May 7th
St Anselm (1033-1109), Confessor, Bishop; Aosta, Burgundy; Feast day April 21st
"Many things were revealed to the Apostles by Mary."
Ven. Louis of Granada (1505-1588), Confessor; Granada, Spain
"How can you gain Heaven by the path of gross and sensual pleasures?..Consider how often the Sacred Host has rested upon your tongue, and do not permit death to enter by that gate through which life is conveyed to your soul....What incomprehensible folly to flatter with such delicate care a body which is destined to be the food of worms! For this miserable body you neglect your soul, which will appear before the tribunal of God as poor in virtues as its earthly companion is rich in sensual pleasures."
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Monday, May 6, 2013
May 6th
St John Damascen (676-749), Confessor, Doctor of the Church; Damascus, Syria; Feast day May 6th
"Conscious to myself of my own baseness and unworthiness, I ought rather to condemn myself to an eternal silence, weeping, and confessing my sins before God. But seeing the Church, which is founded on a rock, assailed by a furious storm, I think I ought no longer to remain silent, because I fear God more than an emperor of the earth."
"Without assiduous prayer, reasoning is a great dissipation of the mind, and learning often extinguishes the humble interior spirit of prayer, as wind does a candle."
"Suffer not yourself to be bewitched with the enchantment of geometry. Nothing will sooner dry up in you the interior spirit of recollection and devotion."
Bl Edmund Rice (1762-1844), Founder, Confessor; Callan, Co. Kilkenney, Ireland; Feast day May 6th
"But let us do ever so little for God, we will be sure He will never forget it, nor let it pass unrewarded."
"Were we to know the merit and value of only going from one street to another to serve a neighbor for the love of God, we should prize it more than silver and gold."
"One thing you may be sure of, that whilst you work for God, whether you succeed or not, he will amply reward you."
"The will of God be done in this and every thing we undertake."
"Have courage; the good seed will grow up in the children's hearts later on."
"O God, did we even now rightly begin to serve you, your loving heart would take us all to its final embrace."
"Be intent on prayer and whatever may happen will turn to our good."
"Cast all your cares into the arms of divine Providence."
"Give to the poor in handfuls."
"If you only acquire this virtue (humility), it will always guide you safely let your paths be ever so cross or difficult."
"Never allow vain notions of your own sense, abilities, or other natural or acquired qualifications to take root in your mind, but always beseech God to make known to you, your sins and imperfections."
St John Damascen (676-749), Confessor, Doctor of the Church; Damascus, Syria; Feast day May 6th
"Conscious to myself of my own baseness and unworthiness, I ought rather to condemn myself to an eternal silence, weeping, and confessing my sins before God. But seeing the Church, which is founded on a rock, assailed by a furious storm, I think I ought no longer to remain silent, because I fear God more than an emperor of the earth."
"Without assiduous prayer, reasoning is a great dissipation of the mind, and learning often extinguishes the humble interior spirit of prayer, as wind does a candle."
"Suffer not yourself to be bewitched with the enchantment of geometry. Nothing will sooner dry up in you the interior spirit of recollection and devotion."
Bl Edmund Rice (1762-1844), Founder, Confessor; Callan, Co. Kilkenney, Ireland; Feast day May 6th
"But let us do ever so little for God, we will be sure He will never forget it, nor let it pass unrewarded."
"Were we to know the merit and value of only going from one street to another to serve a neighbor for the love of God, we should prize it more than silver and gold."
"One thing you may be sure of, that whilst you work for God, whether you succeed or not, he will amply reward you."
"The will of God be done in this and every thing we undertake."
"Have courage; the good seed will grow up in the children's hearts later on."
"O God, did we even now rightly begin to serve you, your loving heart would take us all to its final embrace."
"Be intent on prayer and whatever may happen will turn to our good."
"Cast all your cares into the arms of divine Providence."
"Give to the poor in handfuls."
"If you only acquire this virtue (humility), it will always guide you safely let your paths be ever so cross or difficult."
"Never allow vain notions of your own sense, abilities, or other natural or acquired qualifications to take root in your mind, but always beseech God to make known to you, your sins and imperfections."
Sunday, May 5, 2013
May 5th
St Pius V (1504-1572), Pope, Confessor; Bosco Morengo, Piedmont, Italy; Feast day May 5th
"You are the salt of the earth! You are the light of the world! See to it that the people are edified by your example, by the purity of your lives, by the moderation of your conduct, and the brilliance of your holiness! God does not ask of you mere ordinary virtue. he demands downright perfection!"
"He that reigns in the highest, to Whom has been given all power in Heaven and Earth, entrusted the government of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, outside of which there is not salvation, to one man alone on the Earth, namely to Peter, the chief of the Apostles, and to Peter's successor, the Roman pontiff, in fullness of power. This one man He set up as chief over all nations and kingdoms, to pluck up, destroy, scatter, dispose, plant and build..."
"Do not evil so that good may come!"
"In union with the perfect confidence and hope that the Holy and Blessed Virgin placed in Thee, do I hope, O Lord."
"Dominic looked to that simple way of praying and beseeching God, accessible to all and wholly pious, which is called the Rosary, or Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in which the same most Blessed Virgin is venerated by the angelic greeting repeated one hundred and fifty times, that is, according to the number of the Davidic Psalter, and by the Lord's Prayer with each decade. Interposed with these prayers are certain meditations showing forth the entire life of Our Lord Jesus Christ, thus completing the method of prayer devised by the Fathers of the Holy Roman Church...Christ's faithful, inflamed by these prayers, began immediately to be changed into new men. The darkness of heresy began to be dispelled, and the light of the Catholic Faith to be revealed...Following the example of our predecessors, seeing that the Church militant, which God has placed in our hands, in these our times is tossed this way and that by so many heresies, and is grievously troubled and afflicted by so many wars, and by the depraved morals of men, we also raise our eyes, weeping but full of hope, unto that same mountain, whence every aid comes forth, and we encourage and admonish each member of Christ's faithful to do likewise in the Lord."
"O Lord, increase my sufferings and my patience!"
"It shall be unlawful henceforth and forever throughout the Christian world to sing or to read Masses according to any formula other than that of this Missal published by Us...which shall have the farce of law in perpetuity, We order and enjoin under pain of Our displeasure that nothing be added to Our newly published Missal, nothing omitted therefrom, and noting whatsoever altered therein."
St Pius V (1504-1572), Pope, Confessor; Bosco Morengo, Piedmont, Italy; Feast day May 5th
"You are the salt of the earth! You are the light of the world! See to it that the people are edified by your example, by the purity of your lives, by the moderation of your conduct, and the brilliance of your holiness! God does not ask of you mere ordinary virtue. he demands downright perfection!"
"He that reigns in the highest, to Whom has been given all power in Heaven and Earth, entrusted the government of the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church, outside of which there is not salvation, to one man alone on the Earth, namely to Peter, the chief of the Apostles, and to Peter's successor, the Roman pontiff, in fullness of power. This one man He set up as chief over all nations and kingdoms, to pluck up, destroy, scatter, dispose, plant and build..."
"Do not evil so that good may come!"
"In union with the perfect confidence and hope that the Holy and Blessed Virgin placed in Thee, do I hope, O Lord."
"Dominic looked to that simple way of praying and beseeching God, accessible to all and wholly pious, which is called the Rosary, or Psalter of the Blessed Virgin Mary, in which the same most Blessed Virgin is venerated by the angelic greeting repeated one hundred and fifty times, that is, according to the number of the Davidic Psalter, and by the Lord's Prayer with each decade. Interposed with these prayers are certain meditations showing forth the entire life of Our Lord Jesus Christ, thus completing the method of prayer devised by the Fathers of the Holy Roman Church...Christ's faithful, inflamed by these prayers, began immediately to be changed into new men. The darkness of heresy began to be dispelled, and the light of the Catholic Faith to be revealed...Following the example of our predecessors, seeing that the Church militant, which God has placed in our hands, in these our times is tossed this way and that by so many heresies, and is grievously troubled and afflicted by so many wars, and by the depraved morals of men, we also raise our eyes, weeping but full of hope, unto that same mountain, whence every aid comes forth, and we encourage and admonish each member of Christ's faithful to do likewise in the Lord."
"O Lord, increase my sufferings and my patience!"
"It shall be unlawful henceforth and forever throughout the Christian world to sing or to read Masses according to any formula other than that of this Missal published by Us...which shall have the farce of law in perpetuity, We order and enjoin under pain of Our displeasure that nothing be added to Our newly published Missal, nothing omitted therefrom, and noting whatsoever altered therein."
Saturday, May 4, 2013
May 4th
Ven. Louis of Granada (1505-1588), Confessor; Granada, Spain
"Let us wean our hearts from worldly honors and possessions, and seek only spiritual riches, for such treasures are not diminished when enjoyed by numbers, but, on the contrary, are increased. It is otherwise with the goods of the earth, which must decrease in proportion to the numbers who share them. For this reason envy finds easy access to the soul which covets the riches of this life, where one necessarily loses what another gains.
"Do not be satisfied with feeling no grief at the prosperity of your neighbor, but endeavor to benefit him all you can, and the good you cannot give him ask God to grant him. Hate no man. Love your friends in God, and your enemies for God. He so loved you while you were still His enemy that He shed the last drop of His Blood to save you from the tyranny of your sins.
"Your neighbor my be wicked, but that is no reason for hating him. In such a case imitate the example of a wise physician, who loves his patient, but hates his disease. We must abhor sin, which is the work of man, but we must always love our neighbor, who is the work of God. Never say in you heart: 'What is my neighbor to me? I owe him nothing. We are bound by no ties of blood or interest. He has never done me a favor, but has probably injured me.'
"Reflect rather on the benefits which God unceasingly bestows upon you, and remember that all He asks in return is that you be charitable and generous, not to Him, for He has no need of you or your possessions, but to your neighbor, whom He has recommended to your love."
Ven. Louis of Granada (1505-1588), Confessor; Granada, Spain
"Let us wean our hearts from worldly honors and possessions, and seek only spiritual riches, for such treasures are not diminished when enjoyed by numbers, but, on the contrary, are increased. It is otherwise with the goods of the earth, which must decrease in proportion to the numbers who share them. For this reason envy finds easy access to the soul which covets the riches of this life, where one necessarily loses what another gains.
"Do not be satisfied with feeling no grief at the prosperity of your neighbor, but endeavor to benefit him all you can, and the good you cannot give him ask God to grant him. Hate no man. Love your friends in God, and your enemies for God. He so loved you while you were still His enemy that He shed the last drop of His Blood to save you from the tyranny of your sins.
"Your neighbor my be wicked, but that is no reason for hating him. In such a case imitate the example of a wise physician, who loves his patient, but hates his disease. We must abhor sin, which is the work of man, but we must always love our neighbor, who is the work of God. Never say in you heart: 'What is my neighbor to me? I owe him nothing. We are bound by no ties of blood or interest. He has never done me a favor, but has probably injured me.'
"Reflect rather on the benefits which God unceasingly bestows upon you, and remember that all He asks in return is that you be charitable and generous, not to Him, for He has no need of you or your possessions, but to your neighbor, whom He has recommended to your love."
Friday, May 3, 2013
May 3rd
Ven. Louis of Granada (1505-1588), Confessor; Granada, Spain
"Make it a point of honor to owe no man, and you will thus enjoy peaceful slumbers, a quiet conscience, a contented life, and a happy death. The means of acquiring these precious results is to control your desires and appetites and to govern your expenditure by your income, not by your caprices. Our debts proceed from our ill-regulated, uncontrolled desires more than from our necessities, and consequently moderation is more profitable than the largest revenues.
"Let us be convinced that the only real riches, the only real treasures, are those which the Apostle bids us seek when he tells us to fly covetousness and pursue justice, godliness, faith, charity, patience, and mildness, for godliness with contentment is great gain. Be contented with the position in which God has placed you. Man would always enjoy peace did he accept the portion which God gives him; but, seeking to gratify ambition or cupidity, which craves more than God has given him, he exposes himself to trouble and disquiet, for real happiness or success can never be known by one who strives against the will of God."
St Gregory the Great (540-604), Confessor, Pope, Doctor of the Church; Rome, Italy; Feast day March 12th
"It often happens that one who was tepid and indifferent before his fall becomes, through repentance, a strong and fervent soldier of Christ."
"We gain no merit from good works if we have not learned to endure injuries with patience."
Ven. Louis of Granada (1505-1588), Confessor; Granada, Spain
"Make it a point of honor to owe no man, and you will thus enjoy peaceful slumbers, a quiet conscience, a contented life, and a happy death. The means of acquiring these precious results is to control your desires and appetites and to govern your expenditure by your income, not by your caprices. Our debts proceed from our ill-regulated, uncontrolled desires more than from our necessities, and consequently moderation is more profitable than the largest revenues.
"Let us be convinced that the only real riches, the only real treasures, are those which the Apostle bids us seek when he tells us to fly covetousness and pursue justice, godliness, faith, charity, patience, and mildness, for godliness with contentment is great gain. Be contented with the position in which God has placed you. Man would always enjoy peace did he accept the portion which God gives him; but, seeking to gratify ambition or cupidity, which craves more than God has given him, he exposes himself to trouble and disquiet, for real happiness or success can never be known by one who strives against the will of God."
St Gregory the Great (540-604), Confessor, Pope, Doctor of the Church; Rome, Italy; Feast day March 12th
"It often happens that one who was tepid and indifferent before his fall becomes, through repentance, a strong and fervent soldier of Christ."
"We gain no merit from good works if we have not learned to endure injuries with patience."
Thursday, May 2, 2013
May 2nd
St Athanasius (296-373); Bishop, Confessor, Doctor of the Church; Alexandria, Egypt
"The Son of God took upon Himself our poverty and miseries, that He might impart to us a share of His riches. His sufferings will render us one day impassible, and His death immortal. His tears will be our joy, His burial our resurrection, and His baptism is our sanctification, according to what He says in His gospel: For them I sanctify myself, that they also may be made holy in fruits."
"Hold fast to the tradition, teaching, and faith proclaimed by the apostles and guarded by the fathers."
"Jesus that I know as my Redeemer cannot be less than God."
"Both from the confession of the evil spirits and from the daily witness of His works, it is manifest, then, and let none presume to doubt it, that the Savior has raised His own body, and that He is very Son of God, having His being from God as from a Father, Whose Word and Wisdom and Whose Power He is. He it is Who in these latter days assumed a body for the salvation of us all, and taught the world concerning the Father. He it is Who has destroyed death and freely graced us all with incorruption through the promise of the resurrection, having raised His own body as its first-fruits, and displayed it by the sign of the cross as the monument to His victory over death and its corruption."
"But for the searching and right understanding of the Scriptures there is need of a good life and a pure soul, and for Christian virtue to guide the mind to grasp, so far as human nature can, the truth concerning God the Word. One cannot possibly understand the teaching of the saints unless one has a pure mind and is trying to imitate their life. Anyone who wants to look at sunlight naturally wipes his eye clear first, in order to make, at any rate, some approximation to the purity of that on which he looks; and a person wishing to see a city or country goes to the place in order to do so. Similarly, anyone who wishes to understand the mind of the sacred writers must first cleanse his own life, and approach the saints by copying their deeds. Thus united to them in the fellowship of life, he will both understand the things revealed to them by God and, thenceforth escaping the peril that threatens sinners in the judgment, will receive that which is laid up for the saints in the kingdom of heaven."
"These are fountains of salvation that they who thirst may be satisfied with the living words they contain. In these alone is proclaimed the doctrine of godliness. Let no man add to these, neither let him take out from these. For concerning these, the Lord put to shame the Sadducees, and said, "Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures" and He reproved the Jews, saying, "Search the Scriptures, for these are they that testify of ME."
"The Son of God became man so that we might become God."
St Athanasius (296-373); Bishop, Confessor, Doctor of the Church; Alexandria, Egypt
"The Son of God took upon Himself our poverty and miseries, that He might impart to us a share of His riches. His sufferings will render us one day impassible, and His death immortal. His tears will be our joy, His burial our resurrection, and His baptism is our sanctification, according to what He says in His gospel: For them I sanctify myself, that they also may be made holy in fruits."
"Hold fast to the tradition, teaching, and faith proclaimed by the apostles and guarded by the fathers."
"Jesus that I know as my Redeemer cannot be less than God."
"Both from the confession of the evil spirits and from the daily witness of His works, it is manifest, then, and let none presume to doubt it, that the Savior has raised His own body, and that He is very Son of God, having His being from God as from a Father, Whose Word and Wisdom and Whose Power He is. He it is Who in these latter days assumed a body for the salvation of us all, and taught the world concerning the Father. He it is Who has destroyed death and freely graced us all with incorruption through the promise of the resurrection, having raised His own body as its first-fruits, and displayed it by the sign of the cross as the monument to His victory over death and its corruption."
"But for the searching and right understanding of the Scriptures there is need of a good life and a pure soul, and for Christian virtue to guide the mind to grasp, so far as human nature can, the truth concerning God the Word. One cannot possibly understand the teaching of the saints unless one has a pure mind and is trying to imitate their life. Anyone who wants to look at sunlight naturally wipes his eye clear first, in order to make, at any rate, some approximation to the purity of that on which he looks; and a person wishing to see a city or country goes to the place in order to do so. Similarly, anyone who wishes to understand the mind of the sacred writers must first cleanse his own life, and approach the saints by copying their deeds. Thus united to them in the fellowship of life, he will both understand the things revealed to them by God and, thenceforth escaping the peril that threatens sinners in the judgment, will receive that which is laid up for the saints in the kingdom of heaven."
"These are fountains of salvation that they who thirst may be satisfied with the living words they contain. In these alone is proclaimed the doctrine of godliness. Let no man add to these, neither let him take out from these. For concerning these, the Lord put to shame the Sadducees, and said, "Ye do err, not knowing the Scriptures" and He reproved the Jews, saying, "Search the Scriptures, for these are they that testify of ME."
"The Son of God became man so that we might become God."
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
May 1st
St James the Less (AD 62), Apostle, Martyr; Palestine; Feast day May 1st
"but if any of you is wanting wisdom, let him ask it of God, who gives abundantly to all men, and does not reproach; and it will be given to him. But let him ask with faith, without hesitation."
"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no change, nor shadow of alteration."
"Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been tried, he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love Him."
"But let every man be sift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath. For the wrath of man does not work the justice of God."
"And if anyone thinks himself to be religious, not restraining his tongue but deceiving his own heart, that man's religion is vain. Religion pure and undefiled before God the father is this: to give aid to orphans and widows in their tribulation, and to keep oneself unspotted from this world."
"For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith also without works is dead."
"For every kind of beast and bird, and of serpents and the rest, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind; but the tongue no man can tame -- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless God the Father; and with it we curse men, who have been made after the likeness of God."
"But the wisdom that is from above is first of all chaste, then peaceable, moderate, docile, in harmony with good things, full of mercy and good fruits, without judging, without dissimulation. The fruit of justice is sown in peace by those who make peace."
"Whoever wishes to be a friend of this world becomes an enemy of God."
"Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you....Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you."
St James the Less (AD 62), Apostle, Martyr; Palestine; Feast day May 1st
"but if any of you is wanting wisdom, let him ask it of God, who gives abundantly to all men, and does not reproach; and it will be given to him. But let him ask with faith, without hesitation."
"Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of Lights, with whom there is no change, nor shadow of alteration."
"Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been tried, he will receive the crown of life which God has promised to those who love Him."
"But let every man be sift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath. For the wrath of man does not work the justice of God."
"And if anyone thinks himself to be religious, not restraining his tongue but deceiving his own heart, that man's religion is vain. Religion pure and undefiled before God the father is this: to give aid to orphans and widows in their tribulation, and to keep oneself unspotted from this world."
"For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith also without works is dead."
"For every kind of beast and bird, and of serpents and the rest, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind; but the tongue no man can tame -- a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless God the Father; and with it we curse men, who have been made after the likeness of God."
"But the wisdom that is from above is first of all chaste, then peaceable, moderate, docile, in harmony with good things, full of mercy and good fruits, without judging, without dissimulation. The fruit of justice is sown in peace by those who make peace."
"Whoever wishes to be a friend of this world becomes an enemy of God."
"Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you....Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he will exalt you."
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