Meditation for Lent- Isaiah 53:5

"He was wounded for our transgressions , he was bruised for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with His stripes we are healed."
Isaiah 53:5

Palm Sunday

Today, Palm Sunday is the beginning of Holy Week. Try to pray the Rosary every day of the year and especially during Holy Week. Encourage others to pray the Rosary. Tell friends, family members, neighbors, and people at work or school about the Rosary. Parents teach your children to pray and pray with them.

The Feast of the Annunciation

Today March 25th is the Feast of the Annunciation.

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary.

And he came to her and said, "Hail, Full of Grace, the Lord is with you!" But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His kingdom there will be no end."

And Mary said to the angel, "How can this be , since I have no husband?" And the angel said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.

And behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible." And Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word." And the angel departed from her.

Luke 1:26-38

The Way Of The Cross

The Stations Of The Cross

1st Station- Jesus is condemned to Death
2nd Station- Jesus is made to carry His Cross
3rd Station- Jesus falls the First Time
4th Station- Jesus meets His Sorrowful Mother
5th Station- Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus to carry His Cross
6th Station- Veronica wipes the Face of Jesus
7th Station- Jesus falls the Second Time
8th Station- The women of Jerusalem weep over Jesus
9th Station- Jesus falls the Third Time
10th Station- Jesus is stripped of His Garments
11th Station- Jesus is nailed to the Cross
12th Station- Jesus is raised upon the Cross and Dies
13th Station- Jesus is taken down from the Cross
and placed in the arms of His Mother
14th Station- Jesus is placed in the Sepulchre

We adore Thee, O Christ, and we praise Thee,
Because by Thy Holy Cross Thou hast redeemed the world.

An Irish Blessing

May the road rise to meet you,
May the wind be always at your back,
May the sun shine warm upon your face,
May the rains fall soft upon your fields,
And, until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

Prayer for our Nation (USA)

God our Father,
Giver of life,
we entrust the United States of America to Your loving
care.

You are the rock on which this nation was founded.
You alone are the true source of our cherished rights to
life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

Reclaim this land for Your glory and dwell among Your
people.

Send Your Spirit to touch the hearts of our nation´s
leaders.
Open their minds to the great worth of human life
and the responsibilities that accompany human freedom.
Remind Your people that true happiness is rooted in
seeking
and doing Your will.

Through the intercession of Mary Immaculate,
Patroness of our land,
grant us the courage to reject the "culture of death."
Lead us into a new millennium of life.
We ask this through Christ Our Lord.

Amen.

St. Patrick's Breastplate

ST. PATRICK’S BREASTPLATE

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the threeness,
Through confession of the oneness
Of the Creator of Creation.

I arise today
Through the strength of Christ’s birth with his baptism,
Through the strength of his crucifixion with his burial,
Through the strength of his resurrection with his ascension,
Through the strength of his descent for the judgement of Doom.

I arise today
Through the strength of the love of Cherubim,
In obedience of angels,
In the service of archangels,
In hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In prayers of patriarchs,
In prediction of prophets,
In preaching of apostles,
In faith of confessors,
In innocence of holy virgins,
In deeds of righteous men.

I arise today
Through the strength of heaven:
Light of sun,
Radiance of moon,
Splendor of fire,
Speed of lightning,
Swiftness of wind,
Depth of sea,
Stability of earth,
Firmness of rock.

I arise today
Through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me,
God’s shield to protect me.
God’s host to save me
From snares of devils,
From temptations of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
Afar and anear,
Alone and in multitude.

I summon today all these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel merciless power that may oppose my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul.
Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
so that there may come to me abundance of reward.

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,
Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ on my right, Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the threeness,
Through confession of the oneness,
Of the Creator of Creation

The Caregiver and the Person receiving care.

The Caregiver and the Person receiving care see the image of Jesus in each other.

The Caregiver sees the "suffering" Jesus, in the Person receiving care and the Person receiving care sees the "saving" Jesus, in the Caregiver.

The Caregiver provides food and drink, medicine, bathing, clothing, confidence, Love and protection to the Person receiving care; to help them in their journey through this world.

The Person receiving care gives Love in return and helps the Caregiver on their journey toward eternal life with Jesus.

Immaculate Heart of Mary- Prayer

Father,
You prepared the heart of the Virgin Mary
to be a fitting home for Your Holy Spirit.
By her prayers,
may we become more worthy temples of Your glory.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Your Son,
Who lives and reigns with You and the
Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen

The Magnificat (Canticle of Mary)

Luke 1:46-55

And Mary said,
"My soul magnifies the Lord,
and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for He has regarded the low estate of his handmaiden.
for behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed;
for He who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is His name.
And His mercy is on those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with His arm,
He has scattered the proud in the
imagination of their hearts,
He has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted those of low degree;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent empty away.
He has helped His servant Israel,
in remembrance of His mercy,
as He spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his posterity for ever."

Love

"Love is patient and kind;
love is not jealous or boastful;
it is not arrogant or rude.
Love does not insist on its own way;
it is not irritable or resentful;
it does not rejoice at wrong,
but rejoices in the right.
Love bears all things,
believes all things,
hopes all things,
endures all things."

1 Cor 13:4-7

Prayer to the Shoulder Wound of Christ

O Loving Jesus, meek Lamb of God, I miserable sinner,
salute and worship the most Sacred Wound of Thy
Shoulder on which Thou didst bear thy heavy Cross,
which so tore Thy flesh and laid bare Thy Bones as to
inflict on Thee an anguish greater than any other wound
of Thy Most Blessed Body. I adore Thee, O Jesus most
sorrowful; I praise and glorify Thee, and give Thee thanks
for this most sacred and painful Wound, beseeching Thee
by that exceeding pain, and by the crushing burden of
Thy heavy Cross to be merciful to me, a sinner, to forgive me
all my mortal and venial sins, and to lead me on towards Heaven
along the Way of Thy Cross. Amen

Nourish the soul during Lent

During Lent many of us will fast from certain foods or perform other acts of penance. While we are fasting on some things that the world has to offer, we can still feast on Sacred Scripture found in the Bible. All of the mysteries of the Rosary and the prayers "Our Father" and "Hail Mary" are found in the Bible. By praying the Rosary and reading the Bible we can feast and nourish the soul.

"...man does not live by bread alone, but that man lives by everything that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord." Deut.8:3

The Holy Names of Jesus and Mary

When we simply repeat the names of Jesus and Mary with respect, we are praying. If we can do that, what a treasure we have. The very names of Jesus and Mary are a treasure beyond any worldly possession.

"In every danger of forfeiting divine grace, we should think of Mary, and invoke her name, together with that of Jesus; for these two names always go together. O, then, never let us permit these two most sweet names to leave our hearts, or be off our lips; for they will give us strength not only not to yield, but to conquer all our temptations." -St. Bernard

"The invocation of the sacred names of Jesus and Mary," says Thomas a Kempis, "is a short prayer which is sweet to the mind, and as powerful to protect those who use it against the enemies of their salvation, as it is easy to remember."

"With every beat of my heart and every breath that I take, may I proclaim the names of Jesus and Mary." -Rosary Family of the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Quote from "True Devotion to Mary"

The more the Holy Ghost finds Mary,
His dear and inseparable spouse, in any
soul, the more active and mighty He
becomes in producing Jesus Christ in that
soul, and that soul in Jesus Christ.

-St. Louis De Montford (1673-1716)

The Way of the Cross or the way of the world ?

"Their roses are pleasures of the flesh, worldly honors and passing riches which will wilt and decay in no time, but ours, which are the Our Father and Hail Mary which we have said devoutly over and over again and to which we have added good penitential acts, will never wilt or die and they will be just as exquisite thousands of years from now as they are today."

St. Louis De Montfort (1673-1716)
The Secret of the Rosary, page 11