RB: Ch 16 The Celebration of the Divine Office During the Day
Mass: Is 61:9-11 or 2 Chron 24:17-25; Resp Ps (1 Sm 2) or Resp Ps 89; Lk 2:41-51
My heart exults in the Lord, my Savior.
HEART OF JESUS, WORTHY OF ALL PRAISE,
HAVE MERCY ON US.
Worth noting as we celebrate the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary is our immersion in the liturgical code of the Rule of Saint Benedict. Some may find these chapters tedious, full of instruction on, among other things, what psalms and how many are prayed at different times and days throughout the liturgical year. These chapters are essential to the life though, and not just in the monastery, but in the life of any Christian. It is about prayer and being faithful to prayer. Any person interested in prayer might keep in mind the first line in today's chapter, taken from the psalmist: Seven times a day have I praised you (Ps 118[119]:164/RB 16:1). Some words on prayer come from Thomas Merton, from a conference he gave in 1968: "[N]othing that anyone says will be that important. The great thing is prayer. Prayer itself. If you want a life of prayer, the way to get it is by praying." And, "what is keeping us back from lives of prayer? Perhaps we don't really want to pray. This is the thing we have to face."
About praying then, and even seven times a day, why not take a look at the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary. There you would have found 52 invocations to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Except just today, it was made public by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, that Pope Francis added three new invocations to the litany. So now there are 55! Please insert Mother of mercy, after Mother of the Church; Mother of Hope, after Mother of Divine Grace; and Solace of Migrants, after Refuge of sinners. Choose your favorite invocation and address Mary this day, seven times even. Pray to her, the Mother of Christ, who "kept all these these things in her heart" (Lk 2:51). Mary, Mother of Good Counsel, guide us to the heart of your Son.
MARY, CAUSE OF OUR JOY,About praying then, and even seven times a day, why not take a look at the Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary. There you would have found 52 invocations to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Except just today, it was made public by the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, that Pope Francis added three new invocations to the litany. So now there are 55! Please insert Mother of mercy, after Mother of the Church; Mother of Hope, after Mother of Divine Grace; and Solace of Migrants, after Refuge of sinners. Choose your favorite invocation and address Mary this day, seven times even. Pray to her, the Mother of Christ, who "kept all these these things in her heart" (Lk 2:51). Mary, Mother of Good Counsel, guide us to the heart of your Son.
PRAY FOR US.
Today's photo: More flower art from Holy Rosary Parish, Indianapolis, IN.© Gertrude Feick 2020
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