sign of our finiteness -- death. But all this
was not the fruit of a dark mechanism or a blind fatality: It was
instead his free choice, by his generous adherence to the salvific plan
of the Father. And the death which he went out to meet -- adds Paul --
was that of the cross, the most humiliating and degrading that one can
imagine. The Lord of the universe did all this out of love for us: out
of love he willed to "empty himself" and make himself our brother; out
of love he shared our condition, that of every man and every woman. In
this connection, Theodoret of Cyrus, a great witness of the Eastern
tradition, writes: "Being God and God by nature and having equality with
God, he did not retain this as something great, as do those who have
received some honor beyond their merits, but concealing his merits, he
chose the most profound humility and took the form of a human being"
(Commentary on the Letter to the Philippians, 2:6-7).

HOLY THURSDAY

As prelude to the Paschal Triduum, which begins with the
thought-provoking afternoon rites of Holy Thursday, is the solemn Chrism
Mass, which the bishop celebrates in the morning with his presbytery,
and in the course of which at the same time the priestly promises are
renewed, made on the day of ordination. It is a gesture of great value,
an occasion all the more propitious in which the priests confirm their
fidelity to Christ who chose them as his ministers. Moreover, this
priestly meeting assumes a particular meaning, because it is almost a
preparation to the Priestly Year, which I have proclaimed on the
occasion of the 150th anniversary of the death of the holy Curé of Ars
and which will begin next June 19. Blessed also in the Chrism Mass will
be the oil of the sick and of catechumens, and the chrism will be
consecrated. These are rites that signify symbolically the fullness of
Christ's priesthood and the ecclesial communion that must animate
Christian people, gathered for the Eucharistic sacrifice and vivified in
the unity of the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In the afternoon Mass, called "In Coena Domini," the Church commemorates
the institution of the Eucharist, the ministerial priesthood and the new
commandment of charity, left by Jesus to his disciples. St. Paul gives
one of the earliest testimonies of all that happened in the Cenacle,
vigil of the Lord's Passion. "The Lord Jesus," he wrote, at the
beginning of the 50's years, based on a text he received from the Lord's
own realm, "on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he
had given thanks, he broke it, and said, 'This is my body which is for
you. Do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way also the cup, after
supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as
often as you drink it, in remembrance of me'" (1 Corinthians 11:23-25).
Words charged with mystery, which manifest clearly the will of Christ:
Under the species of bread and wine he renders himself present in his
body given and with his bloodshed. It is the sacrifice of the new and
definitive covenant offered to all, without distinction of race or
culture. And from this sacramental rite, which he entrusts to the Church
as supreme proof of his love, Jesus appointed his disciples as
ministers, and those who followed them in the course of the centuries.
Holy Thursday is, therefore, a renewed invitation to render thanks to
God for the supreme gift of the Eucharist, to be received with devotion
and to be adored with lively faith. Because of this, the Church
encourages, after the celebration of Holy Mass, watching in the presence
of the Most Holy Sacrament, recalling the sad hour that Jesus passed in
solitude and prayer in Gethsemane, before being arrested and then being
condemned to death.

GOOD FRIDAY

And so we come to Good Friday, day of the Passion and crucifixion of the
Lord. Every year, placing ourselves in silence before Jesus nailed to
the wood of the cross, we realize how full of love were the words he
pronounced on the eve, in the course of the Last Supper. "This is my
blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many" (Mark 14:24). Jesus
willed to offer his life in sacrifice for the remission of humanity's
sins. Just as before the Eucharist, so before the Passion and Death of
Jesus on the cross the mystery is unfathomable to reason. We are placed
before something that humanly might seem absurd: a God who not only is
made man, with all man's needs, not only suffers to save man, burdening
himself with all the tragedy of humanity, but dies for man.

Christ's death recalls the accumulation of sorrows and evils that beset
humanity of all times: the crushing weight of our dying, the hatred and
violence that again today bloody the earth. The Lord's Passion continues
in the suffering of men. As Blaise Pascal correctly writes, "Jesus will
be in agony until the end of the world; one must not sleep during this
time" (Pensées, 553). If Good Friday is a day full of sadness, and hence
at the same time, all the more propitious a day to reawaken our faith,
to strengthen our hope and courage so that each one of us will carry his
cross with humility, trust and abandonment in God, certain of his
support and victory. The liturgy of this day sings: "O Crux, ave, spes
unica" (Hail, O cross, our only hope)."

HOLY SATURDAY AND EASTER VIGIL

This hope is nourished in the great silence of Holy Saturday, awaiting
the resurrection of Jesus. On this day the Churches are stripped and no
particular liturgical rites are provided. The Church watches in prayer
like Mary, and together with Mary, sharing the same feelings of sorrow
and trust in God. Justly recommended is to preserve throughout the day a
prayerful climate, favorable to meditation and reconciliation; the
faithful are encouraged to approach the sacrament of penance, to be able
to participate truly renewed in the Easter celebrations.

The recollection and silence of Holy Saturday lead us at night to the
solemn Easter Vigil, "mother of all vigils," when the singing of the joy
of the resurrection of Christ will erupt in all the churches and
communities. Proclaimed once again will be the victory of light over
darkness, of life over death, and the Church will rejoice in the
encounter with her Lord. We will thus enter into the climate of the
Easter of Resurrection.

Dear brothers and sisters, let us dispose ourselves to live the Holy
Triduum intensely, to participate ever more profoundly in the mystery of
Christ. We are accompanied on this journey by the Holy Virgin, who in
silence followed her son Jesus to Calvary, taking part with great sorrow
in his sacrifice, thus cooperating with the mystery of the Redemption
and becoming Mother of all believers (cf. John 19:25-27). Together with
her we will enter the Cenacle, we will stay at the foot of the Cross, we
will watch next to the dead Christ, awaiting with hope the dawn of the
radiant day of the Resurrection. In this perspective, I now express to
all of you the most cordial wishes for a happy and holy Easter, together
with your families, parishes and communities.

--
Christian Allègre
allegre@sympatico. ca
Eo Longius

__._,_.___

FEAST OF ST. GABRIEL POSSENTI

Fri, 27 Feb 2009 17:35:49 GMT

Today is the Feast of St. Gabriel Possenti http://stgabriel.wordpress.com/ the nineteenth century Italian Passionist, who was a great lover of Mary under her title of Our Lady of Sorrows.

KAREN

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 15:40:20 GMT

Please pray for the repose of the soul of my cousin Karen, who died yesterday. She was fifty two years old.

FEAST OF THE SEVEN HOLY FOUNDERS OF THE SERVITE ORDER

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 17:48:55 GMT

http://www.stjohn-catholic.org/Saints/02%20-%20February/Month/17%20seven_founders_of_the_servite_order.htm According to tradition, St. Alex Falconieri, who was the best known of the Seven Founders of the Order of Servants of Mary, died on this day in 1310. The Servites are a great mendicant order that was founded in the thirteenth century, in Italy, in order to venerate & to be devoted to the Sorrows of Mary.

FEAST OF OUR LADY OF GUADALUPE

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 17:31:52 GMT

Today is the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. Please go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YmL146DCqY&feature=related to see this song that the Hispanics sing to Mary on the morning of Her Feast each year.

FEAST OF IMMACULATE CONCEPTION

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 15:02:04 GMT

Today is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception, the title under which the Blessed Virgin Mary is the Patroness of the U.S. Please go to: http://www.consecration.com/default.aspx?id=38 to find out more about Mary's great privilege, by which She was conceived free from any taint whatsoever of Original Sin.

FEASTS OF ST. CATHERINE LABOURE & O.L. MIRACULOUS MEDAL

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 17:20:36 GMT

These two great feast days both occur on November 27. For more about this beautiful devotion, please see: http://www.cammonline.org/

FEAST OF ALL CARMELITE SAINTS & SOULS

Sat, 15 Nov 2008 14:43:51 GMT

http://www.carmelites.info/infoA.htm Yesterday was the Feast of All Carmelite Saints & today is the Feast of All Souls of the Order. November, in general, is the month which the Church has traditionally set aside for the Holy Souls.

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