Twenty-Fifth Week in Ordinary Time

September is the month dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Ch 6 - Ch 7:33 Humility Restraint of Speech

Every day I will bless you.

MARY, CONQUERER OF THE INCREDULOUS,

MARY, PROTECTRESS OF THOSE WHO FIGHT,

MARY, HELP OF THE FAINT,

MARY, QUEEN OF THY SERVANTS,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

Conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the Gospel.

(Ph 1:27a)

Welcome to the Twenty-Fifth Week in Ordinary Time in the last week of the month dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary. Have you checked out the Litany of Our Lady of Sorrows yet? If not, there is still time. As seen above, I have invoked our Blessed Mother under a few of my favorite titles from the litany. Dear Mary, treasure of the faithful, please cover us in your protective veil and pray for us!

It was during First Vespers yesterday afternoon that I thought of Saint Benedict and his Holy Rule, specifically Ch 34. Distribution of Goods According to Need. What prompted my thinking was today's Gospel (Mt 20:1-16a). It is there that Jesus tells us the parable about the landowner and the laborers. There are many layers to the parable, and also several perspectives to look at it, and reflect on the effect of Jesus' words on our lives. One thing we do know about the passage is that at the end of a day's work there was a lot of grumbling about. You see, the landowner paid all the laborers the same wage, whether they worked all day in the heat, or showed up later in the day for just a few hours of work. "This just isn't fair," grumbled the first group. "We certainly worked much harder and longer than the others!" Putting things a bit closer to home, we might think of the colleague who was promoted over "me." "She is much younger and has only worked here for two years and look it, I have been here for 20 years!" Or at home, when Clotilde is incredulous that mom brought home a new pair of sneakers for Bonaventure who needed them and didn't bring her a new pair even though she didn't need them! And these sorts of things go on in a monastery too, and wherever humans are gathered. If it were not so, Saint Benedict would not have written Ch. 34. With wisdom and insight into human nature, our holy father Benedict put it this way:

It is written: Distribution was made to each one as he had need (Acts 4:35). By this we do not imply that there should be favoritism-God forbid-but rather consideration for weaknesses. Whoever needs less should thank God and not be distressed, but whoever needs more should feel humble because of his weakness, not self-important because of the kindness shown to him. In this way all the members will be at peace. First and foremost, there must be no word or sign of the evil of grumbling, no manifestation of it for any reason at all. If, however, anyone is caught grumbling, let him undergo more severe discipline.

Something else to consider is that we never know the whole story. For example, why were some of the laborers idle in the marketplace? It is easy to make assumptions. However, maybe some of the laborers were exhausted after being engaged in spiritual and/or corporeal works of mercy like comforting the sorrowful or visiting the imprisoned or the sick. Or maybe some of them were up all night working another job so as to "put Keds on the kids," so to speak. As a teacher of pastoral counseling taught me, "You may try to walk in someone else's shoes, but remember, you will never walk in someone else's shoes. " Thankfully too, Jesus loves all of us, whether we are full of energy or exhausted. 

"To be a Christian," said Willi Graf (1918-1943), "is perhaps the hardest thing to ever become in life." So, united in faith and prayer, we pray to conduct ourselves in a way worthy of the Gospel, and that is a way of love, mercy, forgiveness, and abundant generosity, putting aside all assumptions, jealousy, envy, suspicion, and animosity. Dear Willi was right, this will keep us busy and is perhaps the hardest way to ever become in life. However, our reward will be great in heaven. It seems that Blessed Solanus Casey's words are always fitting: "Thank God ahead of time." And being thankful takes a lot less energy than grumbling. 

About our beloved saints for the week, I gained insight on our relationships with the saints thanks to Lisa Lickona who writes regularly for the Elizabeth Ann Seton Shrine: "After eight years of writing about the saints day in and day out," Mrs. Lickona wrote, "I find myself attempting less and less to imitate them. But I do want to follow them ... Following means beginning to get to the heart of what a saint is teaching us through their lives. It's less about copying someone else's life and more about immersing oneself in his or her way of being and way of seeing the world. It is beginning to see with the 'eyes of the heart' (Eph 1:18).* So why not choose one of our saints of the week and see how he or she may help you see with eyes of your heart. 

SAINT STEPHANIE,

OUR LADY OF WALSINGHAM,

BLESSED EMILIE TAVERNIER-GAMELIN,

SAINT NICHOLAS OF FLUE,

SAINT FINBARR,

SAINT HERMANN CONTRACTUS,

SAINTS COSMAS AND DAMIAN,

SAINT VINCENT DE PAUL,

SAINT LOUISE DE MARILLAC,

SAINT WENCESLAUS,

SAINT LAURENECE RUIZ AND HIS COMPANIONS,

SAINT LIOBA,

SAINT MICHAEL,

SAINT GABRIEL,

SAINT RAPHAEL,

SAINT JEROME,

PRAY FOR US.

Our voices for this week serve several purposes. First, I honor a dear friend and mentor of happy memory, Father Paschal Cheline, OSB (1936-2015), whose anniversary of birth is next month. And it was Father Paschal who said, among other gems, that reading a novel is a necessary part of the spiritual life. Novels help to bring one out of the day-to-day drudgery and get in touch with other people, many of whom have more complicated lives than we. Through the characters we meet, with their varied stories, we just might gain a widened outlook, a new perspective on things, and develop more compassion. Who knows. ☺ Always busy with a novel himself, Father Paschal would recommend good reading. I took his teaching to heart not only in my personal life, but also with students. I made a novel required reading for classes; I might recommend one, or the student was free to choose one. So, our voices for the week all come from a novel I just finished, passed to me by my dear sister, and now passed to you for your consideration. It is a work of historical fiction by Lynda Rutledge, West with Giraffes: A Novel (Lake Union: 2021). Here are the passages I marked (some rather long-winded like me lol), the first one brings a grin to my face.

At that, the Old Man whopped that poor fedora of his to the ground and stomped it flat, produced a rolling cuss I would have admired any other time, creative as sin and the length of a long spiral spit into the wind.

(p. 144)

Home's not the place you're from, Woody. Home's the place you want to be.

(p. 215)

The land you grow up in is a forever thing, remembered when all else is forgotten, whether it did you right or wrong. Even when it flat near kills you. Even when it invades your dreams and stokes your nightmares. Even when you run from it never to return, then find yourself headed straight back for it, and the best you can wish for is to drive through it with your head down and your wits about you, dodging the worst of it so you can get on with your young life somewhere else.

(p. 227)

I didn't know which would keep me driving-the lie or the truth. You can carry around a heavy load only for so long, and that goes double if you're only eighteen.

(p. 277)

The thing about knowing you are doing something for the last time is that it takes the joy right out of it. I've done lots of things for the last time in my long life, but didn't know it.

(p. 301)

We had left an hour before dawn again, By the time we were watching the moon set on one side of us and the sun rise on the other, we'd all fallen into a moving bit of peace. I'd felt a sliver of that peaceful feeling after we'd made it through the mountains. This time, though, it was long and lingering and soul-soothing deep. It seems now like the closest thing to praying I'd ever done. When I'd live a little longer and heard people talking about such things, calling it by spiritual names, I'd want to scoff but couldn't. In the years ahead, through the War and beyond, it was this quiet day moving through the unmoving land with Boy and Girl and the Old Man and Red that I returned to when I needed it most ... its peace passed any understanding, any attempt at words. You only get a few of those in your life if you're lucky, and some only get one. If that be true, this was my one. When I remember it, I'm not eighteen in the memory. I am whatever age its came to me, be it 33 or 103 ...

(p. 304)

There's no explaining the world, boy. How you come into it. Where you find yourself. Or who your friends turn out to be-be you man or be you beast.

(p. 310)

Cyrus smiled. "Well, now, I wouldn't go so far as calling him a liar. Nobody abides a liar. But everybody sure likes a good storyteller, don't they? Sometimes the best medicine is a good story.

(p. 332)

It's a strange thing how you can spend years with some folks and never know them, yet, with others, you need only a handful of days to know them far beyond years.

(p. 333)

Time spent with animals is added to your life.

(p. 334)

Time heals all wounds, they say. I'm here to tell you that time can wound you all on its own. In a long life, there is a singular moment when you know you've made more memories than any new ones you'll ever make. That's the moment your truest stories-the ones that made you the you that you became-are ever more in front of your mind, as you begin to reach back for the you that you deemed best.

(p. 336)

It's a foolish man who thinks stories do not matter-when in the end, they may be all that matter and all the forever we'll ever know ... And it is a selfish man who takes stories to the grave that aren't his and his alone. Shouldn't you know your mother's brave heart and daring dreams? And shouldn't you know your friends, even though we're gone?

(p. 339)

* L. Lickona, "Learning to Follow with Padre Pio and Mother Seton," in Seton Reflections, September 23, 2023.

Today's photo: The glow of this beauty illuminates this heart of leaf. The Lord is holy in all His works.

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Twenty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

September is the month dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary

Rule of Saint Benedict Reading for the Week: Ch 4 The Tools for Good Works - Ch 5 Obedience 

Heals all your ills.

MARY, CALMER OF TEMPESTS,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

Welcome to the Twenty-Fourth Week in Ordinary Time still in the month of September dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary. Thank you for tuning in after a couple weeks of silence on my part. It goes like this; I took a "vacation." Now this particular vacation was kind of like the vacation I took from regular Mass attendance when I was in my 20s or so. I thought to stop going to Mass to see how it went. In fairly short order, I missed Mass and realized that Mass was not something to take a vacation from. In like manner, with these weekly musings in the form of a blog, I tried to take a vacation. Well, as you can see, it took only two weeks to realize that random musings are not something for me to take a vacation from. And it is all fitting as about six years ago, when I inquired about vacations, I was told quite simply: "Cistercians don't take vacations." There you have it then: We don't take a vacation from Mass and so united in faith and prayer, none of us takes a vacation from the daily ora et labora. As Saint Paul tells us then: None of lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself. For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord's (Rm 14:7-8). Encouraged, we keep going because "being a light to the nations," as I was told the other day, "takes a lot of energy." And in the words of Saint John Chrysostom, dear "golden-mouth": 

Do not say: it is impossible for me to influence others. If you are a Christian, it is impossible for this not to happen. Things found in nature cannot be denied; so here, for it is a question of the nature of a Christian.

Do not insult God: If you say that the sun cannot shine, you have insulted Him. If you say that a Christian cannot help others, you have insulted God and called Him a liar. It is easier for the sun not to give warmth or shine than for the Christian to not shed his light. It is easier for the light to be darkness than for this to happen.

Do not say that it is impossible. The opposite is impossible. Do not insult God. If we have put our affairs in order, these things will certainly come to be, and will follow as a natural consequence. The light of a Christian cannot escape notice. So bright a lamp cannot be hidden.

(Saint John Chrysostom, from a homily on the Acts of the Apostles, in Office of Readings, Common of Holy Men)

This week how about we focus on forgiveness and reconciliation starting with some of Saint Benedict's Tools for Good Works, namely, "harbor neither hatred or jealousy of anyone, and do nothing out of envy. Do not love quarreling; shun arrogance. Respect the elders and love the young. Pray for your enemies out of love for Christ. If you have a dispute with someone, make peace with him before the sun goes down. And finally, never lose hope in God's mercy" (Rule of Saint Benedict, 4:65-74). And we have plenty of voices to encourage us, starting with one we heard a few weeks ago.

Seventy-seven times forgiveness acknowledges that I do not see the whole story, that God does not love me more than He loves those with whom I am in conflict. It is absolute surrender and love, and extravagant kind of grace, and undeserved forgiveness that holds out a hand that may be refused.

(Mother Saint Teresa of Calcutta, 1910-1997)

There are many ways of excusing sins. One will say: "I didn't do it." Another: "I did it, but I was perfectly right in doing it." If it was wrong, he may say: "It isn't all that bad." If it was decidedly harmful, he can fall back on: "I meant well." If the bad intention is too evident, he will take refuge in the excuses of Adam and Eve and say someone else led him into it.

(Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Steps of Pride and Humility, XVII, 45)

It is only by God's grace that we find the strength to put aside what we are due in justice and charity in order to turn towards others who have deeply hurt us with mercy ... Forgiveness must be unconditionally and freely given as Christ has given it to us ...

The question we are faced with each day as we experience the pain and sin of others, on top of the reality of our own sinfulness and weaknesses, is how do we want to live? Do we want to allow the rejections we endure at the hands of others-especially those closest to us-to stifle our willingness and ability to love others? Do we want to cling to bitter resentment, which turns us into shells of people? Do we want to join in Lucifer's non serviam because we don't want to be crucified on the Cross of forgiveness?

(Constance T. Hull, "The Supernatural Power of Forgiveness," in Catholic Exchange, September 7, 2023)

With Mrs. Hull's words, then, we might ponder something Major Pettigrew thought to himself:

No one really contemplates death when making life decisions, thought the Major. If they did, what different choices might they make?

(Major Pettigrew in Helen Simonson, Major Pettigrew's Last Stand: A Novel, Random House, 2011)

And of something Saint Benedict tells us:

Day by day remind yourself that you are going to die.

(Rule of Saint Benedict, 4:47)

And furthermore,

No one heals himself by wounding another.

(Saint Ambrose, 339-397)

An insult is either sustained or destroyed, not by the disposition of those who insult, but in the disposition of those who bear it.

(Saint John Chrysostom, 347-407)

Pardon one another so that later on you will not remember the injury. The recollection of an injury is in itself wrong. It adds to our anger, nurtures our sin and hates what is good. It is a rusty arrow and poison for the soul. It puts all virtue to flight.

(Saint Francis de Paola, 1416-1507)

Forgiveness often seems impossible, but nothing is impossible for God. The God who lives within us will give us the grace to go beyond our wounded selves and say, "In the Name of God you are forgiven."

(Henri Nouwen, 1932-1996)

And this prayer from the son of Saint Monica, Doctor of the Church Saint Augustine, bears another showing:

Grant that I may say with confidence: O my God, forgive me as I forgive others. Grant that I may pray to you with a peaceful heart for those who have hurt me, teach me to conquer myself and to check the impulse which would lead me to take revenge.

(Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430)

We have quite a few saints to intercede for us this week, plus a few of my favorites thrown into the mix ... For all the saints ... Please, help us to lift high the cross and forgive those who trespass against us. 

SAINT ROBERT BELLARMINE,

SAINT HILDEGARD OF BINGEN,

SAINT ALBERT OF JERUSALEM,

SAINT JOSEPH OF CUPERTINO,

SAINT MARY OF CAMPOROSSO,

SAINT EMILY DE RODAT,

SAINT EDITH KEMSING,

SAINT STANSILAW KOSTKA,

SAINT JANUARIUS,

SAINT THEODORE OF TARSUS,

SAINT ANDREW KIM TAEGON, PAUL CHONG HASANG, AND COMPANIONS,

SAINT MATTHEW, APOSTLE AND EVANGELIST,

SAINT MAURICE AND THE THEBAN LEGEND,

SAINT THOMAS OF VILLANOVA,

SAINT PIO OF PETRELCINA,

SAINT ADOMNAM OF IONA,

SAINT THERESE OF LISIEUX,

SAINT ELIZABETH ANN SETON,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: This one helps to heal all that ills. So surpassing is His kindness toward those who fear Him.

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time

September is the month dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary

In other years: Pope Saint Gregory the Great (540-604)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Prologue 14 - Ch 1 The Kinds of Monks  

Mass: Jeremiah 20:7-9; Resp Ps 63; Rm 12:1-2; Mt 16:21-27

All my being, bless His holy name.

MARY, STRENGTH OF THE WEAK,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

Do not conform yourself to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.

(Romans 12:2)

Welcome to the Twenty-Second Week in Ordinary Time and the month of September dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary. And as Saint Raphael Arnaiz Baron wrote to his uncle, "Given Mary, how could you not love God!!" So, through Mary, give God the praise!

To act on Saint Paul's words to the Romans quoted above, we certainly need the help of Saint Michael the Archangel, guardian of souls. Here is one way to respond, given by the late Father Bonaventure Perquin, O.P. (d. 1970): "We need to discipline our imagination and learn to live each day as it comes, remembering that God's will is infinitely wise, merciful, and tender, and that He unfailingly gives us the grace we need to accept His will, but only at the exact moment we need it. Then we really live by faith, trust, and love." In another place, Father Bonaventure said: "We must bend down and take up [our cross], as our Lord did, and not accept it passively. And it has to be our own cross too, not someone else's; carrying our own cross is how we work out the task planned for us by the Father." And as it turns out, as it often does, these are all ways to heed Jesus' words in today's Gospel: Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it (Mt 16:24-25). Not my will, Lord, but yours be done. Thankfully, the Son of Man will come with His angels in His Father's glory, and then He will repay all according to his conduct (Mt 16:27). I believe, help my unbelief. Amen.

Since we have the privilege and honor of commemorating the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary on September 8th, all voices will be in praise of Our Lady. United in faith and prayer, and as "we progress in this way of life and in faith, we shall run on the path of God's commandments, our hearts overflowing with the inexpressible delight of love" (Rule of Saint Benedict, Prologue 49). Mary, treasure of the faithful, pray for us.

The spiritual beauty of God is reflected in the most holy Virgin Mother of God.

(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2502)

Surely we'd go mad if we truly loved Mary. By honoring the Virgin, we will love Jesus more. By placing ourselves under her mantle, we will understand divine mercy better. When we invoke Her name, it's as if everything becomes lighter. When we turn to Her as our intercessor, what will we not receive from Her Son, Jesus?

(Saint Raphael Arnaiz Baron, 1911-1938)

Mary believed. It was demanded of her that she constantly renew this faith, that it might become ever firmer, more bare of supports-greater ... Every step the Lord took toward His divine destiny Mary took with Him-not in the way of understanding but in the way of faith.

(Romano Guardini, 1885-1968)

As sailors are guided by a star to the port, so are Christians guided to Heaven by Mary.

(Saint Thomas Aquinas, 1225-1274)

Love Our Lady. And she will obtain abundant grace for you to help you conquer in your daily struggle. And the enemy will gain nothing by those foul things that continually seem to boil and rise within you, seeking to swallow up in their perfumed corruption the high ideals, the sublime determination that Christ Himself has set in your heart.

(Saint Jose Maria Escriva de Balaguer Albas, 1902-1975)

My mother [Mary] is very strange; if I bring her flowers she says she does not want them; if I bring her cherries, she will not take them, and if I then ask what she desires, she replies: "I desire thy heart, for I live on hearts."

(Saint Joseph of Cupertino, 1603-1663)

In dangers

in hardships

in every doubt

think of Mary

call out to Mary.

Keep her in your mouth

keep her in your heart ...

With your hand in hers

you will never stumble.

With her protecting you

you will not be afraid.

With her leading you

you will never tire.

Her kindness 

will see you through to the end.

Then you will know 

by your own experience

how true it is that

the Virgin's name was Mary.

(Bernard of Clairvaux, 1090-1153)

POPE SAINT GREGORY THE GREAT,

POPE SAINT BONIFACE I,

SAINT CUTHBERT,

SAINT MAC NISSI,

BLESSED DINA BELANGER,

SAINT HERBERT,

MOTHER SAINT TERESA OF CALCUTTA,

SAINT THOMAS ZUGI,

SAINT CLOUD,

BLESSED RALPH CORBY,

SAINT PETER CLAVER,

PRAY FOR US.

NB. Dear faithful readers, thank you for being there. Please have patience over the next couple of weeks as our website is undergoing process improvement. For now, laboratory tests are underway and the experts (that would not be me) are busy. No computer whiz, I just say, in God we trust. ☺ Keep going there and I will here. Ora pro invicem.

Today's photo: Taken some time ago, this one still reminds us to call upon the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. You are my help, in the shadow of your wings I rejoice. 

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time

August is the month dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary

September is the month dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary

In other years: Saint Monica (331-387)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Ch 69 The Presumption of Defending Another in the Monastery - Prologue 1-13

Mass: Is 22:19-23; Resp Ps 138; Rm 11:33-36; Mt 16:13-20 

You built up strength within me.

SACRED HOST, IN WHICH THE SOUL IS FILLED WITH GRACE,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

HEART OF MARY, HOPE OF THE AGONIZING,

MARY, MIRROR OF PATIENCE,

PRAY FOR US.

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How inscrutable are His judgments and how unsearchable are His ways ...

For from Him and through Him and for Him are all things. To Him be glory forever. Amen.

(Rm 11:33, 36)

Welcome to the Twenty-First Week in Ordinary Time, a week when we conclude the month of August dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary and commence the month of September dedicated to the Seven Sorrows of Mary. We could go straight to today's Gospel or start with something just shared with me that goes something like this. Nearly 50 years ago, a woman was telling a wisdom figure that she was going to get married. And quite simply, the wise one said to the young woman: "God will find you wherever you are." And you know what? Our Lord Jesus will find you wherever you are too. And when He finds you, He just may ask: Who do you say that I am? ☺

With our voices for the week, united in faith and prayer, we go forth. As we conclude this year's second read through of the Holy Rule of Saint Benedict and begin our third read through, we remember the wisdom of our holy father Saint Benedict: "First of all, every time you begin a good work, you must pray to Christ the Lord most earnestly to bring it to perfection" (Rule of Saint Benedict, Prologue 4). And no matter what comes your way, remember that "it is what it is." Or in the words of Issa Kobayashi (1763-1828), Japanese poet, just shared with me: 

The morning dew

is the morning dew

and yet ...

As we commemorate Saint Monica, the mother of Saint Augustine, today and her son tomorrow, we let the great Saint and Doctor of the Church Augustine of Hippo (354-430) speak first.

Right is right even if no one is doing it;

wrong is wrong even if everyone is doing it.

(Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430)

Mercy's natural home is misery.

(Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, 1090-1153, On Conversion, VII, 12)

Sickness has real utility when it leads to the doctor's hands, and he whom God restores to health gains by having been ill.

(Saint Bernard on Clairvaux, 1090-1153, On Conversion, VII, 12)

All grace flows from mercy, and the last hour abounds with mercy for us. Let no one doubt concerning the goodness of God, even if a person's sins were as dark as night, God's mercy is stronger than our misery. One thing alone is necessary; that the sinner set ajar the door of his heart, be it ever so little, so let in a ray of God's merciful grace, and then God will do the rest.

(Saint Faustina Kowalska, 1905-1938, The Diary of Saint Faustina Kowalska)

Working at the beck of our own will, we become famous and forlorn. Working at the command of religion we become abject and rapturous, being God's friends forever, and rewarded by One who never fails to satisfy.

(Servant of God Rose Hawthorne, 1851-1926)

Is it not true that it would be a very simple, efficacious, and gentle procedure to sanctify ourselves by accepting each day what the Lord asks of us? We have absolute certainty that what God plans for us each day is most suitable and sanctifying ... The only program for me is God's program. Let this day come as it may. God sends it; He and no one else. Let is come as it may, we are sure that it comes wrapped in the love of our Lord and destined to sanctify us. We ought to say: "I will sanctify myself precisely by the events of this day because the loving providence of God has sent them to me. He is acquainted with my necessities; He know what is most conducive to my sanctification." If we were to understand this, would not our soul by a veritable ocean of peace?

(Servant of God Luis Maria Martinez, 1881-1956)

The unknown is where all things are possible; enter it with grace.

(Anonymous, tea bag tag)

SAINT MONICA,

SAINT AUGUSTINE,

SAINT ELIZABETH ANN SETON,

SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST,

BEATRICE OF NAZARETH, 

SAINTS WARREN AND AMADEUS, 

SAINT AIDEN,

SAINT MARGARET CLITHEROW,

SAINT ANNE LINE,

SAINT MARGARET WARD,

BLESSED GHEBRE MICHAEL,

SAINT FIACRE,

SAINT AIDEN,

SAINT RAYMOND NONNATUS,

SAINT EDMUND ARROWSMITH,

SAINT GILES,

SAINT TERESA MARGARET REDI OF THE SACRED HEART,

BLESSED ANDRE GRASSET,

JESUIT MARTYRS FOR THE NAME OF JESUS,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: The Lord certainly built up the strength in this little one. He may be small, but his croak is mighty. You have heard the words of my mouth.

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time

August is the month dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary

In other years: Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, "Doctor Mellifluous” (1090-1153); Saint Samuel, prophet; Saint Maria de Mattias, Foundress of the Sisters of the Adorers of the Blood of Christ (1805-1866)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Ch 64 The Election of an Abbot - Ch 68 Assignment of Impossible Tasks

Mass: For the Solemnity of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux: Wis 7:7-10, 15-16; Resp Ps 19 or Sirach 39:8-14; Resp Ps 37; Ph 3:17-4:1; Mt 5:13-19 or Jn 17:20-26

20th Week in Ordinary Time: Is 56:1, 6-7; Resp Ps 67; Rm 11:13-15, 29-32; Mt 15:21-28

The decree of the Lord is trustworthy, 

giving wisdom to the simple.

OUR LADY, MOTHER AND QUEEN,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

SACRED HOST, BOND OF CHARITY,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

HEART OF MARY, COMFORT OF THE AFFLICTED,

PRAY FOR US.

Therefore I prayed, and prudence was given me; I pleaded and the spirit of Wisdom came to me ...

Beyond health and comeliness I loved her, And I chose to have her rather than the light, because the splendor of her never yields to sleep.

(Wisdom 7:7, 10)

Welcome to Sunday of the Twentieth Week in Ordinary Time, and for Cistercians the Solemnity of Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, Doctor Mellifluous, about whom Pope Pius XII (1876-1958) had this to say: "The 'Doctor Mellifluus,' 'the last of the Fathers, but certainly not inferior to the earlier ones,' was remarkable for such qualities of nature and mind, and so enriched by God with heavenly gifts, that in the changing and often stormy times in which he lived, he seemed to dominate by his holiness, wisdom and most prudent counsel."* In our times, then, not so different than the ones Saint Bernard of Clairvaux found himself in, we pray for holiness, wisdom, and prudence. May the Doctor Mellifluous, whose praise of Jesus "flowed like honey" from his lips, intercede for us. 

With our voices for the week, we go forth united in faith and prayer. Dear faithful readers, please pray for all the brothers and sisters of the Order of Cistercians of the Strict Observance, and for all those in the Cistercian family. Thank you for being there.

The psalmist says: "Seek God's face." Nor, I think, will the soul cease to seek God even when she has found Him. It is not with steps of the feet that God is sought, but with the heart's desire ...

Think, if you can, of this eagerness to see God as not caused by God's absence, for God is always present. And think of the desire for God as without fear or failure, for grace is abundantly present.

(Saint Bernard of Clairvaux)

Human action cannot help us, but only the sufferings of Christ. My aspiration is to share them.

(Edith Stein, "Martyr for Love," at her 1938 profession as a Carmelite nun, 1891-1942)

Do everything through love and nothing through constraint.

(Saint Francis de Sales, 1567-1622)

The Christian must suffer unjustly, but if he keeps his eyes on Jesus, God will work wonders in his soul.

(Mother Angelica of the Annunciation, 1923-2016)

This is our main endeavor: to think, to feel, to love as Christ Jesus, to act and to speak as He ... We need, above all, to study His life, know it, and mediate upon it, not only in its outward appearance, but by immersing ourselves in the thoughts, feelings, hopes, and dreams of Jesus Christ.

(Saint Henry de Osso y Cervello, 1840-1896)

O how lovingly can we expect everything from God when we expect nothing from ourselves! There is nothing I cannot do in Him, knowing as I do there is nothing I can do without Him.

(John of Forde, 1140-1214)

I want my life to be like the tabernacle candle, and it is daily carrying my cross that I can shine. In whatever suffering you experience, let your life be like the tabernacle candle, always burning in His presence.

(Father Andrew Hofer, O.P.)

If everyone simply did his Christian duties, we would not have so much hate and misery in the world.

(Blessed Karl of Austria, 1887-1922)

SAINT BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX,

SAINT SAMUEL, PROPHET,

SAINT MARIA DE MATTIAS,

POPE SAINT PIUS X,

SAINT JOHN KEMBLE,

SAINT ROSE OF LIMA,

SAINT EUGENE,

SAINT JOHN WALL,

SAINT BARTHOLOMEW,

SAINT LOUIS OF FRANCE,

SAINT JOSEPH CALASANZ,

SAINT MARY OF JESUS CRUCIFED BAOUARDY,

BLESSED DOMINIC BARBERI,

SAINT JOHN HENRY NEWMAN,

SAINT DAVID LEWIS,

OUR LADY OF CZESTOCHOWA,

SAINT CAESARIUS OF ARLES,

BLESSED JACQUES RETOURET,

SAINT TERESA OF JESUS' TRANSVERBERATION,

SAINT JEANNE ELIZABETH DES BICHIER,

PRAY FOR US.

*Doctor Mellifluus Encyclical of Pope Pius XII on Saint Bernard of Clairvaux, the Last of the Church Fathers, May 24, 1953.

Today's photo: Agnolo Gaddi (1350-1396), "Saint Mary Magdalene, Saint Benedict, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux and Saint Catherine of Alexandria," about 1380-1390, tempera and gold on wood, once formed part of a larger altarpiece, Indianapolis Museum of Art. My dear oldest sister and I saw this in 2017. 

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

August is the month dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary

In other years: Saints Pontian and Hippolytus (-235); Saint Fachtna or Fachanan of Ross, Ireland, Patron of the Diocese of Ross, probably the first bishop (6th century); Blessed William Freeman (-1595)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Ch 59 the Offering of Sons by Nobles or the Poor- Ch 63 Community Rank

Mass: 1 Kings 19:9a, 11-13a; Resp Ps 85; Rm 9:1-5; Mt 14:22-33

Truth shall spring out of the earth.

QUEEN, ASSUMED INTO HEAVEN,

PRAY FOR US.

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

SACRED HOST, GREATEST AID TO HOLINESS, 

HAVE MERCY ON US.

HEART OF MARY, SEAT OF MERCY,

PRAY FOR US.

Take courage, it is I. Do not be afraid.

(Mt 14: )

Welcome to the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary in our month dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, in a week when we celebrate with solemnity the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Give God the praise. I saw a letter where the writer signed off: "In the heart of Jesus." Yes, we are in the heart of Jesus, and in the heart of His Mother our Queen, assumed into heaven.  

With Jesus' words to the frightened disciples in today's Gospel, I am glad for the introduction to our bonus voice for the week, namely that of Saint Francis de Sales (1567-1622), and words the priest prays after the Lord's Prayer, ones that I pray interiorly. The priest prays to the Lord that we may be "safe from all distress." Yes, dear Lord, you are with us. Please, dear Lord, keep us safe from all distress, and protect us from all anxiety as we await the blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. And what does the great Saint Francis de Sales have to say? "Anxiety is the greatest evil that can befall a soul except sin. God commands you to pray; He forbids you to worry." Please then, Lord, deliver us from every evil and graciously grant peace in our days. Kyrie, eleison. 

In the hearts of Jesus and Mary, united in faith and prayer, we go forth, no matter how turbulent the waters that rock our boats, high the waves that toss us, and strong the winds that blow us.

And for this week's other voices.

 You know the general principal: that God is everywhere. On the throne of His glory among the blessed indeed, but also throughout the whole universe which He fills, governs and preserves, ruling it by wisdom and grace. This we learn in our infancy, as of all of our memory in childhood. Yet in the practice of life, we live along as if we scarcely remembered that God sees us.

(Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, 1774-1821)

Apply yourself seriously because the years are passing by and we are getting old so we have to become wise.

(Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, 1901-1925)

There is nothing so great as the Eucharist. If God had something more precious, He would have given it to us.

(Saint John Vianney, 1786-1859)

Do not receive Christ in the Blessed Sacrament so that you may use Him as you judge best, but give yourself to Him and let Him receive you in this Sacrament, so the He Himself, God your savior, may do to you and through you whatever He wills.

(Saint Cajetan, 1480-1578)

In the face of anti-social and anti-Catholic schools, alternative schools must be opened whose mission is to direct, to define and distinguish good and evil; schools that may disarm the enemies by giving the true definition.

(Blessed Francisco Palau y Quer, 1811-1872)

This story told me that there is no limit to one's ability-certainly not age-to accomplish in life what one must. Within each individual in this large and complicated world there lives an astounding potential of greatness. Yet it is rare that these hidden gifts are brought to life unless by the chance of fate.

(Velma Wallis, introduction in V. Wallis, Two Old Women: An Alaska Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival, Epicenter, 1993, p. xiii)

Relations became better between The People and the two women. Both learned that from hardship, a side of people emerged that they had not known. The People had thought themselves to be strong, yet they had been weak. And the two old ones whom they thought to be the most helpless and useless had proven themselves to be strong.

(Velma Wallis, Two Old Women, p. 117)

SAINTS PONTIAN AND HIPPOLYTUS

SAINT FACHNA,

BLESSED WILLIAM FREEMAN,

BLESSED MICHAEL MICGIVNEY,

SAINT MAXIMILIAN KOLBE,

SAINT STEPHEN OF HUNGARY,

SAINT ROCK,

BLESSED MARIA SAGRARIO OF SAINT ALOYSIUS GONZAGA,

BLESSED ANGELUS MAZZINGHI,

SAINT CLARE OF MONTEFALCO,

BLESSED VICTORIA RASOAMANARIVO,

SAINT ALBERTO HURTADO CRUCHAGA,

BLESSEDS JOHN-BAPTIST DUVERNEUIL, MICHAEL-ALOYSIUS BURLARD AND JAMES GAGNOT,

SAINT JOHN EUDES,

SAINT HYACINTH,

BLESSED MARTYRS OF ROCHEFORT,

BLESSED GUERRIC, CISTERCIAN ABBOT,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: And justice shall look down from heaven.

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

August is the month dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Ch 54 Letters of Gifts for Monks - Ch 58 The Procedure for Receiving Brothers

Mass: Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14; Resp. Ps 97; 2 Peter 1:16-19; Mt 17:1-9

The mountains melt like wax before the Lord.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

MARY OF THE SNOW,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

PLEDGE OF FUTURE GLORY,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

HEART OF MARY, THRONE OF GLORY,

PRAY FOR US.

Thousands upon thousands were ministering to him, and myriads upon myriads attended him.

(Daniel 7:10)

Welcome to the glorious Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord. One response to that is something our holy father Saint Benedict tells us in this week's readings from the Holy Rule. In Ch 57 "The Artisans of the Monastery," our holy father quotes Saint Peter and reminds us, all artisans in one way or another, that no matter what we do, we do it "so that in all things God may be glorified" (RB 57:9/1 Pet 4:11). Among other gems that Saint Benedict offers this week is from Ch 58 "The Procedure for Receiving Brothers," and sisters too. It is there we learn that the concern for anyone entering a monastery is whether or not she "truly seeks God and whether he shows eagerness for the Work of God [the Liturgy of the Hours], for obedience and trials" (RB 58:7). Is there clutter or are there attachments that you might need to let go so that your search for God is not blocked for one reason or another, that you are eager to pray, thankful too, for even a few seconds to raise your mind and heart to God*  - O God, come to my assistance, make haste to help me - and to pick up your cross and follow the Lord? Or remember something the Little Flower, Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897) wrote: "For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy." Go to the mountain with Peter, James and John, or even the valley; you will find Jesus there. You will do well to be attentive to His voice, for it is a lamp shining in a dark place, until day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts (see 2 Pet 1:19).

We have some strong voices this week. They all speak loud and clear. For starters, an anonymous voice asks: "What can you appreciate at this moment?" (Yogi tea bag tag). We go forth, united in faith and prayer remembering that "the Lord dwells in light upon the holy mountain and lives among us hidden in the darkness of daily life. Let us pray that we may see Him and serve Him."** Lord, it is good that we are here (Mt 17:4). Amen.

If we live our daily lives with all the windows open, it becomes possible for the Spirit's gentle breeze to penetrate our resistance and bring us relief from the tightness we impose on ourselves. We consent to live on the brink of the unexpected, alert for any indication of where inspiration may prompt us to go.

(Michael Casey, ocso, b. 1942, Monk of Tarrawarra Abbey, Australia)

Just living is not enough, said the butterfly. One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower.

(Hans Christian Anderson)

Grant that I may say with confidence: O my God, forgive me as I forgive others. Grant that I may pray to you with a peaceful heart for those who have hurt me, teach me to conquer myself and to check the impulse which would lead me to take revenge.

(Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430)

Happy the man who loves you, O God, and his friends in you. He alone loses no one who is dear to him, because he loves them in the One who is never lost."

(Saint Augustine of Hippo)

Do not pray for easy lives; pray to be stronger people ... do not pray for tasks equal to your powers; pray for powers to equal your tasks.

(Blessed Solanus Casey, 1870-1957)

I feel like an utter failure ... The older I get the more I feel that faithfulness and perseverance are the greatest virtues - accepting the sense of failure we all must have, in our work of others around us, since Christ was the world's greatest failure ... Christ understands us when we fail.

(Servant of God Dorothy Day, 1897-1980)

The truth does not change according to our ability to stomach it emotionally.

(Flannery O'Connor, 1925-1964)

POPE SAINT SIXTUS II AND HIS COMPANIONS,

SAINT CAJETAN,

BLESSED NICHOLAS POSTGATE,

SAINT ALBERT OF TRAPANI,

SAINT DOMINIC,

SAINT MARY OF THE CROSS,

SAINT BENEDICTA OF THE CROSS (EDITH STEIN),

SAINT NATHY,

SAINT FELIM,

SAINT LAURENCE, DEACON AND MARTYR,

SAINT CLARE,

SAINT JANE FRANCES DE CHANTAL,

PRAY FOR US.

*"Prayer is the raising one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God" (Saint John Damascene, 675/6-749).

**Magnificat, May 5, 2023, introduction to Psalm 43, p. 73.

Today's photo: From Maddy through her dear mother. North Cascade Mountains. All peoples see His glory.

 

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

July is the month dedicated to the Precious Blood of the Lord

August is the month dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary

In other years: Saint Peter Chrysologus (380-450); Saint Justin de Jacobis (1800-1860)

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Ch 48 The Daily Manual Labor - Ch 53 The Reception of Guests 

Mass:  1 Kings 3:5, 7-12; Resp Ps 119; Rm 8:28-30; Mt 13:44-52

For I love your commands.

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

BLOOD OF CHRIST, RELIEF OF THE BURDENED,

SAVE US.

SACRED HOST, SACRAMENT OF LOVE,

HAVE MERCY ON US.

HEART OF MARY, LIKE UNTO THE HEART OF GOD,

PRAY FOR US.

All things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.

(Rm 8:28)

Welcome to the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, one in which we leave July 2023, the month dedicated to the Precious Blood of the Lord, behind, and enter the month of August, the month dedicated to the Blessed Sacrament and the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Give God the praise. With all these gifts, in addition to Saint Paul's words above to the Romans and to us, it is a wonder why Saint Peter Chrysologus asks us the following questions. Still, we must listen to his "golden speech." "Why then are you so worthless in your own eyes and yet so precious to God? Why render yourself such dishonor when you are honored by Him? Why do you ask how you were created and do not seek to know why you were made? Was not this entire universe made for your dwelling?"* We have the pearl of great price, dear faithful readers, so as Saint Peter Chrysologus encourages us, "God has made you in His image that you might in your person make the invisible Creator present on earth: He has made you His legate, so that the vast empire of the world might have the Lord's representative."* United in faith and prayer, God calls each one of us. We go forth to love and serve Him.

And now a word or two from our voices for the week:

When the fire of love is in a heart, all furniture flies out the window.

(Saint Francis de Sales, 1567-1622)

Here is my secret. It's quite simple: One sees clearly only with the heart. 

Anything essential is invisible to the eyes.

(The Little Prince, by Antoine de Saint-Exupery)

Truly humble people are centers of peace because they fear neither their own failure nor others' success. Let us pray for the wisdom to judge as God judges: to look at our own and others' achievements from God's perspective.

(Magnificat, Commentary on Psalm 75, July 19, 2023)

Fortified with good intention, wherever you are and whatever you do, always keep it in mind: 

God is here!

(Venerable Maria Kaupas, 1880-1940)

Lord, help me to live this day, quietly, easily. To lean upon Thy great strength, trustfully, restfully. To wait for the unfolding of Thy will, patiently, serenely. To meet others, peacefully, joyously. To face tomorrow, confidently, courageously.

(Saint Francis of Assisi, 1181-1226)

Holiness is for everyone in every circumstance in life. We are all called to be saints. And we become saints by loving God and others with our whole being in whatever situation we find ourselves.

(Danielle Bean, "Mothers First: Saint Bridget and Mother Seton Remind Us That We Are All Called to Holiness," in Seton Reflections, July 23, 2023)

Gratitude is not about what is received; it's about how you receive what is already there.

(Anonymous, Yogi tea bag tag)

SAINT PETER CHRYSOLOGUS,

SAINT JUSTIN DE JACOBIS,

BLESSED SOLANUS CASEY,

SAINT ELIZABETH ANN SETON,

SAINT IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA,

SAINT ALPHONSUS MARY DE LIGUORI,

SAINT EUSEBIUS OF VERCELLI,

SAINT PETER JULIAN EYMARD,

SAINT PETER FABER,

SAINT GERMANUS OF AUXERRE,

SAINT OSWALD,

SAINT AETHELWOLD,

SAINT JOHN MARY VIANNEY,

SAINT MARY MAJOR,

PRAY FOR US.

*From a sermon by Saint Peter Chrysologus, bishop, in Office of Readings, July 30.

Today's photo: More than gold, however fine.

© Gertrude Feick 2023

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

July is the month dedicated to the Precious Blood of the Lord

3rd World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly 

In other years: Saint Bridget of Sweden (1303-1373); Saints Philip Evans and John Lloyd (-1679); Our Lady, Mother of Divine Grace

Readings of the Day

Rule of Saint Benedict for the Week: Ch 43 Mistakes in the Oratory - Ch 48 The Daily Manual Labor

Mass:  Wisdom 12:13, 16-19; Resp Ps 86; Rm 8:26-27; Mt 13:24-43

You alone are God.

OUR LADY, MOTHER OF DIVINE GRACE,

MARY, QUEEN OF PEACE,

SAINT MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL,

PRAY FOR US.

BLOOD OF CHRIST, WITHOUT WHICH THERE IS NO FORGIVENESS,

SAVE US.

Those who are just must be kind;

and you gave your children good ground for hope that you would permit repentance for their sins.

(Wisdom 12:19)

Welcome to the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time in the month of July dedicated to the Precious Blood of the Lord, and the 3rd World Day for Grandparents and the Elderly. We remember especially today, then, our grandparents, living and deceased, and all the elderly. We remember them with love, respect, and gratitude while recalling something Saint Benedict teaches us, namely, that the young must respect their seniors, and the seniors must love their juniors (Rule of Saint Benedict, 63:10). Saint Joachim and Anne, parents of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and Grandparents of Our Lord Jesus Christ, pray for us. 

With something more from Saint Benedict, we prayed Psalm 50 [51] at Lauds this morning, just as our holy father Benedict prescribes in Chapter 12 of the Holy Rule. It is in the chapter on the Celebration of the Solemnity of Lauds that Saint Benedict prescribes Psalm 50 after Psalm 66 (see RB 12:1-2). With the words from the Book of Wisdom above, we pray: A clean heart create for me, God; renew in me a steadfast spirit. Turn away your face from my sins; blot out all my guilt. Do not drive me away from your presence, nor take from me your holy spirit. Restore my joy in our salvation; sustain in me a willing spirit (Ps 50:11-14). Dear Jesus, we place our hope in you alone (see RB 4:41). Have mercy on us and renew our hope. Whoever has ears ought to hear (Mt. 13:43).

United in faith and prayer, we take to heart what Saint Paul assures us with today. When you think you do not know how to pray, remember that we do not know how to pray as we ought. Not to worry though, as the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings. And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because He intercedes for the holy ones according to God's will (see Romans 8:26-27). Come, Holy Spirit, come. Your will. O Lord, not mine, be done. 

And now for what has become my favorite section, that is, voices for the week. 

Though tested and plagued by a host of misfortunes, I have no fear so long as your grace is with me. It is my strength, stronger than any adversary; it helps me and gives me guides.

(Thomas a Kempis, 1380-1471, The Imitation of Christ)

We know not, and we shall not ask before the time, where our earthly way will lead us. We know only this, that to those who love the Lord, all things will work together to the good, and further, that the ways by which our Savior leads us point beyond this earth.

(Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, 1891-1942)

The attempt to develop a sense of humor and to see things in a humorous light is some kind of trick learned while mastering the art of living.

(Victor E. Frankl, 1905-1997, Man's Search for Meaning)

Compassion never stands at arm’s length.

(Magnificat, July 2023, Introduction to Psalm 13, p. 102)

Joy, with peace, is the sister of charity. Serve the Lord with laughter.

(Saint Padre Pio, 1887-1968)

The unknown is where all outcomes are possible; enter it with grace.

(Anonymous, Yogi tea bag tag)

Smiling is the most basic kind of peace work.

(Anonymous, Yogi tea bag tag)

SAINT BRIDGET OF SWEDEN,

SAINTS PHILIP EVANS AND JOHN LLOYD,

SAINT CHARBEL MAKHLOUF,

SAINT DECLAN,

SAINT JOHN BOSTE,

BLESSED ROBERT LUDLAM AND NICHOLAS GARICK,

BLESSED JOHN SORETH,

BLESSED MARIA MERCEDES PRAT,

SAINT JAMES,

SAINT TITUS BRANDSMA,

BLESSED ROBERT SUTTON,

BLESSED RUDOLPH ACQUAVIVA AND COMPANIONS,

SAINT PANTELEON,

POPE SAINT VICTOR,

SAINT SAMPSON,

SAINT ALPHONSA MUTTATHUPADATHU,

SAINTS MARTHA, MARY AND LAZARUS,

PRAY FOR US.

Today's photo: Angel trumpet brought to you by Esther in the Hoosier State. Glorify your name.

© Gertrude Feick 2023